Vakataka dynasty | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| c. 250 CE – c. 510 CE | |||||||||||||||||||
  South-Asia 350 CE Approximate extent of the Vakataka territories circa 350 CE.[1] | |||||||||||||||||||
| Capital | Vatsagulma (NowWashim) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Common languages | Maharashtri Prakrit[2] Sanskrit | ||||||||||||||||||
| Religion | Hinduism Buddhism Jainism | ||||||||||||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | ||||||||||||||||||
| Maharaja[3] | |||||||||||||||||||
• 250–270 | Vindhyashakti | ||||||||||||||||||
• 270–330 | Pravarasena I | ||||||||||||||||||
• 480–510 | Harishena | ||||||||||||||||||
| Historical era | Classical India | ||||||||||||||||||
• Established | c. 250 CE | ||||||||||||||||||
• Disestablished | c. 510 CE | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Today part of | India | ||||||||||||||||||
TheVakataka dynasty (IAST:Vākāṭaka) was anancient Indian dynasty ofAbhiras[4] that originated from theDeccan in the mid-3rd century CE. Their state is believed to have extended from the southern edges ofMalwa andGujarat in the north to theTungabhadra River in the south as well as from theArabian Sea in the west to the edges ofChhattisgarh in the east. They were the most important successors of theSatavahanas in theDeccan and contemporaneous with theGuptas in northern India.
Little is known aboutVindhyashakti (c. 250 – c. 270 CE), the founder of the family. Territorial expansion began in the reign of his sonPravarasena I. It is generally believed that the Vakataka dynasty was divided into four branches after Pravarasena I. Two branches are known, and two are unknown. The known branches are the Pravarapura-Nandivardhana branch and the Vatsagulma branch.Gupta EmperorChandragupta II married his daughter into the Vakataka royal family and, with their support, annexedGujarat from theSaka Satraps in 4th century CE. The power vacuum left by the Vakatakas were filled by that of theChalukyas of Badami in theDeccan region.[5] The Vakatakas are noted for having been patrons of the arts, architecture and literature. They led public works and their monuments are a visible legacy. The rock-cut Buddhistviharas andchaityas ofAjanta Caves (aUNESCO World Heritage Site) were built under the patronage of Vakataka king,Harishena.
The founder of the dynasty wasVindhyashakti (250–270), whose name is derived from the name of the goddessVindhyavasini. The dynasty may be originated there. Almost nothing is known about Vindhyashakti, the founder of the Vakatakas. In the Cave XVI inscription of Ajanta he was described as thebanner of the Vakataka family and aDvija. It is stated in this inscription that he added to his power by fighting great battles and he had a large cavalry. But no regal title is prefixed to his name in this inscription. ThePuranas say that he ruled for 96 years. He was placed variously at south Deccan, Madhya Pradesh and Malwa.K.P. Jayaswal attributes Bagat, a village in the Jhansi district as the home of Vakatakas. But after refuting the theory regarding the northern home of the Vakatakas,V.V. Mirashi points out that the earliest mention of the name Vakataka occurs in an inscription found on a fragment of a pillar atAmravati which records the gift of aGrihapati (householder) Vakataka and his two wives. This Grihapati in all probability was the progenitor of Vidhyashakti. It appears from the Puranas that Vindhyasakti was a ruler ofVidisha (in the present dayMadhya Pradesh state) but that is not considered to be correct.[6][unreliable source?]
As per Dr Mirashi, who has rejected the identification of Rudra deva in the Allahabad pillar inscription of Samudra Gupta with Rudra sena I. He has also pointed out there are no coins of Vakataka and there are no inscriptions of them in the north of Vindhyas. Hence, a south home of Vakatakas is correct. However, it is true that they have ruled on some of these places, since the epigraphs were available in Madhya Pradesh.[citation needed]
The next ruler wasPravarasena I (270–330), who maintained the realm as a great power, he was the first Vakataka ruler, who called himself aSamrat (universal ruler) and conducted wars with theNaga kings. He has become an emperor in his own right, perhaps the only emperor in the dynasty, with his kingdom embracing a good portion of North India and whole of Deccan. He carried his arms to the Narmada in the north and annexed the kingdom of Purika which was being ruled by a king named Sisuka. In any case, he certainly ruled from Bundelkhand in the north (though Dr Mirashi does not accept that he has crossed the Narmada) to the present Andhra Pradesh in the south. The puranas assign him a reign of 60 years.
As per V.V. Mirashi, it is unlikely that he made any conquest in Northern Maharashtra, Gujarat or Konkan. But, he may have conquered parts of North Kuntala comprising Kolhapur, Satara and Solapur districts ofMaharashtra. In the east, he may have carried his arms to Dakshina Kosala, Kalinga and Andhra. He was a follower of Vedic religion and performed severalYajnas (sacrifices) which include Agnishtoma, Aptoryama, Ukthya, Shodasin, Atiratra, Vajapeya, Brihaspatisava, Sadyaskra and four Asvamedhas. He heavily donated to the Brahmins during the Vajapeya sacrifice as per the Puranas. He also took up the title ofDharmamaharaja in addition toSamrat. He called himself asHaritiputra. His prime minister Deva was a very pious and learned Brahmin. The Puranas say that Pravarasena I had four sons. He married his son Gautamiputra to a daughter of KingBhavanaga of the powerful Bharashiva family, which might have proved to be helpful. However, Gautamiputra predeceased him and he was succeeded by his grandsonRudrasena I, the son of Gautamiputra. His second son,Sarvasena set up his capital at Vatsagulma (the present dayWashim). Nothing is known about the dynasties set up by the other two sons.[7][8]
It is generally believed that the Vakataka ruling family was divided into four branches after Pravarasena I. Two branches are known and two are unknown. The known branches are the Pravarpura-Nandivardhana branch and the Vatsagulma branch.
The Pravarapura-Nandivardhana branch ruled from various sites like Pravarapura (Paunar) inWardha district and Mansar and Nandivardhan (Nagardhan) inNagpur district. This branch maintained matrimonial relations with the Imperial Guptas.
Not much is known aboutRudrasena I, the son of Gautamiputra, who ruled from Nandivardhana, near Ramtek hill, about 30 km fromNagpur. There is a mention of Rudradeva in the Allahabad pillar inscription, bundled along with the other rulers of Aryavarta. A number of scholars, likeA.S. Altekar do not agree that Rudradeva is Rudrasena I, since if Rudrasena I had been exterminated by Samudragupta, it is extremely unlikely that his sonPrithivishena I would accept a Gupta princess (Prabhavatigupta) as his daughter-in-law. Secondly, no inscription of Rudrasena I has been found north of the Narmada. The only stone inscription of Rudrasena I's reign discovered so far was found at Deotek in the present-dayChandrapur district, so he can not be equated with Rudradeva of the Allahabad pillar inscription, who belonged to the Aryavarta.[9]
Rudrasena I was succeeded by his son namedPrithivishena I (355–380), and Prithivishena I was succeeded by his son named Rudrasena II.
Rudrasena II (380–385) is said to have marriedPrabhavatigupta, the daughter of the Gupta KingChandragupta II (375–413/15). This is now confirmed by the Kevala-Narasimha inscriptions of Ramtek, where it is announced that (Cā)mundā, a daughter of Queen Prabhavatigupta was given in marriage to the Prince Ghatotkachagupta (who was likely a son of Chandragupta II).[10]
Rudrasena II died fortuitously after a very short reign in 385 CE, following whichPrabhavatigupta (385–405) ruled as a regent on behalf of her two sons, Divakarasena and Damodarasena (Pravarasena II) for 20 years. During this period the Vakataka realm was practically a part of theGupta Empire. Many historians refer to this period as the Vakataka-Gupta age. While this has been widely accepted more than 30 years ago, this line of argument has no proper evidence. Prabhavati Gupta's inscription mentions about one "Deva Gupta" who is her father and the historians equated him with Chandra Gupta II. However, there is no other source to prove that Deva Gupta is really Chandra Gupta II. Pravarasena II composed theSetubandha inMaharashtri Prakrit. A few verses of theGaha Sattasai are also attributed to him. He shifted the capital from Nandivardhana to Pravarapura, a new city of founded by him. He built a temple dedicated toRama in his new capital.[11][unreliable source?]
The highest number of so far discovered copperplate inscriptions of the Vakataka dynasty (in all 17) pertain to Pravarasena II. He is perhaps the most recorded ruler of ancient India afterAshoka the Great. See: Shreenand L. Bapat, A Second Jamb (Khandvi) Copperplate Grant of Vakataka Ruler Pravarasena II (Shravana Shuddha 13, Regnal Year 21), Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Vol. 91, pp. 1–31
Pravarasena II was succeeded by Narendrasena (440–460), under whom the Vakataka influence spread to some central Indian states. Prithivishena II, the last known king of the line, succeeded his father Narendrasena inc. 460. He was Defeated by Vishnukundina KingMadhava Varma II, After his death in 480, his kingdom was probably annexed by Harishena of the Vatsagulma branch.
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The Vatsagulma branch was founded by Sarvasena, the second son of Pravarasena I after his death. King Sarvasena made Vatsagulma, the present dayWashim inWashim district ofMaharashtra his capital.[12][unreliable source?] The territory ruled by this branch was between the Sahydri Range and the Godavari River. They patronized some of the Buddhist caves atAjanta.
Sarvasena (c. 330–355) took the title ofDharmamaharaja. He is also known as the author ofHarivijaya in Prakrit which is based on the story of bringing theparijata tree fromheaven by Krishna. This work, praised by later writers is lost. He is also known as the author of many verses of the PrakritGaha Sattasai. One of his minister's name was Ravi. He was succeeded by his son Vindhyasena.[12][unreliable source?][13]
Vindhysena (c. 355–400) was also known as Vindhyashakti II. He is known from the well-known Washim plates which recorded the grant of a village situated in the northern marga (sub-division) of Nandikata (presentlyNanded) in his 37th regnal year. The genealogical portion of the grant is written in Sanskrit and the formal portion in Prakrit. This is the first known land grant by any Vakataka ruler. He also took the title ofDharmamaharaja.[14][unreliable source?] Vindhyasena defeated the ruler of Kuntala, his southern neighbour. One of his minister's name was Pravara. He was succeeded by his son Pravarasena II.[12][unreliable source?]
Pravarasena II (c. 400–415) was the next ruler of whom very little is known except from the Cave XVI inscription ofAjanta, which says that he became exalted by his excellent, powerful and liberal rule. He died after a very short rule and succeeded by his minor son, who was only 8 years old when his father died. Name of this ruler is lost from the Cave XVI inscription.[14]
This unknown ruler was succeeded by his son Devasena (c. 450–475). His administration was actually run by his minister Hastibhoja.[12][unreliable source?] During his reign, one of his servant Svaminadeva excavated a tank namedSudarshana near Washim inc. 458–459.[14][unreliable source?]
Harishena (c. 475–500) succeeded his father Devasena. He was a great patron of Buddhist architecture, art and culture. The World Heritage monumentAjanta Caves is surviving example of his works. The rock cut architectural cell-XVI inscription of Ajanta states that he conquered Avanti (Malwa) in the north, Kosala (Chhattisgarh), Kalinga and Andhra in the east,Lata (Central and SouthernGujarat) and Trikuta (Nasik district) in the west and Kuntala (Southern Maharashtra) in the south.[14][16] Varahadeva, a minister of Harishena and the son of Hastibhoja, excavated the rock-cutvihara of Cave XVI of Ajanta.[12][unreliable source?] Three of the Buddhist caves at Ajanta, two viharas – caves XVI and XVII and achaitya – cave XIX were excavated and decorated with painting and sculptures during the reign of Harishena.[14] According to an art historian, Walter M. Spink, all the rock-cut monuments of Ajanta excluding caves nos. 9,10,12,13 and 15A (Ref: Page No. 4, Ajanta-A Brief History and Guide – Walter M. Spink) were built during Harishena's reign.[17]
Harishena was succeeded by two rulers whose names are not known. The end of the dynasty is unknown. They were probably defeated by the Kalachuri of Mahismati.[12][unreliable source?]
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According to the eighthucchvāsaḥ of theDashakumaracharita ofDandin, which was written probably around 125 years after the fall of the Vakataka dynasty, Harishena's son, though intelligent and accomplished in all arts, neglected the study of theDandaniti (Political Science) and gave himself up to the enjoyment of pleasures and indulged in all sorts of vices. His subjects also followed him and led a vicious and dissolute life. Finding this a suitable opportunity, the ruler of the neighbouringAshmaka sent his minister's son to the court of the Vakatakas. The latter ingratiated himself with the king and egged him on in his dissolute life. He also decimated his forces by various means. Ultimately, when the country was thoroughly disorganised, the ruler of Ashmaka instigated the Kadamba ruler ofVanavasi (in theNorth Kanara district) to invade the Vakataka territory. The king called all his feudatories and decided to fight his enemy on the bank of the Varada (Wardha). While fighting with the forces of the enemy, he was treacherously attacked in the rear by some of his own feudatories and killed. The Vakataka dynasty ended with his death.[14] This fact is also corroborated by a set of three copper plates of theDavanagere record of theKadamba king Ravivarma dated 519 CE which state as per historianD. C. Sircar that the king's suzerainty extended over the whole of South India as far as theNarmada river in the north to theKaveri river nearTalakad (the thenWestern Ganga capital) in the south and that the people of these lands sought his protection. This implies that the Kadambas conquered the entire Vakataka kingdom and annexed it to their territory during Ravivarma's rule (485–519 CE) probably sometime after 500 CE.[19][20]
Although the Vakatakas replaced the Satavahanas, it does not seem that they continued their coin-minting tradition. As of today, no Vakataka coins have ever been identified or found.[21]
All the dynasties which followed the Satavahana dynasty were patrons of Maharashtri. They, however, did not have Pratishthan as their capital but their capitals were not far from it. The Satavahanas were followed by Chalukyas, Vakatakas and then by Rashtrakutas.
Pravarasena I was the only Vakataka king with the imperial titlesamrat; the others had the relatively modest titlemaharaja.
