Ancient History of the Deccan c4.s3.23

c4.s3.23

According to the Ajaṇṭâ inscription, the son of Pravarasêna II, whose name has been lost, must have ascended the throne when he was 8 years old (Arch. Surv. West. Ind., Vol. IV., page 125) It is probable that this prince was dethroned by his younger brother Nârendrasêna. In fact, the Bâlâghat plates say that Nârendrasêna "appropriated or took away the family's fortune." Nârendrasêna was married to Ajjhitabhaṭṭârikâ, daughter of the king of Kunṭala. This marriage took place probably about 445 A. D. We have admitted that Rudrasêna II married the daughter of Chandra-Gupta II about 395 A. D. It is probable that the marriage of the grandson took place about 50 years after; we shall see later on that this king of Kunṭala was probably the Kadamba Kakusthavarman. The Bâlâghat plates say about Nârendrasêna that "his commands were honoured by the lords of Kôsala, Mêkala and Mâlava, and he held in check enemies bowed down by his prowess" This latter event took place after 467 A. D. It is impossible that Nârendrasêna should be able to give orders to the Mâlava king before this date; in fact, from 455 to 467 A. D., the king of Ujjain was the illustrious Skanda-Gupta Vikramâditya (Mr. Panna Lall in "The dates of Skanda-Gupta and his successors," Hindustan Review, Jan. 1918, argues that the reign of Skanda-Gupta ended about A. D. 467. See also, "Annals of the Bhandarkar institute 1918-19, Vol. I, Part I, page 69). From 484 to 494 A. D. the country situated between the Jamnâ and the Narmadâ was under the orders of Budha-Gupta.