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History of Kanauj to the Moslem Conquest c15.s2.t4: Conquering expeditions

History of Kanauj to the Moslem Conquest c15.s2.t4

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Conquering expeditions

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The author of the *Gauḍavaho* credits Yaśovarman with having carried on expeditions of conquest (Vijayayātrā) in the manner of the mythical “world-conquerors.” These exploits read more like fiction than sober history, but before offering any destructive criticism let us pause to present the story as narrated by Vākpati. Yaśovarman is represented as having first turned his energies in a south-easterly direction, and the only indication given of the line of his advance is that he halted on the way to pay homage to the celebrated non-Aryan deity, the Vindhya-vāsinī-Devī, whose shrine now stands near the modern city of Mirzapur in the United Provinces. It is interesting to note in passing that human sacrifices were made to this goddess, and at this distance in time one may well shudder at the idea of kings subscribing to such a blood-thirsty and barbarous cult. The details of the march, however, are not recorded, but the road to this temple from Kanauj would ordinarily lie through the present districts of Cawnpore, Fatehpur and Prayāga or Allahabad. We may, therefore, assume that Yaśovarman followed that route. His adversary, who is simply described as “Magahanāha” or “Magadhanātha” i.e., lord of Magadha, at first tried to avoid his steel, but mustering courage returned to fight after some time. A tough battle ensued, and it resulted in the defeat and death of the ruler of Magadha, who was most probably identical with Jivitagupta II.¹ As Vākpati has given the title of "Gauḍavaho" to his work, it may reasonably be supposed that the vanquished monarch held sway over parts—perhaps Western—of Bengal also. Yaśovarman is next said to have subjugated the king of the Vangas or eastern Bengal, who was "powerful in the possession of a large number of warlike elephants." Although we cannot be sure about the identity of the latter, Dr. R. G. Basak conjectures that he may have been Rājarājabhaṭṭa of the Khaḍga dynasty.² Yaśovarman then went by the road across the Malaya mountain (the southern Sahyādri), accepting the submission of an unnamed king of the Deccan. His arms are even represented to have penetrated as far as the seashore "where Vāli, taking under his armpit the mighty Rāvaṇa, roamed about at sea." It is difficult to make out what part of the country the poet speaks of, but probably the author takes his hero as far as the sea only to complete the conventional area of "world conquest." The next enemies whom he conquered in a hard-fought battle were the Pārasikas, who are a riddle to many. Bühler identified them with the Persians,³ but beyond the superficial similarity in sound there is nothing to commend this view. They are placed among the countries of the south, and as Vākpati follows some sort of geographical order, we must look for them in the south. Curiously enough, a Cālukya inscription¹ gives us a clue to them, since among the southern conquests of the Cālukya Vinayāditya it includes the Pārasikas along with the Kāmeras or Kāveras, and the Coḷas. Levying tributes in regions made inaccessible by the western mountains, i.e., the Ghats, Yaśovarman followed the route across the Nerbudda and the Marudeśa or Marwar, and arrived in the land of Śrikaṇṭha or Thanesvar made famous in history by the Vardhana dynasty. He is then alleged to have marched to the site of Ayodhyā, the city of Hariścandra,² and received the submission of the people living on the Mandāra mountains. These regions of the north, known in connection with the lord of the Yakṣas³, are said to be "perfumed with the gum exuding from fissures in the Devadarus," which clearly indicates that we have an allusion to some Himalayan country. "Having thus conquered the world," Yaśovarman returned to the capital, and dismissed the numerous kings who had been compelled to accompany him after their subjugation.

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¹ See also R. D. Banerji, *Mem. As. Soc. Beng.*, Vol. V, No. 3, p. 43. For a different identification with king Harṣa of Assam, "in whose territory was included Bengal," see Kṛṣṇasvāmī Aiyangar's article "Forgotten episodes in Mediæval India" in *Journal of Indian History*, Vol. V, pt. III, p. 327.

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² *The History of North-Eastern India*, p. 208.

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³ *Ind. Ant.*, XLII (1913), p. 249.

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¹ Ibid., IX, p. 129; see also Fleet, *Dynasties of the Kanarese Districts*, p. 368.

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² Smith thinks that the reference to Ayodhyā cannot be to the well-known city of Rāma in Southern Oudh, but must mean some place much farther north to which the legend of Hariścandra’s aerial city was attached (J. R. A. S., 1908, p. 779).

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³ Dr. Hoernle thinks that this last move sounds very much as if it described the king’s going to *svarga* i.e., his demise after his conquest (J. R. A. S., 1909, p. 106). But this view is not tenable, as Yaśovarman is recorded to have come into conflict with Lalitāditya of Kashmir subsequently.

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