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35-414: The Meiteis — including the royal house — traditionally followed an indigenous faith of worship that revered nature, ancestors, and fertility gods and goddesses, called lais . Situated far outside Aryavarta , the region was immune from Vedic and Hindu influences; until at least the sixteenth century, the royal culture did not bear any signs of Hindu influence. In 1704, Charairongba, the incumbent King became

70-711: A delegation from Burma, accompanied by Samsok emissaries, arrived in Manipur seeking a Meitei princess's hand in marriage. Despite King Garibaniwaz's courteous reception, the presence of the Samsok people further fueled his anger, setting the stage for further hostilities between the two kingdoms. Instead of a princess, the King of Burma was met by cavalry, led by Pamheiba that massacred the Burmese army, and brought many prisoners of war to Imphal . The Burmese sent an expedition in revenge, but it

105-578: A notable victory in 1714 when his forces, disguised as a marriage party, defeated Burmese troops at the confluence of Chindwin and Ru Rivers. As conflicts with the expanding Burmese empire intensified, Garib Niwaz achieved significant military triumphs, such as defeating Burmese forces at Shan villages and successfully defending against Burmese and Tripuri attacks in 1723. Garib Niwaz's military endeavors went beyond defense, with offensive campaigns against Tripuris in 1727 and 1733, and multiple invasions into Burma from 1724 to 1741. The conquest of Saigang city on

140-525: The Mons . In response, Pamheiba crossed Irawaddy river and assaulted the Mons where he captured two prominent chiefs of Mons, destroyed the revolting Mons of Koi, he also presented several chopped heads of Mon rebels to his son-in-law king Mangdra. Gharib Niwaz and his eldest son Sham Shai went to Burma to settle some political affairs there, his second son, Ajit Shai suspecting that his father intended to place Sham Shai to

175-597: The Sakta tradition under one Bengali Brahmin and two years later, followed his father into being initiated as a Gaudiya Vaishnava ; nonetheless, while Hindu temples were increasingly commissioned, patronage of Meitei sites continued as before. C. 1720, Santa Das Goswami , a missionary from Sylhet arrived in his court; he preached Ramanandi Vaishnavism , upholding it as the most appropriate sect for warriors. That Pamheiba had to face an increasingly recalcitrant Cachar and Tripura — even discounting Burma , their traditional enemy —,

210-486: The Brahmins. In contemporary Meitei culture, which bears a deep ambivalence towards mainland India (and Hindu ethos), Pamheiba's reign serves as a moment of rupture in their transcendental history. He is alleged to have violently suppressed Sanamahism , the local religion as referred to today, and imposed Vaishnavism on his subjects via oppressive means. In furtherance, many local scholars — though not all — hold that Puyas —

245-473: The Burmese and Tripuris in a series of engagements. King Gharib Niwaz launched a retaliatory invasion against Tripura, led by his son Khamlang Pamsapa and Guru Santa Das Gosai. While peace was initially achieved through diplomacy, Gharib Niwaz later overran Tripura in 1734 CE, assuming the title of 'Takhen Ngampa' or Victor of Tripura. In Pamheiba's Tripura campaign, 1100 prisoners were captured, who were absorbed into

280-582: The Irrawaddy in 1738 highlighted his military prowess. His legacy, marked by tales of triumph over Burmese forces, showcases Garib Niwaz's strategic brilliance and the enduring impact of his military successes. Under his rule, the Manipuri empire reached unprecedented heights, solidifying its dominance in South-East Asia and leaving an indelible mark on the region's history. According to historian Gangmumei , during

315-504: The Manipuri army led by Pamon Hanchpa and Naharup Sanglen Rakpa. King Gharib Niwaz responded by sending reinforcements under Akong Haopamcha, eventually repelling the Tripuris and forcing them out of Manipur by June 1723. King Dharma Manikya of Tripura formed an alliance with the Burmese. Two forces, totaling 30,000 men, attacked Manipur from different directions. The Manipuris faced challenges but ultimately triumphed, winning battles against both

350-735: The Meitei community. With the help of Burmese, the chieftain of Hsawnghsup declared independence from Manipur. It took 7 years to crush them along with Chanta, Mwang and tongmon Nammon. In 1717–18, the Manipur king led his forces against the Samjok Shans, known as Panga, who were descendants of the Awa ruler of the Pagan Dynasty. He devastated Chanta, a village supplying food to Samjok, and pursued and killed its fleeing inhabitants. Afterward, he attacked Samjok, cutting off its supply lines. Starved and desperate,

385-482: The Nagas who finally found a king of their own. However, historical accounts diverge on his parentage, with British writers suggesting he was the son of a Naga, while local anecdotes hint at royal lineage. Legends speak of a clandestine birth to Queen Nungshel Chaibi, who, fearing the royal custom of only allowing heirs born to the chief queen to survive, sent Gharib Niwaz to be raised by a Naga Chief. Another version suggests he

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420-487: The Puyas were scheduled to be incinerated but flew away from the fire; another version mentions that they were burnt but copies were already made of them in secret; yet another mentions that they were transported out of the valley using secret messengers; yet another, that the puyas were written in water-resistant ink and preserved underwater. A few scholars have even produced lists of the burnt Puyas. It has also been propounded that

455-616: The Samjok people surrendered to the Manipur king, who agreed to feed them but took their chief and son as captives. On account of rise of Burmese Kingdom, the Shan Kingdom of Pong was in danger. In march 1739, the Shans requested Manipur to help them. The envoys from Pong returned to their country after about 19 days. Pamheiba started for Burma to invade Sagaing. After the Battle of Sagaing, Pamheiba made

490-444: The ancient traditional texts of Meiteis — were destroyed at his orders with an aim of purging the traditional episteme; this narrative of libricide has gained immense popularity among Meiteis, notwithstanding the presence of hundreds of extant Puyas. The precise date of the event is disputed. The details vary with authors and are often legendary in nature since they need to account for the sheer number of extant Puyas — some mention that

525-574: The banner of Meitei National Front – decided to commemorate the libricide in a heavily publicized event on 23 January, every year, and evoke nostalgia for the Meitei script which went into increasing disuse. The main function remains restricted to the Sanamahi Temple at Imphal. The attendees have grown in number over the years but of late, the event has taken on more peaceful forms; for an example, books are no more being burnt for portraying Meiteis as Hindus . Brandt notes these commemorations to "serve

560-427: The claim soon made into every local publication. Carmen Brandt, Jyotirmoy Ray, and others have doubted the historicity of the libricide and criticized scholars who had uncritically accepted the popular narratives; they note that local sources give low and contradictory values about the number of burnt scripts, highlight the numerous documents that were written in Meitei during and well after the reign of Pamheiba including

595-464: The construction of a history of oppression" and thus, strengthen Meitei nationalism . Gharib Nawaz (Manipur) Gharib Niwaz (born Pamheiba , 1690–1751, Meitei : /pāmheiba/ , Sanskrit : Gopal Singh ) was the ruler of the Manipur Kingdom , ruling from c. 1709 until his death in 1751. He introduced Hinduism as the state religion of his kingdom (1717) and changed the name of

630-755: The east to Cachar and Tripura in the west. At some points during his reign, his realm extended into the Chittagong Hill Tracts . The conflict between the Kingdom of Manipur and the Kingdom of Burma, also known as Awa, was sparked by a series of events rooted in familial ties and political grievances. Following the demotion of his sister, who was married to the Burmese King as Awa-Leima, Manipur King Charairongba harbored deep resentment. Before his demise, he tasked his son Pamheiba (Garibaniwaz) with avenging this slight against their family. The tensions escalated when

665-565: The elder brother of the king of Pong king. According to Ningthourol lambuba , the king of Ava , named Mangdra, sent an emissary to King Pamheiba's court, expressing a sincere desire for a matrimonial alliance. Mangdra specifically requested Princess Satyamala's hand in marriage and invited Pamheiba to visit Ava. Pamheiba, considering the sincerity of the request, agreed and crossed the Irawaddy river. Upon reaching Ava, he learned that Mangdra sought Manipur's friendship to strengthen his forces against

700-504: The first royal figure to be initiated into Vaishnavism — coins inscribing "Sri Krishna" were minted in the aftermath and Hindu temples constructed for the first time but there is no evidence that the public sphere was affected to any substantial degree. Five years later, his son Pamheiba ascended to the throne; he followed Meitei funerary rituals upon Charairongba's death and shew no inclination towards Vaishnavism, providing selective patronage to shrines for lais . However, in 1715, he adopted

735-559: The incumbent king Garib Nawaz on the 17th of Mera (?) in Sakabda 1654 (1732 CE) but these were likely forged to support the then-dominant collective memory of a libricide; all of them emend a word from Leima to Lairik . Gangmumei Kamei notes that the libricide was referenced for the first time in the works of Khumanthem Kaomacha, a Brahmin balladist-turned-historian in his 1934 publication — Manipur Itibritti . Pandita-Raja Atombapu Sharma reiterated these claims in his 1952 work Pakhangba and

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770-515: The kingdom from "Kangleipaak" to the Sanskrit Manipur (1724). He changed his royal name from his birth name Pamheipa to the Persianate "Gharib Niwaz". During most of his reign he was engaged in warfare against the weakened Burmese Toungoo Dynasty . In the early years of his rule (1710–1717 CE), Garib Niwaz focused on consolidating his empire and engaging in military expeditions, including

805-409: The martial ethos of the sect fitted to Pamheiba's expansionist ambitions; he converted in 1728 and, in the words of Rodney Sebastian, re-grammared the very concepts of kingship and the sovereign from within the religio-political authority of Ramanandi Vaishnavism, going on to adopt the title of "Maharaja" and identifying the region as the "Manipur" of Indian epical literature. Pamheiba also tried to unify

840-472: The masses under a single religio-cultural authority, extensively Hindu-ising the cultural milieu in the process — mass-conversion rites were frequently held, translation of Puranas and Ramayana were commissioned, Hindu cultural norms like prohibition on beef were legalized, and Meitei festivals were hybridized with Hindu ones while lai shrines were destroyed, images of Meitei deities dismantled and recast into coins, and worship of some lai s consigned only to

875-432: The official religion, and converted nearly all the Meitei people to Hinduism. Pamheiba had eight wives, and a large number of sons and daughters. His eldest son, Samjai Khurai-Lakpa , was assassinated by his younger son Chitsai , who came to power after Pamheiba's grandson Gaurisiam . The reign was then followed by Ching-Thang Khomba . Gangmumei Kamei Gangmumei Kamei (21 October 1939 – 5 January 2017)

910-413: The reign of Garib Niwaz, the Manipuri empire achieved the peak of its power and consolidation in the contemporary South-East Asian region. Pamheiba ( Meitei : ꯄꯥꯝꯍꯩꯕ , romanized:  Paamheiba , Sanskrit : गोपाल सिंह , romanized :  Gopal Singh , Persian : غریب نواز , romanized :  Ghareeb Nawaaz ) was born on 23 December 1690 in Manipur to Pitambar Charairongba and

945-426: The throne of Manipur, secretly organized the murder of both of them on their way back to Manipur. During the early 18th century, Hindu priests from Sylhet arrived in Manipur to spread Gaudiya Vaishnavism . They were led by Shantidas Adhikari and his associate Guru Gopal Das who succeeded in converting the King from the old Meitei religion to Vaishnavism in 1710. Later during his reign, Pamheiba made Hinduism

980-613: The usage of Bengali script in place of Meitei Mayek began after this purge. No primary source exists for the libricide. Some claim the event to have been chronicled in the Cheitharol Kumbaba but such claims do not withstand scrutiny. Neither the manuscript in Meitei, preserved by the royal palace, mention any such event nor does the Bengali transliteration by Thongam Madhab, a royal scribe, c.  1925 . Some late apocryphal manuscripts do assert that Meitei texts were destroyed by

1015-454: The very Cheitharol Kumbaba , and interpret Nawaz's attitude towards religion as one of strategic ambivalence than as one of missionary zeal. The narrative about the intentional arsoning of the Puyas alongside a forced change of script occupies a prominent place in the collective memory of the Meiteis; it has become increasingly popular in Manipur since 1979 when the nationalist-revivalists – under

1050-646: The walls of Ava , stormed the stockade built to protect the Kaunghmudaw Pagoda , slaughtering the Burmese troops like cattle in a pen and killing the commandant, a minister of the Hluttaw Council; the old door-leaves of the pagoda's eastern gateway show a gash made by the sword of Maharaj Pamheiba when he was forcing an entrance. In April 1723, King Dharma Manikya of Tripura dispatched Commander Satrajit Narayan to invade Manipur. Satrajit Narayan's invasion saw initial success, capturing seven posts and defeating

1085-557: Was a notable Indian historian and scholar of Manipur . He was also a politician in his later career, and served as a minister in the Government of Manipur . Kamei was born in Imphal , and taught history at Manipur University . He was regarded as an expert on the history of Manipur . Books : Role : Gangmumei Kamei was the founding president of the Federal Party of Manipur which

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1120-685: Was ambushed in the swamps near Heirok, southwest of Thoubal , and losing heavily retreated in haste. In 1735, Pamheiba invaded Myedu in Shwebo district and carried off loot, cattle and a thousand people. In 1737, Pamheiba again invaded Burma, killed two-thirds of a royal levy, including commander, who came to oppose the invading Manipuris, and swept down to Tabayin in Shwebo district, burning everything they met. Again in 1738, Manipuris went and camped in Thalunbyu west of Sagaing , burnt every house and monastery up to

1155-447: Was crowned Meidingu ("king") on 28 August 1709 (the 23rd of Thawan, 1631 Saka Era ). Pamheiba has a fascinating and somewhat mysterious background that intertwines with Naga society and Manipuri royal customs. Raised by a Naga Chief amidst the Naga community, Gharib Niwaz's affinity for Naga customs and attire persisted even after his coronation, where he donned a Naga robe, endearing him to

1190-634: Was formed in the year 1993. He was elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly in the year 1995 and again in 2001 Manipur Assembly. He was the minister for Forest, Environment and Higher Education and has held important portfolios in the then Manipur Government led by Shri Nipamcha Singh in 1998 and 2001. Kamei joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in 2012 and contested the outer Manipur Lok Sabha Constituency . However, he lost and later led development of party policy. Kamei held membership in

1225-474: Was hidden from a prophecy of patricide, his true identity revealed years later. Eventually, Gharib Niwaz returned to the royal palace, where his true parentage was disclosed, leading to his recognition as the heir to the throne. After converting to Hinduism Pamheiba took the Persianate name Gharib Nawaz . His reign lasted 39 years. During that time, the realm of Manipur extended from the Irrawaddy River in

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