King Choranaga - House of Moriya i | Anuradhapura - (BC 62 - BC 50) - Sri Lankan History - Kings - Governors - Prisidents

King Choranaga

House of Moriya i | Anuradhapura - (BC 62 - BC 50)

After the death of King Machudi (Mahāchūlika Mahātissa), Prince Choranāga ascended the throne. He was a son of King Vaṭṭagāmini Abhaya. Like Prince Mahāchūlika, this prince too had spent fourteen years in hiding together with Vaṭṭagāmini Abhaya. During this period, however, no information about his activities is found in any chronicle, nor is there any record of his involvement in the battles led by King Vaṭṭagāmini. The name given to him by his parents was either Nāga or Mahānāga. Since he had behaved as a heretic (Dhāmarika) during the time of King Mahasīlu, he came to be known as Choranāga (“Rogue Nāga” or “Rebel Nāga”). Before his accession to the throne, his conduct is described in a single note found in the chronicles. According to monastic custom, any traveler or stranger arriving at a monastery was to be given shelter. However, when Prince Choranāga was living as a heretic, eighteen monasteries refused to give him lodging. It is said that he wandered through many parts of the island as a mendicant ascetic. That the monks were unwilling to grant lodging to a royal prince suggests that they considered him an enemy of the state because of his heretical behavior, which might have threatened the kingdom. It is also possible that he had not conducted himself with moral restraint. Whatever the reason, it is clear that his disposition remained unchanged even after he became king. He destroyed the same eighteen monasteries that had once refused him shelter. The Mahāvaṃsa states that he ruled for twelve years, and upon his death was reborn in a hellish world because of his impious deeds. <hr data-end="1851" data-start="1848" /> <h3 data-end="1879" data-start="1853"> The Nature of His Rule</h3> The evil actions of Choranāga mark the first dark episode in what had previously been a period of peace and stability. He did not become a rebel or thief (“chora”) during the later years of King Mahasīlu’s reign, but rather it appears that his envy of the people’s reverence for the pious and meritorious king led him to rebellion. The king’s religious life and virtuous conduct had earned him great popular admiration. This may have fueled Prince Nāga’s frustration and his premature ambition for the throne. Hence, his revolt against King Mahasīlu might have been driven by jealousy. Some scholars hold that he became a heretic because the throne, which he believed to be his inheritance, was given instead to Prince Mahasīlu Mahātissa. However, according to the prevailing royal succession system of that time, the throne was not passed from father to son but from brother to brother. Only after all brothers had ruled in turn did the right pass to the eldest brother’s son. Therefore, it was proper that the crown, after King Vaṭṭagāmini Abhaya, should have gone to Prince Mahasīlu Mahātissa, the son of King Khallāṭanāga, and not to Prince Choranāga. <hr data-end="3073" data-start="3070" /> <h3 data-end="3111" data-start="3075"> Legends and Records of His Reign</h3> The Rājāvaliya records a remarkable event during Choranāga’s reign. It says that King Milinda, who ruled in India (Dambadiva), became enamored with a certain woman, conspired to kill her husband, and married her. Enraged by this act, the woman cursed the king and then committed suicide by throwing herself into the fire. Because of this curse, a drought lasting twelve years afflicted India. The chronicler adds that due to the wicked deeds of King Choranāga, a similar drought struck Sri Lanka for three years. The Sulu Rājāvaliya places this incident instead during the reign of King Vaṭṭagāmini Abhaya. Though this legend is not found in the Mahāvaṃsa, it has clearly entered the aṭṭhakathā (commentaries), where it is ascribed to Vaṭṭagāmini’s time. <hr data-end="3901" data-start="3898" /> <h3 data-end="3923" data-start="3903"> Death and Legacy</h3> Choranāga’s depraved actions alienated not only his people but also his own queen, Queen Anulā. According to the Mahāvaṃsa, she ended his life by giving him poison in a cup. Other chronicles such as the Pūjāvaliya and Rājāvaliya, however, say that the people themselves rose up and killed him, and make no mention of any queen named Anulā. As mentioned earlier, Choranāga had destroyed eighteen monasteries that had once refused him shelter when he lived as a heretic. These acts of sacrilege likely provoked widespread public outrage. It is possible that Queen Anulā took advantage of this situation to exact her own revenge or fulfill her own desires. According to the chronicles, King Choranāga reigned for twelve years.