The Maukhari dynasty (

Gupta script The Gupta script (sometimes referred to as Gupta Brahmi script or Late Brahmi script)Sharma, Ram. '' 'Brahmi Script' ''. Delhi: BR Publishing Corp, 2002 was used for writing Sanskrit and is associated with the Gupta Empire of the Indian subcon ...

: , ''Mau-kha-ri'') was a post-

Gupta Gupta () is a common surname of Indian origin, meaning "guardian" or "protector". Origins and distribution The name is based on the Sanskrit word गोप्तृ ''goptṛ'', which means "guardian" or "protector". According to historian ...

dynasty who controlled the vast plains of

Ganga 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 which goes through India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China." is a trans-boundary riv ...

Yamuna The Yamuna (; ) is the second-largest tributary river of the Ganges by discharge and the longest tributary in India. Originating from the Yamunotri Glacier at a height of about on the southwestern slopes of Bandarpunch peaks of the Low ...

for over six generations from their capital at

Kanyakubja Kannauj ( Hindustani pronunciation: ) is an ancient city, administrative headquarters and a municipal board or Nagar Palika Parishad in Kannauj district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located 113 km (71 mi) from Etawa ...

. They earlier served as vassals of the Guptas and later of Harsha's

Vardhana dynasty The Pushyabhuti dynasty (IAST: Puṣyabhūti), also known as the Vardhana dynasty, was the ruling dynasty of the Kingdom of Thanesar in northern India during the 6th and 7th centuries. The dynasty reached its zenith under its last ruler Harsha ...

. The Maukharis established their independence during the mid 6th century. The dynasty ruled over much of

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

and

Magadha Magadha was a region and kingdom in ancient India, based in the eastern Ganges Plain. It was one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas during the Second Urbanization period. The region was ruled by several dynasties, which overshadowed, conquered, and ...

. Around 606 CE, a large area of their empire was reconquered by the

Later Guptas The Later Gupta dynasty, also known as the Later Guptas of Magadha, were the rulers of Magadha and Malwa from the 6th to 8th centuries CE. The Later Guptas emerged after the disintegration of the Imperial Guptas. However, there is no evidence ...

. According to Hieun-Tsang, the territory may have been lost to King

Shashanka Shashanka Dev (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: Śaśāṅka) was the first independent king of a unified polity in the Bengal region, called the Gauda Kingdom. He reigned in the 7th century, some historians place his r ...

of the

Gauda Kingdom The Gauḍa kingdom was a kingdom during the Classical India, Classical era in the Indian subcontinent, which originated in the Gauḍa (region), Gauda region of Bengal (modern-day West Bengal and Bangladesh) in 4th century CE or possibly earl ...

, who declared independence circa 600CE.

Religion

The Maukharis were orthodox Hindus.

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

received state support, but

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

also persisted as a prominent religion.

Army

The Maukhari army consisted of elephants, cavalry and infantry. Ishanavarman in all probability would have taken much pains to reorganize the army and make it strong and worthy. The Maukhari strategy mainly focused on deploying elephant corps to crush the enemy armies. They were used against the

Alchon Huns The Alchon Huns, ( Bactrian: ''Alkhon(n)o'' or ''Alkhan(n)o'') also known as the Alkhan, Alchono, Alxon, Alkhon, Alakhana, and Walxon, were a nomadic people who established states in Central Asia and South Asia during the 4th and 6th centurie ...

and the

Later Gupta The Later Gupta dynasty, also known as the Later Guptas of Magadha, were the rulers of Magadha and Malwa from the 6th to 8th centuries CE. The Later Guptas emerged after the disintegration of the Imperial Guptas. However, there is no evidence ...

armies. The Maukharis fought against the remnants of the Alchon Huns in the areas of the

Gangetic Doab ''Doab'' () is a term used in South Asia Quote: "Originally and chiefly in South Asia: (the name of) a strip or narrow tract of land between two rivers; spec. (with) the area between the rivers Ganges and Jumna in northern India." for the tract ...

and

, as documented in the Aphsad inscription, while the

Aulikaras The Aulikaras (Late Brahmi script: ''Au-li-ka-rā''), were an ancient clan that ruled the Kingdom of Malwa between the 4th-century CE and 6th-century CE. Epigraphical discoveries have brought to light two royal lines, who call themselves as ...

repelled them in the

Malwa Malwa () is a historical region, historical list of regions in India, region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic plateau, volcanic upland north of the ...

region. The Aphsad inscription of Ādityasena mentions the military successes of kings of the

Later Gupta dynasty The Later Gupta dynasty, also known as the Later Guptas of Magadha, were the rulers of Magadha and Malwa from the 6th to 8th centuries CE. The Later Guptas emerged after the disintegration of the Imperial Guptas. However, there is no evidence ...

against the Maukharis, themselves past victors of the Alchon Huns: The Maukharis, rather than the

Guptas The Gupta Empire was an Indian empire during the classical period of the Indian subcontinent which existed from the mid 3rd century to mid 6th century CE. At its zenith, the dynasty ruled over an empire that spanned much of the northern Indian ...

, were therefore the key actors in repelling the Hunas.

Administration

, the Maukhari capital, grew in prosperity and importance as a great cosmopolitan city. After the demise of the Maukharis, it even became the capital of Emperor

Harsha Harshavardhana (Sanskrit: हर्षवर्धन; 4 June 590 – 647) was an emperor of Kannauj from April 606 until his death in 647. He was the king of Thanesar who had defeated the Alchon Huns, and the younger brother of Rajyava ...

. Hence, Kanyakubja was largely contested by imperial powers.Sen, S.N., 2013, A Textbook of Medieval Indian History, Delhi: Primus Books, The first three Maukhari kings are mentioned in the inscriptions as

Maharaja Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent, Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and Medieval India, medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a pri ...

, but their successors assumed grander titles showing an increase in power and prestige. Ishanavarman was the first Maukhari ruler to adopt the title Maharajadhiraja (lit., King of Great Kings).

Cultural and international exchanges

The Maukhari kings were patrons of poets and writers and many literary works were composed during their reign. Various seals and inscriptions are known, such as the Asirgarh seal inscription of

Sharvavarman Sharvavarman (Brahmi script: 𑀰𑀭𑁆𑀯𑁆𑀯𑀯𑀭𑁆𑀫𑁆𑀫𑀸 , Gupta script: ''Śa-rvva-va-rmmā'', complete form: ''Śarvavarman Indra Bhattarika'') was the Maukhari ruler of the Kingdom of Kannauj from 560 to 575 CE. ...

, or the Haraha inscription of

Isanavarman Isanavarman may refer to: * Isanavarman I, king of Chenla *Ishanavarman, also spelled Iśanavarman, ruler of Kannauj *Ishanavarman II Ishanavarman II () was an Angkorian king who is believed to have ruled from 923 to 928. His empire may have bee ...

, discovered near the village of Harara in the

Barabanki district Barabanki district is one of the five districts of Ayodhya division in the central Awadh region of Uttar Pradesh, India. Barabanki city is the administrative headquarters of Barabanki district. Total area of Barabanki district is 3891.5 Sq.&n ...

and dated to

Vikrama Samvat Vikram Samvat (ISO: ''Vikrama Saṁvata''; abbreviated VS), also known as the Vikrami calendar is a Hindu calendar historically used in the Indian subcontinent and still also used in several Indian states and Nepal. It is a lunisolar calendar, ...

610 (ie 554 CE), which record the genealogy of the Maukharis.

Contacts with the Sasanian Empire

With the end of Hunnic power, new contacts were established between India and the

Sasanian Persia The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranian peoples, Iranians"), was an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, th ...

. Intellectual games such as

chess Chess is a board game for two players. It is an abstract strategy game that involves Perfect information, no hidden information and no elements of game of chance, chance. It is played on a square chessboard, board consisting of 64 squares arran ...

and

backgammon Backgammon is a two-player board game played with counters and dice on tables boards. It is the most widespread Western member of the large family of tables games, whose ancestors date back at least 1,600 years. The earliest record of backgammo ...

demonstrated and celebrated the diplomatic relationship between

Khosrow I Khosrow I (also spelled Khosrau, Khusro or Chosroes; ), traditionally known by his epithet of Anushirvan ("the Immortal Soul"), was the Sasanian King of Kings of Iran from 531 to 579. He was the son and successor of Kavad I (). Inheriting a rei ...

and a "great king of India." The

vizier A vizier (; ; ) is a high-ranking political advisor or Minister (government), minister in the Near East. The Abbasids, Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was at first merely a help ...

of the Indian king invented chess as a cheerful, playful challenge to emperor Khosrow. It seems that the Indian ruler who sent the game of chess to Khosrow was the Maukhari monarch

Śarvavarman Sharvavarman (Brahmi script: 𑀰𑀭𑁆𑀯𑁆𑀯𑀯𑀭𑁆𑀫𑁆𑀫𑀸 , Gupta script: ''Śa-rvva-va-rmmā'', complete form: ''Śarvavarman Indra Bhattarika'') was the Maukhari ruler of the Kingdom of Kannauj from 560 to 575 CE. ...

Kannauj Kannauj (Hindustani language, Hindustani pronunciation: ) is an ancient city, administrative headquarters and a municipal board or Nagar palika, Nagar Palika Parishad in Kannauj district in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Ut ...

, between the beginning of Śarvavarman's reign in 560/565 and the end of Khosrow's reign in 579. When the game was sent to Iran it came with a letter which read: "As your name is the King of Kings, all your emperorship over us connotes that your wise men should be wiser than ours. Either you send us an explanation of this game of chess or send revenue and tribute us."Canepa 2009, p. 181 Khosrow's grand vizier successfully solved the riddle and figured out how to play chess. In response the wise vizier created the game backgammon and sent it to the Indian court with the same message. The Indian king was not able to solve the riddle and was forced to pay tribute.

Succession

The

(also called "Pushyabhuti dynasty") ultimately succeeded the Maukhari dynasty, but it had originally only been a small polity around their capital Sthaneshvara (

Thanesar Thanesar (IAST: Sthāṇvīśvara) is a historic city and Hindu pilgrimage sites, Hindu pilgrimage centre in the Kurukshetra district of Haryana, India. It is located approximately 160 km northwest of Delhi. The city Kurukshetra's area merge ...

). According to Hans T. Bakker, their ruler Aditya-Vardhana (or Aditya-Sena) was probably a feudatory to the Maukhari ruler

. His successor

Prabhakaravardhana Prabhakaravardhana (also known as Prabhakara Vardhana) was a king of Thanesar in northern India around the time of the decline of the Gupta Empire. According to the historian R. C. Majumdar, he was the first notable king of the Vardhana dynasty ...

may have also been a feudatory to the Maukhari king Avantivarman in his early days. Prabhakara's daughter Rajyashri married Avantivarman's son Grahavarman. As a result of this marriage, Prabhakara's political status increased significantly, and he assumed the imperial title ''Parama-bhattaraka Maharajadhiraja'' ("the one to whom the other kings bow because of his valour and affection").

Rulers

The known Maukhari rulers of ''madhya-desha'' include: *

Harivarman Hari-varman (Gupta script: ''Ha-ri-va-rmmā'') was the first Maharaja of Kannauj and the founder of the Maukhari dynasty. He is the first ruler to be named in the known Maukhari records. Biography Hari-varman was the founder of the Maukhari ...

* Adityavarman * Ishvaravarman (Iśvaravarman) *

Ishanavarman Iśanavarman (Gupta script: , ''Ī-śā-na-va-rmmā'') was the first independent Maukhari dynasty, Maukhari king of the Kingdom of Kannauj. He was a very powerful king, and adopted the title of ''Maharajadhiraja''. Early life Ishanavarman was ...

(Iśanavarman), r.c. 550–574 CE *

(Śarvavarman), r. c. 574–586 CE * Avantivarman *

Grahavarman Grahavarman was the king of Kannauj around the early seventh-century CE. He came from the Maukhari dynasty and succeeded his father, Avantivarman. Grahavarman married Rajyashri, the daughter of the ruler of Thanesar, Prabhakar Vardhana. The marr ...

, r. c. 600–605 CE

Karenti branch of Maukhari Rulers

After the fall of Maukhari dynasty his descendants moved to Kuntalpur and later one of his descendant Kripal Dev moved to Kirtigadh in 661, where he defeated Baloch ruler of Kirtigadh and Makwanas ruled from (661 AD to 1089 AD). Last king was Kesar Dev Makwana, who died in battle against Hamir Soomra, ruler of Amarkot. * 1. Kripaldevji or Karpaldevji, First Makwana Lord of Karenti (662-682). * 2. Bharmal Second Makwana Lord of Karenti (682-706). * 3. Bhojraj , Third Makwana Lord of Karenti (706-716). * 4. Dhirsen , Fourth Makwana Lord of Karenti (716-734). * 5. Popasen , Fifth Makwana Lord of Karenti (734-744). * 6. Devraj , Sixth Makwana Lord of Karenti (744-762). * 7. Parthisal , Seventh Makwana Lord of Karenti (762-792). * 8. Salande , Eighth Makwana Lord of Karenti (792-810). * 9. Surjanbhan , Ninth Makwana Lord of Karenti (810-824). * 10. Somesar , Tenth Makwana Lord of Karenti (824-833). * 11. Satal , Eleventh Makwana Lord of Karenti (833-862). * 12. Sundarpal , Twelfth Makwana Lord of Karenti (862-891). * 13. Ratanpal , Thirteenth Makwana Lord of Karenti (891-905). * 14. Akhepal , Fourteenth Makwana Lord of Karenti (905-914). * 15. Amratpal , Fifteenth Makwana Lord of Karenti (914-932). * 16. Udebhan , Sixteenth Makwana Lord of Karenti (932-962). * 17. Lakhdhir , Seventeenth Makwana Lord of Karenti (962-972). * 18. Surtan , Eighteenth Makwana Lord of Karenti (972-992). * 19. Hamir , Nineteenth Makwana Lord of Karenti (992-1022). * 20. Narbhavandev or Narbhramdev, Twentieth Makwana Lord of Karenti (1022-1039). *21. Jayamalladev or Jaimalji, Twenty-First Makwana Lord of Karenti (1039-1042).
Karenti (1039- * * *22.Vyaghradev or Vaghji, Twenty-Second Makwana Lord of Karanti (1042-1045). *23. Vihayasdev or Vairisha, Twenty-Third Makwana Lord of Karenti Karenti(1045-104 *24. Kesardev, Twenty-Fourth Makwana Lord of Karenti (1049-28 MAY 1082). Died: killed in battle 28 May 1082 by Hamir Sumro, Jam of Sindh

Barabar branch of Maukhari rulers

Barabar Caves Gopika Cave Inscription of Anantavarman 5th- or 6th-century CE Sanskrit in Gupta script

The Barabar Cave inscriptions attest the existence of another Maukhari branch. This branch ruled as feudatories, probably that of the

. The known rulers of this branch include: * ''Nrpa Shri'' Yajnavarman * ''Nrpa Samantachudamani Shri'' Shardulavarman * Anantavarman File:Lomas_Rishi_entrance_inscription.jpg,

Lomas Rishi The Lomas Rishi Cave, also called the Grotto of Lomas Rishi, is one of the man-made Barabar Caves in the Barabar and Nagarjuni hills of Jehanabad district in the Indian state of Bihar. This rock-cut cave was carved out as a sanctuary. It was bui ...

cave inscription of Anantavarman File:Barabar_Nagarjuni_Caves,_Anantavarman_Inscription_Sanskrit.jpg,

Gopika Cave Inscription __NOTOC__ The Gopika Cave Inscription, also called the Nagarjuni Hill Cave Inscription II of Anantavarman or formerly the Gya inscription (referring to the nearby city of Bodh Gaya, Gaya), is a 5th- or 6th-century CE Sanskrit inscription in Late B ...

of Anantavarman File:5th_or_6th_century_Vadathika_Cave_Inscription,_Sanskrit,_Shaivism,_Anantavarman,_Gupta_script,_Ancient_Om_symbol_2.jpg,

Vadathika Cave Inscription __NOTOC__ The Vadathika Cave Inscription, also called the Nagarjuni Hill Cave Inscription of Anantavarman, is a 5th- or 6th-century CE Sanskrit inscriptions in Gupta script found in the Nagarjuni hill cave of the Barabar Caves group in Gaya distri ...

of Anantavarman In some of the Barabar Caves inscriptions, the words referring to the Ajivikas appear to have been defaced, although the rest of the text appears intact. E. Hultzsch theorized that the defacement took place when the Maukhari ruler Ananta-varman installed Hindu images at the Caves. However, Basham dismisses this theory, noting that there is little evidence to support this view and the only cave in which the word ''Ajivikehi'' remains intact is among the three caves where Ananta-varman installed a Hindu image. According to Basham, since the defacement is selective, it must have taken place when the Brahmi script had still not been forgotten, likely some time before the 5th century CE.

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * Reprinted by Moltilal Banarsidass in 1981 {{refend

External links

* Joseph Schwartzberg
The Historical Atlas of South Asia
Map of the

. (Pg 26). Hindu states History of Kannauj 6th-century establishments in India 7th-century disestablishments in India