Gautamiputra Satakarni (
Brahmi
Brahmi (; ; ISO: ''Brāhmī'') is a writing system of ancient South Asia. "Until the late nineteenth century, the script of the Aśokan (non-Kharosthi) inscriptions and its immediate derivatives was referred to by various names such as 'lath' ...
: 𑀕𑁄𑀢𑀫𑀺𑀧𑀼𑀢 𑀲𑀸𑀢𑀓𑀡𑀺, ''Gotamiputa Sātakaṇi'',
IAST: ) was a ruler of the
Satavahana Empire
The Satavahanas (''Sādavāhana'' or ''Sātavāhana'', IAST: ), also referred to as the Andhras in the Puranas, were an ancient Indian dynasty based in the Deccan region. Most modern scholars believe that the Satavahana rule began in the late ...
in present-day
Deccan
The large Deccan Plateau in southern India is located between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats, and is loosely defined as the peninsular region between these ranges that is south of the Narmada river. To the north, it is bounded by the ...
region of India. He was mentioned as the important and greatest ruler of Satavahana Dynasty. He ruled in the 1st or 2nd century CE, although his exact period is uncertain. His reign is dated variously: 86-110 CE, c. 103-127 CE, 106-130 CE,
or more recently and specifically ca. 60-85 CE.
The information available about Gautamiputra Satakarni comes from his coins, the Satavahana inscriptions, and the royal genealogies in the various
Purana
Purana (; sa, , '; literally meaning "ancient, old"Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995 Edition), Article on Puranas, , page 915) is a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly about legends an ...
s. The best known of these is the
Nashik
Nashik (, Marathi: aːʃik, also called as Nasik ) is a city in the northern region of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Situated on the banks of river Godavari, Nashik is the third largest city in Maharashtra, after Mumbai and Pune. Nashi ...
''
prashasti
''Prashasti'' (IAST: Praśasti, Sanskrit for "praise") is an Indian genre of inscriptions composed by poets in praise of their rulers. Most date from the 6th century CE onwards. Written in the form of poetry or ornate prose, the ''prashastis'' s ...
'' (
eulogy
A eulogy (from , ''eulogia'', Classical Greek, ''eu'' for "well" or "true", ''logia'' for "words" or "text", together for "praise") is a speech or writing in praise of a person or persons, especially one who recently died or retired, or as ...
) inscription of his mother Gautami Balashri, which credits him with extensive military conquests. Historical evidence suggests that Gautamiputra revived the Satavahana power after a decline caused by
Saka
The Saka ( Old Persian: ; Kharoṣṭhī: ; Ancient Egyptian: , ; , old , mod. , ), Shaka (Sanskrit ( Brāhmī): , , ; Sanskrit (Devanāgarī): , ), or Sacae (Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ) were a group of nomadic Iranian peoples who hist ...
invasions.
Ancestry
Except the ''
Brahmanda Purana'', all the
Purana
Purana (; sa, , '; literally meaning "ancient, old"Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995 Edition), Article on Puranas, , page 915) is a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly about legends an ...
s that contain the genealogy of Satavahana kings mention Gautamiputra. According to ''
Bhagavata'', ''
Matsya
Matsya ( sa, मत्स्य, lit. ''fish'') is the fish avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. Often described as the first of Vishnu's ten primary avatars, Matsya is described to have rescued the first man, Manu, from a great deluge. Matsya ...
'' and ''
Vishnu
Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism.
Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" withi ...
'' Puranas, his predecessor was Shivasvati (
IAST: Śivasvāti). However, Shivasvati remains historically unattested: no coins or inscriptions issued by him have been discovered. The ''
Vayu Purana
The ''Vayu Purana'' ( sa, वायुपुराण, ) is a Sanskrit text and one of the eighteen major Puranas of Hinduism.
''Vayu Purana'' is mentioned in the manuscripts of the Mahabharata and other Hindu texts, which has led scholars to p ...
'' names the predecessor of Gautamiputra as Shivasvami (IAST: Śivasvāmi). The ''Brahmanada Purana'' does not mention the name "Gautamiputra" at all; instead it names a king called "Yantramati", who ruled for 34 years, and was preceded by Svātisena.
The mother of Gautamiputra Satakarni was Gautami Balashri (IAST: Gautami Bālaśri), as attested by ''Nasik prashasti'', an inscription found at
Cave No.3 of the
Pandavleni Caves in
Nashik
Nashik (, Marathi: aːʃik, also called as Nasik ) is a city in the northern region of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Situated on the banks of river Godavari, Nashik is the third largest city in Maharashtra, after Mumbai and Pune. Nashi ...
. The inscription is dated to the 19th regnal year of his son
Vasishthiputra Pulumavi
Vasishthiputra Pulumavi (Brahmi: 𑀯𑀸𑀲𑀺𑀣𑀺𑀧𑀼𑀢 𑀧𑀼𑀎𑀼𑀫𑀸𑀯𑀺, ''Vāsiṭhiputa Puḷumāvi'', ) was a Satavahana king, and the son of Gautamiputra Satakarni. The new consensus for his reign is ca. 85-125 ...
(or Pulumayi). It records the grant of a village to the Buddhist monks of the Bhadrayaniya sect.
"Gautamiputra" literally means "son of Gautami", while Satakarni is a title common to several Satavahana kings. Such matronymics also appear in the names of other Satavahana kings, including Vasishthiputra Pulumavi ("Pulumavi, son of Vasishthi"). These do not indicate a
matriarchy
Matriarchy is a social system in which women hold the primary power positions in roles of authority. In a broader sense it can also extend to moral authority, social privilege and control of property.
While those definitions apply in general ...
or a
matrilineal descent
Matrilineality is the tracing of kinship through the female line. It may also correlate with a social system in which each person is identified with their matriline – their mother's lineage – and which can involve the inheritance o ...
system. The real explanation for matronymics seems to be that since the rulers married a number of wives from different royal families, a prince was best identified with reference to his mother.
Military conquests
Historical evidence suggests that the
Western Kshatrapa
The Western Satraps, or Western Kshatrapas ( Brahmi:, ''Mahakṣatrapa'', "Great Satraps") were Indo-Scythian ( Saka) rulers of the western and central part of India ( Saurashtra and Malwa: modern Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Madhya Pr ...
s (known to the Satavahanas as
Shakas) expanded their empire at the expense of Satavahanas in the years preceding the reign of Gautamiputra Satakarni. Based on the Nashik inscription of his mother, it appears that Gautamiputra revived the Satavahana power. The inscription states that he defeated the
Shakas (
Western Kshatrapas
The Western Satraps, or Western Kshatrapas (Brahmi:, ''Mahakṣatrapa'', "Great Satraps") were Indo-Scythian (Saka) rulers of the western and central part of India ( Saurashtra and Malwa: modern Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh ...
), the
Pahlavas
The Pahlavas are a people mentioned in ancient Indian texts like the Manu Smriti, various Puranas, the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, and the Brihat Samhita. According to P. Carnegy, In the 4th century BCE, Vartika of Katyayana mentions the ''Sakah- ...
(
Indo-Parthians
The Indo-Parthian Kingdom was a Parthian kingdom founded by Gondophares, and active from 19 CE to c. 226 CE. At their zenith, they ruled an area covering parts of eastern Iran, various parts of Afghanistan and the northwest regions of the India ...
), and the
Yavana
The word Yona in Pali and the Prakrits, and the analogue Yavana in Sanskrit and Yavanar in Tamil, were words used in Ancient India to designate Greek speakers. "Yona" and "Yavana" are transliterations of the Greek word for "Ionians" ( grc, ...
s (
Indo-Greeks
The Indo-Greek Kingdom, or Graeco-Indian Kingdom, also known historically as the Yavana Kingdom (Yavanarajya), was a Hellenistic period, Hellenistic-era Ancient Greece, Greek kingdom covering various parts of Afghanistan and the northwestern r ...
). It also states that he emerged victorious in several fights against a confederacy of enemies.
Imperial extent according to ''Nashik prashasti''
The ''
Nashik
Nashik (, Marathi: aːʃik, also called as Nasik ) is a city in the northern region of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Situated on the banks of river Godavari, Nashik is the third largest city in Maharashtra, after Mumbai and Pune. Nashi ...
prashasti
''Prashasti'' (IAST: Praśasti, Sanskrit for "praise") is an Indian genre of inscriptions composed by poets in praise of their rulers. Most date from the 6th century CE onwards. Written in the form of poetry or ornate prose, the ''prashastis'' s ...
'' inscription of Gautamiputra's mother, located in the
Nasik Caves
The Nasik Caves, or Trirashmi Leni (''Trirashmi'' being the name of the hills in which the caves are located, ''Leni'' being a Marathi word for caves), are a group of 23 caves carved between the 1st century BCE and the 3rd century CE, though ...
, calls him the "king of kings", and states that his orders were obeyed by the
circle
A circle is a shape consisting of all points in a plane that are at a given distance from a given point, the centre. Equivalently, it is the curve traced out by a point that moves in a plane so that its distance from a given point is con ...
of all kings. It indicates that his rule extended from
Malwa
Malwa is a historical region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic upland north of the Vindhya Range. Politically and administratively, it is also syn ...
and
Saurashtra in the north to
Krishna river in the south; and from
Konkan
The Konkan ( kok, कोंकण) or Kokan () is a stretch of land by the western coast of India, running from Damaon in the north to Karwar in the south; with the Arabian Sea to the west and the Deccan plateau in the east. The hinterland ...
in the west to
Vidarbha
Vidarbha (Pronunciation: id̪əɾbʱə is a geographical region in the east of the Indian state of Maharashtra and a proposed state of central India, comprising the state's Amravati and Nagpur divisions. Amravati Division's former name is Ber ...
(Berar) in the east. It states that he ruled the following regions:
![Satvahana](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Satvahana.svg)
* Asika (area in
Godavari
The Godavari (IAST: ''Godāvarī'' od̪aːʋəɾiː is India's second longest river after the Ganga river and drains into the third largest basin in India, covering about 10% of India's total geographical area. Its source is in Trimbakeshwa ...
valley)
* Aśmaka (
Ashmaka
Ashmaka ( Sanskrit: ) or Assaka (Pali: ) was a Mahajanapada in ancient India which existed between 700 BCE and 425 or 345 BCE according to the Buddhist texts '' Anguttara Nikaya'' and ''Puranas''. It was located around and between the Godava ...
in Godavari valley)
* Muḍhaka or Mulaka (area around
Paithan
Paithan pəɪ.ʈʰaɳ(), historically Pratiṣṭhāna ɾə'tɪʂʈʰana is a town with municipal council in Aurangabad district, Maharashtra, India. Paithan is located south of present-day Aurangabad on the Godavari River.
It was the cap ...
)
* Surāṣṭra (Saurashtra)
* Kukura
*
Aparanta
Aparanta, or Aparantaka (meaning "Western border") was a geographical region of ancient India. It corresponded to the northern part of the Konkan region on the western coast of India. English civil servant-turned-historian J. F. Fleet believed t ...
(north
Konkan
The Konkan ( kok, कोंकण) or Kokan () is a stretch of land by the western coast of India, running from Damaon in the north to Karwar in the south; with the Arabian Sea to the west and the Deccan plateau in the east. The hinterland ...
)
*
Anupa (area around
Mahishmati in
Narmada valley)
*
Vidarbha
Vidarbha (Pronunciation: id̪əɾbʱə is a geographical region in the east of the Indian state of Maharashtra and a proposed state of central India, comprising the state's Amravati and Nagpur divisions. Amravati Division's former name is Ber ...
(Berar)
* Akara-
Avanti (eastern and western
Malwa
Malwa is a historical region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic upland north of the Vindhya Range. Politically and administratively, it is also syn ...
)
The identity of "Kukura" is uncertain. R G Bhandarkar identified it with a part of
Rajputana, while
Alexander Cunningham identified it with
Gurjara
Gurjaradesa ("Gurjara country") or Gurjaratra is a historical region in India comprising the eastern Rajasthan and northern Gujarat during the period of 6th -12th century CE. The predominant power of the region, the Gurjara-Pratiharas eventual ...
. Sudhakar Chattopadhyaya identified it with an area in
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the seco ...
, possibly near the western part of the
Vindhyas
The Vindhya Range (also known as Vindhyachal) () is a complex, discontinuous chain of mountain ridges, hill ranges, highlands and plateau escarpments in west-central India.
Technically, the Vindhyas do not form a single mountain range in the ...
.
The inscription also calls Gautamiputra the lord of following mountains:
*
Vindhyāvat (part of Vindhyas)
*
Pāriyātra (part of Vindhyas)
*
Sahya (Western Ghats)
* Krishnagiri (Kanhagiri)
*
Malaya (southern portion of Western Ghats)
* Mahendra
* Sreshtha-giri or Setagiri
* Chakora
Sudhakar Chattopadhyaya identifies Mahendra, Sreshtha-giri and Chakora with portions of
Eastern Ghats
The Eastern Ghats are a discontinuous range of mountains along India's eastern coast. The Eastern Ghats pass through Odisha, Andhra Pradesh to Tamil Nadu in the south passing some parts of Karnataka as well as Telangana. They are eroded and cut ...
. He, therefore, believes that Gautamiputra's empire included the
Telangana
Telangana (; , ) is a state in India situated on the south-central stretch of the Indian peninsula on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the eleventh-largest state and the twelfth-most populated state in India with a geographical area of and 3 ...
and
Coastal Andhra
Coastal Andhra (South costal Andhra) also known as Kostha Andhra is a region in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. Vijayawada is the largest city in this region. It was part of Madras State before 1953 and Andhra State from 1953 to 1956. ...
regions. M. Rama Rao also supports this theory on the basis of coins discovered in the eastern Deccan region. Although coins can travel via trade, Chattopadhyaya believes that the Nashik inscription corroborates this theory. However, there are no other records of Satavahana presence in the eastern Deccan region before the period of his son Vashishtiputra Pulumavi.
An inscription at
Karle records the grant of Karajika village (identified with a village in
Pune district
Pune district (Marathi pronunciation: uɳeː is the most populous district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. The district's population was 9,429,408 in the 2011 census, making it the fourth most populous district amongst India's 640 district ...
) by Gautamiputra, confirming that the Pune region was under his control.
The ''Nashik prashasti'' inscription further states that the horses of Gautamiputra drank waters of the "three oceans" (the
Arabian Sea
The Arabian Sea ( ar, اَلْبَحرْ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Bahr al-ˁArabī) is a region of the northern Indian Ocean bounded on the north by Pakistan, Iran and the Gulf of Oman, on the west by the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel ...
, the
Bay of Bengal
The Bay of Bengal is the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean, bounded on the west and northwest by India, on the north by Bangladesh, and on the east by Myanmar and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India. Its southern limit is a line betwee ...
and the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...
). This implies that Gautamiputra subdued the
Cholas and the
Pandyas in southern India. However, there is no historical evidence of this. One view is that this is just a conventional literary device: Gautamiputra's empire was not as extensive as the inscription claims. Sudhakar Chattopadhyaya speculates that Gautamiputra might have raided some territories in the South.
According to American academic Carla M. Sinopoli, it is not clear if Gautamiputra actually had effective control over all the territories claimed as a part of his empire in the inscription. In any case, his military successes were short-lived.
Gautamiputra and Nahapana
Caves excavated by Gautamiputra Satakarni as well as the Western Kshatrapa king
Nahapana
Nahapana (Ancient Greek: ; Kharosthi: , ; Brahmi: , ;), was an important ruler of the Western Kshatrapas, descendant of the Indo-Scythians, in northwestern India, who ruled during the 1st or 2nd century CE. According to one of his coins, he ...
are located at Nashik. The ''Nashik prashasti'' inscription states that Gautamiputra uprooted the
Kshaharata (or Khagarata) family, to which Nahapana belonged. The Nashik inscription dated to the 18th year of Gautamiputra's reign states that he reaffirmed a grant of land to Buddhist monks living at the Triraśmi peak. This land was earlier in the possession of Nahapana's son-in-law
Rishabhadatta
Ushavadata (Brahmi: , ), also known as Rishabhadatta, was a viceroy and son-in-law of the Western Kshatrapa ruler Nahapana, who ruled in western India.
Name
Ushavadata's name is attested in his inscriptions as , which is derived from the Saka n ...
(also known as Ushavadata), who had donated it to the monks.
A hoard of Nahapana's coins, discovered at Jogalthambi in Nashik district, includes coins re-struck by Gautamiputra. These coins feature an arched
chaitya
A chaitya, chaitya hall, chaitya-griha, (Sanskrit:''Caitya''; Pāli: ''Cetiya'') refers to a shrine, sanctuary, temple or prayer hall in Indian religions. The term is most common in Buddhism, where it refers to a space with a stupa and a rounded ...
(Buddhist shrine) and the "
Ujjain
Ujjain (, Hindustani pronunciation: d͡ːʒɛːn is a city in Ujjain district of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the fifth-largest city in Madhya Pradesh by population and is the administrative centre of Ujjain district and Ujjain ...
symbol" (a cross with four circles at the end).
Most historians now agree that Gautamiputra and Nahapana were contemporaries, and that Gautamiputra defeated Nahapana.
M. K. Dhavalikar dates this event to c. 124 CE, which according to him, was the 18th regnal year of Gautamiputra. R.C.C. Fynes dates the event to sometime after 71 CE, in the same line, Shailendra Bhandare places the victory of Gautamiputra and the end of Nahapana's reign to the start of Saka era, 78 CE, in the year of Castana's accession, and considers Gautamiputra's whole reign to ca. 60-85 CE.
Last years
![010 Cave 3, Exterior (33156264563)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5e/010_Cave_3%2C_Exterior_%2833156264563%29.jpg)
According to the ''
Matsya Purana
The ''Matsya Purana'' (IAST: Matsya Purāṇa) is one of the eighteen major Puranas (Mahapurana), and among the oldest and better preserved in the Puranic genre of Sanskrit literature in Hinduism. The text is a Vaishnavism text named after the h ...
'' and the ''
Vayu Purana
The ''Vayu Purana'' ( sa, वायुपुराण, ) is a Sanskrit text and one of the eighteen major Puranas of Hinduism.
''Vayu Purana'' is mentioned in the manuscripts of the Mahabharata and other Hindu texts, which has led scholars to p ...
'', Gautamiputra ruled for 21 years. However, an inscription dated to his 24th regnal year has been found at the Nashik cave. The inscription mentions his mother as ''jiva-suta'' ("having a living son").
D. C. Sircar
Dineshchandra Sircar (1907–1985), also known as D. C. Sircar or D. C. Sarkar, was an epigraphist, historian, numismatist and folklorist, known particularly in India and Bangladesh for his work deciphering inscriptions. He was the Chief Ep ...
interpreted this to mean that the king was ill, and the term ''jiva-suta'' was intended to assure the people that the king was alive, while his mother ran the administration. Shailendra Nath Sen also speculated that the king might have been assisted by his mother in administration because of his illness or military preoccupation.
V. V. Mirashi
Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi (1893–1985) was a Sanskrit scholar and a prominent Indologist of the 20th century who hailed from Maharashtra, India. He was an expert of his times on stone and copper inscriptions and the coinage of ancient India. ...
dismissed Sircar's theory as "ridiculous", arguing that ''jiva-suta'' is an expression used in several ancient sources and simply emphasizes the good fortune of a woman. Sudhakar Chattopadhyaya also criticizes Sircar's interpretation, pointing out that the first line in the inscription refers to the king's order. He adds that ''jiva-suta'' is simply an "affectionate expression of a mother", and should not be over-analyzed.
D. R. Bhandarkar
Devadatta Ramakrishna Bhandarkar ( mr, देवदत्त रामकृष्ण भांडारकर; 19 November 1875 – 13 May 1950) was an Indian archaeologist and epigraphist who worked with the Archaeological Survey of India (AS ...
and
R. G. Bhandarkar
Sir Ramakrishna Gopal Bhandarkar ( mr, रामकृष्ण गोपाळ भांडारकर) (6 July 1837 – 24 August 1925) was an Indian scholar, orientalist, and social reformer.
Early life
Ramakrishna Bhandarkar was b ...
believed that Gautamiputra and his son
Vasishthiputra Pulumavi
Vasishthiputra Pulumavi (Brahmi: 𑀯𑀸𑀲𑀺𑀣𑀺𑀧𑀼𑀢 𑀧𑀼𑀎𑀼𑀫𑀸𑀯𑀺, ''Vāsiṭhiputa Puḷumāvi'', ) was a Satavahana king, and the son of Gautamiputra Satakarni. The new consensus for his reign is ca. 85-125 ...
ruled jointly during the last years of his reign. This theory is based on their interpretations of the various Satavahana inscriptions. In ''Nashik prashasti'', Gautami Balashri calls herself the mother of the great king as well as the grandmother of the great king, indicating that both were kings at that time. There are also indications that Gautamiputra was alive, when this inscription was issued in the 19th regnal year of his son. Despite this, the inscription describes the achievements of Gautamiputra Satakarni, but remains silent about the exploits of his son. Based on these arguments, Bhandarkar speculated that Gautamiputra ruled eastern Deccan, while Vasishthiputra ruled western Deccan. This theory has been dismissed by several other scholars, including
K. A. Nilakanta Sastri
Kallidaikurichi Aiyah Nilakanta Sastri (12 August 1892 – 15 June 1975) was an Indian historian who wrote on South Indian history. Many of his books form the standard reference works on the subject. Sastri was acclaimed for his scholarship and ...
and
H. C. Raychaudhuri. G.J. Dubreuil theorizes that the excavation of the cave (where this inscription was found) began during the reign of Gautamiputra. However, the work was finished only after his death, and the inscription was placed on his behalf by his mother, during the reign of his son. Bhandarkar's theory is further weakened by the fact that there is clear historical evidence of Gautamiputra's rule over western Deccan. Moreover, no inscriptions issued jointly by the father-son duo are available.
It is possible that by the end of his reign, Gautamiputra lost some of his territory to the
Kardamaka
The Western Satraps, or Western Kshatrapas (Brahmi:, ''Mahakṣatrapa'', "Great Satraps") were Indo-Scythian (Saka) rulers of the western and central part of India ( Saurashtra and Malwa: modern Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh ...
s, a Western Kshatrapa dynasty that succeeded Nahapana's Kshaharata dynasty. The
Junagadh
Junagadh () is the headquarters of Junagadh district in the Indian state of Gujarat. Located at the foot of the Girnar hills, southwest of Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar (the state capital), it is the seventh largest city in the state.
Literally ...
inscription of the Kardamaka ruler
Rudradaman I
Rudradāman I (r. 130–150) was a Śaka ruler from the Western Kshatrapas dynasty. He was the grandson of the king Caṣṭana. Rudradāman I was instrumental in the decline of the Sātavāhana Empire. Rudradāman I took up the title of ''Mah ...
states that he defeated Satakarni, the lord of
Dakshinapatha __NOTOC__
Dakshinapatha is an important historical region which is an ancient equivalent of present day South India or Deccan plateau and which may mean;
*the "Ancient South of the Indian subcontinent" below Uttarapatha. The term can encompass ...
(Deccan), twice. It also states that he spared the life of the defeated ruler because of close relations.
"Satakarni" is a title common to several Satavahana kings. According to
D. R. Bhandarkar
Devadatta Ramakrishna Bhandarkar ( mr, देवदत्त रामकृष्ण भांडारकर; 19 November 1875 – 13 May 1950) was an Indian archaeologist and epigraphist who worked with the Archaeological Survey of India (AS ...
and
Dineshchandra Sircar
Dineshchandra Sircar (1907–1985), also known as D. C. Sircar or D. C. Sarkar, was an epigraphist, historian, numismatist and folklorist, known particularly in India and Bangladesh for his work deciphering inscriptions. He was the Chief ...
, the ruler defeated by Rudradaman was Gautamiputra Satakarni. However,
E. J. Rapson believed that the defeated ruler was his son and successor Vasishthiputra Pulumavi. Shailendra Nath Sen and
Charles Higham believe that the defeated ruler was Vashishtiputra's successor
Shivaskanda or Shiva Sri Pulumayi (or Pulumavi).
Administration
![Gautami Putra Satkarni Statue in Amaravathi](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/53/Gautami_Putra_Satkarni_Statue_in_Amaravathi.jpg)
The location of Gautamiputra's capital is uncertain. In the Nashik inscription dated to his 18th regnal year, he is described as the "Lord of Benakataka". Carla M. Sinopoli identifies Benakataka as a place in the Nashik region. V. V. Mirashi identified it with
Pauni
Pauni is a town and a Municipal Council in Bhandara district in the Indian state of Maharashtra.
Now it has National Highway NH-247. Pauni is also known as Kashi of Vidarbha due to its wide swath of temples.
Geography
Pauni is located at . It ...
Bhandara district
Bhandara District (Marathi pronunciation: ʰəɳɖaːɾa is an administrative district in the state of Maharashtra in India. The district headquarters are located at Bhandara. The district occupies an area of 3717 km2 and has a population o ...
.
The inscriptions of Gautamiputra Satakarni indicate that his empire was divided into units known as ''āhāra''s. Each ''āharā'' was governed by an ''amātya'' or ''amaca''. Three types of settlements are named in the inscriptions: ''nagara'' (city), ''nigama'' (town) and ''gama'' (village).
The ''Nashik prashasti'' inscription calls him ''ekabrahmana''. One interpretation of this word is "a peerless
Brahmin
Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (gur ...
" or "a staunch
Brahmin
Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (gur ...
", since the same inscription also states that he destroyed the haughtiness of other
Kshatriya
Kshatriya ( hi, क्षत्रिय) (from Sanskrit ''kṣatra'', "rule, authority") is one of the four varna (social orders) of Hindu society, associated with warrior aristocracy. The Sanskrit term ''kṣatriyaḥ'' is used in the con ...
s. However, this term has also been interpreted differently as "the only protector of the Brahmins" or "a proud champion of
Brahmanism
The historical Vedic religion (also known as Vedicism, Vedism or ancient Hinduism and subsequently Brahmanism (also spelled as Brahminism)), constituted the religious ideas and practices among some Indo-Aryan peoples of northwest Indian Subco ...
".
Nevertheless, the king also patronized Buddhist monks. According to one of his Nashik inscriptions, the monks were exempted from taxes and granted immunity from any interference by the royal officers.
The ''Nashik prashasti'' also states that the king's joys and sorrows were same as those of his citizens. It claims that he did not like to destroy life, even that of the enemies who offended him. The edict compares him to legendary heroes such as
Rama
Rama (; ), Ram, Raman or Ramar, also known as Ramachandra (; , ), is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular '' avatars'' of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Bein ...
,
Keshava
Keshava (Sanskrit: ') is an
epithet of Vishnu in Hindu tradition. Keshava means Parabrahman, according to Hindu scriptures. The name appears as the 23rd and 648th names in the Vishnu Sahasranama of the Mahabharata. Keshava is also venerated ...
,
Arjuna,
Bhimasena,
Nabhaga,
Nahusha
Nahusha ( sa, नहुष, translit=Nahuṣa) is a king of the Chandravamsha (Lunar dynasty) in Hindu mythology. He is described to be the son of Āyus, the eldest son of Pururavas, and Prabha, the daughter of Svarbhānu.
Literature
Nahus ...
,
Janamejaya
Janamejaya ( sa, जनमेजय) was a Kuru king who reigned during the Middle Vedic period. Along with his father and predecessor Parikshit, he played a decisive role in the consolidation of the Kuru state, the arrangement of Vedic hymns ...
,
Sagara Sagara may refer to:
People
* Sagara (ethnic group), a people of Tanzania
* Sagara (Vedic king), Ikshvaku dynasty
* Sagara clan, a clan of 16th century Japan
* Sekihotai (Sagara Souzou), a leader of the Sekihotai military unit during the Boshin ...
,
Yayati
Yayāti ( sa, ययाति, translit=Yayāti), is a king in Hindu tradition. He is described to be a Chandravamsha king. He is regarded to be the progenitor of the races of the Yadavas and the Pandavas.
He is considered in some texts t ...
and
Ambarisha
In Hindu mythology, Ambarisha ( sa, अम्बरीषः, ) is an Ikshvaku king, and the son of Mandhata.Pargiter, F.E. (1972) 922 ''Ancient Indian Historical Tradition'', Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, p.92. He is believed to have conquered t ...
.
In popular culture
''
Gautamiputra Satakarni
Gautamiputra Satakarni (Brahmi: 𑀕𑁄𑀢𑀫𑀺𑀧𑀼𑀢 𑀲𑀸𑀢𑀓𑀡𑀺, ''Gotamiputa Sātakaṇi'', IAST: ) was a ruler of the Satavahana Empire in present-day Deccan region of India. He was mentioned as the important an ...
'', a
Telugu language
Telugu (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken by Telugu people predominantly living in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, where it is also the official language. It is the most widely spoken member of the Dravidian language fam ...
film directed by
Krish and featuring
Nandamuri Balakrishna
Nandamuri Balakrishna (born 10 June 1960), simply known as Balakrishna or Balayya or NBK, is an Indian actor, producer and politician. He appeared in more than 100 Telugu films over forty years in a variety of roles and established himself as ...
in the titular role, was released on 12 January 2017.
References
Bibliography
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{{Authority control
2nd-century Indian monarchs
Satavahana dynasty