Vendhya
"'Haven't I offered you gold?'
Chunder Shan laughed.
'Gold? There is more gold in Peshkhauri than you ever saw (...) And it is but a drop of all the treasure of Vendhya.'" -- Robert E. Howard: "The People of the Black Circle"
An ancient and prosperous eastern kingdom having a tropical climate, situated approximately in the area of modern India. To the north is the titanic massif of the Himelian Mountains, its inhabited area known as Ghulistan to the Vendhyans. To the west is the minor kingdom of Kosala, dominated to a great extent by its larger neighbor. East of Vendhya are the mysterious lands of Uttara Kuru and Kambuja. To the northeast, beyond mountains and deep jungles, lies Khitai.
Vendhya has wide expanses of rank forest where no man ventures lightly, and the few of those who do ever return. It is a fairly self-contained land of great richness. It has a well-developed agriculture, a textile industry, and an abundant supply of precious minerals. It also produces valuable spices, drugs and cosmetics.
Vendhya's jungles provide a variety of fascinating life. Elephants, tigers, panthers, cheetahs, gazelles and gorillas can be found, and beautifully colored birds fill the trees. Yaks and oxen wander through the highlands of the north, and some have been domesticated by the hill peoples.
In Conan's time the nation was ruled by a Devi, or queen, whose power base was a noble caste of warriors, the Kshatriya. Factions of sorcerors menaced the throne. Vendhya was also lusted after by the Turanians, who sent their Hyrkanian armies over the passes on occasion.
References: City of Skulls, Conan the Victorious, Conan at the Demon's Gate, Witch Shall Be Born, Flame Knife, Conan and the Shaman's Curse, People of the Black Circle, Return of Conan, Conan of the Isles, et al.
- Population: 14,000,000
- Capital: Ayodhya (pop. 2,700,000)
- Ruler: Devi Yasmina
- Major cities: Khorala, Jhelai, Bakharus, Peshkhauri
- Resources: Agricultural products, textiles, minerals, sandalwood, jade, mother-of-pearl, herbs, spices, drugs (including various forms of lotus blossom).
- Imports:
- Allies: Kosala, Iranistan
- Enemies: Turan, Ghulistan
- Tech level: Oriental
- Religion: Asura, Kali, Hanuman