Nagabhata I

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Nagabhata I
Founder of
Gurjara-Pratihara

Nagabhata I (r. c. 730 – 760 CE) was the founder of the imperial

Al Hakam ibn Awana
.

Early life

Nagabhata has been named as the founder of the imperial Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty in the Gwalior inscription of his descendant Mihira Bhoja.[1] The exact date of Nagabhata's accession is not known.[2] His grand-nephew Vatsaraja is known to have been ruling in Avanti in 783–784 CE. Assuming a period of 25 years for each generation, Nagabhata can be presumed to have ascended the throne around 730 CE.[1]

The Gwalior inscription traces the dynasty's origin to the legendary hero

Avanti, was the original home of Nagabhata's dynasty.[6][5]

Jalor) his capital and came into conflict with a Muslim ruler, whom he defeated.[7] Sharma put forward the view that Jalor was the original home of the Gurjara-Pratiharas, from whence they might have emigrated.[6]

Military career

Arab invasion

According to the Gwalior inscription of his descendant

caliph Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik.[9][2] Al-Baladhuri mentions the conquests of several other places by these invaders, but about Ujjain, he only mentions that the city was invaded. This appears to be a tacit admission that the invasion was unsuccessful.[2]

The semi-legendary

Guhila ruler Bappa Rawal is also said to have repulsed an Arab invasion. Historian R. V. Somani theorizes that he was a part of an anti-Arab confederacy formed by Nagabhata.[10]

Rashtrakuta invasion

Nagabhata appears to have been defeated by the

Ujjayini (Ujjain, the capital of Nagabhata). During this ceremony, the Lord of Gurjara (Gurjaresha) acted as a pratihara (door-keeper) of Dantidurga.[11][12] The usage of the word pratihara seems to be a word play, suggesting that the Rashtrakuta king subdued the Gurjara-Pratihara king who was ruling Avanti at that time.[5]

Identification with Nagavaloka

The 756 CE

Avanijanashraya Pulakeshin.[8][11] Thus, besides Malwa, Nagabhata's kingdom may have comprised parts of present-day Gujarat and Rajasthan.[13]

Other

The Ragholi copper-plate inscription of the Shaila dynasty ruler Jayavardhana states that his ancestor Prithuvardhana defeated a Gurjara ruler. R. C. Majumdar believed that the defeated ruler might have been Nagabhata. However, B. N. Puri disagrees with this theory, and believes that Prithuvardhana ruled around 694 CE, several years before Nagabhata's ascension.[14]

An inscription of Gallaka, a subordinate of Vatsaraja, in the year 795 regards Nagabhata I as the one who had acquired victory over the "invincible Gurjaras" and obtained fame. Thus, even though the dynasty is called Gurjara-Pratiharas, it is certain that the kings themselves were not from Gurjara tribe.[15]

Successors

Based on the identification of Nagabhata with Nagavaloka mentioned in the 756 CE Hansot inscription, Nagabhata appears to have ruled until around 760 CE.[16] The Gwalior inscription suggests that he was succeeded by Kakustha and Devaraja, who were sons of his unnamed brother.[17]

References

  1. ^ a b Baij Nath Puri 1957, p. 36.
  2. ^ a b c Vibhuti Bhushan Mishra 1966, p. 17.
  3. ^ Vibhuti Bhushan Mishra 1966, p. 16.
  4. ^ Baij Nath Puri 1957, p. 54.
  5. ^ a b c Rama Shankar Tripathi 1959, p. 226-227.
  6. ^ a b Cynthia Packert Atherton 1997, p. 12.
  7. ^ Sanjay Sharma 2006, p. 204.
  8. ^ a b Baij Nath Puri 1957, p. 37.
  9. ISBN 978-81-208-0478-4 [page needed
    ]
  10. ^ Ram Vallabh Somani 1976, p. 45.
  11. ^ a b Vibhuti Bhushan Mishra 1966, p. 18.
  12. ^ Baij Nath Puri 1957, pp. 10–11.
  13. ^ Sailendra Nath Sen 1999, p. 266.
  14. ^ Baij Nath Puri 1957, p. 38.
  15. ^ Shanta Rani Sharma 2012, p. 8.
  16. ^ Baij Nath Puri 1957, pp. 55–58.
  17. ^ Vibhuti Bhushan Mishra 1966, pp. 16–18.
Sources
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nagabhata_I&oldid=1218813557"