Political History of Ancient India, from the Accession of Parikshit to the Extinction of the Gupta Dynasty c20.s3.23

c20.s3.23

The annexation of the northern kingdoms named above was not the only achievement of Samudra Gupta. He made the rulers of the *Āṭavika rājyas*, or forest states, his servants. But his most daring exploit was an expedition to the south, which made his power felt by the potentates of the Eastern Deccan. We perceive, however, a difference between his northern and southern campaigns. In the north he played the part of a "*digvijayī*" or "*conqueror of the quarters*," of the Early Magadhan type.² But in the south he followed the Epic and Kauṭilyan ideal of a "*dharmavijayī*" or "*righteous conqueror*," *i.e.*, he defeated the kings but did not annex their territory. He may have realised the futility of attempting to maintain effective control over these distant regions in the south from his remote base in the north-east of India. His successor tried to maintain his hold on the Deccan by a system of marriage alliances.