Gomanta Kingdom
Encyclopedia
Gomanta was a kingdom mentioned in the epic Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....

. It was an extension of the kingdom of Yadavas
Yadu
Yadu is one of the five Indo-Aryan tribes mentioned in the Rig Veda . The Mahabharata, the Harivamsha and the Puranas mention Yadu as the eldest son of king Yayati and his queen Devayani. The prince of King Yayati, Yadu was a self-respecting and a very established ruler...

 at Dwaraka
Dwaraka Kingdom
In the Mahabharata, Dvārakā is the capital of the Yadus who ruled the Anarta Kingdom....

. It is identified to be the Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...

 state of India, situated in the western coast. It was the southern most extend of the region, occupied by the Yadava
Yadu
Yadu is one of the five Indo-Aryan tribes mentioned in the Rig Veda . The Mahabharata, the Harivamsha and the Puranas mention Yadu as the eldest son of king Yayati and his queen Devayani. The prince of King Yayati, Yadu was a self-respecting and a very established ruler...

 clans, finding explicit mention in Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....

.

Establishment of Gomanta Kingdom by Yadavas

The Yadavas of Mathura, the capital of Surasena Kingdom
Surasena Kingdom
Surasena Kingdom was ruled by Yaduvanshi kings as per the epic Mahabharata. It is said to be named after the King Shoorsen. The capital city of this kingdom, Mathura was founded by Shatrughna, the brother of Sri Rama the ruler of Kosala in Treta Yuga. He conquered this region after defeating the...

, fled from there due to the continuous attack of Magadha
Magadha Kingdom
Magadha was a kingdom ruled by non-Vedic kings. Jarasandha was the greatest among them during epic times. His capital was Rajagriha or Rajgir a modern hill resort in Bihar. Jarasandha's continuous assault on the Yadava kingdom of Surasena resulted in their withdrawal from central India to western...

 king Jarasandha
Jarasandha
Jarasandha was a great and legendary king of Magadha. He was the son of a vedic king named Brihadratha. He was also a great devotee of Lord Shiva. But he is generally held in negative light owing to his enmity with the Yadav clan in the Mahābhārata....

. They have reached as far south as Gomanta, the modern Indian state called Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...

.

The unrighteous king of Surasena Kingdom
Surasena Kingdom
Surasena Kingdom was ruled by Yaduvanshi kings as per the epic Mahabharata. It is said to be named after the King Shoorsen. The capital city of this kingdom, Mathura was founded by Shatrughna, the brother of Sri Rama the ruler of Kosala in Treta Yuga. He conquered this region after defeating the...

, viz Kansa
Kamsa
In Hinduism, Kamsa or Kansa , often known as Kans in Hindi, is the brother of Devaki, and ruler of the Vrishni kingdom with its capital at Mathura. His father was King Ugrasena and mother was Queen Padmavati...

 was slain by Vasudeva Krishna. Kansa's wives Asti and Prapti, where the daughters of Jarasandha
Jarasandha
Jarasandha was a great and legendary king of Magadha. He was the son of a vedic king named Brihadratha. He was also a great devotee of Lord Shiva. But he is generally held in negative light owing to his enmity with the Yadav clan in the Mahābhārata....

, the king of Magadha
Magadha Kingdom
Magadha was a kingdom ruled by non-Vedic kings. Jarasandha was the greatest among them during epic times. His capital was Rajagriha or Rajgir a modern hill resort in Bihar. Jarasandha's continuous assault on the Yadava kingdom of Surasena resulted in their withdrawal from central India to western...

. He attacked the kinsmen of Krishna. The Surasena Yadava
Yadu
Yadu is one of the five Indo-Aryan tribes mentioned in the Rig Veda . The Mahabharata, the Harivamsha and the Puranas mention Yadu as the eldest son of king Yayati and his queen Devayani. The prince of King Yayati, Yadu was a self-respecting and a very established ruler...

s, consisting of the eighteen younger branches of the Yadavas with their 18000 brothers and cousins, arrived at the conclusion that even if they fight continually they still could be unable to do anything unto Jarasandha
Jarasandha
Jarasandha was a great and legendary king of Magadha. He was the son of a vedic king named Brihadratha. He was also a great devotee of Lord Shiva. But he is generally held in negative light owing to his enmity with the Yadav clan in the Mahābhārata....

 even in 300 years. They fled from Mathura, towards west. They rebuilt the old town of Kusasthali(see:Cortalim
Cortalim
Cortalim is a village in Saxtti , Goa, India.The original Magueshi Temple stood in this village before it was destroyed by the Portuguese. The village is today mainly Christian....

), and renamed it Dwaraka
Dwaraka Kingdom
In the Mahabharata, Dvārakā is the capital of the Yadus who ruled the Anarta Kingdom....

. It was a Yadava strong-hold. Yet, due to the oppressions of Jarasandha, Yadavas where obliged to migrate further south, to the mountains of Gomanta, measuring three Yojanas (a unit of length) in length. Within each yojana were established, 21 posts of armed men. And at intervals of each yojana were 100 gates with arches which were defended by valiant heroes engaged in guarding them. Innumerable Kshatriya
Kshatriya
*For the Bollywood film of the same name see Kshatriya Kshatriya or Kashtriya, meaning warrior, is one of the four varnas in Hinduism...

s invincible in war, belonging to the eighteen younger branches of the Yadavas, were employed in defending these works. (2,14)

Other references

In the Krauncha island, there is a mountain called Maha-krauncha that is a mine of all kinds of gems. There is another mountain called Gomanta that is huge and consists of all kinds of metals. (9,12)
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK