The Gupta Empire was an
ancient Indian
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to ancient India:
Ancient India is the Indian subcontinent from prehistoric times to the start of Medieval India, which is typically dated (when the term is still used) to t ...
empire which existed from the early 4th century CE to late 6th century CE. At its zenith, from approximately 319 to 467 CE, it covered much of the
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent is a physiographical region in Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian Ocean from the Himalayas. Geopolitically, it includes the countries of Bangladesh, Bhutan, In ...
.
This period is considered as the
Golden Age of India
Certain time periods have been named " golden ages" where development in the Indian subcontinent flourished.
Ancient India
Gupta Empire
The period between the 4th and 6th centuries CE is known as the Golden Age of India because of the considera ...
by historians. The ruling dynasty of the empire was founded by the king Sri
Gupta
Gupta () is a common surname or last name of Indian origin. It is based on the Sanskrit word गोप्तृ ''goptṛ'', which means 'guardian' or 'protector'. According to historian R. C. Majumdar, the surname ''Gupta'' was adopted by sev ...
; the most notable rulers of the dynasty were
Chandragupta I,
Samudragupta,
Chandragupta II and
Skandagupta. The 5th-century CE
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...
poet
Kalidasa credits the Guptas with having conquered about twenty-one kingdoms, both in and outside India, including the kingdoms of
Parasikas, the
Hunas, the
Kambojas, tribes located in the west and east
Oxus valleys, the
Kinnaras,
Kiratas, and others.
[Raghu Vamsa v 4.60–75]
The high points of this period are the great cultural developments which took place primarily during the reigns of Samudragupta, Chandragupta II and Kumaragupta I. Many Hindu epics and literary sources, such as
Mahabharata
The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the '' Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the K ...
and
Ramayana
The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th to 4th centuries BCE, and later stages ...
, were canonised during this period. The Gupta period produced scholars such as
Kalidasa,
Aryabhata,
Varahamihira, and
Vatsyayana who made great advancements in many academic fields.
Science
Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe.
Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence ...
and political administration reached new heights during the Gupta era.
The period gave rise to achievements in architecture, sculpture, and painting that "set standards of form and taste
hatdetermined the whole subsequent course of art, not only in India but far beyond her borders". Strong trade ties also made the region an important cultural centre and established the region as a base that would influence nearby kingdoms and regions in India and
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainland ...
. The
Puranas, earlier long poems on a variety of subjects, are also thought to have been committed to written texts around this period.
Hinduism was followed by the rulers and the Brahmins flourished in the Gupta empire but the Guptas tolerated people of other faiths as well.
The empire eventually died out because of factors such as substantial loss of territory and imperial authority caused by their own erstwhile feudatories, as well as the invasion by the
Huna people
Hunas or Huna (Middle Brahmi script: ''Hūṇā'') was the name given by the ancient Indians to a group of Central Asian tribes who, via the Khyber Pass, entered the Indian subcontinent at the end of the 5th or early 6th century. The Huna Kin ...
s (
Kidarites and
Alchon Huns) from
Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes the fo ...
.
After the collapse of the Gupta Empire in the 6th century, India was again ruled by numerous regional kingdoms.
Origin
The homeland of the Guptas is uncertain. According to one theory, they originated in the present-day lower-Doab region of
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 195 ...
, where most of the inscriptions and coin hoards of the early Gupta kings have been discovered. This theory is also supported by the
Purana
Purana (; sa, , '; literally meaning "ancient, old"Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995 Edition), Article on Puranas, , page 915) is a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly about legends an ...
, as argued by the proponents, that mention the territory of the early Gupta kings as
Prayaga,
Saketa, and
Magadha
Magadha was a region and one of the sixteen sa, script=Latn, Mahajanapadas, label=none, lit=Great Kingdoms of the Second Urbanization (600–200 BCE) in what is now south Bihar (before expansion) at the eastern Ganges Plain. Magadha was rul ...
areas in the
Ganges
The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...
basin.
Another prominent theory locates the Gupta homeland in the present-day
Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
region in Ganges basin, based on the account of the 7th-century Chinese Buddhist monk
Yijing. According to Yijing, king Che-li-ki-to (identified with the dynasty's founder ''Shri''
Gupta
Gupta () is a common surname or last name of Indian origin. It is based on the Sanskrit word गोप्तृ ''goptṛ'', which means 'guardian' or 'protector'. According to historian R. C. Majumdar, the surname ''Gupta'' was adopted by sev ...
) built a temple for Chinese pilgrims near Mi-li-kia-si-kia-po-no (apparently a transcription of
Mriga-shikha-vana). Yijing states that this temple was located more than 40 ''
yojanas'' east of
Nalanda, which would mean it was situated somewhere in the modern Bengal region. Another proposal is that the early Gupta kingdom extended from Prayaga in the west to northern Bengal in the east.
The Gupta records do not mention the dynasty's
varna (social class). Some historians, such as
A.S. Altekar, have theorised that they were of
Vaishya origin, as certain ancient Indian texts prescribe the name "Gupta" for the members of the Vaishya varna. According to historian
R. S. Sharma, the Vaishyas – who were traditionally associated with trade – may have become rulers after resisting oppressive taxation by the previous rulers. Critics of the Vaishya-origin theory point out that the suffix Gupta features in the names of several non-Vaishyas before as well as during the Gupta period, and the dynastic name "Gupta" may have simply derived from the name of the family's first king
Gupta
Gupta () is a common surname or last name of Indian origin. It is based on the Sanskrit word गोप्तृ ''goptṛ'', which means 'guardian' or 'protector'. According to historian R. C. Majumdar, the surname ''Gupta'' was adopted by sev ...
. Some scholars, such as S. R. Goyal, theorise that the Guptas were
Brahmanas, because they had matrimonial relations with Brahmans, but others reject this evidence as inconclusive. Based on the Pune and Riddhapur inscriptions of the Gupta princess
Prabhavati-gupta, some scholars believe that the name of her paternal
gotra (clan) was "Dharana", but an alternative reading of these inscriptions suggests that Dharana was the ''gotra'' of her mother Kuberanaga.
However, recent excavations in Nepal and Deccan has revealed that Gupta suffix was common among
Abhira kings, and Historian D. R. Regmi, links Imperial Guptas with
Abhira Guptas of Nepal. In Bhagavatam, Gupta dynasty has been called Abhir.
History
Early rulers
Gupta
Gupta () is a common surname or last name of Indian origin. It is based on the Sanskrit word गोप्तृ ''goptṛ'', which means 'guardian' or 'protector'. According to historian R. C. Majumdar, the surname ''Gupta'' was adopted by sev ...
(
Gupta script:
''gu-pta'', fl. late 3rd century CE) is the earliest known king of the dynasty: different historians variously date the beginning of his reign from mid-to-late 3rd century CE. Sri Gupta founded the Gupta Empire c. 240-280 CE, and was succeeded by his son, Ghatotkacha, c. 280-319 CE, followed by Ghatotkacha’s son, Chandragupta, c. 319-335 CE."Che-li-ki-to", the name of a king mentioned by the 7th century Chinese Buddhist monk
Yijing, is believed to be a transcription of "
Shri
Shri (; , ) is a Sanskrit term denoting resplendence, wealth and prosperity, primarily used as an honorific.
The word is widely used in South and Southeast Asian languages such as Marathi, Malay (including Indonesian and Malaysian), Javan ...
-Gupta" (
IAST: Śrigupta), "Shri" being an honorific prefix. According to Yijing, this king built a temple for Chinese Buddhist pilgrims near "Mi-li-kia-si-kia-po-no" (believed to be a transcription of
Mṛgaśikhāvana Mi-li-kia-si-kia-po-no, believed to be a Chinese transcription of Mṛgaśikhāvana (Mriga-shikha-vana), was the site of a Buddhist establishment in eastern India. It is mentioned in the writings of the Chinese traveler Yijing, who states that king ...
).
In the
Allahabad Pillar inscription, Gupta and his successor
Ghatotkacha are described as ''
Maharaja'' ("great king"), while the next king
Chandragupta I is called a ''
Maharajadhiraja'' ("king of great kings"). In the later period, the title ''Maharaja'' was used by feudatory rulers, which has led to suggestions that Gupta and Ghatotkacha were vassals (possibly of
Kushan Empire). However, there are several instances of paramount sovereigns using the title ''Maharaja'', in both pre-Gupta and post-Gupta periods, so this cannot be said with certainty. That said, there is no doubt that Gupta and Ghatotkacha held a lower status and were less powerful than Chandragupta I.
Chandragupta I married the
Licchavi princess Kumaradevi, which may have helped him extend his political power and dominions, enabling him to adopt the imperial title ''Maharajadhiraja''. According to the dynasty's official records, he was succeeded by his son
Samudragupta. However, the discovery of the coins issued by a Gupta ruler named
Kacha have led to some debate on this topic: according to one theory, Kacha was another name for Samudragupta; another possibility is that Kacha was a rival claimant to the throne.
Samudragupta
Samudragupta succeeded his father around 335 or 350 CE, and ruled until c. 375 CE. The
Allahabad Pillar inscription, composed by his courtier
Harishena, credits him with extensive conquests. The inscription asserts that Samudragupta uprooted 8 kings of
Āryāvarta, the northern region, including the
Nagas. It further claims that he subjugated all the kings of the forest region, which was most probably located in central India. It also credits him with defeating 12 rulers of
Dakshinapatha, the southern region: the exact identification of several of these kings is debated among modern scholars, but it is clear that these kings ruled areas located on the eastern coast of India. The inscription suggests that Samudragupta advanced as far as the
Pallava kingdom in the south, and defeated Vishnugopa, the Pallava regent of
Kanchi. During this southern campaign, Samudragupta most probably passed through the forest tract of central India, reached the eastern coast in present-day
Odisha
Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...
, and then marched south along the coast of the
Bay of Bengal
The Bay of Bengal is the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean, bounded on the west and northwest by India, on the north by Bangladesh, and on the east by Myanmar and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India. Its southern limit is a line bet ...
.
The Allahabad Pillar inscription mentions that rulers of several frontier kingdoms and tribal
oligarchies paid Samudragupta tributes, obeyed his orders, and performed obeisance before him. The frontier kingdoms included
Samatata,
Davaka
Davaka was a kingdom of ancient Indian subcontinent, located in current central region of Assam state. The references to it comes from the 4th century Allahabad pillar inscription of Samudragupta, where it is mentioned as one of five frontier k ...
,
Kamarupa,
Nepala, and
Karttripura. The tribal oligarchies included
Malavas
The Malavas (Brahmi script: 𑀫𑁆𑀫𑀸𑀭𑀯 ''Mmālava'') or Malwas were an ancient Indian tribe. Modern scholars identify them with the Mallian people (Malloi) who were settled in the Punjab region at the time of Alexander's invasion ...
,
Arjunayanas,
Yaudheyas,
Madrakas, and
Abhiras
The Abhira tribe is mentioned in the ancient Indian epic Mahabharata. A historical people of the same name are mentioned in the ''Periplus of the Erythraean Sea''. They are thought to be people who moved in from eastern Iran in the aftermath of ...
, among others.
Finally, the inscription mentions that several foreign kings tried to please Samudragupta by personal attendance; offered him their daughters in marriage (or according to another interpretation, gifted him maidens); and sought the use of the
Garuda
Garuda ( Sanskrit: ; Pāli: ; Vedic Sanskrit: गरुळ Garuḷa) is a Hindu demigod and divine creature mentioned in the Hindu, Buddhist and Jain faiths. He is primarily depicted as the mount (''vahana'') of the Hindu god Vishnu. Garu ...
-depicting Gupta seal for administering their own territories. This is an exaggeration: for example, the inscription lists the king of
Simhala
Sinhalese people ( si, සිංහල ජනතාව, Sinhala Janathāva) are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group native to the island of Sri Lanka. They were historically known as Hela people ( si, හෙළ). They constitute about 75% of t ...
among these kings. It is known that from Chinese sources that the Simhala king
Meghavarna sent rich presents to the Gupta king requesting his permission to build a Buddhist monastery at
Bodh Gaya: Samudragupta's panegyrist appears to have described this act of diplomacy as an act of subservience.
Samudragupta appears to have been
Vaishnavite, as attested by his Eran inscription, and performed several
Brahmanical ceremonies. The Gupta records credit him with making generous donations of cows and gold. He performed the
Ashvamedha ritual (horse sacrifice), which was used by the ancient Indian kings to prove their imperial sovereignty, and issued gold coins (see
Coinage below) to mark this performance.
The Allahabad Pillar inscription presents Samudragupta as a wise king and strict administrator, who was also compassionate enough to help the poor and the helpless. It also alludes to the king's talents as a musician and a poet, and calls him the "king of poets". Such claims are corroborated by Samudragupta's gold coins, which depict him playing a
veena.
Samudragupta appears to have directly controlled a large part of the
Indo-Gangetic Plain in present-day India, as well as a substantial part of central India. Besides, his empire comprised a number of monarchical and tribal tributary states of northern India, and of the south-eastern coastal region of India.
Ramagupta
Ramagupta is known from a sixth-century play, the ''
Devichandragupta'', in which he surrenders his wife to the enemy
Sakas and his brother Chandragupta has to sneak into the enemy camp to rescue her and kill the Saka king. The historicity of these events is unclear, but Ramagupta's existence is confirmed by three
Jain statues found at Durjanpur, with inscriptions referring to him as the ''Maharajadhiraja''. A large number of his copper coins also have been found from the
Eran-
Vidisha region and classified in five distinct types, which include the ''Garuda'', ''Garudadhvaja'', ''lion'' and ''border legend'' types. The
Brahmi
Brahmi (; ; ISO: ''Brāhmī'') is a writing system of ancient South Asia. "Until the late nineteenth century, the script of the Aśokan (non-Kharosthi) inscriptions and its immediate derivatives was referred to by various names such as 'lath' o ...
legends on these coins are written in the early Gupta style.
Chandragupta II "Vikramaditya"
According to the Gupta records, amongst his sons, Samudragupta nominated prince Chandragupta II, born of queen
Dattadevi, as his successor. Chandragupta II, ''Vikramaditya'' (Victory of the Sun), ruled from 375 until 415. He married a Kadamba princess of Kuntala and of Naga lineage (''Nāgakulotpannnā''), Kuberanaga. His daughter
Prabhavatigupta
Prabhavatigupta (died ), was a Gupta princess and Vakataka queen who was the consort of Maharaja Rudrasena II. Following the death of her husband, she effectively ruled the Vakataka kingdom as regent from about 390 to 410.
Early life
Prabha ...
from this Naga queen was married to
Rudrasena II, the
Vakataka ruler of
Deccan. His son Kumaragupta I was married to a Kadamba princess of the Karnataka region. Chandragupta II expanded his realm westwards, defeating the
Saka Western Kshatrapas of
Malwa
Malwa is a historical region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic upland north of the Vindhya Range. Politically and administratively, it is also sy ...
,
Gujarat
Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...
and
Saurashtra in a campaign lasting until 409. His main opponent
Rudrasimha III
Rudrasimha III (IAST: Rudrasiṃha) was the last ruler of the Western Satraps in India, in the 4th century AD. Rudrasimha III succeeded Rudrasena IV as the leader of the Indo-Scythians in India. Both were the sons of the Saka ruler Satyasimha, ma ...
was defeated by 395, and he crushed the Bengal chiefdoms. This extended his control from coast to coast, established a second capital at
Ujjain and was the high point of the empire. Kuntala inscriptions indicate rule of Chandragupta in
Kuntala region of Indian state of
Karnataka
Karnataka (; ISO 15919, ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reor ...
.
Hunza inscription also indicate that Chandragupta was able to rule north western Indian subcontinent and proceeded to conquer
Balkh, although some scholars have also disputed the identity of gupta king. Chalukyan ruler
Vikramditya VI (r. 1076 – 1126 CE) mentions Chandragupta with his title and states 'why should the glory of the Kings Vikramaditya and Nanda be a hindrance any longer ? he with a loud command abolished that (era), which has the name of Saka, and made that (era) which has the Chalukya counting ”
Despite the creation of the empire through war, the reign is remembered for its very influential style of
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
art, literature, culture and science, especially during the reign of Chandragupta II. Some excellent works of Hindu art such as the panels at the Dashavatara Temple in
Deogarh serve to illustrate the magnificence of Gupta art. Above all, it was the synthesis of elements that gave Gupta art its distinctive flavour. During this period, the Guptas were supportive of thriving
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
and
Jain cultures as well, and for this reason, there is also a long history of non-Hindu
Gupta period art. In particular, Gupta period Buddhist art was to be influential in most of East and Southeast Asia. Many advances were recorded by the Chinese scholar and traveller
Faxian in his diary and published afterwards.
The court of Chandragupta was made even more illustrious by the fact that it was graced by the ''Navaratna'' (Nine Jewels), a group of nine who excelled in the literary arts. Amongst these men was
Kālidāsa, whose works dwarfed the works of many other literary geniuses, not only in his own age but in the years to come. Kalidasa was mainly known for his subtle exploitation of the ''shringara'' (romantic) element in his verse.
Chandragupta II's campaigns against foreign tribes
The 4th century
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...
poet
Kalidasa credits Chandragupta Vikramaditya with conquering about twenty-one kingdoms, both in and outside India. After finishing his campaign in East and West India, Vikramaditya (Chandragupta II) proceeded northwards, subjugated the
Parasika
The Saka (Old Persian: ; Kharoṣṭhī: ; Ancient Egyptian: , ; , old , mod. , ), Shaka (Sanskrit ( Brāhmī): , , ; Sanskrit (Devanāgarī): , ), or Sacae ( Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ) were a group of nomadic Iranian peoples who hist ...
s, then the
Hunas and the
Kambojas tribes located in the west and east
Oxus valleys respectively. Thereafter, the king proceeded into the
Himalaya mountains to reduce the mountain tribes of the
Kinnaras,
Kiratas, as well as India proper.
In one of his works Kalidasa also credits him with the removal of the
Sakas from the country. He wrote 'Wasn't it Vikramaditya who drove the Sakas out from the lovely city of Ujjain?'.
The ''Brihatkathamanjari'' of the
Kashmiri writer
Kshemendra
Kshemendra (; ) was an 11th-century Sanskrit polymath- poet, satirist, philosopher, historian, dramatist, translator and art-critic from Kashmir in India.
Biography
Kshemendra was born into an old, cultured, and affluent family. His fat ...
states, King Vikramaditya (Chandragupta II) had "unburdened the sacred earth of the
Barbarians like the
Sakas,
Mlecchas,
Kambojas,
Yavana
The word Yona in Pali and the Prakrits, and the analogue Yavana in Sanskrit and Yavanar in Tamil, were words used in Ancient India to designate Greek speakers. "Yona" and "Yavana" are transliterations of the Greek word for "Ionians" ( gr ...
s,
Tusharas,
Parasikas,
Hunas, and others, by annihilating these sinful Mlecchas completely".
Faxian
Faxian (or Fa Hsien etc.), a Chinese
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
, was one of the pilgrims who visited India during the reign of the Gupta emperor
Chandragupta II. He started his journey from China in 399 and reached India in 405. During his stay in India up to 411, he went on a pilgrimage to
Mathura,
Kannauj,
Kapilavastu,
Kushinagar,
Vaishali,
Pataliputra
Pataliputra (IAST: ), adjacent to modern-day Patna, was a city in ancient India, originally built by Magadha ruler Ajatashatru in 490 BCE as a small fort () near the Ganges river.. Udayin laid the foundation of the city of Pataliputra at t ...
,
Kashi
Kashi or Kaashi may refer to:
Places
* Varanasi (historically known as "Kashi"), a holy city in India
** Kingdom of Kashi, an ancient kingdom in the same place, one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas
** Kashi Vishwanath Temple, Varanasi
* Kashgar, a c ...
, and
Rajagriha, and made careful observations about the empire's conditions. Faxian was pleased with the mildness of administration. The Penal Code was mild and offences were punished by fines only. From his accounts, the Gupta Empire was a prosperous period. His writings form one of the most important sources for the history of this period.
Faxian on reaching
Mathura comments––
"The snow and heat are finely tempered, and there is neither hoarfrost nor snow. The people are numerous and happy. They have not to register their households. Only those who cultivate the royal land have to pay (a portion of) the gain from it. If they want to go, they go. If they want to stay on, they stay on. The king governs without decapitation or (other) corporal punishments. Criminals are simply fined according to circumstances. Even in cases of repeated attempts at wicked rebellion, they only have their right-hand cut off. The king's bodyguards & attendants all have salaries. Throughout the whole country, the people do not kill any living creature, not drink any intoxicating liquor, nor eat onions or garlic."
Kumaragupta I
Chandragupta II was succeeded by his second son
Kumaragupta I, born of ''Mahadevi'' Dhruvasvamini. Kumaragupta I assumed the title, ''Mahendraditya''. He ruled until 455. Towards the end of his reign a tribe in the
Narmada valley, the
Pushyamitras
The Pushyamitras were a tribe who lived in Central India during the 5th century CE. Living on the banks of the river Narmada, they are believed to have posed a serious threat to the Gupta Empire during the late period of Kumaragupta I's reign.
...
, rose in power to threaten the empire. The
Kidarites as well probably confronted the Gupta Empire towards the end of the rule of Kumaragupta I, as his son
Skandagupta mentions in the
Bhitari pillar inscription his efforts at reshaping a country in disarray, through reorganisation and military victories over the
Pushyamitras
The Pushyamitras were a tribe who lived in Central India during the 5th century CE. Living on the banks of the river Narmada, they are believed to have posed a serious threat to the Gupta Empire during the late period of Kumaragupta I's reign.
...
and the
Hunas.
[History of Civilizations of Central Asia, Ahmad Hasan Dani, B.A. Litvinsky, UNESC]
pp. 119–
/ref>
He was the founder of Nalanda University which on 15 July 2016 was declared as a UNESCO world heritage site. Kumaragupta I was also a worshipper of Kartikeya
Skandagupta
Skandagupta, son and successor of Kumaragupta I is generally considered to be the last of the great Gupta rulers. He assumed the titles of ''Vikramaditya'' and ''Kramaditya''. He defeated the Pushyamitra threat, but then was faced with invading Kidarites (sometimes described as the Hephthalites or "White Huns", known in India as the Sweta Huna), from the northwest.
He repelled a ''Huna'' attack around 455 CE, but the expense of the wars drained the empire's resources and contributed to its decline. The Bhitari Pillar inscription of Skandagupta, the successor of Chandragupta, recalls the near-annihilation of the Gupta Empire following the attacks of the Kidarites.[The Huns, Hyun Jin Kim, Routledge, 201]
pp. 50–
/ref> The Kidarites seem to have retained the western part of the Gupta Empire.
Skandagupta died in 467 and was succeeded by his agnate brother Purugupta.
Decline of the empire
Following Skandagupta's death, the empire was clearly in decline, and the later Gupta coinage indicates their loss of control over much of western India after 467–469. Skandagupta was followed by Purugupta (467–473), Kumaragupta II (473–476), Budhagupta (476–495), Narasimhagupta (495—530), Kumaragupta III (530—540), Vishnugupta (540—550), two lesser known kings namely, Vainyagupta and Bhanugupta.
In the 480's the Alchon Huns under Toramana and Mihirakula broke through the Gupta defences in the northwest, and much of the empire in the northwest was overrun by the Huns by 500. According to some scholars the empire disintegrated under the attacks of Toramana and his successor Mihirakula. It appears from inscriptions that the Guptas, although their power was much diminished, continued to resist the Huns. The Hun invader Toramana was defeated by Bhanugupta in 510. The Huns were defeated and driven out of India in 528 by King Yashodharman from Malwa
Malwa is a historical region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic upland north of the Vindhya Range. Politically and administratively, it is also sy ...
, and possibly Gupta emperor Narasimhagupta.[''Columbia Encyclopedia'']
These invasions, although only spanning a few decades, had long term effects on India, and in a sense brought an end to Classical Indian civilisation.[The First Spring: The Golden Age of India by Abraham Eral]
pp. 48–
Soon after the invasions, the Gupta Empire, already weakened by these invasions and the rise of local rulers such as Yashodharman, ended as well. Following the invasions, northern India was left in disarray, with numerous smaller Indian powers emerging after the crumbling of the Guptas. The Huna invasions are said to have seriously damaged India's trade with Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes the fo ...
. In particular, Indo-Roman trade relations, which the Gupta Empire had greatly benefited from. The Guptas had been exporting numerous luxury products such as silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from th ...
, leather goods, fur, iron products, ivory, pearl, and pepper from centres such as Nasik, Paithan, Pataliputra
Pataliputra (IAST: ), adjacent to modern-day Patna, was a city in ancient India, originally built by Magadha ruler Ajatashatru in 490 BCE as a small fort () near the Ganges river.. Udayin laid the foundation of the city of Pataliputra at t ...
, and Benares. The Huna invasion probably disrupted these trade relations and the tax revenues that came with them.
Furthermore, Indian urban culture was left in decline, and Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
, gravely weakened by the destruction of monasteries and the killing of monks by the hand of the vehemently anti-Buddhist Shaivist Mihirakula, started to collapse. Great centres of learning were destroyed, such as the city of Taxila, bringing cultural regression. During their rule of 60 years, the Alchons are said to have altered the hierarchy of ruling families and the Indian caste system
Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultural ...
. For example, the Hunas are often said to have become the precursors of the Rajputs.
The succession of the 6th-century Guptas is not entirely clear, but the tail end recognised ruler of the dynasty's main line was king Vishnugupta, reigning from 540 to 550. In addition to the Hun invasion, the factors, which contribute to the decline of the empire include competition from the Vakatakas and the rise of Yashodharman in Malwa
Malwa is a historical region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic upland north of the Vindhya Range. Politically and administratively, it is also sy ...
.
The last known inscription by a Gupta emperor is from the reign of Vishnugupta (the Damodarpur copper-plate inscription), in which he makes a land grant in the area of Kotivarsha (Bangarh
Bangarh is an ancient city situated in Gangarampur, West Bengal, India. Bangarh was the ancient city which was the administrative centre of Kotivarsha Vishaya (territorial division), itself part of the wider administrative unit of Pundravardh ...
in West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fou ...
) in 542/543 CE.[Indian Esoteric Buddhism: Social History of the Tantric Movement by Ronald M. Davidso]
p. 31
This follows the occupation of most of northern and central India by the Aulikara ruler Yashodharman circa 532 CE.
A 2019 study by archaeologist Shanker Sharma has concluded that the cause of the Gupta empire's downfall was a devastating flood which happened around the middle of the 6th century in Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 195 ...
and Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...
.
Post-Gupta successor dynasties
In the heart of the former Gupta Empire, in the Gangetic region, the Guptas were succeeded by the Maukhari dynasty and the Pushyabhuti dynasty. The coinage of the Maukharis and Pushyabhutis followed the silver coin type of the Guptas, with portrait of the ruler in profile (although facing in the reverse direction compared to the Guptas, a possible symbol of antagonism) and the peacock on the reverse, the Brahmi legend being kept except for the name of the ruler.
In the western regions, they were succeeded by the Gurjaras, the Pratiharas, and later the Chaulukya
The Chaulukya dynasty (), also Solanki dynasty, was a dynasty that ruled parts of what are now Gujarat and Rajasthan in north-western India, between and . Their capital was located at Anahilavada (modern Patan). At times, their rule extende ...
-Paramara
The Paramara dynasty ( IAST: Paramāra) was an Indian dynasty that ruled Malwa and surrounding areas in west-central India between 9th and 14th centuries. They belonged to the Parmara clan of the Rajputs.
The dynasty was established in either ...
dynasties, who issued so-called Indo-Sasanian coinage
Indo-Sasanian coinage was major type of coinage of the post- Gupta Empire period, in the areas of Gujarat and Rajasthan in western India and in the Gangetic region, from the 6th century to the 12th century CE. These coins were derived from the ...
, on the model of the coinage of the Sasanian Empire, which had been introduced in India by the Alchon Huns.
Military organisation
In contrast to the Mauryan Empire, the Guptas introduced several military innovations to Indian warfare. Chief amongst these was the use of Siege engines, heavy cavalry archers and heavy sword cavalry. The heavy cavalry formed the core of the Gupta army and were supported by the traditional Indian army elements of elephants and light infantry
Light infantry refers to certain types of lightly equipped infantry throughout history. They have a more mobile or fluid function than other types of infantry, such as heavy infantry or line infantry. Historically, light infantry often foug ...
.
The utilisation of horse archers in the Gupta period is evidenced on the coinage of Chandragupta II, Kumaragupta I and Prakasaditya (postulated to be Purugupta) that depicts the emperors as horse-archers.
Unfortunately there is a paucity of contemporary sources detailing the tactical operations of the Imperial Gupta Army. The best extant information comes from the Sanskrit mahakavya (epic poem) Raghuvaṃśa written by the Classical Sanskrit writer and dramatist Kalidasa. Many modern scholars put forward the view that Kalidasa lived from the reign of Chandragupta II to the reign of Skandagupta and that the campaigns of Raghu – his protagonist in the Raghuvaṃśa – reflect those of Chandragupta II. In Canto IV of the Raghuvamsa, Kalidasa relates how the king's forces clash against the powerful, cavalry-centric, forces of the Persians and later the Yavanas (probably Huns) in the North-West. Here he makes special mention of the use horse-archers in the kings army and that the horses needed much rest after the hotly contested battles. The five arms of the Gupta military included infantry, cavalry, chariot, elephants and ships. Gunaighar copper plate inscription of Vainya Gupta mentions ships but not chariots. Ships had become integral part of Indian military in the 6th century AD.
Religion
The Guptas were traditionally a Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
dynasty.[A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India by Upinder Sing]
p. 521
/ref> They were orthodox Hindus, and allowed followers of Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
and Jainism
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle bein ...
to practice their religions.[The Gupta Empire by Radhakumud Mookerj]
pp. 133–
Sanchi remained an important centre of Buddhism. Kumaragupta I (455 CE) is said to have founded Nalanda. Modern genetic studies indicate that it was during the Gupta period that Indian caste groups ceased to intermarry (started practicing/enforcing endogamy).
Some later rulers however seem to have especially promoted Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
. Narasimhagupta Baladitya
Narasimhagupta (Gupta script: ''Na-ra-si-ṅha-gu-pta'') Baladitya was an emperor of the Gupta Empire of North India. He was son of Purugupta and probably the successor of Budhagupta.
Defeat of the Hunas
According to the Chinese monk Xuanzan ...
(c. 495–?), according to contemporary writer Paramartha, was brought up under the influence of the Mahayanist philosopher, Vasubandhu
Vasubandhu (; Tibetan: དབྱིག་གཉེན་ ; fl. 4th to 5th century CE) was an influential Buddhist monk and scholar from ''Puruṣapura'' in ancient India, modern day Peshawar, Pakistan. He was a philosopher who wrote commentary ...
. He built a sangharama
Sangharama (Sanskrit: संघराम ''Saṃgharāma'') refers to a "temple" or "monastery." It is the place, including its garden or grove, where the Sangha, the Buddhist monastic community dwells. A famous sangharāma was that of Kukkutara ...
at Nalanda and also a high vihara with a Buddha statue within which, according to Xuanzang, resembled the "great Vihara built under the Bodhi tree". According to the '' Manjushrimulakalpa'' (c. 800 CE), king Narasimhsagupta became a Buddhist monk, and left the world through meditation ( Dhyana). The Chinese monk Xuanzang
Xuanzang (, ; 602–664), born Chen Hui / Chen Yi (), also known as Hiuen Tsang, was a 7th-century Chinese Buddhist monk, scholar, traveler, and translator. He is known for the epoch-making contributions to Chinese Buddhism, the travelogue of ...
also noted that Narasimhagupta Baladitya's son, Vajra, who commissioned a sangharama as well, "possessed a heart firm in faith".
Gupta administration
A study of the epigraphical records of the Gupta empire shows that there was a hierarchy of administrative divisions from top to bottom. The empire was called by various names such as ''Rajya'', ''Rashtra'', ''Desha'', ''Mandala'', ''Prithvi'' and ''Avani''. It was divided into 26 provinces, which were styled as ''Bhukti'', ''Pradesha'' and ''Bhoga''. Provinces were also divided into '' Vishayas'' and put under the control of the ''Vishayapati''s. A ''Vishayapati'' administered the ''Vishaya'' with the help of the ''Adhikarana'' (council of representatives), which comprised four representatives: ''Nagarasreshesthi'', ''Sarthavaha'', ''Prathamakulika'' and ''Prathama Kayastha''. A part of the ''Vishaya'' was called ''Vithi''. The Gupta also had trading links with the Sassanid and Byzantine Empire.. The four-fold varna system was observed under the Gupta period but caste system was fluid. Brahmins followed non-Brahmanical profession as well. Khastriyas were involved in trade and commerce. The society largely coexisted among themselves.
Legacy
Scholars of this period include Varāhamihira and Aryabhata, who is believed to be the first to consider zero as a separate number, postulated the theory that the Earth rotates about its own axis, and studied solar and lunar
Lunar most commonly means "of or relating to the Moon".
Lunar may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Lunar'' (series), a series of video games
* "Lunar" (song), by David Guetta
* "Lunar", a song by Priestess from the 2009 album ''Prior t ...
eclipses
An eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs when an astronomical object or spacecraft is temporarily obscured, by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer. This alignment of three ce ...
. Kalidasa, who was a great playwright, who wrote plays such as Shakuntala, and marked the highest point of Sanskrit literature is also said to have belonged to this period. The Sushruta Samhita, which is a Sanskrit redaction text on all of the major concepts of ayurvedic medicine with innovative chapters on surgery, dates to the Gupta period.
Chess is said to have developed in this period, where its early form in the 6th century was known as '' '', which translates as "four divisions f the military
F, or f, is the sixth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ef'' (pronounced ), and the plural is ''efs''.
Hist ...
– infantry, cavalry, elephantry
A war elephant was an elephant that was trained and guided by humans for combat. The war elephant's main use was to charge the enemy, break their ranks and instill terror and fear. Elephantry is a term for specific military units using elepha ...
, and chariotry – represented by the pieces that would evolve into the modern pawn, knight, bishop, and rook, respectively. Doctors also invented several medical instruments, and even performed operations. The Indian numerals which were the first positional base 10 numeral systems in the world originated from Gupta India. The names of the seven days in a week appeared at the start of the Gupta period based on Hindu deities and planets corresponding to the Roman names. The ancient Gupta text Kama Sutra by the Indian scholar Vatsyayana is widely considered to be the standard work on human sexual behaviour in Sanskrit literature.
Aryabhata, a noted mathematician-astronomer of the Gupta period proposed that the earth is round and rotates about its own axis. He also discovered that the Moon and planets shine by reflected sunlight. Instead of the prevailing cosmogony in which eclipses were caused by pseudo-planetary nodes Rahu and Ketu, he explained eclipses in terms of shadows cast by and falling on Earth.[Thomas Khoshy, Elementary Number Theory with Applications, Academic Press, 2002, p. 567. .]
Art and architecture
Sanchi_temple_17.jpg, A tetrastyle prostyle
Prostyle is an architectural term designating temples (especially Greek and Roman) featuring a row of columns on the front. The term is often used as an adjective when referring to the portico of a classical building, which projects from the ...
Gupta period temple at Sanchi besides the Apsidal hall with Maurya foundation, an example of Buddhist architecture
Buddhist religious architecture developed in the Indian subcontinent. Three types of structures are associated with the religious architecture of early Buddhism: monasteries ( viharas), places to venerate relics ( stupas), and shrines or prayer ...
. 5th century CE.
Mahabodhitemple.jpg, The current structure of the Mahabodhi Temple dates to the Gupta era, 5th century CE. Marking the location where the Buddha is said to have attained enlightenment.
Deogarh01.jpg, Dashavatara Temple is a Vishnu Hindu temple built during the Gupta period.
File:KITLV 87946 - Unknown - Pataini temple in British India - 1897.tif, Pataini temple is a Jain temple built during the Gupta period.
The Gupta period is generally regarded as a classic peak of North Indian art for all the major religious groups. Although painting was evidently widespread, the surviving works are almost all religious sculpture. The period saw the emergence of the iconic carved stone deity in Hindu art, as well as the Buddha-figure and Jain '' tirthankara'' figures, the latter often on a very large scale. The two great centres of sculpture were Mathura and Gandhara, the latter the centre of Greco-Buddhist art. Both exported sculpture to other parts of northern India.
The most famous remaining monuments in a broadly Gupta style, the caves at Ajanta, Elephanta, and Ellora (respectively Buddhist, Hindu, and mixed including Jain) were in fact produced under later dynasties, but primarily reflect the monumentality and balance of Guptan style. Ajanta contains by far the most significant survivals of painting from this and the surrounding periods, showing a mature form which had probably had a long development, mainly in painting palaces. The Hindu Udayagiri Caves actually record connections with the dynasty and its ministers, and the Dashavatara Temple at Deogarh is a major temple, one of the earliest to survive, with important sculpture.
File:Vishnu Hood2 Deogarh.jpg, Vishnu
Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism.
Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" withi ...
reclining on the serpent Shesha
Shesha ( Sanskrit: शेष; ) , also known as Sheshanaga ( Sanskrit: शेषनाग; ) or Adishesha (), is a serpentine demigod (Naga) and Nagaraja (King of all serpents), as well as a primordial being of creation in Hinduism. In the ...
(Ananta), Dashavatara Temple 5th century
File:SFEC BritMus Asia 030.JPG, Buddha from Sarnath, 5–6th century CE
File:Elephanta tourists.jpg, The Colossal trimurti at the Elephanta Caves
The Elephanta Caves are a collection of cave temples predominantly dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva. They are on Elephanta Island, or ''Gharapuri'' (literally "the city of caves"), in Mumbai Harbour, east of Mumbai in the Indian state of ...
File:Ajanta Padmapani.jpg, Painting of Padmapani Cave 1 at Ajanta
File:Mukhalinga.JPG, The Shiva
Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one o ...
'' mukhalinga'' (faced-lingam
A lingam ( sa, लिङ्ग , lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva in Shaivism. It is typically the primary '' murti'' or devoti ...
) from the Bhumara Temple
Bhumara Temple, sometimes called Bhumra, Bhubhara or Bharkuleswar, is a 5th or 6th-century Gupta era Hindu stone temple site dedicated to Shiva near Satna, in the Indian state Madhya Pradesh. The temple has a square plan with a sanctum and Mandapa ...
File:Nalraja fort chilapata.JPG, Nalrajar Garh fortification wall in Chilapata Forests
The Chilapata Forest is a dense forest near Jaldapara National Park in Dooars, Alipurduar district, West Bengal, India. It is about 40 km from Alipurduar, and just a few minutes away from Hasimara town.
Ecology
The forest forms an elephant ...
, West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fou ...
, is one of the last surviving fortification remains from the Gupta period, currently 5–7 m high
File:Nalanda University India ruins.jpg, Nalanda University was first established under Gupta Empire
File:Gupt kalin mandir bhitargaon.jpg, Bitargaon temple from the Gupta period provide one of the earliest examples of pointed arches anywhere in the world
File:Ajanta-3-aurangabad.jpg, Ajanta caves from Gupta era
File:MET DT5237 (cropped).jpg, Krishna fighting the horse demon Keshi, 5th century
List of rulers
See also
* Gupta era
* Uchchhakalpa dynasty
References
Bibliography
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Notes
External links
Coins of Gupta Empire
{{Authority control
Historical Hindu empires
Empires and kingdoms of India
Medieval India
Dynasties of India
Former empires
States and territories established in the 320s
States and territories disestablished in the 550s
4th-century establishments in India
550s disestablishments
6th-century disestablishments in India
3rd-century establishments in Nepal