Somavaṃśī dynasty
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The Somavanshi (IAST: Somavaṃśī) or Keshari (Keśarī) dynasty ruled parts of present-day Odisha in eastern India between the 9th and the 12th centuries. Their capitals included Yayatinagara (modern Binka) and Abhinava-Yayatinagara (modern Jajpur).
The Somavaṃśīs originally ruled the Dakshina Kosala region in central India, from where they were driven out by the Kalachuris of Tripuri. Subsequently, they conquered the Kalinga and the Utkala regions, supplanting the Bhauma-Karas.
The dynasty introduced a new style of art and architecture in Odisha, and their rule saw a remarkable shift from Buddhism to Brahmanism in the region. The Somavaṃśī rule ended in the early 12th century, when the Eastern Ganga ruler Anantavarman Chodaganga captured their territories.
Contents
History
The Somavaṃśīs originated in the Mahakoshala (ancient Dakshina Kosala) region, which covers the area spanning from eastern Madhya Pradesh to north-western Odisha. During the 8th century, the Somavaṃśīs ruled this region, from their capital at Shripura (modern Sirpur in Madhya Pradesh).[1] After being driven out of Mahakoshala by the Kalachuris, they migrated eastward, and established their capital at Vinitapura (modern Binka) on the banks of the Mahanadi River. The rulers whose territory was limited to the area around Vinitapura are termed as "early" Somavaṃśīs, as opposed to the "later" Somavaṃśīs who ruled a bigger part of Odisha. The last of the early Somavaṃśīs was Mahashivagupta Balarjuna, who was most probably the father of the first later Somavaṃśī ruler Janmejaya I (Mahabhavagupta I).[1]
Janmejaya I
Janmejaya I (c. 882-992) probably controlled a part of the coastal Odisha, and appears to have made inroads into the neighbouring Bhauma-Kara kingdom, through his daughter, who married the Bhauma-Kara king Shubhakara IV. After Shubhakara IV, the kingdom was ruled by his brother Shivakara III. Subsequently, Janmejaya's daughter ascended the Bhauma-Kara throne as Tribhuvana-Devi II around 894 (with her father's support, according to most historians).[1]
A Brahmeswara Temple inscription states that the king of the Odra country was killed by Janmejaya's kunta (spear) in a battle. Historian Krishna Chandra Panigrahi identified this king of Odra as Shivakara III, and theorized that Janmejaya placed his daughter on the Bhauma-Kara throne after killing him. However, other historians disagree with this theory, stating that Odra in this context refers not the whole of present-day Odisha, but only a small vishaya (district) centered around the present-day Dhenkanal district. According to this theory, the king of Odra referred to in the inscription was probably a rebel Bhanja vassal.[2]
During his long reign of 34 years, Janmejaya issued a number of grants (recorded in form of copper-plate inscriptions) at various "victorious camps". This suggests that Janmejaya consolidated the Somavaṃśī rule in western Odisha moving from place to place. During his 31st regnal year, he issued three grants from Kataka, which has been identified as Chaudwar near modern Cuttack. This suggests that his influence extended to eastern Odisha by the end of his reign.[2]
Yayati I
Yayati I (c. 922-955), the son of Janmejaya I, made a large number of village grants in the Dakshina Kosala region, which was the traditional stronghold of his family. These grants are recorded on the inscriptions issued at Yayatinagara, which was probably same as the former Somavaṃśī capital Vinitapura, and which Yayati may have renamed after himself.[2] The capital was later moved to the Bhauma-Kara capital Guheshvarapataka (modern Jajpur), which was renamed to Abhinava-Yayatinagara ("the new city of Yayati").[3]
It is not clear when the Somavaṃśīs gained control over most of Odisha, but this may have happened by the time of Yayati I. Yayati I seems to have continued the expansionist policies of his father, further consolidating the kingdom. This is apparent from his inscriptions, which record grants of villages that were formerly not part of the Somavaṃśī territory. For example, Chandagrama (modern Changan south-east of Cuttack) used to be a part of the Bhauma-Kara territory, while Gandatapati (modern Gandharadi) used to be located in the Bhanja territory.[2]
Before the Somavaṃśī conquest of Odisha, an image of Jagannatha had been removed from Puri, during the Rashtrakuta invasion of c. 800. Yayati I is credited with building a new temple at Puri, and re-installing the image of Purushottama (Jagannatha) there. His reign marks the beginning of the Somavaṃśī style of temple architecture, which features form, ornamentation and iconography not previously seen in Odisha. This new style can probably be attributed to the dynasty's central Indian origins.[4]
Foreign invasions
Little is known about Yayati I's successors Bhimaratha, Dharmaratha, and Nahusha. Dharmaratha seems to have died heirless, and Nahusha was probbaly his brother. By the time of Dharmaratha, the Somavaṃśīs had taken control of the former Bhauma-Kara territories, although it is not known how exactly this happened. The Somavaṃśī lost these territories soon after his death.[4]
During this period, the Somavaṃśī kingdom suffered several foreign invasions, the most notable of which was the 1021 Chola invasion of their capital Yayatinagara. There is some evidence that that the Paramaras of Malwa and the Kalachuris of Tripuri also invaded the Somavaṃśī kingdom.[4]
Revival
Nahusha was succeeded by his younger cousin Yayati II a.k.a. Chandihara, who was a descendant of Janmejaya I through Vichitravirya (grandfather) and Abhimanyu (father). The Brahmeswara Temple inscription suggests that Yayati II restored order to the kingdom after being appointed as the king by the ministers. He re-established the Somavaṃśī control over Kosala and Utkala, which had been lost to rival chiefs. One of his inscriptions describes him as the lord of Kalinga, Kosala, and Utkala. The Somavaṃśī records also credit him with conquering distant regions like Gurjara and Lata, but these claims appear to be poetic hyperbole, and are not supported by historical evidence.[4]
Yayati II was succeeded by his son Uddyotakeshari, whose reign was relatively peaceful. Uddyotakeshari championed the cause of Brahmanism, and restored a number of temples and tanks. During the 18th year of his reign, his mother Kolavati Devi dedicated the Brahmeshvara (Brahmeswara) Temple at modern Bhubaneswar.[4] The construction of the Lingaraja Temple probably began during the later part of his reign, and completed during the reign of his successor Janmejaya II.[5] Uddyotakeshari also patronized the Jains of Udayagiri.[4]
Final decline
After Uddyotakeshari, the Somavaṃśī kingdom declined gradually. The dynasty lost its territories to the Nagas in the north-west, and the Gangas in the south. The kingdom of the last Somavaṃśī ruler Karnadeva was confined to the coastal tract between the present-day Balasore and Puri districts. By 1114, the Somavaṃśī king had fallen to the Ganga king Anantavarman Chodaganga.[5]
List of rulers
Historian Krishna Chandra Panigrahi provides the following chronology of the later Somavaṃśīs:[6]
| Name in IAST | Regnal name | Reign |
|---|---|---|
| Janmejaya I | Mahābhavagupta I | c. 882-922 |
| Yayāti I | Mahāśivagupta I (Mahashivagupta) | c. 922-955 |
| Bhīmaratha | Mahābhavagupta II | c. 955-980 |
| Dharmaratha | Mahāśivagupta II | c. 980-1005 |
| Nahuṣa (Nahusha) | Mahābhavagupta III | c. 1005-1021 |
| Yayāti II | Candihara (Chandihara) Mahāśivagupta III | c. 1025-1040 |
| Uddyotakeśarī (Uddyotakeshari) | Mahābhavagupta IV | c. 1040-1065 |
| Janmejaya II | Mahāśivagupta IV | c. 1065-1085 |
| Purañjaya | Mahābhavagupta V | c. 1085-1110 |
| Karṇadeva | Mahāśivagupta IV | c. 1100-1110 |
Religion
The Somavaṃśī kings were Shaivites, as evident from their inscriptions.[5] The Pashupata and the Mattamayura schools of Shaivism appear to have been popular during their time.[7]
A gradual move from Buddhism to Brahmanism (the precursor of modern Hinduism) had started during the preceding Bhauma-Kara period, and this development accelerated during the Somavaṃśī reign.[8] The traditional accounts of Odisha credit the Somavaṃśīs with making great conotributions towards the propagation of Hinduism.[5]
The Somavaṃśī kings were great temple builders according to the traditional accounts, but there is little inscriptional evidence to confirm this belief. The legendary chronicle Madala Panji credits Yayati Keshari with building most of the temples in Bhubaneswar.[5] The Madala Panji seems to have combined the Somavanshi rulers Yayati I and Yayati II into "Yayati Keshari".[9] Multiple temples, such as the Mukteshvara Temple and the Rajarani Temple, are dated to the Somavaṃśī period.[10] However, Brahmeswara Temple is the only shrine that bears an inscription explicitly attributing its construction to the Somavaṃśīs.[5]
According to one legend, Yayati Keshari brought 10,000 Brahmins from Kanyakubja to his kingdom for an ashvamedha (horse sacrifice) ceremony.[7]
Inscriptions
A number of copper-plate inscriptions, and a smaller number of stone inscriptions, issued during the Somavaṃśī reign have been discovered, all of them in present-day Odisha.[11] The copper-plate inscriptions are similar to those of the Śarabhapuriyas and the Panduvaṃśīs: each inscription is a set of three copper-plates.[12]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Walter Smith 1994, p. 23.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Walter Smith 1994, p. 24.
- ↑ Thomas E. Donaldson 2001, p. 51.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Walter Smith 1994, p. 25.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 Walter Smith 1994, p. 26.
- ↑ Walter Smith 1994, pp. 23-24.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Walter Smith 1994, p. 27.
- ↑ Kailash Chandra Dash 2010, p. 168.
- ↑ Kailash Chandra Dash 2010, p. 165.
- ↑ Walter Smith 1994, p. 28.
- ↑ A. M. Shastri I 1995, pp. 47-48.
- ↑ A. M. Shastri I 1995, p. 49.
Bibliography
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