Maukhari dynasty
Maukhari Empire | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| c. 550 CE–c. 606 CE | |||||||||||||
| Capital | Kannauj | ||||||||||||
| Common languages | Sanskrit | ||||||||||||
| Religion | Hinduism Buddhism | ||||||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | ||||||||||||
| Maharajadhirajas | |||||||||||||
| Historical era | Classical India | ||||||||||||
• Established | c. 550 CE | ||||||||||||
• Disestablished | c. 606 CE | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
The Maukhari dynasty (Gupta script: 
, Mau-kha-ri) was a post-Gupta royal Indian dynasty that controlled vast areas of Northern India for over six generations. They earlier served as vassals of the Guptas and later by Harsha's Vardhana dynasty. The Maukharis established their independence at Kannauj, during the mid 6th century. The dynasty ruled over much of Uttar Pradesh and Magadha. Around 606 CE, a large area of their empire was reconquered by the Later Guptas.[1] According to Hieun-Tsang, the territory may have been lost to King Shashanka of Gauda, who declared independence circa 600 AD.[2][3]
Religion[]
The Maukharis were staunch Hindus. They tried to enforce and maintain the traditional social order among the people. Hinduism received state support, but Buddhism also managed to remain as a prominent religion.[4]
Army[]
The Maukhari army consisted of elephants, cavalry and infantry. Ishanavarman in all probability would have taken much pains to reorganize the army and make it strong and worthy. The Maukhari strategy mainly focused on deploying elephant corps to crush the enemy armies. They were used against the Hunas and the Later Gupta armies.[4]
Administration[]
Kannauj, the Maukhari capital, grew in prosperity and importance and as a great cosmopolitan town. After the demise of the Maukharis, it even became the capital of Harsha. Hence, the city of Kanyakubja was largely contested by imperial powers.[6]: 20 [4][7]
The first three Maukhari kings are mentioned in the inscriptions as Maharaja, but their successors assumed more pompous titles showing the increase in power. Ishanavarman was the first Maukhari ruler to adopt the title Maharajadhiraja.[4]
Culture and international exchanges[]
The Maukhari kings were patrons of poets and writers and many literary works were composed during their reign.[4]
With the end of Hunnic power, new contacts were established between India and the Sasanian Empire. Intellectual games such as chess and backgammon demonstrated and celebrated the diplomatic relationship between Khosrow I and a "great king of India." The vizier of the Indian king invented chess as a cheerful, playful challenge to King Khosrow. It seems that the Indian ruler who sent the game of chess to Khosrow was the Maukhari King Śarvavarman of Kannauj, between the beginning of Śarvavarman’s reign in 560/565 and the end of Khosrow's reign in 579.[8][9] When the game was sent to Iran it came with a letter which read: "As your name is the King of Kings, all your emperorship over us connotes that your wise men should be wiser than ours. Either you send us an explanation of this game of chess or send revenue and tribute us."[10] Khosrow's grand vizier successfully solved the riddle and figured out how to play chess. In response the wise vizier created the game backgammon and sent it to the Indian court with the same message. The Indian king was not able to solve the riddle and was forced to pay tribute.[10]
Succession[]
The Vardhana dynasty (also called "Pushyabhuti dynasty") ultimately succeeded the Maukhari dynasty, but it had originally only been a small polity around their capital Sthaneshvara (Thanesar). According to Hans T. Bakker, their ruler Aditya-Vardhana (or Aditya-Sena) was probably a feudatory to the Maukhari ruler Sharva-varman. His successor Prabhakara-Vardhana may have also been a feudatory to the Maukhari king Avanti-Varman in his early days. Prabhakara's daughter Rajyashri married Avanti-Varman's son Graha-Varman. As a result of this marriage, Prabhakara's political status increased significantly, and he assumed the imperial title Parama-bhattaraka Maharajadhiraja. ("the one to whom the other kings bow because of his valour and affection").[11]
Rulers[]
The known Maukhari rulers of madhya-desha include:[12]
- Hari-varman[13]
- Aditya-varman
- Ishvara-varman (Iśvaravarman)
- Ishana-varman (Iśanavarman), r. c. 550-560 CE
- Sharva-varman (Śarvavarman), r. c. 560-575 CE
- Avanti-varman, r. c. 575-600 CE
- Graha-varman, r. c. 600-605 CE
The Barabar Caves inscriptions attest the existence of another Maukhari branch. This branch ruled as feudatories, probably that of the Later Guptas. The known rulers of this branch include:[14]
- Nrpa Shri Yajna-varman
- Nrpa Samantachudamani Shri Shardula-varman
- Ananta-varman
Inscriptions[]
The Harahara inscription of Ishanavarman. The inscription, dated to Vikrama Samvat 610 (ie 554 CE), record the genealogy of the Maukharis.[15]
Asirgarh seal inscription of Sharvavarman, Maukhari dynasty, 6th century .[16][17]
Lomas Rishi cave inscription of Anantavarman
Gopika Cave Inscription of Anantavarman
Vadathika Cave Inscription of Anantavarman
See also[]
| Outline of South Asian history |
|---|
 |
- Megasthenes
- List of Hindu Empires and Dynasties
References[]
- ^ "Maukhari dynasty (Indian dynasty) - Britannica Online Encyclopedia". Britannica.com. Retrieved 2013-01-26.
- ^ Reza, Mohammad Habib; Bandyopadhyay, S.; Mowla, Azizul. "Traces of Buddhist architecture in Gupta and post-Gupta Bengal: evidence from inscriptions and literature". Journal of Eurasian Studies. S2CID 163998400. Cite journal requires
|journal=(help) - ^ Dasgupta, Biplab (2005). European Trade and Colonial Conquest, Volume 1. ISBN 9781843310280. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
- ^ a b c d e Lal, Avantika. "World History Encyclopedia: Maukhari Dynasty". World History Encyclopedia.
- ^ Tripathi, Rama S. (1989). History of Kanauj: To the Moslem Conquest. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. p. 45 Note 1. ISBN 9788120804043.
- ^ Sen, S.N., 2013, A Textbook of Medieval Indian History, Delhi: Primus Books, ISBN 9789380607344
- ^ Tripathi, Rama S. (1989). History of Kanauj: To the Moslem Conquest. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. p. 215. ISBN 9788120804043.
- ^ a b Eder, Manfred A. J. (2010). South Asian Archaeology 2007 Proceedings of the 19th Meeting of the European Association of South Asian Archaeology in Ravenna, Italy, July 2007, Volume II (PDF). Archaeopress Archaeology. p. 69. ISBN 978 1 4073 0674 2.
- ^ Bakker, Hans T. (2017). The Huns in Central and South Asia. How Two Centuries of War against Nomadic Invaders from the Steps are Concluded by a Game of Chess between the Kings of India and Iran.
- ^ a b Canepa 2009, p. 181
- ^ Hans Bakker 2014, p. 79.
- ^ Ronald M. Davidson 2012, p. 34-35.
- ^ Documented by the Shankarpur copper-plate inscription: see SIDDHAM: the asia inscriptions database: https://siddham.network/inscription/in00067/
- ^ Bindeshwari Prasad Sinha (1977). Dynastic History of Magadha, Cir. 450-1200 A.D. Abhinav. pp. 109–110. OCLC 464639312.
- ^ Thomas, F. w (1918). Epigraphia Indica Vol.14. pp. 110–116.
- ^ "Siddham. The Asian Inscription Database IN00144 Asirgadh Seal Inscription of Sarvavarman".
- ^ "Siddham. The Asian Inscription Database | Śarvavarman".
Bibliography[]
- Hans Bakker (2014). The World of the Skandapurāṇa. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-27714-4.
- Ronald M. Davidson (2012). Indian Esoteric Buddhism: A Social History of the Tantric Movement. Columbia University Press. ISBN 9780231501026.
External links[]
- Joseph Schwartzberg. The Historical Atlas of South Asia. Map of the “Age of Pusyabhutis & Calukyans, c. A.D. 550-700”. (Pg 26).
- Empires and kingdoms of India
- Dynasties of India
- Former empires in Asia
- States and territories established in the 6th century
- Historical Hindu empires