Puṣpikā – Tracing Ancient India through Texts and Traditions: Contributions to Current Research in Indology, Vol. 6, 2023
The period from c. 300 to 700 CE witnessed the emergence of classical Sanskrit literary tradition... more The period from c. 300 to 700 CE witnessed the emergence of classical Sanskrit literary traditions, the biography (carita) in prose and the versified eulogy or panegyric (praśasti), mostly of rulers and occasionally of influential brāhmaṇa families. The earliest known carita was Bāṇabhaṭṭa’s Harṣacarita, “Deeds of Harṣavardhana”. The seventh chapter (ucchvāsa) of the Harṣacarita entitled “The Gift of the Umbrella” (chatralabdhi) narrates a treaty sealed in common interest between the Kanauj ruler Harṣavardhana (606–647 CE) and Bhāskaravarman, a ruler of the Bhauma-Varman dynasty of Kāmarūpa, Assam (c. 600–650 CE). This paper attempts to situate the seventh ucchvāsa of the Harṣacarita vis-à-vis two significant copper plate inscriptions (both approximately dated to the 7th century CE) issued by Bhāskaravarman himself and containing elaborate eulogies as preambles. Bhāskaravarman was eulogized in versified praśastis which were followed by the operative part of these royal epigraphic texts recording the grants of landed property (exempted from revenue) to brāhmaṇas. These compositions which shower praises on Bhāskaravarman will be analysed in order to compare the representations and political profiles of Bhāskaravarman in two different genres of court literature – the first in the form of a carita by Bāṇabhaṭṭa and the second in the form of praśasti in royal epigraphic documents. Our use of the three literary and epigraphic texts will reflect on the making of the monarchical state society in the early 7th century CE in the Brahmaputra valley.
Keywords: Sanskrit literature, epigraphy, panegyric, Assam, political history, polity
Perspectives on Material Cultures in Northeast India, (ed.) Tilok Thakuria, 2019
Kāmarūpa is a land-locked area. The valley is the gradational work of the Brahmaputra and its tri... more Kāmarūpa is a land-locked area. The valley is the gradational work of the Brahmaputra and its tributaries. The hydrography of the region has considerably influenced the settlement pattern and communication network. Riverine networks not only aided commercial network and designed the settlement patterns of the region but also helped the political power to sketch their aggression on the region. The objective of this paper is to present the fluvial networks of connectivity of the Brahmaputra valley, as traced from the movement of man and material. The paper shall also endeavour to show that although the Brahmaputra valley was a land-locked area; these networks of communication enabled its connectivity with the Bengal sea coast.
Puṣpikā – Tracing Ancient India through Texts and Traditions: Contributions to Current Research in Indology, Vol. 6, 2023
The period from c. 300 to 700 CE witnessed the emergence of classical Sanskrit literary tradition... more The period from c. 300 to 700 CE witnessed the emergence of classical Sanskrit literary traditions, the biography (carita) in prose and the versified eulogy or panegyric (praśasti), mostly of rulers and occasionally of influential brāhmaṇa families. The earliest known carita was Bāṇabhaṭṭa’s Harṣacarita, “Deeds of Harṣavardhana”. The seventh chapter (ucchvāsa) of the Harṣacarita entitled “The Gift of the Umbrella” (chatralabdhi) narrates a treaty sealed in common interest between the Kanauj ruler Harṣavardhana (606–647 CE) and Bhāskaravarman, a ruler of the Bhauma-Varman dynasty of Kāmarūpa, Assam (c. 600–650 CE). This paper attempts to situate the seventh ucchvāsa of the Harṣacarita vis-à-vis two significant copper plate inscriptions (both approximately dated to the 7th century CE) issued by Bhāskaravarman himself and containing elaborate eulogies as preambles. Bhāskaravarman was eulogized in versified praśastis which were followed by the operative part of these royal epigraphic texts recording the grants of landed property (exempted from revenue) to brāhmaṇas. These compositions which shower praises on Bhāskaravarman will be analysed in order to compare the representations and political profiles of Bhāskaravarman in two different genres of court literature – the first in the form of a carita by Bāṇabhaṭṭa and the second in the form of praśasti in royal epigraphic documents. Our use of the three literary and epigraphic texts will reflect on the making of the monarchical state society in the early 7th century CE in the Brahmaputra valley.
Keywords: Sanskrit literature, epigraphy, panegyric, Assam, political history, polity
Perspectives on Material Cultures in Northeast India, (ed.) Tilok Thakuria, 2019
Kāmarūpa is a land-locked area. The valley is the gradational work of the Brahmaputra and its tri... more Kāmarūpa is a land-locked area. The valley is the gradational work of the Brahmaputra and its tributaries. The hydrography of the region has considerably influenced the settlement pattern and communication network. Riverine networks not only aided commercial network and designed the settlement patterns of the region but also helped the political power to sketch their aggression on the region. The objective of this paper is to present the fluvial networks of connectivity of the Brahmaputra valley, as traced from the movement of man and material. The paper shall also endeavour to show that although the Brahmaputra valley was a land-locked area; these networks of communication enabled its connectivity with the Bengal sea coast.
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Papers by Devdutta Kakati
Keywords: Sanskrit literature, epigraphy, panegyric, Assam, political history, polity
Keywords: Sanskrit literature, epigraphy, panegyric, Assam, political history, polity