History of Kanauj to the Moslem Conquest c9.s1.t6.1

c9.s1.t6.1

Harivarman appears to have been the founder of the Maukhari house of Kanauj, as he is the first to be named in the known records of this dynasty. Probably he or one of his immediate ancestors moved westwards to Kanauj during the decline of the Guptas, but with the materials at hand it is impossible to guess what relation this successful adventurer bore to the line of the Maukharis mentioned in the Barabar and Nagarjuni hill cave inscriptions. The Haraha inscription gives him the proud epithet of Jvālāmukha, or flame-faced; and the Asirgaḍh seal further testifies that “his fame stretched out beyond the four oceans; who had other kings brought into subjection by (his) prowess, and by affection (for him)”.¹ He bears, however, only the subordinate title of Mahārāja, which perhaps shows that the use of laudatory expressions in the inscriptions is due not to any considerable power wielded by him, but to the simple fact that he was the first Maukhari to attain distinction.