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The Gupta Period(AD 275-550)

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The Gupta Period(A.D 275-550) 1. Introduction • Early history of Guptas is shrouded in mystery due to the lack of sources. • The early rulers of this dynasty took the title of ‘Maharaja’, which indicates their feudatory status. But it is not clear to whom they were feudatories. • According to some historians,Guptas initially ruled from Prayaga as the feudatories of Kushans,later declared their independence and ruled from Pataliputra. Sources No. Author Name of the Book Information 1 Kamandaka Nitisara Gupta administration 2 Vajjika Kaumudi Mahotsava Coronation of Chandragupta I 3 Sudraka Mrichchakatika Pious brahmin Charudatta falling in love with a prostitute named Vasantasena 4 Visakhadatta Devi Chandraguptam Marriage of Chandragupta II with Dhruvadevi 5 Somadeva Kathasaritsagara Spread of Indian Culture to SE Asian countries 6 Puranas ------------------------ Genealogy of the Guptas • Along with these literary works, the writings of Fa-Hien also give valuable information about the Guptas. • He was a Buddhist pilgrim from China who spent 15 years in India between A.D 399 and 414 during the reign of Chandragupta II. • He was the first foreigner to mention about untouchability prevailing in India. • He described the social,economic,religious and educational disabilities imposed upon the untouchable castes. Fa-Hien (Faxian) ❑ Inscriptions • 42 inscriptions of Guptas have been found so far, which include prashastis (eulogies) and danashasanas (land charters). ❑ Important Inscriptions are: I. Samudragupta’s inscriptions provide valuable information- Inscription’s of Samudragupta Information Allahabad Prashasti (UP) Written on an Ashokan pillar found in Allahabad by Harisena(Mahadandanayaka,Sandhivigrahak a in the court of Samudragupta);gives details of kingdoms conquered by Samudragupta Eran Prashasti (MP) Samudragupta’s conquests Nalanda Copper Plate Inscription (Bihar) Is a land charter, speaks about a village endowed by Samudragupta to a brahmin (the term Agrahara appears for the first time in the Nalanda copper plate inscription of Samudragupta). Gaya Copper plate inscription (Bihar) Tells us that Samudragupta granted a village to a Buddhist Vihara at Gaya and that the vihara was built by king Mahameghavarma of Sri Lanka. Ashoka Pillar-Prayagaraj(Allahabad) II.Mehrauli (Delhi)Iron Pillar Inscription of Chandragupta II • Describes the victories of Chandragupta II. • The iron pillar on which the inscription was written, weighs about 6 tons and is 23 feet tall. • It is about 1600 years old and shows no sign of rust. • It is made of pure Wrought Iron (99.7 % iron, very low sulphur,very high phosphorous content) • 11th century inscription on it refers to Anangapala Tomar establishing Delhi. Mehrauli (Delhi)Iron Pillar Inscription of Chandragupta II III. Skandagupta’s inscriptions provide the following information: 1) Junagarh Inscription (Gujarat):Prashasti of Skandagupta; says he got the Sudarsana lake repaired. (Earlier, the Saka king Rudradaman I also gave the same information in his Junagarh inscription). 2) Bhitari Inscription (MP) :Prashasti of Skandagupta; mentions his wars with the Huns. IV. Pune Copper Plate Inscription (Maharashtra): • This danashasana was issued by Prabhavatigupta (D/o Chandragupta II). • It provides some information about the land survey system. V. Eran Inscription of Bhanugupta (MP): • Recorded in A.D. 510. • It is the first inscription to mention about the practice of Sati. VI Mandasore Inscription of Yasovarman (MP): • The inscription is dated A.D.532. • Issued by Yasovarman, who ruled over Central India with Mandasore as his capital. • This inscription tells us that Yasovarman defeated the Guptas. ❑ Numismatic Sources • Coins provide lot of information about the Guptas. • Gupta rulers minted a large number of gold coins called ‘Dinars' and silver coins called ‘rupayas'. • Fa-Hien:Common people used shells as medium of exchange. 1) Queen Kumaradevi appears on the coins minted by Chandragupta-l. (Minting coins with the portrait of the royal women was an uncommon practice.) Queen Kumaradevi and King Chandragupta I on a coin 2) Samudragupta issued many types of gold coins such as: Samudragupta as shown on his Corresponding title coins Playing the lute ‘Kaviraja’ Performing Ashvamedha sacrifice ‘Asvamedhaparakrama’ Hunting a tiger ‘Vyaghraparakrama’. Samudragupta on a coin Lyrist type & Gold Dinar type of coins: Samudragupta 3) Chandragupta-II was the first Gupta king to mint silver coins on the model of Sakas of Ujjain. • Titles like Simha Chandra, Narendra Simha and Simha Vikrama appear on them. 4) 1395 silver coins of Kumaragupta were found at Samand (Maharashtra). • He is shown performing Ashwamedha sacrifice and his title ‘Asvamahendra’ appear on them. Gupta Empire and Conquests Political History 1. Srigupta 2. Chandragupta I 3. Samudragupta 4. Chandragupta II 5. Kumaragupta 6. Skandagupta 7. Narasimhagupta Baladitya 8. Vishnugupta 1. Srigupta (A.D. 275- 300) o Founder of the dynasty o Took the title ‘Maharaja’ ( hence historians believe that he might be a feudatory). o According to the Chinese traveller Itsing, Srigupta built a Buddhist vihara at Mrugasikhavana. 2. Chandragupta-I (A.D. 320- 335) o Assumed the title ‘Maharajadhiraja’(hence scholars opine that he might have declared himself independent) o Chandragupta-I married the Lichchavi princess Kumaradevi and with their support, he might have become independent. 3. Samudragupta (A.D. 335- 380): • Greatest of the dynasty • Allahabad inscription gives a detailed account of his victories. According to it, Samudragupta conquered the following kingdoms: i. 8 Aryavarta Kingdoms (ie,land between Himalayas and Vindhyas). o 8 kings of Aryavarta were defeated by him of which Ganapatinaga, the ruler of Padmavati (Gwalior) was most eminent. ii. 5 Pratyanta Kingdoms: He conquered 5 border states namely Kamrupa (Assam), Dhavaka (Assam), Kartipura (Kashmir), Samatata (Bengal) and Nepal. iii.18 Atavika Rajyas: Samudragupta conquered 18 tribal kingdoms located in Vindhya Mountains. iv. 9 Gana Rajyas: He conquered 9 republican states that had elected governments. Notable among them were Malava, Abhira, Yaudheya and Arjunayana states. v. 12 Dakshinapada Kingdoms: o Samudragupta defeated 12 southern states located between the rivers Mahanadi and Kaveri. o The important among them were- i. Mahendra (king of Kosala-Orissa) ii. Hastivarma (king of VengiAndhra Pradesh) iii. Vishnugopa (king of Kanchi -Tamil Nadu). o Samudra adopted the policy of 'grahana- moksha-anugraha’ towards the South Indian rulers, according to which their kingdoms were returned and they were made his feudatories. o Thus, Samudragupta transformed the small Gupta kingdom into a mighty empire. o British historian,Vincent A. Smith called Samudragupta as 'Indian Napoleon". Samudragupta’s Dakshinapatha Campaign 4. Chandragupta-II (A.D. 380- 412) • In A.D. 388, Chandragupta-II occupied Ujjain by defeating the Saka king Rudra Simha III. Thereafter, he assumed the titles of Sakari (destroyer of Sakas) and Vikramaditya. • Ujjain became the second capital of Guptas. • Rudra Simha-III can be considered as the last Saka king in India. • Chandragupta strengthened the Gupta Empire through matrimonial alliances. • He married Kuberanaga (d/o Ganapatinaga) and married his daughter Prabhavati Gupta to Rudrasena-II, the king of Vakatakas. • According to a tradition, 9 distinguished poets named Navaratnas adorned his court. (but history doesn't support this claim as these scholars belonged to different periods) 1. Kalidasa: o Greatest among the Navaratnas Author Literature type Name 1.Kalidasa Drama i) Abhijnana Shakuntalam-Story of marriage of Shakuntala (D/o sage Vishwamitra & Menaka) with king Dushyanta Drama ii )Malavikagnimitram-love story and marriage of Agnimitra ( Sunga king) with Malavika Drama iii) Vikramorvasiyam-marriage of a warrior Vikramaditya with Urvasi Above 3 are called ‘NATAKATRAYA’ Poem iv) Kumarasambhava-birth of Kumaraswami to Shiva & Parvati Poem v) Meghadoota-A Yaksha living in Vindhya mountains sends a message of passionate love to his wife in the Himalayas through a passing cloud. Poem vi) Ritusamhara-describes different seasons in India Poem vii) Raghuvamsa-story of Rama,is an incomplete poem S.No Author Literature type Name Uniqueness . 2 Vishnu Sharma Short story Panchatantra Was later translated into Arabic by Ibn al Muqaffa under the name Calila-e-Dimna 3 Amarasimha Sanskrit lexicon Amarakosa ----------------------------- 4 Vararuchi Grammar Prakrita Prakasa Only Prakrit poet among the Navaratnas 5 Dhanwantari Dictionary on ---------------- ---------------------------- Ayurveda 6 Susrutha ---------------- Susruta Samhita A book on surgery 7 Aryabhatta Astronomy Surya Siddhanta Talks about Heliocentric theory, revolution of earth, causes of solar & lunar eclipses etc Mathematics Aryabhattiyam Decimal system and ‘0’ S.No Author Literature Name Uniqueness . type 8 Varahamihira Poem Brihat Samhita Encyclopedia of Indian sciences poem Pancha Siddhantika 5 theories related to Astronomy 9 Brahmagupta ----------- Khandanakadya He is called ‘Indian Newton’ for discussing the gravitational force of the earth. 5. Kumaragupta o During his reign,Huns invaded India for the first time. o Introduced worship of god Kartikeya in North India. o Performed an Ashwamedha and assumed the title of Mahendraditya. o He founded Nalanda University, the most famous Mahayana institution. o According to Hiuen Tsang, 8300 students and 1500 instructors were present at Nalanda University. Nalanda University-Bihar
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