Deva Manikya (d. 1563), also spelt Deb Manikya, was the

Maharaja Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king". A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, an ...

Tripura Tripura (, Bengali: ) is a state in Northeast India. The third-smallest state in the country, it covers ; and the seventh-least populous state with a population of 36.71 lakh ( 3.67 million). It is bordered by Assam and Mizoram to the east a ...

from 1520 to 1530. A son of the famous

Dhanya Manikya Dhanya Manikya was the Maharaja of Tripura who reigned from 1490 to 1515 C.E. In this time, Tripura Sundari Temple was established. Biography Assisted by his generals Ray Kachag and Ray Kacham, Dhanya Manikya expanded Tripura's territorial do ...

, Deva initially continued his father's legacy of military conquests, though he ultimately proved to be less successful. A religiously zealous monarch, he was eventually killed in a conspiracy orchestrated by his spiritual

guru Guru ( sa, गुरु, IAST: ''guru;'' Pali'': garu'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan-Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: traditionally, the guru is a reverentia ...

Reign

Deva Manikya, likely a younger son of

, succeeded to the throne after the death of his elder brother Dhwaja Manikya in 1520. That same year, he invaded and conquered the

Bhulua Kingdom The Kingdom of Bhulua ( bn, ভুলুয়া রাজ্য, Bhulua Rajjo) was a kingdom covering the present-day Noakhali region of Bangladesh. Its establishment is generally credited to Bishwambhar Sur, a Hindu Rajput who passed by the a ...

, located in what is now the

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

i district of

Noakhali Noakhali ( bn, নোয়াখালী, , New canal), historically known as Bhulua ( bn, ভুলুয়া), is a district in southeastern Bangladesh, located in the Chittagong Division. It was established as district in 1821, and officia ...

. The city of

Sonargaon Sonargaon ( bn, সোনারগাঁও; pronounced as ''Show-naar-gaa''; lit. ''Golden Hamlet'') is a historic city in central Bangladesh. It corresponds to the Sonargaon Upazila of Narayanganj District in Dhaka Division. Sonargaon is one ...

was similarly captured and Deva is also believed to have held sway over

Chittagong Chittagong ( /ˈtʃɪt əˌɡɒŋ/ ''chit-uh-gong''; ctg, চিটাং; bn, চিটাগং), officially Chattogram ( bn, চট্টগ্রাম), is the second-largest city in Bangladesh after Dhaka and third largest city in B ...

. However, his victories proved to be ephemeral since his rival, Sultan Nasrat Shah of

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

, soon recaptured the latter region. It is also apparent that Sonargaon too was lost at some point, given that Deva's son celebrated his own conquest of the territory years later. He was a deeply devout individual and followed the

Shaktism Shaktism ( sa, शाक्त, , ) is one of several major Hindu denominations, wherein the metaphysical reality is considered metaphorically a woman and Shakti ( Mahadevi) is regarded as the supreme godhead. It includes many goddesses, al ...

tradition of

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

. After his conquests in Bhulua and Chittagong, Deva made a pilgrimage to the spring at Durasara (located in present-day

Sitakunda Sitakunda or Sitakunda Town ( bn, সীতাকুণ্ড শহর) is an administrative centre and the sole municipality (''Paurashava'') of Sitakunda Upazila in Chattogram District, located in Chattogram Division, Bangladesh. Sitakunda ...

) and performed a holy bath, striking coins to commemorate the event. One story relates that he once offered slaves as a sacrifice to the

Fourteen Gods The Chaturdasa Devata or Fourteen Gods is the Shaivite Hindu pantheon worshipped in the Indian state of Tripura. Overview According to traditions, the origin for the worship of these deities was contemporary to the setting of the ''Mahabharata'', ...

. However, when he was informed by the head priest that

Mahadeva Mahadeva may refer to: Religion *Mahadeva, a title of the Hindu god Shiva ** Parashiva, a form of Shiva ** Parameshwara (god), a form of Shiva *Para Brahman, a Hindu deity *Adi-Buddha, in Buddhism, the "First Buddha" or the "Primordial Buddha" *M ...

demanded an offering of the best commanders of the army, Deva had eight of his generals immolated as well. Deva eventually became a disciple of a Tantric

Maithil Brahmin Maithil Brahmins are a Hindu Brahmin community from the Mithila region of the Indian subcontinent that comprises Tirhut, Darbhanga, Kosi, Purnia, Munger, Bhagalpur; Bokaro in Jharkhand and Santhal Pargana divisions of India and some adjoining ...

named Lakshminarayana, who launched a conspiracy against him in 1530. He was eventually assassinated by Lakshminarayana, who had worked in collaboration with one of his queens. Deva's son by this queen, Indra Manikya II, was placed on the throne, though the Brahmin held the actual power in the kingdom. This continued until 1532, when Lakshminarayana was killed and the throne was taken by Deva's younger son, who became

Vijaya Manikya II Vijaya Manikya II ( – 1563), also spelt Vijay or Bijoy, was the Maharaja of Tripura from 1532 to 1563. Succeeding to the throne at a young age, Vijaya proved himself to be a formidable military leader, initiating a series of conquests into seve ...

References

{{reflist Kings of Tripura History of Tripura Murdered Indian monarchs 16th-century murdered monarchs 1530 deaths Murder in 1530