The rise of Gaur under the leadership of Sashanka. (Biography of Shashanka)

The rise of Gaur under the leadership of Sashanka. 

Sashanka empire

Answer: In the ancient Hindu era, the region of present day Bangladesh was known by various names  North Bengal was known as Pundra and Barindra, West Bengal as Radha and Tamralipta, East and South as Kadal, Harikela, Samatat, Chand etc.  After the arrival of Muslims, this country became known as Bangladesh.  Later, the whole of Bangladesh came to be known as Gaur and Banga.  After the fall of the Gupta Empire, the Maukhari dynasty became powerful in India.  When the people of Gaur were defeated by Maukhari Raja Ishan Barman, the Maukhari kings were repeatedly invading Bangladesh as there was a patriarchal discord between Maukhari and later Gupta kings.  The Gupta dynasty of Bengal was weakened by the Maukhari and Gupta conflicts and the constant invasions of the Chalukya kings from the south, and on that occasion a feudal lord named Shashanka established an independent kingdom in Gaur (606 AD).

           Sashanka dynasty 

Historical elements about Shashanka: 

         In the history of Bangladesh, Shashanka, the king of Gaur, is a particularly noteworthy character.  No neutral historical account of Shashanka has been found as it is impossible to get a complete picture of the continuous history of Bangladesh since ancient times.  Historical information about Shashanka is mainly collected from the writings of his opponents.  Harsha's poet Banabhatta and the Chinese tourist Hiuen-Tsang.  Most of the information about Shashanka is available from the composition.  But Banabhatta belonged to Shashanka   Opposition and Hiuen Tsang were assisted by Harsh.  For this reason, the statement of both  Seemed to be biased. There is also some information from the Buddhist book ‘Aryamanjushrimulkalpa’. Some of Shashanka's coins are found in Bengali, especially in Ganjam. 

Genealogical identity and past life:                                  Shashanka was the first Bengali king to establish sovereign rule in Aryavarta.  However, no exact details are available about his lineage and previous life.  According to many, Shashanka's other name was Narendragupta and he was of Gupta descent.  But this was not recognized in the historical circles.  Shashanka is referred to as "Srimahasamanta Shashanka" in the Raitasgarh inscription.  But nothing can be said later about under whom he was a feudal lord.  But in his contemporaries, Mahasengupta of the Gupta dynasty was the ruler of Gaur and Magadha.  For this reason, it can be indirectly assumed that he was a feudal lord under the Gupta rulers after Shashanka and before 606 AD he became the king of Gaur and his capital was Karnasuvarna at Rangamati in Murshidabad district. 

Establishment and expansion of independent kingdoms: 

                   Taking advantage of the weakness of the Gupta dynasty kings of North and West Bengal, Shashanka established an independent kingdom before 606 AD with his own arms from a small feudal lord.  With the establishment of a new dynasty, Shashanka was persuaded to expand his kingdom.  Banabhatta's Harshacharita and Hiuen Tsang's account give an account of the expansion of Shashanka's kingdom.  The main goal of his foreign policy was to provide security for his kingdom from the onslaught of the Maukhris.  At first he was persuaded to expand the kingdom in Bangladesh and its adjoining areas.  He conquered Dandabhukti (present day Medinipur), Utkal (present day Orissa) and the state of Congo (present day Ganjam) in the south.  To the west he annexed Magadha.  It seems that the Anga kingdom also acknowledged its subordination.  The independent kingdom of Bengal in the south recognized its sovereignty.  At that time, the natural boundary of Bengal was called Brahmaputra river in the east, Shane-Gandak valley in the west, and the north.  Himalayas and Chilka Lake to the south.  Shashanka tried to keep the independence of Bengal intact from the invasion of neighboring states by extending the kingdom of Bengal to this natural frontier.  Thus in a short time Shashanka built a huge empire.  No other Bengali king before Shashanka is known to have established such a vast empire.  

Rival power alliance- attack Kannauj :                            Shashanka after the conquest of East India,  West India advanced to victory.  In the west, the Maukharis of the Kanauj kingdom were the enemies of Gaur.  The marriage of Rajyashree, daughter of Prabhakarvardhan, king of Thaneswar, to Maukhriraj Grahavarman of Kannauj resulted in the formation of an alliance between the two countries.  In this situation Shashanka formed a counter alliance with Malbaraj Devgupta, the enemy of Thaneswar. Meanwhile, Kamaruparaj Bhaskaravarman was also terrified by Shashanka's aggressive mind and joined the Maukhari-Thaneshwar alliance in self-defense.  After gathering power in this way, Shashanka and Devgupta attacked Kanauj, killed Grahavarman and captured Rajyasri.  When the news reached Thaneswar, Thaneswar Raj Rajyavardhana handed over the reins to his younger brother Harshavardhana and attacked Malab and killed Devgupta.  But he was killed by Shashanka before Kannauj was rescued or Rajyashree was released.  Harshacharita and Hiuen Tsang's account show that Shashanka betrayed and killed Rajyavardhana.  But there is no mention of such an incident in Harsh's inscription.  That is why modern historians do not consider this incident to be a betrayal.  However, judging by the ancient political system, his work was not unusual or immoral.  

Harshavardhana's campaign against Shashanka:

     After Rajyavardhana's death, Harshavardhana became the king of Thaneswar and Kannauj.  He went against Shashanka to avenge his brother's murder.  At this time Bhaskaravarman of Kamarupa befriended him.  Harshavardhana proceeded to rescue Rajyasree without delay.  It is unknown at this time what he will do after leaving the post.  It is mentioned only in one Buddhist scripture called Aryamanjushrimulkalpa.  But as long as Shashanka was alive, Harsh could not defeat him.  After the death of Shashanka, Harsha and Bhaskaravarman defeated his son Manabdev and captured Karnasuvarna, the capital of Shashanka, and when Bangladesh was divided, the independent state of Gaur came to an end.  

      

                  In one of his accounts, Hiuen Tsang writes that in 637 AD, Shashanka Gaya committed a sin by ordering the cutting down of Bodhi tree and the removal of Buddha idols from a nearby temple, which resulted in his death.  One of the copperplate inscriptions of Ganjam states that Shashanka ruled independently till 619 or 638 AD and was the ruler of Gaur, Magadha, Dandabhuti, Uktal and Kangas till his death. 

Shashanka's religion:

                   Shashanka was a worshiper of Shiva.  Hiuen Tsang described him as an absolute anti-Buddhist.  But that is not true.  Because it is known from the account of Hiuen Tsang that the Buddhists had considerable prestige in Karnasuvarna, the capital of Shashanka.  If Shashanka had been anti-Buddhist, Buddhism would not have spread in Bangladesh later.

 Achievements: Although there is no way to get an accurate idea of ​​Shashanka's character and achievements, his achievements cannot be denied.  Starting his life as a feudal lord, he liberated Gaur from the rule of the Guptas and established an independent and sovereign dynasty.  He was the first to establish a sovereign empire in Bengal, which extended from Bengal to Orissa.

                       He maintained his dominance in Bengal, Bihar and Orissa by fighting against the mighty emperor Harshavardhana of northern India.  In fact, the Pala kings of Bengal later formed an empire based on his imperialist policy.  Was attempted.  Shashanka established Bengal in a prominent position in Indian politics.  He was a shrewd and cunning politician.  He used diplomacy to destroy the Maukhari dynasty.  Shashanka occupies a prominent place in the history of Bengal.  Shashanka was called the first 'national king of Bengal' because of the expansion of state unity and empire of Bengal and the establishment of Bengal in the politics of northern India.