Kosala as a geographical unit was existed in ancient Odisha. The earliest depiction of
Kosala is found in the Parisistha of the Atharvaveda. The Epics and the Puranas also throw light
on its ancient history. It was named after an ancient people called Kosalas. The kingdom of Kosala was divided into two units- Uttara (north) and Daksina (south) from very early time. The territory of Kosala is attributed to a mythical origin. According to the Puranas and the Ramayana epic, Ayodhya was the capital of Kosala during the reign of Ikshvaku and his descendants. Rama, the Prince of Kosala, being banished with his brother Laxmana and his wife Sita traveled south from Ayodhya to Prayaga. Travelling south-west up to Narmada valley, he came up to a place identified with modern Chhatisgarh area. He dwelt there for at least a decade. That region was named Dakshina Kosala (South Kosala), after his original homeland Kosala. The Ramayana projects the fact that after Rama, the kingdom of Kosala was divided between his two sons, Lava and Kusa holding sway over North Kosala and South Kosala respectively. Sravasti was the centre of political activities for North Kosala while Kusavati or Kusthalipura, near the Vindhyas, was regarded as the citadel of political power for
Southern Kosala. Kosala also finds mention in the "Vana Parva" of the Mahabharata. The great epic remains silent about Uttara Kosala (North Kosala) which comprised the Ayodhya region.
H. C. Raychaudhuri locates Dakshina Kosala in the territory comprising the modern districts of Bilaspur, Raipur and undivided Sambalpur. The Allahabad pillar inscription of Harisena includes Kosala among the territories of Dakshinapatha which were subjugated by Samudragupta. Kosala along with Mekala and Malava formed the empire of the Vakatakas and after their fall, it came under the grip of the Sarbapuriyas. Chinese pilgrim, Hiuen Tsang who visited Kosala in 639 A D. described the kingdom as 6000 li in circuit. As per the description, it may be presumed that Kosala comprised the districts of Bilaspur and Raipur in Madhya Pradesh along with the undivided districts of Sundargarh, Sambalpur and Bolangir in Odisha. Kosala remained under the Somavamsis in the eighth-ninth century A.D. At about the middle of the ninth century A.D. when Kalachuris of Dahala became a rival power of the Somavamsis, the latter had to shift the center of their political activities to Sripura which was captured by the Kalachuris subsequently. Then, the Somavamsis had to shift their head quarters to various places like Murasimakataka, Arama and Vinitapura identified with Murshing, Rampur and Binaka respectively, all in the Bolangir district.
With the annexation of Khinjali mandala, Yajatinagara became the capital of Kosala. The
formidable Somavamsi king Yajati II brought Kosala and Utkala under one umbrella about the
middle of the eleventh century A. D., making Suvarnapura (at the confluence Mahanadi and Tel)
the capital of Kosala and Yajatinagar, (in Jajpur) the capital of Utkala. When the Somavamsi power declined away, the Telugu Chodas occupied Kosala towards the close of the eleventh century A.D. They were subsequently driven away by the Kalachuris who established their sway over the region for a long time till the Gangas established their authority over this region and their rule continued till the middle of fourteenth century A.D. The Chauhans rose to political prominence and made Sambalpur the center of their political activities. They became the overlord eighteen states (Atharagarha) comprising almost the whole Kosala country described by the Chinese pilgrim Hiuen Tsang.
Kosala is found in the Parisistha of the Atharvaveda. The Epics and the Puranas also throw light
on its ancient history. It was named after an ancient people called Kosalas. The kingdom of Kosala was divided into two units- Uttara (north) and Daksina (south) from very early time. The territory of Kosala is attributed to a mythical origin. According to the Puranas and the Ramayana epic, Ayodhya was the capital of Kosala during the reign of Ikshvaku and his descendants. Rama, the Prince of Kosala, being banished with his brother Laxmana and his wife Sita traveled south from Ayodhya to Prayaga. Travelling south-west up to Narmada valley, he came up to a place identified with modern Chhatisgarh area. He dwelt there for at least a decade. That region was named Dakshina Kosala (South Kosala), after his original homeland Kosala. The Ramayana projects the fact that after Rama, the kingdom of Kosala was divided between his two sons, Lava and Kusa holding sway over North Kosala and South Kosala respectively. Sravasti was the centre of political activities for North Kosala while Kusavati or Kusthalipura, near the Vindhyas, was regarded as the citadel of political power for
Southern Kosala. Kosala also finds mention in the "Vana Parva" of the Mahabharata. The great epic remains silent about Uttara Kosala (North Kosala) which comprised the Ayodhya region.
H. C. Raychaudhuri locates Dakshina Kosala in the territory comprising the modern districts of Bilaspur, Raipur and undivided Sambalpur. The Allahabad pillar inscription of Harisena includes Kosala among the territories of Dakshinapatha which were subjugated by Samudragupta. Kosala along with Mekala and Malava formed the empire of the Vakatakas and after their fall, it came under the grip of the Sarbapuriyas. Chinese pilgrim, Hiuen Tsang who visited Kosala in 639 A D. described the kingdom as 6000 li in circuit. As per the description, it may be presumed that Kosala comprised the districts of Bilaspur and Raipur in Madhya Pradesh along with the undivided districts of Sundargarh, Sambalpur and Bolangir in Odisha. Kosala remained under the Somavamsis in the eighth-ninth century A.D. At about the middle of the ninth century A.D. when Kalachuris of Dahala became a rival power of the Somavamsis, the latter had to shift the center of their political activities to Sripura which was captured by the Kalachuris subsequently. Then, the Somavamsis had to shift their head quarters to various places like Murasimakataka, Arama and Vinitapura identified with Murshing, Rampur and Binaka respectively, all in the Bolangir district.
With the annexation of Khinjali mandala, Yajatinagara became the capital of Kosala. The
formidable Somavamsi king Yajati II brought Kosala and Utkala under one umbrella about the
middle of the eleventh century A. D., making Suvarnapura (at the confluence Mahanadi and Tel)
the capital of Kosala and Yajatinagar, (in Jajpur) the capital of Utkala. When the Somavamsi power declined away, the Telugu Chodas occupied Kosala towards the close of the eleventh century A.D. They were subsequently driven away by the Kalachuris who established their sway over the region for a long time till the Gangas established their authority over this region and their rule continued till the middle of fourteenth century A.D. The Chauhans rose to political prominence and made Sambalpur the center of their political activities. They became the overlord eighteen states (Atharagarha) comprising almost the whole Kosala country described by the Chinese pilgrim Hiuen Tsang.
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