The Early History of the Deccan (Parts I–XI) v1.c8.s6: Rudrasena II
The Early History of the Deccan (Parts I–XI) v1.c8.s6
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Rudrasena II
v1.c8.s6.1
² The view of V. A. Smith that Rudrasena, like Gautamīputra, never ascended the throne is untenable. He had advocated it primarily to explain the non-occurrence of the name of this ruler in the inscription in cave no. XVI at Ajaṇṭā. It is now clearly proved that the genealogy in that record is of the branch Vākāṭaka line then ruling at Basim and so could naturally not have included the name of Rudrasena II. Had Rudrasena died without being crowned, his wife would not have been described as *agramahiṣī*, the crowned queen, and he would not have been given the epithet *mahārāja*, king, in the Vākāṭaka records.
v1.c8.s6.2
(*c.* A.D. 385-90)
v1.c8.s6.3
Rudrasena II succeeded his father in *c.* A.D. 385. At the time of his accession the Vākāṭaka kingdom was in a prosperous condition. Its army was efficient and its treasury was full. It had acquired prestige by the conquest of Kuntala or the southern Marāṭha territory, and this was still further heightened by the marriage of Rudrasena with a daughter of the most powerful ruler in India at the time. The new king was naturally much under the influence of his illustrious father-in-law. His ancestors had all been Śaivites, but he changed his faith and became a Vaishṇavite, and began to describe himself as under the special protection of Chakrapāṇi or Viṣṇu. This need not surprise us, for his father-in-law was a staunch Vaishnavaite and so was his queen. The Gupta-Vākāṭaka matrimonial alliance was primarily dictated by political and military considerations. The plans for the contemplated invasion of Mālwā, Gujarāt, and Kathiāwar must have been the subject of discussion and correspondence between Chandragupta and Rudrasena soon after the accession of the latter. Rudrasena no doubt gave active support to the policy of Chandragupta, hoping thereby to secure a part of the Kshatrapa kingdom after its conquest. Unfortunately, before these plans could be put into action, Rudrasena died suddenly (c. A.D. 390) at the immature age of about thirty, after a short reign of perhaps five years. This unexpected calamity must have come as a great shock to the two royal houses and doubtless postponed the contemplated invasion of the Kshatrapa dominions by several years.