Chetaka
Encyclopedia
Chetaka, called King Chetaka or President Chetaka was the representative of the Licchavi
clan who ruled as a Republic
an President
in Vaishali
(India
) reputed to have organised the Vajji
an confederation
of republics comprising the 9 Mallakis, 18 Gana
Raja
s of Kashi
/Kosala
and 9 Licchavi Republics. He lived in the 5th century BC and was a contemporary of Buddha
and Mahavira
. His system of government
appears to have been a republican committee which elected a ceremonial king to act upon the committee's advice.
Licchavi (clan)
The Licchavis were the most famous clan amongst the ruling confederate clans of the Vajji mahajanapada of ancient India. Vaishali, the capital of the Licchavis, was the capital of the Vajji mahajanapada also. It was later occupied by Ajatashatru, who annexed the Vajji territory into his...
clan who ruled as a Republic
Republic
A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...
an President
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
in Vaishali
Vaishali (ancient city)
Vaiśālī was the capital city of the Licchavi, one of world's first republics, in the Vajjian Confederacy mahajanapada, around the 6th century BC. It was here in 599 BCE the 24th Jain Tirthankara, Bhagwan Mahavira was born and brought up in Kundalagrama in Vaiśālī republic, which make pious &...
(India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
) reputed to have organised the Vajji
Vajji
Vajji or Vrijji was one of the principal Mahajanapadas of ancient India. Both the Buddhist text Anguttara Nikaya and the Jaina text Bhagavati Sutra included Vajji in their lists of solasa Maha-Janapadas. The name of this Mahajanapada was derived from one of its ruling clans, the Vṛjis...
an confederation
Confederation
A confederation in modern political terms is a permanent union of political units for common action in relation to other units. Usually created by treaty but often later adopting a common constitution, confederations tend to be established for dealing with critical issues such as defense, foreign...
of republics comprising the 9 Mallakis, 18 Gana
Gana
The word ' , in Sanskrit, means "flock, troop, multitude, number, tribe, series, class" . It can also be used to refer to a "body of attendants" and can refer to "a company, any assemblage or association of men formed for the attainment of the same aims".In Hinduism, the s are attendants of Shiva...
Raja
Raja
Raja is an Indian term for a monarch, or princely ruler of the Kshatriya varna...
s of Kashi
Varanasi
-Etymology:The name Varanasi has its origin possibly from the names of the two rivers Varuna and Assi, for the old city lies in the north shores of the Ganga bounded by its two tributaries, the Varuna and the Asi, with the Ganges being to its south...
/Kosala
Kosala
Kosala was an ancient Indian region, corresponding roughly in area with the region of Awadh in present day Uttar Pradesh. According to the Buddhist text Anguttara Nikaya and the Jaina text, the Bhagavati Sutra, Kosala was one of the Solasa Mahajanapadas in 6th century BCE and its cultural and...
and 9 Licchavi Republics. He lived in the 5th century BC and was a contemporary of Buddha
Gautama Buddha
Siddhārtha Gautama was a spiritual teacher from the Indian subcontinent, on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. In most Buddhist traditions, he is regarded as the Supreme Buddha Siddhārtha Gautama (Sanskrit: सिद्धार्थ गौतम; Pali: Siddhattha Gotama) was a spiritual teacher from the Indian...
and Mahavira
Mahavira
Mahāvīra is the name most commonly used to refer to the Indian sage Vardhamāna who established what are today considered to be the central tenets of Jainism. According to Jain tradition, he was the 24th and the last Tirthankara. In Tamil, he is referred to as Arukaṉ or Arukadevan...
. His system of government
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
appears to have been a republican committee which elected a ceremonial king to act upon the committee's advice.
External link references
- http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~pluralsm/affiliates/jainism/article/mahavira1.htm
- http://www.freeindia.org/biographies/sages/mahaveer/page2.htm
- http://www.jainworld.org/general/prem/Chapter%20VII%20fe.htm
- http://www.jainworld.com/jainbooks/images/18/Life_of_Vardhamana_Mahavira.htm
- http://www.jainworld.com/jainbooks/life%20&legacy%20of%20mahavira/CHAPTER%20II.htm
- http://www.thebharat.com/tourism/forts/vishalfort.html
- http://www.hindubooks.org/temples/bihar/vaisali/index.htm