History of Kanauj to the Moslem Conquest c12.s4.4

c12.s4.4

Further, owing to the large extent of territory and the scanty and slow means of communication, it was necessary to establish strong centres of government in order to keep the loosely-knit parts of the empire together. The outlying provinces were, therefore, put in charge of governors, as we are informed by the following passage in the *Harṣacarita*: “Atra lokanāthena diśāṃ mukheṣu parikalpitāḥ lokapālāḥ,” i.e., “he, the protector of all people, appointed protectors in the several directions.”³ They were sometimes also known as Sāmantas and Mahāsāmantas. They maintained law and order in the distant parts of the empire, and must have been invested with considerable power. Probably Mādhavagupta was one such governor or local ruler. This assumption seems irresistible if the testimonies of the *Harṣacarita* and the Aphsad inscription are considered in conjunction. The former mentions Mādhavagupta, Prince of Malwa, as a youthful companion of Harṣa at the Thanesvar court; whereas from the latter it is evident that he was ruling over the Magadha region, and is further credited "with the desire to associate himself with the glorious Harṣadeva."¹ This political arrangement was perhaps made by Harṣa either to reward his services rendered during the initial crisis, or to make him a bulwark against the aggressions of Śaśāṅka, who was in power at least till 619 A.D. Or, it may be that by the appointment of a strong lieutenant in Magadha, Harṣa was only manœuvring to further his designs against Śaśāṅka’s territories in Bengal and the coastal regions. Mādhavagupta’s family, however, declared the independence of Magadha in the confusion following Harṣa’s death, as we shall see later on.