Gajapati, Gaja-pati: 13 definitions
Introduction:
Gajapati means something in Buddhism, Pali, Hinduism, Sanskrit, Jainism, Prakrit, the history of ancient India, Marathi. If you want to know the exact meaning, history, etymology or English translation of this term then check out the descriptions on this page. Add your comment or reference to a book if you want to contribute to this summary article.
In Hinduism
Kavya (poetry)
Source: Wisdom Library: KathāsaritsāgaraGajapati (गजपति) was a friend of Vikramāditya: an ancient king from Pāṭaliputra, according to the Kathāsaritsāgara, chapter 38. Accordingly, “there was in Pāṭaliputra a king named Vikramāditya; he had two cherished friends, the King Hayapati, and the King Gajapati, who had large armies of horses and elephants. And that proud sovereign had a mighty enemy named Narasiṃha, the lord of Pratiṣṭhāna, a king who had a large force of infantry”.
The story of Gajapati and Vikramāditya was narrated by Marubhūti in order to demonstrate that “women are generally fickle, but not always, for even courtesans are seen to be rich in good qualities, much more others”, in other words, that “even courtesans are occasionally of noble character and as faithful to kings as their own wives, much more than matrons of high birth”.
The Kathāsaritsāgara (‘ocean of streams of story’), mentioning Gajapati, is a famous Sanskrit epic story revolving around prince Naravāhanadatta and his quest to become the emperor of the vidyādharas (celestial beings). The work is said to have been an adaptation of Guṇāḍhya’s Bṛhatkathā consisting of 100,000 verses, which in turn is part of a larger work containing 700,000 verses.
Kavya (काव्य, kavya) refers to Sanskrit poetry, a popular ancient Indian tradition of literature. There have been many Sanskrit poets over the ages, hailing from ancient India and beyond. This topic includes mahakavya, or ‘epic poetry’ and natya, or ‘dramatic poetry’.
In Buddhism
Mahayana (major branch of Buddhism)
Source: Wisdom Library: LokottaravādaGajapati (गजपति, “keeper of elephants”) refers to a type of gemstone described in the “the second Avalokita-sūtra” of the Mahāvastu. Accordingly, when the Buddha (as a Bodhisattva) visited the bodhi-tree, several hunderd thousands of devas, in their place in the sky, adorned the Bodhisattva with several celestial substances. Then some of them envisioned the bodhi-tree as sparkling with gajapati gems.
The stories found in this part of the Mahāvastu correspond to the stories from the avidūre-nidāna section of the Nidāna-kathā. The Mahāvastu is an important text of the Lokottaravāda school of buddhism, dating from the 2nd century BCE.
Mahayana (महायान, mahāyāna) is a major branch of Buddhism focusing on the path of a Bodhisattva (spiritual aspirants/ enlightened beings). Extant literature is vast and primarely composed in the Sanskrit language. There are many sūtras of which some of the earliest are the various Prajñāpāramitā sūtras.
In Jainism
General definition (in Jainism)
Source: academia.edu: Tessitori Collection IGajapati (गजपति) or “Gajapati Sāha” is the name of a businessman from Mewar, according to the “Sumatisādhusūri nau vīvāhalau” (dealing with individual religious teachers in Jain literature), which is included in the collection of manuscripts at the ‘Vincenzo Joppi’ library, collected by Luigi Pio Tessitori during his visit to Rajasthan between 1914 and 1919.—[...] The scene takes place in Mewar, in the village of Jāur (mod. Jāvar) about six miles north to Ṭīḍī, [...]. There lived the businessman Gajapati Sāha and his wife Saṃpūrī devī (15). One night the lady saw dreams which, her husband explained, announced the future birth of a great man. A son was born, Naparāja kumara (31). At the early age of 5, he was already an expert in all kinds of arts (31). One day, while playing, he went to the upāśraya and paid homage to the monk Ratanaśekharasūri (33) whom he started visiting regularly. Detachment grew in his mind. His mother thought the time had come for him to marry: [...]
Jainism is an Indian religion of Dharma whose doctrine revolves around harmlessness (ahimsa) towards every living being. The two major branches (Digambara and Svetambara) of Jainism stimulate self-control (or, shramana, ‘self-reliance’) and spiritual development through a path of peace for the soul to progess to the ultimate goal.
India history and geography
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Indian Epigraphical GlossaryGajapati.—(IE 8-2; EI 9, 30; CII 4; HD), ‘the lord of elephants’; officer in charge of the elephant arm in an army; title of certain rulers; dynastic name of the Sūryavaṃśīs of Orissa. Cf. Ind. Ant., Vol. XV, p. 7. See Mahāgajapati, etc. Note: gajapati is defined in the “Indian epigraphical glossary” as it can be found on ancient inscriptions commonly written in Sanskrit, Prakrit or Dravidian languages.
The history of India traces the identification of countries, villages, towns and other regions of India, as well as mythology, zoology, royal dynasties, rulers, tribes, local festivities and traditions and regional languages. Ancient India enjoyed religious freedom and encourages the path of Dharma, a concept common to Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism.
Languages of India and abroad
Marathi-English dictionary
Source: DDSA: The Molesworth Marathi and English Dictionarygajapati (गजपति).—m (S) Possessor of elephants or an elephant. 2 Provided with the elephant-branch of an army. 3 Jocosely. Having but a gajā (narrow slip) by way of dhōtara.
Marathi is an Indo-European language having over 70 million native speakers people in (predominantly) Maharashtra India. Marathi, like many other Indo-Aryan languages, evolved from early forms of Prakrit, which itself is a subset of Sanskrit, one of the most ancient languages of the world.
Sanskrit dictionary
Source: DDSA: The practical Sanskrit-English dictionaryGajapati (गजपति).—
1) the lord or keeper of elephants.
2) a very tall and stately elephant; Śiśupālavadha 6.55.
3) an excellent elephant.
Derivable forms: gajapatiḥ (गजपतिः).
Gajapati is a Sanskrit compound consisting of the terms gaja and pati (पति).
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Edgerton Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit DictionaryGajapati (गजपति).—m. or nt., name of some unknown gem: Mahāvastu ii.311.2 anye gajapatīhi maṇiratanehi samalamkrtam (sc. bodhivṛkṣaṃ saṃjānanti).
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English DictionaryGajapati (गजपति).—m.
(-tiḥ) 1. A large state elephant. 2. A king. E. gaja, and pati a master.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary1) Gajapati (गजपति):—[=gaja-pati] [from gaja > gaj] m. a lord or keeper of elephants, [Siṃhāsana-dvātriṃśikā or vikramāditya-caritra, jaina recension]
2) [v.s. ...] a title given to kings (e.g. to an old king in the south of Jambu-dvīpa), [Rasikaramaṇa vii, 3]
3) [v.s. ...] a stately elephant, [Śiśupāla-vadha vi, 55.]
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Yates Sanskrit-English DictionaryGajapati (गजपति):—[gaja-pati] (tiḥ) 2. m. A large state elephant; a king.
[Sanskrit to German]
Sanskrit, also spelled संस्कृतम् (saṃskṛtam), is an ancient language of India commonly seen as the grandmother of the Indo-European language family (even English!). Closely allied with Prakrit and Pali, Sanskrit is more exhaustive in both grammar and terms and has the most extensive collection of literature in the world, greatly surpassing its sister-languages Greek and Latin.
Kannada-English dictionary
Source: Alar: Kannada-English corpusGajapati (ಗಜಪತಿ):—
1) [noun] a king of elephants; an excellent elephant.
2) [noun] the royal elephant of a king.
3) [noun] a man who owns an elephant or elephants.
4) [noun] a monetary coin used during the period of Vijayanagara empire.
5) [noun] a man who domesticates and tends elephants.
Kannada is a Dravidian language (as opposed to the Indo-European language family) mainly spoken in the southwestern region of India.
See also (Relevant definitions)
Starts with: Gajapativiranarayanadeva.
Ends with: Mahagajapati, Prataparudradeva gajapati.
Full-text (+1): Ashvapati-Gajapati-Narapati-muvaru-rayara-ganda, Ashvapati-Gajapati-Narapati-raja-tray-adhipati, Abhinavagitagovinda, Durgotsavacandrika, Vishvanathasena, Narapati, Prataparudradeva gajapati, Mahagajapati, Gajadhisha, Gopinatha, Trividha-kshitisha-cudamani, Sampuri, Naparaja, Purushottamadeva, Ashvapati, Sarasvativilasa, Ratanashekhara, Ratanashekharasuri, Hayapati, Narasimha.
Relevant text
Search found 18 books and stories containing Gajapati, Gaja-pati; (plurals include: Gajapatis, patis). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
The history of Andhra country (1000 AD - 1500 AD) (by Yashoda Devi)
Part 56 - The Later Gajapatis < [Chapter XIII - The Dynasties in South Kalinga]
Part 8 - Pratapavallabharaja (A.D. 1427-1467) < [Chapter XIII - The Dynasties in South Kalinga]
Part 32 - End of the Jantarnadu Ganga dynasty < [Chapter XIII - The Dynasties in South Kalinga]
Temples of Munnur (Historical Study) (by R. Muthuraman)
Stupas in Orissa (Study) (by Meenakshi Chauley)
Buddhism under the Gajapati dynasty < [Chapter 2]
Buddhism under Bhoi Dynasty < [Chapter 2]
The Reddis and the Rayas - A Page from Deccan History < [November-December 1933]
Reviews < [January-February 1933]
"Wanted A Bridegroom" < [January-February 1931]
Jainism in Odisha (Orissa) (by Ashis Ranjan Sahoo)
Jaina Antiquities at Rayagada District < [Chapter 3: Survey of Jaina Antiquities in Odisha]
Matangalila and Hastyayurveda (study) (by Chandrima Das)