Jitamitra Malla Explained

Succession:King of Bhaktapur
Reign:24 November 1673 — 21 September 1696
Coronation:24 November 1673
Predecessor:Jagat Prakasha Malla
Jitamitra Malla
Sumati
Successor:Bhupatindra Malla
Full Name:Jayajitamitra Malla
Regnal Name:Sri Sri Sumati Jayajitamitra Malla Deva
Dynasty:Malla
Father:Sri Jaya Jagatprakasa Malla
Mother:Padmāvati Devi
Signature:Signature of King Jitamitra Malla of Bhaktapur.svg
Spouse:Lālamati
Birth Date:Unknown date
Birth Place:Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Kingdom of Bhaktapur(Present day Bhaktapur, Nepal)
Death Date:January 1705
Death Place:Bhaktapur, Nepal

Jitamitra Malla (Newar:) was a Malla Dynasty King of Bhaktapur, Nepal from 1673 till his abdication in 1696. He was also known by his nom de plume, Sumati, meaning the "the wise one".[1]

He left his throne in 1696 to his eldest son Bhupatindra Malla to spend the rest of his life in religious activities.[2] [3] He died 14 years after leaving the throne.[4] [5]

Construction efforts

A son of Sri Jaya Jagatprakasa Malla Raja, Jitamitra was noted for his construction projects. In 1674 he built a Shikara-style Shiva temple with a gilded repousse mask of the God on each side in Bhaktapur. In 1682 he built near the Durbar the two-storied Dharmasala Palace with a golden Mahadeva.[6] The palace was used by royalty until 1769 and today is a museum and part of the World Heritage Site on Durbar Square. To the east of this, he erected the temple and statue of Narayana, along with the temples of Dattatrikasa and Pashupati. An inscription in 1678 states that he built the royal palace Thanathu Dubar and its gardens and courtyard. Jitamitra was also credited with restoring Kumari Chowk, the images of Astamatrikas and, in 1690, donated two large cooper kettledrums (nagara) or bells to his favourite deity, the goddess Taleju for the gilded roof of Taleju.[7] He also contributed a finely carved wooden tympanum above the main entrance to the Mul Chowk and also erected many memorials in Bhaktapur.[6]

His son, Bhupatindra Malla who succeed him in 1696 was equally fascinated with architecture, and continued the development of the Dharmsala Palace, its 55 windows and gardens.[6]

Maithili dramas

Jitamitramalla is known to have composed ten dramas in the Maithili language although none of these have been published.[8]

Notes and References

  1. Book: Widdess, Professor Richard . Dāphā: Sacred Singing in a South Asian City: Music, Performance and Meaning in Bhaktapur, Nepal . 2013-12-02 . Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. . 978-1-4094-6601-7 . 288 . en.
  2. Book: Upadhaya, Prof Dr Shreeram Prasasd. Nepal ko Prachin tatha Madhyakalin Itihas. Ratna Pustak Bhandar. 2009. 978-9993304555. Nepal. 196. Ne.
  3. Bajracharya. Dhanbajra. January 1996. Mallakal ko Itihasik Samagri: Dhar Pau. Contribution to Nepalese Studies. Ne. 23.
  4. Book: Upadhaya, Prof Dr Shreeram Prasasd. Nepal ko Prachin tatha Madhyakalin Itihas. Ratna Pustak Bhandar. 2009. 978-9993304555. Nepal. 196. Ne.
  5. Bajracharya. Dhanbajra. January 1996. Mallakal ko Itihasik Samagri: Dhar Pau. Contribution to Nepalese Studies. Ne. 23.
  6. Book: Singh, Munshi . Gunanand, Pandit Sri. The History of Nepal. 1877. Low Price Publications, Delhi, India. 131.
  7. Web site: Bhaktapur Durbar Square . Government of Nepal Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Department of Archaeology . 8 October 2009 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090911190736/http://www.doa.gov.np/index/bhaktapur.html . 11 September 2009 .
  8. Yadav . Ramawatar . Medieval Maithili stagecraft in the Nepalamandala: the Bhaktapur school . Contributions to Nepalese Studies . 2011 .