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THE MAIN BRANCH
the Gupta empire was convulsed by the invasions of the Hūṇas and though Skandagupta
fought bravely to stem the tide of these invasions, there was a feeellling of unrest and uncertainty
in the land. This is indicated by the statement in the Mandasōr inscription of V. 529
that in the short period of 36 years (between V. 493 and V.529) several princes held the
country of Daśapura.1 The recently published Mandasōr inscription of V. 524 also states
that Prabhākara, a feudatory of the Guptas ruling at Daśapura, had to fight with several
enemies of his lord.2 Some of these may have sided with the Vākāṭaka Narēndrasēna and
sought his help in throwing off the Gupta yoke. What success Narēndrasēna achieved
ultimately in extending the sphere of his of his influence to Mālwā is not known.
...Mēkala is the country near Amarakaṇṭak, where the Narmadā, called Mēkala-sutā,
takes its rise. Before the rise of the Guptas this country was included in the dominion of
the Maghas, which extended from Fatehpur in the north to Bāndhōgaḍh in the south.3 After overthrowing them Samudragupta annexed the fertile territory of the Vatsa country
and parcelled out the hilly tract of Baghēlkhaṇḍ among a number of feudatories such as the
Parivrājakas, Uchchakalpas and Pāṇḍavas. The last of these appear to have previously
owed allegiance to the Magha kings. An inscription at Bāndhōgaḍh mentions Rājan
Vaiśravaṇa and his father Mahāsēnāpati Bharatabala, who probably belonged to the Pāṇḍava
lineage and were feudatories and army commanders of the Maghas. Later, they transferred
their allegiance to the Guptas.4 The Bamhanī plates5 of the Pāṇḍavavaṁśī king Bhatabala
alias Indra give the following genealogy of the prince––Jayabala, his son Vatsarāja, his son
Nāgabala, and his son Bharatabala. The first two of these were probably feudatories of the
Guptas. Nāgabala, who seems to have come to the throne when the Gupta empire was
tottering owing to the onslaughts of the Hūṇas, first assumed the title of Mahārāja, indicative
of his rising power and prestige. He formed a matrimonial alliance with the ruler of Kōsalā
(modern Chhattisgaḍh) by getting the latter’s daughter Lōkaprakāśā married to his son
Bharatabala.6 She was probably a daughter of the king Bhīmasēna I, mentioned in the
Āraṅg plates7 of his grandson Bhīmasēna II, dated G. 182 (501-2 A.C.). Bharatabala,
who flourished in circa 460-480 A.C., makes a veiled reference to his suzerain, the Vākāṭaka
Narēndrasēna. He appears to have transferred his allegiance from the Guptas to the
Vākāṭakas. This confirms the statement in the Balāghāṭ plates that the commands of
Narēndrasēna were honoured by the ruler of Mēkala.
...Kōsalā is of course of Dakshiṇa Kōsala or Chhattisgaḍh, comprising the modern districts
of Durg, Raipur and Bilāspur. As we have seen above, Mahēndra, who was ruling over
this country in the fourth century A.C., was defeated by Samudragupta and forced to
acknowledge his supremacy. His successors used the Gupta era in token of their submission
to the Guptas. As the Gupta power was tottering about this time, the ruler of this country
also may have submitted to the Vākāṭakas. The aforementioned Āraṅg plates of Bhīmasena II,
dated in G. 182 (501-2 A.C.) show that his family had been ruling over Kōsalā for at
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1 C.I.I., Vol. III, p. 83.
2 Ep. Ind., Vol. XXVII, p. 15.
3 For coins of the Maghas found in the Fatehpur District, see J.N.S.I., Vol. II, pp. 95 f. Several
stone inscriptions of the Maghas have been found at Bāndhōgaḍh, Ginjā and Kōsam.
4 For a fuller discussion of this matter see my article ‘The Pāṇḍava Dynasty of Mekalā’ in the
Silver Jubilee Volume of the Indian Historical Research Institute, pp. 268 f.
5 No. 19.
6 Ibid., line 30.
7 Ep. Ind., Vol. IX, pp. 342 f. ; Vol. XXVI, pp. 227 f.
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