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Satavahana Dynasty - Important Rulers of Satavahana Empire [UPSC History Notes]

The reign of the Satavahana Dynasty began in the mid-1st century BCE and came to an end in the early 3rd century CE. The area of the Satavahana Dynasty is debated where some historians argue that the Satavahanas initially established their hold over the area around Pratishthana (modern Paithan) in the western Deccan, and expanded from there into the eastern Deccan, Andhra, and the western coast. The topic is important for Ancient History preparation in the IAS Exam . Read on to know about the Satavahana empire, its rulers and coinage for UPSC preparation.

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Satavahana Dynasty [Origin & Development]

The Sunga dynasty came to an end around 73 BCE when their ruler Devabhuti was killed by Vasudeva Kanva. The Kanva dynasty then ruled over Magadha for about 45 years. Around this time, another powerful dynasty, the Satavahanas came to power in the Deccan area.

The term “Satvahana” originated from the Prakrit which means ” driven by seven” which is an implication of the Sun God’s chariot that is driven by seven horses as per Hindu mythology.

The first king of the Satavahana dynasty was Simuka . Before the emergence of the Satavahana dynasty, a brief history of the other dynasties is mentioned below:

Facts about Satavahana Dynasty

In the northern region, the Mauryas were succeeded by the Sungas and the Kanvas . However, the Satavahanas (natives) succeeded the Mauryas in Deccan and in Central India .

It is believed that after the decline of the Mauryas and before the advent of the Satavahans, there must have been numerous small political principalities that were ruling in different parts of the Deccan (for about 100 years).
Probably the Rathikas and the Bhojikas that have been mentioned in the Ashokan inscriptions gradually progressed into the Maharathis and Mahabhojas of pre-Satavahana times.
The Satavahanas are considered to be identical to the Andhras who are mentioned in the Puranas , but neither the name Andhra appears in the Satavahana inscriptions nor do the Puranas mention the Satavahanas.
According to some Puranas, the Andhras ruled for 300 years and this period is assigned to the rule of the Satavahana dynasty, with their capital at Pratishthana (modern Paithan) on the Godavari in Aurangabad district .
The Satavahana kingdom majorly comprised present-day Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Telangana . At times, their rule also included parts of Gujarat, Karnataka as well as Madhya Pradesh.
The kingdom had different capitals at different times. Two of the capitals were Amaravati and Pratishthana (Paithan).
The earliest inscriptions of the Satavahans belong to the first century BCE when they defeated the Kanvas and established their power in parts of Central India.
It is important to mention that the early Satavahana kings appeared not in Andhra but in Maharashtra, where most of their early inscriptions have been found. Gradually they extended their power over Karnataka and Andhra.
Their greatest competitors were the Shaka Kshatrapas of western India, who had established themselves in the upper Deccan and western India.
The Satavahans were Brahmanas and worshipped gods like Vasudeva Krishna.
The Satavahans kings used matronyms like Gautamiputra and Vaishishthiputra, although they were not matriarchal or matrilineal in any sense.
They assumed the title of Dakshinapatha Pati (Lord of Dakshinapatha) .
The Satavahanas are known for starting the practice of giving royal grants of land to Brahmans and Buddhist monks.
Simuka was the founder of the Satavahana Dynasty.
The Satavahanas were the first native Indian kings to have issued their own coins which had the rulers’ portraits on them. Gautamiputra Satakarni started this practice which he imbibed from the Western Satraps after vanquishing them.
The coin legends were in Prakrit . Some reverse coin legends are in Tamil, Telugu and Kannada also.
They patronised Prakrit more than Sanskrit.
Even though the rulers were Hindus and claimed Brahmanical status, they supported Buddhism also.
They were successful in defending their areas from foreign invaders and had many battles with the Sakas .

The Satavahana Dynasty map is given below:

Important Rulers of the Satavahana Dynasty

Considered to be the founder of the Satavahana dynasty and was immediately active after Ashoka’s death.
Built Jain and Buddhist temples.

Satakarni I (70- 60 BC)

Satakarni I was the 3rd king of the Satavahanas.
Satakarni I was the first Satavahana king to expand his empire by military conquests.
He conquered Kalinga after the death of Kharavela.
He also pushed back the Sungas in Pataliputra.
He also ruled over Madhya Pradesh.
After annexing the Godavari Valley, he assumed the title of ‘Lord of Dakshinapatha’.
His queen Nayanika wrote the Naneghat inscription which describes the king as Dakshinapathapati.
He performed Ashvamedha and revived Vedic Brahmanism in the Deccan.
King Hala compiled the Gatha Saptashati. Called Gaha Sattasai in Prakrit, it is a collection of poems with mostly love as the theme. Around forty of the poems are attributed to Hala himself.
Hala’s minister Gunadhya composed Brihatkatha.

Gautamiputra Satakarni of Satavahana Dynasty (106 – 130 AD or 86 – 110 AD)

He is considered the greatest king of the Satavahana dynasty.
It is believed that at one stage, the Satavahanas were dispossessed of their dominions in the upper Deccan and western India. The fortunes of the Satavahanas were restored by Gautamiputra Satkarni. He called himself the only Brahmana who defeated the Shakas and destroyed many Kshatriya rulers.
He is believed to have destroyed the Kshaharata lineage to which his adversary Nahapana belonged. More than 800 silver coins of Nahapana (found near Nasik) bear marks of being restruck by the Satavahana king. Nahapana was an important king of the Western Satraps.
His kingdom ran from Krishna in the south to Malwa and Saurashtra in the north and from Berar in the east to the Konkan in the west.
In a Nasik inscription of his mother Gautami Balashri, he is described as the destroyer of the Shakas, Pahlavas and the Yavanas (Greeks); as the uprooter of the Kshaharatas and the restorer of the glory of the Satavahanas. He is also described as Ekabrahmana (a peerless Brahmana) and Khatiya-dapa-manamada (destroyer of the pride of Kshatriyas).
He was given the titles of Rajaraja and Maharaja .
He donated land to the Buddhist monks. The Karle inscription mentions the grant of Karajika village, near Pune, Maharashtra.
In the later part of his reign, he probably lost some of the conquered Kshaharata territories to the Kardamaka line of the Shaka Kshatrapas of western India, as is mentioned in the Junagadh inscription of Rudradaman Ⅰ.
His mother was Gautami Balasri and hence his name was Gautamiputra (son of Gautami).
He was succeeded by his son Vasisthiputra Sri Pulamavi/Pulumavi or Pulamavi II. (Alternatively spelt Pulumayi.)

Vashishthiputra Pulumayi (c. 130 – 154 CE)

He was the immediate successor of Gautamiputra. The coins and inscriptions of Vashishthiputra Pulumayi are found in Andhra.
According to Junagadh inscriptions, he was married to the daughter of Rudradaman Ⅰ.
The Shaka-Kshatrapas of western India recovered some of their territories due to his engagements in the east.

Yajna Sri Satakarni (c. 165 – 194 CE)

One of the later kings of the Satavahana dynasty. He recovered north Kokan and Malwa from the Shaka rulers.
He was a lover of trade and navigation, as is evident from the motif of a ship on his coins . His coins have been found in Andhra, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.

Satavahana Dynasty Administration

The administration of the Satavahana dynasty was entirely based on the Shastras, and it had the following structure:

Rajan or the king who was the ruler
Princes or Rajas who had their names inscribed on coins
Maharathis, who had the power of granting villages and also had the privilege of maintaining marital relations with the ruling family.
Mahasenapati
Mahatalavara

The inscription of the ruler Guatamipurna Satakarni throws some light on the bureaucratic structure of administration. However, clarity on the detailed structure is still awaited by historians.

Features of Satavahana Administration

The king was represented as the upholder of dharma and he strove for the royal ideal set forth in the Dharmashastras. The Satavahana king is represented as possessing the divine qualities of ancient gods such as Rama, Bhima, Arjuna, etc.
The Satavahanas retained some of the administrative units of Ashokan times. The kingdom was divided into districts called ahara . Their officials were known as A matyas and Mahamatras (same as in Mauryan times). But unlike in Mauryan times, certain military and feudal elements are found in the administration of the Satavahanas . For instance, the Senapati was appointed provincial governor . It was probably done to keep the tribal people in the Deccan who were not completely brahmanised under strong military control.
The administration in the rural areas was placed in the hands of the gaulmika (village headman) who was also the head of a military regiment consisting of 9 chariots, 9 elephants, 25 horses and 45 foot soldiers.
The military character of the Satavahana rule is also evident from the common use of terms like kataka and skandhavara in their inscriptions. These were military camps and settlements which served as administrative centres when the king was there. Thus, coercion played an important part in the Satavahana administration.
The Satavahanas started the practice of granting tax-free villages to Brahmanas and Buddhist monks.
The Satavahana kingdom had three grades of feudatories – Raja (who had the right to strike coins), Mahabhoja and Senapati.

Economy of Satavahana Empire

Agriculture was the backbone of the economy during the rule of the Satavahana kings. They also relied on trade and production of various commodities within and outside India.

Satavahana Coins

Some important points related to Satavahan coinage are mentioned below:

The coins of the Satavahanas have been excavated from Deccan, western India, Vidarbha, Western and Eastern Ghats, etc.
Most of the coins in the Satavahana dynasty were die-struck.
Cast coins too existed in the Satavahana empire and there were multiple combinations of techniques that were used to cast coins.
There were silver, copper, lead and potin coins in the Satavahana empire.
The portrait coins were mostly in silver and some were in lead too. Dravidian language and Brahmi script were used on portrait coins.
There were punch-marked coins too that were circulated alongside the Satavahana dynasty.
The importance of maritime trade was derived from the images of ships present on the Satavahana coins.
Many Satavahana coins bore the names of ‘Satakarni’ and ‘Pulumavi.’
Satavahana coins were of different shapes – round, square, rectangular, etc.
Chaitya symbol
Chakra symbol
Conch Shell symbol
Lotus symbol
Nandipada symbol
Ship symbol
Swastik symbol
Animal motifs were found on the Satavahana coins.

Religion & Language of Satavahana Kingdom

The Satavahanas belonged to the Hindu religion and the Brahmanical caste. But, the interesting fact is their generosity towards other castes and religions which is evident from the donations made by them towards Buddhist monasteries. Many Buddhist monasteries were constructed during the rule of the Satavahana dynasty.

The official language of the Satavahanas was Prakrit, though the script was Brahmi (as was the case in the Ashokan times) . Political inscriptions also shed some light on the rare use of Sanskrit Literature.

Satavahanas – Material Culture

The material culture of the Deccan under the Satavahanas was a fusion of local elements (Deccan) and northern ingredients .

The people of the Deccan were fairly acquainted with the use of iron and agriculture. The Satavahanas probably exploited the rich mineral resources of the Deccan such as iron ores from Karimnagar and Warangal and gold from Kolar fields. They mostly issued coins of lead, which is found on the Deccan and also coins of copper and bronze .
The paddy transplantation was an art well known to the Satavahanas and the area between the Krishna and Godavari, especially at the mouth of the two rivers, formed a great rice bowl . The people of the Deccan also produced cotton. Thus a good portion of the Deccan developed a very advanced rural economy.
The people of the Deccan learnt the use of coins, burnt bricks, ring wells, etc. through its contacts with the north. There was regular use of fire-baked bricks and use of flat, perforated roof tiles which must have added to the life of the structures . The drains were covered and underground to lead wastewater into soakage pits. The Andhra in the east Deccan included 30 walled towns, besides numerous villages.

Satavahanas – Social Organizations

The Satavahanas originally seem to have been a tribe of the Deccan. They, however, were so brahmanized that they claimed to be Brahmanas. The most famous Satavahana king Gautamiputra claimed to be a Brahman and thought it his duty to uphold the four-fold varna system.
Nagarjunakonda and Amravati in Andhra Pradesh and Nasik and Junar in Maharashtra became important Buddhist sites under the Satavahanas and their successors, the Ikshvakus.
Merchants took pride in naming themselves after the towns to which they belonged.
Among the artisans, the Gandhikas (perfumers) are mentioned as donors and later the term came to be used for all kinds of shopkeepers. The title ‘Gandhi’ is derived from the ancient term Gandhika.
It was customary for their king to be named after his mother, (Gautamiputra and Vashishthiputra) which indicates that the women occupied an important position in the society .

Satavahana Architecture

In the Satavahana phase, many temples called chaityas and monasteries called viharas were cut out of the solid rock in the northwestern Deccan or Maharashtra with great precision and patience.

The Karle chaitya is the most famous in western Deccan.
The three viharas at Nasik carry inscriptions of Nahapana and Gautamiputra.
The most important stupas of this period are Amravati and Nagarjunakonda. The Amaravati stupa is full of sculptures that depict the various scenes from the life of the Buddha. The Nagarjunakonda stupa contains Buddhist monuments and also the earliest Brahmanical brick temples.

The Decline of the Satavahanas

Pulamavi IV is considered the last king of the main Satavahana line.
He ruled until 225 AD. After his death, the empire fragmented into five smaller kingdoms.

Also Read | NCERT Notes: Decline of the Mauryan Empire

Frequently Asked Questions about the Satavahana Dynasty

Who was the most powerful king of the satavahana dynasty, who was the founder of the satavahana dynasty.

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The Kushanas And The Satavahanas:

Que. how does the numismatic evidence of the period reflect the political and economic outlook of the kushanas and the satavahanas (ancient history, upsc cse-2016), introduction:.

Ans. Numismatic evidence, particularly coins, offers a unique lens to explore the political and economic landscapes of ancient Indian dynasties. This analysis focuses on the Kushanas and the Satavahanas, examining how their coins reveal not just economic transactions but also the ideological and strategic dimensions of governance during their respective reigns.

#1. Divine Portrayals and Political Legitimacy:

Kushana coins, notably those of Kanishka, often depicted the ruler in divine contexts, reinforcing the intertwining of political authority and religious symbolism. These portrayals aimed to legitimize the ruler’s power and present them as divinely endorsed leaders, fostering loyalty and obedience among the populace.

#2. Multicultural Scripts and Trade Networks:

The use of Greek, Kharoshthi, and Brahmi scripts on Kushana coins showcased the empire’s multicultural nature. Beyond linguistic diversity, this reflected economic integration and facilitated trade across diverse regions. The coins acted as linguistic bridges, promoting communication and trade within the expansive Kushana realm.

#3. Standardized Coinage and Economic Stability:

The introduction of the gold dinar under the Kushanas, notably during Kanishka’s reign, reflected a commitment to economic stability. Standardized coinage provided a reliable medium of exchange, fostering confidence in commercial transactions and contributing to overall economic prosperity within the Kushana Empire.

Satavahanas:

#1. prominent portraits and political assertion:.

Satavahana coins prominently featured royal portraits, emphasizing the centrality of royal authority. These images communicated the ruler’s political significance, projecting an assertive and confident stance to reinforce their position as the legitimate leaders of the Satavahana realm.

#2. Linguistic Diversity and Cultural Synthesis:

Satavahana coins exhibited linguistic diversity, incorporating Prakrit, Brahmi, and early Telugu scripts. This linguistic variety mirrored the cultural synthesis within the Satavahana domain, showcasing an ability to integrate diverse linguistic and cultural elements into the fabric of their political and economic administration.

#3. Maritime Symbols and Economic Strategies:

Symbols of maritime activities, such as ships and anchors, on Satavahana coins hinted at their engagement in maritime trade. This reflected an economic outlook that extended beyond land-based transactions, emphasizing the importance of coastal trade routes in the economic strategies of the Satavahanas.

Conclusion:

Numismatic evidence from the Kushana and Satavahana periods highlights their distinct political and economic outlooks. The Kushanas, exemplified by Kanishka’s divine portrayals and standardized coinage, showcased imperial power and economic stability. Conversely, the Satavahanas, with diverse linguistic symbols and maritime motifs, reflected cultural synthesis and adaptability in economic strategies.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):

#1. how did the kushana coins reflect divine authority and political legitimacy.

Ans. Kushana coins, especially under rulers like Kanishka, depicted divine imagery, showcasing a deliberate blending of political authority with religious symbolism. Examples include Kanishka’s portrayal in divine contexts, reinforcing his legitimacy by presenting him as a divinely endorsed leader.

#2. In what ways did the Kushana coins demonstrate multiculturalism and trade networks?

Ans. Kushana coins featured scripts in Greek, Kharoshthi, and Brahmi, reflecting a multicultural empire. This linguistic diversity facilitated communication and trade across diverse regions, exemplified by coins with inscriptions in various scripts, emphasizing economic integration and cross-cultural connections.

#3. How did the introduction of the gold dinar contribute to Kushana economic stability?

Ans. The Kushanas introduced the gold dinar, a standardized coin that fostered economic stability. This uniform currency instilled confidence in commercial transactions, contributing to overall economic prosperity within the Kushana Empire. Examples include the widespread use of the dinar in trade.

#4. What was the political significance conveyed by Satavahana royal portraits on coins?

Ans. Satavahana coins prominently featured royal portraits, emphasizing the political significance of the rulers. Examples include coins with assertive royal images, projecting the ruler’s authority and reinforcing their legitimacy as the leaders of the Satavahana realm.

#5. How did linguistic diversity on Satavahana coins reflect cultural synthesis?

Ans. Satavahana coins incorporated linguistic diversity with inscriptions in Prakrit, Brahmi, and early Telugu scripts. This diversity showcased a cultural synthesis within the Satavahana domain, exemplified by coins acting as linguistic bridges, fostering integration of diverse cultural elements within their political and economic administration.

#6. What role did maritime symbols play in Satavahana coins and economic strategies?

Ans. Satavahana coins featured maritime symbols like ships and anchors, indicating engagement in maritime trade. Examples include coins with these motifs, emphasizing an economic outlook extending beyond land-based transactions, highlighting the significance of coastal trade routes in their economic strategies.

#7. How did Satavahana coins assert dynastic claims and reinforce political lineage?

Ans. Satavahana coins often carried inscriptions proclaiming dynastic claims and genealogical details. Examples include coins with such inscriptions, asserting the lineage of rulers and reinforcing their right to govern, showcasing the political significance embedded in numismatic evidence.

#8. What did the cultural synthesis on Satavahana coins reveal about their political and economic adaptability?

Ans. Satavahana coins, through linguistic diversity and cultural symbols, revealed adaptability. Examples include coins showcasing a synthesis of diverse cultural elements, highlighting the Satavahanas’ ability to integrate linguistic and cultural diversity into their political and economic administration, fostering a resilient and adaptable governance structure.

Rajendra Mohwiya Sir

"www.historyoptional.in" राजेन्द्र मोहविया सर द्वारा UPSC सिविल सेवा परीक्षा की तैयारी कर रहे विद्यार्थियों के लिए एक मार्गदर्शक के रूप में शुरू की गई पहल है, जो अपनी ऐतिहासिक समझ और विश्लेषणात्मक कौशल को निखारने के लिए डिज़ाइन किए गए पाठ्यक्रमों की एक विस्तृत श्रृंखला प्रदर्शित करती है। उत्कृष्टता के प्रति हमारी प्रतिबद्धता एक बहुआयामी दृष्टिकोण में परिलक्षित होती है जिसमें मुख्य रूप से UPSC सिविल सेवा परीक्षा से संबंधित 'इतिहास' (वैकल्पिक विषय) के विषयवार नोट्स, दैनिक उत्तर लेखन, टेस्ट सीरीज़ (प्रारंभिक एवं मुख्य परीक्षा), करंट अफेयर्स (दैनिक एवं मासिक स्तर पर) तथा विगत वर्षों (2023-2013) में पूछे गए प्रश्नपत्रों के व्याख्या सहित उत्तर को शामिल किया गया है।

Satavahanas-Sakas-Kushanas Dynasty, Rulers, Rise and Decline

The Satavahanas, Sakas, and Kushanas were dynasties that ruled over various parts of ancient India. Let us know about Satavahanas-Sakas-Kushanas Dynasty, Rulers, Rise and Decline.

Table of Contents

The Satavahanas, Sakas, and Kushanas were three important dynasties that ruled over various parts of ancient India. These dynasties played a significant role in shaping the political, social, and cultural landscape of the Indian subcontinent during their respective reigns.

The Satavahanas: Overview

The Satavahanas were a South Indian dynasty that ruled from the 1st century BCE to the 3rd century CE. They were known for their administrative skills and were responsible for the establishment of a stable and prosperous kingdom in the Deccan region. The Satavahanas were patrons of the arts and encouraged the development of literature, music, and dance.

The most prominent ruler of the Satavahanas was Gautamiputra Satakarni, who is credited with expanding the empire to include parts of present-day Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. He was also responsible for defeating the Shaka and Yavana invaders who had threatened the stability of the empire.

The Sakas: Overview

The Sakas were a Central Asian tribe that invaded India in the 2nd century BCE. They established a powerful kingdom in the northwestern part of the country, which is now modern-day Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Sakas were known for their military prowess and were responsible for introducing new weapons and techniques of warfare to the Indian subcontinent.

The most famous Saka ruler was Maues, who established his capital in Taxila and expanded the kingdom to include parts of present-day Pakistan and Afghanistan. However, the most significant contribution of the Sakas was the introduction of the Indo-Greek style of art and architecture, which had a lasting impact on Indian culture.

The Kushanas: Overview

The Kushanas were a Central Asian tribe that established a vast empire in northern India in the 1st century CE. They were known for their administrative skills and were responsible for the development of trade and commerce in the region. The Kushanas were also patrons of the arts and encouraged the development of literature, music, and sculpture.

The most famous Kushana ruler was Kanishka, who is credited with establishing a great empire that extended from Central Asia to the Gangetic plain. He was also responsible for promoting Buddhism and was a patron of Buddhist art and architecture. The Kushanas are known for their contribution to the development of the Gandhara school of art, which combined Indian and Hellenistic styles.

Satavahanas, Sakas, Kushanas in Detail

The Satavahanas, Sakas, and Kushanas were three dynasties that played a significant role in the history of ancient India. They were known for their administrative skills, military prowess, and patronage of the arts. Their contributions to the development of Indian culture and civilization are still felt today, and their legacy continues to inspire future generations.

Satavahana Dynasty

The Satavahanas were an ancient Indian dynasty that ruled over parts of the Indian subcontinent from the 1st century BCE to the 3rd century CE. They were known for their military prowess, administrative skills, and patronage of art and culture. The Satavahanas are considered to be one of the most significant dynasties in Indian history, and their contributions to Indian culture and society are still felt today.

Satavahana Dynasty: Origins and Early History

The origins of the Satavahanas are shrouded in mystery, and much of what is known about them is based on inscriptions and coins. According to some scholars, they were a tribe of people who lived in the Deccan region of India and rose to prominence during the 1st century BCE. Others believe that they were a Brahmin family that migrated to the Deccan region from northern India.

The earliest known ruler of the Satavahana dynasty was Simuka, who is believed to have ascended to the throne around 230 BCE. Simuka established his capital in Pratisthan, which is believed to be present-day Paithan in Maharashtra. Over the next few centuries, the Satavahanas expanded their territory through a combination of military conquest and strategic alliances with neighboring kingdoms.

Satavahana Dynasty Founder

The Satavahana dynasty was founded by Simuka, who ruled from around 230 BCE to 207 BCE. He is considered to be the first king of the Satavahana dynasty, which was one of the earliest South Indian dynasties. The Satavahanas were known for their patronage of Buddhism and the construction of several Buddhist stupas and other monuments.

They also played an important role in the trade routes between North and South India, and their rule saw the development of a number of important towns and cities in the region.

Satavahana Dynasty Rulers

The Satavahana dynasty ruled a large part of present-day India from around 230 BCE to 220 CE. Some of the important rulers of the Satavahana dynasty are:

1. Satavahana Dynasty Rulers: Simuka (230-207 BCE):

He is considered as the founder of the Satavahana dynasty and established his capital at Pratishthana (present-day Paithan in Maharashtra).

2. Satavahana Dynasty Rulers: Satakarni I (c. 180-160 BCE)

He was one of the most powerful rulers of the Satavahana dynasty and extended his empire to cover a large part of present-day India.

3. Satavahana Dynasty Rulers: Gautamiputra Satakarni (c. 106-130 CE)

He was a powerful ruler who is known for his military conquests and patronage of Buddhism.

4. Satavahana Dynasty Rulers: Vasishthiputra Pulumavi (c. 130-159 CE)

He was a patron of the arts and is credited with the construction of several important monuments.

5. Satavahana Dynasty Rulers: Yajna Sri Satakarni (c. 167-196 CE)

He was a powerful ruler who expanded the Satavahana empire and patronized Buddhism.

6. Satavahana Dynasty Rulers: Vijaya (c. 207-223 CE)

He was the last ruler of the Satavahana dynasty, and his reign marked the end of the dynasty’s dominance in Indian politics.

Satavahana Dynasty: Military Prowess

The Satavahanas were known for their military prowess and their ability to conquer and control vast territories. They had a formidable army that was equipped with state-of-the-art weapons and armor, and they employed innovative tactics to defeat their enemies. The Satavahanas also had a well-organized administrative system that helped them maintain control over their territories.

One of the most significant military achievements of the Satavahanas was their defeat of the Shakas, a Central Asian tribe that had invaded northwestern India in the 1st century BCE. The Satavahanas, under the leadership of Gautamiputra Satakarni, defeated the Shakas in a series of battles and forced them to flee back to Central Asia.

Satavahana Dynasty: Administrative System

The Satavahanas had a well-organized administrative system that helped them maintain control over their vast territories. They divided their empire into provinces, which were governed by governors appointed by the king. The governors were responsible for maintaining law and order, collecting taxes, and ensuring the smooth functioning of the administrative machinery.

The Satavahanas also had a complex system of taxation, which included taxes on agriculture, trade, and professions. They used the revenue generated from these taxes to fund their military campaigns and patronage of art and culture.

Satavahana Dynasty: Patronage of Art and Culture

The Satavahanas were great patrons of art and culture, and they supported a thriving artistic and literary culture in their empire. They were particularly known for their patronage of Buddhist art and architecture, and many of the famous Buddhist caves and stupas in India were built during the Satavahana period.

The Satavahanas also promoted the development of Sanskrit literature and supported the work of famous poets and scholars such as Vimalakirti, Harisena, and Sarvasena. They were also known for their patronage of the performing arts, and their court was renowned for its music, dance, and drama.

Decline of Satavahana Dynasty

The Satavahana dynasty was an ancient Indian dynasty that ruled in the Deccan region from around 230 BCE to 220 CE.
The decline of the Satavahana dynasty is believed to have been caused by a combination of internal factors such as weak successors, succession struggles, and a decline in economic and administrative efficiency, as well as external factors such as invasions and attacks from foreign powers.
One of the major internal factors that contributed to the decline of the Satavahanas was the succession struggles and weak successors.
After the death of Gautamiputra Satakarni, the last great ruler of the Satavahanas, the empire was divided among his sons, which led to internal conflicts and weakened the central authority of the dynasty.
This resulted in regional governors becoming more powerful and eventually breaking away to form their own independent states.
Another factor that contributed to the decline of the Satavahanas was a decline in economic and administrative efficiency.
The Satavahanas were known for their efficient administration, trade and commerce, and patronage of arts and culture.
However, towards the end of the dynasty, the administration became weak, and the economy suffered due to a decline in trade and commerce.
External factors such as invasions and attacks from foreign powers also contributed to the decline of the Satavahanas.
The Sakas, Yavanas, and Pahlavas, who had been living in the northwest of India, began to infiltrate into the Deccan region during the reign of Satavahana king Gautamiputra Satakarni.
These foreign powers threatened the security and stability of the Satavahana empire, and their constant attacks weakened the dynasty further.

Overall, a combination of internal and external factors contributed to the decline of the Satavahana dynasty. The weakening of the central authority, succession struggles, a decline in economic and administrative efficiency, and attacks from foreign powers all played a role in the eventual downfall of this once-great empire.

Satavahana Dynasty: Legacy

The Satavahanas made significant contributions to Indian culture and society, and their legacy can still be felt today. They played an important role in the spread of Buddhism in India and helped establish it as a major religion in the country. They also helped promote the development of Sanskrit literature and supported the work of famous poets and scholars.

Saka Dynasty

The Saka Dynasty is one of the most significant dynasties of ancient India. It was established in the 1st century BCE by the nomadic Saka tribes, who originated from Central Asia. The dynasty ruled over a vast area that encompassed modern-day Pakistan, Afghanistan, and parts of northwestern India. The Saka Dynasty played a crucial role in shaping the history and culture of ancient India.

Origins of the Saka Dynasty

The Saka tribes were originally from the region of present-day Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. They were a nomadic people who had migrated to the Indian subcontinent in search of new pastures for their herds of cattle. They settled in the northwestern regions of the subcontinent, including modern-day Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The Saka tribes were fierce warriors and skilled horse riders. They established their rule over the regions they had settled in and gradually assimilated with the local population. Over time, they formed a distinct culture and identity that came to be known as the Saka culture.

Saka Dynasty Founder

The Saka dynasty is believed to have been founded by King Kharavela in the 1st century BCE. Kharavela was a powerful king of Kalinga (present-day Odisha, India) who ruled from his capital city of Kalinganagara (modern-day Sisupalgarh). He is known for his military conquests and patronage of the arts and culture. The Saka dynasty was one of the important dynasties in ancient India, and it ruled over parts of present-day India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.

Saka Dynasty Rulers

The Saka dynasty was a dynasty of Indo-Scythian rulers who ruled parts of present-day Pakistan, Afghanistan, and northwestern India from around 200 BCE to 400 CE. The Saka dynasty had several rulers, including:

1. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Maues (c. 90 BCE)

He was the first known ruler of the Saka dynasty who consolidated the Indo-Scythian territories in northwest India.

2. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Vonones (c. 75-65 BCE)

He was a successor of Maues and expanded the Saka rule further eastwards into northern India.

3. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Azes I (c. 58-12 BCE)

He was one of the most important Saka rulers who consolidated the Saka rule in northern India and issued several coins with his name on it.

4. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Azilises (c. 12 BCE-10 CE)

He was the son of Azes I and succeeded him on the throne.

5. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Zeionises (c. 10-35 CE)

He was a successor of Azilises and is known for his coins and inscriptions found in the Punjab region.

6. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Kharahostes (c. 10-20 CE)

He was a contemporary of Zeionises and ruled parts of the present-day Pakistan and Afghanistan.

7. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Kanishka (c. 127-150 CE)

He was the most famous ruler of the Saka dynasty and one of the greatest kings of ancient India. He expanded the Saka rule further into northern India and is known for his patronage of Buddhism.

8. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Vasudeva I (c. 192-225 CE)

He was a successor of Kanishka and ruled over a smaller territory than his predecessor.

Rise of the Saka Dynasty

The Saka Dynasty was established by Maues, a Saka king who had conquered the region of Gandhara in present-day Pakistan.
Maues was succeeded by his son, Azes I, who further expanded the Saka kingdom.
Azes I was a powerful ruler who is credited with establishing the Saka era in 78 CE.
The Saka Dynasty reached its zenith under the rule of Kanishka I, who was one of the greatest rulers of ancient India.
Kanishka I was a patron of the arts and sciences and was instrumental in promoting Buddhism in the region.
He is credited with organizing the Fourth Buddhist Council, which was held in Kashmir in the 1st century CE.

Kanishka I was also a great warrior and expanded the Saka kingdom to its greatest extent. He conquered large parts of present-day Pakistan, Afghanistan, and northwestern India. His rule marked the peak of the Saka Dynasty and the height of its power and influence.

Decline of Saka Dynasty

The decline of the Saka dynasty is a complex topic, as several branches of the Saka dynasty ruled different regions of Central Asia and India at different times.
However, one of the most significant factors contributing to the decline of the Saka dynasty was the invasion of the White Huns, also known as the Hephthalites.
The White Huns were a nomadic people from Central Asia who invaded the region in the 5th century AD.
They were fierce warriors who had a reputation for brutality and destruction.
They swept through Central Asia and India, conquering and destroying many kingdoms, including the Saka dynasty.
The Saka rulers who were able to survive the White Hun invasion were weakened by the conflict, and the power of the dynasty declined.
Other factors that contributed to the decline of the Saka dynasty included internal conflicts, economic decline, and the rise of other regional powers.

Eventually, the Saka dynasty was absorbed into other regional powers, such as the Gupta Empire in India. The legacy of the Saka dynasty, however, continued to live on in the cultural and artistic achievements of the region, such as the famous Buddhist cave temples of Ajanta and Ellora.

Legacy of the Saka Dynasty

The Saka Dynasty left a lasting legacy on the history and culture of ancient India.
Their rule led to the assimilation of the Saka culture with the local cultures of the subcontinent, which resulted in the emergence of a unique Indo-Saka culture.
The Saka Dynasty was also instrumental in the spread of Buddhism in the region.
The rulers of the dynasty were great patrons of Buddhism and promoted its teachings and philosophy.
This led to the establishment of numerous Buddhist monasteries and stupas across the Saka kingdom.
The Saka era, which was established by Azes I in 78 CE, is still used as the official calendar in many parts of India and Nepal.
The Saka era is also recognized by the Indian government as the official calendar for official purposes.

The Saka Dynasty played a crucial role in shaping the history and culture of ancient India. Their rule led to the emergence of a unique Indo-Saka culture, and they were instrumental in the spread of Buddhism in the region. The legacy of the Saka Dynasty is still felt in many parts of India and Nepal, and their contributions to Indian history and culture cannot be overstated.

Kushan Dynasty

The Kushan Dynasty was an ancient empire that ruled a large part of Central Asia, northern India, and parts of China from the 1st to the 3rd century CE. The Kushans were a nomadic people of Central Asia who established a vast empire that played a significant role in the spread of Buddhism and the development of the Silk Road.

Origins of the Kushan Dynasty

The origins of the Kushan Dynasty can be traced back to the Yuezhi people, a nomadic tribe that lived in the region of present-day western China and Central Asia. The Yuezhi were defeated by the Xiongnu Empire in the 2nd century BCE and were forced to migrate to the west. The Yuezhi migrated to the region that is now Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, where they established a powerful confederation of tribes that became known as the Kushans.

Kushan Dynasty Founder

The Kushan Empire was founded by Kujula Kadphises, who was the first known ruler of the Kushan dynasty. Kujula Kadphises ruled from around 30 CE to 80 CE and was known for his military conquests and his efforts to expand the Kushan Empire. He was succeeded by his son, Vima Takto, who continued to expand the empire and is known for his patronage of Buddhism. The Kushan Empire was one of the most significant empires of ancient India and played an important role in the spread of Buddhism and trade along the Silk Road.

Kushan Dynasty Rulers

The Kushan Empire was a large ancient empire that existed from the 1st to the 4th century AD in parts of present-day India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Central Asia. The Kushan rulers, also known as Kushanshahs, were a series of emperors who ruled the Kushan Empire. Here are some of the most significant Kushan dynasty rulers:

1. Kushan Dynasty Rulers: Kujula Kadphises (30 CE to 80 CE)

He was the founder of the Kushan Empire and ruled from around 30 CE to 80 CE.

2. Kushan Dynasty Rulers: Vima Kadphises (80 CE to 100 CE)

He was the son of Kujula Kadphises and ruled from around 80 CE to 100 CE. He expanded the empire into the regions of Gandhara and the Punjab.

3. Kushan Dynasty Rulers: Kanishka (127 CE to 150 CE)

He was one of the most famous and powerful Kushan rulers, who ruled from around 127 CE to 150 CE. He was known for his support of Buddhism and is credited with convening the Fourth Buddhist Council.

4. Kushan Dynasty Rulers: Huvishka (150 CE to 180 CE)

He was the successor of Kanishka and ruled from around 150 CE to 180 CE. He continued his predecessor’s support for Buddhism and sponsored many Buddhist projects.

5. Kushan Dynasty Rulers: Vasudeva I (191 CE to 230 CE)

He was the last significant Kushan ruler and ruled from around 191 CE to 230 CE. He faced many challenges, including invasions by the Sassanid Empire, which weakened the Kushan Empire.

Kushan Dynasty: Expansion of the Kushan Empire

The Kushans established their capital at Peshawar, in present-day Pakistan, and began to expand their territory.
They conquered the regions of Bactria, Sogdiana, and Gandhara, which encompassed present-day Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, and parts of Pakistan.
The Kushans also expanded into northern India, where they established their rule in the regions of Punjab, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh.
The Kushan Empire was a cosmopolitan society that attracted traders and scholars from all over the world.
The Kushans played a significant role in the development of the Silk Road, which was a network of trade routes that connected China to the Mediterranean.
The Kushans established a strong trading relationship with the Chinese Han Dynasty, which allowed them to import Chinese goods such as silk and porcelain.

The Kushan Empire was also a center of Buddhist culture. The Kushan emperor Kanishka was a patron of Buddhism and sponsored the construction of several Buddhist monasteries and stupas, including the famous Gandhara school of art. The Kushan Empire played a significant role in the spread of Buddhism to China and other parts of Asia.

Decline of the Kushan Dynasty

The Kushan Empire, which existed from the 1st to the 3rd century CE, experienced a gradual decline over several decades, which eventually led to its collapse. Some of the major factors that contributed to the decline of the Kushan Dynasty are:

Internal Conflicts: The Kushan Empire was plagued by internal conflicts and power struggles, which weakened the central authority and led to fragmentation of the empire.
Economic Instability: The Kushan Empire heavily relied on trade, and its decline in trade relations with Rome and China caused economic instability and weakened the empire’s financial resources.
External Threats: The rise of the Sassanid Empire in Persia and the Gupta Empire in India, both of which were expanding their territories, posed a serious threat to the Kushan Dynasty.
Invasion by the Huns: The Huns, a nomadic tribe from Central Asia, invaded the Kushan Empire in the 4th century CE and destabilized the region, which led to the eventual collapse of the Kushan Dynasty.

These factors, along with others, contributed to the decline and eventual collapse of the Kushan Dynasty, and the region fell under the control of other powers such as the Sassanids and the Gupta Empire.

Kushan Dynasty: Legacy

The Kushan Dynasty was a powerful empire that played a significant role in the development of Central Asia, northern India, and the Silk Road. The Kushans were a cosmopolitan society that attracted traders and scholars from all over the world, and their patronage of Buddhism contributed to the spread of the religion throughout Asia. The Kushan Empire eventually declined due to internal conflicts and external pressures, but its legacy lived on in the region for centuries to come.

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Who were the Satavahanas, and when did they rule?

The Satavahanas were a dynasty that ruled parts of present-day India from around 230 BCE to 220 CE. They were primarily centered in the Deccan region and are known for their contributions to art, literature, and architecture. The Satavahanas were also known for their patronage of Buddhism.

Who were the Sakas, and when did they rule in India?

The Sakas were a group of Central Asian nomads who migrated to India around 200 BCE. They established a powerful empire in the northwest region of India and ruled for nearly 400 years. The Sakas were known for their military prowess and their patronage of Buddhism.

Who were the Kushanas, and when did they rule in India?

The Kushanas were a Central Asian dynasty that ruled parts of present-day India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan from the 1st century CE to the 3rd century CE. They were known for their military conquests and their patronage of art, culture, and religion. The Kushanas were instrumental in spreading Buddhism to China and other parts of Asia.

Who were the Satavahanas?

The Satavahanas were a dynasty that ruled over parts of present-day India from around 230 BCE to 220 CE. They were known for their patronage of Buddhism and their military conquests.

Where did the Satavahanas originate?

The origin of the Satavahanas is somewhat unclear, but they are believed to have originated in the Deccan region of present-day India. The exact location of their capital city is also a matter of debate among historians.

What were some of the Satavahana's achievements?

The Satavahanas were known for their military conquests, which allowed them to expand their territory and establish their dominance over neighboring kingdoms. They were also known for their patronage of Buddhism, which helped to spread the religion throughout their kingdom.

What is the Saka Dynasty?

The Saka Dynasty was a royal lineage of the Indo-Scythian people who ruled in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent from the 1st century BCE to the 4th century CE.

Who founded the Saka Dynasty?

The Saka Dynasty was founded by Maues or Moga, who was a Central Asian warrior and is believed to have established his rule in the northwest region of India in the 1st century BCE.

What were the achievements of the Saka Dynasty?

The Saka Dynasty is known for its contributions in the fields of art, culture, and architecture. The Saka rulers were patrons of Buddhism and several Buddhist monasteries and stupas were built during their reign. They also introduced several new coins with various designs and inscriptions.

What was the Kushan dynasty?

The Kushan dynasty was a powerful empire that ruled over large parts of Central Asia and northern India from the 1st to the 3rd century CE. The Kushans were known for their cultural and religious diversity, as well as their military might and commercial wealth.

Who were the Kushans?

The Kushans were a Central Asian people of mixed ancestry, with roots in both the nomadic Scythian tribes and the settled Bactrian civilizations of the region. They established their rule in northern India and Central Asia during the 1st century CE, and their empire lasted for about 200 years.

What were the achievements of the Kushan dynasty?

The Kushan dynasty was known for its cultural and artistic achievements, particularly in the fields of sculpture, architecture, and coinage. They were also great patrons of Buddhism, and their empire saw the spread of Buddhism to new regions, including China. The Kushans were also known for their trade and commerce, as they controlled important trade routes linking China, India, and the Roman Empire.

Who were the famous rulers of the Kushan dynasty?

The most famous ruler of the Kushan dynasty was Kanishka the Great, who ruled from about 127 to 150 CE. Kanishka is known for his military campaigns, his patronage of Buddhism, and his support of the arts and sciences. Other notable rulers of the Kushan dynasty include Vima Kadphises, Huvishka, and Vasudeva I.

What led to the decline of the Kushan dynasty?

There were several factors that contributed to the decline of the Kushan dynasty, including political instability, economic pressures, and invasions by foreign tribes. The rise of the Gupta Empire in India in the 4th century CE also weakened the Kushan hold on the region, and by the 5th century CE, the Kushan empire had disintegrated into a number of smaller states.

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Post Mauryan Polities: The Kushanas and the Satavahanas

Sanjay Sharma

The Kushanas

The era of Kushanas, has remained relatively neglected in terms of its political importance in comparison to the other similar epochs. The imperial Kushanas established their empire in the vast areas of Asia transcending language and racial barriers. This was an age when different ethics and cultures came in contact and influenced each other. The sources of the history of Kushanas are primarily the Chinese chronicles. Prominent among them are the Ch’ien Han-Shu and the Hon Han-Shu. We begin our analysis of the political history of the Kushanas with the latest discoveries which have given new dimensions to it.

Kushana History in the Light of New Discoveries

A number of important discoveries in the last fifty years or so have given a new look to the history of the Kushana empire. One of the most prominent discovery has been the identification of the language used in most of the coins of Kaniska I and his successors. The finding of an inscription at Surkh-Kotal (Afghanistan) and few other evidences have helped the scholars to establish that the language normally used was a ‘middle Iranian’, written in Greek script. Henning called this language, Bactrian. Most of the coin legends and inscriptions under the Kushanas have been written in this language and this shows that Bactrian was the most important language of the empire.

Apart from this, there have been some inscriptions written in Kharoshti and Brahmi, which have been discovered recently. Important among them are the Kamra inscription of Vasishka of the year 20 (of the Kanishka era of c. 78 AD) and the Mathura inscription of Vasudeva II of the year 170 (of the same era). Moreover, a number of myths have now been broken, discoveries in future will break many more. One such example is that till recently Kanishka I was believed to be of a separate group from Kujula or Vima Kadphises but now it has been shown that the former was a lineal descendent of Kujula and perhaps an immediate successor of Vima Kadphises.

The Early History of Kushanas

The founders of the Kushana empire were the Hsi-hou (Yuvaga or leaders) of Kuei-Shuang (Kushana), perhaps a clan which was a part of Ta Yueh-chin or the Great Hueh-chin people. On the testimony of Chang Chien, it becomes clear that Ta Yueh-chin controlled some areas north of Oxus and also the region of Ta-hsia to the south of the river. Ta-hsia was initially equated with Bactria , but after considering the statement of Strabo in which he speaks of the conquest of Bactria by five nomadic tribes, more dimensions were touched upon for the identification of Ta-hsia. It is generally believed now that the Tokharoi, mentioned by Strabo as one of the tribes in the conquest, were either same as or affiliated with Ta Yueh-chin, and that Ta-hsia included areas of eastern Bactria-Wakhan, Chitral, Kafiristan, Badakshan etc. It was this area of eastern Bactria which was attacked by Ta Yueh-chin, the western Bactria being subjugated by the rest of the four Shaka nomadic tribes. This conquest of Bactria must have been completed by 130/129 BC.

Both the prominent Chinese chronicles, the Ch’ien Han-Shu and the Hon Han-Shu mention the Ta-hsia was divided among five Hsi-hou (Yuvaga or leaders) of Ta-Yueh-chin. One of these Hsi-hou was of Kuei- Shuang (Kushana). All these Yuvagas or leaders were dependent on a central authority which based somewhere to the north of the Oxus. The first known Kushana ruler was Miaos (Eraos), who was independent. He struck coins not just in the area south of the Oxus but also to the north of the river, which makes it clear that he was responsible for liquidating the powers of central authority. The other four Hsi-hou of Ta-hsia were defeated and subjugated by Kujula Kadphises . In any case it becomes clear that Miaos extended the Kushana kingdom to the north of the Oxus.

Kujula and Vima Kadphises

Kujula Kadphises (known to Chinese chronicles as Chiu-chiu-chueh) succeeded Miaos, either immediately or sometime later. The Hon Han-Shu speaks of his conquests up to the area of Ta-hsia, P’u- ta (area around Bactria), Kao-Fu ( Kabul ) and Chi-pin (north western region of the Indian subcontinent up to Kashmir valley). He must have also retained his dominions north of Oxus which were captured by Miaos. Kujula’s coins (of different varieties) have been found apart from Ta-hsia, in Paropanisadae, Gandhara (including Pushkalavati), Taxila and even in areas east of Jhelum. Kujula captured the Kabul area from Arsacids (the imperial Parthians), and Chi-pin from the Indo Parthians. The Hon Han-Shu further says that Kujula died at the ripened age of more than eighty, and he was succeeded by his son Vima Kadphises (known in Chinese chronicles as Yen-Kao-Chen). In one Kharoshti inscription he has been addressed as Sadakshana. There are epigraphic data to prove that he was ruling, either jointly with his father or independently, in 17 AD (Khatalese inscription of the year 187 of perhaps the era of 170 BC). Vima, who is known to be a valiant warrior snatched the Kandahar area up to Mathura and also Shen-tu from the Indo-Parthains. Shen-tu is identified with the ‘Lower Indus Country’.

It was for long believed that the term Kadphises was a surname of the father and the son, but recent researches have shown that it was rather a title which was perhaps derived from the old Iranian term kata-pisa meaning ‘of honoured form.’ So the absence of this title in the name of Kanishka does not necessarily mean that he belonged to an altogether different line. The recently discovered Kamra inscription has been very useful to find out a relation between the two. The Kamra inscription of Vasishka of the year 20 (of the Kanishka’s era of c. 78 AD) relates him to the branch of the great king Kala Kabisa Sachadhamathita, who according to B.N. Mukherjee has been identified with Kujula Kadphises. Moreover in the Mat (Mathura) inscription, reference to erection of a temple and a statue of Vima has been made and in another inscription the same temple has been attributed to the grandfather of Huvishka . This shows that Vima Kadphises was the grandfather of Huvishka. There is hardly any evidence to show that there was any interregnum between the reigns of Vima and Kanishka I. If 78 AD, is considered as the start of Kanishka I’s reign than Vima must have reigned up to that year.

Vima Kadphises was succeeded on the Kushana throne by Kanishka I. He is by and large considered as the greatest monarch of Kushana family. The theory of his usurpation of the throne is now to be rejected in the light of new evidences mentioned earlier. At the very outset we must take into consideration, the fact that there were two Kanishka’s in the Kushana genealogy. The Kamra inscription of Vasishka, of the year 20 (of the Kanishka era of c. 78 AD) mentions of digging of a well on the occasion of the birth of Kanishka. This Kanishka seems to be different from the Kanishka who started the era of c. 78 AD The new born Kanishka is identified as the son of Vasishka.

The Extent of Kushana Empire Under Kanishka To authenticate the extent of Kanishka I’s empire has been a problem that has engrossed the scholars in recent times. It is certain though that Kanishka had under his control the area of North West Frontier Province, Punjab and Sind. The Rajatarangini testifies the rule of Kanishka, Vasishka and Huvishka over Kashmir and through epigraphs bearing his name in the Mathura region, the inclusion of this area in Kanishka’s empire has been confirmed. These confirmations show that he kept the Indian possession of Kujula and Vima under his rule as well. There are many more sources which indicate a further extension of his empire in India . Chinese sources have suggested his rule over Saketa (Fyzabad in UP) and Pataliputra. Testimony of inscriptions also show his control over Benaras, Kosam and Saheth-Maheth area. The Sanchi inscription of king Vakushana, who may be identified with Vasishka-Kushana, of the year 22 (of the Kanishka era) shows that eastern Malwa was also under his possession. Vasishka at this time must have been a co-ruler of Kanishka. One Chinese source (Yu Yang Tsa Tsu of year c. 860 AD) also refers to Kanishka’s successful campaign against the Satavahanas. The Satavahana king at this time seems to be Gautamiputra Satakarni . The Andhau inscription of Chastana shows that he was a contemporary of Kanishka I and as he used the title kshatrapa in the initial part of his rule, there is a possibility that he was a subordinate ruler, most probably of Kanishka.

Kanishka’s Relations with Contemporary Foreign Powers

New trends in the history of the Kushanas throw a fresh light on the relations of Kanishka with other contemporary foreign powers. A Chinese source tells us that the king of An-hsi (the Arsacid king who is not yet conclusively identified) attacked Chi-ni-cha (Kanishka) but was defeated badly by the latter. Another Chinese source tells about Kanishka’s expeditions beyond Pamirs. The source further says that the rulers of the frontier tribes in the area west of Yellow river (in China) were afraid of him.

One of the most prominent incident associated with Kanishka is that in c. 86 or 87 AD, he sent presents to the court of Han empire of China and asked for the hand of a Han Princess in marriage. The demand or request, whatever it was, was refused and so his relation with the Han emperor became inimical. In 90 AD, he attacked China with a huge army but it was repulsed by Pan-chao, the great Han general. In any case, it is clear that Kanishka ruled over a vast empire. The Naqsh-i-Rustam record of Sassanian king Shapur I indicates that even in the fag end, the Kushana empire stretched in the north up to Kashgarh, Sogdiana, and area around Tashkent. In the west it included the whole of Afghanistan except Seistan, in the east it included the Xingjiang province of China and also a territory in central Asia to the north of Oxus river.

Kanishka’s Date of Accession

Though there have been mutually divergent views among scholars about the actual date of accession of Kanishka but the generally accepted date is 78 AD. He ruled for 23 years i.e., from the year 1 to 23 of the Kanishka’s era of 78 AD. This era was given the name of Shaka era in a later age primarily because it was made popular by Shaka-Pahalava Satrapal rulers of western India and Deccan.

Kanishka : An Estimate

As we noted earlier, Kanishka was one of the most powerful monarchs and a towering personality of ancient India. His contribution to religion and art is immense. He was probably the first king in early India who incorporated north western India to his empire which extended up to central Asia. Hence the people of north-western part of Indian subcontinent got a unique exposure. Various diverse cultures started to intermingle. He gave protection to all religious communities like the Buddhists, Shaiva, Jains etc. The Bactrian, Gandhara and Mathura Schools of art flourished under him. He was associated with some prominent personalities of his age like Charak and Ashvaghosha. The fourth Buddhist council was also held under his patronage at Kundalavana (modern Harwan near Srinagar). In this council the Vibhashashastras were compiled. He established Kanishka vihara at Shah-ji-ki-dheri near Peshawar in Pakistan . This monastery was known world over for art and religion. The importance of Kanishka in encouraging trade and commerce cannot be ignored, Kushanas seem to have struck the largest number of gold coins.

The Kushana Empire After Kanishka

Kanishka was succeeded by Vasishka as the Kushana ruler. His rule has been mentioned from year 20 to 28 of the Kanishka era. But as Kanishka ruled up to year 23 of his own era, it seems that Vasishka was a co-ruler of Kanishka from year 20 to year 23. He in turn was succeeded by Huvishka who ruled from year 25 or 26 to year 60 of the Kanishka era, so he must have been a co-ruler of Vasishka from the year 25 or 26 to the year 28. They kept most of Kanishka’s possessions intact but in the east their rule must have been confined up to Mathura. According to the Hon Han-Shu, their empire stretched up to Sin Kiang province of China and in north west, it extended up to Merv in Turkmenistan. Vasishka, according to the Rajatarangini, was the founder of the town of Jushkapur, modern Zukur, to the north west of Srinagar.

Vasudeva I was the Kushana ruler who ruled from the year 64 to year 90 of the Kanishka era. The decline of Kushana empire started from his reign. It seems that in the early part of his reign, mahakshatrapa Rudradaman became an independent ruler of lower Sind and Suvira (areas of Gujarat ). This must have happened around 150 AD, which is an authentic date of Rudradaman’s Junagadh inscription. This was a shattering blow to the Kushana power. But apart from this loss the other dominions seem to have remained intact.

There are two more recorded rulers after Vasudeva I , Kanishka III and Vasudeva II. The latter was the last Kushana emperor. According to Chinese sources he must have been reigning around 230 AD. The Kushanas up to the area of Peshawar in the east were supplanted by the Sassanian king by 262 AD. They were succeeded by the Naga kings in the area of Mathura and some neighbouring areas.

Elements of Kushana Polity and Administration

The two major forces which moulded the Kushana polity at least in their Indian possessions were the boom in trading activities which perhaps lured the Kushanas to annex the territories of north western India and the second was the problem to administer this alien territory. The Kushana administration was not as centralised as was the Mauryas, as not many officials are mentioned in their inscriptions and coins.

One interesting feature of Kushanas has been a consistent use of grandiloquent titles by the rulers. This feature is evinced more from Kanishka onward as Kujula Kadphises, the founder of the Kushana empire in India, has been described with a title Yuvaga, leader or a small chief but as their power grew, the titles became heavier.

Interestingly Ashoka ruled a vast territory but bore a title of raja - comparatively much simpler than the titles used by the Kushanas– maharaja and rajatiraja. Prof. R.S. Sharma says “These Kushana titles perhaps betray a tendency towards tributary arrangements rather than the real exaltation of royal authority.” These titles must have been used under the compulsion of a feudatory or tribute paying organizational structure which comprised of tributary states or chiefs, who used titles of kings or chiefs but at the same time showed their subordination to the central authority. This feudatory character of Kushana polity can be shown through some other titles like shahi which was used by them. Vima Kadphises used the title mahishvara meaning, the great lord. Kanishka used the title kaisar perhaps to challenge the Roman authority but it seems nothing more than a superficial imitation.

Nothing much is known about the administrative hierarchy of Kushanas. Perhaps the empire was divided into provinces, each ruled by a mahakshatrapa, assisted by a kshatrapa but how many provinces were there in the empire, is not known conclusively.

The details of the military organization are also not laid down in the records. The use of the term dandanayaka suggests that he was an important military officer. Sources tell that horsemen were bound under law to wear trousers while riding. The Mathura statue of Kanishka reflects the same. The strength and salaries of Kushana army are not known. According to Prof. R.S. Sharma, raja, maharaja, kshatrapa and mahakshatrapa were civilian authorities while dandanayaka and mahadandanayaka were military and sometimes semi-military in nature. (semi-military duties of dandanayaka were more in vogue in newly conquered territories where the civil administration was to be handled by military officers).

Let’s now move on to the territorial units of administration. Vishaya, which was used under Guptas to signify a territorial unit, has also been corroborated by a Mahayanist text for the Kushanas. It refers to a devaputra ruling in a vishaya. Nothing is known about the city or urban administration under the Kushanas except for references to nigamas and shrenis.

Village was undoubtedly the lowest administrative unit, with gramika as its head. The functions of the gramika under the Kushanas were quite different from the gramabhojaka of the pre-Mauryan period and gramika of the Mauryan age. Our major source to study about gramika in the post-Mauryan period is Manu. One significant difference between the gramika of Mauryan and the gramika of post-Mauryan period is that the latter was free from the duty pertaining to the defence of the village; it was now shifted to the gulma or military cantonments stationed by the king in two, three or five villages in the countryside. The second major difference between the two was that the gramika in the post-Mauryan age was paid through land grants rather than a cash salary as in the case of the Mauryans or through the fines gathered from the villagers. Prof. R.S. Sharma opines. “Thus the first decreased and the second increased the power of headman. But on the whole the hereditary character of the post coupled with the grant of land for the office tilted in favour of the growing importance of the village headman.”

Two other prominent features of the Kushanas were, first, the title of Devaputra used by the Kushana kings and second, the practice of Devkula. Though the Kushanas were apparently Buddhists but still used the title of Devaputra i.e., son of god. Erecting Devkulas was another popular practice under the Kushanas. Devkula, according to the Pratimanataka of Bhasha, meant “the place where the statues were erected in honour of dead potentates.”

The Contribution of The Kushanas

The Kushanas, because of their contribution to the various disciplines of life, occupy a special place in the ancient Indian history. Let us now explore some of these contributions. It is not established quite comprehensively that the political activities of the Kushanas were guided by their economic perspectives. The Hon Han-Shu says that the Kushanas became very rich after occupying lower Indus region which had quite flourishing trade relations with the Roman empire . Also, as the Kushano-Roman maritime trade ended in around 150 AD, decline of Kushana empire started to gain impetus under Vasudeva I. This shows that they were highly dependent on trade for their survival. This was perhaps the reason, why Kushanas gave so much importance to trade. Agriculture was also given proper attention. A large scale irrigation networks have been discovered in north western India, Pakistan, Afghanistan which are datable to Kushana period. Such growth in trade resulted in the growth of trading centres and cities in the empire. Some traders shifted to the eastern part of India i.e., eastern Uttar Pradesh and Vanga and developed trading and commercial relations with the south east Asia.

The healthy state of economy, under Kushanas is also indicated by the coins that they struck. A Mathura epigraph of year 28 (Shaka era of 78 AD) indicates that even private agencies were allowed to struck and circulate coins in Kushana dominions. One important aspect of Kushana coinage is that their gold coins (dinaras) and copper coins (drammas) were meant for circulation in the whole empire, a system which was different from the coins of the pre-Kushana period in which a coin circulated in one area was typologically different from the other one. To explain in simpler terms, in pre-Kushana period, a coin struck in Gandhara region by a ruler was different from the one struck by the same ruler in the area of Arachosia . Thus it seems the Kushanas issued the first Imperial coinage. Silver coins of the Kushanas are found only in the area of the lower Indus. They issued the largest number of copper coins and the quality of their gold coins was very good.

New discoveries made in the area of central Asia have shown some startling examples of the Kushana architecture and art. Some discoveries of central Asia and Afghanistan have shown sculptures with stylistic features different from Gandhara, Mathura and other Hellenistic school. Scholars have named this schools as the Bactrian school. Prof. B.N. Mukherjee, while explaining the stylistic patterns of this school, says, “The sculptured human figures, which are some what frontal in treatment, show oval faces with open, somewhat bulging, or half closed eyes. Their hair is indicated by deep incisions or by curls looking like buttons.” He further says that, “Scholars have also been able to discern recently the feature of an imperial art as betrayed by royal sanctuaries and coinage of the Kushanas.” And finally, in the field of building architecture, they built a number of Devkulas, very similar to a Hindu temple, which were erected in commemoration of their predecessors. Even in literature and medicine India made progress with scholars like Charaka and Ashvaghosha etc.

The Satavahanas

The Satavahanas, who came to the forefront in the Indian political scene sometime in the middle of the first century BC, are one of the most prominent dynasties of ancient India. The Matsya Purana lists thirty Satavahana kings who ruled in Deccan, though their geographical extent kept changing. The Satavahanas were probably of Andhra origin. The historicity of some of the kings mentioned in the Puranas has been confirmed by the numismatic and epigraphic data. The historicity of others is still not clear.

The Early Satavahana Rulers

The founder of the Satavahana dynasty was one Simuka . He laid the foundation of his empire after destroying the Kanva power. He also erased the remaining traces of the Sungas. One of the Nanaghat inscriptions testifies his historicity. His coins have been reported from Kotalingala in the Karimnagar district which proves his domination over central Deccan. Numismatic sources also show his control over Apranta in western Deccan. According to the Puranas he ruled for 23 years. Simuka was succeeded by his brother Krishna (Kanha). He is identifiable with king Kanha of satavahanakula of the Nasik inscription. This inscription shows that Nasik in western Deccan was a part of his kingdom. He ruled for 18 years. He was succeeded by his son, Sri Satakarni. Discovery of his coin types in the area of Vidisha and Tripuri shows that he conquered new territories of central India (Vidisha area). The seventeenth king of the line was king Hala who is known as the author of Gatha Saptasati. The Periplus of the Erythean Sea and Ptolemy both indicate good trading relations between the Romans and the Satavahanas. Strabo also refers to an embassy sent by a king Poros (identified with Purnotsanga, the 18th Satavahana king or Pulomavi, the 15th king in line) to the Roman king extolling their friendship and the trading relations between the two. So, it seems that the Satavahanas consolidated their position because of this flourishing trade. But a serious setback to the Satavahanas in the region was the loss of northern part of their kingdom lying to the north of Bharuch and other parts of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat to Nahapana , the Kshaharata mahakshatrapa. The Satavahana king at this point in time is believed to be Sandanes or Sunandana or Sundara Satakarni.The Puranas identify him as the 20th Satavahana king.

Gautamiputra Satakarni

The eclipsed Satavahana power was rejuvenated by the 23rd Satavahana ruler of the Puranic list, Gautamiputra Satakarni . He is credited as the liberator of the Satavahana areas captured by Nahapana. One of the Nasik inscription datable to his eighteenth regnal year refers to the regranting of a land which, till that day, was under the control of Ushavadatta. From the epigraphic data it seems that the fight between Nahapana and Gautamiputra for political supremacy was a protracted one and it started probably in the fourteenth regnal year of the great Satavahana king. The Jogalthambi hoard of coins indicates that Gautamiputra overstruck a large number of coins originally issued by Nahapana.

Extent of Gautamiputra Satakarni’s Empire

The Nasik inscription of Balashri and of Vashishthiputra Pulamavi of his nineteenth regnal year, mentions that Gautamiputra Satakarni destroyed the Shakas, Pahalavas and yavanas, attained success against Nahapana and crushed the power of the Khatiyas who are perhaps identifiable with the Khatriaroi mentioned by Ptolemy. His kingdom extended to Asika (river Krishna), Asaka ( Asmaka on Godavari) and Mulaka (the district around Paithan ). It also included south Kathiawar, Kukura (near Pariyatra or western Vindhyas), Apranta (north Konkan ), Anupa (near Mahishmati or Narmada), Vidharbha and east and west Malwa. There is an indication in the Nasik inscription of the 18th year of his control over Vejayanti in Kanarese country. If we consider all epigraphic and numismatic sources, southern Rajasthan and the eastern Deccan may be added to the list of his dominions.

Gautamiputra was the metronymic generally associated with the king Satakarni though it is sometimes missing. The Nasik inscription of 24th year also mentions a command given jointly by the king and his mother. Whether the latter had any role in administration is yet to be established. Gautamiputra was also perhaps involved in a war with Kanishka I, the result of which is not known. In the last decade of the first century AD, the Satavahanas were threatened by a serious danger from the side of Kachchh. According to the Andhau inscription of Chastana (of 11th regnal year), he had, by that year, Kutch under his control.

Date of Gautamiputra Satakarni Copius epigraphic and literary data has been used to explain the approximate date of the reign of Gautamiputra. B.N. Mukharjee’s explanation in this regard seems quite plausible. Ptolemy calls Chastana the ‘only ruler’ of Larike which included, inter-alia Barygaza (Bharuch), Minnagara (Mandsaur), Nasika (Nasik) and Ozene ( Ujjain ). Chastana captured these areas from the Satavahanas. The Andhau inscription of Chastana, of the year 52, refers to a cojoint rule of Chastana and his grandson Rudradaman, and so we must place Ptolemy’s information before the 52nd year of the Shaka era (AD 78) i.e., AD 129/130. Vashishthiputra Pulamavi (the son and successor of Gautamiputra) held Nasik up to his 22nd regnal year. If we believe that Chastana occupied Larike just before 129-130 AD, then Pulamavi ascended the Satavahana throne in 107/108 AD (AD 129/130–22). So Gautamiputra’s reign of 24 years must have ended around that time. This shows that Gautamiputra came to the throne in around 83/84 AD, and his victory over Nahapana (in his eighteenth regnal year) must be placed in 101/102 AD.

Vashishthiputra Pulamavi

He was the son and successor of Gautamiputra Satakarni and, as shown above, ascended the Satavahana throne in around 108/109 AD. Numismatic and epigraphic data indicate his control over most parts of the Deccan including south western Maharashtra and upper Karnataka . But he seems to have lost northern and western parts of the Deccan to Chastana who was probably a subordinate of the Kushanas. Chastana’s control over Larike, as referred to by Ptolemy, has already been mentioned. Pulamavi lost these areas just before the year 52 (AD 129/130). Ptolemy also says that Siri Polemaios (identifiable with Vashishthiputra Pulamavi) had Baithan (Pratishthanapura) as his capital. Epigraphical data tells us that he reigned for 24 years i.e., from 107/108 AD to 131/132 AD.

Vashisthiputra Satakarni

Vashishthiputra Satakarni was the successor of Pulamavi and a contemporary of mahakshatrapa Rudradaman. If we compare the Nasik inscriptions of Gautamiputra Satakarni and Junagadh inscription of Rudradaman, we find that quite a few of the former’s dominions were now captured by the family of Rudradaman. Important epigraphic sources of Vashisthiputra Satakarni are the Kanhari inscription, the Sannati epigraph and an inscription at Nanaghat. Kanheri inscription mentions the queen of Vashisthiputra Satakarni as belonging to karddamakakula (the family of Chastana), and also as the daughter of Rudradaman I . Junagadh inscription of Rudradaman corroborates this evidence. According to the inscription, Rudradaman I twice defeated Satakarni (identifiable with Vashsthiputra Satakarni) but spared him because of the nearness of relationship. In the light of this evidence, the theories referring to Vashisthiputra Pulamavi as the Satavahana king defeated twice by Rudradaman can be rejected. The Nanaghat inscription of Vashisthiputra Satakarni (of the 13th regnal year) calls him a Chatrapana which in some way connects him to the family of the kshatrapas. Vashishthiputra is known in his coins as Vashishthiputra-Sri-Satakarni or Vashsthiputra Satakarni. His coins found in the area of Junar refer to him as a mahakshatrapa which shows that he must have ruled in the northern and western Deccan as a subordinate ruler of Rudradaman.

Gautamiputra Yajnasri Satakarni

He was the last great monarch of the Satavahana dynasty. His reign can conclusively be placed partly in the last quarter of second century AD, and partly in the first quarter of the third century AD. He ruled for at least 27 or 28 years. The main source of his history are the Nasik inscription (of the 7th regnal year), Kanheri inscription of 16th regnal year and Chinna Ganjam inscription of 27th regnal year. According to epigraphic and numismatic data his empire included north western (including north Konkan), south western, central (including Vidarbha ) and north eastern Deccan and also perhaps the coastal Andhra Pradesh in the upper coastal areas. There is also no evidence of his losing the southern part of the Deccan. Both his Nasik and Kanheri inscription indicate that he carried out successful campaigns against the Satrapal family of western India.

End of Satavahana Rule

The main line of Satavahana kingdom was wiped out in the first quarter of the third century AD. A number of dynasties emerged on the ruins of the Satavahana empire. A branch of the Abhiras succeeded them in the north western Deccan. In the Krishna- Guntur region, Chantamula supplanted the Satavahana power and laid the foundation of the Ikshavaku rule. This dynasty ruled for at least four generations. The family of the Chutus succeeded them in the area of Maharashtra and Konkan.

Elements of Satavahana Polity and Administration

The Satavahanas probably beloned to the non-Aryan speaking stock with matrilineal descent. They claimed to be brahmanas who gave a lot of importance to the varna system. They also gave a number of grants to Buddhist monks and the brahmanas.

The Satavahana kingdom was divided into aharas or rashtras meaning districts. The ahara of the Satavahanas was thus comparable with the janapada under the Mauryas but the latter was a much larger unit. Amatya was the most important position under the Satavahanas after the king. The amatyas were perhaps ministers or advisors of the king. They were comparable with the mahamatras of Ashokan Inscriptions. In fact there is a mention in a Satavahana inscription, of a mahamatra incharge of Buddhist monks, who may be compared with Ashoka’s dharmamahamatras.

There was no specific official in charge of drafting the land grants. It could be done by an amatya or a pratihara or even a mahasenapati. Prof. R.S. Sharma says that the Satavahanas also maintained keepers of land charters, known as pattika paalaka. Payment to officials was generally made in cash. The Satavahanas minted huge amount of currency. In fact they surpassed every other post-Mauryan dynasty in terms of the coins issued. Nanaghat cave inscription of Naganika refers to a long list of various figures in karshapanas. The land which was granted for religious purposes was also given concessions in revenue collections. Deya-meya and bhoga were some of the terms used for royal share of the produce. Most of the mining activities were directly under the royal control. Karukara was a tax imposed on the artisans. Revenue was collected both in cash and kind but more emphasis was given on cash and this is highlighted by the use of the term hairanyaka (keeper of gold) for treasurer.

One of the most important aspect of Satavahana polity is their matrilineal inheritance which is evinced by the use of metronymics by some of the Satavahana kings. Gautamiputra Satakarni has been extolled as the “king who rendered uninterrupted service to his mother” (avipanamatususuka). Some of the examples of the names with metronymics are Gautamiputra Satakarni, Vashishthiputra Pulamavi, Vashishthiputra Satakarni, Gautamiputra Srivijaya Satakarni, and Gautamiputra Sri Yajna Satakarni. It is generally believed that use of metronymics and matrilineal practices started only with the later Satavahanas, but there are examples to prove that this practice was in vogue even before the Satavahanas. Prof. R.S. Sharma shows on the basis of the stratigraphical position of the coins that the rulers even before Satavahanas used metronymics. Similar was the case with the Maharathis who were a contemporary of the Satavahanas. The lowest level of administration was a gama which was under the charge of a gamika.

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Satavahanas

Regional Kingdoms
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Home » Ancient Indian History » Post Mauryan Age » Satavahanas

Introduction

Satavahana dynasty , was an Indian family that, according to some interpretations based on the Puranas, belonged to the Andhra jati (a tribe) and was the first Deccanese dynasty to build an empire in Daksinapatha —i.e., the southern region.
At the height of their power, the Satavahanas held distant areas of western and central India.
On the strength of Puranic evidence, the beginnings of Satavahana ascendancy can be dated to late in the 1st century BCE , although some authorities trace the family to the 3rd century BCE.
The Satavahanas emerged as a critical dynasty in the post-Mauryan age; and most of our knowledge about the Satavahanas comes from inscriptional and numismatic evidence found in regions like Nasik and Nanaghat.

Political History

The Andhra country and the Deccan at large had been under the sway of the Mauryans, and the baton was passed on to the Satavahanas and Chedi rulers of Odisha.
Puranic lists suggest that the first king, Simuka began to reign about 230 BCE .
The expansion of the Saka power at the expense of the Satavahans probably occurred in the period AD 40-80
He is described as the destroyer of the Sakas, Pahlavas and Yavanas .
The Nashik inscription of Gautami Balashri suggest that Satakarnis rule extended from Malwa and Saurashtra in the North to the Krishna in the south and from Berar in the east to Konkan in the West.
He was followed by Yajnashri Satakarni, who was the last significant Satavahana ruler.(170–199 CE)
However, it can be surmised, that the succeeding monarchs weren’t able to maintain their control over feudatories, who in turn may have gained in strength .
All in all, the illustrious Satavahana empire came to an end around the mid-3rd century BCE .
The Satavahanas were followed by Abhiras in Maharashtra, Kadambas in Mysore, Vakatakas in the Deccan and Bruhatpalayanas in Andhra Pradesh. Later, the Vishnukundins and Chalukyas emerged and became dominant in the region that had earlier been in the possession of the Satavahanas.

Administration

The Satavahana polity was extensively decentralized , as local administration was left largely to feudatories subject to the general control of royal officials.
The king was at the apex of the administrative hierarchy and considered the guardian of the established social order.
Rajas(who stuck coins in their names)
Mahanhojas and Maharathis. These were skilled in warfare and had a lot of clout in the administrative set-up.
Mahasenapati
The villages came below these administrative divisions, and came to be headed by a gramika .
Sopara and Bharuch were import trading outposts.
Imports included luxuries like wine, cloth, choice unguents, glass and sweet clover.
Exports were common cloth, cornelian, muslin and mallow cloth. Each group of specialized traders was organized into a guild, and each guild in turn had a Sethi and an office called
The Satavahanas participated in (and benefited from) economic expansion through intensification of agriculture , increased production of other commodities, and trade within and beyond the Indian subcontinent.
The amount of land under agricultura l use also expanded significantly , as a result of forest clearance and construction of irrigation reservoirs.
The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea mentions two important Satavahana trade centres: Pratishthana and Tagara.
Other important urban centres included Kondapur, Banavasi and Madhavpur

Culture and religion

The Satavahanas made significant contributions towards Indian culture at large.
They were the first Indian kings to give royal grants of land to those practicing Buddhism and Brahmanism.
A Nasik inscription reflects this concern as Gotami-putra Satkarni attributed to himself the title of Kshatriyadarpa Mardana (Destroyer of the Pride of Kshatriyas).
It also refers to temples being constructed for Gauri, and vratas of fire and water.
All in all, inscriptions as well as evidence from the Puranas clearly establishes the efforts taken by the Satavahanas to revive Vedic Brahmanism in the Deccan.
Sage Vidnyaneshwar also wrote a commentary on the Yadnyavalkya Smriti during the Satavahana period.
This is particularly evident through names like Gautami-putra and Vaishishti-putra .
It will be an oversimplification to conclude that the Satavahana society was matriarchal or matrilineal.
Nonetheless, it does shed some light on the status of women in India, that may have been far superior to what it was in other parts of the country and even in the world.
Moreover, many women gave grants of land to monks, showing that they had considerable agency.
This language has been termed “Prakrit” by some modern scholars, however conflict still exists to the reference language.
The Satvahanas also used Sanskrit in political inscriptions, but rarely.
The Satavahanas also issued bilingual coins featuring Middle Indo-Aryan language on one side, and Tamil language on the other side.
The Satavahanas were the earliest Indian rulers to issue their own coins with portraits of their rulers, starting with king Gautamiputra Satakarni, a practice derived from that of the Western Kshatrapas he defeated.
Thousands of lead, and copper Satavahana coins have been discovered in the Deccan region; a few gold and silver coins are also available.

Architecture

They built Buddhist stupas in Amravati (95 feet high).
They also constructed a large number of stupas at Goli, Jaggiahpeta, Gantasala, Amravati Bhattiprolu, and Shri Parvatam.
Caves IX and X, containing Ajanta paintings , were patronised by Satavahana, and the painting throughout the caves appear to have started with them.
Ashokan Stupas were enlarged, the earlier bricks and wood works being replaced with stone works. The most famous of these monuments are the stupas, the most famous among them being the Amravati Stupa and the Nagarjunakonda Stupa.
The Satavahana paintings are the earliest surviving specimens (excluding prehistoric rock art) in India, and they are to be found only at the Ajanta Caves .
Only a few fragments related to the Satavahanas have survived in Caves No. 9 and 10, both of which are chaitya-grihas with stupas.
The Satavahanas left a rich legacy that was inherited by many other lineages in the Ancient and Early Medieval era
As evident above, they revived Vedic Brahmanism and the corresponding rituals like the Ashvamedha yajna.
Their assimilation of faiths , military power and trading prowess makes them one of the most important empires in the history of the Deccan region and at large, that of Bharatavarsha .

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The Kushanas: India and Beyond (60 CE - 230 CE)

AUTHOR Akshay Chavan
PUBLISHED 29 May 2020

Just under 2,000 years ago, Kushana Emperor Huvishka (r. 155-190 CE) and his ministers faced an unprecedented problem that will perhaps resonate with most heads of government today. It was a global pandemic of smallpox and measles that had originated in the Han Empire of China and was spreading around the known world.

Eerily, like today, the worst affected were the Han Empire (China), the Roman Empire (Italy) and the Parthian Empire (Iran), as a result of international travellers and businessmen contracting and carrying it along the Silk Route. And then the pandemic arrived in the great Kushana Empire that lay right in the middle of the three.

Unlike today, closing international borders and enforcing a strict lockdown was not an option available to Emperor Huvishka and his ministers. All they could do was pray to a divine power whom they believed would save them - Hariti, the Goddess of Smallpox. The sheer number of Kushana-style Hariti sculptures found in the north-western regions of the Indian subcontinent, dating to the reign of Emperor Huvishka, reflects the rising levels of anxiety during this pandemic.

Statue of Hariti from Skarah Dheri, Gandhara, 244 CE

Known as the Antonine Plague of 165-180 CE, after a Roman Emperor whose life it claimed, the pandemic was deadly. Over 15 years, it wiped out almost a quarter of the population in the Roman and the Han empires. International trade collapsed and all the great powers of the time – the Romans, Han, Parthians, Kushanas and Satavahanas – were weakened. While these empires lingered on for another century or two, the world would never be the same.

While multiculturalism and globalisation are buzzwords today, the Kushanas practically embodied these terms, 2,000 years ago. What else would you call a dynasty whose kingdom stretched from the frontiers of China to Mathura and beyond in the Indo-Gangetic plains, who lived in Greek-style cities, patronised Buddhism, Zoroastrianism and Vedic deities, and called themselves Kaisara (Caesar) and Devaputra (Son of God)?

The empire of the Kushanas also marked a ‘golden age’ in cultural and economic prosperity in Central Asia and North-West India that would remain unparalleled for a long time to come. The noted historian Craig Benjamin, in his book Empires of Ancient Eurasia , called the Kushana Empire “the Golden Age of ancient Central Asia”.

Surprisingly, and quite unfortunately, the Kushanas did not leave behind any official histories or great texts and, as a result, the history of the dynasty has had to be painstakingly put together by scholars, based on Indian, Roman, Greek, Persian and Chinese sources as well as hoards and finds discovered in the most unlikely places.

Mummies of the Tarim Basin

The Kushanas have their roots in a series of migrations of the Yuezhi people, who in turn can be traced to an ancient tribe that settled in the modern-day Xinjiang region of China, about 5,000 years ago.

The earliest evidence of this migration was uncovered during the Cultural Revolution in China. In the mid-1960s and early-’70s, Chinese archaeologists unearthed a large number of mummies in the Tarim Basin of the Xinjiang province, dating from 1800 BCE to 1st century BCE. News of their discovery created a sensation around the world because the mummies looked ‘European’ – these were the remains of people who had been tall and markedly Caucasian, with blond hair and sharp features. Mitochondrial DNA analysis and further excavation revealed them to be early Indo-Europeans who had spoken the now-extinct Tokharian languages.

Chinese texts from the first millennium BCE speak of ‘ white people with long hair’ who lived on the north-eastern frontier of China, and from whom the Chinese bought jade.

The noted historian Victor H Mair, in his research paper AncientMummies of the Tarim Basin (1995), stated, “The new finds are also forcing a reexamination of old Chinese books that describe historical or legendary figures of great height, with deep-set blue or green eyes, long noses, full beards, and red or blond hair. Scholars have traditionally scoffed at these accounts, but it now seems that they may be accurate.”

By 645 BCE, Chinese accounts referred to these tribes as the Yuezhi because they supplied jade from the Yuzhi Mountains in North-Central China. Around 175 BCE, the great tribal confederation of nomads called Xingnou defeated the Yuezhi and forced them to migrate out of the Ganshu region and head towards Central Asia. As the Yuezhi moved east, they defeated the Indo-Scythians or Sakas, forcing them to move towards Bactria.

By 100 BCE, the Yuezhi had pushed east once again, defeated the Sakas and taken over the region of Bactria. The Sakas were forced south, towards Mathura, thereby ending the rule of the Indo-Greek kings. And the Yuezhi became masters of the Silk Route that passed through Bactria.

Rise of an Empire

According to the 5th-century chronicle of the Han dynasty, Hou Han Shu , the Yuezhi divided Bactria into five chiefdoms, one of which was called Kuei-shang or Guishang . The Hou Han Shu further states, “ More than a hundred years after this [i.e., the Yuezhi migration], the hi-hou (tribal chief) of Kuei-shang, called K’iu-tsiu-k’io, attacked the four other hi-hou; he styled himself king; the name of his kingdom was Kuei-shang. He invaded An-si [Parthia] and seized the territory of Kao-fu [Kabul]; moreover he triumphed over Pu-ta [Gandhara] and Ki-pin [Kashmir] and entirely possessed those kingdoms. ”

K’iu-tsiu-k’io was none other than Kujula Kadphises (r. 60-80 CE), the founder of the dynasty that would be known as Kuei-Shang to the Chinese and Kushana to the Western world. Kujula Kadphises ruled in the 1st century CE and was a contemporary of the Indo-Parthian King Gondophares. Over time, he conquered the tiny Indo-Greek and Saka principalities that had survived in North-Western India and laid the foundations of the Kushana Empire.

Kujula Kadphises conquered the bowl-shaped basin on the north-western frontier of India known as Gandhara and established his capital in the city of Taxila-Sirkap, in the modern-day Rawalpindi district of Pakistan. The ancient city had served as the capital to the Indo-Greek as well as Saka rulers.

Dharmarajika Stupa at Taxila, which housed fragments of Buddha’s relics

During archaeological excavations in the Taxila region carried out by Sir John Marshall from 1913 to 1934, 2,633 coins of the Kushana emperors were recovered from the. Most of them, 2,518, belonged to Kujula Kadphises. Interestingly, many of these coins have the Greek god Zeus on one face and the Buddha on the other, perhaps an indication of how readily the Kushanas adapted to the territories they conquered.

With the conquest of the Indo-Greek cities of Bactria and Gandhara, the Kushanas were no longer mere tribal chiefs. They were now emperors and masters of the Silk Route - the commercial and cultural superhighway that connected Han China and India with Parthia and Rome. Kujula Kadphises was Kanshika’s great-grandfather and was succeeded by Vima Taktu (r. 81-100 CE), Kanishka’s grandfather, and then by Vima Kadphises (r. 101-127), Kanishka’s father.

Portrait of Kushana emperor Vima Kadphises, 100-127 CE

It was Vima Kadphises who wrested Mathura from the Scythian satraps and expanded the empire into the heartland of India. He was the first Kushana emperor to introduce gold coinage, thanks to the immense wealth generated by the trade along the Silk Route.

Masters of the Silk Route

Professor Xinru Liu of The College of New Jersey, who has studied the Kushanas for four decades, explains how they managed to build this vast empire through cultural assimilation, in her book TheSilk Road in World History . Originally warrior-nomads, they had become rulers of a highly cultured and complex society. The sheer diversity within the cities of the empire that stretched from Turkmenistan to India, and the vast volumes of international trade that passed through their domains, meant that the Kushanas had to patronise many different languages and scripts and accommodate different religious practices.

Professor Liu writes, “ The Kushana kings did not create a typical agricultural empire, with a strong bureaucracy to control every aspect of life. Their administration did not even reach the village level to collect a tax from farmers… They relied on existing local institutions, such as caste hierarchies, traders’ guilds, and religious organizations, to manage daily affairs. They also adopted parts of the political and cultural legacies of former rulers of the regions they now dominated, including the Persians, Greeks, Parthians, and Sakas. ”

For example, when the Kushanas conquered the former Greek cities of Ai-Khanoum (in present-day Afghanistan) and Taxila-Sirkap, they simply adapted the grand and opulent Greek temples and palaces for their own use. It was the Kushanas’ cosmopolitan attitude that facilitated the trade that passed through their territory. A good example can be seen in their coins.

Shiva Linga worshipped by Kushan devotees, circa 2nd century CE

The Kushana coins were based on those minted by their largest trading partner – the Roman Empire. These coins have a remarkable resemblance to the aureus , a Roman gold coin. The Kushana coins bore images of Kushana kings as well as numerous deities, including the Sumerian goddess Nana, the Persian gods Oado and Atash, the Hindu gods Vasudeva and Shiva, and the Buddha. There were as many as 23 diverse gods and goddesses on Kushana coinage. The titles of the Kushana kings, inscribed on the coins in various languages, included ‘Shehanshah’, ‘Devaputra’ and ‘Maharaja Rajatiraja’.

A recently excavated Buddhist stupa, or shrine, at Mes Aynak

Mes Aynak: Industrial Centre of the Kushana Empire

About 2,000 years ago, Mes Aynak was one of the most important centres on the Silk Route and the richest region in the Kushana Empire. ‘Mes Aynak’ means ‘Hill of Copper’ in local Dari language and buried here are the largest deposits of copper in Asia. Excavations have revealed remains of a great Kushana industrial township, quite like what Jamshedpur is to India or Pittsburgh to the United States.

It was from here that copper was exported to China and Rome. Located in the Mes Aynak valley are 19 separate archaeological sites including two small forts, a citadel, four fortified monasteries, several Buddhist stupas and a Zoroastrian fire temple, as well as ancient copper workings, smelting workshops, a mint and miners’ habitations. The wealthy copper merchants who lived and traded here seem to have liberally endowed vast monastic complexes and stupas , as can be seen from the more than 400 statues and vast number of other Buddhist artifacts found here.

There’s a strange and tangential 21st-century link. Now a remote, barren site in Afghanistan’s Logar province, an hour’s drive south of Kabul, Mes Aynak is best known as the notorious site of the al-Qaeda training camp where four of the hijackers involved in the 9/11 attacks on New York trained.

Two other great Kushana cities were Bamiyan and Bagram. Western scholars call Bamiyan the ‘New York to Mes Aynak’s Pittsburgh’, a financial hub that supported the industrial township. Known more for the great 6th-century Bamiyan Buddhas destroyed by the Taliban, this was once a massive trading centre and a hub where Silk Route caravans halted.

Bagram decorative plaque from a chair or throne, ivory, c.100 BCE

Bagram, known today for being home to the largest US airbase in Afghanistan, was once the summer capital of the Kushana Empire. The remains of a Kushana palace were found here in the 1930s, along with a trove of artefacts known as the Bagram Ivories. These include over 1,000 decorative plaques, small figures and inlays carved from ivory and bone, which indicate an ancient trade in luxury goods to and through the Kushana Empire.

Inscription in an Afghan Village

About 270 km north of Kabul, in the Baghlan province of Afghanistan, is a small village called Robatak. It stands desolate, following a horrific massacre of its inhabitants by the Taliban in May 2000. But seven years earlier, it was here that one of the most significant finds relating to the Kushana dynasty was made. In 1993, the Afghan Mujahideen while digging a trench on a nearby hillock stumbled upon an inscription and some historical artifacts. The inscription was photographed by a local British aid worker and the photo sent to the British Museum.

Deciphered by the language historian Nicholas Sims-Williams, it was found to be in the Bactrian and Greek script, from the time of the Kushana Emperor Kanishka (r. 128–150 CE), and proclaimed:

“In the year one it has been proclaimed unto India, unto the whole of the realm of the Kshatriyas, that (as for) them – both the (city of) . . . and the (city of) Saketa (Ayodhya), and the (city of) Kausambi (near Allahabad), and the (city of) Pataliputra (Patna), as far as the (city of) Sri-Campa (in Bhagalpur, Bihar) whatever rulers and other important persons (they might have) he had submitted to (his) will, and he had submitted all India to (his) will.”

This suggests that the Kushana Empire under Kanishka extended all the way from the frontiers of the Caspian Sea to the city of Pataliputra in Bihar. Was Emperor Kanishka exaggerating? Perhaps not. In Uttar Pradesh (UP) alone, there have been 70 excavated sites and 711 explored sites that have yielded Kushana-era artifacts. Large-scale excavations conducted at Kaushambi by the University of Allahabad under archaeologist G R Sharma in the 1970s revealed evidence of a well-planned, prosperous city dating to the 2nd century CE, and evidence that the city had been under Kushana rule. Among other artifacts found here were huge hoards of Kushana coins as well as four Kushana inscriptions and a seal bearing the legend, ‘ In service of Maharaja Rajatiraja Devaputra Kanishka’ .

Kushana Carnelian seal representing the Iranian divinity Adsho (ΑΘϷΟ legend in Greek letters), with triratana symbol left, and Kanishka’s dynastic mark right

The 5th-century Chinese text Fu-fa-tsang-yin-yüan-chuan ( History of Buddha’s Successors ) talks of Emperor Kanishka’s conquest of Pataliputra, during which he is said to have acquired the Buddha’s begging bowl. The influence of the Kushanas in the Gangetic Plain can be gauged from the fact that hoards of Kushana coins and artefacts have also been found in the remote Rautahat district of Nepal, just across the border from Motihari in Bihar.

About 2,300 km northwest of Kaushambi, in the ancient city of Merv in Turkmenistan, archaeologists have found similar Kushana-era coins. This indicates the sheer scale and power of the empire that the once-nomadic Kushanas had established.

Gold coin of Kanishka with a representation of the Buddha (c.120 CE)

About 4,300 km east of the Kushana stronghold of Taxila-Sirkap, in the Jiangsu province on the eastern edges of China, is a hill called Mount Kongwangshan, which has a number of images of the Buddha carved on its cliffs. Highlighting the significance of these images, Professor Liu explains, “ Two small standing images of the Buddha are strikingly similar to the Buddha on a Kushana coin issued by Kanishka. Both on the coin and at Lianyunganghe is shown wearing a knee-length, steppe-style robe and with his feet pointing outward. In other words, these are Kushana Buddhas. The worshipers also look like Kushanas, with their conical hats and equestrian robes.” Perhaps there is no better example of the soft power of the Kushana Empire.

Painting of Kanishka inaugurating Mahayana Buddhism

Devaputra Kanishka and the Transformation of Buddhism

It was under the reign of Kanishka that Buddhism spread from India to large parts of Central Asia and China, making the emperor immortal in Buddhist lore. In many Buddhist texts, such as the Sri-Dharma-Pitaka-Nidana Sutra , the Buddha himself is said to have foretold that a king named Kanishka would rule several centuries later and build great stupas .

To understand the significance of the Kushanas to the spread of Buddhism, it is important to understand a fundamental transformation in Buddhist teachings that took place at this time – the rise of Mahayana Buddhism.

During the early days of Buddhism, the teachings were simple and focused on breaking the cycle of rebirth to achieve nirvana. The Buddhist establishment or the Sangha was dependent on patronage from wealthy merchants, which in turn brought the merchants prestige. But as international trade and commerce expanded under the Kushanas and Buddhism began to spread to newer areas, it faced a peculiar problem.

Concepts like nirvana and rebirth were Indic, and it was difficult for people elsewhere to understand them. Traders, accustomed to material transactions, found little sense in the idea of eliminating material desire. For Buddhism to take root in newer areas, the Buddha had to transform from a philosopher into a ‘god’. In the newer Mahayana form of Buddhism, people could make donations and pray to images of the Buddha and gain religious merit. This helped Buddhism take root in far corners of Asia.

With traders and businessmen making large donations, the Buddhist monasteries transformed into huge commercial establishments, engaging in trade, investment, even manufacturing, in addition to the main goal of promoting Buddhism.

Professor Liu explains that the relationship between the traders and Buddhist establishments was mutually beneficial. While merchants made large donations, the important Mahayana Buddhist texts such as the Lotus Sutra served to increase the value of silks, incense, corals, pearls and lapis lazuli, the very goods that the merchants traded. While earlier Buddhist texts spoke of donations of rice or bread to monasteries, Kushana-era texts specify silks, gold, silver, lapis lazuli, crystal, pearls and red coral.

As the images of Buddha proliferated across the Kushana Empire, two distinct schools of art also emerged at the time – the Gandharan School of Art and the Mathura School of Art.

Kushana Cities Purushapura and Mathura

In the Gandharan region, a bowl-shaped valley now in Pakistan, where the great cities of Taxila-Sirkap, Pushkalavati (modern-day Charsadda) and Purushapura (modern-day Peshawar) flourished during the Kushana period, a distinct culture emerged that had a very strong Greco-Bactrian influence. This was because most of these cities had been established by the Indo-Greeks and Sakas, even if the Kushanas later made them their own. That heritage explains why the images of the Buddha created here resemble those found in Greece and Rome.

Near the beginning of his reign, around 128 CE, Emperor Kanishka shifted his capital from Pushkalavati (Charsadda) to Purushapura (Peshawar). The reasons were strategic. Peshawar sat at the mouth of the Khyber Pass, allowing easy access to Kabul as well as Bactria. The Bara River, a tributary of the Kabul that flowed through here, met Purushapura’s requirements of water for irrigation and for the city’s residents.

Emperor Kanishka is said to have built and endowed a large number of stupas across the Gandhara region, the most prominent of which was just outside his capital Purushapura, in a place known today as Shahji-ki-Dehri.

This great stupa was once the tallest in the world. Even in the 5th century CE, the Chinese Buddhist monk Fa-Hien visited and described it as " the highest of all the towers in the terrestrial world ". But over the centuries it was reduced to rubble, and no trace of it remains today.

It was only in 1908-09 that the stupa was rediscovered at all, during excavations carried out by the American archaeologist David Brainard Spooner for the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). Found inside was the Kanishka Casket, a large copper reliquary that contained three bone fragments believed to be relics of the Buddha. These relics were taken to Mandalay in Burma by the British in 1910 and remain there today.

Located 932 km south of Peshawar was another major city in the Kushana Empire, Mathura. An important trading town on the Dakshinapath, the trade route to the Deccan, Mathura had a large population of Buddhist and Jain merchants, as well as a thriving cult of Vasudeva, an early avatar of Krishna. The school of art that emerged here had a more Indian influence than that of Gandhara. The deities and people depicted in Mathura art had Indian features and wore Indian style clothes, in contrast to the Gandharan school which was heavily inspired by the Greek style.

In what was possibly an attempt to establish his legitimacy as a ruler, Emperor Kanishka and later Kushana kings seem to have stressed their divine origins and built Devakulas , literally ‘ temples of the divine family’ . In these Devakulas, the patron deities of the Kushana royal family as well as departed Kushana rulers would be worshipped. Archaeologists have uncovered two such temples, one in Mat, a village near Mathura, and another at Surkh Kotal, an archaeological site in Baghlan, Afghanistan.

The Decline of the Kushana Empire

Emperor Kanishka was succeeded by first his son, Vashishka (r. 151-155 CE) , who ruled for a short period of 5 years and then by his other son Huvishka (r. 155-190 CE), during whose reign the world faced the pandemic of smallpox and measles. His reign was a period of consolidation of the empire, which extended from Balkh in Northern Afghanistan to Mathura in India.

There have been studies on how the pandemic led to the decline of the Roman and Han empires. American historian A E R Boak, in his paper Manpower Shortage and the Fall of the Roman Empire (1955), explored how the outbreak of the 165 CE pandemic contributed to a decline in population growth in the Roman Empire, leading the military to draft more peasants and local officials into its ranks, resulting in lower food production and a lack of support for the day-to-day administering of towns and cities, thus weakening Rome’s ability to fend off barbarian invasions.

Similarly, noted Australian historian Rafe de Crespigny has studied how the horrors of the 15-year pandemic in China shattered the faith of the people in the divine mandate of the Han emperors. This led to the rise of faith-healing movements and the Yellow Turban Rebellion of 184 CE, a peasant revolt that contributed to the collapse of the Han Empire.

The Kushanas: India and Beyond (60 CE – 230 CE)

Strangely, there have been no comparable studies on the pandemic’s toll on the Kushana and Satavahana empires in India. It is a question that is still waiting to be answered.

By the time Emperor Huvishka was succeeded by Emperor Vasudeva I (r. 191-232 CE), the pandemic was over. Vasudeva I was a great patron of Hinduism and Buddhism, especially the Vasudeva cult fast emerging in Mathura. He is also the last Kushana emperor mentioned in Chinese sources.

The end of Vasudeva’s reign coincides with the start of the decline of the Kushana Empire. First, there were the Sassanian invasions of Bactria and what is now Western Pakistan. This was between 230 and 270 CE. To the east, most of the Indian territories, including Mathura, were then lost to the growing Gupta Empire. A series of rulers nicknamed ‘Little Kushanas’ ruled till 350 CE, and then the name disappears from the pages of history.

Probable initial appearance of Kanishka’s stupa at the site of Loriyan Tangai in Gandhara, 2nd century CE

The Rediscovery of the Kushanas

By the 18th and 19th centuries, all memory of the Kushanas had been lost. The only available references were to a King Kanishka named in Buddhist texts. It was the Great Game of the 19th century, in which the British and Russian empires sought to reassert their power in Central Asia, which led to the rediscovery of the empire.

During this time, a large number of European explorers, spies and adventurers travelled across Central Asia tracing the footsteps of Alexander the Great. They came across a number of coins and artifacts of an unknown dynasty. Coin by coin, inscription by inscription, historians and archaeologists pieced the picture together, to recreate the tale of the Kushanas and their grand empire. How big was it really? Why did it fall? The search for answers to these questions continues to this day.

This article is part of our 'The History of India’ series, where we focus on bringing alive the many interesting events, ideas, people and pivots that shaped us and the Indian subcontinent. Dipping into a vast array of material - archaeological data, historical research and contemporary literary records, we seek to understand the many layers that make us.

This series is brought to you with the support of Mr K K Nohria, former Chairman of Crompton Greaves, who shares our passion for history and joins us on our quest to understand India and how the subcontinent evolved, in the context of a changing world.

Find all the stories from this series here.

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The Kushanas

Related Papers

Jason Neelis

Suchandra Ghosh

The Greek tradition of coinage was maintained by the Bactrians, Indo-Greeks, Śakas and Kushanas, ruling successively in the Northwest from the second century bc to second century ad. On their coins, apart from the rulers themselves, appear the figures and names of several deities. These were Greek deities in the beginning, to whom Iranian and Indian deities went on being added. The paper traces this process in detail and examines how the rulers first seem to address, through their coins, only an elite Greek or Hellenised aristocracy and then the wider Iranic and Indian populations, through the medium of deities figured on their coins. There was simultaneously the objective of legitimation and glorification of the rulers themselves by the same means. Curiously, Buddhism so important in Gandhara sculpture has only a rare presence on these coins even under the Kushanas.

SZH Jafri and NR Farooqui edited Pluralities of Past: Upper Gangetic Valley through the Millennium Proceedings of the 21st Session of the Uttar Pradesh History Congress, 2010. (Anamika, New Delhi, 2011) pp. 61-105

Abhay singh

DilipK Chakrabarti

Hans Loeschner

Razieh Taasob

Robert Bracey

The 1960 London Conference on the Date of Kanishka involved many leading scholars of Central and South Asian studies and had a profound impact on the field. This paper examines the historiography of the central problem posed at the conference: in what year did the era of Kanishka commence? It traces the advances in evidence that led to the solution of AD 127 between 2000 and 2010. The complexity of this process is often omitted in historiographical accounts, which opens the final solution to criticism and also fails to address why the field polarised after 1960 and found it so hard to reconcile new evidence. The paper suggests that eventual solution was a result of the cumulative effect of new data. It also shows that the field as a whole arrived at a solution long before it arrived at a consensus. This suggests that the failure of new evidence to bring about a solution more quickly is a major challenge to South and Central Asian studies in the future.

I. Qiujiuque, Founder of the Kushan Dynasty According to the "Xiyu Zhuan" of Hou Hanshu 後漢書 (ch. 88), the founder of the Kushan dynasty was Qiujiuque 丘就卻, the Xihou 翖侯 of Guishuang 貴霜: Formerly, when the Yuezhi 月氏 had been destroyed by the Xiongnu 匈奴, they moved to Daxia 大夏 and divided the country into the five Xihou of Xiumi 休密, Shuangmi 雙靡, Guishuang, Xidun 肹頓, and Dumi 都密. More than a hundred years later, the Xihou of Guishuang [named] Qiujiuque attacked and destroyed the [other] four Xihou and established himself as king; the state was named Guishuang. [This] king invaded Anxi 安息, took the country of Gaofu 高附, and, moreover, destroyed Puda 濮達 and Jibin 罽賓 and completely possessed their territory. Qiujiuque died at the age of more than eighty years, and his son Yangaozhen 閻膏珍 succeeded him as king. He in his turn destroyed Tianzhu 天竺 and placed there a general to control it. Since then the Yuezhi have been extremely rich and strong. In the various states [their ruler] is always referred to as "the King of Guishuang", but the Han 漢, basing themselves upon the old appellation, speak about the "Da Yuezhi" 大月氏.

Andrea (Angelo Andrea) Di Castro

Problems of Chronology in Gandhāran Art Proceedings of the First International Workshop of the Gandhāra Connections Project, University of Oxford, 23rd-24th March, 2017 Edited by Wannaporn Rienjang Peter Stewart

The dating of sculpture from Gandhāra and its related regions is a dif cult thing. As there are only a handful of sculptures bearing dates, all in unspeci ed eras, any attempts at dating have to rely on a series of understandings, based on archaeological context, material and stylistic analysis, and iconographic development. What is often presumed without comment is the underlying chronological structure which gives such dating a relationship with the eras in use today. This structure has largely been constructed from four sources of evidence: dated inscriptions, numismatic sequences, the scarce references in historical texts, and attempts to match the era used by the Kushans with other Indian eras. Unfortunately the underlying chronological structure built from these has been in a state of ux since it was rst attempted. The proposal made in 2001 by Harry Falk that Kaniṣka I’s rst year was in AD 127, based on the information about the relationship between the Kushan and Śaka eras in an astrological text, the Yavanajātaka by Sphujiddhvaja (Falk 2001), was the rst to call on a relatively contemporary source with concrete evidence. This proposal has become widely accepted, even though its implications have not yet been fully assimilated into the discourse on Gandhāran art. This date has also not yet been applied to the broader chronological structure, as it comes from a different form of evidence. So parts of the chronological structures are still attached to earlier solutions, based on different resolutions of the evidence. This paper attempts to show that the solution reached by Falk from the astrological text can also be demonstrated by recourse to the use of numismatic and inscriptional evidence, thereby suggesting that Falk’s proposal has important implications for solving the problem of Gandhāran chronology and accordingly that of Gandhāran art too.

Late 2nd century BCE – Early 3rd century CE

Public administration of the satavahanas.

When northern India was reeling under turmoil after the fall of the Mauryan Empire, a very powerful kingdom was formed by the Satavahanas , also known as Andhras , in Deccan covering parts of Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. At the peak of their power, their kingdom also extended to parts of modern Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Karnataka. The Andhras were an ancient people described in the Aitareya Brahmana. They also find mentions in the Puranic lists of kings. [1] The founder of this dynasty is known as Simuka and he ruled from 235 BCE to 213 BCE. During the Mauryan age, Satavahanas were part of the Mauryan Empire but it appears that immediately after the fall of the dynasty, the Andhras declared themselves free. The third ruler of this dynasty, Satakarni I performed two Ashvamedhayajna. On the strength of his extensive military conquest, he has been referred as Lord of Dakshinapath. The next powerful ruler of this dynasty was Gautamiputra Satakarni whose achievements are recorded in glowing terms in the Nasik inscription of his mother, Gautami Balasiri. Nearly all of his successors followed the example set by Gautamiputra Satakarni to bear a name from the mother, i.e. matronym. In the early 3rd century, when Abhiras took over present-day Maharashtra and Ikshvakus and Pallavas annexed the eastern provinces, four and a half centuries rule of the Satavahana dynasty came to an end. [2]

According to the Greek historian Pliny, the Andhras were a powerful people with an army of one lakh infantry, two thousand cavalry, and one thousand elephants, as well as a large number of villages and thirty towns. [3] To maintain such a large territory, the Satavahans kings appointed several ministers and executive officers to assist him in administration. From the coins and inscriptions of the Satavahana rulers, a few facts can be gleaned about the system of administration. The kingdom was divided into administrative divisions each under the ministers called Amatya . The village was the smallest unit governed by the headman. Unlike the Mauryans, Satavahana polity was not centralized as their provinces were granted much autonomy in the affairs of the administration. Besides as can be seen from the inscriptions of Satavahans, there were many officials assigned to perform specific administrative duties for the proper functioning of the state. Administrative officers included treasurers and stewards, goldsmiths and mint masters, record keepers, ushers, and ambassadors. [4] Despite the vast extent of the Satavahana empire, its polity was simple and local administration was left largely to feudatories subject to the general control of royal officials.

Know the Sources +

[1] P. V. Ranade, “The Origin of the Satavahanas—A New Interpretation”, Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, Vol. 26, Part I, 1964, pp. 60-68. [2] Makhan Lal, Ancient India Textbook for XI, National Council of Educational Research and Training, 2002, pp. 142-143. [3] K. A. Nilakanta Sastri, A History of South India from Prehistoric Times to the Fall of Vijayanagar, Oxford University Press, 1958, p. 88. [4] Ibid, pp. 92-93.

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Emergence of Satavahanas

Art and architecture during satavahanas.

Polity and Administration

Religion and Society

Decline of satavahana period.

Prelims : History of India and Indian National Movement.

Mains : Indian Culture - Salient aspects of Art Forms, Literature and Architecture from ancient to modern times.

The most important of the native successors of the Mauryas in the north were the Shungas, followed by the Kanvas . In the Deccan and central India, the Satavahanas succeeded the Mauryas, although after a gap of about 100 years in the first century BCE . They ruled over parts of Andhra, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh. They were also known as the Andhras .

Table - Satavahanas Dynasty

Table - Art and architecture during Satavahanas

Polity and Administration

Aharas : sub-divisions of the Kingdom into districts (administered by Amatyas or Mahamatras).
Rashtras: The administrative divisions were also called Rashtras, and their officials were called Maharashtrikas .
Grama: It was the lowest level of administration under the charge of a Gramika or Gaulmika (head of the military regiment consisting of nine chariots, nine elephants, twenty-five horses and forty-five-foot soldiers)
Senapati: Provincial governor
Raja ( had the right to strike coins),
Mahabhoja
Language: The official language was Prakrit, but the script was Brahmi . The Satavahanas also used Sanskrit in political inscriptions, but rarely.
Katakas and Skandhvaras: These were the special military camps or cantonment areas.
Military strength: According to Pliny , the Andhra kingdom maintained an army of 100,000 infantry, 2000 cavalry and 1000 elephants.
The practice of tax-free villages: The Satavahanas started the practice of granting tax-free villages to Brahmanas and Buddhist monks. The cultivated fields and villages granted to them were declared free from intrusion by royal policemen, soldiers, and other royal officers.
Revenue was collected both in cash and kind .

Economy

The period was known for remarkable progress in trade and economy.

Progress in the fields of trade and industry: Increased activities of organised merchant guilds (Sethi) were witnessed during this period.
Trade centres: Pratishthana and Tagara were two important Satavahana trade centres mentioned by the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea. Sopara and Bharuch were import trading outposts.
Import items: wine, cloth, choice unguents, glass and sweet clover.
Paddy transplantation was known, and other agricultural crops were being cultivated. In foreign accounts, Andhra was mentioned for its cotton products.
Other occupations: Gandhikas (perfumers) were mentioned as donors (a general term to connote all kinds of shopkeepers).
On one side, most of the Satavahana coins had the figure of an elephant, horse, lion or Chaitya. The other side showed the Ujjain symbol - a cross with four circles at the end of the two crossing lines. The dialect used was Prakrit.
Other purposes : Although the coins were devoid of any beauty or artistic merit , they constituted a valuable source material for the dynastic history of the Satavahanas.
The Satavahana rulers were Brahmanas , and they represented the march of triumphant Brahmanism.
They performed Vedic sacrifices such as Ashvamedha and Vajapeya paying liberal sacrificial fees to the Brahmanas.
They also worshipped a large number of Vaishnava gods, such as Krishna and Vasudeva.
They also patronised Buddhism by giving land grants to the monks.
Due to flourishing trade and commerce, merchants and artisans formed an important social strata . Merchants generally named themselves after the towns to which they belonged.
Position of women: The position of women was better compared to other kingdoms, as kings bore their mother’s name instead of their fathers’. This shows a matrilineal social structure, especially in the royal families .
The emergence of large settlements was seen in fertile areas due to agricultural expansion.

Various reasons mentioned below were collectively responsible for the decline of the Satvahana dynasty:

Huge empire: The kingdom was divided between Yajnasri Satakarni's successors, who were inefficient in handling a huge empire.
Loss of centralised power: After the death of Yajna Satakarni and the rule of weak rulers, there was a rise of its feudatories, possibly as a result of a loss of centralised power.
Division of empire: The Satavahana empire broke up into five smaller kingdoms after the death of Pulumavi IV:
Satavahanas kings were succeeded by the Kings of the Ikshvaku dynasty.

Previous Year Questions (PYQs)

Q) Some Buddhist rock-cut caves are called Chaityas, while the others are called Viharas. What is the difference between the two?

(a) Vihara is a place of worship, while Chaitya is the dwelling place of the monks

(b) Chaitya is a place of worship, while Vihara is the dwelling place of monks.

(d) There is no material difference between the two.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q) what does the ‘gulma’ refers to during the satavahana period .

Gulma refers to the village assembly. All village assemblies were called “Gulma”, whereas the village headman was called “Gulmika”.

Q) Who wrote the Amaravati inscription related to Satavahanas?

The Amaravati inscription was written by Pulumavi II and is the first inscription of Satavahanas in Andhra Pradesh. This indicates that the Satavahana empire spread to Andhra during the Pulumavi II period.

Satavahana Rule in Central India

Political History:

The most important of the native successors of the Mauryas in the north were the Shungas followed by the Kanvas.

In the Deccan and in central India, the Satavahanas succeeded the Mauryas, although after a gap of about 100 years.

The Satavahanas are considered to be the same as the Andhras mentioned in the Puranas. The Puranas speak only of Andhra rule and not of Satavahana rule, and the name Andhra does not figure in Satavahana inscriptions. Pre-Satavahana settlements are indicated by the finds of red ware, black-and-red ware, and russet-coated painted ware at many sites in the Deccan.

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Most of these are associated with the iron using megalith builders who were stimulated to new activity by contacts with the material culture from the north. The use of the iron ploughshare, paddy transplantation, the growth of urbanism, writing, etc., created conditions for state formation under the Satavahanas. According to some Puranas, the Andhras ruled altogether for 300 years although this period is assigned to the rule of the Satavahana dynasty.

The earliest inscriptions of the Satavahanas relate to the first century BC, when they defeated the Kanvas and established power in parts of central India. The early Satavahana kings ruled not in Andhra but in north Maharashtra where their earliest coins and inscriptions have been found, establishing power in the upper Godavari valley, which currently produces rich and diverse crops in Maharashtra.

Gradually the Satavahanas extended their power over Karnataka and Andhra. Their greatest competitors were the Shakas, who had established power in the upper Deccan and western India. At one stage the Satavahanas were dispossessed of their dominions by the Shakas in Maharashtra and western India. The fortunes of the family were restored by Gautamiputra Satakarni (AD 106-30) who called himself the only brahmana. He defeated the Shakas and destroyed many kshatriya rulers.

He claimed to have ended the Kshaharata lineage to which his adversary Nahapana belonged. This claim is true because over 8000 silver coins of Nahapana, found near Nasik, bear the marks of having been re-struck by the Satavahana king. He also occupied Malwa and Kathiawar which were controlled by the Shakas. It seems that the empire of Gautamiputra Satakarni extended from Malwa in the north to Karnataka in the south, and he possibly also exercised general authority over Andhra.

The successors of Gautamiputra ruled till AD 220. The coins and inscriptions of his immediate successor Vashishthiputra Pulumayi (AD 130— 54) have been found in Andhra, and show that by the middle of the second century this area had become a part of the Satavahana kingdom. He set up his capital at Paithan or Pratishthan on the Godavari in Aurangabad district.

The Shakas resumed their conflict with the Satavahanas for the possession of the Konkan coast and Malwa. Rudradaman I (AD 130-50), the Shaka ruler of Saurashtra (Kathiawar), defeated the Satavahanas twice, but did not destroy them because of shared matrimonial relations. Yajna Sri Satakarni (AD 165-94) was the last great king of the Satavahana dynasty, and recovered north Konkan and Malwa from the Shaka rulers.

He was a patron of trade and navigation, and his coins appear not only in Andhra but also in Maharashtra, MP, and Gujarat. His enthusiasm for navigation and overseas trade is demonstrated by the representation of a ship on his coins. The successors of Yajna Sri Satakarni were unable to retain the Satavahana kingdom which was destroyed by AD 220.

Aspects of Material Culture:

The material culture of the Deccan under the Satavahanas was a fusion of local elements and northern ingredients. The megalith builders of the Deccan were fairly well acquainted with the use of iron and agriculture. Although prior to c. 200 BC we find some iron hoes, the number of such tools increased substantially in the first two or three centuries of the Christian era.

We do not notice much change in the form of hoes from the megalithic to the Satavahana phase, except that the hoes in the latter were fully and properly socketed. Besides socketed hoes, sickles, spades, ploughshares, axes, adzes, razors, etc., relate to the Satavahana layers of the excavated sites.

Tanged and socketed arrowheads as well as daggers have also been discovered. At a site in Karimnagar district, even a blacksmith’s shop is found. The Satavahanas may have exploited the iron ores of Karimnagar and Warangal, for these districts show signs of iron working that dates to the megalithic phase in the first millennium BC. Evidence of ancient gold workings has been found in the Kolar fields in the pre-Christian centuries and later.

The Satavahanas may have used gold as bullion, for they did not issue gold coins as did the Kushans. By and large they issued coins of lead which is found in the Deccan. They also issued potin, copper, and bronze money. The Ikshvakus, who succeeded the Satavahanas in the early third century ad in eastern Deccan, also issued coins. Both the Satavahanas and Ikshvakus seem to have exploited the mineral resources of the Deccan.

The people of the Deccan were aware of the art of paddy transplantation, and in the first two centuries of the Christian era, the area between the Krishna and the Godavari, especially at the mouths of the two rivers, formed a great rice bowl. The people of the Deccan also produced cotton.

In foreign accounts, Andhra is considered to be famous for its cotton products. Thus, a substantial part of the Deccan developed a very advanced rural economy. According to Pliny, the Andhra kingdom maintained an army of 100,000 infantry, 2000 cavalry and 1000 elephants. This presupposes a large rural population, and apparently the peasants produced enough to support this military strength.

Through contacts with the north, the people of the Deccan learnt the use of coins, burnt bricks, ring wells, the art of writing, and the like. These components of material life became quite important in the Deccan. In Peddabankur (200 BC-AD 200) in Karimnagar district, we find regular use of fire-baked bricks, and that of flat, perforated roof tiles.

Although roof tiles were found in Kushan constructions, they were more widely used in the Deccan and western India under the Satavahanas. All this must have contributed to the longevity of constructions. It is remarkable that as many as twenty-two brick wells belonging to the second century have been discovered at Peddabankur. These naturally facilitated dense habitation.

The site also shows covered underground drains to channel waste water into soakage pits. Towns developed in Maharashtra by the first century BC when we find several crafts, but in eastern Deccan they developed a century later. Pliny informs us that the Andhra country in eastern Deccan included thirty walled towns, besides numerous villages. Several towns of the second and third centuries in this area are known from inscriptions and excavations. Increasing trade is indicated by numerous Roman and Satavahana coins which appeared about a century later in eastern Deccan in the Godavari- Krishna area.

Social Organization:

The Satavahanas originally seem to have been a Deccan tribe. They however were so brahmanized that they claimed to be brahmanas. Their most famous king, Gautamiputra Satakarni, described himself as a brahmana and claimed to have established the fourfold varna system which had fallen into disorder.

He boasted that he had put an end to the intermixture between the people of different social orders. Such confusion was probably caused by the Shaka infiltration and by the superficial brahmanization of the tribes living in the Deccan. The absorption of the Shakas in brahmanical society as kshatriyas was facilitated by intermarriage between the Shakas and the Satavahanas.

Similarly, the indigenous tribal people were increasingly acculturated by the Buddhist monks who were induced by land grants to settle in western Deccan. It is suggested that traders too supported the Buddhist monks, for the earliest caves seem to have been located on the trade routes. The Satavahanas were also the first rulers to make land grants to brahmanas, although we find more instances of such grants being made to Buddhist monks.

According to the Dharmashastras, it was the function of the kshatriyas to rule, but the Satavahana rulers called themselves brahmanas. Gautamiputra boasted that he was the true brahmana. As the Andhras are identified with the early Satavahanas, they were probably a local tribe that was brahmanized. The orthodox brahmanas of the north viewed the Andhras as a mixed caste which would appear to indicate that the Andhras were a tribal people brought within the fold of brahmanical society as a mixed caste.

Increasing craft and commerce during this period brought many merchants and artisans to the fore. Merchants took pride in naming themselves after the towns to which they belonged, and both artisans and merchants made generous donations to the Buddhist cause and set up small memorial tablets. Among the artisans, the gandhikas or perfumers are repeatedly mentioned as donors. At a later stage, the term gandhika became so general as to connote all kinds of shopkeepers. The modern title Gandhi is derived from this ancient term.

The most interesting detail about the Satavahanas relates to their family structure. In the Aryan society of north India, the father enjoyed greater importance than the mother, and the north Indian princes generally belonged to a patriarchal society. The Satavahanas however show traces of a matrilineal social structure. It was customary for their king to be named after his mother.

Such names as Gautamiputra and Vashishthiputra indicate that in their society the mother enjoyed a great deal of importance. Sometimes an inscription is issued both under the authority of the king and his mother. At present in peninsular India, the sons name includes a part of the father’s name, and there is no place in it for the mother’s, indicative of patriarchal influence. Queens made important religious gifts in their own right, and some of them acted as regents. However, the Satavahana ruling family was basically patriarchal because succession to the throne passed to the male member.

Pattern of Administration:

The Satavahana rulers strove for the royal ideal set forth in the Dharmashastras. The king was represented as the upholder of dharma, and to him were assigned new divine attributes. The Satavahana king is represented as possessing the qualities of mythical heroes such as Rama, Bhima, Keshava, and Arjuna, and is compared in prowess and lustre to these legendary figures and to supernatural forces. This was evidently meant to attribute divinity to the Satavahana king.

The Satavahanas retained some administrative structures of Ashokan times. Their district was called ahara, as it was known in the time of Ashoka, and their officials were known as amatyas and mahamatras, as was the case in Maurya times. However, their administrative divisions were also called rashtra, and their high officials were styled maharashtrikas. We notice certain military and feudal traits in the administration of the Satavahanas. It is significant that the senapati was appointed provincial governor. As the tribal people in the Deccan were not thoroughly brahmanized and reconciled to the new rule, it was necessary to keep them under strong military control.

The administration in the rural areas was placed in the hands of a gaulmika, the head of a military regiment consisting of nine chariots, nine elephants, twenty-five horses, and forty-five foot- soldiers. The head of this regiment was posted in the countryside to maintain peace and order. The military character of Satavahana rule is also evident from the common use of such terms as kataka and skandhavara in their inscriptions. These were military camps and settlements which served as administrative centres when the king was there. Thus, coercion played a key role in the Satavahana administration.

The Satavahanas started the practice of granting tax-free villages to brahmanas and Buddhist monks. The cultivated fields and villages granted to them were declared free from intrusion by royal policemen, soldiers, and other royal officers. These areas therefore became small independent islands within the Satavahana kingdom. Possibly the Buddhist monks also preached peace and spelt out rules of good conduct to the people among whom they lived, and taught them to respect political authority and social order. The brahmanas, of course, helped enforce the rules of the Varna system which promoted social stability.

The Satavahana kingdom had three grades of feudatories. The highest grade was formed by the king who was called raja and had the right to strike coins. The second grade was formed by the mahabhoja, and the third grade by the senapati. It sterns that these feudatories and landed beneficiaries enjoyed some authority in their respective localities.

The Satavahana rulers were brahmanas, and they represented the march of triumphant Brahmanism. From the very outset, kings and queens performed such Vedic sacrifices as ashvamedha, and vajapeya paying liberal sacrificial fees to the brahmanas. They also worshipped a large number of Vaishnava gods such as Krishna and Vasudeva.

However, the Satavahana rulers promoted Buddhism by granting land to the monks. In their kingdom, the Mahayana form of Buddhism commanded a considerable following, especially amongst the artisan class. Nagarjunakonda and Amaravati in AP became important seats of Buddhist culture under the Satavahanas, and more so under their successors, the Ikshvakus. Similarly, Buddhism flourished in the Nasik and Junar areas in western Deccan in Maharashtra, where it seems to have been supported by traders.

Architecture:

In the Satavahana phase, many chaityas (sacred shrines) and monasteries were cut out of solid rock in north-western Deccan or Maharashtra with great skill and patience. In fact, the process had started about a century earlier in about 200 BC. The two common religious constructions were the Buddhist temple which was called chaitya and monastery which was called vihara.

The chaitya was a large hall with a number of columns, and the vihara consisted of a central hall entered by a doorway from a verandah in front. The most famous chaitya is that of Karle in western Deccan. About 40 m long, 15 m wide, and 15 m high, it is a most impressive specimen of massive rock architecture.

The viharas or monasteries were excavated near the chaityas for the residence of monks during the rainy season. At Nasik there are three viharas,. Since they carry the inscriptions of Nahapana and Gautamiputra, they belong to first-second centuries AD. Rock-cut architecture is also found in Andhra in the Krishna-Godavari region, but the region is really famous for independent Buddhist structures, mostly in the form of stupas. The most famous of them are those of Amaravati and Nagarjunakonda. The stupa was a large round structure erected over some relic of the Buddha.

The Amaravati stupa was begun in around 200 BC but was completely reconstructed in the second half of the second century AD. Its dome measured 53 m across the base, and it seems to have been 33 m in height. The Amaravati stupa is full of sculptures that depict various scenes from the life of the Buddha. Nagarjunakonda prospered most in the second—third centuries under the patronage of the Ikshvakus, the successors of the Satavahanas.

It possesses both Buddhist monuments and the earliest brahmanical brick temples. Nearly two dozen monasteries can be counted here. Together with its stupas and mahachaityas Nagarjunakonda appears to have been the richest area in terms of structures in the early centuries of the Christian era.

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Short notes on Polity and Administration of Satavahanas

In the Satavahana dynasty, kingship was hereditary, and the king was regarded as the guardian of the established social order.

The Satavahana feudatories were of three types: rajas who struck coins in their own names; mahabhojas and maharathis, confined to a few families in the western Deccan with the latter having matrimonial alliances with the Satavahanas, and the third type, a later development, known as the mahasenapati. Local administration was left to the feudatories under the general control of royal officers.

Some mahasenapatis were in charge of departments at the centre, while others controlled the outlying provinces. The state was divided into administrative divisions called aharas; each one looked after by a minister called amatya.

The villages were administered by village headmen known as gramikas. Other Satahavana officials mentioned in the inscriptions include stewards and treasurers (heranikas), coiners and goldsmiths, ushers, record keepers, administrators (mahamatras) and ambassadors.

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Some other functionaries included mahatarakas (great chamberlains) mahaaryakas, bhandagarikas (storekeepers), nibambhakaras (officers in charge of registration of documents), dutakas (who carried royal orders) and pratiharus.

The empire was divided into janapadas and aharas. Gama was the division below that of ahara. The taxes of the state were neither burdensome nor many.

The sources of income were proceeds from the royal domain, the salt monopoly, taxes on land and income from court fees and fines. The Satavahanas acted as a link between north and south India, especially in trade and exchange of ideas.

The cities were protected by high walls, ramparts and gates. The gates were usually built of mortar and brick with a pavillion (torana) covering the passage.

The army consisted of infantry, cavalry and elephants. The foot soldiers had short swords for attacking, and for defending themselves, they wrapped strips of cloth around their stomachs and carried circular shields.

There were also bowmen in the army. Weapons included battle-axes, long spears and mallets. Only the elephant drivers and cavalry men wore turbans.

The military character of the Satavahana rule is evident from the common use of such terms as kataka and skandhavaras in their inscriptions. These were military camps and settlements which served as administrative centres so long as the king was there.

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The Kushan Empire (c. 30 -c. 375 AD) was a syncretic empire formed by the Yuezhi in the Bactrian territories in the early 1st century. It spread to encompass much of what is now Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Eastern Iran and Northern India, at least as far as Saketa and Sarnath, near Varanasi, where inscriptions have been found dating to the era of the Kushan emperor ...
Public Administration of the Satavahanas
The Satavahana polity followed the rule specified in the Sastras, and it adhered to the sovereign. Monarchy in the state was hereditary, and even though the Satavahanas did not mention their fathers in their inscriptions that primarily bore matronymics, succession was always reckoned with patriarchal lineage. ...
the early Satavahana kings were called raja. Although Gautami
The Satvahana kingdom was divided into aharas (literally 'good') or districts, as we find in the Asokan system. Aharas are not named in Asokan inscriptions, whose findspots would place them in Madhya Pradesh and eastern U.P. But the Satavahana inscriptions frequently. mention Govardhana-tfAara and some others.
Public Administration of the Satavahanas
Despite the vast extent of the Satavahana empire, its polity was simple and local administration was left largely to feudatories subject to the general control of royal officials. Know More Share. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Whatsapp. add-knowledge. Know the Sources + An approximate visualisation, sourced from Map of the Satavahanas.png From ...
Satavahana Era
Satavahana Dynasty - Rulers and their Contributions. Period: 60 BC - 225 AD. Capital: Pratishthana (Paithan) and Amravati. Sources: The Puranas and inscriptions remain important sources for the history of Satavahanas. It majorly comprised present Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Telangana. The early Satavahana kings appeared in Maharashtra and ...
Satavahana Rule in Central India
Political History: The most important of the native successors of the Mauryas in the north were the Shungas followed by the Kanvas. In the Deccan and in central India, the Satavahanas succeeded the Mauryas, although after a gap of about 100 years. The Satavahanas are considered to be the same as the Andhras mentioned in the Puranas. The Puranas speak only of Andhra rule and not of Satavahana ...
The Kushanas Polity and Major Impacts to the Contact with Central Asia
Kushanas Polity and Administration. The empire was divided into province, which was ruled by mahakshatrapa. Kshatrapa assisted him in the Administration. The kings used the title 'devaputra' son of God to show the divinity of the Kushana rulers. They also used the epithets maharaja and rajadhiraja. Contributions to Indian History
Short notes on Polity and Administration of Satavahanas
In the Satavahana dynasty, kingship was hereditary, and the king was regarded as the guardian of the established social order. The Satavahana feudatories were of three types: rajas who struck coins in their own names; mahabhojas and maharathis, confined to a few families in the western Deccan with the latter having matrimonial alliances with the Satavahanas, and the third type, a later ...
Post Mauryan polities with special reference to the Kushanas ...
A later Satavahana king was Hala, believed to be the author of the Prakrit work of poetry called Gathasattasai. The use of metronyms (name deriving from the mother's name) by Satavahana kings in their inscriptions and the fact that their queens, like Gautami Balashri, also issued inscriptions are interesting features.
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4. Write an essay on the Kushana and Satavahana polity. (d) All questions carry equal marks. 1. Critically examine the Mauryan economy 5. Review the debate on the problem of urban the basis of available sources. decline, with reference to trade, currency and urban settlements from 4th century CE to 7th century CE. 2.
Ancient India
Assess the significance of satavahana rule in the early history of the Deccan. Write an essay on the kushana and satavahana polity. How far would you agree that Ashoka's Dhamma was an administrative tool to keep the empireintact. Outline the polity and administration during the rule of kushanas and satavahanas.

Satavahana Dynasty - Important Rulers of Satavahana Empire [UPSC History Notes]

Satavahana Dynasty [Origin & Development]

Facts about Satavahana Dynasty

Important Rulers of the Satavahana Dynasty

Satakarni I (70- 60 BC)

Gautamiputra Satakarni of Satavahana Dynasty (106 – 130 AD or 86 – 110 AD)

Vashishthiputra Pulumayi (c. 130 – 154 CE)

Yajna Sri Satakarni (c. 165 – 194 CE)

Satavahana Dynasty Administration

Economy of Satavahana Empire

Religion & Language of Satavahana Kingdom

Satavahanas – Material Culture

Satavahanas – Social Organizations

Satavahana Architecture

The Decline of the Satavahanas

Frequently Asked Questions about the Satavahana Dynasty

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The Kushanas And The Satavahanas:

#1. Divine Portrayals and Political Legitimacy:

#2. Multicultural Scripts and Trade Networks:

#3. Standardized Coinage and Economic Stability:

Satavahanas:

#2. Linguistic Diversity and Cultural Synthesis:

#3. Maritime Symbols and Economic Strategies:

Conclusion:

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):

#2. In what ways did the Kushana coins demonstrate multiculturalism and trade networks?

#3. How did the introduction of the gold dinar contribute to Kushana economic stability?

#4. What was the political significance conveyed by Satavahana royal portraits on coins?

#5. How did linguistic diversity on Satavahana coins reflect cultural synthesis?

#6. What role did maritime symbols play in Satavahana coins and economic strategies?

#7. How did Satavahana coins assert dynastic claims and reinforce political lineage?

#8. What did the cultural synthesis on Satavahana coins reveal about their political and economic adaptability?

Rajendra Mohwiya Sir

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Satavahanas-Sakas-Kushanas Dynasty, Rulers, Rise and Decline

The Satavahanas: Overview

The Sakas: Overview

The Kushanas: Overview

Satavahanas, Sakas, Kushanas in Detail

Satavahana Dynasty

Satavahana Dynasty: Origins and Early History

Satavahana Dynasty Founder

Satavahana Dynasty Rulers

1. Satavahana Dynasty Rulers: Simuka (230-207 BCE):

2. Satavahana Dynasty Rulers: Satakarni I (c. 180-160 BCE)

3. Satavahana Dynasty Rulers: Gautamiputra Satakarni (c. 106-130 CE)

4. Satavahana Dynasty Rulers: Vasishthiputra Pulumavi (c. 130-159 CE)

5. Satavahana Dynasty Rulers: Yajna Sri Satakarni (c. 167-196 CE)

6. Satavahana Dynasty Rulers: Vijaya (c. 207-223 CE)

Satavahana Dynasty: Military Prowess

Satavahana Dynasty: Administrative System

Satavahana Dynasty: Patronage of Art and Culture

Decline of Satavahana Dynasty

Satavahana Dynasty: Legacy

Saka Dynasty

Origins of the Saka Dynasty

Saka Dynasty Founder

Saka Dynasty Rulers

1. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Maues (c. 90 BCE)

2. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Vonones (c. 75-65 BCE)

3. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Azes I (c. 58-12 BCE)

4. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Azilises (c. 12 BCE-10 CE)

5. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Zeionises (c. 10-35 CE)

6. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Kharahostes (c. 10-20 CE)

7. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Kanishka (c. 127-150 CE)

8. Saka Dynasty Rulers: Vasudeva I (c. 192-225 CE)

Rise of the Saka Dynasty

Decline of Saka Dynasty

Legacy of the Saka Dynasty

Kushan Dynasty

Origins of the Kushan Dynasty

Kushan Dynasty Founder

Kushan Dynasty Rulers

1. Kushan Dynasty Rulers: Kujula Kadphises (30 CE to 80 CE)

2. Kushan Dynasty Rulers: Vima Kadphises (80 CE to 100 CE)

3. Kushan Dynasty Rulers: Kanishka (127 CE to 150 CE)

4. Kushan Dynasty Rulers: Huvishka (150 CE to 180 CE)