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Revision as of 11:47, 28 May 2024 by 47.31.238.243 (talk) (Janaka was a king hence royalty)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff) King of Mithila and father of Sita in epic RamayanaFor other uses, see Janaka (disambiguation) and Janak (disambiguation).
| Janaka | |
|---|---|
 Janaka welcoming Rama and his father Dasharatha to Mithila | |
| Maharaja of Videha | |
| Predecessor | Hrasvaroman |
| Born | Mithila |
| Spouse | Sunayana |
| Issue | Sita Urmila |
| House | Videha |
| Dynasty | Suryavamsha |
| Father | Hrasvaroman |
| Mother | Keikasi |
| Religion | Hinduism |
Janaka (Template:Lang-sa, IAST: Janakā) is the King of Videha who ruled from Mithila, in the Hindu epic Ramayana. Janaka was married to Sunayana. He is the father of the Sita, the female protagonist of the epic and Urmila.
Janaka is revered as being an ideal example of non-attachment to material possessions. He was intensely interested in spiritual discourse and considered himself free from worldly illusions. His interactions with sages and seekers such as Ashtavakra and Sulabha are recorded in the ancient texts.
Ancestry
King Nimi was the first ruler of the Videha kingdom. Janaka was descended from Vishnu in the following order:—Brahmā—Marīci—Kaśyapa—Vivasvān—Vaivasvata—Ikṣvāku—Nimi—Mithi—Udāvasu—Nandivardhana—Suketu—Devarāta—Bṛhadratha—Mahāvīra—Sudhṛti—Dhṛṣṭaketu—Haryaśva—Maru—Pratvantaka—Kīrtiratha—Devamīḍha—Vibudha—Mahīdhraka—Kīrtirāta—Mahāroman—Svarṇaroman—Hrasvaroman—Sīradhvaja (Janaka).
Janaka in Vedic literature
Late Vedic literature such as Shatapatha Brahmana and Brihadaranyaka Upanishad mention a certain King Janaka (c. 8th or 7th century BCE) as a great philosopher-king of Videha, renowned for his patronage of Vedic culture and philosophy and whose court was an intellectual center for Brahmin sages such as Yajnavalkya, Uddalaka Aruni, and Gargi Vachaknavi. Under his reign, Videha became a dominant political and cultural center of the Indian subcontinent.
Other literature
Janaka is the father of Sita, the wife of Rama in the Hindu epic Ramayana. His conversation with the sage Ashtavakra is recorded in the Ashtavakra Gita, wherein he is depicted as one who is realised and this was tested by the sage Ashtavakra. Many spiritual teachers have referred to this writing often translating and deducing its meaning.
In popular culture
Films
- Mikkilineni portrayed Janaka in the 1991 Telugu film Brahmarshi Viswamitra.
- Murali Mohan portrayed Janaka in the 2011 Telugu film Sri Rama Rajyam.
Television
- Mulraj Rajda portrayed Janaka in the 1987 series Ramayan and the 1988 series Luv Kush.
- Pradeep Sharma portrayed Janaka in the 2002 series Ramayan.
- Gyan Prakash portrayed Janaka in the 2008 series Ramayan.
- Mohit Chauhan portrayed Janaka in the 2011 series Devon Ke Dev...Mahadev.
- Radha Krishna Dutta portrayed Janaka in the 2012 series Ramayan.
- Bijay Anand portrayed Janaka in the 2015 series Siya Ke Ram.
- Shahbaz Khan portrayed Janaka in the 2018 series Ram Siya Ke Luv Kush.
- Jiten Lalwani portrayed Janaka in the 2024 series Shrimad Ramayan.
See also
References
- ^ Raychaudhuri 2006, pp. 41–52.
- "Ramayana | Summary, Characters, & Facts". Encyclopedia Britannica. Archived from the original on 12 April 2020. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
- www.wisdomlib.org (28 January 2019). "Story of Janaka". www.wisdomlib.org. Retrieved 10 September 2022.
- Michael Witzel (1989), Tracing the Vedic dialects in Dialectes Dans Les literatures Indo-Aryennes ed. Caillat, Paris, 97–265.
- Vanita, Ruth (2009). "Full of God:Ashtavakra and ideas of Justice in Hindu Text". Religions of South Asia. 3 (2). Archived from the original on 2 March 2019. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
- Mukerjee, Radhakamal (1971). The song of the self supreme (Aṣṭāvakragītā): the classical text of Ātmādvaita by Aṣṭāvakra. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. ISBN 978-81-208-1367-0.
- "Telugu Review: 'Sri Rama Rajyam' is a must watch". CNN-IBN. Archived from the original on 22 November 2011. Retrieved 20 November 2011.
- Dalrymple, William (23 August 2008). "All Indian life is here". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 2 September 2013. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
- "StarPlus' Siya Ke Ram: Everything you should know about the show". The Times of India. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
- "Ram Siya Ke Luv Kush". PINKVILLA. Archived from the original on 3 December 2020. Retrieved 5 August 2019.
- "Shrimad Ramayan Review, Episodes 1 and 2: A cinematic visual spectacle on small screen". Pinkvilla. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
Sources
- Dictionary of Hindu Lord and Legend (ISBN 0-500-51088-1) by Anna Dhallapiccola
- Raychaudhuri, Hemchandra (2006), Political History of Ancient India, Cosmo Publications, ISBN 81-307-0291-6
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