Coin of King Iśanavarman of the Maukhari of Kannauj, successors of the Guptas in the Gangetic region. Circa 535-553 CE. The ruler faces to the left, whereas in Gupta coinage the ruler faces to the right. This is possibly a symbol of antagonism and rivalry, as also seen on some similar coins of Toramana.[1]
The Maukhari dynasty (Gupta script: , Mau-kha-ri) a post-Gupta dynasty controlling vast plains of Ganga-Yamuna for over six generations from their capital at Kannauj. They earlier served as vassals of the Guptas and later of Harsha'sVardhana dynasty. The Maukharis established their independence during the mid 6th century. The dynasty ruled over much of Uttar Pradesh and Magadha. Around 606 CE, a large area of their empire was reconquered by the Later Guptas.[3] According to Hieun-Tsang, the territory may have been lost to King Shashanka of the Gauda Kingdom, who declared independence circa 600 AD.[4][5]
Religion
The Maukharis were staunch Hindus. They tried to enforce and maintain the traditional social order among the people. Hinduism received state support, but Buddhism also managed to remain as a prominent religion.[6]
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 Hunas and the Later Gupta armies.[6] The Maukharis fought against the remnants of the Alchon Huns in the areas of the Gangetic Doab and Magadha, as documented in the Aphsad inscription, while the Aulikaras repelled them in the Malwa region.[7] The Aphsad inscription of Ādityasena mentions the military successes of kings of the Later Gupta dynasty against the Maukharis, themselves past victors of the Hunas:[7]
"The son of that king (Kumaragupta) was the illustrious Dâmôdaragupta, by whom (his) enemies were slain, just like the demons by (the god) Dâmôdara. Breaking up the proudly stepping array of mighty elephants, belonging to the Maukhari, which had thrown aloft in battle the troops of the Hûnas (in order to trample them to death), he became unconscious (and expired in the fight)."
The Maukharis, rather than the Guptas, were therefore the key actors in repelling the Hunas.[9]
Administration
Kannauj, the Maukhari capital, grew in prosperity and importance and as a great cosmopolitan town. After the demise of the Maukharis, it even became the capital of Harsha. Hence, the city of Kanyakubja was largely contested by imperial powers.[10]: 20 [6][11]
The first three Maukhari kings are mentioned in the inscriptions as Maharaja, but their successors assumed more pompous titles showing the increase in power. Ishanavarman was the first Maukhari ruler to adopt the title Maharajadhiraja.[6]
The Maukhari kings were patrons of poets and writers and many literary works were composed during their reign.[6] Various seals and inscriptions are known, such as the Asirgarh seal inscription of Sharvavarman, .[14] or the Haraha inscription of Isanavarman, discovered near the village of Harara in the Barabanki district, Uttar Pradesh and dated to Vikrama Samvat 610 (ie 554 CE), which record the genealogy of the Maukharis.[15]
Contacts with the Sasanian Empire
Sasanian Empire King Khosrow I sits before the chessboard, while his vizir and the Indian envoy of Kannauj are playing chess. Shahnama, 10th century CE.[16]The Harahara inscription of Ishanavarman. The inscription, dated to Vikrama Samvat 610 (ie 554 CE), record the genealogy of the Maukharis.[17]
With the end of Hunnic power, new contacts were established between India and the Sasanian Empire. Intellectual games such as chess and backgammon demonstrated and celebrated the diplomatic relationship between Khosrow I and a "great king of India." The vizier of the Indian king invented chess as a cheerful, playful challenge to King Khosrow. It seems that the Indian ruler who sent the game of chess to Khosrow was the Maukhari King Śarvavarman of Kannauj, between the beginning of Śarvavarman’s reign in 560/565 and the end of Khosrow's reign in 579.[16][18] 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."[19] 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.[19]
Succession
The Vardhana dynasty (also called "Pushyabhuti dynasty") ultimately succeeded the Maukhari dynasty, but it had originally only been a small polity around their capital Sthaneshvara (Thanesar). According to Hans T. Bakker, their ruler Aditya-Vardhana (or Aditya-Sena) was probably a feudatory to the Maukhari ruler Sharva-varman. His successor Prabhakara-Vardhana may have also been a feudatory to the Maukhari king Avanti-Varman in his early days. Prabhakara's daughter Rajyashri married Avanti-Varman's son Graha-Varman. 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").[20]
Rulers
The known Maukhari rulers of madhya-desha include:[21]
Maukhari design on a Nalanda Clay Seal of Sharvavarman.
The Barabar Caves inscriptions attest the existence of another Maukhari branch. This branch ruled as feudatories, probably that of the Later Guptas. The known rulers of this branch include:[23]
^Reza, Mohammad Habib; Bandyopadhyay, S.; Mowla, Azizul. "Traces of Buddhist architecture in Gupta and post-Gupta Bengal: evidence from inscriptions and literature" (Document). Journal of Eurasian Studies. {{cite document}}: Unknown parameter |s2cid= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |url= ignored (help)
![Coin of King Iśanavarman of the Maukhari of Kannauj, successors of the Guptas in the Gangetic region. Circa 535-553 CE. The ruler faces to the left, whereas in Gupta coinage the ruler faces to the right. This is possibly a symbol of antagonism and rivalry, as also seen on some similar coins of Toramana.[1] of](/wiki/File:Maukharis_of_Kanauj._Isanavarman._Circa_AD_535-553.jpg)
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, Mau-kha-ri) a post-Gupta dynasty controlling vast plains of Ganga-Yamuna for over six generations from their capital at Kannauj. They earlier served as vassals of the Guptas and later of Harsha's Vardhana dynasty. The Maukharis established their independence during the mid 6th century. The dynasty ruled over much of Uttar Pradesh and Magadha. Around 606 CE, a large area of their empire was reconquered by the Later Guptas.[3] According to Hieun-Tsang, the territory may have been lost to King Shashanka of the Gauda Kingdom, who declared independence circa 600 AD.[4][5]
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Lomas Rishi cave inscription of Anantavarman
Gopika Cave Inscription of Anantavarman
Vadathika Cave Inscription of Anantavarman
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