Udal of Mahoba

Udal is the name of a legendary 12th century general who appears in the Alha-Khand epic.[1] In the epic, Udal and his brother Alha serve in the army of the Chandela king Paramardi Deva (also known as Parmal or Parimal) of Mahoba. They are of mixed Ahir and Rajput descent and belong to the Banaphar clan.[2]

Veer Udal of Mahoba, U.P., India

According to the Alha-Khand, Udal was born after the death of his father Dassraj, who was also a general, and was killed in the service of king Paramardi. The king subsequently raised Udal as his own son.[3] The epic describes how Udal was killed while fighting the invading army of Rai Pithora, also known as Prithviraj Chauhan, in a large battle at Mahoba; while the content of the ballads has been embellished, the battle has been attested by stone inscriptions at Madanpur, and took place at some point in 1182-1183.[4]

References
  1. Schomer, Karine (1990). "The "Ālhā" Epic in Contemporary Performance". The World of Music. 32 (2): 58.
  2. Hiltebeitel, Alf (2009). Rethinking India's Oral and Classical Epics: Draupadi among Rajputs, Muslims, and Dalits. University of Chicago Press. p. 163. ISBN 978-0-226-34050-0. Ūdal (and the rest of the Banāphars) is susceptible to "mean caste" slurs and slights because of his combined Kṣatriya (Rajput) and cowherd (Ahir) background.
  3. Mishra, Pt. Lalita Prasad (2007). Alhakhand (in Hindi) (15 ed.). Lucknow (India): Tejkumar Book Depot (Pvt) Ltd. pp. 1–11 (History of Mahoba).
  4. Mitra, Sisir Kumar (1977). The Early Rulers of Khajurāho. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 123. ISBN 9788120819979.
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