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The Vakataka–Gupta Age (circa 200–550 A.D.) c7: Introduction

The Vākāṭaka–Gupta Age (circa 200–550 A.D.) c7

Language
English

Introduction

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The Vākāṭaka-Gupta age (*c.* 200 A.D. to *c.* 550 A.D.), which is covered by the present volume of the *New History of the Indian People*, is undoubtedly a very important epoch in Indian history. A new political consciousness was created in the country and national solidarity was restored after the lapse of nearly four centuries of political disintegration and foreign domination. At the commencement of our period (*c.* 200 A.D.) the Kuṣāṇas and the Western Kṣatrapas were the leading political powers, more powerful than any other state in the country. It is true that they had become completely Hinduised at this time and were as zealous champions and admirers of Hindu religion and Sanskrit literature as any other indigenous dynasty. But probably it was still felt that they were ethnically different; at any rate the local states and powers whom they had subdued a century earlier were not prepared to reconcile themselves with their domination. As the third century advanced the Kuṣāṇas were gradually ousted from the U.P. and the eastern Punjab where the Maghas, the Nāgas, the Yaudheyas and the Kuṇindas re-established their own independence. The rise of the Sassanians in Iran further weakened the Kuṣāṇa power, till eventually it sank into insignificance towards the end of the 3rd century A.D.

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The Śaka power also began to decline in western India. At the death of Rudra-dāman I in *c.* 170 A.D., the Śakas were the masters of northern Mahārāṣṭra, Kathiawar, Gujarat, Malwa, Sindh and greater part of Rajputana. Very soon, however, the Sātavāhanas re-asserted themselves and reconquered Northern Mahārāṣṭra during the reign of Gautamiputra Yajñaśrī Sātakarṇi. Rajputana revolted under the leadership of the Mālavas and re-asserted its independence in *c.* 225 A.D. The rise of the Vākāṭakas under the emperor Pravara-sena I (*c.* 275-330 A.D.) led to the further decline of the Śakas. Their rulers are seen reduced to the feudatory status during the first half of the 4th century, and though there was a temporary revival under Rudra-sena III, the family was eventually wiped out by the Guptas towards the close of the 4th century A.D.

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The third century had succeeded in practically putting an end to foreign domination. Early in the fourth century A.D. the Guptas rose to power (c. 320 A.D.) Their great achievement was to secure as large a political unity and solidarity for the country as was practicable in those days. The Yaudheyas and the Nāgas, the Kuṇindas and the Mālavas had no doubt re-established their independence, but their political horizon did not extend beyond their own homelands. They did not aim at establishing a strong state that might become a bulwark against foreign aggression and secure peace and prosperity for the country as a whole. The great Gupta emperors definitely aimed at founding a powerful unitary state, which could achieve these goals. Traditional political philosophy no doubt recommended that a conqueror should permit the vanquished kings to rule as feudatories; but like Ajātaśatru and Chandragupta Maurya, the Gupta emperors showed scant respect to it and boldly proceeded to annex the territories of a number of kings that were then ruling in Bihar, Bengal, the United Provinces and Central India. In the days of Samudra-gupta, Magadha once more became the leading power of India after a lapse of 500 years. He, however, did not follow the annexation policy throughout; he permitted the Yaudheyas, the Arjunāyanas, the Madras, the Mālavas and a few others to rule as his feudatories and restored the kingdoms of the conquered kings in Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Andhra-deśa. Probably he realised that the means of communication being what they were, it would be impracticable for a power in Magadha to rule effectively over these distant provinces, and the very aim of a strong central power would be defeated if the impossible was sought to be achieved.

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Chandra-gupta II, the son of Samudra-gupta, attempted to bring his father's ideal to greater fruition. His conquest of Malwa, Gujarat and Kathiawar resulted in a considerable expansion of the Gupta empire. And if we assume, as is very probable, that king Chandra of Meharauli inscription is none other than Chandra-gupta II, it would follow that he succeeded in extending his sphere of influence over the Punjab as well. When his son-in-law, the Vākāṭaka king Pravara-sena II, died a premature death, the administration of the Deccan also came and remained under his guidance and supervision for about twenty-five years during the regency of his daughter Prabhāvatī-guptā. For a time at any rate the extensive territories between the Godāvarī and the Sutlej were welded together under his sceptre, and most of the neighbouring states were willing to recognise his leadership.

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The Guptas were thus practically an all-India power towards the end of the reign of Chandra-gupta II. The unity, however, did not last long. It was dependent to a great extent upon the ability of the reigning emperor. Neither Kumāra-gupta I nor Skanda-gupta was as able as Chandra-gupta II or Samudra-gupta. They also suffered from a political blunder that had been already committed by their great predecessor Chandra-gupta II. He did not realise the vital necessity of keeping an effective control over the Punjab and the Khyber pass, if the political integrity of the rest of India was to be maintained. The Guptas showed in this respect less political insight than the Mauryas, who did not relax their efforts till they had secured an effective control over the Khyber and Bolan passes. Had the Guptas followed their example, the country might not have suffered as much as it did from the Hūṇa invasions during the 5th and 6th centuries. Had they effectively garrisoned the Khyber pass, the critical battles with the Hūṇas would have been fought beyond the Indus and not in Malwa and Central India.

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The overlordship of the Guptas in the political field did not last for more than a century (c. 360 to 460 A.D.) The later Gupta emperors were not so able as the earlier ones; local governors began to develop into semi-independent feudatories, and the great strength acquired by the alliance with the Vākāṭakas disappeared when that Deccan power began to decline towards the middle of the 5th century. In the first half of the 6th century, it was clearly realised that the days of the Guptas and the Vākāṭakas were over and there was a great scramble for the imperial position between the Later Guptas, the Maukharis, the Hūṇas, and the Aulikaras in northern India, and the Naḷas, the Kadambas and the Kalachuris in the Deccan. The history of India once more assumed the spectacle of interminable wars between rival powers which decimated national strength without benefitting any party. The time-honoured political philosophy, which maintained that local powers should not be sacrificed for establishing a strong central state, was mainly responsible for this state of affairs. The situation was worsened by the influx of the Hūṇas, whose invasions were facilitated by the failure of the Guptas to secure or keep control over the Khyber pass and the Punjab.

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In the course of Indian history, north Indian powers are often seen to be trying to dominate over south India. During our period, the Guptas made one such attempt, but it was successful only for a short time. In a later period a Deccan power—the Rāṣṭrakūṭas—attempted to secure political domination in northern India; during our period, no such attempt was made by any Deccan or South Indian power.

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The absence of an enduring political unity in the country was more than counterbalanced by an all-pervasive cultural uniformity that prevailed throughout the land. The administrative machinery was similar all over the country. The powers of the king, the items of taxation and the extent of local self-government did not show much variation, whether we consider the Gupta or the Vākāṭaka or the Pallava administration. The same three religions,—Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism—met a foreign observer, whether he was travelling in Bengal or in Mahārāṣṭra. New religious ideas and philosophical views were travelling from one end of the country to the other with lightning rapidity. There is no doubt that the missionary and religious activities of monks and preachers contributed a good deal towards the fostering of the cultural unity. A Vasubandhu from Peshawar would go to Ayodhyā to preach his Mahāyāna philosophy, a Dharmapāla from Kāñchī would settle down in Nālandā to preside over and guide its educational activities. Ceylonese monks were moving about in India preaching the gospel of the master in the land of his birth, and Indian monks like Buddhaghosha and Buddhadeva were settling down in Ceylon to start a new era in its literary and religious history. The effect of the new ideas and movements in Hinduism could also be seen all over the country. During the 3rd century A. D. the enthusiasm for Vedic sacrifices was as marked in Rajputana as it was in the Tamil country. A little later the Bhakti movement made as pronounced a headway in the south as in the north. It is needless to add that the family structure, the caste system and religious rituals were almost the same all over the country, and further helped its cultural unification.

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But perhaps the greatest force in this direction was the existence of a common *lingua franca* for cultural purposes. Till the 3rd century Prākṛits which still showed only slight variations served this purpose, but their place was soon taken more effectively by Sanskrit, which became the official language of administration, and the favourite medium of expression for poets, philosophers and scientists. It is interesting to note that even the Buddhists and the Jains gave up their predilection for Pāli and Prākṛits and began to write in chaste and classical Sanskrit during our period. Nay, Sanskrit became the *lingua franca* between India and her cultural colonies in Insul-India. When it became the sacred language of the Buddhist also, it began to be studied by the Chinese as well.

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The cultural unity that was thus secured by the popularisation of Sanskrit was more deep-rooted than the one that is secured today by English, the present official language. English is not understood by the masses. Such was not the case with Sanskrit ; for it could be followed by ordinary people, as the Prākṛit dialects they spoke were still fairly akin to Sanskrit during our period. This cultural unity secured by a common *lingua franca* did not, however, last much longer than our age; for from about the 6th century Dravidian languages gradually began to displace Sanskrit in south Indian administrative documents. In Northern India the spoken dialects—Prākṛits and Apabhraṁśas—began to diverge more and more from the parent language, Sanskrit, and the latter ceased to be understood by those who spoke the former from *c.* 800 A.D. onwards.

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The Vākāṭaka-Gupta age will be ever remembered by a grateful posterity for its successful efforts to spread Indian religion and culture in eastern Asia. Hindu colonising activity was, no doubt, started long before our period, but it is after the beginning of the 3rd century A.D. that we are able to trace its definite course and achievements. Without getting any help from any state in the mother country, private merchants, captains and missionaries managed to spread Hindu religion and culture and establish Hindu institutions in Java, Sumatra, Cambodia, Cochin, China, Annam and Borneo. In China the Buddhist missionaries made a strenuous effort to spread their religion and translated a number of important works in the language of that country. If there exists an appreciable cultural unity today between India on the one side and China on the other, if valuable monuments which are silent witnesses to the glory of Indian culture are seen scattered all over Indo-China, Java, Sumatra and Borneo, the credit must be given to the great impulse given by the Gupta age to the spread of Indian culture outside India. It must be added here that the contribution of South India in this respect was as great as that of Northern India. It is interesting to note that the Brāhmaṇas of the age had no objection to the sea voyage; we find them going to and settling in distant islands like Java, Sumatra and Borneo and also marrying local women. Some of them are seen performing Vedic sacrifices in Borneo and others maintaining Hindu temples in western Asia down to the beginning of the 4th century A.D.

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A comprehensive intellectual renaissance was another important feature of our age. It helped the rise of organised educational institutions and the endowment of *Agrahāra* villages, which gave a great impetus to the cause of higher education. New Indian Universities were beginning to acquire international status and reputation. The literary products of the age were numerous and varied, and some of the great masterpieces of Sanskrit literature like the *Śakuntalā*, the *Raghuvamśa* and the *Mṛcchakaṭika* were composed in our period. The Purāṇas were remodelled and a number of important Smṛtis were composed. Philosophy was mostly critical in our period, but it was remarkably creative as well in the case of the Mahāyāna school of Buddhism. The most original, the most daring and the most far-reaching contributions of this school to the progress of Indian philosophy were made by its thinkers who flourished in our period.

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But it was not only in the realm of literature, religion and philosophy that the intellectual renaissance manifested itself. It was equally active in the realm of science. The epoch-making discovery of the decimal system of notation with the place value of zero, which was to simplify the arithmetical processes all over the world, was made by the Hindus during our age. They had a lead over their contemporaries in the fields of algebra and arithmetic. Their progress in astronomy was also remarkable. The discovery that the earth rotates round its axis was made by Āryabhaṭa in the 5th century. The length of his solar year is nearer its true duration than that postulated by Ptolemy. A comparison of the astronomical constants of Hipparchus and Ptolemy on the one side and those of the Hindu astronomers like Āryabhaṭa on the other shows that Hindu results were not only independent, but also usually more accurate. The progress in physics, chemistry and metallurgy was also remarkable. The famous Iron Pillar by the side of the Qutb Minar near Delhi is an eloquent testimony to the striking metallurgical skill of the Gupta age.

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If Samudra-gupta and Chandra-gupta II were typical representatives of the age—as seems very probable—it follows that intellectual vigour usually went hand in hand with physical prowess, and martial spirit was often harmonised with literary and artistic temperament, during our period. Its leaders could thus take a comprehensive view of culture in its widest sense and promote its all-round progress.

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One important characteristic of the Hindu scholarship of our age was its complete freedom from self-complacency and narrowness of outlook. Hindu scholars were keen to ascertain and study the advances made by the *savants* of other countries. Greeks were no doubt regarded as Mlechchhas but were nevertheless respected as highly as the ancient sages for their proficiency in astronomy Hindu scholars had realised that there was nothing wrong in studying the contributions made by other countries and utilising them, if necessary, for further advancement of knowledge and science.

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The intellectual urge of the age naturally resulted in strengthening the rational attitude in society. Leaders of religious thought were not content merely to appeal to ancient texts, but they sought to evolve logical systems based upon rational grounds. The six systems of Hindu philosophy assumed their classical form in our age. Every one of them was constantly on the alert and anxious to examine the new theories that were being advocated in contemporary times, and to refute them, if necessary. Conflict of theories and ideas that we see in our age is indeed interesting and exhilarating. The followers of the different religions, however, lived in harmony and there was complete toleration. Hindu kings endowed Buddhist monasteries. Buddhist kings performed Hindu rituals. In the same family some members followed the Buddhist, and some the Vedic religion.

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Hinduism still believed that its scheme of religion and philosophy was intended for the whole humanity, and successfully tried to spread it in Java, Sumatra and adjacent islands. In the mother country itself foreign tribes still continued to be absorbed in the Hindu fold. The Scythian kings were so completely Hinduised during our period that their princesses began to be married into orthodox families. The Hūṇas became staunch and zealous Śivaites within two generations of their settlement in India.

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*Dharma* (piety), *Artha* (economic prosperity), *Kāma* (pursuit of normal pleasures) and *Moksha* (spiritual salvation) are the four aims of life (*purushārthas*) recognised by Hinduism, and every individual is expected to pursue them in the different stages of his life. In the Gupta period, an even balance was kept among them. *Dharma* did not, as happened in a later age, mean an unending series of rituals and *vratas* to be performed all the year round. Society sought to realise the goals of *Artha* and *Kāma* as zealously as those of *Dharma* and *Moksha*. Hence our age made as remarkable a progress in philosophy as it did in the fine and useful arts. The best sculptures and the best paintings of ancient India undoubtedly belong to the Gupta age. The artists succeeded in perfecting their technique and evolving a technical language quite adequate to express abstruse conceptions and spiritual idealism. Here, again, there was a perfect balance between the aesthetic and the spiritual. The best sculptures and paintings of our age strike us as vigorous as well as serene, lovely as well as spiritual. In the famous seated Buddha in the Sarnath museum, for instance, the artist, who did not care even to hand down his name to us, has wonderfully succeeded in depicting the feeling of confidence, composure, compassion and the inexpressible glow of boundless spiritual bliss that marked the features of the great teacher. Our age succeeded in evolving the classical phase of Indian art, characterised by restraint, dignity, naturalness, expressiveness and beauty, and its influence made itself felt in the sandy deserts of Central Asia and the far-off islands of the Indian archipelago.

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The Hindus of that age were as successful in evolving new and bold systems of philosophy as in building large and sturdy vessels to carry goods over the sea. Foreign trade increased the national income. The ample gold currency issued by the Guptas and the large number of Roman gold coins found in South India show that the balance of trade was in favour of India and that the country was overflowing with the yellow metal. The surprising variety of gold and pearl ornaments that were popular in society make it clear that the people had enough money to spare for rich and costly ornaments. Most of the country's wealth was derived from trade and industry, which could make considerable strides owing to the existence of numerous and efficient guilds.

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A few words are necessary here about the governments of our period. They were both efficient and popular, and their laws and measures, humane as well as effective. It is true that there was no central parliament to control the king and ministers, but we have to remember that government was remarkably decentralised, and most of its functions were exercised by the district administration. In the district headquarters, the officials of the Central Government were assisted and controlled by popular councils, whose sanction was necessary even if the state wanted to sell its own waste lands. Villages had their own popular councils which administered almost all the branches of administration, including the collection of taxes and the settlement of village disputes. The poor and the sick were offered free relief in hospitals and charitable institutions. Governments were keen in guarding the roads, promoting trade and agriculture and extending patronage to learning and fine arts. People as a whole were rich and prosperous and had very little ground to complain against the administration either for high-handedness or for inefficiency.

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We should also draw attention to some developments in our age that were eventually to lead to the decline of Hindu culture and civilisation. The *Upanayana* of the Kshatriyas and the Vaiśyas began to be discouraged in this age. As it disappeared in the course of a few centuries, the gap between the classes and masses increased, and the standard of culture and education was lowered in society as a whole, putting a severe handicap on the progress in trade, industry and useful arts. The marriageable age of girls was lowered down to 12 or 13 in our period. This practically put an end to female education and eventually lowered the marriageable age of boys also, rendering *Brahmacharya impossible to the end of the educational course. Inter-dining and inter-marriages were still taking place in the society of our age, but the Smriti-writers had begun to frown upon them. This was to result in their stoppage a few centuries later, leading to greater cleavage among the different sections of society, and rendering the admission of foreigners within the Hindu fold impossible.

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The above survey of the features and achievements of our age will show that it was undoubtedly a very important epoch of Indian history. It put an end to foreign domination and political disintegration and evolved a mighty state which could protect the country against foreign aggression for a long time. Governments of the age were both efficient and popular and secured peace and prosperity for the people. Indians of our period made successful but peaceful efforts to spread Indian culture in Central Asia, China and Indian Archipelago and thus created new and valuable bonds of common culture between India and several islands and states in Eastern and Central Asia. Indian intellect in our period was remarkably creative and its achievements were notable as much in the spheres of religion, philosophy and literature as in those of science, and the fine and useful arts. An even balance was kept between *Dharma*, *Artha*, *Kāma* and *Moksha*, which enabled society both to lead a pious and religious life and to secure the economic prosperity and political greatness. Different religions and sects lived in peace and harmony, and the standard of average education and culture was higher than in any other period of Indian history. An age characterised by the above features may well be called the Golden Age of Indian history.

Cites (3)