Vaishnavism of Manipur - King Bhagyachandra

King Bhagyachandra

Bhagyachandra ascended the throne in 1759, however in 1762 the Burmese invaded Manipur, and the king, with his queen and a few attendants, fled to the neighboring state, now known as Assam. The dispute over real identity of the king, called for a demonstration of supernatural powers, believed to be attributed to the king. It is believed that Bhagyachandra had a revelation from Lord Krishna in a dream; based on this revelation, he committed himself to making worship of Govinda the state religion on return to power in Manipur. Its believed that the deity of Govinda was to be made of the specific sacred tree and carefully planned Rasa-lila dances to be instituted in the country, which was regained with the help of the king of present day Assam. On reinstating the throne, a Govindaji deity was installed and regularly worshiped; later a Radha deity was installed and worshiped next to it.