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The Early History of India, from 600 B.C. to the Muhammadan Conquest, including the Invasion of Alexander the Great c29: Approximate Kushān Chronology

The Early History of India, from 600 B.C. to the Muhammadan Conquest, including the Invasion of Alexander the Great c29

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English

Approximate Kushān Chronology

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¹ Compare Appendix J, *ante*, p. 229.

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| DATE. | EVENT. |
| **B. C.** 174 | Death of Hiung-nū chief, Moduk. |
| *c.* 165 | Expulsion of main body of Yüe-chi horde from Kan-suh by the Hiung-nū. |
| *c.* 163 | Nan-tiu-mi, chief of the Wu-sun, killed by the Yüe-chi. |
| 160 | Death of Hiung-nū chief, Ki-yuk. |
| *c.* 160–50 | Yüe-chi occupation of the Śaka territory ; Śaka migration. |
| *c.* 150–140 | Śaka invasion of India. |
| *c.* 140 | Expulsion of Yüe-chi from Śaka territory by Koen-muo, the young Wu-sun chief, son of Nan-tiu-mi. |
| *c.* 138. | Reduction of the Ta-hia, both north and south of the Oxus, to vassalage by the Yüe-chi, who begin to settle down. |
| *c.* 135 | Dispatch by Chinese emperor Wu-ti of Chang-k'ien as envoy to the Yüe-chi. |
| *c.* 125 | Arrival of Chang-k'ien at Yüe-chi head-quarters, north of the Oxus. |
| *c.* 122–120 | Return of Chang-k'ien to China. |
| *c.* 114 | Death of Chang-k'ien. |
| *c.* 100 | Extension of Yüe-chi settlements to the lands south of the Oxus ; occupation of Ta-hia capital, Lan-sheu, south of the river, probably = Balkh. |
| *c.* 95 | **Formation of five Yüe-chi principalities, including Kushān and Bāmiān.** |
| 58–57 | Epoch of the Mālava or Vikrama era. |
| *c.* 26 | Indian embassy to Augustus. |
| 2 | A Chinese official instructed in Buddhist books by a Yüe-chi king. (*See* Franke, *Türkvölker*, p. 92 n.) |
| **A. D.** 8 | Temporary cessation of intercourse between China and the West. |
| 14 | Augustus, Roman emperor, died ; Tiberius acc. |
| 23 | End of First, or Early Han dynasty of China. |
| 38 | Gaius (Caligula), Roman emperor, acc. |
| *c.* 40 | Kadphises I (Kieū-tsieū-k'io, Kozolakadaphes, &c.) acc. |
| *c.* 40–55 | Consolidation of the five Yüe-chi principalities into one Kushān kingdom under Kadphises I ; conquest by him of Kao-fū (Kābul), Ki-pin (Gandhāra), and Pota (? Bactria or more probably Arachosia). |
| 41 | Claudius, Roman emperor, acc. |
| *c.* 45–70 | Destruction of Indo-Parthian power, and gradual conquest of Northern India by Kadphises I. |
| *c.* 48 | Kadphises I succeeded Gondophernes at Taxila. |
| 54 | Nero, Roman emperor, acc. |
| *c.* 64 | Buddhist books sent for by Chinese emperor, Ming-ti. |
| 68, 69 | Galba, Otho, and Vitellius, Roman emperors. |
| 70 | Vespasian, Roman emperor, (acc. Dec. 22, 69). |
| 73–102 | Victorious career of Pan-chao, the Chinese general, in Khotan, &c. |
| 77 | Publication of Pliny's *Natural History*. |
| 78 | Epoch of the Śaka or Sālivāhana era ; Kadphises I died, aged 80 ; Kadphises II Kushān (Yen-kao-ching, Wema Kadphises, &c.), his son, acc. |
| 79 | Titus, Roman emperor, acc. |

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| DATE. | EVENT. |
| **A. D.** | |
| 81 | Domitian, Roman emperor, acc. |
| 89–105 | Ho-ti, Chinese emperor. |
| *c.* 90 | Defeat of Kadphises II by Pan-chao. |
| 94 | Reduction of Kuchā and Kara-shahr by the Chinese under Pan-chao. |
| 96 | Nerva, Roman emperor, acc. |
| 98 | Trajan, Roman emperor, acc. |
| 99 | Arrival of Trajan in Rome. |
| *c.* 100 | Indian embassy to Trajan; Buddhist Council. |
| 105 | Overthrow by the Romans of the Nabataean kingdom of Petra in Arabia; rise of Palmyra. |
| *c.* 110 | Kadphises II died. |
| 116 | Conquest of Mesopotamia by Trajan. |
| 117 | Hadrian, Roman emperor, acc.; retrocession of Mesopotamia. |
| *c.* 120 | Kanishka Kushān, acc.; year 1 of his regnal era. |
| *c.* 123 | Sārnāth inscription of Kanishka (year 3). |
| 123–6 | Residence of Hadrian at Athens. |
| *c.* 130–52 | Kanishka's conquests in Chinese Turkestan.¹ |
| 131–6 | War of Hadrian with the Jews. |
| 138 | Mānikyāla inscription of Kanishka (year 18); Antoninus Pius, Roman emperor, acc. |
| *c.* 150 | Jūnāgaṛh inscription of Rudradāman, Western satrap. |
| *c.* 160 | Death of Kanishka; Huvishka Kushān, acc. as sovereign of whole empire. |
| 161 | Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, Roman emperor, acc. |
| 162–5 | Defeat of Parthian king, Vologeses III, by the Romans. |
| 175 | Eastern campaign of Marcus Aurelius. |
| 180 | Commodus, Roman emperor, acc. |
| *c.* 182 | Vasudeva Kushān, acc. |
| 192, 193 | Pertinax and Julianus, Roman emperors. |
| 193 | Septimius Severus, Roman emperor, acc. |
| *c.* 200 | Palmyra created a Roman colony. |
| 211 | Caracalla, Roman emperor, acc. |
| 216 | Parthian expedition of Caracalla. |
| 217 | Macrinus, Roman emperor, acc. |
| 218 | Elagabalus, Roman emperor, acc. |
| *c.* 220 | Death of Vasudeva Kushān. |
| *c.* 220–60 | Later Kushān kings. |
| 222 | Alexander Severus, Roman emperor, acc. |
| 226 | Foundation of Sassanian empire of Persia by Ardashīr or Artaxerxes I. |
| 260 | Defeat of Valerian, Roman emperor, by Sapor I. |
| 273 | Capture of Palmyra by Aurelian. |
| 284–305 | Diocletian, emperor. |
| 360 | Successful siege of Amida by Sapor II, with Kushān help. |

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¹ According to Franke, China lost Khotan in A. D. 152. Kanishka is not mentioned by name in the Chinese histories. Franke (*Beiträge*, p. 99 n.) considers as doubtful the current identification of Po-ta (P'u-ta, Cantonese Pok-tiu) with Bactria, and suggests as the true equivalent the 'Paktyan land' (Πακτυικὴ γῆ), which he places to the north of Arachosia. See *ante*, p. 40, note 1.

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CHAPTER XI

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THE GUPTA EMPIRE, AND THE WESTERN SATRAPS; CHANDRA-GUPTA I TO KUMARAGUPTA I

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FROM A.D. 320 TO 455.

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IN the fourth century light again dawns, the veil of oblivion is lifted, and the history of India regains unity and interest.

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A local Rāja at or near Pātaliputra, bearing the famous name of Chandra-gupta,¹ wedded, in or about the year 308, a princess named Kumāra Devī, who belonged to the ancient Lichchhavi clan, celebrated ages before in the early annals of Buddhism. During the long period of about eight centuries which intervened between the reign of Ajātasatru and the marriage of Kumāra Devī the history of the Lichchhavis has been lost for the most part, although they are known to have established a dynasty in Nepāl, which used an era believed to run from A.D. 111.² They now come suddenly into notice again in connexion with this marriage, which proved to be an event of the highest political importance, as being the foundation of the fortunes of a dynasty destined to rival the glories of the Mauryas. Kumāra Devī evidently brought to her husband as her dowry valuable influence, which in the course of a few years secured to him a paramount position in Magadha and the neighbouring countries. It seems probable that at the time of this fateful union the Lichchhavis were masters or overlords of the ancient imperial city, and that Chandra-gupta, by means of his matrimonial alliance, succeeded to the power previously held by his wife's relatives. In the olden days the Lichchhavis of Vaisālī had been the rivals of the kings of Pātaliputra, and apparently, during the disturbed times which followed the reign of Pushyamitra, they paid off old scores by taking possession of the city, which had been built and fortified many centuries earlier for the express purpose of curbing their restless spirit.

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¹ The names of the Chandra-guptas of the Gupta dynasty are spelt with a hyphen, to distinguish them from the Maurya.

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² Lévi, *Le Népal*, i, 14; ii, 153.

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Certain it is that Chandra-gupta was raised by his Lichchhavi connexion from the rank of a local chief, as enjoyed by his father and grandfather,¹ to such dignity that he felt justified in assuming the lofty title of ‘Sovereign of Mahārājas’, usually associated with a claim to the rank of lord paramount. He struck coins in the joint names of himself, his queen, and the Lichchhavis; and his son and successor habitually described himself with pride as the son of the daughter of the Lichchhavis. Chandra-gupta, designated as the First, to distinguish him from his grandson of the same name, extended his dominion along the Gangetic valley as far as the junction of the Ganges and Jumna, where Allāhābād now stands; and ruled during his brief tenure of the throne a populous and fertile territory, which included Tirhūt, South Bihār, Oudh, and certain adjoining districts. His political importance was sufficient to warrant him in establishing, after the Oriental manner, a new era dating from his formal consecration or coronation, when he was proclaimed as heir to the imperial power associated by venerable tradition with the possession of Pātaliputra. The first year of the Gupta era, which continued in use for several centuries, and in countries widely separated, ran from February 26, A.D. 320, to March 13, 321; of which dates the former may be taken as that of the coronation of Chandra-gupta I.²

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¹ His father was named Ghaṭotkacha, and his grandfather simply Gupta. A seal of Ghaṭotkacha, who, according to Allan, may be a different person, has been excavated at Basāṛh (Vaisālī) (*A.S. Ann. Rep.*, 1903–4, p. 107, Pl. xli, 14). Buddhist legend offers another instance of the participle Gupta alone serving as a proper name in the case of Upagupta (Gupta the Less), son of Gupta the perfumer.

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² For the chronology of the dynasty see the author’s paper, ‘Revised Chronology of the Early or Imperial Gupta Dynasty’ (*Ind. Ant.*, 1902, p. 257), which modifies the scheme as given in his numismatic works, but requires some correction. Dates expressed in the Gupta era (G. E.) may be converted approximately into dates A. D. by the addition of 319; e. g. 82 G. E. = A. D. 401. For Gupta inscriptions as known in 1888, see Fleet, *Gupta Inscriptions* (*Corpus Inscr. Ind.*, vol. iii). The principal discoveries since the publication of that work are: (1) Bhitarī seal of Kumāragupta II, not dated (ed. V. A. Smith and Hoernle, *J. A. S. B.*, vol. lviii, part i, 1889); (2) Basāṛh seals of Ghaṭotkachagupta and queen of Chandra-gupta II (*Arch. S. Annual Rep.*, 1903–4, pp. 101–22, Pls. xl–xlii); (3) Bharadī Dīh inscr. of Kumāragupta I, dated 117 G. E. (*A. S. Progr. Rep. of N. Circle*, 1907–8, p. 39; ed. in *J. A. S. B.*, vol. v, N. S. (1909), p. 457); (4) Dhanāidaha inscr. of same king, dated 113 G. E., the earliest known copper-plate grant (*J. A. S. B.*, *ut supra*, p. 459); (5) a valuable Gupta-Vākātaka grant, partially described by Mr. K. Pathak in *Ind. Ant.*, 1912, p. 214; (6) the Sārnāth inscriptions (*A. S. Progr. Rep. of N. Circle*, 1914–15, pp. 6, 14, 15 and App. E, p. vi, Nos. 1 and 4); (7) five copper-plates found at Damōdarpur in the Dinājpur district, which comprise inscriptions of Kumāragupta II and Budhagupta. Many other inscriptions dated in the Gupta era, but not giving the names of kings, have been discovered, including at least two in Burma (*A. S. Progr. Rep., Burma*, 1894, pp. 15, 20).

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Before his death, which occurred perhaps about ten or fifteen years later, Chandra-gupta selected as his successor the Crown Prince, Samudragupta, his son by the Lichchhavi princess.¹ The paternal preference was abundantly justified by the young king, who displayed a degree of skill in the arts of both peace and war which entitles him to high rank among the most illustrious sovereigns of India.

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¹ Fleet, *J. R. A. S.*, 1909, p. 342. A few rare coins issued by Kācha or Kacha exist which closely resemble the issues of Samudragupta in certain respects. Some authors suppose Kācha or Kacha to be identical with Samudragupta, but the better opinion regards him as a rival brother of that king. His reign, if a reality, must have been very brief, probably not exceeding a few months. Nothing whatever being known about him except that he coined some gold pieces, Samudragupta may be regarded for all practical purposes as the immediate successor of his father. His selection is vividly described in the Allāhābād inscription: ‘ “Here is a noble man!” With these words the father embraced him, with shivers of joy that spoke of his affection, and looked at him, with eyes heavy with tears and overcome with love—the courtiers breathing freely with joy and the kinsmen of equal grade looking up with sad faces—and said to him: “Protect then this whole earth” ’ (Bühler, as transl. in *Ind. Ant.*, 1913, p. 176).

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From the moment of his accession, Samudragupta assumed the part of an aggressively ambitious monarch, resolved to increase his dominions at the expense of his neighbours. Wars of aggression never have been condemned by such public opinion as exists in the East, and no king who cared for his reputation could venture to rest contented within his own borders. Samudragupta had no hesitation in acting on the principle that 'kingdom-taking' is the business of kings, and immediately after his succession to the throne plunged into war, which occupied many years of his unusually protracted reign.¹

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¹ Authorities and details are fully discussed in the author's paper, 'The Conquests of Samudra Gupta' (*J. R. A. S.*, 1897, p. 859). A few corrections have been made necessary by subsequent research.

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When his fighting days were over he employed a learned poet, skilled in the technicalities of Sanskrit verse, to compose a panegyric of his achievements, which he caused to be engraved on one of the stone pillars set up six centuries before by Asoka and incised with his edicts.² Samudragupta, an orthodox Hindu, learned in all the wisdom of the Brahmans, and an ambitious soldier full of the joy of battle, although he had been interested as a young man, at his father's bidding, in the doctrine of Vasubandha, the Buddhist sage, made no scruple about setting his own ruthless boasts of sanguinary wars by the side of the quietest moralizings of him who deemed 'the chiefest conquest' to be the conquest of piety.

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² The inscription is not posthumous (Bühler, in *J. R. A. S.*, 1898, p. 386). The pillar stands in the fort at Allāhābād, but not in its original position.

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Samudragupta's anxiety to provide for the remembrance of his deeds was not in vain. The record composed by his poet-laureate survives to this day practically complete, and furnishes a detailed contemporary account of the events of the reign, probably superior to anything else of the kind in the multitude of Indian inscriptions. Although, unfortunately, the document is not dated, it may be assigned with approximate accuracy to the year A.D. 360, or a little later, and is thus, apart from its value as history, of great interest as an important Sanskrit composition, partly in verse and partly in prose, of ascertained age and origin.³ The value as dated literature of the great historical inscriptions, although emphasized by Bühler many years ago, is still, perhaps, not fully recognized by scholars who occupy themselves primarily with the books preserved in libraries.¹ But our concern at present in the elaborate composition of Harishena is with its contents as an historical document, rather than with its place in the evolution of Sanskrit, and the exposition of its importance as a linguistic and literary landmark must be left to specialists.

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³ Andrzej Gawrónski (Cracow) points out that the inscription does not mention the *aśvamedha*, as the coins and inscriptions do, and apparently it should be dated in the interval between the return from the south and the celebration of the sacrifice (*Festschrift, Ernest Windisch*, Leipzig, 1914, p. 170).

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¹ Bühler's important essay, 'The Indian Inscriptions and the Antiquity of Indian Artificial Poetry,' published in a German periodical about 1889, has been rendered accessible by Prof. V. S. Ghate's English version in *Ind. Ant.*, 1913.

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The author of the panegyric classifies his lord's campaigns geographically under four heads: as those directed against eleven kings of the south; nine named kings of Āryāvarta, or the Gangetic plain,² besides many others not specified; the chiefs of the wild forest tribes; and the rulers of the frontier kingdoms and republics. He also explains Samudragupta's relation with certain foreign powers, too remote to come within the power of his arm. Although it is at present impossible to identify every one of the countries, kings, and peoples enumerated by the poet, and sundry matters of detail remain to be cleared up by future discovery and investigation, enough is known to enable the historian to form a clear idea of the extent of the dominions and the range of the alliances of the most brilliant of the Gupta emperors. The matter of the record being arranged on literary rather than historical principles, it is not possible to narrate the events of the reign in strict chronological order.

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² Rājaśekhara (flor. a. d. 900) understood Āryāvarta to include all India, even the extreme southeast, north and west (*Introd. to Kavyamīmāmsa* (Gaikwad's *Or. Series*, No. 1) Baroda, 1916, p. xxiv).

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But we may feel assured that this Indian Napoleon first turned his arms against the powers nearest him, and that he thoroughly subjugated the Rājas of the Gangetic plain, the wide region now known as Hindustan, before he embarked on his perilous adventures in the remote south. His treatment of the Rājas of the north was drastic; for we are told that they were 'forcibly rooted up', a process which necessarily involved the incorporation of their territories in the dominions of the victor. Among the nine names mentioned, only one can be recognized with absolute certainty, namely, that of Ganapati Nāga, whose capital was at Padmāvatī, now Padam Pawāyā, 25 miles north-east of the well-known city of Narwar, which is included in the Mahārāja Sindia's dominions.¹

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¹ Padam Pawāyā village lies in the apex of the confluence of the Sindhu and Pāra. The name seems to be derived from Padmāvatī, and local tradition asserts the identity. Nāga coins have been found there; also a palm-leaf capital with an inscription of the first or second century A. C. (*Ann. Rep. A. S. W. Circle*, 1914–15, p. 68; *A. S. R.*, 1915–16, pp. 101–10, Pl. lv–lviii).

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The greater part of these northern conquests must have been completed, and the subjugated territories absorbed, before Samudragupta ventured to undertake the invasion of the kingdoms of the south; a task which demanded uncommon boldness in design, and masterly powers of organization and execution.

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The invader, marching due south from the capital, through Chutiā Nāgpur, directed his first attack against the kingdom of South Kosala in the valley of the Mahānadī, and overthrew its king, Mahendra.² Passing on, he subdued all the chiefs of the forest countries, which still retain their ancient wildness, and constitute the tributary states of Orissa and the more backward parts of the Central Provinces. The principal of those chiefs, who bore the appropriate name of Vyāghra Rāja, or the Tiger King, is not otherwise known to history. At this stage of the campaign, the main difficulties must have been those of transport and supply, for the ill-armed forest tribes could not have offered serious military resistance to a well-equipped army.

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² North Kosala corresponded roughly with Oudh, north of the Ghāgra river.

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Still advancing southwards, by the east coast road, Samudragupta vanquished the chieftain who held Pishtapura, the ancient capital of Kalinga, now Pithāpuram in the Godāvarī district, as well as the hill-forts of Mahendragiri and Koṭṭūra in Ganjam; King Mantarāja, whose territory lay on the banks of the Kolleru (Colair) lake;³ the neighbouring king [Figure: THE CONQUESTS OF SAMUDRAGUPTA, A.D. 340 and the GUPTA EMPIRE, A.D. 400 (TRAVELS OF FA-HIEN.)]

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³ For correct interpretation of *Kaurāḷaka* see Kielhorn in *Ep. Ind.*, vol. vi, p. 3. Koṭṭūra (Kothoor of *Indian Atlas*, sheet No. 108) lies twelve miles SSE. from Mahendragiri. The proper rendering of the passage was settled by Kielhorn and Fleet, in 1898. For Pishṭapura see Fleet, *Ind. Ant.*, xxx (1901), p. 26.

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of Vengī between the Krishnā and Godāvarī rivers, presumably a Pallava; and Vishnugōpa, the king of Kanchi, or Conjeeveram, to the south-west of Madras, almost certainly a Pallava. Then turning westwards, he subjugated a chieftain, named Ugrasēna, king of Pālakka, a place perhaps situated in the Nellore District.¹

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¹ *Ep. Ind.*, viii, 161.

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He returned homewards through the western parts of the Deccan, subduing on his way the kingdom of Devarāshtra, or the modern Mahratta country, and Erandapalla, or Khāndēsh.²

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² Fleet, in *J. R. A. S.*, 1898, p. 369.

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This wonderful campaign, which involved two or three thousand miles of marching through difficult country, must have occupied about two years at least, and its conclusion may be dated approximately in A.D. 350.

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No attempt was made to effect the permanent annexation of these southern states; the triumphant victor admitting that he only exacted a temporary submission and then withdrew. But beyond doubt he despoiled the rich treasures of the south, and came back laden with golden booty, like the Muhammadan adventurer who performed the same military exploit nearly a thousand years later. Malik Kāfūr, the general of Alā-ud-dīn, Sultan of Delhi, during operations lasting from 1309 to 1311, repeated the performance of Samudragupta, and penetrated even farther south than his Hindu predecessor seems to have done. Malik Kāfūr occupied Madura in April, 1311, and from that base was able to reach Rāmesvarum, or Adam's Bridge, where he built a mosque, which was still standing when Firishta wrote his history in the sixteenth century.³

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³ For conquest of Madura see Elliot, *Hist.* iii, 91. The mosque was repaired by Mujāhid Shah Bāhmani in A. D. 1376. The doubts expressed by Mr. Sewell (*A Forgotten Empire*, p. 42) are not well founded. Mr. Sewell apparently did not remember the occupation of Madura in 1311.

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The enumeration by the courtly panegyrist of the frontier kingdoms and republics whose rulers did homage and paid tribute to the emperor, a title fairly earned by Samudragupta, enables the historian to define the boundaries of his dominions with sufficient accuracy, and to realize the nature of the political divisions of India in the fourth century.

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On the eastern side of the continent the tributary kingdoms were Samatata, or the delta of the Brahmaputra; Kāmarūpa, or Assam; and Davāka, which seems to have been practically synonymous with Vanga, lying between Karatoya on the west, the Ganges on the south, Meghna on the east, and the Khasi Hills on the north, and including both Dacca and Sunārgāon.¹ Farther west, the mountain kingdom of Nepāl, then, as now, retained its autonomy under the suzerainty of the paramount power, and the direct jurisdiction of the imperial government extended only to the foot of the mountains. The kingdom of Kartripura occupied the lower ranges of the Western Himalayas, including probably Kumāon, Almora, Garhwāl, and Kangra.²

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¹ *J. & Proc. A. S. B.*, 1910, p. 144.

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² Fleet suggests that the name may survive in Kartārpur in the Jālandhar district. C. F. Oldham refers to the Katuria Rāj of Kumāon, Garhwāl, and Rōhilkhand (*J. R. A. S.*, 1898, p. 198). See map of the Gupta Empire.

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The Panjāb, Eastern Rājputāna, and Mālwā for the most part were in possession of tribes or clans living under republican, or at any rate oligarchical, institutions.³ The Yaudhēya tribe occupied both banks of the Sutlaj, while the Mādrakas held the central parts of the Panjāb. The reader may remember that in Alexander's time those regions were similarly occupied by autonomous tribes, then called the Malloi, Kathaioi, and so forth. The Jumna probably formed the north-western frontier of the Gupta empire. The Ārjunāyanas, Mālavas, and Ābhīras were settled in Eastern Rājputāna and Mālwā, and in this direction the river Chambal may be regarded as the imperial boundary. The line next turned in an easterly direction along the territories of minor nations whose position cannot be exactly determined, passing probably through Bhopāl, until it struck the Narmadā river, which formed the southern frontier.

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³ On this subject see K. P. Jayaswal, 'Republics in the Mahābhārata' (*J. O. & B. Res. Soc.*, vol. i, pp. 173–8); R. C. Majumdar, *Corporate Life in Ancient India* (Calcutta, Surendra Nath Sen, 1918); R. D. Mukharji, *Local Government in Ancient India* (Oxford Univ. Press, 1919); and D. R. Bhandarkar's *Carmichael Lectures for 1918*, publ. by the Calcutta University, 1919.

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The dominion under the direct government of Samudragupta in the middle of the fourth century thus comprised all the most populous and fertile countries of Northern India. It extended from the Brahmaputra on the east to the Jumna and Chambal on the west; and from the foot of the Himalayas on the north to the Narmadā on the south.

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Beyond these wide limits, the frontier kingdoms of Assam and the Gangetic delta, as well as those on the southern slopes of the Himalayas, and the free tribes of Rājputāna and Mālwa, were attached to the empire by bonds of subordinate alliance; while almost all the kingdoms of the south had been overrun by the emperor's armies and compelled to acknowledge his irresistible might.

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The empire thus defined was by far the greatest that had been seen in India since the days of Asoka, six centuries before, and its possession naturally entitled Samudragupta to the respect of foreign powers. We are not, therefore, surprised to learn that he maintained diplomatic relations with the foreign Kushān princes of the north-west, whom he grouped together as 'Śaka chiefs', as well as with Ceylon and other distant islands.

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Communication between the king of Ceylon and Samudragupta had been established accidentally about a.d. 360. Siri Meghavanna (Meghavarṇa), the Buddhist king of Ceylon, whose reign of twenty-seven years is assigned approximately to the period from a.d. 352 to 379, had sent two monks, one of whom is said to have been his brother, to do homage to the Diamond Throne and visit the monastery built by Asoka to the east of the sacred tree at Bōdh Gayā. The strangers, perhaps by reason of sectarian rancour, met with scant hospitality, and on their return to the island complained to the king that they could not find any place in India where they could stay in comfort. King Meghavarṇa recognized the justice of the complaint, and resolved to remedy the grievance by founding a monastery at which his subjects, when on pilgrimage to the holy places, should find adequate and suitable accommodation. He accordingly dispatched a mission to Samudragupta laden with the gems for which Ceylon has always been renowned, besides other valuable gifts, and requested permission to found a monastery on Indian soil. Samudragupta, flattered at receiving such attentions from a distant power, was pleased to consider the gifts as tribute, and gave the required permission. The envoy returned home, and, after due deliberation, King Meghavarṇa decided to build his monastery near the holy tree. His purpose, solemnly recorded on a copper plate, was carried out by the erection of a splendid convent to the north of the tree. This building, which was three stories in height, included six halls, was adorned with three towers, and surrounded by a strong wall 30 or 40 feet high. The decorations were executed in the richest colours with the highest artistic skill, and the statue of Buddha, cast in gold and silver, was studded with gems. The subsidiary *stūpas*, enshrining relics of Buddha himself, were worthy of the principal edifice. In the seventh century, when Hiuen Tsang visited it, this magnificent establishment was occupied by a thousand monks of the Sthavira school of the Mahāyāna, and afforded ample hospitality to pilgrims from Ceylon. The site is now marked by an extensive mound.¹

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¹ The synchronism of Meghavarṇa with Samudragupta, discovered by Sylvain Lévi from a Chinese work, has been discussed by the author in the paper on Gupta chronology already cited, and in 'The Inscriptions of Mahānāman at Bōdh-Gayā' (*Ind. Ant.*, 1902, p. 192). But Meghavarṇa reigned later than I supposed when those papers were written, A. D. 352 and 379 (transl. *Mahāvaṁśa* (1912), p. xxxix). His true dates may be slightly earlier.

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It was presumably after his return from the south that Samudragupta determined to celebrate his manifold victories and proclaim the universality of his dominion by reviving the ancient rite of the horse-sacrifice (*aśvamedha*), which had remained long in abeyance, and probably had not been performed in Northern India since the days of Pushyamitra. The ceremony was duly carried out with appropriate splendour, and accompanied by lavish gifts to Brahmans, comprising, it is said, millions of coins and gold pieces. Specimens of the gold medals struck for this purpose, bearing a suitable legend and the effigy of the doomed horse standing before the altar, have been found in small numbers. Another memorial of the event seems to exist in the rudely carved stone figure of a horse which was found in Northern Oudh, and now stands in the Lucknow Museum with traces of a brief dedicatory inscription incised upon it, apparently referring to Samudragupta.¹

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¹ The fact that the mutilated inscription—*dda guttassa deya-dhaṁma*—is in Prākrit suggests a shade of doubt. All other Gupta inscriptions are in Sanskrit (*J. R. A. S.*, 1893, p. 98, with plate). See Fig. 11 in plate of coins. The horse having been exposed to the weather outside the Lucknow Museum for years, the inscription has disappeared. The image is now inside the building. The inscription was legible when the first edition of this book was published.

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Although the courtly phrases of the official eulogist cannot be accepted without a certain amount of reservation, it is clear that Samudragupta was a ruler of exceptional capacity and unusually varied gifts. The laureate's commemoration of his hero's proficiency in song and music is curiously confirmed by the existence of a few rare gold coins depicting his majesty comfortably seated on a high-backed couch, engaged in playing the Indian lute.² The allied art of poetry was also reckoned among the accomplishments of this versatile monarch, who is said to have been reputed a king of poets, and to have composed numerous metrical works worthy of the reputation of a professional author. We are further informed that the king took much delight in the society of the learned, and loved to employ his acute and polished intellect in the study and defence of the sacred scriptures, as well as in the lighter arts of music and poetry. In his youth he extended his royal favour to Vasubandhu, the celebrated Buddhist author. The picture of Samudragupta as painted by his court poet reminds the reader of that of Akbar as depicted by his no less partial biographer, Abu-l Fazl.

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² Plate of coins, Fig. 10.

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Whatever may have been the exact degree of skill attained by Samudragupta in the practice of the arts which graced his scanty leisure, it is clear that he was endowed with no ordinary powers; and that he was in fact a man of genius, who may fairly claim the title of the Indian Napoleon. Unfortunately, the portraits on his coins are not sufficiently good to give a clear notion of his personal appearance.

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By a strange irony of fate this great king—warrior, poet, and musician—who conquered nearly all India, and whose alliances extended from the Oxus to Ceylon, was unknown even by name to the historians of India until the publication of this work. His lost fame has been slowly recovered by the minute and laborious study of inscriptions and coins during the last eighty years; and the fact that it is now possible to write a long narrative of the events of his memorable reign is perhaps the most conspicuous illustration of the success gained by patient archaeological research in piecing together the fragments from which alone the chart of the authentic early history of India can be constructed.

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The exact year of Samudragupta's death is not known, but he certainly lived to an advanced age, and enjoyed a reign of uninterrupted prosperity for nearly half a century. Before he passed away, he did his best to secure the peaceful transmission of the crown by nominating as his successor, from among many sons,¹ the offspring of his queen, Datta Devī, whom he rightly deemed worthy to inherit a magnificent empire.

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¹ Eran and Bhitarī inscriptions.

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The son thus selected, who probably had been associated as Crown Prince (*yuvarāja*) with his father in the cares of government, assumed the name of his grandfather, in accordance with Hindu custom, and is therefore distinguished in the dynastic list as Chandra-gupta II. He also took the title of Vikramāditya ('Sun of Power'), and has a better claim than any other sovereign to be regarded as the original of the mythical king of that name who figures so largely in Indian legends. The precise date of his accession is not recorded, but it cannot be far removed from A. D. 375; and, pending the discovery of some coin or inscription to settle the matter, that date may be assumed as approximately correct. So far as appears, the succession to the throne was accomplished peacefully without contest, and the new emperor, who must have been a man of mature age at the time of his accession, found himself in a position to undertake the extension of the wide dominion bequeathed to him by his ever-victorious father. He did not renew Samudragupta's southern adventures, preferring to seek room for expansion towards the south-west.¹

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¹ M. M. Haraprasad Shastri seems to be right in identifying Chandra of the Iron Pillar with Chandravarman, king of Pushkaraṇa, Rājputāna, in the fourth century, who was contemporary with Samudragupta, and was brother of Naravarman (Mandasor inscr. of v. s. 461 = A. D. 404–5). The brothers were kings of Mālwā (*Ep. Ind.*, xii, 317). Pushkaraṇa (Pokharan or Pokurna), in 26° 55′ N. and 71° 55′ E. long., is a well-known town, and in Tod's time was still 'the most wealthy and powerful of the baronies of Mārwāṛ' (*Ind. Ant.*, 1913, pp. 217–19; *Annals of Rajasthan*, reprint (2nd ed., 1873), vol. i, p. 605). The Thākurs of Pokharan retain exceptional privileges reminiscent of their ancient royal rank.

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The greatest military achievement of Chandra-gupta Vikramāditya was his advance to the Arabian Sea through Mālwā and Gujarāt, and his subjugation of the peninsula of Surāshṭra or Kāthiāwāṛ, which had been ruled for centuries by the Śaka dynasty, of foreign origin, known to European scholars as the Western Satraps.² The campaigns which added those remote provinces to the empire must have occupied several years, and are known to have taken place between A. D. 388 and 401. The year 395 may be assumed as a mean date for the completion of the conquest, which involved the incorporation in the empire of the territory held by the Mālavas and other tribes, who had remained outside the limits of Samudragupta's dominion. The annexation of Surāshṭra and Mālwā not only added to the empire provinces of exceptional wealth and fertility, but opened up to the paramount power free access to the ports of the western coast; and thus placed Chandra-gupta II in direct touch with the seaborne commerce with Europe through Egypt, and brought his court and subjects under the influence of the European ideas which travelled with the goods of the Alexandrian merchants. The foreign influence on the literature, art, and science of the Gupta age will be discussed briefly in the next chapter.

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² *See The History of Kathiawad from the Earliest Times*, by Capt. H. Wilberforce Bell, London, Heinemann, 1915. For the detailed history of the Western Satraps see the papers by Messrs. Rapson, Bhagwān Lāl Indrajī, and Biddulph, in *J. R. A. S.*, 1890, p. 639; 1899, p. 357.

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The so-called 'Western Satraps' comprise two distinct dynasties, ruling in widely separated territories. The Kshaharāta Satraps of Mahārāshtra, with their capital probably at Nāsik in the Western Ghāts, who had established their power at some time in the first century after Christ, were destroyed by Gautamīputra, an Āndhra king, in or about A. D. 119, their dominions being annexed to the Āndhra monarchy. The second satrapy of the west, founded by the Śaka Chashtana at Ujjain in Mālwā late in the first century after Christ, was immensely extended by Chashtana's grandson, Rudradāman I, who at some date between A. D. 128 and 150, and probably before A. D. 130, conquered from Gautamīputra's son, Pulumāyi II, all or nearly all the territory which Gautamīputra had taken from the Kshaharātas a few years earlier. The power of Rudradāman I was thus established not only over the peninsula of Surāshtra, but also over Mālwā, Cutch (Kachchh), Sind, the Konkan, and other districts—in short, over Western India. The capital of Chashtana and his successors was Ujjain, one of the most ancient cities of India, the principal dépôt for the commerce between the ports of the west and the interior, famous as a seat of learning and civilization, and also notable as the Indian Greenwich from which longitudes were reckoned. The place, which is still a considerable town with many relics of its past greatness, retains its ancient name, and was for a time the capital of Mahārāja Sindia.

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Samudragupta, although not able to undertake the conquest of the west, had received an embassy from the son of another Rudradāman, the satrap Rudrasena, who must have been deeply impressed by the emperor's triumphant march through India. Chandra-gupta II, strong in the possession of the territory and treasure acquired by his father, resolved to crush his western rival, and to annex the valuable provinces which owned the satrap’s sway. The motives of an ambitious king in undertaking an aggressive war against a rich neighbour are not far to seek; but we may feel assured that differences of race, creed, and manners supplied the Gupta monarch with special reasons for desiring to suppress the impure foreign rulers of the west. Chandra-gupta Vikramāditya, although tolerant of Buddhism and Jainism, was himself an orthodox Hindu, specially devoted to the cult of Vishnu, and as such cannot but have experienced peculiar satisfaction in ‘violently uprooting’ foreign chieftains who probably cared little for caste rules. Whatever his motives may have been, he attacked, de-throned, and slew the satrap Rudrasinha, son of Satyasinha, and annexed his dominions. Scandalous tradition affirmed that ‘in his enemy’s city the king of the Śakas, while court-ing another man’s wife, was butchered by Chandra-gupta, concealed in his mistress’s dress’;¹ but the tale does not look like genuine history. The last notice of the satraps refers to the year A. D. 388, and the incorporation of their dominions in the Gupta empire must have been effected soon after that date.

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¹ *Harṣa-carita*, transl. Cowell and Thomas, p. 194.

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The Gupta kings, excepting the founder of the dynasty, all enjoyed long reigns, like the Moghals in later times. Chandra-gupta Vikramāditya occupied the throne for nearly forty years, and survived until A. D. 413. Little is known concerning his personal character; but the ascertained facts of his career suffice to prove that he was a strong and vigorous ruler, well qualified to govern and augment an extensive empire. He loved sounding titles which proclaimed his martial prowess, and was fond of depicting himself on his coins as engaged in successful personal combat with a lion, after the old Persian fashion.

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There are indications that Pātaliputra, although it may have been still regarded as the official capital, ceased to be the ordinary residence of the Gupta sovereigns after the completion of the extensive conquests effected by Samudra-gupta. The Maurya emperors, it is true, had managed to control a dominion very much larger than that of the Guptas from the ancient imperial city, but, even in their time, its remoteness in the extreme east must have caused inconvenience, and a more central position for the court had obvious advantages. Ajodhya, the legendary abode of the hero Rāma, the ruins of which have supplied materials for the building of the modern city of Fyzabād in Southern Oudh, enjoyed a more favourable situation, and appears to have been at times the head-quarters of the government of both Samudragupta and his son, the latter of whom probably had a mint for copper coins there. There is reason to believe that during the fifth century Ajodhya, rather than Pātaliputra, was the premier city of the Gupta empire.

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The Asoka pillar on which Samudragupta recorded the history of his reign is supposed to have been erected originally at the celebrated city of Kauśāmbī, which stood on the high road between Ujjain and Northern India, and was no doubt honoured at times by the residence of the monarch.¹ The real capital of an Oriental despotism is the seat of the despot's court for the time being.

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¹ For discussion of the site of Kauśāmbī see the author's papers, 'Kauśāmbī and Śrāvastī', in *J. R. A. S.*, 1898, p. 503; and 'Śrāvastī', ibid., 1900, p. 1.

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Pātaliputra, however, although necessarily considerably neglected by warrior kings like Samudragupta and Vikramāditya, continued to be a magnificent and populous city throughout the reign of the latter, and apparently was not ruined until the time of the Hun invasion in the sixth century. When the Chinese pilgrim, Hiuen Tsang, lived in the neighbourhood (640), he found the greater part of the ancient site covered by hundreds of ruins. 'The city', he tells us, 'had long been a wilderness', save for a small walled town near the Ganges, with about 1,000 inhabitants. Harsha, when he ruled Northern India as paramount sovereign (612–47), made no attempt to restore the old imperial capital, preferring to make Kanauj, situated between the Ganges and Jumna, the seat of his government. Dharmapāla, the second and, perhaps, the most powerful of the Pāla kings of Bengal and Bihar, evidently took some steps to renew the glory of Pātaliputra, because we know that in the thirty-second year of his reign (about A. D. 811) he held his court there. After that glimpse of the old city, we lose sight of it again until 1541, when it had sunk to the rank of 'a small town, dependent on Bihār, which was the seat of government'. Shēr Shah, being impressed by the strategical advantages of the position, then built a fort at the cost of half a million of rupees. 'Bihār from that date was deserted and fell to ruin, while Patna became one of the largest cities of the province.' The prosperity thus restored by the action of Shēr Shah has never been lost.

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In 1912, Patna once more became a capital, as the headquarters of the newly constituted Province of Bihār and Orissa. The civil station of Bankipore, which forms a suburb of Patna, stands on part of the site of Pātaliputra.¹

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¹ Watters, *On Yuan Chwang's Travels in India*, ii, 87. Dharmapāla's Khālimpur grant in *Ep. Ind.*, iv, 252. *Tārīkh-i-Dāūdī* in Elliot, *History*, iv, 477.

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We are fortunate enough to possess in the work of Fa-hien, the earliest Chinese pilgrim, a contemporary account of the administration of Chandra-gupta Vikramāditya, as it appeared to an intelligent foreigner at the beginning of the fifth century. The worthy pilgrim, it is true, was so absorbed in his search for Buddhist books, legends, and miracles that he had little care for the things of this world, and did not trouble even to mention the name of the mighty monarch in whose territories he spent six studious years. But now and then he allowed his pen to note some of the facts of ordinary life, and in more than one passage he has recorded particulars, which, although insufficient to gratify the curiosity of the twentieth century, yet suffice to give a tolerably vivid picture of the state of the country. The picture is a pleasing one on the whole, and proves that Vikramāditya was capable of bestowing on his people the benefits of orderly government in sufficient measure to allow them to grow rich in peace and prosper abundantly.

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On the occasion of his first visit to Pātaliputra the traveller was deeply impressed by the sight of Asoka’s palace, which was at that time still in existence, and so cunningly constructed of stone that the work clearly appeared to be beyond the skill of mortal hands, and was believed to have been executed by spirits in the service of the emperor. Near a great *stūpa*, also ascribed to Asoka, stood two monasteries, one occupied by followers of the Mahāyāna, and the other by those of the Hīnayāna sect. The monks resident in both establishments together numbered six or seven hundred, and were so famous for learning that their lectures were frequented by students and inquirers from all quarters. Fa-hien spent three years here studying Sanskrit, and was made happy by obtaining certain works on monastic discipline as taught by various schools, for which he had sought elsewhere in vain. He describes with great admiration the splendid procession of images, carried on some twenty huge cars richly decorated, which annually paraded through the city on the eighth day of the second month, attended by singers and musicians; and notes that similar processions were common in other parts of the country.¹

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¹ *Travels*, ch. xxvii, in any of the versions.

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The towns of Magadha were the largest in the Gangetic plain, which Fa-hien calls by the name of Central India or the Middle Kingdom; the people were rich and prosperous, and seemed to him to emulate each other in the practice of virtue. Charitable institutions were numerous; rest-houses for travellers were provided on the highways, and the capital possessed an excellent free hospital endowed by benevolent and educated citizens.

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‘Hither come’, we are told, ‘all poor or helpless patients suffering from all kinds of infirmities. They are well taken care of, and a doctor attends them; food and medicine being supplied according to their wants. Thus they are made quite comfortable, and when they are well, they may go away.’²

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² Ibid., Giles’s version.

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It may be doubted if any equally efficient foundation was to be seen elsewhere in the world at that date; and its existence, anticipating the deeds of modern Christian charity, speaks well both for the character of the citizens who endowed it, and for the genius of the great Asoka, whose teaching still bore such wholesome fruit many centuries after his decease.¹

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¹ Sir H. Burdett (*Encycl. Brit.*, 11th ed., s.v. Hospitals) states that in Christian days no establishments for the relief of the sick were founded until the reign of Constantine (A. D. 306–37). Late in the fourth century Basil founded a leper hospital at Caesarea, and St. Chrysostom established a hospital at Constantinople. A law of Justinian (A. D. 527–62) recognized *nosocomia* or hospitals among ecclesiastical institutions. The Maison Dieu or Hôtel Dieu of Paris is sometimes alleged to be the oldest European hospital. It dates from the seventh century (Florence Nightingale in *Chambers's Encycl.*, 1904).

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In the course of a journey of some 500 miles from the Indus to Mathurā on the Jumna, Fa-hien passed a succession of Buddhist monasteries tenanted by thousands of monks; and in the neighbourhood of Mathurā found twenty of these buildings occupied by three thousand residents. Buddhism was growing in favour in this part of the country.²

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² *Travels*, ch. xvi. The ‘temples’ and ‘priests’ apparently were Buddhist. The versions of this chapter differ considerably: those of Legge and Giles have been used in the text.

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The region to the south of Mathurā, that is to say, Mālwā, specially excited the admiration of the traveller; who was delighted alike with the natural advantages of the country, the disposition of the people, and the moderation of the government. The climate seemed to him very agreeable, being temperate, and free from the discomforts of frost and snow with which he was familiar at home and in the course of his journey. The large population lived happily under a sensible government which did not worry. With a glance at Chinese institutions, Fa-hien congratulates the Indians that ‘they have not to register their households, or attend to any magistrates and rules’. They were not troubled with passport regulations, or, as the pilgrim bluntly puts it: ‘Those who want to go away, may go; those who want to stop, may stop.’ The administration of the criminal law seemed to him mild in comparison with the Chinese system. Most crimes were punished only by fines, varying in amount according to the gravity of the offence, and capital punishment would seem to have been unknown. Persons guilty of repeated rebellion, an expression which probably includes brigandage, suffered amputation of the right hand; but such a penalty was exceptional, and judicial torture was not practised. The revenue was mainly derived from the rents of the crown lands, and the royal officers, being provided with fixed salaries, had no occasion to live on the people.

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The Buddhist rule of life was generally observed. 'Throughout the country', we are told, 'no one kills any living thing, or drinks wine, or eats onions or garlic¹ ... they do not keep pigs or fowls, there are no dealings in cattle, no butchers' shops or distilleries in their market-places.' The Chandāla, or outcaste tribes, who dwelt apart like lepers, and were required when entering a city or bazaar to strike a piece of wood as a warning of their approach, in order that other folk might not be polluted by contact with them,² were the only offenders against the laws of piety (*dharma*), and the only hunters, fishermen, and butchers. Cowrie shells formed the ordinary currency.³ The Buddhist monasteries were liberally endowed by royal grants, and the monks received alms without stint—houses, beds, mattresses, food, and clothes were never lacking to them wherever they might go.

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¹ Onions and garlic are regarded as impure by many castes. Onions, it is alleged, are supposed when cut to resemble flesh. Garlic, perhaps, was originally condemned as being a foreign innovation. Gopāditya, an ancient king of Kashmīr, punished Brahmans who ate garlic (Stein, transl. *Rājat.*, Bk. i, 342). Possibly the prohibition rests on deeper reasons, as expressed in Jain philosophy. 'Of course, onions, potatoes and all roots, being inhabited by more than one *jīva*, must never be eaten' (Stevenson, *The Heart of Jainism*, 1915, p. 213).

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³ This statement must not be pressed to mean that coins did not exist. Chandra-gupta Vikramāditya coined freely in gold, as well as sparingly in silver and bronze or copper. His archer type gold coins may be described as being common.

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