History of Mediaeval Hindu India (being a History of India from 600 to 1200 A.D.) v2.c29.s2.35

v2.c29.s2.35

Gopāla was a Buddhist, Buddhism being still prevalent in Magadha and Gauda. There was, indeed, a reassertion of Hinduism against Buddhism in the time of Śaśānka of Karṇasuvarṇa or under Mādhavagupta of Magadha. But this part of the country was the birth-place and stronghold of Buddhism which naturally lasted here longer than in the rest of the country. Gopāla was, however, a Kshatriya being born of the Śūryavaṁśa as stated in Pāla records. The Varṇāśramadharma which Buddhism had flung away in the beginning was strong again and even the records of these Buddhist kings show that they were keen observers of it and kept Varṇa pure. They also respected Brahmins and made gifts to them. The rule of the Buddhist Gopāla was not, therefore, troublesome and his ministers and many of his subjects who were Hindus were not much offended. Gopāla is supposed by some to have belonged to the Pratihāra Pāla dynasty of Kanauj but it seems that there is no reason to suspect this. The name ending Pāla is taken by many Kshatriya families; in fact it is a suffix generally recommended for Kshatriyas who are required to take a suffix meaning protector and we consequently find Pāla and Gopa and Trātā as usual suffixes of Kshatriya names. Moreover, the rise of the Pāla dynasty did not follow the rise of the Pratihāra dynasty but was almost synchronous with it as will be presently seen.