Vāsishka (Bactrian: BAZHÞKO ''Bazēško''; Middle

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' ...

', '; Kharosthi: 𐨬𐨗𐨿𐨱𐨅𐨮𐨿𐨐 ', '; ruled c. 247–265 CE) was a Kushan emperor, who seems to have had a short reign following

Kanishka II Kanishka II (Brahmi: ''Kā-ṇi-ṣka'') was one of the emperors of the Kushan Empire from around 225–245 CE. He succeeded Vasudeva I who is considered to be the last great Kushan emperor. Rule While he upheld Kushan rule in northern India, ...

Rule

The rule of Vāsishka in the area of

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...

is attested by inscriptions, as well as in the area of

Mathura Mathura () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Mathura district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located approximately north of Agra, and south-east of Delhi; about from the town of Vrindavan, and from Govardhan. ...

(Isapur inscription). His rule is recorded as far south as

Sanchi Sanchi is a Buddhist complex, famous for its Great Stupa, on a hilltop at Sanchi Town in Raisen District of the State of Madhya Pradesh, India. It is located, about 23 kilometres from Raisen town, district headquarter and north-east of Bh ...

, where one and possibly another inscription in his name have been found, dated to the year 22 (The Sanchi inscription of "Vaskushana"-i.e. Vasishka Kushana) and year 28 (The Sanchi inscription of Vasaska-i.e. Vasishka) of a Kushan era (widely thought to be the second century of the Kanishka era). This would place his reign c. 247–265.

Inscriptions and statuary

Vasishka appears in four known inscriptions, including a Kharoshti inscription in the Indus region.

Sanchi Bodhisattava

Several statues or statue fragments from the

art of Mathura The Art of Mathura refers to a particular school of Indian art, almost entirely surviving in the form of sculpture, starting in the 2nd century BCE, which centered on the city of Mathura, in central northern India, during a period in which Bud ...

with the name of Vasishka have been found on the site of

. One of them is a statue of a seated

Bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood. In the Early Buddhist schools ...

, dated to "Year 28 of Vasishka". The inscription reads:

Sanchi pedestal

Another Mathura fragment found in Sanchi is the pedestal of a statue of a standing Buddha. The inscription is inscribed with "Year 22 of Vaskushana", thought to be possibly "Vasishka Kushana". Worshippers in long tunics with belts typical of the Kushan style can be seen standing around a seated Boddhisattva. The inscription reads:

Ara inscription

Vāsishka appears in the "Ara inscription" of

Kanishka III Kanishka III (Greco-Bactrian: ΚΑΝΗϷΚΕ ''Kanēške''; Kharosthi: 𐨐𐨞𐨁𐨮𐨿𐨐 ', '; Brahmi: ', '; sa, कनिष्क), was a Kushan emperor who reigned from around the year 265 CE to 270 CE. He is believed to have succeede ...

, found in the Indus region, not far south of

Attock Attock ( Punjabi and Urdu: ), formerly known as Campbellpur (), is a historical city located in the north of Pakistan's Punjab Province, not far from the country's capital Islamabad. It is the headquarters of the Attock District and is 61st lar ...

. In this inscription, he is presented as the father of Kanishka, thought to be

, and his name appears in

Kharoshthi The Kharoṣṭhī script, also spelled Kharoshthi (Kharosthi: ), was an ancient Indo-Iranian script used by various Aryan peoples in north-western regions of the Indian subcontinent, more precisely around present-day northern Pakistan and e ...

as "Vajeshka".

Isapur inscription of Vasishka, Year 24

An inscription in the name of Vasishka in pure

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 ...

in Middle

Brahmi script 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' ...

, with his full imperial titles ''Mahārājasya rājātirājāsya devaputrasya Shāhe Vvāsishkasya'' ("Of the Great King, the King of kings, His Majesty, Shahi Vasishka") was found in Isapur (), near the city of

, on the shaft of a "'' Yupa''", a sacrificial Brahmanical pillar, now in the

Mathura Museum __NOTOC__ Government Museum, Mathura, commonly referred to as Mathura museum, is an archaeological museum in Mathura city of Uttar Pradesh state in India. The museum was founded by then collector of the Mathura district, Sir F. S. Growse in 1 ...

Coinage

Gold Dinar of Vasishka (as Vaskushana) Circa CE 240-250

The coinage of Vasishka became smaller than his predecessors, being minted on increasingly small flans, and the metal quality becoming debased. The deities appearing on the reverse of his coinage are similar to those in the coins of

Huvishka Huvishka (Kushan: Οοηϸκι, ''Ooēški'', Brahmi: ', '; Kharosthi: 𐨱𐨂𐨬𐨅𐨮𐨿𐨐 ', ') was the emperor of the Kushan Empire from the death of Kanishka (assumed on the best evidence available to be in 150 CE) until the successio ...

and

Vasudeva I Vāsudeva I ( Kushano Bactrian: Βαζοδηο ''Bazodeo''; Middle Brahmi script: ''Vā-su-de-va'', Chinese: 波調 ''Bodiao''; fl. 200 CE) was a Kushan emperor, last of the "Great Kushans." Named inscriptions dating from year 64 to 98 of Kan ...

. Several of Vāsishka's coins have been found together with those of the

Kushano-Sasanian Kushano-Sasanian Kingdom (also called Kushanshahs, KΟÞANΟ ÞAΟ ''or Koshano Shao'' in Bactrian, or Indo-Sasanians) is a historiographic term used by modern scholars to refer to a branch of the Sasanian Persians who established their rule in ...

ruler

Ardashir I Kushanshah Ardashir I Kushanshah was the first Kushanshah of the Kushano-Sasanian Kingdom from 233 to 245. He was succeeded by Peroz I Kushanshah. Name ''Ardashir'' is the Middle Persian form of the Old Persian ''Ṛtaxšira'' (also spelled ''Artaxšaç� ...

, suggesting a level of rivalry and interaction between the two rulers. The coins of Vasishka usually have the legend in

Greco-Bactrian script Bactrian (, , ) is an extinct Eastern Iranian language formerly spoken in the Central Asian region of Bactria (in present-day Afghanistan) and used as the official language of the Kushan, and the Hephthalite empires. Name It was long thought ...

''þAONANOþAO BAZIþKO KOþANO'' "King of King Bazeshko Kushano". Some coins with a slightly different name (Obverse legend ''þAONANOþAO BAZOΔΗO/BOZOΗO KOþANO'' "King of King Bazodeo the Kushan") have been attributed to "Vaskushana", generally equaled with Vasishka himself."The coins bearing the legend 'ShaonanoShao Ba-Zodeo/Bozoeo Koshano', ('PAONANOPAO BA-ZOAHO / BOZOHO KOPANO') starts at 1 o'clock have 46 been attributed to Vaskushana (Vasishka) by Gobl." in

References

* "Ancient Indian Inscriptions", S. R. Goyal, 2005 *"From Persepolis to the Punjab: Exploring Ancient Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan", Elizabeth Errington and Vesta Sarkhosh Curtis, 2007. *The Crossroads of Asia: Transformation in Image and Symbol", Elizabeth Errington and Joe Cribb, 1992.

References

External links

Online catalogue of coins of Vasishka
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vasishka 3rd-century Indian monarchs Kushan emperors