Mitra dynasty of Kosambi was centered on the city ofKosambi at theVatsa region. Its capital Kosambi was among the most important trade centers in the ancient India. The dynasty also likely controlled territory in nearby regions such asMagadha.
Many of its rulers bear the suffix "-mitra" in their names.[2] However, it is disputed how many kings the dynasty was composed of.Dhanabhuti, who is known forBharhut inscriptions, may have been related to the Mitra dynasty. A number of different, and possibly, relatedMitra dynasties existed in the northern India, and it is possible that they all can trace their lineage back into the royal house of theShunga Empire.
Common symbols in the coinage of the Mitra dynasty include the tree-in-railing and theUjjain symbol. Bull is a common animal to appear on the coinage.
The Mitra dynasty was ended whenSamudragupta of theGupta Empire annexed Kosambi in the middle of the 4th century CE.
TheVatsa region and its capitalKosambi was among the most important trade centres inancient India. After the Mauryas and Shungas lost control of the area, Kosambi established itself as a solid independent civic centre. A large number of coins from Kosambi is known. The initial coinage was based on locally modified variants of theMauryan-Shunga stylecast copper coins, and a few of the coins were inscribed with the city's name. Later coinage evolved to portray a more independent iconography, and they began to be inscribed with the names of rulers. This is an indication that the city's local government transitioned into amonarchy. The bull was a common symbol when the coinage minted by the city evolved to have a more robust local character.[3]
It is likely that the Mitra dynasty started its independent rule in Vatsa after theMaurya Empire,[4] or the collapse of theShunga Empire, allowed various petty states to emerge in the NorthernIndia.[5][6]
There were possibly five different contemporary dynasties identifiable with the suffix "-mitra". These various Mitra dynasties may have shared a link with the Shunga dynasty, as many of its rulers' names also ended with "-mitra". It is possible that the Shungas may have used a similar method of governing provinces as the precedingMaurya Empire had done. Princes with royal blood would have been sent to govern the provinces, and after the central power had weakened they would have established their own dynasties. Some numismatic evidence for the possible connection between Mitras and the Shunga dynasty descending fromPushyamitra has been found.[5]
There were, possibly linked, Mitra dynasties ruling in Panchala,Mathura, Ayodhya and also possibly at Magadha.[5][7]
During the time period stretching from the 1st century BCE to the 2nd century CE, the Mitras of Kosambi appear to have extended their hegemony overMagadha (includingPataliputra), and possiblyKannauj as well. Inscriptions and coins of the Mitra dynasty are known from various parts ofBihar.[7]
Brhaspatimitra has been calledMagadharaja, a king ofMagadha, inKharavela's Hathigumpha inscription (that is related toHathigumpha inscription). If the Brhaspatimitra mentioned in the inscription is the same king as the Brhaspatimitra of Mitra dynasty, then that would mean that the dynasty held a considerable influence in the region surrounding Kosambi. It is worth to note that there is numismatic evidence to support this theory, as Magadha is not known to not have produced any typical regional coinage unlike the contemporary Kosambi,Mathura orPanchala.[7]
Samudragupta (r. c. 335–375 CE[9]) of theGupta Empire appears to have ended the Mitra dynasty of Kosambi during his conquests in the middle of the 4th century CE.[7] While the pillar was originally erected byAshoka, Samudragupta later added his own inscription on the same pillar.Harisena, a poet and a high-ranking military commander in Samudragupta's army, was the author of the inscriptions.[9]
According to the theory proposed by 19th-century archaeologists, and supported by Indian scholars such as Upinder Singh, the Allahabad pillar came from somewhere else, probably Kosambi.[10] TheEdicts of Ashoka suggest that the pillar was first erected at Kosambi, some 50 kilometers west of its current location. It was moved to Allahabad much later when the region came under Muslim rule.[11][12] The presence of another broken pillar at Kosambi near the ruins of the Ghoshitarama monastery[13] has led some to believe that the Allahabad pillar might have been one of a pair, not unlike the ones discovered atRampurva.[14]
| Name | Native (Prakrit) name | Sanskrit form (if relevant) | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agaraju | Agarāju | N/A | Possibly one of the earlier kings in the dynasty | [2][3] |
| Agnimitra | Agimita | Agnimitra | Succeeded by his sons Jyesthamitra and Vasumitra (Sumitra) | [2][15] |
| Asvaghosa | Aśvaghoṣa | N/A | [2] | |
| Brhaspatimitra | Bahasatimita | Bṛhaspatimitra / Bahasatimitra | Possibly held the titleMagadharaja, a king ofMagadha | [2][7] |
| Devamitra | (Devamita?) | Devamitra | Disputed: K.D. Bajpai assigns him to the Mitra dynasty of Ayodhya | [2][16] |
| Jyesthamitra | Jeṣamita | Jyeṣṭhamitra | Succeeded his father Agnimitra. Ruled between c. 140–133 BCE. His brother Vasumitra (Sumitra) rose to the throne after him. | [2][15] |
| Prajapatimitra | Pajāpatimita | Prajāpatimitra | [2] | |
| Prausthamitra | Pothamita | Prauṣṭhamitra | [2] | |
| Radhamitra | Rādhāmita | Rādhāmitra | Known for his unusual hexagonal coins, and possibly one of the earliest kings in the dynasty | [2][17] |
| Sarpamitra | Sapamita | Sarpamitra | He may have ruled somewhere around the 1st century BCE or the 1st century CE. | [2][18] |
The exact number of kings in the dynasty has been disputed to be between seven and twenty-five different kings.[6][3][19]
Another opinion is that some of the Mitras of Kannauj actually belonged to the house of Kosambi, and that there were actually no long-lived separate Mitra dynasty atMagadha. K. D. Bajpai holds that the first Mitra ruler of Kosambi was Sungavarma (Sugavamasa). Sungavarma's name includes the epithetSunga, and that makes it possible to link him with the ruling dynasty of the Shunga Empire. Furthermore, Bajpai argues that Angaraja,Dhanabhuti and Visvadeva were also part of the Mitras of Kosambi. Their names appear in theBharhut inscriptions. They would be probable descendants of king Sungavarma. The kings of Kosambi lent their patronage for thestupa of Bharhut, which would have been within the territory they controlled.[7]
A genealogy constructed from the Bharhut inscriptions would link the above-mentioned kings to the Mitra dynasty so that Visvadeva would be father of Agaraju. Dhanabhuti would be Agaraju's son.[7]
Most rulers of the Mitra dynasty of Kosambi, exceptRadhamitra, have the symbol known as the tree-in-railing in their coins. Another common symbol is theUjjain symbol.[20]Bull is a common animal to appear on the coinage of Kosambi of the era.[3]
Some of the coins of Radhamitra are known for their unusualhexagonal shape. They were manufactured bycasting, but they were made to closely resemblepunch-marked coins. The civic coinage of Vatsa is known for their wide innovation in shapes of coins.[2][17]
The symbols in one of Radhamitra's series of coins make a clear connection with other rulers of Kosambi such as Asvaghosa,Brhaspatimitra, Agnimitra,Sarpamitra, Prajapatimitra, Jyesthamitra and Prausthamitra. The coins cast by these rulers portray similar symbols in obverse and reverse sides of their coins. However, the exact chronology of these coins has not been extensively and conclusively studied yet. The civic coinage has been thought to precede the nominative coinage of the kings.[2]