Oct 22, 2011

Maharajah Sir Lakhmishwar Singh, G.C.I.E., of Darbhanga, who was only in his forty-third year at the time of his death in 1898, was in every sense the best type of the Indian nobleman and landlord. He was the leading zemindar in Bihar, where he owned no less than 2,152 square miles (5,570 km2) with a net yearly rental of 30 lakhs, and was the recognized head of...

Jul 9, 2011

Janakpur, historically called Mithilanchal, is the centre of the ancient Maithil culture, which has its own language and script. The first millennium BC text Shatapatha Brahmana tells that the king Māthava Videgha, led by his priest Gotama Rahugana, first crossed the Sadānirā (Gandaka) river and founded the kingdom of Videha, whose capital city was Mithila....

Jul 5, 2011

The poet Vidyapati appears to have been born in or around 1352 in Bihar, in the Madhubani village of Bisapi in the region of north eastern Bihar known as Mithila. As a Brahmin, he is likely to have learned Sanskrit at an early age, and certainly his earliest compositions suggest his mastery of the language. Vidyapati received his first commission from Kirti...