Dharmapala of Bengal
Encyclopedia
Dharama Pala (rule: 770 AD – 810 AD) was the second ruler of the Pala Empire
of Bengal
region in the Indian Subcontinent
. He was the son and succeessor of Gopala
(rule: 750 AD – 770 AD), the founder of the Pala Dynasty. He greatly expanded the boundaries of the Pala Empire
founded by his father and made the Palas the most dominant power in the northern and eastern Indian subcontinent
. He was succeeded by his son Devapala
who further expanded the empire.
as well as the Rashtrakuta
s of the Deccan who were both desirous of establishing their own hegemony over northern India. So, shortly he was involved in cut-throat power struggle with them. Dharmapal defeated the Pratihara
king Indraraja or Indrayudha of Kanauj and deposed him, and placed Chakrayudha on the throne of Kanauj. It is pointed out that Dharmapala had held a court in Kanauj after this victory which was attended by rulers from Bhoja
(Berar), Matsya
(Jaipur), Madra
(Central Punjab), Kuru (Thaneswar), Yadu
(Mathura & Dwaraka), Avanti
(Malava), Yavana, Gandhara
(Kabol valley = Kamboja) and Kira (Kangra). These chief
s not only approved of his military action but also paid respectful obeisance to him. It seems that Dharmapala had made himself the supreme leader in of Northern India since he calls himself as Uttarapathasvamin or Lord of Northern India.
Later, however, Dharmapala was defeated by Vatsaraja
of the Pratihara
dynasty
who deprived him of the Gaur
. But Vatsaraja himself was soon defeated by King Dhruva of the Rashtrakuta
s who later also clashed with Dharmapala and defeated him but Dhruva soon left for Deccan and thus Dharmapal did not lose much in this quick chain of events, but these events had left the Pratiharas badly mauled which indirectly helped Dharmapala. He fully availed this golden opportunity and truly made himself the Lord of Northern India (Uttarapathasvamin).
Later, Nagabhata II
of Gurjara Pratihara had deposed Chakrayudha of Kannauj
, a protégé of Dharmapala, which event brought Dhrampala into military conflict with Nagabhata II
at Monghyr. Dharmapala suffered a defeat but curiously enough, history repeated itself and Pratihara
ruler Nagabhata was himself soon knocked out by Govinda III of the Rashtrakuta dynasty.
The invasion by Nagabhata was of transitory nature and did not leave any permanent mark so Dharamapala practically retained the supreme power in North till the end of his life.
Dharamapala had full control of Bengal
and Bihar
. Kingdom of Kanauj was his feudatory. The kingdoms of Madra
, Kamboja/Gandhara
, Rajputana
, Malava and Berar
were vassal states which paid him tributes and acknowdged his mastery over them. Even Nepal is said to have been his vassal state. The strong influence of Indian art(Buddhist) in eastern Iran has been noted by R.N. Frye Sandhyakar Nandi, a court poet of later Palas, states that the Pala dynasty belonged to Samudrakula or Ocean lineage. The Kamauli Grant of king Vaidyadeva of Assam also connects the Palas to Mihirasya vamsa or 'Surya lineage' (Sun/Fire worshipers).
. He revived the Nalanda
university and founded the Vikramshila
university which later evolved into a great learning center of Buddhism. He built the great Vihara at Somapuri in Verendri, Vihara in Paharpur
and a splendid monastery at Odantapuri
in Bihar
. He is said to have founded fifty religious schools for the teachings of Buddhism. He patronised the Buddhist author Haribhadra.
(rule: 810 AD - 850 AD) who further expanded the frontiers of Pala empire
.
Pala Empire
The Pāla Empire was one of the major middle kingdoms of India existed from 750–1174 CE. It was ruled by a Buddhist dynasty from Bengal in the eastern region of the Indian subcontinent, all the rulers bearing names ending with the suffix Pala , which means protector. The Palas were often described...
of Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
region in the Indian Subcontinent
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...
. He was the son and succeessor of Gopala
Gopala (Pala king)
Gopala was the founder of the Pala Dynasty of Bengal. The last morpheme of his name pala means "protector" and was used as an ending for the names of all the Pala monarchs...
(rule: 750 AD – 770 AD), the founder of the Pala Dynasty. He greatly expanded the boundaries of the Pala Empire
Pala Empire
The Pāla Empire was one of the major middle kingdoms of India existed from 750–1174 CE. It was ruled by a Buddhist dynasty from Bengal in the eastern region of the Indian subcontinent, all the rulers bearing names ending with the suffix Pala , which means protector. The Palas were often described...
founded by his father and made the Palas the most dominant power in the northern and eastern Indian subcontinent
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...
. He was succeeded by his son Devapala
Devapala
Deva Pala , was a powerful emperor from the Pala Empire of Bengal region in the Indian Subcontinent. He was the third king in the line and had succeeded his father, emperor Dharamapala...
who further expanded the empire.
Military career
When Dharmapala ascended the throne of Bengal, the political horizon was very gloomy. At the very outset, Dharmapala was locked in severe power struggle with the Gurjara Pratiharas of Malwa and RajputanaRajputana
Rājputāna was the pre-1949 name of the present-day Indian state of Rājasthān, the largest state of the Republic of India in terms of area. George Thomas was the first in 1800 A.D., to term this region as Rajputana...
as well as the Rashtrakuta
Rashtrakuta
The Rashtrakuta Empire was a royal dynasty ruling large parts of the Indian Subcontinent between the sixth and the 10th centuries. During this period they ruled as several closely related, but individual clans. Rastrakutas in inscriptions represented as descendants of Satyaki, a Yadava well known...
s of the Deccan who were both desirous of establishing their own hegemony over northern India. So, shortly he was involved in cut-throat power struggle with them. Dharmapal defeated the Pratihara
Pratihara
The Gurjara Pratihara , often simply called Pratihara Empire, was an imperial Indian dynasty that ruled much of Northern India from the 6th to the 11th centuries. At its peak of prosperity and power , the Gurajara-Pratihara Empire rivaled or even exceeded the Gupta Empire in the extent of its...
king Indraraja or Indrayudha of Kanauj and deposed him, and placed Chakrayudha on the throne of Kanauj. It is pointed out that Dharmapala had held a court in Kanauj after this victory which was attended by rulers from Bhoja
Bhoja
Bhoja was a philosopher king and polymath of medieval India, who ruled the kingdom of Malwa in central India from about 1000 to 1050 CE. Also known as Raja Bhoja Of Dhar, he belonged to the Paramara dynasty...
(Berar), Matsya
Matsya Kingdom
Matsya or Machcha , classically called the Mese , was the name of a tribe and the state of the Vedic civilization of India. It lay to south of the kingdom of Kurus and west of the Yamuna which separated it from the kingdom of Panchalas...
(Jaipur), Madra
Madra
Madra, Mada or Madraka is the name of an ancient region and its inhabitants, located in the north-west division of the ancient Indian sub-continent.-Uttaramadra division:...
(Central Punjab), Kuru (Thaneswar), Yadu
Yadu
Yadu is one of the five Indo-Aryan tribes mentioned in the Rig Veda . The Mahabharata, the Harivamsha and the Puranas mention Yadu as the eldest son of king Yayati and his queen Devayani. The prince of King Yayati, Yadu was a self-respecting and a very established ruler...
(Mathura & Dwaraka), Avanti
Avanti
Avanti may refer to:* Avanti , a UK Government sponsored programme to assist construction project partners to work together more effectively...
(Malava), Yavana, Gandhara
Gandhara
Gandhāra , is the name of an ancient kingdom , located in northern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan. Gandhara was located mainly in the vale of Peshawar, the Potohar plateau and on the Kabul River...
(Kabol valley = Kamboja) and Kira (Kangra). These chief
Tribal chief
A tribal chief is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies with social stratification under a single leader emerged in the Neolithic period out of earlier tribal structures with little stratification, and they remained prevalent throughout the Iron Age.In the case of ...
s not only approved of his military action but also paid respectful obeisance to him. It seems that Dharmapala had made himself the supreme leader in of Northern India since he calls himself as Uttarapathasvamin or Lord of Northern India.
Later, however, Dharmapala was defeated by Vatsaraja
Vatsraja
Vatsaraja or Vatsraja was one of the great rulers of Gurjar Pratihar dynasty. He was grand-nephew of Nagabhata I and his mother was queen Bhuyikadevi.-Reign:...
of the Pratihara
Pratihara
The Gurjara Pratihara , often simply called Pratihara Empire, was an imperial Indian dynasty that ruled much of Northern India from the 6th to the 11th centuries. At its peak of prosperity and power , the Gurajara-Pratihara Empire rivaled or even exceeded the Gupta Empire in the extent of its...
dynasty
Dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers considered members of the same family. Historians traditionally consider many sovereign states' history within a framework of successive dynasties, e.g., China, Ancient Egypt and the Persian Empire...
who deprived him of the Gaur
Gaur, West Bengal
Gour, or Gaur , as it is spelt mostly in modern times, or Lakhnauti is a ruined city, in the Malda district of West Bengal, India, on the west bank of the Ganges river, 40 kilometers downstream from Rajmahal.-History:...
. But Vatsaraja himself was soon defeated by King Dhruva of the Rashtrakuta
Rashtrakuta
The Rashtrakuta Empire was a royal dynasty ruling large parts of the Indian Subcontinent between the sixth and the 10th centuries. During this period they ruled as several closely related, but individual clans. Rastrakutas in inscriptions represented as descendants of Satyaki, a Yadava well known...
s who later also clashed with Dharmapala and defeated him but Dhruva soon left for Deccan and thus Dharmapal did not lose much in this quick chain of events, but these events had left the Pratiharas badly mauled which indirectly helped Dharmapala. He fully availed this golden opportunity and truly made himself the Lord of Northern India (Uttarapathasvamin).
Later, Nagabhata II
Nagabhata II
Nagabhata II ascended the throne of the Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty after his father Vatsaraja. His mother was queen Sundari-Devi. He was designated with imperial titles - Paramabhattaraka, Maharajadhiraja, and Paramesvara after conquest of Kannauj.-Reign:Nagabhata II finds a mention in the Gwalior...
of Gurjara Pratihara had deposed Chakrayudha of Kannauj
Kannauj
Kannauj , also spelt Kanauj, is a city, administrative headquarters and a municipal board or Nagar Palika Parishad in Kannauj district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The city's name is traditionally derived from the term Kanyakubja . Kannauj is an ancient city, in earlier times the capital...
, a protégé of Dharmapala, which event brought Dhrampala into military conflict with Nagabhata II
Nagabhata II
Nagabhata II ascended the throne of the Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty after his father Vatsaraja. His mother was queen Sundari-Devi. He was designated with imperial titles - Paramabhattaraka, Maharajadhiraja, and Paramesvara after conquest of Kannauj.-Reign:Nagabhata II finds a mention in the Gwalior...
at Monghyr. Dharmapala suffered a defeat but curiously enough, history repeated itself and Pratihara
Pratihara
The Gurjara Pratihara , often simply called Pratihara Empire, was an imperial Indian dynasty that ruled much of Northern India from the 6th to the 11th centuries. At its peak of prosperity and power , the Gurajara-Pratihara Empire rivaled or even exceeded the Gupta Empire in the extent of its...
ruler Nagabhata was himself soon knocked out by Govinda III of the Rashtrakuta dynasty.
The invasion by Nagabhata was of transitory nature and did not leave any permanent mark so Dharamapala practically retained the supreme power in North till the end of his life.
Sphere of Influence
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
and Bihar
Bihar
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
. Kingdom of Kanauj was his feudatory. The kingdoms of Madra
Madra
Madra, Mada or Madraka is the name of an ancient region and its inhabitants, located in the north-west division of the ancient Indian sub-continent.-Uttaramadra division:...
, Kamboja/Gandhara
Gandhara
Gandhāra , is the name of an ancient kingdom , located in northern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan. Gandhara was located mainly in the vale of Peshawar, the Potohar plateau and on the Kabul River...
, Rajputana
Rajputana
Rājputāna was the pre-1949 name of the present-day Indian state of Rājasthān, the largest state of the Republic of India in terms of area. George Thomas was the first in 1800 A.D., to term this region as Rajputana...
, Malava and Berar
Berar
Berar may refer to:*Berar Sultanate, a Deccan sultanate established 1490*Berar Subah, a Subah of the Mughal empire from 1596 to 1724*Berar Province, a province of British India*Berar , a sailing ship built in 1863-See also:...
were vassal states which paid him tributes and acknowdged his mastery over them. Even Nepal is said to have been his vassal state. The strong influence of Indian art(Buddhist) in eastern Iran has been noted by R.N. Frye Sandhyakar Nandi, a court poet of later Palas, states that the Pala dynasty belonged to Samudrakula or Ocean lineage. The Kamauli Grant of king Vaidyadeva of Assam also connects the Palas to Mihirasya vamsa or 'Surya lineage' (Sun/Fire worshipers).
Religious leanings
Dharmapala was a great patron of BuddhismBuddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
. He revived the Nalanda
Nalanda
Nālandā is the name of an ancient center of higher learning in Bihar, India.The site of Nalanda is located in the Indian state of Bihar, about 55 miles south east of Patna, and was a Buddhist center of learning from the fifth or sixth century CE to 1197 CE. It has been called "one of the...
university and founded the Vikramshila
Vikramshila
University was one of the two most important centers of Buddhist learning in India during the Pala dynasty, along with University. was established by King Dharmapala in response to a supposed decline in the quality of scholarship at Nālandā...
university which later evolved into a great learning center of Buddhism. He built the great Vihara at Somapuri in Verendri, Vihara in Paharpur
Paharpur
Paharpur is a census town in Gaya district in the Indian state of Bihar.-Demographics: India census, Paharpur had a population of 5758. Males constitute 68% of the population and females 32%. Paharpur has an average literacy rate of 78%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is...
and a splendid monastery at Odantapuri
Odantapuri
Odantapuri, also called Odantapura or Uddandapura, was a Buddhist vihara in what is now Bihar, India. It was established by king Dharmapala of Pala dynasty in the 8th century. It is considered the second oldest of India's universities and was situated in Magadha, Recently it is known as a Bihar...
in Bihar
Bihar
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
. He is said to have founded fifty religious schools for the teachings of Buddhism. He patronised the Buddhist author Haribhadra.
Successor of Dharmapala
Dharmapala had ruled for about 40 years and was succeeded by his son DevapalaDevapala
Deva Pala , was a powerful emperor from the Pala Empire of Bengal region in the Indian Subcontinent. He was the third king in the line and had succeeded his father, emperor Dharamapala...
(rule: 810 AD - 850 AD) who further expanded the frontiers of Pala empire
Pala Empire
The Pāla Empire was one of the major middle kingdoms of India existed from 750–1174 CE. It was ruled by a Buddhist dynasty from Bengal in the eastern region of the Indian subcontinent, all the rulers bearing names ending with the suffix Pala , which means protector. The Palas were often described...
.
See also
- Pala EmpirePala EmpireThe Pāla Empire was one of the major middle kingdoms of India existed from 750–1174 CE. It was ruled by a Buddhist dynasty from Bengal in the eastern region of the Indian subcontinent, all the rulers bearing names ending with the suffix Pala , which means protector. The Palas were often described...
- List of rulers of Bengal
- GopalaGopala (Pala king)Gopala was the founder of the Pala Dynasty of Bengal. The last morpheme of his name pala means "protector" and was used as an ending for the names of all the Pala monarchs...
- DevapalaDevapalaDeva Pala , was a powerful emperor from the Pala Empire of Bengal region in the Indian Subcontinent. He was the third king in the line and had succeeded his father, emperor Dharamapala...
- MahipalaMahipalaMahipala I is considered the second founder of the Pala dynasty. Gopala I established the dynastic rule of the Palas in the middle of the 8th century CE. The Pala Dynasty ruled Bengal and Bihar for about four centuries from the middle of the 8th century CE...
Further reading
- Pankaj Tandon: "A Gold Coin of the Pala king Dharmapala," Numismatic Chronicle, No. 166, 2006, pp. 327-333.
- History and Culture of Indian People, The Age of Imperial Kanauj, p 44, Dr Majumdar, Dr Pusalkar
- Ancient India, 2003, Dr V. D. Mahajan