Ayodhyapura

Ayodhyapura or Ayojjhapura (Thai: อโยชฌปุระ RTGS: Ayotchapura or อโยชฌนคร Ayotchanakhon) was an ancient settlement in central Thailand. It existed before the 14th century and is mentioned in the Ratanabimbavamsa or The Chronicle of the Emerald Buddha written in Pali by Brahmarājaprajña in the 15th century and in another Pali chronicle Jinakalamali. Modern scholars suggest Ayodhyapura was potentially Si Thep, the early center of the Dvaravati civilization, which flourished from the 6th to 11th century. In contrast, certain interpretations propose that the city in question was situated within the region of present-day northern Thailand, although its precise location remains indeterminate. Alternatively, it has been identified by some scholars with Lavapura, the principal urban center of Lavo; however, this latter assumption is generally regarded as the least plausible, since the text itself explicitly delineates these two urban centers as distinct and separate entities.

Ayodhyapura is believed to have entered a period of decline by the mid-10th century. A Khmer inscription dated to 946 CE records that the Angkorian king Rajendravarman II subdued Rāmaññadesa (lit. 'the land of the Mon') and Champa. Subsequently, in 949 CE, he appointed a member of his lineage, Vap Upendra, as governor of Rāmaññadesa. Earlier sources, such as the Ratanabimbavamsa, recount a conflict between Ayodhyapura, under Adītaraj, and Yaśodharapura over the possession of the Emerald Buddha during the late 9th or early 10th century. However, hostilities between these two polities may have originated much earlier, as suggested by the view that Jayavarman II, who established Kambujadesa and relocated the capital northward to Yaśodharapura in the mid-9th century, may have formed alliances with city-states in the Mun-Chi River basin, including Wen Dan, to counter the power of Si Thep in the Pa Sak River basin to the west.

Ayodhyapura is believed to have been abandoned or severely depopulated around the 13th century. Several Thai scholars attribute its decline to climatic changes and widespread epidemics. Following this period of collapse, the inhabitants are thought to have sought refuge in Lavapura of Lavo (Luó hú) and Ayodhya of Xiān. These two settlements subsequently amalgamated to form the Ayutthaya Kingdom (Xiānluó hú; 暹羅斛) in the 14th century. During the Sukhothai and Ayutthaya periods, the Jinakalamali also referred to Ayutthaya as Ayojjhapura, while Burmese sources occasionally identified Ayutthaya with Dvaravati.