Kancanapura, Kāñcanapura, Kancana-pura: 7 definitions
Introduction:
Kancanapura means something in Hinduism, Sanskrit, Jainism, Prakrit, the history of ancient India. 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.
Alternative spellings of this word include Kanchanapura.
In Hinduism
Kavya (poetry)
Source: Wisdom Library: Kathāsaritsāgara1) Kāñcanapura (काञ्चनपुर) is the name of an ancient city, according to the Kathāsaritsāgara, chapter 57. Accordingly, “... on the way [Svarṇadvīpa] he reached a town named Kāñcanapura, and there he encamped in a garden, at a short distance outside the town. And after bathing and anointing himself, the young man entered the town, and went to a temple to see a spectacle”.
2) Kāñcanapura (काञ्चनपुर) refers to the “golden city” situated on the Himavat mountain, according to sixteenth story of the Vetālapañcaviṃśati in the Kathāsaritsāgara, chapter 90: “... there is in this earth a great mountain named Himavat, where all jewels are found, which is the origin of both Gaurī and Gaṅgā, the two goddesses dear to Śiva. Even heroes cannot reach its top; it towers proudly above all other mountains; and as such its praises are sung in strains of sooth in the three worlds. On the ridge of that Himavat there is that city rightly named the Golden City (kāñcanapura), which gleams like a mass of the sun’s rays deposited by him on earth”.
The Kathāsaritsāgara (‘ocean of streams of story’), mentioning Kāñcanapura, 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 Jainism
General definition (in Jainism)
Source: archive.org: TrisastisalakapurusacaritraKāñcanapura (काञ्चनपुर) is the name of an ancient city on Mount Vaitāḍhya in Bharatakṣetra in Puṣkaradvīpa, according to chapter 2.4 [ajitanātha-caritra] of Hemacandra’s 11th century Triṣaṣṭiśalākāpuruṣacaritra: an ancient Sanskrit epic poem narrating the history and legends of sixty-three illustrious persons in Jainism.
Accordingly, as Bhīma (i.e., the Lord of the Rākṣasas) said to Meghavāhana (i.e., Ghanavāhana): “I was a king, Vidyutdaṃṣṭra (=Vidyuddaṃṣṭra), in Kāñcanapura on Mount Vaitāḍhya in Bharatakṣetra in Puṣkaradvīpa in a former birth. In that birth you were my son Rativallabha, exceedingly dear. Now, O child, it is well that you have been seen. So it is now also. You are my son. Take my army. Whatever else is mine is yours. [...]”.
Source: academia.edu: Tessitori Collection IKaṃcanapura (कंचनपुर) is the name of an ancient city, according to the Candralekhācaupaī by Matikuśala (dealing with the lives of Jain female heroes), 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.—Accordingly, “[...] The parrot couple lived happily and got a child but they started to quarrel and went to the king for judgment. The she-parrot was unhappy with his decision. She died from fasting and in meditation. She was reborn in Kaṃcanapura as the daughter of the merchant Candrasāra and was named Candralekhā. She liked horses and got beautiful ones. [...]”
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: Wisdom Library: India HistoryKāñcanapura (काञ्चनपुर) is the name of an ancient city of the Kaliṅga country, according to Indian Antiquary, 1891, p. 375.
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
Sanskrit dictionary
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English DictionaryKāñcanapura (काञ्चनपुर):—[=kāñcana-pura] [from kāñcana > kāñc] n. Name of a town, [Kathāsaritsāgara; Vetāla-pañcaviṃśatikā]
[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.
See also (Relevant definitions)
Partial matches: Kancana, Pura, Kamcana.
Full-text: Candrasara, Avantipura, Dharmadhvaja, Vikramayashas, Vishnushri, Jimutaketu, Nagadatta, Kalagni, Kishkindhanagara, Makaradhvaji, Jyotishpura, Kanakavali, Rativallabha, Sura, Vidyuddamshtra, Shriprabha, Jimutavahana, Himavat, Megharatha, Sundari.
Relevant text
Search found 3 books and stories containing Kancanapura, Kāñcanapura, Kāñcana-pura, Kancana-pura, Kaṃcanapura, Kaṃcana-pura, Kamcana-pura, Kamcanapura, Kañcanapura, Kañcana-pura; (plurals include: Kancanapuras, Kāñcanapuras, puras, Kaṃcanapuras, Kamcanapuras, Kañcanapuras). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Puranic encyclopaedia (by Vettam Mani)
Trishashti Shalaka Purusha Caritra (by Helen M. Johnson)
Part 4: Initiation of Lakṣmaṇa’s sons < [Chapter X - Rāma’s mokṣa (emancipation)]
Part 2: Story of Meghavāhana < [Chapter V - Life and death of the sons of Sagara]
Part 1: Previous incarnations of Sanatkumāra as King Vikramayaśas and of Asitākṣa as Nāgadatta < [Chapter VII - Sanatkumāracakricaritra]
Kathasaritsagara (the Ocean of Story) (by Somadeva)