The first explicitly dated mention of him in the
royal chronicles is in 1390–1391 when he commanded an
Ava regiment that fought in the battle of
Gu-Htut in the
Forty Years' War under the command of King
Swa Saw Ke (r. 1367–1400). He was then already governor of
Pakhan (modern
Pakokku District in central Myanmar), and would hold the post until 1413. Outside of his reappointment to the post in 1402 by King
Minkhaung I (r. 1400–1421), chronicles say nothing about his record as governor of the vassal state. In all, only his military record can be gleaned from the chronicles, and it was not particularly distinguished. Though a regimental commander, Tarabya appeared to have gained a minor advisory role in the Ava high command, especially after his daughter
Saw Min Hla wedded Crown Prince
Minye Kyawswa in 1406. In 1408, he and Gov. Sithu of Yamethin were a voice of caution, urging the king not to invade Hanthawaddy right before the start of the rainy season. But the king ignored their advice, and proceeded to invade the southern kingdom. The invasion ended in total disarray three months later; Tarabya was one of the commanders in the rearguard army that failed to secure an orderly withdrawal. His last campaign was in 1412–1413 when he failed two assignments. First, early in the campaign November 1412, his regiment failed to capture a key Hanthawaddy stockade, defended by Commander
Smin Upakaung, blocking the route to the besieged city of
Prome (Pyay). Later, in May 1413, Tarabya failed to defend the key port city of
Syriam (Thanlyin), which had been captured by Crown Prince Minye Kyawswa with great difficulty just a few weeks earlier. With Minye Kyawswa pressing ahead towards the Hanthawaddy capital
Pegu (Bago), Tarabya became "careless", and was unprepared when a Hanthawaddy flotilla launched a counterattack on the port. The loss of Syriam frustrated the Ava crown prince's plans to occupy the
Irrawaddy delta over the rainy season (June–October), and forced him to pull back to Prome. Back at
Ava (Inwa), Tarabya, the father-in-law of the crown prince, escaped harsh punishment. King Minkhaung transferred Tarabya to become
governor of Pagan, and appointed his youngest son Prince
Minye Kyawhtin to take over Pakhan. His posting at
Pagan (Bagan), the ancient capital, may have been a face-saving measure, as Tarabya never went to the front again as an active commander. (He did briefly return to Pakhan in 1426 with the army of
Mohnyin Thado against Prince Minye Kyawhtin but not as a commander.) Tarabya lived out his years at Pagan. He survived the unrest and civil war that ensued after the twin assassinations of his son-in-law King
Thihathu (r. 1421–1425), and grandson King
Min Hla (r. 1425) in 1425. He supported Thado, who overthrew King
Min Nyo in 1426. meaning that Tarabya was no longer governor of Pagan sometime between 1426 and 1439, either because he had died or was replaced. Furthermore, he had apparently died by early 1434 since the king appointed Tarabya's son governor of
Amyint with the title of Tarabya February 1434. ==Family==