Gomanta was a kingdom mentioned in the epic

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the s ...

. It was an extension of the kingdom of

Yadavas The Yadava (literally, descended from Yadu) were an ancient Indian people who believed to be descended from Yadu, a legendary king of Chandravamsha lineage. The community was formed of various clans, being the Abhira, Andhaka, Vrishni, and S ...

Dwaraka Dvaraka, Dwaraka, Dwarka may refer to: Places India * Dvārakā, ancient city in Gujarat, the capital of the Yadus in the Mahabharata :* Dvārakā–Kamboja route, an ancient trade-route and a branch of the Silk Road * Dwarka, Gujarat, also k ...

. It is identified to be the

Goa Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...

state of India, situated in the western coast. It was the southernmost extent of the region, occupied by the

Yadava The Yadava (literally, descended from Yadu) were an ancient Indian people who believed to be descended from Yadu, a legendary king of Chandravamsha lineage. The community was formed of various clans, being the Abhira, Andhaka, Vrishni, and ...

clans, finding explicit mention in

References in Mahabharata

Gomanta was mentioned as a kingdom of Ancient India (Bharata Varsha) along with the Mandakas, the

Shanda Shanda Group is a privately-owned multinational investment firm. With offices in Shanghai, Singapore, Hong Kong, New York and Redwood City, the firm invests in public markets, real estate and venture capital, focusing on companies in the fields ...

s, the Vidharbas etc. (6,9).

Establishment of Gomanta Kingdom by Yadavas

The Yadavas of

Mathura Mathura () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Mathura district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located approximately north of Agra, and south-east of Delhi; about from the town of Vrindavan, and from Govardhan. ...

, the capital of Surasena Kingdom, fled from there due to the continuous attack of

Magadha Magadha was a region and one of the sixteen sa, script=Latn, Mahajanapadas, label=none, lit=Great Kingdoms of the Second Urbanization (600–200 BCE) in what is now south Bihar (before expansion) at the eastern Ganges Plain. Magadha was ruled ...

king

Jarasandha Jarasandha was a powerful king of Magadha, a minor antagonist in Mahabharata. He was the son of king Brihadratha, the founder of the Barhadratha dynasty of Magadha. According to popular lore, the descendants of Brihadratha ruled Magadha for 26 ...

. They have reached as far south as Gomanta, the modern Indian state called

. The unrighteous king of Surasena Kingdom, viz Kansa was slain by Vasudeva Krishna. Kansa's wives ''Asti'' and ''Prapti'', where the daughters of

, the king of

. He attacked the kinsmen of Krishna. The Surasena

s, consisting of the ''eighteen younger branches of the Yadavas'' with their 18000 brothers and cousins, arrived at the conclusion that even if they fight continually they still could be unable to do anything unto

even in 300 years. They fled from Mathura, towards west. They rebuilt the old town of ''Kusasthali''(see: Cortalim), and renamed it

. It was a Yadava stronghold. Yet, due to the oppressions of Jarasandha, Yadavas where obliged to migrate further south, to ''the mountains of Gomanta'', measuring three ''Yojanas'' (a unit of length) in length. Within each yojana were established, 21 posts of armed men. And at intervals of each yojana were 100 gates with arches which were defended by valiant heroes engaged in guarding them. Innumerable

Kshatriya Kshatriya ( hi, क्षत्रिय) (from Sanskrit ''kṣatra'', "rule, authority") is one of the four varna (social orders) of Hindu society, associated with warrior aristocracy. The Sanskrit term ''kṣatriyaḥ'' is used in the con ...

s invincible in war, belonging to the eighteen younger branches of the Yadavas, were employed in defending these works. (2,14)

Bhoja Bhoja (reigned c. 1010–1055 CE) was an Indian king from the Paramara dynasty. His kingdom was centered around the Malwa region in central India, where his capital Dhara-nagara (modern Dhar) was located. Bhoja fought wars with nearly all ...

Dynasty that ruled Goa from at least 3rd century AD to the 6th century AD are sometime identified as descendants of the Yadavas, and are also mentioned in

Bhavishya Purana The 'Bhavishya Purana' (') is one of the eighteen major works in the Purana genre of Hinduism, written in Sanskrit. The title ''Bhavishya'' means "future" and implies it is a work that contains prophecies regarding the future. The ''Bhavishya ...

Other references

In the Krauncha island, there is a mountain called Maha-krauncha that is a mine of all kinds of gems. There is another mountain called Gomanta that is huge and consists of all kinds of metals. (9,12)

In popular culture

Today the highest civilian honour of the state of

is called Gomant Vibhushan. It is given annually by

Government of Goa The Government of Goa is a state government created by the Constitution of India and has executive, legislative and judicial authority of the state of Goa. It is headquartered in Panaji, the capital city of Goa. History The governor's role ...

since 2010.

References

External links

{{Tribes and kingdoms of the Mahabharata , state=collapsed *

Krishna Dwaipayana Vyasa Krishna Dvaipayana ( sa, कृष्णद्वैपायन, Kṛṣṇadvaipāyana), better known as Vyasa (; sa, व्यासः, Vyāsaḥ, compiler) or Vedavyasa (वेदव्यासः, ''Veda-vyāsaḥ'', "the one who cl ...