Arjunavarman (reigned c. 1210-1215 CE) was an Indian king from the

Paramara dynasty 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 Parmar (clan), Paramara clan of the Rajputs. The dynasty was establi ...

, who ruled in the Malwa region of central India.

Military career

Arjuna succeeded his father Subhatavarman, and invaded the kingdom of 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 extended ...

s of

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, 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 List of states and union territories ...

. The 14th century writer Merutunga calls him the "destroyer of

". Arjuna defeated Jayanta-simha (or Jaya-simha), who had usurped the Solanki throne for a brief period. The 1211 CE Piplianagar grant of Arjuna refers to his victory over Jayanta, so Arjuna's Gujarat invasion must have happened before this time. An inscription from

Bhopal Bhopal (; ISO 15919, ISO: Bhōpāl, ) is the capital (political), capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes,'' due to ...

indicates that he had reached Bharuch by 1213 CE. The Dhar ''

prashasti ''Prashasti'' (IAST: Praśasti, Sanskrit for "praise") is an Indian genre of inscriptions composed by poets in praise of their rulers. Most date from the 6th century CE onwards. Written in the form of poetry or ornate prose, the ''prashastis'' s ...

'' inscription states that he defeated Jayasimha in the Parva mountain valley (possibly Pavagadh). It also states that Arjuna captured Jayanta's daughter Jayashri, and fell in love with her. According to Asoke Majumdar, this suggests that Jayanta made peace with the Paramaras through a marriage alliance. When the

Yadava The Yadava (), not to be confused with Yadav, were an ancient Indian people who believed to have descended from Yadu (legendary king), Yadu, a legendary king of Chandravamsha lineage. The community was formed of various clans, being the #T ...

ruler Simhana invaded Lata (southern Gujarat), Arjuna's Chahamana general Salakhanasimha defeated him. Later, the Yadava king sent another force led by his general Kholeshvara to Lata. This second invasion resulted in the Paramara feudatory's defeat. Arjunavarman married the Hoysala princess Sarvakala, who was probably a daughter of grand-daughter of the Hoysala king Ballala. Simhana's invasion of the Hoysala territory appears to have led a fresh conflict between the Paramaras and the Yadavas. Simhana invaded the Paramara kingdom in 1215, and according to the later Yadava court poet Hemadri, this invasion resulted in the defeat and death of Arjunavarman. The veracity of Hemadri's claim is doubtful, as the 1222 Bahal inscription mentions Arjunavarman's defeat, but not his death. The Tiluvalli inscription also states that Simhana humbled the lord of Malwa.

Other activities

Arjuna assumed the title ''Trividhivīracūḍāmaṇi''. In his inscriptions, Arjunavarman claimed to be an reincarnation of his illustrious ancestor king

Bhoja Bhoja was the Paramara dynasty, Paramara king of Malwa from 1010 until his death in 1055. He ruled from Dhara (city), Dhara (modern Dhar), and Military career of Bhoja, fought wars with nearly all his neighbours in attempts to extend his king ...

. He was a patron of scholars, and himself an accomplished poet. He is best known from a eulogistic inscription of his reign which takes the form of play called the ''Vijayaśrīnāṭikā'', composed by Madana, the king's preceptor. In this work, which is not known from manuscript sources, Madana makes Arjunavarman the chief protagonist.S. K. Dikshit, ed., ''Pārijātamañjarī alias Vijayaśrī by Rāja-Guru Madana alias Bāla-Sarasvatī'' (Bhopal, 1968). Available online in Zenodo. http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.375588. Arjunavarman's 1211 CE inscription, found at Piplianagar near Shajapur, records the donation of a village. A 1213 inscription, discovered at Sehore (and possibly originally found at Piplianagar) also records a village grant. Another inscription from Sehore, dated 1215 CE, records a land grant to a

Brahmin Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...

References

Bibliography

* * * * * {{Paramara dynasty Kings of Malwa Paramara dynasty 13th-century Indian monarchs