Rakshasa kingdom refers to the territory of Rakshasas who were a tribe, mentioned along with others like Devas (including

Rudras Rudras refer to the forms of the god Rudra, whose traditions have since been associated with lord Shiva. They make up eleven of the thirty-three gods in the Vedic pantheon.Hopkins pp. 172-3 They are at times identified with the storm deities ref ...

Maruts In Hinduism, the Maruts (; ), also known as the Marutagana and sometimes identified with Rudras, are storm deities and sons of Rudra and Prisni. The number of Maruts varies from 27 to sixty (three times sixty in RV 8.96.8). They are very viol ...

Vasus The Vasus () are a group of deities in Hinduism associated with fire and light. They are described as the attendant deities of Indra, and later Vishnu. Generally numbering eight and classified as the Ashtavasu, they are described in the Ramayana a ...

and

Adityas In Hinduism, Adityas ( ) refers to a group of major solar deities, who are the offspring of the goddess Aditi. The name ''Aditya'', in the singular, is taken to refer to the sun god Surya. Generally, Adityas are twelve in number and consi ...

Asuras Asuras () are a class of beings in Indian religions, and later Persian and Turkic mythology. They are described as power-seeking beings related to the more benevolent Deva (Hinduism), Devas (also known as Suras) in Hinduism. In its Buddhism, ...

(including

Daityas The daityas () are a race of asuras in Hindu mythology, descended from Kashyapa and his wife, Diti. Prominent members of this race include Hiranyaksha, Hiranyakashipu, and Mahabali, all of whom overran the Bhuloka, earth, and required three of Vi ...

Danavas In Hindu mythology, the danavas are a race descending from Kashyapa and his wife Danu, a daughter of the progenitor god, Daksha. It is mentioned that there are one hundred danavas. Origin The danavas are a mythological race of asuras, the ...

and

Kalakeyas The kalakeyas () or kalakhanjas () are a sect of danavas in Hindu mythology, referring to the children of Kashyapa and Kala. Sixty-thousand kalakeyas are said to exist, and they are described to fight under the asura banner, under Vritra, as well a ...

Pisachas Pishachas (, ') are flesh-eating demons in Indian religions, appearing in Hindu and Buddhist mythologies. A pishacha is a malevolent being that has often been referred to as the very manifestation of evil. Mythology The Mahabharata states tha ...

Gandharvas A ''gandharva'' () is a member of a class of celestial beings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, whose males are divine performers such as musicians and singers, and the females are divine dancers. In Hinduism, they ...

, Kimpurushas,

Vanara In Hinduism, Vanara () are either monkeys, apes, or a race of forest-dwelling people. In the epic the ''Ramayana'', the Vanaras help Rama defeat Ravana. They are generally depicted as humanoid apes, or human-like beings. Etymology There ...

s, Suparnas,

Kinnaras A kinnara (Sanskrit: Kiṃnara) is a creature from Hindu mythology, Hindu and Buddhist mythology. They are described as part human and part bird, and have a strong association with music and love. Believed to come from the Himalayas, they ...

, Bhutas and

Yakshas The Yakshas (, , ) in Mythology are a broad class of nature spirits, usually benevolent, but sometimes mischievous or capricious, connected with water, fertility, trees, the forest, treasure and wilderness. They appear in Hindu, Jain and Budd ...

. Rakshasas were described to have large bodies, probably due to their continuous life in cold climates over snow-covered mountains. The forefathers of the famous Rakshasa king

Ravana According to the Mahakavya, Hindu epic, ''Ramayana'', Ravana was a kingJustin W. Henry, ''Ravana's Kingdom: The Ramayana and Sri Lankan History from Below'', Oxford University Press, p.3 of the island of Lanka, in which he is the chief antag ...

lived along with the

. The Yaksha king

Kubera Kubera (, ) also known as Kuvera, Kuber and Kuberan, is the god of wealth, and the god-king of the semi-divine yakshas in Hinduism. He is regarded as Guardians of the directions, the regent of the north (''Dikpala''), and a protector of the ...

was the elder brother of Rakshasa king Ravana. Ravana had many sons among

Gandharva A ''gandharva'' () is a member of a class of celestial beings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, whose males are divine performers such as musicians and singers, and the females are divine dancers. In Hinduism, they ...

wives. The two epics

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 ...

and

Ramayana The ''Ramayana'' (; ), also known as ''Valmiki Ramayana'', as traditionally attributed to Valmiki, is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics ...

and many

Puranas Puranas (Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature
(1995 Editio ...

attest that

Rakshasas Rākshasa (, , ; ; "preservers") are a race of usually malevolent beings prominently featured in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Folk Islam. They reside on Earth but possess supernatural powers, which they usually use for evil acts such as ...

and

were related and had inter-marriages.

References in Ramayana and Mahabharata

Kingdom of Ravana

{{main, Lanka kingdom

was the most famous Rakshasa who ruled from the Trikuta mountains of

Lanka Lanka (; ) is the name given in Hindu epics to the island fortress capital of the legendary Rakshasa king Ravana in the epics of the ''Ramayana'' and the ''Mahabharata''. The fortress was situated on a plateau between three mountain peaks kn ...

where the climatic conditions were similar to

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than list of h ...

. Many Rakshasas like Khara ruled under Ravana, at different places in ancient Indian mainland. Khara's kingdom was in south-central India, in a dense forest named

Dandaka Dandakaranya (), also rendered Dandaka (, IAST: ), is a historical region and the name of a forest mentioned in the ancient Indian epic ''Ramayana''. It covers about of land, which includes the Abujhmar Hills in the west and borders the East ...

Kingdom of Ghatotkacha

Ghatotkacha Ghatotkacha (, ; ) is a character in the ancient Indian epic ''Mahabharata''. His name comes from the fact that he was bald (''utkacha'') and shaped like a ghatam, or a pot. He is the son of the Pandava Bhima and the demoness Hidimbi. As th ...

was a Rakshasa born of the Pandava

Bhima Bhima (, ), also known as Bhimasena (, ), is a hero and one of the most prominent characters in the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. As the second of the five Pandava brothers, Bhima was born to Kunti—the wife of King Pandu—fathered by Vayu, the ...

and the Rakshasa woman

Hidimbi Hiḍimbī, also known as Hiḍimbā (Sanskrit: ), is a character in the ''Mahabharata'', one of the two great Sanskrit epics of ancient India. She is introduced as a man-eating Rakshasi (demoness) and the sister of Hidimba, a powerful demon w ...

. Rakshasa Ghatotkacha's kingdom,

Kamyaka Forest Kamyakavana (), also referred to as the Kamyaka forest, is a legendary forest featured in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. It is described to be located on the banks of the river Sarasvati. The Pandavas are described to have spent a period of their exil ...

, was near the Kuru kingdom.Ghatotkacha and his kingdom participated in the

Kurukshetra War The Kurukshetra War (), also called the Mahabharata War, is a war described in the Hindu Indian epic poetry, epic poem ''Mahabharata'', arising from a dynastic struggle between two groups of cousins, the Kauravas and the Pandavas, for the thr ...

. In

Bhishma Bhishma (), also known as Pitamaha, Gangaputra, and Devavrata, is a central figure in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. He was a statesman and military commander of the ancient Kuru Kingdom. Renowned for his wisdom, valor, and unwavering principles, ...

's judgment, Ghatotkacha was a leader of the leaders of car-divisions (5:173). Ghatotkacha fought against other Rakshasa tribes on the side of the

Kauravas ''Kaurava'' is a Sanskrit term which refers to descendants of Kuru, a legendary king of India who is the ancestor of many of the characters of the epic ''Mahabharata''. Usually, the term is used for the 100 sons of King Dhritarashtra and his ...

. Alambusa and Alayudha were the main Rakshasa opponents of Ghatotkacha (7:1715) and were slain by him during the night war on the fourteenth day of the war. Ghatotkacha's son Anjanaparvan was slain by

Ashwatthama Ashvatthama (, , also spelt as Ashwatthama and Ashvatthaman) is a character in the ancient Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. He is the son of Drona, the royal preceptor to the Kuru princes—the Pandavas and the Kauravas. Ashvatthama is a close ...

. Ghatotkacha was slain by

Karna Karna (Sanskrit: कर्ण, IAST: ''Karṇa''), also known as Vasusena, Anga-Raja, Sutaputra and Radheya, is one of the major characters in the Hindu epic ''Mahābhārata''. He is the son of Surya (the Sun deity) and princess Kunti (later ...

References

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 ...

, translated to English by Kisari Mohan Ganguli Kingdoms in the Mahabharata Himalayan kingdoms (Puranas)

References in Ramayana and Mahabharata

Kingdom of Ravana

Kingdom of Ghatotkacha

See also

References