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The Origin of Alha: Chandel Paramardideva Prithviraj Chauhan CE
The Origin of Alha: Chandel Paramardideva Prithviraj Chauhan CE
Contents
Folklore[edit]
Alha is an oral epic, the story is also found in a number of medieval manuscripts of the Prithviraj
Raso and the Bhavishya Purana. There is also a belief that the story was originally written by Jagnik,
bard of Mahoba, but no manuscript has yet been found.[6]
Karine Schomer depicted Alha in South Asian Folklore as:
Originating in the Bundelkhand Region. it (Alha) recounts the intertwined fates of the three principal
Rajput Kingdoms of North India on the eve of Turkish conquest (late 12th century C.E.); Delhi (ruled
by Prithviraj Chauhan), Kannauj (ruled by Jaichand Rathor), and Mahoba (ruled by Chandel
king Parmal). The heroes of the epic are the brothers Alha and Udal retainers of the Rajput status
with exceptional valour, whose cause is the protection of Mahoba and defense of its honour. Called
the "Mahabarata of the Kaliyuga", Alha both parallels and inverts the themes and the structures of
the classical religious epic.
The (Alha) cycle consists of fifty-two episodes in which the heroes confront enemies of Mahoba or
the resistant fathers of prospective brides. It ends with the great historical battle between the
kingdoms of Mahoba and Delhi, in which the Chandels were annihilated and the Chauhans so
weakened that they could not resist the subsequent attack of the Turks.[6]