History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v4.c63.t2.746

v4.c63.t2.746

The data contained in the Nidhanpur plates of Bhāskaravarman (E. I. vol. XII p. 65), when properly scrutinized, appear to favour the position of Varāhamihira. Those plates in setting out the genealogy of Bhāskaravarman start with Naraka, whose son Bhagadatta fought on the side of the Kauravas in the Mahābhārata war and was killed by Arjuna (vide Droṇaparva chap. 29). Bhagadatta’s son is said to have been Vajradatta. After Vajradatta his descendants ruled over Kāmarūpa for 3000 years and then Puṣyavarman, a scion of the Bhagadatta family, became king of Kāmarūpa. King Bhāskaravarman was 12th from Puṣyavarman and was a contemporary of Emperor Harṣa (first half of the 7th century A. D.). Taking an average of 20 years for the reign of each ruler, Puṣyavarman should be taken as having flourished about the beginning of the 5th century A. D. Adding 3000 years which are alleged by the plates to have intervened between Puṣyavarman and Vajradatta, we arrive at about 2500 B. C. as the time of Vajradatta and therefore approximately of the Mahābhārata war. This corresponds rather very closely with the statement of Varāhamihira who puts Yudhiṣṭhira's reign at 653 Kaliyuga (i. e. 2448 B. C.). On the other hand, if we assume that the Mahābhārata war was fought in or that Kaliyuga started in 3101 B. C., then Puṣyavarman who flourished 3000 years after the Mahābhārata war would have to be placed about 101 B. C. and there will be an interval of about 700 or 750 years between Puṣyavarman and Bhāskaravarman. A period of 700 or 750 years for 12 rulers would work at about 60 years for each ruler, which is a very improbable average. Therefore the Nidhanpur plates do not support the hypothesis that the Mahābhārata war was fought about 3101 B. C., but rather support the statement of Varāhamihira that it was fought about 2500 B. C.