The State in Ancient India: A Study in the Structure and Practical Working of Political Institutions in North India in Ancient Times c15.11

c15.11

The administration of the Guptas is to be studied primarily from the inscriptions, supplemented by the coins, of the various kings of the dynasty. A few impressions and opinions are presented by the Chinese pilgrim, Fâ-hien, who travelled in India from 405 to 411 A.D., and who, though engrossed with Buddhist literature and tradition, has incidentally recorded some facts of secular interest. The great poet and dramatist, Kâlidâsa, who belongs most probably to this period, can be noticed in the same connection. So, too, a few other plays like the Mṛcchakaṭikâ and the Mudrârâkṣasa. But since an element of doubt attaches almost invariably to the dates of Hindu writers, this class of evidence is best set forth separately at the end.