Thread by @PrasunNagar

The Origin of Guptas.

This short thread would detail the origin of Gupta dynasty, laying special emphasis on first of its two kings, Sri Gupta and Ghatotkacha Gupta.

The origin of Guptas is shrouded in mystery.

Like all great empires before them, the imperial Gupta family must have had a small and obscure origin.

Some have debated that they were from the area of Benaras or Bengal, and they started out as feudatories of Kushans.

Though the available evidences are not conclusive regarding Guptas as being feudatories of Kushans, several later era Gupta inscriptions and travelogue from Chinese pilgrims like I-tsing, gives an indication as to the origins of Gupta dynasty.

The first evidence of Gupta connection with Magadha comes from a foreign source.

The Chinese traveller, I-tsing, who came to India in 672 AD heard of 'Maharaja Sri Gupta' ( che-li-ki-to) who built a temple near Mrigasikhavana for Chinese pilgrims & endowed it with 24 villages'.

I-tsing states that ' the temple was built 500 years before his time', which gives a date of around 170 AD.

However, 500 years cannot be taken as 'accurate' as Dr. Mookerji puts it, and hence this temple must have been constructed around 250 AD by Sri Gupta.

Thus, historians have given a date of between 240-280 AD for 'Sri Gupta'.

'Sri' here is a title, and hence 'Gupta' is the word used for the first Gupta king.

He has been titled 'Maharaja' & not Maharajadhiraja' ( king of kings) !

Image of word 'Sri Gupta' on Allahabad pillar

The word ' Maharaja' was used by later Gupta inscriptions to denote governors of a region.

Hence, this would prove that 'Sri Gupta' was a small king and his area of suzerainty must have included area of Magadha, and adjoining areas.

Ghatotkacha Gupta (c. 280-319 AD)

Ghatotkacha Gupta was the son of 'Sri Gupta', and the father of Chandragupta- I, who created the Gupta empire in 319 AD.

'Mahārāja Shrī Ghatotkacha' as written in the Allahabad pillar inscription of Samudra Gupta

Again, we observe that the title of this king is written as 'Mahārāja', and not 'Maharajadhiraja', as was the title used by his son, and by the later Gupta emperors.

This would suggest that the kingdom of Ghatotkacha was still relegated to Magadha and adjoining parts.

This Ghatotkacha, must not be confused with another 'Ghatotkacha' of the Gupta family, who was the brother of Emperor Kumara Gupta- I, and whose clay seals and inscriptions have been found at Vaishali, where he was ruling as a Viceroy.

Image of clay seal of Ghatotkacha Gupta

The only political event of this king was the matrimonial alliance conducted between his son, Chandragupta- I to the Lichchhavi princess Kumaradevi of Nepal.

Dr. V.A. Smith has dated this marriage to have taken place in 308 AD, and birth of Samudra Gupta to c. 309 AD.

This political alliance was of great benefit to the Guptas, who were very proud of this marriage-alliance.

Samudra Gupta struck coins to celebrate this marriage, & calls himself ' 'Lichchhavi-dohitra' ( maternal relative of the Lichchhavis), rather than 'Gupta-putra'.

Ghatotkacha must have been a strong and tall man, as he was named after the son of Bheem, one of the five-pandavas in the Mahabharata, and was the strongest of them all.

Dr. Raichaudhary has theorized that some of the sins committed by Ghatokacha of Mahabharata were edited out in the final redaction of the epic out of respect for the Gupta king Ghatotkacha.

Source: ' A comprehensive History of India Part-I', by R.C. Mazumdar, page number 9.

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