TN Board Summary: Harshavardhana (606 - 647 A.D) - UPSC PDF Download

Harshavardhana (606 - 647 A.D)

• Decline of the Gupta Empire was followed by a period of political disorder and disunity in North India. It was only in the beginning of the seventh century A.D. that Harshvardhana succeeded in establishing a larger kingdom in north India.
• chief sources for tracing the history of Harsha and his times are the Harshacharita written by Bana and the Travel accounts of Hiuen Tsang.
• Bana was the court poet of Harsha. Hiuen Tsang was the Chinese traveler who visited India in the seventh century A.D.
• Besides these two sources, the dramas written by Harsha,namely Ratnavali, Nagananda and Priyardarsika also provide useful information.
• The Madhuben plate inscription and the Sonpat inscription are also helpful to know the chronology of Harsha. The Banskhera inscription contains the signature of Harsha

Early Life of Harsha

• Founder of the family of Harsha was Pushyabhuti.Pushyabhutis were the feudatories of the Guptas.
• They called themselves Vardhanas. After the Hun invasions they assumed independence.
• The first important king of Pushyabhuti dynasty was Prabhakaravardhana. His capital was Thaneswar, north of Delhi.
• He assumed the title Maharajadhiraja and Paramabhattaraka
• Harsha now succeeded his brother at Thaneswar

Harsha’s Military Conquests

• In his first expedition, Harsha drove out Sasanka from Kanauj. He made Kanauj his new capital. This made him the most powerful ruler of north India. Most important military campaign of Harsha was against the Western Chalukya ruler Pulakesin II.
• Both the accounts of Hiuen Tsang and the inscriptions of Pulakesin II provide the details of this campaign.
• Harsha with an ambition to extend his kingdom south of the Narmada river marched against the Chalukya ruler defeat of Harsha by Pulakesin, who after this achievement assumed the title Paramesvara.
• Nepal had accepted Harsha’s overlordship. Harsha established his control over Kashmir and its ruler sent tributes to him.
• He also maintained cordial relations with Bhaskaravarman, the ruler of Assam. Harsha’s last military campaign was against the kingdom of Kalinga in Orissa and it was a success.
• Thus Harsha established his hold over the whole of north India. The regions modern Rajasthan, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Orissa were under his direct control peripheral states such as Kashmir,Sind, Valabhi and Kamarupa acknowledged his sovereignty.

Harsha and Buddhism

• Harsha was a devout Saiva but later he became an ardent Hinayana Buddhist.Hiuen Tsang converted him to Mahayana Buddhism. Harsha prohibited the use of animal food in his kingdom and punished those who kill any living being.
• He erected thousands of stupas and established travellers’ rests all over his kingdom. He also erected monasteries at the sacred places of Buddhists.
• Once in five years he convened a gathering of representatives of all religions and honoured them with gifts and costly presents.

Kannauj Assembly

• Harsha organized a religious assembly at Kanauj to honour the Chinese pilgrim Hiuen Tsang towards the close of his reign
• Hiuen Tsang explained the values of Mahayana doctrine

Allahabad Conference

• Conference held at Allahabad, known as Prayag. It was the one among the conferences routinely convened by Harsha once in five years. Harsha gave away his enormous wealth as gifts to the members of all.
• According to Hiuen Tsang, Harsha was so lavish that he emptied the treasury and even gave away the clothes and jewels he was wearing

Harsha’s Administration

• Taxation was also light and forced labour was also rare. One sixth of the produce was collected as land tax. Cruel punishments of the Mauryan period continued in the times of Harsha.
• Hiuen Tsang condemned the trials as barbarous and superstitious. Harsha’s army consisted of the traditional four divisions - foot, horse, chariot and elephant.
• The number of cavalry was more than one lakh and the elephants more than sixty thousands. This was much more than that of the Mauryan army. The maintenance of public records archive of the Harsha period was known as nilopitu

Society and Economy Under Harsha

• Both Bana and Hiuen Tsang portray the social life in the times of Harsha
• Brahmins were the privileged section of the society and they were given land grants by the kings
• position of women was not satisfactory. The institution of Swyamvara (the choice of choosing her husband) had declined. Remarriage of widows was not permitted, particularly among the higher castes.
• System of dowry had also become common. The practice of sati was also prevalent. Hiuen Tsang mentions three ways ofdisposal of the dead - cremation, water burial and exposure in the woods
• trade and commerce had declined during Harsha’s period. This is evident from the decline of trade centres, less number of coins, and slow activities of merchant guilds.
• there was a sharp economic decline as compared to the economy of the Gupta period.

Cultural Progress

• Hiuen Tsang describes the glory of the monastery with many storeys built by Harsha at Nalanda. He also speaks of a copper statue of Buddha with eight feet in height
• brick temple of Lakshmana at Sirpur with its rich architecture is assigned to the period of Harsha.
• His biographer Banabhatta adorned his royal court. Besides Harshacharita, he wrote Kadambari
• Matanga Divakara and the famous Barthrihari, who was the poet,philosopher and grammarian. Harsha himself authored three plays -Ratnavali, Priyadarsika and Nagananda. Harsha patronised the Nalanda University by his liberal endowments
• Hiuen Tsang visited the Nalanda University and remained as a student.

Nalanda University

• Educational institutions. The most famous among them were the Hinayana University of Valabhi and the Mahayana University of Nalanda. Hiuen Tsang gives a very valuable account of the Nalanda University.
• The term Nalanda means “giver of knowledge”. It was founded by Kumaragupta I during the Gupta period.
• It was patronised by his successors and later by Harsha. The professors of the University were called panditas. Some of its renowned professors were Dingnaga, Dharmapala, Sthiramati and Silabadhra. Dharmapala was a native of Kanchipuram and he became the head of the Nalanda University.
• Nalanda University was a residential university and education was free including the boarding and lodging
• Though it was a Mahayana University, different religious subjects like the Vedas, Hinayana doctrine, Sankhya and Yoga philosophies were also taught. In addition to that, general subjects like logic, grammar, astronomy, medicine and art were
• Admission was made by means of an entrance examination. The entrance test was so difficult that not more than thirty percent of the candidates were successful.
• Discipline was very strict. More than lectures, discussion played an important part and the medium of instruction was Sanskrit
• According to Hiuen Tsang, the Chinese pilgrim, there were 3000 students on its rolls. It had an observatory and a great library housed in three buildings, it was an institution of advanced learning and research.