Padum Kumara
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| Padum Kumara | |
|---|---|
| King of Indaprasthanagara | |
| King of Phraek Si Racha | |
| Reign | 800–? |
| Predecessor | Padumasuriyavamsa |
| Successor | Several unknown short-reigning rulers (Title next held by Phrom) |
| Born | Indaprasthanagara |
| Died | Indaprasthanagara |
| House | Padumasuriyavamsa |
| Father | Padumasuriyavamsa |
Padum Kumara (Thai: ปทุมกุมาร),[1]: 10 also recorded as Chao Krung Phan (เจ้ากรุงพาล), is described in the Chronicle of the Padumasūriyavaṃśa as a mythical ninth-century Siamese ruler of Indaprasthanagara,[2]: 11 [3]: ๓๑ situated in the Phraek Si Racha region of present-day central Thailand.[1]: 4–5 He is said to have succeeded his father, Padumasuriyavamsa,[2]: 11 [3]: ๓๑ who is described as the progenitor of many later Siamese dynasties.[1]: 11, 38, 43–4 [4]: 127, 133 His reign is portrayed as a period of instability, as he severed ties with the nāga royal clan on his mother's side, which led to military conflict; the narrative records that he prevailed and that the nāga forces retreated.[2]: 11 [3]: ๓๑–๒
The account further states that he later contracted leprosy and became involved in conflict with two ṛṣayaḥ, resulting in his illness remaining uncured and ultimately leading to his death at a young age, leaving no offspring.[2]: 11–4 [3]: ๓๒ Another tradition, the Ratanabimbavamsa, relates that during a period of severe flooding and following the demise of its great king, Indaprasthanagara was seized by Adītaraj of Ayojjhapura,[5]: 51 a polity identified by some Thai scholars with Si Thep.[6] Thereafter, a sequence of rulers ascended the throne in uninterrupted succession, each reigning in turn for only a short period, and their names are not recorded in the extant sources.[3]: ๓๓
The latter portion of the chronicle, which equates Indaprasthanagara with Angkor, recounts that a cattle trader named Phrom was elevated to the throne as a new ruler, founded a new city to the east of the river, established it as the principal center, and reigned there for twenty years before being succeeded by his son, whose name is not recorded.[2]: 14 [3]: ๓๕–๖ His son was later succeeded by another commoner Pakshi Jam Krong (ปักษีจำกรง).[2]: 18 These episodes have been cited as contradicting the identification of Indaprasthanagara with Angkor, since the Angkorian epigraphic records reflect succession within established royal lineages and do not attest to the accession of a commoner of mercantile background.