Ranajita Malla (

Nepal bhasa Newar (), or Newari and known officially in Nepal as Nepal Bhasa, is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken by the Newar people, the indigenous inhabitants of Nepal Mandala, which consists of the Kathmandu Valley and surrounding regions in Nep ...

: ) (

Devanagari Devanagari ( ; , , Sanskrit pronunciation: ), also called Nagari (),Kathleen Kuiper (2010), The Culture of India, New York: The Rosen Publishing Group, , page 83 is a left-to-right abugida (a type of segmental writing system), based on the a ...

: रणजीत मल्ल) was a Malla Dynasty King of

Bhaktapur , motto = ne, पुर्खले सिर्जेको सम्पत्ती, हाम्रो कला र संस्कृति , lit=Creation of our ancestors, our heritage and culture , image_map ...

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is ma ...

from 1722 to 1769. He was the last Malla king of

and of

who left for

Kashi Kashi or Kaashi may refer to: Places * Varanasi (historically known as "Kashi"), a holy city in India ** Kingdom of Kashi, an ancient kingdom in the same place, one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas ** Kashi Vishwanath Temple, Varanasi * Kashgar, a ci ...

after his defeat by the Gorkhali forces of Prithivi Narayan Shah. He is widely known for his contributions to Nepal Bhasa literature. Ranajit Malla is also known for his democratic values and was known to allow his citizens to openly criticize him.

Early life

Ranajit Malla was born to Bhupatindra Malla and Vishwo Lakshmi Malla on 26 January 1703. He had a very happy and comfortable childhood with his mother Vishwo Lakshmi and his grandmother Lalamati. As he was born in a politically messy time his father taught him politics at a young age.

Physical contributions

Ranajit Malla like many other Malla Kings of Bhaktapur contributed in beautifying Bhaktapur by building many heritages. As Ranajit Malla reign was in a politically unstable period, his contributions are few compared to his forefathers.

Lūn Dhwākhā

Known among tourists as the Golden gate, Lūn Dhwākhā (

: ) is the entrance to the Mulā Chwōkā containing the shrine of Taleju. As per the gilt copper inscription on the gate, it was installed on the year 874 of the Nepalese era(=1753AD) by King Ranajit Malla and his Queen Jay(Buddhi) Lakshmi Malla. Although it is said that a golden gate on the entrance to the shrine of Taleju was originally planned to be built four generations before Ranajit by King Naresha Malla but none of the kings before him could build it due to the lack of gold. Ranajit however used the profits that he gained from trading with the Tibetans on building the golden gate.

The bell of Taleju

Right in the front of the Golden gate on a tall platform is a gaint bell that is played while doing the Puja of Taleju. This kind of bell is present on the Durbar Square of both

Patan Patan may refer to several places in Afghanistan, India and Nepal: Afghanistan *Patan, Afghanistan India * Patan district, in the state of Gujarat * Patan, Gujarat, the main city of the eponymous district * Patan was the ancient capital of Gujara ...

and

Kathmandu , pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = Provinces of Nepal, Province , subdivision_name1 ...

. Locally known as Tagoun Gān( ), its sound was once said to be heard anywhere in the

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than city, cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares ...

. This bell was installed by Ranajit Malla on 6 January 1737AD.

Sāfukuthi

Sāfukuthi (

Nepal Bhasa Newar (), or Newari and known officially in Nepal as Nepal Bhasa, is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken by the Newar people, the indigenous inhabitants of Nepal Mandala, which consists of the Kathmandu Valley and surrounding regions in Nep ...

: ) also sometimes referred as Sākothā was said to be a big library presently located at Sākothā tole in

. Ranajit Malla is said to have loved collecting old and antique things which were kept in the Sāfukuthi along with various books relating to religion, science and medicine. Most of the books and manuscript present in the library were destroyed by fire during the Battle of Bhaktapur and the building itself was completely destroyed during the earthquake of

1833 Events January–March * January 3 – Reassertion of British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic. * February 6 – His Royal Highness Prince Otto Friedrich Ludwig of Bavaria assumes the title His Majesty Othon t ...

and

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...

Literary contribution

Among all the kings of Bhaktapur, Ranajit Malla is considered a pioneer in Nepal bhasa literature. Most of the songs in old songbooks of

bear his signature. He himself was a prolific singer himself and was said to have spent more time reciting poems and songs than the politics of the kingdom. Besides songs, he also wrote various plays like ''Indrābijaya, Ushāharan, Krishnacharitra''. He also authored many books like ''Rukmaniharan, Pshatdarshana'' etc. Most of his works were written in the

Newari script The Rañjanā script (Lantsa) is an abugida writing system which developed in the 11th centuryJwajalapa

in a Newari-cum-

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...

language. Many of Ranajit Malla's creations are devotional Dāphā and Rāga songs. His works still quite popular among the singers of Bhaktapur. One of his most popular work is a Newari song he wrote for the annual Biska Jatra titled Thō thēn jāgū rasan'''. This song written in the seasonal Pahan Charhe tune is still sung as a seasonal song during Biska Jatra in

. ''Hé Síva Bhairava'' is another song sung before the chariot procession of Biska Jatra and is also written by Ranajit Malla in the Bhairava

Rāga A ''raga'' or ''raag'' (; also ''raaga'' or ''ragam''; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a melodic mode. The ''rāga'' is a unique and central feature of the classical Indian music tradition, and as a ...

. As Ranajit Malla aged, his interest in singing started to increase. By the time of the Battle of Bhaktapur, the old Ranajit had almost given up on politics and spent most of his time on singing devotional songs. As he was singing hymns and

raga A ''raga'' or ''raag'' (; also ''raaga'' or ''ragam''; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a melodic mode. The ''rāga'' is a unique and central feature of the classical Indian music tradition, and as a ...

s while waiting for

Yama Yama (Devanagari: यम) or Yamarāja (यमराज), is a deity of death, dharma, the south direction, and the underworld who predominantly features in Hindu and Buddhist religion, belonging to an early stratum of Rigvedic Hindu deities ...

to take him,

was mostly in the hands of his sons who were supportive of the Gorkha King. The invading king took advantage of Ranajit's political weakness and bribed his illegitimate sons who secretly helped the invaders during the

Battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

and even opened the city gates of

during the

to allow the invaders in the city. After being defeated in the Battle of Bhaktapur by the Gorkhalis, Ranajit Malla was sent to

under his own choice by the Gorkhali King. Deeply saddened by having to leave his kingdom, he composed a

song, expressing his sorrows in the hills of

Chandragiri Chandragiri is a suburb and neighbourhood of Tirupati and located in Tirupati district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a part of Tirupati urban agglomeration and a major growing residential area in Tirupati It is the mandal head ...

where he looked at his kingdom for the last time before leaving for Kashi. He is said to have recited this song while crying uncontrollably. The first lines of the song appear below. Nepal Bhasa :1. hāya hāya rāma rāma gathe maluma nepāla :2. satru durjananan(g) phutakālayoa(ā)va :3. jhinte dola raje samadatāyo jita vāsa :4. videsayā vāsa jula thani a(ā)va rama rama :5. hathujana bhāya papan(m) manenāguswoyā dhuno :6. panjalasa chwonā maduthe jinona rāma rāma :7. navadurgā ganesyāke saharsha ji vinati yānā :8. lāsalāpi aparādha kshemā yāhu rama rama :9. lhāya gohmayāke jina dukhayā vedana :10. thugu pāsa pheniao suna na rama rama :11. piratiyāna vacona chalayata durajanana :12. haya haya chu nugala jula rama rama :13. suryavamsi kulamani sri ranajita malla :14. talejuna vila vaikuntha vasa rama rama Translation :1. Oh Ram! Oh Ram! How could I survive without remembering Nepal? :2. The evil enemy destroyed me now :3. here isno more shelter or mein the country of twelve thousand ouseholds :4. A foreign land has become my abode now on! Oh Ram! Oh Ram!! :5. As the fruit of the sin that I committed in my previous life,
I have already seen what I have not even heard of! :6. There is no point of living in a cage! Oh Ram! Oh Ram!! :7. I pray million times to Goddess Nava-Durga and God Ganesa! :8. For a pardon over the crimes I committed! Oh Ram! Oh Ram!! :9. To how many people the grief of pain I express? :10. No one can make me free from this anguish! Oh Ram! Oh Ram!! :11. Kept on showing affection, the evil onspiratordeceived e :12. Alas! Alas! What sort of thinking f minecaused this? Oh Ram! :13. othis Ranajit Malla, the jewel of the Solar Dynasty,
A shelter in heaven is offered by Goddess Taleju! Oh Ram! Oh Ram!!

Relations with other kingdoms

Ranajit Malla's reign was the most politically messy period in Bhaktapur. The internal conflict among his sons and his queens weakened Bhaktapur form the inside. On top of that Bhaktapur was frequently attacked by both Kantipur and Yela. In order to get military strengthen Bhaktapur Ranajit hoped an alliance with the Kingdom of Gorkha by allowing the Gorkha Prince

Prithvi Narayan Shah Maharajadhiraj Prithvi Narayan Shah (1723–1775) ( ne, श्री ५ बडामहाराजाधिराज पृथ्वीनारायण शाह देव) was the last ruler of the Gorkha Kingdom and first monarch of the ...

, who had been rejected by Jaya Prakash Malla of Kantipur, to study in Bhaktapur and also established a ''Miteri''relation between his eldest son Birnarasimha Malla and the Gorkha Prince. Prithivi Narayan Shah, seeing the prosperity of the Malla kingdoms developed an ambition to conquer the kingdoms and become the king of these prosperous kingdoms.

Battle of Bhaktapur

When both Kantipur and Yela fell to the Gorkha kingdom, the kings of both these kingdoms came to Bhaktapur seeking refuge.

Gallery

File:A Malla king on his throne.jpg, alt=King Ranajit Malla of Bhaktapur sitting on his throne as depicted in a Vishnu Paubha, dated August 1722 CE, King Ranajit Malla of

sitting on his throne as depicted in a

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within ...

Paubha, dated August 1722 CE File:Golden gate – Bhaktapur – 01.jpg, The Golden gate as the entrance to the former palace of Bhaktapur File:Le palais royal (Bhaktapur) (8566410592).jpg, Stone images of Ranajit Mala (right) and his father Bhupatindra Malla (left) as the guardians of the entrance to the Bhairava Chwōkā, Bhaktapur Durbar Square File:Bell Dogs Bell Bhaktapur Durbar Square Bhaktapur Nepal Rajesh Dhungana.jpg, The Taleju bell of

File:Malla-king at National Museum of Nepal.jpg, alt=, Bronze image of a young Ranajit Malla at the National museum of Nepal

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Malla, Ranajit Malla rulers of Bhaktapur Malla rulers of Lalitpur People from Bhaktapur 18th-century Nepalese people Nepalese Hindus