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{{Short description|Ruler of Tripuri (c. 1041–1073)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2019}}
{{Use Indian English|date=May 2019}}
{{Infobox royalty
| image = [[File:Inscription of King (Lakshmi)karna.png|frameless|]]
| caption = Rewa stone inscription of king Lakshmikarna<ref>{{cite book |last=Mirashi |first=Vasudev Vishnu |title=Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum, Volume IV: Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era |year=1955 |publisher=Government Epigraphist for India |location=Ootacamund |page=598 |url=https://archive.org/details/in.gov.ignca.3722/page/n597/mode/2up}}</ref>
| name = Lakshmikarna
| title = [[Chakravartin]], Paramabhattaraka Maharajadhiraja Parameshvara
| succession = King of Dahala
| reign = c. 1041–1073 CE
| dynasty = [[Kalachuris of Tripuri]]
| predecessor = [[Gangeyadeva]]
| successor = [[Yashahkarna]]
| father = Gangeyadeva
| spouse = Avalladevi
| issue = Yashahkarna
}}
'''Lakshmikarna''' ([[IAST]]: Lakśmi-Karṇa; {{reign}} {{circa}} 1041–1073 CE), also known as '''Karna''', was a ruler of the [[Kalachuris of Tripuri|Kalachuri dynasty]] of Tripuri in central India. His kingdom was centered around the Chedi or Dahala region in present-day [[Madhya Pradesh]].

The most famous king of his dynasty, Lakshmikarna raided territories of several neighbouring kingdoms, including those of the [[Chandra dynasty|Chandras]], the [[Chola dynasty|Cholas]], the [[Chalukyas of Kalyani|Kalyani Chalukyas]], the [[Chaulukya]]s, the [[Chandela]]s, and the [[Pala Empire|Palas]]. After several military successes, he assumed the title of ''[[Chakravartin]]'' in 1052-1053 CE. Around 1055 CE, he played an important role in the downfall of the [[Paramara dynasty|Paramara]] king [[Bhoja]], and captured a part of the Paramara kingdom of [[Malwa]] after Bhoja's death. By the end of his reign, however, he suffered several setbacks and lost control of Malwa to Bhoja's brother [[Udayaditya]].

== Military career ==
[[File:Karna Temple, Amarkantak.jpg|thumb|The Karan temple at [[Amarkantak]], built by Lakshmikarna]]
Lakshmikarna succeeded his father [[Gangeyadeva]] on the throne of Tripuri in 1041 CE.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=490}}

=== Early raids ===

The 1048-49 Rewa stone inscription describes Lakshmikarna's military successes in the eastern regions of [[Bengal|Vanga]] (modern Bengal) and [[Anga]].{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=491}} In Vanga, Karna defeated a [[Chandra dynasty|Chandra]] king, possibly [[Govindachandra (Chandra dynasty)|Govindachandra]]. He appointed Vajradaman as the governor of the captured territory. Vajradaman's son Jatavarman married Lakshmikarna's daughter Virashri, and later aided him in his Anga campaign.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=491}}

The Rewa inscription also claims that Lakshmikarna attacked [[Kanchi]] in the south. This suggests that he fought with the [[Chola dynasty|Chola]] king [[Rajadhiraja Chola|Rajadhiraja]].{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=491}}

In the inscription, Lakshmikarna claims to have seized the fortune of the king of [[Kuntala country|Kuntala]], who is identified with the [[Chalukyas of Kalyani|Kalyani Chalukya]] king [[Someshvara I]]. However, the Chalukya court poet [[Bilhana]] claims that Someshvara destroyed the power of Lakshmikarna. This suggests that the war between the two kings was indecisive.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=491}}

The Rewa inscription further states that Lakshmikarna invaded the [[Gurjaradesa|Gurjara]] country, where he turned the local women into widows. An [[Apabhramsha]] verse cited in ''Prakrita-paingala'' also suggests that Lakshmikarna defeated a Gurjara king. This king can be identified with the [[Chaulukya]] king [[Bhima I]]. It appears that peace was established between the two kingdoms, as Bhima later participated in one of Lakshmikarna's campaigns.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=491}}

=== Chakravartin ===

In 1052–1053 CE (804 [[Kalachuris of Mahishmati|KE]]), Lakshmikarna crowned himself ''[[chakravartin]]'' (universal ruler). This is attested by the [[Rewa, Madhya Pradesh|Rewa]] inscription of his general Vappulla; this inscription is dated to Lakshmikarna's second regnal year as a ''chakravartin''.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=492}}

Lakshmikarna also bore the common grand titles ''Paramabhattaraka'', ''[[Maharajadhiraja]]'', and ''Parameshvara''. He inherited the title ''Trikalingadhipati'' from his father. In addition, he also assumed the title ''Rajatrayadhipati'' (Lord of three forces: horses, elephants and men). His successors also continued to use these titles, although they were not as powerful as Lakshmikarna.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=494}}

=== Bhoja and Bhima ===

[[Bhoja]], the [[Paramara dynasty|Paramara]] king of [[Malwa]], had defeated Lakshmikarna's father [[Gangeyadeva]]. In the mid-1050s, Lakshmikarna and the [[Chaulukya]] king [[Bhima I]] formed an alliance against Bhoja. Bhima attacked Malwa from the west, while Lakshmikarna attacked it from the east.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=492}}

According to the 14th century chronicler Merutunga, Bhoja died just as the two kings attacked Malwa. Bhima and Lakshmikarna had agreed to divide Bhoja's kingdom among themselves. But, Lakshmikarna annexed the entire Malwa region after Bhoja's death. As a result, Bhima invaded Lakshmikarna's kingdom and advanced up to his capital Tripuri. Lakshmikarna engineered a peace treaty by gifting him elephants, horses and the golden ''mandapika'' of Bhoja.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=492}}

Lakshmikarna lost the control of Malwa within a few months. Bhoja's successor [[Jayasimha I (Paramara dynasty)|Jayasimha]] sought assistance from the [[Chalukyas of Kalyani|Kalyani Chalukya]] king [[Someshvara I]] to restore the Paramara rule in Malwa.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=492}} Someshvara sent his son [[Vikramaditya VI]] to help Jayasimha. Lakshmikarna achieved early successes against Vikramaditya, but was ultimately defeated. Jayasimha gained back his ancestral throne in 1055 CE.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=492}}

=== Chandelas ===

Lakshmikarna subjugated the [[Chandela]] king [[Devavarman (Chandela dynasty)|Devavarman]] (r. c. 1050-1060 CE). The allegorical play ''Prabodha-Chandrodaya'', composed by Chandela court scholar Krishna Misra, suggests that the Kalachuri king de-throned the Chandela king. Another literary work — ''Vikramanka-Deva-Charita'' by [[Bilhana]] — states that the Kalachuri king Lakshmikarna was like the lord of death to the lord of [[Kalanjara]] (that is, Devavarman). The later Chandela inscriptions credit Devavarman's successor [[Kirttivarman (Chandela dynasty)|Kirttivarman]] with resurrecting the Chandela power.{{sfn|Sisirkumar Mitra|1977|p=91}} Thus, it appears that Devavarman was killed in a battle against Lakshmikarna.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=492}}

Lakshmikarna appears to have retained his control over a part of the Chandela territory for more than a decade. However, he was ultimately ousted by Kirttivarman, sometime before 1075-76 CE.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=492}}

=== Palas ===

Lakshmikarna invaded the [[Pala Empire|Pala]]-ruled [[Gauḍa (region)|Gauda region]] in the present-day [[West Bengal]]. A pillar inscription found at Paikar (or Paikore) in [[Birbhum district]] records the creation of an image at Lakshmikarna's order.{{sfn|Susan L. Huntington|1984|p=75}} This suggests that Lakshmikarna advanced up to as far as Birbhum district.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=492}}

The Siyan stone slab inscription from [[Nayapala]]'s reign states that Lakshmikarna was defeated.{{sfn|Susan L. Huntington|1984|p=75}} According to Tibetan accounts, the Buddhist monk [[Atisha]] engineered a peace treaty between Nayapala and the "king of Karnya of the West". Historian [[R. C. Majumdar]] identifies the second king as Lakshmikarna.{{sfn|Alaka Chattopadhyaya|1999|p=98}}

The 12th century Jain author [[Hemachandra]] states that Lakshmikarna defeated the king of Gauda, and that the king of Gauda offered Lakshmikarna a heavy tribute to save his life and his throne. According to V. V. Mirashi, this king might have been Nayapala's successor [[Vigrahapala III]]. The two kings ultimately concluded a peace treaty, with Lakshmikarna's daughter Yuvanashri marrying the Pala king.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=492}}

=== Alliance with Someshvara II ===

After the death of the [[Chalukyas of Kalyani|Kalyani Chalukya]] king Someshvara I, his two sons [[Someshvara II]] and [[Vikramaditya VI]] struggled to gain the throne. Lakshmikarna allied with Someshvara II, while the [[Paramara dynasty|Paramara]] king [[Jayasimha I (Paramara dynasty)|Jayasimha]] sided with Vikramaditya VI. The combined army of Lakshmikarna and Someshvara II attacked the Paramara kingdom of Malwa, and captured it after dethroning Jayasimha. However, Bhoja's brother [[Udayaditya]] defeated Lakshmikarna, and took control of the Paramara kingdom around 1073 CE.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=493}}

== Personal life ==

Lakshmikarna married a [[Huna people|Huna]] princess called Avalla-devi. According to the Kalachuri inscriptions, Lakshmikarna crowned his son [[Yashahkarna]] as the king, which suggests that he abdicated the throne in favour of his son. This must have happened around 1073 CE, as a 1076 CE inscription of Yashahkarna mentions some of the new king's campaigns.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=494}}Though he had other two elder daughters Veerashree and Yuvanashree, who was wife to [[Vigrahapala III]].{{citation needed|date=June 2022}}

== Cultural contributions ==

Lakshmikarna was the best known king of his dynasty, and was famous as a great warrior. But he was also a liberal patron of arts and culture.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=494}}

Lakshmikarna patronized several [[Sanskrit]], [[Prakrit]] and [[Apabhramsha]] scholars. These included the noted Sanskrit poet [[Bilhana]], whose ''Vikramnka-deva-charita'' states that he defeated one Gangadhara in a poetic competition held at Lakshmikarna's court.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=494}} His other court poets included Villana, Nachiraja, Karpura and Vidyapati.{{sfn|R. K. Sharma|1980|p=29}}

Lakshmikarna built the Karna-meru temple at [[Varanasi]]; it was probably dedicated to [[Shiva]]. He commissioned the Karna-tirtha [[ghat]] at [[Prayaga]] (modern Allahabad). He also established the Karnavati [[agrahara]] (village) for [[Brahmin]]s.{{sfn|V. V. Mirashi|1957|p=494}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

=== Bibliography ===
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |author=Alaka Chattopadhyaya |title=Atisa and Tibet: Life and Works of Dipamkara Srijnana in Relation to the History and Religion of Tibet with Tibetan Sources |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H8Ssa5r7MZkC&pg=PA98 |year=1999 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-0928-4 }}
* {{cite book |author=R. K. Sharma |title=The Kalachuris and their times |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iK0BAAAAMAAJ |year=1980 |publisher=Sundeep |oclc=7816720 }}
* {{cite book |author=Sisirkumar Mitra |title=The Early Rulers of Khajurāho |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |year=1977 |isbn=9788120819979 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=irHN2UA_Z7gC&pg=PA27 }}
* {{cite book |author=Susan L. Huntington |title=The "Påala-Sena" Schools of Sculpture |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xLA3AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA75 |year=1984 |publisher=Brill Archive |isbn=90-04-06856-2 }}
* {{cite book |author=V. V. Mirashi |author-link=Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi |chapter=The Kalacuris |editor=R. S. Sharma |title=A Comprehensive history of India: A.D. 985-1206 |volume=4 (Part 1) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ahFuAAAAMAAJ |year=1957 |publisher=Indian History Congress / People's Publishing House | isbn=978-81-7007-121-1 }}
{{refend}}

{{Kalachuris of Tripuri}}

[[Category:Kalachuris of Tripuri]]
[[Category:11th-century Indian monarchs]]

Lakshmikarna - Revision history

AarohamResort at 18:35, 23 July 2025