Republics in Ancient India, c. 1500 B.C.–500 B.C. c12.s1.19

c12.s1.19

It appears likely that the Mallas were Kṣatriyas, like the Videhas, the Licchavis and the Nāyas. They came from the Madhyadeśa, the "Middle Country," probably after the Videhas. They are often referred to as Vāseṭṭhas ⁸ after the Brāhmaṇic *gotra* they had adopted, in keeping with the practice of other clans of northeast India of that period. The deaths of the great founders of Buddhism and Jainism in two Malla capitals brought forth many a significant passage in the Pāli and the Prākrit texts which help us in discussing the republican institutions of these peoples.