The Traikutakas were a dynasty of Indian kings who ruled between 388 and 456. The name "Traikutakas" seems to be derived from the words for a three-peaked mountain ("Tri-kuta"). The Traikutakas are mentioned in

Kalidasa Kālidāsa (, "Servant of Kali"; 4th–5th century CE) was a Classical Sanskrit author who is often considered ancient India's greatest poet and playwright. His plays and poetry are primarily based on Hindu Puranas and philosophy. His surviv ...

's Raghuvamsa, in which they are located in the area of northern Kokan. The dominions of the Traikutakas further included

Aparanta Aparanta or Aparantaka (meaning 'Western border') was a geographical region of ancient India. It corresponded to the northern part of the Konkan region on the western coast of India. English civil servant-turned-historian J. F. Fleet believed th ...

and northern

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

. The coins of the Traikutaras are found extensively in southern

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 ...

, and southern

beyond the Ghats. Their design is very close to that of the

Western Satraps The Western Satraps, or Western Kshatrapas (Brahmi: , ''Mahakṣatrapa'', "Great Satraps") were Indo-Scythian (Saka) rulers of the western and central parts of India (extending from Saurashtra in the south and Malwa in the east, covering moder ...

, from which they probably inherited some territories, and traces of the obverse legend with

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

letters can still be seen.

History

Some scholars theorize that the

Traikutakas The Traikutakas were a dynasty of Indian kings who ruled between 388 and 456. The name "Traikutakas" seems to be derived from the words for a three-peaked mountain ("Tri-kuta"). The Traikutakas are mentioned in Kalidasa's Raghuvamsa, in which the ...

were a branch of the Abhiras, and refer to them as the "Abhira-Traikutakas". These scholars assume that the Traikutaka records were dated in the so-called Chedi-Kalachuri era, starting in 249 CE. However, later epigraphic discoveries and numismatic evidence contradict this theory, and it is likely that the Traikutakas used the

Shaka era The Shaka era (IAST: Śaka, Śāka) is a historical Hindu calendar era (year numbering), the epoch (its year zero) of which corresponds to Julian year (calendar), Julian year 78. The era has been widely used in different regions of the Indian ...

. Indradutta, Dahrasena & Vyaghrasena were well known kings from this dynasty. King Dahrasena expanded his realm, which soon bordered the Vakataka realm. This led to conflict and the Vakataka king Narendrasena, who with the help of his son & crown prince Prithivishena, probably defeated the Traikutikas, as later king Prithivishena's inscriptions refer to him twice rescuing the "sunken fortunes of his family". Traikutikas were known for their Vaishnava faith. and Dharasena performed Ashvamedha Yajna too. During the reign of Maharaja Madhyamasena, the kingdom was invaded by the Vakataka king Harishena. The dynasty ended around AD 550, when Vikramasena, the last known king died. The Traikutakas were probably reduced to a vassal status under the Vishnukundins and had to accept Madhavavarman I's authority.

Traikutaka rulers

The following Traikuta rulers are known from the coins and inscriptions of Gupta period- * Maharaja Indradatta (AD 415-440, only mentioned on the coins of his son) * Maharaja Dahrasena, son of Indradatta (A.D. 455), he performed Ashwamedha * Maharaja Vyaghrasena, son of Dahrasena (A.D. 480) * Maharaja Madhyamasena, son of Vyaghrasena (A.D. 504) * Vikramasena, son of Madhyamasena (A.D. 533)

References

* "A catalogue of the Indian coins in the British Museum. Andhras etc.." Rapson {{Middle kingdoms of India History of Maharashtra Dynasties of India

History

Traikutaka rulers

Further reading

See Also

References

References