The Dynasties of the Kanarese Districts of the Bombay Presidency from the Earliest Historical Times to the Musalman Conquest c8.s3.276

c8.s3.276

During the reign of Vikramâditya I. a branch of the Châlukya dynasty was founded in southern Gujarât or the country called Lâta in ancient times. Vikramâditya seems to have assigned that province to a younger brother named Jayasiṃhavarman Dharâśraya, who thus was another son of Pulakeśi II.¹ Śryāśraya Śilāditya son of Jayasiṁha made a grant of land while residing at Navasārī in the year 421,² and another in 443 while encamped at Kusumeśvara with his victorious army.³ In both of these Śryāśraya is called Yuvarāja or prince-regent and not a king. Another son of Jayasiṁha named Vinayāditya Yuddhamalla Jayāśraya Maṅgalarāja issued a similar charter in the Śaka year 653.⁴ Pulakeśi, who represents himself as the younger brother of Jayāśraya Maṅgalarāja and as meditating on his feet, granted a village in the year 490.⁵ Both are styled kings: From all this it appears that Jayasiṁhavarman though made sovereign of southern Gujarāt did not rule over the province himself but made his son Śryāśraya his regent. He held that position for more than twenty-two years;, and does not appear to have become king in his own right, as he is not mentioned in Pulakeśi's grant. Pulakeśi, however, seems from his date to be his younger brother. Śryāśraya died before his father; Jayāśraya succeeded the latter as king and was succeeded by Pulakeśi. The dates 421, 443, and 490, the era of which is not given, would if referred to the Gupta era be equivalent to 739, 761, and 808 of the Christian era respectively; while Jayāśraya's 653 Śaka is 731 A.D. But Vinayāditya the sovereign of the main branch who is mentioned in the grant of 443 died about 697 A.D.;⁶ and Jayasiṁha whose Yuvarāja was Śryāśraya will have to be supposed to have lived to 761 A.D. i.e. 81 years after the death of his brother Vikramāditya; while the interval between Pulakeśi and his immediate predecessor Jayāśraya will become 77 years, as Śaka 653 of the latter corresponds to 731 A.D. The Gupta era will, therefore, not do; and we must with the late Pandit Bhagvānlāl refer the dates to the Traikūṭaka era of the use of which we have at least two instances. Thus Śryāśraya's dates will be 670 and 692 A.D., of Jayāśraya 731 A.D. and of Pulakeśi 739 A.D., and there will be no incongruity. But the original dates themselves 421 and 490 show the distance of time between Śryāśraya and Pulukeśi to be 69 years; and if we take the later date of the former it will be reduced to 47 years. Even this is too much and the only way to account for it is by supposing that the two youngest sons of Jayasiṁha Dharāśraya were born of a young wife married when he was advanced in years. In Pulakeśi's grant it is stated that he vanquished an army of Tājikas which had destroyed the Saindhava,⁷ Kachchhella,⁸ Saurāṣṭra, Chāvotaka,⁹ Maurya,¹⁰ Gurjara¹¹ and other kings, and on its way to Dakshiṇāpatha to conquer the southern kings had come to Navasārī to reduce that country first. Thereupon Valla-