The Age of the Imperial Guptas c4.157

c4.157

The chronology of the later Imperial Guptas has received much attention from scholars since the discovery of the Sarnath inscriptions of the time of Kumāragupta II and Budhagupta. After the discovery of the Bhitari seal of Kumāragupta II, the late Dr. V. A. Smith had propounded the theory that Skandagupta ruled till 480 A.D., and Kumaragupta II till 530 A.D.¹ Subsequently he was of opinion that Puragupta came to the throne in 468 and Narasiṃhagupta shortly afterwards. He placed the accession of Kumāragupta II in 473 and Budhagupta in 476 A.D.,² according to the views of the writer³ and Dr. R. C. Majumdar.⁴ Inspite of these discussions a number of writers still continue to believe that "The genealogy of the imperial Guptas continued through Skandagupta for a period of still about three quarters of a century, and that the Gupta empire did not perish after the death of Skandagupta, as had long been held by historians.”¹ It is absolutely useless to discuss incoherent theories of writers who would believe inspite of total want of evidence that the Kumāragupta who is mentioned in the Sarnath image inscription of G.E. 154 was Kumāragupta II and the son of Skandagupta and that Budhagupta was the son and successor of this Kumāragupta. Further Puragupta, Narasimhagupta and Kumāragupta are taken to belong to a different branch altogether. Whatever may be the case there is no evidence to prove that Kumāragupta II was a son of Skandagupta and that Budhagupta was the son of this Kumāragupta II. There is no evidence in favour of the existence of a third Kumāragupta in addition to the sons of Candragupta II and Narasimhagupta. Writers of this class depend upon untenable theories of older writers. Because Drs. V. A. Smith and Hoernle had hazarded the proposition that a Kumāragupta ruled in 530 A.D., therefore there must be a Kumāragupta at that date. The bases of Hoernle and Smith’s theories of the dates of Skandagupta and Kumāragupta II are the statements of the Yuan Chwang about the defeat of the Hūṇa king Mihirakula by a confederacy of kings under the leadership of a king named Bālāditya. Identifying this king with Narasiṃhagupta Fleet and Hoernle placed Skandagupta’s death in 480 A.D., and Kumāragupta II in 530 A.D. The discovery of the Sarnath and Damodarpur inscriptions makes it unnecessary to discuss this point any further.