KÃÂà Âë () was an ancient kingdom of India whose existence is attested during the Iron Age. The inhabitants of the KÃÂà Âë were named the KÃÂsikas in PÃÂli and the KÃÂà Âeyas and KÃÂà Âikas in Sanskrit.
The KÃÂà Âë kingdom covered an area of 300 leagues. The northern border of Kasi which separated it from Kosala was the Sarpikàor Syandikàriver, and the river Son formed its southern and eastern boundaries, separating it from Magadha in the east.
The capital of KÃÂà Âë was the city of VÃÂrÃÂá¹Âasë, which was also named Ketumatë, Surundhana, Sudassana, Brahmavaddhana, Pupphavatë, Ramma, and Molinë.
The KÃÂÃ Âikas were first mentioned in the recension of the Atharvaveda.
The ruling clan of KÃÂà Âë appears to have been member of the BhÃÂrata clan, and at one point KÃÂà Âë was ruled by one Dhá¹ÂtarÃÂá¹£á¹Âra (in Sanskrit) or Dhataraá¹Âá¹Âha (in PÃÂli) whom the calls a "Bharata prince." This Dhá¹ÂtarÃÂá¹£á¹Âra was defeated in battle by another Bharata king, named à ÂatÃÂnëka SÃÂtrÃÂjita, after which the KÃÂà Âikas stopped kindling the sacred fire until the time of the .
However, the monarchs of KÃÂà Âë do not appear to have all belonged to the same dynasty, and the s frequently mention the extinction of dynasties of the KÃÂà Âika kings or the deposition of KÃÂà Âika princes and their replacement with members from other families regarded as being more competent, with some kings of KÃÂà Âë having MÃÂgadhë or Vaideha origins and bearing the epithet of : although was a dynastic name, the Brahmadattas were not from the same dynasty, with the elected Brahmadatta of the having been a MÃÂgadhë prince, the king of KÃÂà Âë in the and his son being both named Brahmadatta, the KÃÂà Âika king Udaya being called "Brahmadatta" in the , while the Brahmadattas of the and s were Vaidehas.
The KÃÂà Âikas were closely connected to the Kausalyas and the Vaidehas, and Jala JÃÂtà «kará¹Âya was the purohita of these three kingdoms during the reign of the KÃÂà Âika king AjÃÂtaà Âatru, who was himself a contemporary of the famous Vaideha king Janaka and of UddÃÂlaka ÃÂruá¹Âi's son à Âvetaketu. AjÃÂtaà Âatru appears in the s as engaging in philosophical discussions with GÃÂrgya BÃÂlÃÂki, and the depicts AjÃÂtaà Âatru as being jealous of Janaka's fame as a patron of learning. The calls this AjÃÂtaà Âatru of KÃÂsë "Brahmadatta," implying that he was himself was a Brahmadatta.
The à Âatapatha BrÃÂhmaá¹Âa mentions a king of KÃÂsë named Bhadrasena AjÃÂtaà Âatrava, who was likely the son and successor of AjÃÂtaà Âatru, and had been bewitched by UddÃÂlaka ÃÂruá¹Âi.
Another king, named Janaka, who is not identical with the Vaideha king Janaka, is mentioned as ruling over KÃÂà Âë in the .
According to the , the legendary heroes Daà Âaratha and RÃÂma were kings of KÃÂà Âë, and not of Kosala as the Puranic tradition makes them out to be.
Vedic texts mention two other kings of KÃÂà Âë, one named DivodÃÂsa, and his son or descendant, named DaivadÃÂsi Pratardana.
During the 9th century BCE, the king of KÃÂsë was Aà Âvasena, the father of the 23rd Jain Tërthaá¹ kara, PÃÂrà ÂvanÃÂtha.
By the later Iron Age, the kingdom of KÃÂà Âë had become one of the most powerful states of Iron Age South Asia, with several s describing the KÃÂsika capital of VÃÂrÃÂá¹Âasë as being superior to the other cities and the kingdom's rulers as having imperial ambitions. According to these s, the kings of KÃÂà Âë sought the status of King of All Kings () and of Lord of all India (). VÃÂrÃÂá¹Âasë itself was twelve leagues in size, being much larger than the cities of Mithila and Indaprastha, which were both seven leagues in size, and the called VÃÂrÃÂá¹Âasë the "chief city" of all South Asia.
According to the , a KÃÂà Âika king and his large army fought against it northern neighbour of Kosala and seized its capital of SrÃÂvastë; the and the claim that the KÃÂà Âika king Brahmadatta had annexed Kosala after executing the Kauà Âalya king Dëghati; the mentions that Brahmadatta of KÃÂà Âë captured Kosala, killed its king, and carried of the chief Kauà Âalya queen to VÃÂrÃÂá¹Âasë where he married her; according to the , the KÃÂà Âika king Manoja had sunjugated the kings of Kosala, Aá¹ ga, and Magadha; the MahÃÂbhÃÂrata claims KÃÂà Âë had destroyed the power of the Vitahavyas or of the Haihayas; and according to the , the kingdom of Aà Âmaka, in the Deccan, was under KÃÂà Âika suzerainty.
KÃÂà Âë itself, in turn, was coveted by the other kingdoms around it, and at one point, seven kings besieged VÃÂrÃÂá¹Âasë in an attempt to conquer the territory of KÃÂà Âë, and the claims that the Kauà Âalya king had seized the kingdom of the king MahÃÂsëlava of KÃÂà Âë, while the kings Vanka and Dabbasena of Kosala were able to win suzerainty over KÃÂsë according to the and s.
KÃÂà Âë was finally conquered for good by Kosala under the latter's king Kaá¹Âsa, shortly before the time of the Buddha, due to which Kaá¹Âsa was nicknamed ("seizer of VÃÂrÃÂá¹Âasë"), and KÃÂà Âë was a full part of the kingdom of Kosala by the time of the Kauà Âalya king MahÃÂkosala.
When MahÃÂkosala's daughter KosalÃÂdevi married the king BimbisÃÂra of Magadha, she was given as present a village in KÃÂà Âë which produced a revenue of a hundred thousand for bath and perfume money, while the rest of the former KÃÂà Âë kingdom remained part of the Kosala kingdom ruled by MahÃÂkosala's son Pasenadi.
Following BimbisÃÂra's murder and the usurpation of the throne of Magadha by his son AjÃÂtaà Âatru, Pasenadi revoked his rights over the village in KÃÂà Âë, after which a war between Kosala and Magadha ensued which ended when Pasenadi captured AjÃÂtasatru, gave him in marriage his daughter VajirÃÂ, to whom he gifted the village in KÃÂà Âë, and restored him to his throne.
KÃÂà Âë later became a part of the empire of Magadha when AjÃÂtasattu defeated Pasenadi's own usurper son, Viá¸Âà «á¸Âabha, and annexed Kosala.