The Dynastic History of Northern India (Early Mediaeval Period) v1.c20.95

v1.c20.95

When Sabuk-tigīn ascended the throne in about 977 A.D., he found his way into India blocked by the Śāhis of Kābul. He and his son Maḥmūd had to fight a series of engagements before they could destroy these guardians of the north-western gates of India. Of these, two were very important; and if we may believe some late historians, a confederacy of North Indian princes helped the Śāhi kings on these two occasions. One of these was fought in about 991 A.D. between Laghman and Ghazni, probably in the Kurram valley. We are told by Firishta that "the neighbouring Rajas supplied troops and money, particularly those of Delhi, Ajmir, Kalinjar, and Kanauj, whose forces having united in the Punjab, the whole composed an army of a hundred thousand." The names of these princes are not found in the *Ṭabaqāt-i-Akbarī*. But what is more significant is that even the contemporary 'official history,'¹ of 'Utbī fails to give the names of any of these princes.² It is curious that an author who was in such intimate relations with the Yamīnīs, and whose object in writing his *Kitāb* was certainly not to conceal any facts which would tend to increase the glory of his master's house, should fail to mention these princes if their contingents were really present in the battle-field. In any case the assumption that any Gurjara-Pratīhāra ruler personally took part in the struggle appears to be unsupported by any evidence. Even Firishta only alludes to the "supply of troops and money" by the princes, in response to the appeal of Jayapāla. The same arguments also apply in the case of the battle which took place in about 1008 A.D. According to Firishta, the Rajas of Ujjain, Gwalior, Kalinjar, Kanauj and Delhi entered into a confederacy, and collecting their forces, advanced towards the Punjab. It is surprising, that 'Utbī notices no such awakening to a common danger amongst the princes and peoples of India, which, according to Firishta, led to something like a national confederacy against the Islamic invaders, and even omits from his account the names of all these kings and principalities. Under the circumstances it is, I think, useless to speculate as to the identity of the princes who may have participated in these campaigns.³ The dates of the battle show that if the lists in Firishta's *Ta'rīkh* are not later fabrications, the Gurjara-Pratīhāra princes who might have participated in these battles were either Vijayapāla or Rājyapāla.