Balipatijaya

Balipatijaya (Thai: ภาลีบดีชัย) was an 8th-century Mon monarch attested in the Legend of the Arhat (Tamnan Nithan Phra Arahant; ตำนานนิทานพระอรหันต์). He was the elder son of Balidhiraja,^[2]: 3–5 the king of Sukhothai,^{[2]: 4–5 [3]: 25} and the grandson of Kalavarnadisharaja. Balipatijaya ascended to the throne at Lavo in 700 CE following the reign of his grandfather. The available sources provide no information regarding his immediate successor.^[2]: 3–4

Balipatijaya had one sibling, a younger brother named Sai Thong Som, who was born to a Tai queen consort of Balidhiraja.^[2]: 5 Sai Thong Som was appointed by his father to govern Devapura of Dvaravati after Balidhiraja deposed the preceding ruler circa 687 CE.^[2]: 3–4

During the reign of Balipatijaya in the 8th century, Dvaravati experienced a decline in political influence.^[4]: 60 According to the Cefu Yuangui, a polity referred to as Gē Luó Shě Fēn conquered the region west of Dvaravati, specifically the western Menam Valley.^[5]: 23 This designation is regarded as a corrupted rendering of Jiā Luó Shě Fú, which has been interpreted as Canasapura, identified with Qiān Zhī Fú and associated with Si Thep as its center, while Mueang Sema [de] functioned as an important regional stronghold.^{[6]: 30, 38–9} In addition to Gē Luó Shě Fēn, Chinese records found that several polities in the Menam valley sent their tribute to the Chinese court during the 8th to 9th century, notably, Shě Bá Ruò (舍跋若) at the present-day Suphan Buri and Xiū Luó Fēn, which probably equate with Āśe (อเส) mentioned in the Northern Chronicle in the area of Phraek Si Racha.