Editing Ramagupta

{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2024}}
{{Use Indian English|date=June 2024}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name         = Ramagupta
| title        = [[Maharajadhiraja]]
| image        = 
| caption      = 
| succession   = [[List of Gupta emperors|Gupta emperor]]
| reign        = {{circa}} 375
| predecessor  = [[Samudragupta]]
| successor    = [[Chandragupta II]]
| house        = [[Gupta dynasty]]
| father       = [[Samudragupta]]
| religion     = [[Vaishnavism]]
| spouse       = [[Dhruvadevi]]
}}
{{Gupta Empire}}

'''Ramagupta''' ([[IAST]]: Rāma-gupta; r. c. late 4th century CE), according to the [[Sanskrit]] play ''[[Devichandraguptam]]'', was an emperor of the [[Gupta dynasty]] of northern India. The surviving fragments of the play, combined with other literary evidence, suggest that he agreed to surrender his wife [[Dhruvadevi]] to a [[Indo-Scythians|Shaka]] enemy: However, his brother [[Chandragupta II]] killed the Shaka enemy, and later dethroned him, marrying Dhruvadevi.

The official Gupta genealogy does not mention Ramagupta, and therefore, the historicity of the ''Devichandraguptam'' narrative is debated. Several other sources refer to the events mentioned in the play, but these sources do not mention Ramagupta by name, and may be based on the play itself. Three undated inscriptions, written in a variety of the [[Gupta script]] and discovered in central India, mention a king called Ramagupta: this seems to attest the existence of a Gupta emperor named Ramagupta, although it does not conclusively prove the historicity of the ''Devichandraguptam'' story. Some coins discovered in central India have also been attributed to Ramagupta, but this attribution has not been unanimously accepted by modern historians.

== Sources ==

Ramagupta's name does not appear in the official records of the Gupta dynasty.{{sfn|Ashvini Agrawal|1989|p=157}} According to the official Gupta genealogy, [[Samudragupta]]'s successor was [[Chandragupta II]], whose queen was [[Dhruvadevi]].{{sfn|R. C. Majumdar|1981|p=46}} It is possible that the records of Ramagupta's successors omit his name from genealogical lists because he was not their ancestor.{{sfn|Ashvini Agrawal|1989|p=157}}

Ramagupta is mentioned in the Sanskrit-language play ''Devichandraguptam''. The original text of the play is now [[Lost literary work|lost]], but its extracts survive in other works.{{sfn|Ashvini Agrawal|1989|pp=153-154}}  Several later literary and epigraphic sources corroborate the narrative of ''Devichandraguptam'', although they do not mention Ramagupta by name (see {{see section|Devichandraguptam|Historicity}}).{{sfn|R. C. Majumdar|1981|p=48}}{{sfn|Tej Ram Sharma|1989|pp=116-122}}

After the extracts of ''Devichandraguptam'' were first discovered by [[Sylvain Levi]] and R. Saraswati in 1923, Ramagupta's historicity became a matter of debate among historians. Some scholars, including Levi, dismissed ''Devichandraguptam'' as unreliable for the purposes of history.{{sfn|Tej Ram Sharma|1989|p=106}} Others, such as RD Banerji and [[Henry Heras]] argued that the additional literary evidence was too strong to dismiss Ramagupta as a fictional character, and hoped that his existence would be proved by discovery of his coins in future.{{sfn|Tej Ram Sharma|1989|p=106}}{{sfn|Ashvini Agrawal|1989|p=154}} Subsequently, some scholars such as K. D. Bajpai attributed a few copper coins discovered in central India to Ramagupta, but others, such as [[D. C. Sircar]] disputed this attribution (see [[#Coinage|Coinage]]) below.{{sfn|D.C. Sircar|2008|pp=227-228}} Later, three [[Jainism|Jain]] statue inscriptions referring to ''[[Maharajadhiraja]]'' Ramagupta were discovered at Durjanpur, and have been cited as proof for the existence of the king mentioned in the ''Devichandraguptam'' (see [[#Inscriptions|Inscriptions]] below).{{sfn|Ashvini Agrawal|1989|p=158}}

== Reign ==
{{See also|Gupta-Saka Wars}}
Based on the surviving passages of ''Devichandraguptam'' and other supporting evidence, modern scholars theorize that Ramagupta was the elder son and successor of the Gupta emperor [[Samudragupta]].{{sfn|R. C. Majumdar|1981|p=46}}

According to the play, Ramagupta decided to surrender his wife [[Dhruvadevi|Dhruva-devi]] (or Dhruva-svamini) to a [[Saka|Shaka]] enemy, but his younger brother [[Chandragupta II|Chandragupta]] went to the enemy camp disguised as the queen, and killed the enemy.{{sfn|Ashvini Agrawal|1989|pp=153-154}} According to the ''Devichandraguptam'' passage quoted in [[Bhoja]]'s ''Shringara-Prakasha'', the enemy camp was located at Alipura. [[Banabhatta|Bana]]'s ''[[Harshacharita|Harsha-charita]]'' calls the place "Aripura" (literally "enemy's city"); one manuscript of ''Harsha-charita'' calls the place "Nalinapura".{{sfn|Tej Ram Sharma|1989|p=112}}

The identity of Ramagupta's "[[Saka|Shaka]]" ([[IAST]]: Śaka) enemy is not certain. Proposed identifications include:

* Historian [[V. V. Mirashi]] identified him with the [[Kushan Empire|Kushan]] king who ruled in Punjab, and who is referred to as "Devaputra-Shahi-Shanushahi" in [[Samudragupta]]'s [[Allahabad Pillar]] inscription.{{sfn|Tej Ram Sharma|1989|p=113}}
* Historian [[A. S. Altekar]] identified him with [[Peroz (Kidarite)|Piro]], a son of [[Kidara I]], who controlled western and central Punjab. Altekar theorized that Piro invaded eastern Punjab, and Ramagupta attempted to check his advance, leading to a war.{{sfn|Tej Ram Sharma|1989|p=113}}

Based on the Jain statue inscriptions (see [[#Inscriptions]] below), historian Tej Ram Sharma speculates that Ramagupta may have adopted "a peaceful style of life" after his humiliation by the Shaka enemy, which may explain his inclination towards [[Jainism]].{{sfn|Tej Ram Sharma|1989|p=123}}

Later, Chandragputa appears to have killed Ramagupta and married Dhruvadevi,{{sfn|A. K. Warder|1989|p=263}} who is mentioned as Chandragupta's queen in the Gupta records.{{sfn|Romila Thapar|2013|p=359}}

== Historicity ==
{{quotebox
|width  = 300px
|quote  = भगवतोर्हतः चन्द्रप्रभस्य प्रतिमेऽयं कारिता महाराजाधिराज-श्री-रामगुप्तेन उपदेशात् पाणिपात्रिक-चन्द्रक्षमाचार्य्य-क्षमण-श्रमण-प्रशिष्य-आचार्य्य सर्प्पसेन-क्षमण-शिष्यस्य गोलक्यान्त्या-सत्पुत्रस्य चेलु-क्षमणस्येति
|source = The Ramagupta [[Inscription]] found near [[Vidisha]]<ref>{{cite book |author=Kasturchand Jain Suman |title=भारतीय दिगम्बर जैन अभिलेख और तीर्थ परिचय, मध्यप्रदेशः. 13वीं श. ई. तक (Bharatiya Digambar Jain Abhilekh aur Tirth Parichay, Madhya-Pradesh: 13 vi shati tak) |location=Delhi |year=2001 |pages=1–10}}</ref>
}}

The theory that Ramagupta was a historical person is supported by the following points:

* Inscriptions attributed to Ramagputa have been discovered in central India (see below).{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|p=250}} These inscriptions mention a king called Ramagupta who bore the imperial title ''Maharajadhiraja''. Moreover, the inscriptions are in the [[Gupta script|Gupta Brahmi]] script of 4th-5th centuries CE, which proves that Ramagupta was a historical Gupta emperor.{{sfn|Ashvini Agrawal|1989|p=158}}
* Dhruvadeva and Chandragupta, the two other main characters of the play ''Devichandraguptam'', are known to be historical persons. The official records of the Gupta dynasty mention [[Chandragupta II]] as an emperor.{{sfn|R. C. Majumdar|1981|p=46}} Dhruvadevi is attested by her royal seal which describes her as the wife of Chandragupta and the mother of [[Govindagupta]].{{sfn|Romila Thapar|2013|p=359}}
* The Eran inscription of Samudragupta appears to mention that his queen Datta-devi had many sons and grandsons, although this cannot be said with certainty because the inscription is mutilated.{{sfn|R. C. Majumdar|1981|p=46}}
* In the official Gupta genealogy, the kings are described as "meditating on the feet" of their fathers. However, in a departure from this convention, Chandragupta II is described as having been "accepted by his father"{{sfn|R. C. Majumdar|1981|p=46}} in his Mathura stone pillar inscription as well as Bihar and Bhitari inscriptions of [[Skandagupta]].{{sfn|Tej Ram Sharma|1989|p=105}} Scholars who believe the play to have a historical basis argue that this is a covert way of stating that his accession to the throne was contested.{{sfn|Romila Thapar|2013|p=357}}
* Several later texts and inscriptions (see {{see section|Devichandraguptam|Historicity}}) refer to the episode mentioned in the ''Devichandraguptam'',{{sfn|Ashvini Agrawal|1989|p=157-158}}{{sfn|Tej Ram Sharma|1989|pp=116-122}} although these sources may be based on the play itself, and therefore, cannot be regarded as conclusive evidence corroborating the play's historicity.{{sfn|R. C. Majumdar|1981|p=49}}

=== Inscriptions ===

Two stone statues of [[Jainism|Jain]] [[tirthankara]]s, discovered at Durjanpur (or Durjanpura) near [[Vidisha]], bear inscriptions that mention ''Maharajadhiraja'' Ramagupta; the partially-damaged inscription on another similar statue also appears to mention his name.{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|p=250}} The statues were discovered while clearing a field with a bulldozer, and were partially damaged by the bulldozer.{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|p=247}}

{| class="wikitable"
! Statue
! State of preservation
! Inscription on the pedestal ([[IAST]] transliteration, reconstructed portions in square bracket)
|-
| A: Statue of [[Chandraprabha]]
| Face of the tirthankara completely damaged, Face of the left-hand attendant figure damaged, Inscription well-preserved and complete.{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|p=247}}
| Bhagavatorhataḥ Candraprabhasya pratime-yaṃ kāritā ma-<br/>harājadhirāja-śri-Rāmaguptena upadeśāt-Pāṇipā-<br/>trika-Candrakṣamacā-<br/>ryya-kṣamaṇa-śramana-praśiṣya-acāryya Sarppasena-kṣamaṇa-śiṣyasya Golakyāntyā-satputraasya Celūkṣamaṇasyeti{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|pp=250-251}}
|-
| B: Statue of [[Pushpadanta]]
| Face of the tirthankara completely damaged, Attendant and ''prabhavali'' portions well-preserved, Last two lines of the inscription damaged.{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|p=247}}
| Bhagavatorhataḥ Puṣpadantasya pratime-yaṃ kāritā ma-<br/>harājadhirāja-śri-Rāmaguptena upadeśāt-Pāṇipātrika-<br/>Candrakṣama[nācā]ryya-[kṣamaṇa]-śramana-praśi[ṣya]<br/> [... ''damaged portion'' ...] ti{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|p=251}}
|-
| C: Statue of Chandraprabha
| Face of the tirthankara partially preserved, Attendant and ''prabhavali'' portions completely lost, Inscription erased (though some words and letters can be reconstructed based on the other two inscriptions).{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|p=247}}
| Bhagava[to]rha[taḥ] [Candra]prabhasya pratime-yaṃ [kā]ritā maha[rāja]dhirā[ja]-<br/>śri-[Rāmagupte]na u[padeśāt-Pā]ṇi[pātri] [... ''damaged portion'' ...]<br/>{{small|The part containing the king's name can be restored as "Rāmaguptena" as faint traces of the letters ''m'' and ''pte'' can be seen}}{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|p=251}}
|}

Based on the reconstructed text, all three inscriptions appear to contain same text except the name of the tirthankara.{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|p=248}} They state that emperor Ramagupta caused the statues to be built at the behest of a mendicant.{{sfn|Dilip Kumar Ganguly|1984|p=150}} The mendicant was named Chella Kshamana{{sfn|Dilip Kumar Ganguly|1984|p=150}} or Chelu-kshamana ([[IAST]]: Celū-kṣamaṇa), who was a son Golakyanti and a pupil of ''Acharya'' Sarppasena-kshamana, who in turn, was a pupil's pupil of Chandra-kshamana.{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|pp=248-249}}

These inscriptions do not mention that Ramagupta belonged to the Gupta dynasty,{{sfn|Tej Ram Sharma|1989|p=130}} and do not mention any date.{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|p=248}} However, following arguments can be made to date them to the 4th century, and to support the identification of the Ramagupta mentioned in these inscriptions as a Gupta emperor:{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|p=248}}

* According to epigraphist [[G. S. Gai]], who edited the inscriptions, the inscriptions feature the so-called southern or western variety of the [[Gupta script]]: the alphabet clearly resembles the alphabet of the Eran inscription of [[Samudragupta]] (who must have been Ramagupta's predecessor) and the Sanchi inscription of [[Chandragupta II]] (who must have been Ramagupta's successor). The medial 'i' character is different from the one featured in the Sanchi inscriptions, but such a character can also be found in earlier inscriptions, such as the Nandsa-Yupa inscriptions of the 3rd century.{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|p=248}} Thus, on palaeographic basis, the Ramagupta inscriptions can be assigned to the 4th century CE.{{sfn|Dilip Kumar Ganguly|1984|p=150}}{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|p=248}}
* According to Gai, the sculptural features and styles of the statues also suggest that they belong to the 4th century CE. The ''prabhavali'' (halo) is not as developed and stylized as in the 5th century Buddha images from [[Sanchi]]. The pedestals of the statues feature a ''[[chakra]]'' at the centre, instead of the characteristic ''lanchana''s (traditional symbols) associated with the tirthankaras, which suggests that the images belong to an "early stage in the development of the Jaina iconography".{{sfn|G. S. Gai|1969|p=248}}
* ''Maharajadhiraja'' is an imperial title, which indicates that Ramagupta was a historical Gupta emperor.{{sfn|Ashvini Agrawal|1989|p=158}}

However, according to another theory, the Ramagupta of the Durjanpur inscriptions is a later Gupta king, not the brother of Chandragupta II.{{sfn|Upinder Singh|2008|p=479}} Historian [[D. C. Sircar]] has dated these records to a later period, based on a comparison of letters and signs that occur in these inscriptions and the Sanchi inscriptions of Chandragupta II.{{sfn|Dilip Kumar Ganguly|1984|p=150}}

=== Coinage ===

A few copper coins, bearing the legend "Ramaguta" (Prakrit form of "Ramagupta") on the obverse, and the figure of a lion or a [[garuda]] on the reverse, have been found at [[Eran]] and [[Vidisha]] in [[Madhya Pradesh]]. Some scholars have attributed these coins to the Gupta ruler Ramagupta, but others believe him to be a distinct, local ruler.{{sfn|D.C. Sircar|2008|pp=226-227}} Since Garuda was the emblem of the imperial Gupta dynasty, numismatist K. D. Bajpai asserted that these coins were indeed issued by the Gupta emperor Ramagupta. Bajpai speculated that Samudragupta appointed his son Ramagupta as a governor of the eastern [[Malwa]] region in central India; Ramagupta was forced to stay there even after his father's death because of the war with the Shakas, and the events depicted in ''Devichandraguptam'' happened there.{{sfn|D.C. Sircar|2008|p=227}}

However, historian D. C. Sircar doesn't find Bajpai's theory convincing, and states that the issuer of these coins may have been a local chief of imitated Gupta coinage after the decline of the Gupta dynast in the late 5th century CE.{{sfn|D.C. Sircar|2008|p=227}} Sircar points out that a non-Gupta ruler named Harigupta is known to have issued copper coins that feature a garuda, and imitate the gold coins of Chandragupta II.{{sfn|D.C. Sircar|2008|p=228}} Coins of another such imitator, named Indragupta, have been discovered at [[Kumhrar]].{{sfn|D.C. Sircar|2008|p=228}} Sircar also notes that other Gupta emperors are known to have issued gold coins, but no gold coins issued by Ramagupta have been discovered.{{sfn|D.C. Sircar|2008|p=223}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

=== Bibliography ===

{{ref begin}}
* {{cite book |author=A. K. Warder |author-link=Anthony Kennedy Warder |title=Indian Kavya Literature |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=10bVNjRwE_0C&pg=PA260 |year=1989 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-0448-7 }}
* {{cite book |author=Ashvini Agrawal |title=Rise and Fall of the Imperial Guptas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hRjC5IaJ2zcC&pg=PA315 |year=1989 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-0592-7 |page=315 }}
* {{cite book |author=D.C. Sircar |title=Studies in Indian Coins |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m1JYwP5tVQUC&pg=PA223 |year=2008 |orig-year=1968 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-2973-2 }}
* {{cite book |author=Dilip Kumar Ganguly |title=The Imperial Guptas and Their Times |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Hud2_Ie3T94C&pg=PP1 |year=1987 |publisher=Abhinav |isbn=978-81-7017-222-2 }}
* {{cite book |author=Dilip Kumar Ganguly |title=History and Historians in Ancient India |url=https://archive.org/details/historyhistorian00gang |url-access=registration |page=[https://archive.org/details/historyhistorian00gang/page/150 150] |year=1984 |publisher=Abhinav |isbn=978-0-391-03250-7 }}
* {{cite journal |author=G. S. Gai |author-link=G. S. Gai |title=Three inscriptions of Rāmagupta |editor=B. J. Sandesara |journal=Journal of the Oriental Institute |volume=XVIII |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b2JOAAAAYAAJ |year=1969 |publisher=Oriental Institute, [[Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda]] |pages=247–251 }}
* {{cite book |author=R. C. Majumdar |author-link=R. C. Majumdar |title=A Comprehensive History of India |volume=3, Part I: A.D. 300-985 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mRBuAAAAMAAJ |year=1981 |publisher=Indian History Congress / People's Publishing House |oclc=34008529 }}
* {{cite book |author=Romila Thapar |title=The Past Before Us |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aei9AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA357 |year=2013 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-674-72651-2 }}
* {{cite book |author=S. R. Goyal |title=An introduction to Gupta numismatics |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GTZmAAAAMAAJ |year=1994 |publisher=Kusumanjali Prakashan |oclc=32240275 }}
* {{cite book |author=Tej Ram Sharma |title=A Political History of the Imperial Guptas: From Gupta to Skandagupta |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fWVZWjNAcAgC |year=1989 |publisher=Concept |isbn=978-81-7022-251-4 }}
* {{cite book |author=Upinder Singh |title=A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Pq2iCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA479 |year=2008 |publisher=Pearson Education India |isbn=978-81-317-1677-9 }}
{{ref end}}

[[Category:Gupta emperors]]
[[Category:4th-century Indian monarchs]]