Avanti ［阿槃提国］ (, Pali;  Ahandai-koku): An ancient kingdom of west-central India. In Shakyamuni Buddha’s time, Avanti was one of the sixteen great states, and Ujjayinī was its capital. From the time of King Pradyota in the sixth century b.c.e., Avanti prospered as a powerful kingdom and rival to the kingdom of Magadha. King Pradyota was a contemporary of Bimbisāra, the king of Magadha, and his son Ajātashatru. Mahākātyāyana, one of Shakyamuni Buddha’s ten major disciples, was a native of Avanti. According to one account, Utpalavarnā, a nun in Shakyamuni’s Order, was also a native of Avanti.