Maha-kshtrapa was a title meaning "Great Satrap" in early medieval
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 ...
. As
satraps (kshtrapas) of the failing
Scythian Empire, some leaders in western
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
elevated their titles to Great Satrap when they became increasingly independent of imperial rule.
The Maha-kshtrapa
Rudradaman I
Rudradāman I (r. 130–150) was a Śaka ruler from the Western Kshatrapas dynasty. He was the grandson of the king Caṣṭana. Rudradāman I was instrumental in the decline of the Sātavāhana Empire. Rudradāman I took up the title of ''Mah ...
oversaw extensive
canal
Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flo ...
repairs in Gujarat which led to double cropping. He also led battles against his neighbors which increased his property. In his propaganda, Rudradaman was praised as an upholder of
dharma, a fine swordsman and boxer, an excellent horseman and elephant rider, a charioteer, a famous scholar of grammar and music, a logical thinker, and a generous king. The memorial praising Rudradaman is the earliest known classical
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
inscription of any extent.
[''India, a History'' by ]John Keay
John Stanley Melville Keay FRGS is a British historian, journalist, radio presenter and lecturer specialising in popular histories of India, the Far East and China, often with a particular focus on their colonisation and exploration by Europ ...
. Published by Harper Perennial in 2000. Pages 130-132.
References
Satraps
History of Gujarat