Ratna Pala (reigned 920-960) was the son of

Brahma Pala Brahma Pala (reigned 900-920) was the founder of the Pala Dynasty (900–1100) of the Kamarupa kingdom. He married Kula Devi, by whom he had a successor to his throne named Ratna Pala. See also * Kamarupa - Late to end period * Pushyavarman * B ...

Pala Dynasty The Pāla Empire (r. 750-1161 CE) was an imperial power during the post-classical period in the Indian subcontinent, which originated in the region of Bengal. It is named after its ruling dynasty, whose rulers bore names ending with the suffi ...

(900–1100) of

Kamarupa Kamarupa (; also called Pragjyotisha or Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa), an early state during the Classical period on the Indian subcontinent, was (along with Davaka) the first historical kingdom of Assam. Though Kamarupa prevailed from 350 to 11 ...

Kingdom. His queen's name was Durlabha. He was succeeded by

Indra Pala Indra Pala (ruled 960–990) was ruler of Pala Dynasty (900–1100) of Kamarupa Kingdom. Ratna Pala's son, Purandera Pala, predeceased him, and thus the later's son, Indra Pala, his grandson became successor. Indra Pala defeated King Kalyan C ...

. The Gachtal plates of

Go Pala Go Pala was successor and son of Indra Pala and his queen Rajya Devi, of Pala Dynasty of Kamarupa Kingdom, who ruled for the period 990-1015 A.D. The following description is taken from the copper plate grant of Dharma Pala: "In his ( Brahma P ...

have thrown fresh light on the achievements and date of Ratna Pala. An inscription states that Ratna Pala of Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa defeated King

Rajyapala Rajyapala was the eighth emperor of the Pala dynasty. He succeeded his father Narayanapala. He reigned for 32 years. The Bharat Kala Bhaban is dated in his 2nd regnal year, while the Bargaon inscription is dated in his 24th regnal year. He was s ...

(908-40 AD) of

Pala Empire The Pāla Empire (r. 750-1161 CE) was an imperial power during the post-classical period in the Indian subcontinent, which originated in the region of Bengal. It is named after its ruling dynasty, whose rulers bore names ending with the suffi ...

of Bengal and advanced as far as the

Ganges The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...

in the heart of Pala empire. This achievement is not mentioned in any earlier record of the family. The inscription mentioned Rajyapala of Bengal, advancing the dates of Pala's reign to the 1st half of the 10th century from the 1st half of the 11th century. The Baragaon plates, issued in the 25th regnal year of Ratnapala suggests that Brahma Pala abdicated in favour of his son. The author of the inscription extravagantly praised Ratna Pala, describing him as a terror to the Saka king ince there was no Saka king at Ratnapala's time, the reference may be to the Shahis of Afghanistan (and Pakistan) who were sometimes represented as the descendants of the Kushans to the Lord of Gurjaras (apparently the

Gurjara-Pratihara The Gurjara-Pratihara was a dynasty that ruled much of Hindustan, Northern India from the mid-8th to the 11th century. They ruled first at Ujjain and later at Kannauj. The Gurjara-Pratiharas were instrumental in containing Arab armies moving ...

s of

Kanauj Kannauj ( Hindustani pronunciation: ənːɔːd͡ʒ 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 a corrupted form of the class ...

); to the Gauda monarch (Rajyapala, 908-40 AD, of Bengal and Bihar); to the ruler of

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

; to the Vahikas (often spelt Bahikas; of

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

, particularly in the Sialkot region); to the Tayikas (also spelt Tajika; they were Arabs, no doubt meaning the Arabs of Sind in the present case) as well as the Dakshinatya kings. These claims, barring the case of the Gauda king, we poetical exaggerations by the scribe. The basis of such claims was nothing more than the receipt of a present from a source such as a visiting trader. The Baragaon and

Sualkuchi Sualkuchi (Pron: ˈsʊɑ:lˌkʊʧɪ, ) is a census town in Kamrup district in the Indian state of Assam. It is situated on the north bank of the river Brahmaputra, about 35 km from Guwahati, Sualkuchi is a block of Kamrup District. It ...

plate grants of Ratna Pala were issued in his 25th and 36th regnal years when the king was residing at

Durjaya Durjaya, now North Guwahati, was capital of Kamarupa kingdom under the Pala Dynasty for the period 900 to 1100 C.E. Pala rulers built their capital on the banks of the Brahmaputra and surrounded it with a rampart and a strong palisade, whence th ...

(capital). The Carabari plates, last to be discovered, were issued during the 12th regnal year when the king was at Hadappaka, identified with Hadappesvara (named after the Isvara ie, Siva or Sivalinga worshipped at Hadappa or Hadappaka) and was the capital of the kings of Salastambha line. He was the builder of many Siva temples, the donor of much wealth to the Brahmins, the performer of some sacrifices and the like (Indra Pala grant).

References

Further reading