CHANAKYA NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY

HISTORY

PROJECT

CHALUKYAS OF BADAMI
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ACKNOLEDGEMENT The researcher is very much thankful to all those, who directly or indirectly helped in making this research successful. The researcher is very much obliged by the help he received from each and every one and all those who cooperated during the making of this project. The researcher wants to thank his subject teacher for giving such an interesting topic for the project work as well as for cooperating in making of this project. He is very respectfully thanked by the researcher due to his suggestions during the process of completion of this project and giving the guide lines for making the project and to do research. The researcher is thankful to his father for getting the hardcopy of this project as well as providing high standard of facility to fulfill the requirements of this project.

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CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION...4 2. JAYASIMHA..8 3. RANARAGA...9 4. PULAKESHIN I10 5. KIRTIVARMAN I.11 6. MANGALESHA13 7. PULAKESHIN II...15 8. VIKRAMADITYA I..18 9. VIKRAMADITYA II21 10. KIRTIVARMAN II...24 11. CONCLUSION..25 12. BIBLIOGRAPHY..27

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INTRODUCTION THE CHALUKYAS OF BADAMI WHO ARE FAMOUS IN HISTORY for evolving a distinctive style of temple architecture, now known as CHALUKYAN architecture, ruled over Maharastra for a period of well nigh two hundred years. Though Pulakesin I was the first paramount ruler of this dynasty, it was actually Kirtivarman I who established his sway over Maharastra. The reign of Klrtivarman I began in the year A.D. 566-67 and the last ruler of this dynasty who lost control over Maharastra soon after A.D. 757 was strangely enough another Kirtivarman, known to historians as Kirtivarman II. There are various theories regarding the origin of the CHALUKYAS. The epigraphical records of the period when the CHALUKYAS first emerge into prominence do not say anything about their original home. Nor do we find any contemporary literary works which give us any clue to this. However, inscriptions of the later members of this family, known to historians as the CHALUKYAS of Kalyani and the CHALUKYAS of Vengi, as also some literary works of their period contain some traditional accounts of their origin. Some of them mentioned here would illustrate that these accounts not only differed from one another but were also fanciful inventions.1 The CHALUKYAS trace their descent to an original home at Ayodhya claiming their ancestry from the Moon. For example, the Kauthem plates of Vikramaditya V (A.D. 1009) state that there ruled at Ayodhya fifty-nine kings of the CHALUKYA family. After these, sixteen more kings ruled over the southern region. Subsequently their power was eclipsed temporarily but eventually their might was restored by Jayasimha I. Similar accounts are found in the Miraj plates of Jayasimha II (A.D. 1024)2, the Yevur inscription of Vikramaditya VI (A.D. 1077)3 and the Nilgunda plates4 of the same king. The Kannada poet Ranna who was a contemporary of the later CHALUKYA king Taila II (A.D. 973-997) states in his great poem also that one of the ancestors of the CHALUKYA rulers reigned at Ayodhya. According to another legendary account given in some other inscriptions, the CHALUKYA race was descended from the Moon, who was descended from Atri, who was descended from Brahma. A third account also found in an inscription tells us that Hiranya-garbha-Brahma was born from the lotus in Visnus navel. Hiranyagarbha-Brahmas son was Manu and Manus son was Mandavya, whose son was Harita. Haritas son was Hariti-Pancasikha from whose culuka (or hollow of the palms) the
1 2

Ind. Ant., Vol. XVI, p. 21. Epigraphia Indica, Vol. XII, pp. 309 ff. 3 Epigraphia Indica, Vol. XII, pp. 309 ff.

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CHALUKYAS were born when he was pouring out an offering of water to the gods. The reference to this origin of the progenitor of the CHALUKYA race from the culuka is also found in Bilhanas (the court poet of the later CHALUKYA king Vikramaditya VI, who ruled from A.D. 1076 to 1126) Vikramankadevacarita, where the details are somewhat different. Here it is from Brahmas culuka that a powerful warrior was born from whom descended the CHALUKYAS. The story states that when Brahma was engaged in his sandhya oblations, India requested him to create a warrior to put an end to the godlessness on earth. At this request Brahma looked at his culuka and the warrior referred to above suddenly sprang up. Almost an identical account of the original ancestor of the CHALUKYAS is also found in an inscription of the CHALUKYAS of Anhilvad4. It states that when Brahma was churning his culuka, viz. the ocean, a warrior whom he named CHALUKYA sprang forth ready to obey his commands. The account in the records of the Eastern CHALUKYAS of Vengi5 contains some striking variations from the information given in the records of the Kalyani branch of the family. After tracing the genealogy from Brahma through the Moon and through mythical personages like Pururavas and Ayu, it goes on to mention two kings Satanika and Udayana; and this Udayana was the first of the fifty nine rulers who ruled in uninterrupted succession at Ayodhya. After these rulers a certain king of this dynasty called Vijayaditya went to the southern region in order to conquer it. But unfortunately after defeating the king Trilocana-Pallava, he died. His queen, who was pregnant at this, time, took shelter in the residence of a saintly Brahmana called Visnubhatta-Somayajin at the agrahara of Mudivemu, where she gave birth to a son named Visnuvardhana. She brought him up performing all the rites that were suitable to his descent from the Manavyas and the Hariti-putras. Kirtivarman II mentions his name as Kirtivarmmarasa4. Finally the Dasavatara Cave inscription at Ellora mentions Dantidurga as having conquered Vallabharasa, i.e., the CHALUKYA king. These name endings would show beyond any doubt that the CHALUKYAS were of Kannada origin considering the fact that the suffix arasa appears even in Sanskrt inscriptions. The third reason, which is stronger than the first two, is that not only the name endings but that even some of the names are purely Kannada5. We have the first paramount ruler of this dynasty bearing the name Polekesi and this form of the name is the one found in the earliest inscriptions of this

4 5

Puranas Lord Bom. Gaz., Vol. I, pt. ii, p. 376. 2 Ep. Ind., Vol. XXV, p. 29, f.n. 1.

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dynasty, though we find other forms like Polikesi, Pulekesi, Pulakesi, Pulikesi and Polakesi in some inscriptions. Various explanations have been offered regarding the etymology of this word. Most of these explanations take the first half of the word to be puli, meaning tiger in Kannada and the second half to be Sanskrt kesin meaning haired, the two halves making the meaning tigerhaired or having a coat of short, thick and close hair like that of a tiger6. A verse in the Kauthem plates would suggest that the name signifies one by hearing whose name the hair of the hearers stand on end as with joy, by connecting the first part of the name with the Sanskrt word pulaka (horripilation). One scholar derives the first half of the word from the Sanskrt root pul meaning to grow or to be great and takes kesin to mean a lion and explains the whole word as the great lion. But the earliest form of the name is Polekesi and, as suggested by Fleet,7 is in all probability the original form. And it is worth noting that it is this form which even Kielhorn has adopted. So an attempt is made here to interpret this original form Polekesi. Pole in Kannada means impurity of child-birth, i.e., of the natal chamber, and in Kannada the word kesi as a shortened form of Kesava is found not only in literature but also in inscriptions.8 For example, the author of the famous Kannada grammar Sabdamani-darpana is Kesiraja9 and he also calls himself Kesava10. In one of the inscriptions an officer of the Kalacuri monarch Bijjala is called by the alternative names of Kesava, Kesiraja and Kesimayya. An inscription of the CHALUKYA king Somesvara I mentions a general named Kesava-gavunda, who is also referred to therein as Kesi-gavunda and Kesi-raja. So the expression Polekesi can be taken to mean he who was like Kesava, i.e., Lord Krsna (in his prowess) even in the natal chamber. And we know that according to the

Krsna exhibited superhuman qualities even in the natal chamber. Evidently this ruler was given the name Polekesi because he showed extraordinary qualities like Lord Kesava or Krsna even from the time of his birth. Accordingly we are led to the unexceptionable conclusion that this name is a Kannada word meaning one who resembled Krsna in prowess from babyhood. And this name Polekesi, as explained here, is quite appropriate in the case of one who was the real founder of the CHALUKYAN kingdom and even more appropriate in the case of his famous
6 7

Fleet, Bom. Gaz., Vol. I, pt. ii, p. 343, f.n. 5. Ibid. The Miraj plates etc. also give this verse. 8 The Hindu Weekly Magazine, April 2, 1961, p. I. 9 Bom. Gaz., Vol. I, pt. ii, p. 343, f.n. 5. 10 Supplement to the List of Inscriptions of Southern India, pp. 1-2.

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grandson, the great Pulakesin II, who struck terror even in the heart of the mighty monarch of the north, Harsavardhana. [However, Pulakesin is the form of the name used by historians for these two monarchs, and so this form is adopted in the following pages for the sake of uniformity.] The name of another prince of this family also shows the Kannada origin of this family. Kirtivarman I, the son of Pulakesin I, calls himself Katti-arasa in his Godaci plates1 which are entirely in Sanskrt. Katti is a purely Kannada word meaning sword and arasa (Sanskrt raja), as already explained, means king. So Kirtiraja (by which name Kirtivarman calls himself in some inscriptions) is apparently a Sanskrtised form of Katti-arasa. This name Katti-arasa or Kattiyara seems to have been quite common in the CHALUKYA family. Yet another name in this family indicative of a Kannada origin is Bittarasa, borne by the ruler Visnuvardhana, the younger brother of Pulakesin II. As pointed out above, this form of the name Bittarasa is found on the seal of the Satara plates2 of A.D. 617-18 and there can be no doubt that Visnuvardhana is the Sanskrt form of Bittarasa. It may be noted in this connection that another king of the Kannada country i.e., the Hoysala king Visnuvardhana was better known as Bittiga or Bittideva which are only variants of Bittarasa. Bitta is only the Kannada form of Visnu and the fact that the prince used the Kannada form of his nameand not the Sanskrt formon his seal proves that he belonged to the Kannada country.

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JAYASIMHA.

Strangely enough so far we have no inscriptions of Jayasimha, and all that we know of him is from the inscriptions of some of his successors.11 For instance, in the Aihole inscription of Pulakesin II, Jayasimha is described as a very brave warrior, but no specific exploit of his is mentioned.12 In inscriptions of the 11th century, however, he is described as having founded the kingdom of the CHALUKYAS, after defeating the Rastrakuta prince Indra, son of Krsna. But we do not know of any Rastrakuta princes bearing these names at the beginning of the 6th century to which period Jayasimha can be assigned.13 Further not much credence can be given to the information contained in inscriptions of the 11th century about the achievements of a prince of the 6th century especially when the contemporary records are totally silent about any such achievement. It may be noted, however, that a Rastrakuta chief called Dejjamaharaja was ruling about the sixth century somewhere near Gokak (Belganv district, Mysore State). Even if the statements of the later inscriptions, namely that the CHALUKYAS defeated the Rastrakutas before they became independent should be accepted, we cannot say whether this Dejjamaharaja was related to Krsna or Indra; and if he were related, the exact nature of the relationship cannot also be ascertained.14

11 12

Ep. Ind., Vol. XX, p. 18. Ibid., Vol., XXVII, p. 8. 13 Ibid., Vol. VI, p. 1 . 14 See, for instance, ibid., Vol. XII, p. 143.

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RANARAGA. Of Jayasimhas son Ranaraga, the Mahakuta pillar inscription of Mangalesa states that by (his) fondness for war (he) elicited the affection of his own people and caused vexation of mind to (his) enemies. We do not know who these enemies were. Apparently this is just conventional praise.15 And the Aihole inscription bestows similar conventional eulogies on this prince. As Ranaragas son Pulakesin I is known to have performed the Asvamedha sacrifice signifying that he was the paramount ruler, he appears to have been the first independent ruler of this family.16 Further the fact that he was the first prince of this dynasty to call himself Maharaja is another proof of his suzerainty. Evidently his father and grandfather viz., Ranaraga and Jayasimha were feudatories, probably of the Kadambas.

15 16

Ibid., Vol. XXI, p. 289. Ind. Ant., Vol. XIX, p. 7.

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PULAKESHIN I

As stated above the first independent ruler of this dynasty was Pulakesin I. In the Aihole inscription he is stated to have acquired the town of Vatapi (modern Badami, Bijapur district, Mysore State) which became the CHALUKYA capital and thus he was the real founder of the CHALUKYA kingdom. However, the circumstances under which this kingdom was founded are not set forth anywhere. But as Vatapi lay apparently in the dominions of the Kadambas, it may be taken that the CHALUKYAS, who presumably were the feudatories of the Kadambas, acquired a kingdom of their own by appropriating a part of the Kadamba dominion when the latter became weak. The Badami inscription1 of Pulakesin I which is the only available inscription of his reign dated Saka 465 (A.D. 543)calls him Vallabhesvara and says that he fortified Vatapi. It also states that he performed the Asvamedha and other sacrifices according to Vedic rites and that he celebrated the mahadana of Hiranyagarbha. The Mahakuta pillar inscription17 also credits him with the performance of this mahadana in addition to Agnistoma, Vajapeya. Paundarika Bahusuvarna and Asvamedha sacrifices. The fact that he performed so many principal sacrifices indicates his paramountcy. In the Nerur copperplate inscription of Mangalesa18 Pulakesin is staled to have been acquainted with Manudharmasastra, the Puranas, the Ramayana, and the Bharata (Mahabharata). He assumed the significant title of Satyasraya, the asylum of truth, which became a distinctive title of the rulers of this dynasty and was assumed by almost all of his successors. Though he was such a powerful ruler and wielded great authority, we have no specific information about any of his conquests or the extent of his dominions. He had also the titles of Ranavikrama and Sriprthivivallabha. He had married Princess Durlabhadevl of the Batpura family and he seems to have had another wife named Indukanti19. He had two sons named Kirtivarman and Mangalesa. As Mangalesa in his Mahakuta pillar inscription refers to Durlabhadevl as his fathers wife (sva-guru-patni), it is probable that Durlabhadevl was his step-mother. Besides the Badami stone inscription mentioned already there are two copper-plate records which purport to have been issued.

17 18

lnd. Ant., Vol. XIX, p. 356. Ibid., Vol. VII, p. 161. 19 See Aihole inscription of Pulakesin II, text-line 3.

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KIRTIVARMAN I.

Pulakesin I was succeeded by his elder son, Kirtivarman I. Two inscriptions of his time have been found, both of them dated in the twelfth year of his reign20. One of them is on copperplates, while the other is engraved on stone. Since the latter21 says that the twelfth year of his reign corresponded to Saka 500 (i.e., A.D. 578) the first year of his reign would be A.D. 566-67. According to Kirtivarmans copper-plate inscription,22 he vanquished all his rival kinsmen (dayada) by diplomacy and valour and was ruling his subjects in accordance with the code of conduct pertaining to different castes and religious orders, and was keeping them pleased and happy. This inscription also gives him the purely Kannada form of his name, Kattiarasa, though the inscription itself is in Sanskrt. The Mahakuta pillar inscription of Mangalesa credits Kirtivarman with victory over the rulers of Vanga, Anga, Kalinga, Vattura, Magadha, Madraka, Kerala Ganga, Musaka, Pandya, Dramila, Coliya, Aluka, Vaijayanti etc. Though it is impossible to believe that he could have conquered all the northern kingdoms mentioned here, his success over the rulers of the south and south-west may be regarded as fairly authentic, as some of them like the conquest of Vaijayanti have been corroborated by the Aihole inscription of Pulakesin II which states that Kirtivarman was the night of doom to the Nalas, the Mauryas and the Kadambas. The Kadambas were the rulers of Banavasi (also known as Vaijayanti) and the surrounding country in the present Mysore State. As this inscription states that Kirtivarman inflicted utter defeat on groups of Kadambas, it is evident that there were several branches of the Kadambas all of which he crushed. And we know from the Kadamba records themselves that there were at least two, if not three such branches ruling independently. The Nalas were ruling in parts of the present Madhya Pradesa (Bastar), Orissa (Jeypore) and Vidarbha. Their inscriptions have been found at Podagadh and Kesaribeda (Koraput district, Orissa). One of their copperplates23 was issued from Nandivardhana identified with Nagardhan near Ramtek (Nagpur district) and mentions the grant of the village of Kadambagiri, identified with Kalamba in the Yeotmal district. A hoard of gold coins of this family was discovered at Edenga, a village in the Bastar district of Madhya Pradesa.24 It is known from inscriptions that the Mauryas were ruling
20 21

Bom. Gaz., Vol. I, pt. ii., p. 344, note 6. Ind. Ant., Vol. III, p. 305, Vol. V, p. 363. 22 Ep. Ind., Vol. XXVIII, p. 62. 23 Ep. Ind., Vol. XIX, pp. 100 ff. 24 Journal of the Numismatic Society of India, Vol. I, pp. 29 ff.

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in Konkan. The Coliya, Pandya, Dramila and Kerala kingdoms are too well known to require any identification. The Musaka territory comprised parts of modern Kerala and the Alukas (Alupas) were ruling over parts of South Kanara district (Mysore State). The Gangas were reigning in south Mysore with their capital at Talakad (Mysore district). Thus Kirtivarman was the first king of this dynasty to have established his sway over parts of the present Maharastra State. He was a great patron of art and perhaps he was the first to adopt the Buddhist rock-cut temple architecture to Hindu shrines. His stone inscription which is found in the Vaisnava cave at Badami1 states that his brother Mangalesvara got made under his orders a temple of Visnu (Visnu-grha) and installed in it the image of Visnu and granted village of Lanjisvara (modern Nandi-kesvara near Badami) for meeting the expenses connected with the worship and offerings at the temple. Evidently this temple is the magnificent cave temple at Badami, containing admirable reliefs of Visnu seated on Ananta and Narasimha.

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MANGALESHA His younger brother Mangalesa, succeeded him, as Kirtivarmans eldest son, Pulakesin was evidently too young to ascend the throne. The Mahakuta pillar inscription cites the cyclic year Siddhartha as the fifth year of his prosperous reign. This year corresponds to A.D. 601-02 and so Mangalesa must have begun to rule in A.D. 597-98. Mangalesa was a great warrior and is described in the Aihole inscription as having led successful campaigns to the limits of the eastern and western seas. Evidently in one such campaign to the west he conquered Revati-dvipa which has been identified with modern Redi, a fortified promontory about eight miles from Vehgurla in the Ratnagiri district. The Mahakuta pillar inscription tells us that Mahgalesa having set his heart upon the conquest of the northern region, conquered king Buddha and took possession of all his wealth. From his undated Nerur copper-plates1 we learn that this Buddha (Buddharaja) was the son of Sankaragana and the Aihole inscription of Pulakesin II states that Mangalesa took in marriage the damsel, viz., the Fortune of the Kataccuris having scattered the gathering gloom, viz., the array of elephants (of the adversary) with hundreds of bright lamps which were the swords of his followers. All these put together show clearly that this Buddharaja, son of Sankaragana, was the Kalacuri monarch who reigned in the first quarter of the seventh century. This victory over Buddharaja must have taken place before 601-02, which is the date of the Mahakuta pillar inscription, which also states that Mangalesa had an eager desire to set up a pillar of victory on the Bhagirathi. But apparently he could not proceed beyond the Kalacuri dominions because he had to turn his attention towards quelling the rebellion of Svamiraja of the CHALUKYA family who, according to the Nerur copper-plates, was killed by Mangalesa. Though this Svamiraja is described as belonging to the CHALUKYA family, we have no means of ascertaining the exact relationship between him and the members of the ruling family. The Nerur copper-plates describe this Svamiraja as a great warrior who had attained victory in eighteen battles and possibly Mangalesa had to kill him because he would not bow down to the CHALUKYA monarch. These plates record that Mangala-raja (Mangalesa) granted the village of Kundivataka in Konkana-visaya. This village has been identified with Kundi in Sangamesvar Taluka, Ratnagiri District, or with Kudal about three and a half miles north-east of Nerur. Since Buddharaja mentioned above continued to rule till about A.D. 610, it may be surmise that he retrieved his possessions as soon as Mangalesas attention was diverted towards troubles a home.

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So Mangalesa, who had the lofty ambition of carrying his conquests upto the Bhagirathi, had to content himself with erecting a dharmastambha (pillar of religion) at Mahakuta. Mangalesas reign ended in disaster and he lost his life in the civil war which ensued between him and his nephew Pulakesin (who became later on Pulakesin II) who, as stated in his Aihole inscription, had to fight his own uncle Mangalesa who had tried to install on the CHALUKYA throne his own son ignoring the lawful claims of Pulakesin. As it is known from inscriptions that the reign of Pulakesin II commenced in the year A.D. 610-11, Mangalesa must have died before this date. We do not know the name of Mangalesas son for whose sake he is stated to have made attempts to alienate the throne from the rightful heir, Pulakesin II. Mangalesa had the titles of Ranavikranta and Uru-Ranavikranta.

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PULAKESHIN II.

As already stated, Pulakesin, who succeeded Mangalesa, had to wrest the throne from his uncle after a hard fight. In the Aihole inscription it is stated that Pulakesin went into exile, when he came to know the machinations of his uncle to secure the throne for his son; and by wise counsel and prowess he crushed his uncle. His Kopparam copper-plate inscription25 is dated on the Mahanavami day in the month of Karttika in the twentyfirst year of his reign. Sewell has reckoned this date26 as equivalent to 10th October, A.D. 631 and he considers that accordingly the accession of Pulakesin should have taken place on or after 11th October, A.D. 610. In this kings Goa copper-plates27 Satyasraya Dhruvaraja Indravarman of the Bappura family evidently the same as the Batpura family to which his grandmother i.e., wife of Pulakesin I belonged is reported to have made a grant on the full-moon day of the month of Magha in the Saka year 532 while ruling Revatidvipa and other regions as a subordinate of Pulakesin II. As the equivalent of this date in the Christian era works out to 5th January, A.D. 611, Pulakesin must have ascended the throne between these two dates i.e., 11th October, A.D. 610 and 5th January A.D. 611. At the time of his accession the CHALUKYA kingdom, which had been vastly enlarged by the additions made by his father and uncle, had become engulfed in chaos and confusion owing to revolts and uprisings on all sides. A graphic account of how he put down the rebels and other enemies, and established order in his dominions is given in the Aihole inscription. First of all he is stated to have encountered two chieftains named Appayika and Govinda, who tried to overrun Pulakesins territories north of the Bhimarathi with a huge army of elephants. One of them terrified at Pulakesins might fled from the field, while the other was won over by Pulakesin, who then turned his attention towards the wealthy city of Vanavasi on the banks of the Varada, laid seige to it and captured it. Evidently, the Kadambas, the rulers of Vanavasi, who had formerly been the feudatories of the CHALUKYAS had revolted during the period of confusion following the death of Mangalesa ; and Pulakesin had therefore to resubjugate. After this exploit he subdued the Ganga and Alupa rulers, who submitted to him meekly. It has already been noticed that the Alupas and Gangas were subordinates of the
25 26

Ep. Ind., Vol. XVIII, p. 257. Ibid., p. 261. 27 J. Bo. Br. R. A. S., Vol. X, p. 365.

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CHALUKYAS even during the reign of his father, Kirtivarman I. It looks as though every subordinate of the CHALUKYAS had taken advantage of the chaos and confusion following Mangalesas demise and had tried to declare himself independent. So Pulakesin had the herculean task of reconquering them all. In addition to the Kadambas, the Alupas and the Gangas, he had to reduce the Mauryas of Konkan also to submission and capture Puri (probably their capital) with the assistance of his fleet of innumerable ships. Puri has been described as the fortune of the Western Seas and has been identified variously with Elephanta near Bombay or Rajapuri in Kolaba District, Rajapur in Ratnagiri District, or Thana. Seeing the invincible might of Pulakesin, the Latas, the Malavas and the Gurjaras voluntarily became his feudatories. Apparently at this time Harsa was trying to expand his dominions by invading the Deccan. This infuriated Pulakesin whose authority had by now extended up to the river Mahi and consequently the forces of these two mighty rulers met in battle in the region of the river Reva in the neighbourhood of the Vindhyas. In this battle Pulakesin inflicted a crushing defeat on the great Harsa destroying his army of innumerable elephants. By these numerous victories Pulakesin acquired the sovereignty over the three Maharastrakas with their 99,000 villages. The three Maharastrakas mentioned here do not denote any specific geographical areas but the three great administrative divisions of his dominions. The expression Maharastraka-traya is to be taken in its literal sense of the three great administrative divisions of his kingdom (Maha big or great, rastra = administrative division). It is well known that the word rastra occurs in the sense of administrative division in innumerable inscriptions. In this connection, attention may be drawn to the fact that in the Ramayana of Valmiki, King Dasaratha is described as Maharastra-vivardhana i.e., one who increased the prosperity of his extensive country. Evidently the word Maharastra here refers to Dasarathas own large kingdom in general and not to any specific geographical unit of India. That the word Maharastra is used in the sense of an area bigger than a rastra becomes clear from cognate expressions like nadu, Mahanadu; (nadu = assembly; mahanadu = a big assembly) grama mahagrama; agrahara, Mahagrahara. Thus it would be most appropriate to take the word Maharastraka-traya to mean the three great administrative divisions of Pulakesins dominions, of which the present Maharastra no doubt formed a part. The victory over Harsa was the most noteworthy of all his victories since it was a victory over a great monarch who was the supreme lord of the whole of Northern India. This outstanding achievement of Pulakesins was prized so highly by his successors, that it finds a prominent

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mention in their records. They proclaim that Pulakesin acquired the title of Paramesvara after defeating. Harsavardhana, the lord of the whole of Uttarapatha (Northern India). In contrast to this Pulakesin calls himself the lord of Daksinapatha (Southern India). There are differences of opinion among scholars as to the date of the conflict between the two great monarchs of the time Harsa and Pulakesin. The Hyderabad copper-plate incription of A.D. 613, says that Pulakesin acquired the title of Paramesvara by defeating a hostile king who had devoted himself to the contest of a hundred battles. It has been noted above that records of Pulakesins successors state that he acquired this title by defeating Harsa. So some scholars think that the conflict mentioned in all these records refer to Pulakesins war with Harsa. Hence these scholars consider that this conflict took place before A.D. 613 i.e., in the first three or four years of his reign. Others think that because the defeat of Harsa is not mentioned in his Lohaner plates1 of 630 A.D., Pulakesin was too busy with his domestic troubles to pit his strength against Harsa till A.D. 630 and hence the great conflict could have taken place only after A.D. 630. But we cannot so easily brush aside the definite statements found in his own sons records that Pulakesin acquired the title of Paramesvara after defeating Harsa, and as stated above, the first mention of the acquition of the title Paramesvara is in Pulakesins inscription of A.D. 613. And it is not quite safe to assume that as Pulakesins Lohaner Plates of A.D. 630, are silent about this conflict, it could not have taken place earlier than A.D. 630. There are quite a few instances where a particular event, which is not mentioned in a record of a particular date had actually-taken place earlier than the date cited in the record. For example, the late Dr. D. R. Bhandarkar has pointed out that the CHALUKYA king Vinayadityas (grandson of Pulakesin II) subjugation of the Pallavas, Kalabhras and others is mentioned in his Jejuri plates of the ninth year of his reign, though it is not mentioned in the copper-plate inscription of the eleventh year of his reign. Till the discovery of the Jejuri plates it was thought that this subjugation took place only after the eleventh year. And there is nothing inherently impossible in a powerful monarch of the calibre of Pulakesin punishing the defection of his feudatories and stemming the tide of Harsas invasion of the CHALUKYAN territories within the first few years of his reign. After describing the victories mentioned above, the Aihole inscription proceeds to narrate Pulakesins campaigns against the countries of Kosala and Kalinga, whose rulers were the first to bow down to the might of his arms. Kalinga was probably ruled by the early Eastern Gangas at that time and Kosala by the Somavamsi kings.

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VIKRAMADITYA I.

The inscriptions of Vikramaditya and his successors declare that Vikramaditya who is called the dear son of his father Pulakesin, acquired for himself the regal fortune of his father. And after defeating the hostile kings in battle in country after country he acquired the fortune and sovereignty of his ancestors. His Talamanci plates are dated in the sixth year of his reign on the day of the solar eclipse in the month of Sravana, which has been equated with 13th July, A.D. 660. On the basis of this record and the Nerur plates of Vijayabhattarika Kielhorn fixed the commencement of the reign of Vikramaditya sometime between September A.D. 654 and July A.D. 6557. His Gadval plates are dated on Tuesday, the fullmoon day of the month of Vaisakha in the Saka year 596, which is stated to be the twentieth year of his reign. The equivalent of this date in the Christian Calendar is 25th April, A.D. 674, or in other words his reign must have commenced some-time between September 654 and April, A.D. 655. Apparently, in the interval between the death of Pulakesin in A.D. 642 or so and the accession of Vikramaditya I, the CHALUKYA country was in the hands of the enemies, though, as we shall presently see, another son of Pulakesin named Adityavarman and his son Abhinavaditya were ruling in parts of Karnool (Andhra Pradesa), Bellary and Citaldrug (Mysore State) districts. But these princes do not find mention in the genealogies given in the inscriptions of Vikramaditya and his successors. Yet Adityavarman in his Karnool District plates1 which record the grant of a village in the Karnool region calls himself the dear son of Pulakesin and bears the paramount titles like Maharajadhiraja. So it has been surmised by scholars that Adityavarman was a rival claimant to the CHALUKYAN throne and was probably the elder brother of Vikramaditya. It may be noted that a recently found copper-plate grant of Abhinavaditya, son of Adityavarman also gives both father and son all the paramount titles and states that Abhinavaditya granted the village Nelkunda situated in Uchchasringa-visaya. As Uchchasringa-visaya comprised parts of the present Bellary and Citaldrug Districts of Mysore State we may conclude that these princes were ruling over parts cf the present Citaldrug, Bellary and Karnool Districts. There is nothing definite to show that Vikramaditya and Adityavarman were rival claimants and Vikramaditya ousted his elder brother ; but we can definitely infer that Adityavarman or his son were unable to drive out the enemy from the CHALUKYAN kingdom whereas Vikramaditya could and did. Consequently, Vikramaditya succeeded to the CHALUKYAN throne after acquiring the regal fortune of his

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father which had been interrupted by the confederacy of three kings (avanipatitritaya) and so brought the whole kingdom under the sway of himself as the sole ruler and reestablished the grants to gods and Brahmanas which had lapsed during the rule of the three kings (rajya-traya). There is a difference of opinion as to who these three kings were. In inscriptions of the successors of Vikramaditya the cognate expression trairajya is used with reference to the same event. Tradition explains this word as the kingdoms of the Cola, Kerala and Pandya monarchs. Moreover in inscriptions of the Gujarat CHALUKYAS the expression rajya-traya with reference to the same event is elaborated as the three kingdoms of Cera, Cola and Pandya. Some seholars held the opinion that the expression trairajya-Pallava referred to the three branches of the Pallavas ruling over different parts of their dominions. But the Surat Plates of Satyasraya Siladitya of the Gujarat branch of the CHALUKYAS and a recently discovered inscription of Vinayaditya of A.D. 693 make a clear distinction between the kings of trairajya and the Pallava king. We have noticed, however, that it was the Pallavas who inflicted a crushing defeat on Pulakesin and occupied Badami, the CHALUKYA capital. Therefore the occupation of the CHALUKYA kingdom by the confederacy of three kings can be explained by the fact that the Pallavas were supreme in the south and that the three kings viz., Cola, Kerala and Pandya were under the Pallava hegemony. Vikramaditya had to fight very hard to drive out the Pallavas and to regain his authority. He was mostly occupied in fighting numerous battles with the Pallavas and his inscriptions give us some elaborate details about his battles. They state that he destroyed the glory of Narasimhavarman, broke the prowess of Mahendravarman and by diplomacy conquered Paramesvaravarman. As these victories are mentioned in the inscriptions of the twentieth year of his reign i.e. A.D. 674, the defeat of these three Pallava kings must have taken place before this date. It is quite well known that there were severe conflicts between the CHALUKYAS and Pallavas during Vikramadityas reign. We have already seen that Narasimhavarman had occupied Badami during Pulakesins reign; and so Vikramaditya had to drive him out in order to recapture the lost CHALUKYAN capital. The conflict evidently continued during the reign of Narasimhavarmans successor, Mahendravarman II, who appears to have sustained a severe defeat at the hands of Vikramaditya. But Paramesvaravarman I, the son of Mahendravarman II, tried to wreak his vengeance on Vikramaditya and possibly tried to attack him. Being enraged at this, Vikramaditya led a campaign right into the heart of the Pallava territory, took the unassailable city of Kanci and vanquished Paramesvaravarman. In the course of this campaign he

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marched right upto the southern bank of the Kaveri and was camping at Uragapura (modern Uraiyur near Trichinopoly) in the Coika-visaya. But one of the Pallava inscriptions states that Vikramaditya was put to flight covered only by a rag. Another Pallava inscription says that Paramesvaravarman defeated the army of Villabha (i.e., Vikramaditya) at Peruvalanallur, which has been identified with a place of the same name at a distance of ten miles north-west of Trichinopoly i.e., not far from Uraiyur. A third Pallava inscription5 states that Ugradanda (i.e., Paramesvaravarman) was the destroyer of Ranarasikas (i.e., Vikramaditya) city. These varying accounts would make it clear that there were bitter conflicts between the CHALUKYAS and Pallavas in the heart of the Pallava dominions ; and probably after the battle of Peruvalanallur, Vikramaditya had to withdraw to his own kingdom without annexing any part of the Pallava country. The inscriptions of Vijayaditya, grandson of Vikramaditya, state that Vikramaditya humbled the pride of the Kalabhras besides that of the Colas, Keralas and Pandyas. The

Kalabhras are yet to be definitely identified, though they seem to have given a good deal of trouble to the southern kings for quite a long time. The onslaught of the Kalabhras seems to have been checked to some extent by the Pandyas and the Pallavas also, in addition to the efforts of the CHALUKYAS in quelling them.

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VIKRAMADITYA II.

During the reign of Vikramaditya the wars with the Pallavas were intensified. In one of the inscriptions at Pattadaka Vikramaditya is stated to have conquered Kanci thrice. We have already noticed that even when he was Yuvaraja he raided Kanci during his fathers reign and levied tributes from the Pallavas. The other two invasions of Kanci are mentioned in the inscriptions of his reign and those of his successors. These inscriptions give a detailed account of these two campaigns against Kanci. According to them he made a strong resolve to destroy the natural enemies of the CHALUKYAS (namely the Pallavas) and made a sudden and expeditious incursion into Tundaka country and put to flight the Pallava king Nandipotavarman. He captured the Pallava kings musical instru-ments, katumukha and samudraghosa and his flag khatvangadhvaja in addition to heaps of gold, rubies and herds of elephants. He then entered the city of Kanci in triumph, but did not raze it to the ground. On the other hand he acquired great merit by making munificent gifts to the temples of Rajasimhesvara and others, which Narasinghapotavarman had built. He then crippled the Pandya, Cola, Kerala and Kalabhra kings and set up a pillar of victory on the shore of the southern ocean. His son Kirtivarman, even when he was Yuvaraja obtained his fathers permission to lead another attack against the king of Kanci, who unable to meet this onslaught took refuge in his fortress. Kirtivarman then seized a number of elephants and heaps of gold and rubies, all of which he presented to his father. The Ainuli copperplates1 give the name of Kirtivarmans adversary as Nandipotavarman. So both these invasions of Kanci took place in the reign of Nandipotavarman i.e., Nandivarman Pallavamalla who had a long reign of 65 years. The three campaigns recorded in the Pattadakal inscription are thus accounted for and they took place in the following order. The first, as shown above, took place during the time of Pallava Paramesvara II. In this Vikramaditya seems to have been assisted by the Western Ganga prince Durvinita-Ereyappor. The second campaign is mentioned in the Narvan plates of A.D. 741-42 and so it must have taken place before that date, and the third between A.D. 741-42 and the end of Vikramadityas reign (i.e., A.D. 744-45). That his conquest of Kanci is not a mere boast is borne out by an inscription of his at Kanci in the Rajasimhesvara temple, which says that after the conquest of Kanci the king made grants to the temple. His reign is also noteworthy for the repulsion of the formidable Arab invasion of Gujarat, which was a part of the CHALUKYA dominions. The Tajikas (i.e., the Arabs), who,

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according to the Navasari plates of A.D. 739, had already destroyed the Saindhavas, the Kacchellas, the Cavotakas, the Saurastras, the Mauryas and the Gurjaras tried to attack the CHALUKYA dominions with a view to overrunning the whole of South India but were routed by Avanijanasrava Pulakesin of the Gujarat CHALUKYA branch and evidently a feudatory of Vikramaditya II who was so pleased with Pulakesin that he conferred on him (Pulakesin) the titles of Daksinapatha-sadhara (pillar of the southern country) and Anivartaka-nivartayitr (the repeller ,of the unrepellable). Thus while the Gujarat CHALUKYAS continued to rule the Lata (Gujarat) province, two Rastrakuta princes were in charge of parts of Maharastra. The Narvan plates of Vikramaditya II state that the king, while staying in his victorious camp at Adityavada, granted Naravana and other villages in the Ciprarulana-visaya at the request of Rastrakuta Govindaraja to some Brahmins in the Saka year 664 (A.D. 741-42;. Ciprarulana is modern Ciplun in the Ratnagiri District and Naravana is the modern Narvan in the same district, Adityavada has been tentatively identified with one of the two Aitavades in the Valva Taluka of the Sangli District.. Dantidurga, the founder of the Manyakheta branch of the Rastrakuta family, who later on overthrew the CHALUKYAS, made a grant to certain Brahmans the village of Pippalala, in the district of Candana-puri-84, in the year Saka 663 (A.D. 742) after bathing in the Guhesvaratirtha at Elapura is the famous Ellora, where Dantidurga excavated the Dasavatara cave temple. Candanapuri is even to-day called by the same old name and is situated on the Girna river about forty-five miles from Ellora. Pippalala is the modern Pimpral, twelve miles south-east of Candanapuri. Though Dantidurga does not mention his overlord in this grant, the fact that he calls himself Mahasamantadhipati shows that he still owed allegiance to the CHALUKYAS who were the lords of this part of the country. The reign of Vikramaditya II also continued the great cultural and building activities for which this dynasty is noted. In an inscription of his sons time at Pattadakal2 his queen Lokamahadevi of the Haihaya family is stated to have constructed the temple of the god Lokesvarabhattaraka at Pattadakal; and his other queen Trai-lokyamahadevi, the younger sister of Lokamahadevi and the mother of Kirtivarman II (son of Vikramaditya) constructed the temple of Trailokyesvarabhattaraka at the same place. The family gave great encouragement to temple architecture, as for example, by conferring the title of Tribhuvanacarya (preceptor of three worlds) on Gunda or Anivaritacarya, the chief architect of the temple of Lokesvara, mentioned above. This architect was also honoured by the conferment of a fillet of honour called perjerepu-patta. Music too was encouraged, as is

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witnessed by the fact that Lokamahadevi confirmed the covenants which had been given to the musicians and dancers (gandharvas) by Vijayaditya earlier. One of these dancers, named Acala seems to have founded a new school of dancing. Vikramaditya II had a son named Kirtivarman, who succeeded him and perhaps a daughter named Vinayavati, queen of the Rastrakuta prince Govindaraja mentioned above. He had the title of Anivarita besides the usual CHALUKYAN titles.

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KIRTIVARMAN II.

Kirtivarman II succeeded his father probably in A.D. 744-45, for the only verifiable date in his inscriptions is found in the Kendur copper-plates1 issued in the sixth year of his reign on the full-moon day, in the month of Vaisakha when there was a lunar eclipse in Saka 672. The corresponding English equivalent is 7th April, A.D. 749. But the Vakkaleri copper-plates and Ainuli copperplates3 dated respectively in the eleventh and fourth years of his reign give slightly different starting points for his reign ; the details of the dates given in these, however, do not admit of verification. His inscriptions state that he became so proficient in the use of arms even in his childhood that his father became overjoyed at his sons skill and nominated him as the Yuvaraja. It has already been noted that in this capaity as Yuvaraja, he obtained the permission of his father to attack the lord of Kanci, the hereditary enemy. Though he achieved a resounding victory against the Pallavas, he seems to have been defeated by the Pandyas. The Velvikudi grant4 of about A.D. 769-70 states that an officer of the Pandya king had defeated the Vallabha (i.e., CHALUKYA Kirtivarman II) at Venbai and secured the hand of the Ganga princess in marriage for his master. In this conflict evidently the (Western) Gangas assisted Kirtivarman II.

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CONCLUSION It was in Kirtivarmans reign that the CHALUKYAN sovereignty was overthrown by the Rastrakuta prince Dantidurga sometime before 5th Januarv, A.D. 754 (the date of his Samangad plates) and the Rastrakutas gained possession of the CHALUKYA dominions. But Kirtivarman continued to rule in parts of his dominions for sometime more ; for one of his inscriptions on a pillar at Pattadakal (which gives him the epithet Nrpasimha) is of A.D. 754 and the Vakkaleri plates are dated in Saka 679 corresponding to A.D. 757. These plates record a grant made by the king when he was staying in the victorious camp at Bhandaragavittage on the north bank of the river Bhimarathi. This place has been identified with Bhandarakaute in the Solapur District. The decline of the CHALUKYA power was evidently due to their constant conflicts with the Pallavas and other southern rulers (of whom the Pandya king who defeated Kirtivarman was one), which had considerably weakened the CHALUKYAS. Taking advantage of this weakness, Dantidurga openly defied the CHALUKYAN might and utterly routed Kirtivarmans forces the famous Karnataka army, which had been expert in defeating the lords of Kanci, the king of Kerala, the Colas, the Pandyas, Harsa and Vajrata. Dantidurga was apparently aided in his fight against Kirtivarman by the Pallavas, as the Pallava king Nandivarman Pallavamalla is believed to have been related to Dantidurga by marriage. Nandivarman had a wife by name Reva, whose son was called Dantivarman. As Danti reminds one of Dantidurga it has been surmised that Reva was Dantidurgas daughter and Dantivarman, the Pallava prince, was named after his maternal grandfather, the Rastrakuta king Dantidurga, who was also called Dantivarman. Dantidurgas successor Krsna I is stated to have metamorphosed the great boar (the CHALUKYAN crest) into a fawn. So by the time of Krsna I even the vestiges of CHALUKYAN supremacy completely passed into the hands of the Rastrakutas. We see many of the CHALUKYAN princes being mentioned in the Rastrakuta records as their subordinates. Of these subordinates two branches of the CHALUKYAN family are well knownthe CHALUKYAS of Vemulavada and the CHALUKYAS of Kalyani. Taila of the latter branch who claimed descent from a younger brother of Vikramaditya II and who was a subordinate of the Rastrakuta king Krsna III (A.D. 939-67) revived the lost CHALUKYAN power in A.D. 973 by overthrowing the Rastrakutas. The other branch, namely that of Vemulavada continued to be loyal to the Rastrakutas. [A prince called Pugavarman who has been considered to be a CHALUKYA and a son of Pulakesin I may

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be mentioned here. He is known by a solitary record3 found at Mudhol (Bijapur District, Mysore State). It has been assigned to the 6th century A.D. and it refers to Pugavarman as the son of Sriprithvi-vallabha-Maharaja who had performed Agnistoma, Agnichayana, Vajapeya and Asvamedha sacrifices and the Hiranyagarbha gift. But it may be noted that neither the name CHALUKYA nor the title Satyasraya, distinctive of the kings of this family is associated with either Pugavarman or his father.] The genealogical table of the family of the CHALUKYAS of Badami is given below : THE CHALUKYAS OF BADAMI

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BIBLIOGRAPHY Ind. Ant., Vol. XVI Epigraphia Indica, Vol. XII Puranas Lord Bom. Gaz., Vol. I Ep. Ind., Vol. XXV Fleet, Bom. Gaz., Vol. I, pt. ii The Hindu Weekly Magazine, April 2, 1961 Supplement to the List of Inscriptions of Southern India Journal of the Numismatic Society of India, Vol. I