Kanishka

• 
  Kushan territories (full line) and maximum extent of Kushan dominions under Kanishka (dotted line). The conquests in India are according to the Rabatak inscription,^[23] the northern expansion into the Tarim Basin is mainly suggested by coin finds and Chinese chronicles.^[24][25]
• 
  Probable statue of Kanishka,

  Kabul Museum.^[26]
• 
  Bronze coin of Kanishka, found in

  Khotan, modern China

  .
• 
  Kanishka I. Bengal, c. 2nd–3rd century CE.^[27]

On his coins, the king is typically depicted as a bearded man in a long coat and trousers gathered at the ankle, with flames emanating from his shoulders. He wears large rounded boots, and is armed with a long sword as well as a lance. He is frequently seen to be making a sacrifice on a small altar. The lower half of a lifesize limestone relief of Kanishka similarly attired, with a stiff embroidered surplice beneath his coat and spurs attached to his boots under the light gathered folds of his trousers, survived in the Kabul Museum until it was destroyed by the Taliban.[28]

Hellenistic phase

A few coins at the beginning of his reign have a legend in the Greek language and script: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΥΣ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΝ ΚΑΝΗϷΚΟΥ, basileus basileon kaneshkou "[coin] of Kanishka, king of kings."
Greek deities, with Greek names are represented on these early coins:

• ΗΛΙΟΣ (ēlios,
  Anemos
  )

The inscriptions in Greek are full of spelling and syntactical errors.

Iranian / Indic phase

Following the transition to the Bactrian language on coins, Iranian and Indic divinities replace the Greek ones:

• ΑΡΔΟΧϷΟ (ardoxsho,
  Ashi Vanghuhi
  )
• ΛΡΟΟΑΣΠΟ (lrooaspo, Drvaspa)
• ΑΘϷΟ (adsho, Atar)
• ΦΑΡΡΟ (pharro, personified
  khwarenah
  )
• ΜΑΟ (mao, Mah)
• ΜΙΘΡΟ, ΜΙΙΡΟ, ΜΙΟΡΟ, ΜΙΥΡΟ (mithro, miiro, mioro, miuro, variants of Mithra)
• ΜΟΖΔΟΟΑΝΟ (mozdaooano, "Mazda the victorious?")
• ΝΑΝΑ, ΝΑΝΑΙΑ, ΝΑΝΑϷΑΟ (variants of pan-Asiatic Nana, Sogdian nny, in a Zoroastrian context
  Aredvi Sura Anahita
  )
• ΜΑΝΑΟΒΑΓΟ (manaobago, Vohu Manah )
• ΟΑΔΟ (oado,
  Vata
  )
• ΟΡΑΛΑΓΝΟ (orlagno, Verethragna)

Only a few

• ΒΟΔΔΟ (boddo,
  Buddha
  ),
• ϷΑΚΑΜΑΝΟ ΒΟΔΔΟ (shakamano boddho,
  Shakyamuni Buddha
  )
• ΜΕΤΡΑΓΟ ΒΟΔΔΟ (metrago boddo, the bodhisattava Maitreya)

Only a few

• ΟΗϷΟ (oesho, Shiva). A recent study indicate that oesho may be Avestan Vayu conflated with Shiva.^[29][30]

Kanishka and Buddhism

In Buddhist tradition Kanishka is regarded as of utmost importance. Although he never converted to Buddhism, he encouraged its teachings and provided royal sponsorship.

Only six Kushan coins of the Buddha are known in gold (the sixth one is the centerpiece of an ancient piece of jewellery, consisting of a Kanishka Buddha coin decorated with a ring of heart-shaped ruby stones). All these coins were minted in gold under Kanishka I, and are in two different denominations: a dinar of about 8 gm, roughly similar to a Roman aureus, and a quarter dinar of about 2 gm. (about the size of an obol).

The Buddha is represented wearing the monastic robe, the

The ears are extremely large and long, a symbolic exaggeration possibly rendered necessary by the small size of the coins, but otherwise visible in some later Gandharan statues of the Buddha typically dated to the 3rd–4th century CE (illustration, left). He has an abundant topknot covering the

In general, the representation of the Buddha on these coins is already highly symbolic, and quite distinct from the more naturalistic and Hellenistic images seen in early Gandhara sculptures. On several designs a mustache is apparent. The palm of his right hand bears the Chakra mark, and his brow bear the urna. An aureola, formed by one, two or three lines, surrounds him.

The full gown worn by the Buddha on the coins, covering both shoulders, suggests a Gandharan model rather than a Mathuran one.

"Shakyamuni Buddha"

The

The gown of the Shakyamuni Buddha is quite light compared to that on the coins in the name of Buddha, clearly showing the outline of the body, in a nearly transparent way. These are probably the first two layers of monastic clothing the

The Bodhisattva Maitreya (with the legend "Metrago Boudo") cross-legged on a throne, holding a water pot, and also forming the Abhaya mudra. These coins are only known in copper and are quite worn out . On the clearest coins, Maitreya seems to be wearing the armbands of an Indian prince, a feature often seen on the statuary of Maitreya. The throne is decorated with small columns, suggesting that the coin representation of Maitreya was directly copied from pre-existing statuary with such well-known features.

The qualification of "Buddha" for Maitreya is inaccurate, as he is instead a Bodhisattva (he is the Buddha of the future).

The iconography of these three types is very different from that of the other deities depicted in Kanishka's coinage. Whether Kanishka's deities are all shown from the side, the Buddhas only are shown frontally, indicating that they were copied from contemporary frontal representations of the standing and seated Buddhas in statuary.

Buddhist statuary under Kanishka

Several Buddhist statues are directly connected to the reign of Kanishka, such as several Bodhisattva statues from the

Kanishka casket

Kanishka casket", dated to 127 CE, with the Buddha surrounded by Brahma and Indra, and Kanishka standing at the center of the lower part, British Museum

.

The "

Kanishka stupa, during the archaeological excavations in 1908–1909 in Shah-Ji-Ki-Dheri, just outside the present-day Ganj Gate of the old city of Peshawar.^[48][49] It is today at the Peshawar Museum, and a copy is in the British Museum. It is said to have contained three bone fragments of the Buddha, which are now housed in Mandalay

, Burma.

The casket is dedicated in

Kharoshthi

. The inscription reads:

"(*mahara)jasa kanishkasa kanishka-pure nagare aya gadha-karae deya-dharme sarva-satvana hita-suhartha bhavatu mahasenasa sagharaki dasa agisala nava-karmi ana*kanishkasa vihare mahasenasa sangharame"

The text is signed by the maker, a Greek artist named Agesilas, who oversaw work at Kanishka's stupas (caitya), confirming the direct involvement of Greeks with Buddhist realisations at such a late date: "The servant Agisalaos, the superintendent of works at the vihara of Kanishka in the monastery of Mahasena" ("dasa agisala nava-karmi ana*kaniskasa vihara mahasenasa sangharame").

The lid of the casket shows the Buddha on a lotus pedestal, and worshipped by

cherubs

goes around the scene in typical Hellenistic style.

The attribution of the casket to Kanishka has been recently disputed, essentially on stylistic ground (for example the ruler shown on the casket is not bearded, to the contrary of Kanishka). Instead, the casket is often attributed to Kanishka's successor Huvishka.

Kanishka in Buddhist tradition

In Buddhist tradition, Kanishka is often described as an aggressive, hot tempered, rigid, strict, and a bit harsh kind of King before he got converted to Buddhism of which he was very fond, and after his conversion to Buddhism, he became an openhearted, benevolent, and faithful ruler. As in the Sri-dharma-pitaka-nidana sutra:

"At this time the King of Ngan-si (Pahlava) was very aggressive and of a violent nature....There was a bhikshu (monk) arhat who seeing the harsh deeds done by the king wished to make him repent. So by his supernatural force he caused the king to see the torments of hell. The king was terrified and repented and cried terribly and hence dissolved all his negatives within him and got self realised for the first time in life ." Śri-dharma-piṭaka-nidāna sūtra^[50]

Additionally, the arrival of Kanishka was reportedly foretold or was predicted by the Buddha, as well as the construction of his stupa:

". . . the Buddha, pointing to a small boy making a mud tope....[said] that on that spot Kaṇiṣka would erect a tope by his name." Vinaya sutra^[51]

The same story is repeated in a

Khotanese scroll found at Dunhuang

, which first described how Kanishka would arrive 400 years after the death of the Buddha. The account also describes how Kanishka came to raise his stupa:

"A desire thus arose in [Kanishka to build a vast stupa]....at that time the four world-regents learnt the mind of the king. So for his sake they took the form of young boys....[and] began a stūpa of mud....the boys said to [Kanishka] 'We are making the Kaṇiṣka-stūpa.'....At that time the boys changed their form....[and] said to him, 'Great king, by you according to the Buddha's prophecy is a Saṅghārāma to be built wholly (?) with a large stūpa and hither relics must be invited which the meritorious good beings...will bring."[52]

Chinese pilgrims to India, such as Xuanzang, who travelled there around 630 CE also relays the story:

"Kaṇiṣka became sovereign of all Jambudvīpa (Indian subcontinent) but he did not believe in Karma, but he treated Buddhism with honor and respect as he himself converted to Buddhism intrigued by the teachings and scriptures of it. When he was hunting in the wild country a white hare appeared; the king gave a chase and the hare suddenly disappeared at [the site of the future stupa]....[when the construction of the stūpa was not going as planned] the king lost his patience and took the matter in his own hands and started resurrecting the plans precisely, thus completing the stupas with utmost perfection and perseverance. These two stupas are still in existence and were resorted to for cures by people afflicted with diseases."

King Kanishka because of his deeds was highly respected, regarded, honored by all the people he ruled and governed and was regarded the greatest king who ever lived because of his kindness, humbleness and sense of equality and self-righteousness among all aspects. Thus such great deeds and character of the king Kanishka made his name immortal and thus he was regarded "THE KING OF KINGS"^[53]

Transmission of Buddhism to China

Main article: Silk Road transmission of Buddhism

Buddhist monks from the region of

Loyang

. Central Asian and East Asian Buddhist monks appear to have maintained strong exchanges for the following centuries.

Kanishka was probably succeeded by Huvishka. How and when this came about is still uncertain. The inscription on The Sacred Rock of Hunza also shows the signs of Kanishka.

See also

• Menander I
• Greco-Buddhism

Footnotes

1. ISBN 978-81-208-3334-0
   . According to one influential account, he was born in Khotan and came from a family line different from that of Kushan dynasty founder Kujūla Kadphises and his successor, Vīma Kadphises.
2. ISBN 978-1-59477-794-3
   . According to the Chinese sources, Kanishka came originally from Khotan and belonged to one of the smaller Yueh Chi tribes.
3. ^ ^{a b c d e f g} Rosenfield, John M. (1967). The Dynasty Arts of the Kushans. University of California Press. pp. 40–41. There are two unconfirmed theories about Kanisha's having ruled in the periphery of the Kushan Empire before assuming power as the Shaonanoshao. Both are based on the supposition of a separate Kanishka dynasty. The earlier-Sten Konow's-is that Kanishka came from Khotan, having been summoned as an ethnic ally at the time of troubles after Vima's reign. Konow supports this theory by citing a Tibetan tradition that a Khotanese expedition to India of about A.D. 120 was commanded by a King Vijayakirti along with a King Kanika and the king of Guzan. Ghirshman's similar theory is that Kanishka was originally king of Kashmir before becoming suzerain of the dynasty as a whole. He cites the above mentioned Khalatse epigraph, which may allude to Kushan power reaching the northeast corner of Kashmir, and also the Rajatarangini, in which the list of Turushka kings of Kashmir gave Kanishka's name as the third of a sequence, suggesting that he had predecessors there (Hushka and Jushka). Finally, testimony of Kanishka's activity in Kashmir in favor of the Buddhist faith suggests that he favored the region above others and that he founded Peshawar as his capital to be close to Kashmir.
4. ^ B.N. Mukhjerjee, Shāh-jī-kī-ḍherī Casket Inscription, The British Museum Quarterly, Vol. 28, No. 1/2 (Summer, 1964), pp. 39–46
5. ^ "The yuga of Sphujiddhvaja and the era of the Kuṣâṇas". Harry Falk. Silk Road Art and Archaeology VII.
6. ^ Bracey, Robert (2017). "The Date of Kanishka since 1960 (Indian Historical Review, 2017, 44(1), 1–41)". Indian Historical Review. 44: 1–41.
7. ISBN 978-93-5260-673-3
   .
8. Kanishka the Great
   (c. 127 AD), discarded Greek (Ionian) as the language of administration and adopted Bactrian ("Arya language"), from Falk (2001): "The yuga of Sphujiddhvaja and the era of the Kuṣâṇas." Harry Falk. Silk Road Art and Archaeology VII, p. 133.
9. ^ Falk (2001), pp. 121–136. Falk (2004), pp. 167–176
10. ^ Puri, Baij Nath (1965). India under the Kushāṇas. Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan.
11. ISBN 978-81-208-3334-0
    . According to one influential account, he was born in Khotan and came from a family line different from that of Kushan dynasty founder Kujūla Kadphises and his successor, Vīma Kadphises.
12. ISBN 978-1-59477-794-3
    . According to the Chinese sources, Kanishka came originally from Khotan and belonged to one of the smaller Yueh Chi tribes.
13. ISBN 978-3-447-06135-3
    .
14. ^ Sims-Williams and Cribb (1995/6), pp. 75–142.
15. ^ Sims-Williams (1998), pp. 79–83.
16. ^ Sims-Williams and Cribb (1995/6), p. 80.
17. ISBN 978-81-8424-568-4
    .
18. ISBN 978-81-7625-518-9
    .
19. ^ Puri 1999, p. 258.
20. ^ Hill (2009), p. 11.
21. ^ Ghirshman, Roman (1965) [1954]. Iran: From the earliest times to the Islamic conquest. Baltimore: Penguin Books. p. 262.
22. ISBN 978-0-19-753278-2
    .
23. Sims-Williams
    and J. Cribb, who had a central role in the decipherment: "A new Bactrian inscription of Kanishka the Great", in Silk Road Art and Archaeology No. 4, 1995–1996. Also see, Mukherjee, B. N. "The Great Kushanan Testament", Indian Museum Bulletin.
24. ^ Cribb, Joe (1984). "The Sino-Kharosthi coins of Khotan part 2". Numismatic Chronicle. pp. 129–152.
25. ISBN 0226742210
    .
26. ^ Lo Muzio, Ciro (2012). "Remarks on the Paintings from the Buddhist Monastery of Fayaz Tepe (Southern Uzbekistan)". Bulletin of the Asia Institute. 22: 189–206.
27. ^ "Samatata coin". British Museum.
28. ^ Wood (2002), illus. p. 39.
29. ^ Sims-Williams (online) Encyclopedia Iranica.
30. ^ H. Humbach, 1975, pp. 402–408. K. Tanabe, 1997, p. 277, M. Carter, 1995, p. 152. J. Cribb, 1997, p. 40. References cited in De l'Indus à l'Oxus.
31. ISBN 978-90-04-46064-5
    . Kanishka, known as the Great (....) He is also known through mentions of him in many Indian epic and religious sources, where he is associated with the spread of Buddhism in Central Asia (Bivar 1983: 190f; Staviskij 1986: 201-215). Despite this concentration on his support of Buddhism, however, he appears to have been a ruler more akin to Constantine the Great than Theodosius the Great, in that he did not himself convert to Buddhism, rather rendering his support to the religion (Stavinskij 1986: 215-229; Grenet 2006).
32. JSTOR 26978888
    .
33. ^ Dobbins (1971).
34. ^ "In Gandhara the appearance of a halo surrounding an entire figure occurs only in the latest phases of artistic production, in the fifth and sixth centuries. By this time in Afghanistan the halo/mandorla had become quite common and is the format that took hold at Central Asian Buddhist sites." in "Metropolitan Museum of Art". metmuseum.org.
35. ^ The Crossroads of Asia, p. 201. (Full ^{[citation needed]} here.)
36. ^ ^{a b c} Rhi, Juhyung (2017). Problems of Chronology in Gandharan. Positionning Gandharan Buddhas in Chronology (PDF). Oxford: Archaeopress Archaeology. pp. 35–51.
37. ^ Early History of Kausambi p.xxi
38. ^ Epigraphia Indica 8 p. 179
39. ^ Seated Buddha with inscription starting with 𑁕 Maharajasya Kanishkasya Sam 4 "Year 4 of the Great King Kanishka" in "Seated Buddha with Two Attendants". kimbellart.org. Kimbell Art Museum.
40. ISBN 9789810567057
    .
41. ISBN 978-1-58839-224-4
    .
42. JSTOR 43732476
    .
43. ^ Rhi, Juhyung. Identifying Several Visual Types of Gandharan Buddha Images. Archives of Asian Art 58 (2008). pp. 53–56.
44. ^ The Classical Art Research Centre, University of Oxford (2018). Problems of Chronology in Gandhāran Art: Proceedings of the First International Workshop of the Gandhāra Connections Project, University of Oxford, 23rd-24th March, 2017. Archaeopress. p. 45, notes 28, 29.
45. ISBN 978-81-208-2790-5
    .
46. ^ Sastri, H. krishna (1923). Epigraphia Indica Vol-17. pp. 11–15.
47. ^ Luders, Heinrich (1961). Mathura Inscriptions. pp. 148–149.
48. ^ Hargreaves (1910–11), pp. 25–32.
49. ^ Spooner, (1908–9), pp. 38–59.
50. ^ Kumar (1973), p. 95.
51. ^ Kumar (1973), p. 91.
52. ^ Kumar (1973). p. 89.
53. ^ Xuanzang, quoted in: Kumar (1973), p. 93.

References

• ISBN 978-2-9516679-2-1
  .
• Chavannes, Édouard. (1906) "Trois Généraux Chinois de la dynastie des Han Orientaux. Pan Tch'ao (32–102 p. C.); – son fils Pan Yong; – Leang K'in (112 p. C.). Chapitre LXXVII du Heou Han chou." T'oung pao 7, (1906) p. 232 and note 3.
• Dobbins, K. Walton. (1971). The Stūpa and Vihāra of Kanishka I. The Asiatic Society of Bengal Monograph Series, Vol. XVIII. Calcutta.
• Falk, Harry (2001): "The yuga of Sphujiddhvaja and the era of the Kuṣâṇas." In: Silk Road Art and Archaeology VII, pp. 121–136.
• Falk, Harry (2004): "The Kaniṣka era in Gupta records." In: Silk Road Art and Archaeology X (2004), pp. 167–176.
• Foucher, M. A. 1901. "Notes sur la geographie ancienne du Gandhâra (commentaire à un chapitre de Hiuen-Tsang)." BEFEO No. 4, Oct. 1901, pp. 322–369.
• Gnoli, Gherardo (2002). "The "Aryan" Language." JSAI 26 (2002).
• Hargreaves, H. (1910–11): "Excavations at Shāh-jī-kī Dhērī"; Archaeological Survey of India, 1910–11.
• ISBN 978-8-1208-1408-0
  . Retrieved 31 July 2021.
  • Puri, Baij Nath. "The Kushans". In Harmatta, Puri & Etemadi (1999), pp. 247–264.
• Hill, John E. (2009) Through the Jade Gate to Rome: A Study of the Silk Routes during the Later Han Dynasty, 1st to 2nd centuries CE. BookSurge, Charleston, South Carolina.
  ISBN 978-1-4392-2134-1
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• Kulke, Hermann; Rothermund, Dietmar (1998). A history of India. London; New York: Routledge.
  ISBN 978-0-415-15481-9
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• Kumar, Baldev. 1973. The Early Kuṣāṇas. New Delhi, Sterling Publishers.
• Sims-Williams, Nicholas and Joe Cribb (1995/6): "A New Bactrian Inscription of Kanishka the Great." Silk Road Art and Archaeology 4 (1996), pp. 75–142.
• Sims-Williams, Nicholas (1998): "Further notes on the Bactrian inscription of Rabatak, with an Appendix on the names of Kujula Kadphises and Vima Taktu in Chinese." Proceedings of the Third European Conference of Iranian Studies Part 1: Old and Middle Iranian Studies. Edited by Nicholas Sims-Williams. Wiesbaden. 1998, pp. 79–93.
• Sims-Williams, Nicholas. Sims-Williams, Nicolas. "Bactrian Language". Encyclopaedia Iranica. Vol. 3. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul. Accessed: 20/12/2010
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• Wood, Frances (2003). The Silk Road: Two Thousand Years in the Heart of Asia. University of California Press. Hbk (2003),
  ISBN 978-0-520-24340-8

External links

• Media related to Kanishka I at Wikimedia Commons
• A rough guide to Kushana history.
• Online Catalogue of Kanishka's Coins
• Coins of Kanishka
• Controversy regarding the beginning of the Kanishka Era.
• Kanishka Buddhist coins
• Photograph of the Kanishka casket