Videha

In the Ramayana, Videha was the kingdom of the royal sage Seeradhwaja Janaka, the father of Sita, Raghava Rama's wife. Rama's brothers married Sita's sisters, so the Videha Kingdom was closely allied to the Kosala Kingdom. Mithila was the capital of Videha, now identified with Janakpur, a town in Southern Nepal. The rulers of Vidheha were called Janakas and in Hindu tradition are thought to have been great scholars. It is believed that they were the oldest among the clans migrated from the river Saraswati as the river started drying up. According to the epics, the name came from a dead king (Videha, one devoid of body or dead) whose sons were created by sages who performed magical rites upon the king's dead body.