Gomanta was a kingdom mentioned in the epic

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kuru ...

. It was an extension of the kingdom of

Yadavas The Yadava (), not to be confused with Yadav, were an ancient Indian people who believed to have descended from Yadu, a legendary king of Chandravamsha lineage. The community was formed of various clans, being the Satvatas, Andhakas, Bho ...

at Dwaraka. 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 bound by 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 (), not to be confused with Yadav, were an ancient Indian people who believed to have descended from Yadu (legendary king), Yadu, a legendary king of Chandravamsha lineage. The community was formed of various clans, being the #T ...

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 field ...

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 states and union territories of India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located south-east of Delhi; and about from the town of Vrindavan. In ancient ti ...

, the capital of

Surasena kingdom This is a list of ancient Indo-Aryan peoples and tribes that are mentioned in the literature of Indian religions. From the second or first millennium BCE, ancient Indo-Aryan peoples and tribes turned into most of the population in the north ...

, fled from there due to the continuous attack of

Magadha Magadha was a region and kingdom in ancient India, based in the eastern Ganges Plain. It was one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas during the Second Urbanization period. The region was ruled by several dynasties, which overshadowed, conquered, and ...

king

Jarasandha Jarasandha () is a king featured in the Hindu Mythology. He is the powerful monarch of Magadha, and a minor antagonist in Mahabharata. He is the son of the king Brihadratha, the founder of the Barhadratha dynasty of Magadha. According to popu ...

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

. The unrighteous king of

Surasena Kingdom This is a list of ancient Indo-Aryan peoples and tribes that are mentioned in the literature of Indian religions. From the second or first millennium BCE, ancient Indo-Aryan peoples and tribes turned into most of the population in the north ...

, 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 Cortalim (pronounced ) is a village in Morumugão, Goa, India. Its native Goan population is entirely Catholic and their main occupations include fishing and agriculture. Located on the banks of the Zuari River, it was previously known as Kusha ...

), and renamed it Dwaraka. 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 () (from Sanskrit ''kṣatra'', "rule, authority"; also called Rajanya) is one of the four varnas (social orders) of Hindu society and is associated with the 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 was the Paramara dynasty, Paramara king of Malwa from 1010 until his death in 1055. He ruled from Dhara (city), Dhara (modern Dhar), and Military career of Bhoja, fought wars with nearly all his neighbours in attempts to extend his king ...

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,

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 is large ...

since 2010.

References

External links

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

Krishna Dwaipayana Vyasa Vyasa (; , ) or Veda Vyasa (, ), also known as Krishna Dvaipayana Veda Vyasa (, ''Vedavyāsa''), is a ''rishi'' (sage) with a prominent role in most Hindu traditions. He is traditionally regarded as the author of the epic Mahābhārata, wh ...