The Early History of the Deccan (Parts I–XI) v2.c14.19

v2.c14.19

The first member of the family to raise its fortunes and give it distinction was Dṛḍhaprahāra. Jain tradition records that he was a posthumous child, and that his mother was a Yādava lady rescued from the burning of Dvārakā by Jainaprabhasūri, and it tells us how people accepted him as leader and began to pay him taxes because he protected them from robbers.² About A.D. 860, which is the probable time of Dṛḍhaprahāra, conditions were somewhat unsettled in Nasik and Khandesh owing to the weak rule of the Rāṣṭrakūṭa emperor Amoghavardha I and his wars with the Pratihāra emperor Bhoja I. It is possible that this state of affairs may have encouraged the predatory tendencies of the Vindhyan tribes, from whose raids the people of Nasik and the Kandesh may have suffered. Dṛḍhaprahāra proved his ability as a warrior by protecting them, and thus brought his family into prominence. He founded the city of Chandrādityapura, the modern Chandor, forty miles north-east of Nasik, and made it his headquarters. It was, however, Seuṇachandra, the son of Dṛḍhaprahāra, who first secured feudatory status for his family; his house and patrimony continued to be named after him as Seuṇavaṃśa and Seuṇadeśa down to the thirteenth century, not only in Mahārāṣṭra but also in the Karnatak and Telangana.³ He founded a new city on the Sindineri called after himself Seuṇapura, and made it his capital. This town is probably the same as the modern Sinnar in the Nasik District. It seems that Seuṇachandra helped the Rāṣṭrakūṭas in their wars with the Pratihāras and was given feudatory status in recognition of his services. His principality probably did not extend beyond the Nasik District. He may be taken to have flourished from about c. A.D. 880 to 900.