Harshavardhana (606-647)

After the decline of the Gupta dynasty, India went through a phase of political chaos and disintegration. As the empire broke down, many small kingdoms emerged and started quarrelling with each other in order to grab power.

There was no central power to keep check on foreign invasions and defend the country. Under these circumstances, Harshavardhana appeared as a strong and capable ruler in North India. He restored peace and brought discipline back in society.

Historians wrote about his reign by gathering material from inscriptions, coins, manuscripts, official documents and his biography Harshacharita (The Deeds of Harsha). This biography was written by Banabhatta, also known as Bana, who was a Sanskrit writer and the 'asthana kavi', meaning a 'court poet' of King Harsha. A Chinese traveller Hsaun Tsang also visited the region during Harsh's rule and left many interesting accounts in his travelogue. However, despite all these sources of information regarding Harsh's reign, historians find it difficult to unfold his period completely. Harsh later adopted the title of 'Maharaja Adhiraja' — it is assumed that by defeating the rulers of small states and conquering their kingdoms, he called himself 'the supreme ruler'.

One of the important moves of Harshavardhana was that he shifted his capital from Patliputra to Kannauj. It was interesting because Patliputra served as the capital for two great empires — the Mauryans and the Guptas. By changing the capital, Harsh's intention was perhaps to have his own identity and build the capital city according to his political and religious views.

It is said that Kannauj had 400 Buddhist monasteries and 200 temples. The city became famous for its gardens, water tanks and beautiful palaces. Its markets were the centre of commercial activities where traders from other countries brought their products for sale.

The city had many rich people who lived in luxurious palatial houses. But there were also many common people who worked very hard to survive. Artisans and craftsmen, who contributed to the beauty of the city, spent their lives in poverty and misery. The untouchables were not allowed to enter the city and their settlements were outside the city's boundaries. It shows that the caste system which was institutionalised during the Gupta period continued unchanged.

During his early life, Harshavardhana was a believer of Shiva, but later on he converted to Buddhism. However, he was very tolerant to other religions and allowed everyone to practise their faith freely. After adopting Buddhism, he built a number of Buddhist monasteries to express his religious devotion. He also banned slaughtering of animals following the Buddhist teachings.

To reform the Buddhist sect Mahayana, he called a grand conference which was attended by rulers, courtiers and Buddhist priests. It was also attended by the Chinese traveller Hsuan Tsang who participated in the discussion.

One example of his religious toleration was that on the religious festival which was celebrated every year at Paryag — the meeting point of rivers Ganges and Yamuna — he issued the order that for one whole month Brahmans as well as the followers of Buddhism would get charity from the state. The slogan of his empire was 'serve the people and sacrifice in their interest'.