Shahi
This article is about the Hindu dynasty. For the city formerly known as Shahi, see Qa'em Shahr.[[Image:SpalapatiDeva.jpg|thumb|350px|Coin of the Shahi king Spalapati Deva, circa 750-900.
Obv: Bull, symbol of {{Shiva}}.
Rev: King mounted on a horse.]]The
Shahi dynasty ruled portions of eastern
Afghanistan, northern
Pakistan, and
Kashmir from the mid-seventh century to the early eleventh century. They are split into two eras the Buddhist
Turk Shahis and the Hindu Shahis with the changeover occurring sometime around 870.
The
Hindu Shahi, a term used by history writer
Alberuni and
Kalhana, were the last
Hindu dynasty to rule eastern
Afghanistan and the western
Punjab before the
Muslim conquests of the tenth and eleventh centuries. Archeological sites of the period, including a major Hindu Shahi temple north of
Kabul and a chapel in
Ghazni, contain both the pre-dominant
Buddhist and
Hindu statuary, suggesting that there was a close interaction between the two religions.
When the Chinese visitor
Hsuan-tsang visited
Kapisa (about 60 km north of modern Kabul) in 7th century, the local ruler was a
Kshatriya king Shahi Khingala. A
Ganesha idol has been found near Gerdez that bears the name of this king, see
Shahi Ganesha.
Several 6th or 7th century A.D Buddhist manuscripts were found out from a stupa at
Gilgit. One of the manuscripts reveals the name of a Shahi king Srideva Sahi Surendra Vikramaditya Nanda. See
Gilgit ManuscriptsThe
Hindu Shahis first dynasty owe their origins to Kallar, a
Brahmin minister in the service of
Kabul's
Buddhist kings. Kallar took control of the state from the last Turk Shahi Lagaturman (Katorman), which at its height extended from the
Hindu Kush to the
Himalaya, including
Kabul and the
Khyber Pass region of western Afghanistan, the Punjab region of northern
India and
Pakistan, and
Himachal Pradesh in the Himalayas.
Their kingdom was bounded on the north by the Hindu kingdom of
Kashmir, on the east by
Rajput kingdoms, on the south by the Muslim kingdom of
Sind, and on the west by the
Abbasid Caliphate. In 870,
Kabul was captured by the Muslims, and the Shahi capital shifted east to Hund or Ohind, near
Attock in the Punjab.
The kings of Kashmir were related to the Shahis through marital and political alliance. Didda, a famous queen of Kashmir was a granddaughter of the Brahmin Shahi Bhima, who was married to Kshema Gupta (r. 951 - 959). Bhima had visited Kashmir and built the temple Bhima Keshava.
In the 980's,
Sabuktigin, the
Turkic ruler of
Ghazni, defeated the Shahis and captured the
Khyber Pass region as far as the
Indus River. His son and successor,
Sultan Mahmud, waged several campaigns against the Shahi, capturing most of the kingdom in
1008. The Shahi retained a small territory in the eastern Punjab until
1026, when it too was captured by Sultan Mahmud.
The initial Hindu Shahi dynasty, was the House of Kallar, but in 964 AD the rule was assumed from Bhima upon his death by the
Janjua emperor
Maharajadiraja Jayapala, son of Rai Asatapala Janjua and a descendant of Emperor
Janamejaya. Epithets from the Bari Kot inscriptions record his full title as
"Parambhattaraka Maharajadhiraja Paramesvara Sri Jayapala deva" the first Emperor of the Janjua Shahi phase. He is celebrated as a hero in his struggles in defending his Kingdom from the
Turkic rulers of
Ghazni.
Emperor
Jayapala was challenged by the armies of
Sultan Sabuktigin and later by his son
Sultan Mahmud. According to the
Minháj ad-Dīn in his chronicle
Tabaqát-i Násiri (
Raverty's trans., Vol.1, p.82), he bears a testament to the political and powerful stature of Maharaja Jayapala Shah,
"Jayapála, who is the greatest of all the ráis (kings) of Hind..." Misra wrote on Jaypala:
"(He) was perhaps the last Indian ruler to show such spirit of aggression, so sadly lacking in later Rajput kings." (
Indian Resistance to Early Muslim Invaders Up to 1206 AD, R.G Misra, Anu Books, repr.1992)
Prince Anandapala who ascended his father's throne (in about March/April 1002AD) already proved an able warrior and General in leading many battles prior to his ascension. According to 'Adáb al-Harb' (pp.307-10) in about 990, it is written,
"the arrogant but ambitious Raja of Lahore Bharat, having put his father in confinement, marched on the country of Jayapála with the intention of conquering the districts of Nandana, Jailum (Jehlum) and Tákeshar" (in an attempt to take advantage of Jayapala's concentrated effort with defence against the armies of Ghazna).
"Jayapala instructed Prince Anandapala to repel the opportunist Raja Bharat. Anandapala defeated Bharat and took him prisoner in the battle of Takeshar and marched on Lahore and captured the city and extended his father's kingdom yet further." However, during his reign as emperor many losses were incurred on his kingdom by the
Ghaznavids. During the battle of Chach between Mahmud and Anandapala, it is stated that
"a body of 30,000 Gakhars fought alongside as soldiers for the Shahi Emperor and incurred huge losses for the Ghaznavids" . However, despite the heavy losses of the enemy, he lost the battle and suffered much financial and territorial loss. This was Anandapala's last stand against
Sultan Mahmud. He eventually signed a treaty with the Ghaznavid empire in 1010AD and shortly a year later passed away a peaceful death. R.C Majumdar (D.V.
Potdar Commemoration Volume, Poona 1950, p.351) compared him ironically to his dynastic ancient famous ancestor
"King Porus, who bravely opposed Alexander but later submitted and helped in subduing other Indian rulers". And
Tahqíq Má li'l-Hind (p.351) finally revered him in his legacy as
"noble and courageous" .
Prince Tirlochanpála, the son of Anandapala, ascended the Imperial throne in about 1011AD. Inheriting a reduced kingdom, he immediately set about expanding his kingdom into the
Siwalik Hills, the domain of the
Rai of Sharwa. His kingdom now extended from the River Indus to the upper Ganges valley. According to Al-Biruni, Tirlochanpála
"was well inclined towards the Muslims (Ghaznavids)" and was honourable in his loyalty to his father's
peace treaty to the Ghaznavids. He eventually rebelled against Sultan Mahmud and was later assassinated by some of his own mutinous troops in 1021-22AD, an assassination which was believed to have been instigated by the
Rai of Sharwa who became his arch-enemy due to Tirlochanpala's expansion into the Siwalik ranges. He was romanticised in Punjabi folklore as
the Last Punjabi ruler of Punjab.
Prince Bhímapála, son of Tirlochanpala, succeeded his father in 1021-22AD. He was referred to by Utbí as
"Bhīm, the Fearless" due to his courage and valour. Considering his kingdom was at it's lowest point, possibly only the control of Nandana, he admirably earned the title of
"fearless" from his enemy's own chronicle writer. He is known to have led the battle of Nandana personally and seriously wounding the commander of the Ghaznavid army Muhammad bin Ibrahim at-Tāī ('Utbi, vil.ii, p.151.) He ruled only five years after his father before meeting his death in 1026AD. He was final Shahi Emperor of the famed dynasty.
His sons Rudrapal, Diddapal, Kshempala and Anangpala served as generals in Kashmir.They gained prominence in the Kashmiri Royal court where they occupied influential positions and intermarried with the royal family. They are mentioned frequently in
Rajatarangini of
Kalhana written during 1147-1149. Rudrapal was mentioned by the writer Kalhana as a valiant general in the campaigns he led to quell resistance to the Kashmiran kings to whom they served whilst in exile. His later descendants fell out of the favour of the royal court were exiled to the
Siwalik Hills retaining control of the Mandu fort. After a brief period, they rose again to take control of Mathura under
Raja Dhrupet Dev in the 12th century before the campaigns of the Ghorid Empire.
Alberuni, in spite of the fact that he lived under Mahmud, praises the Shahis:
"The Hindu Shahiya dynasty is extinct and of the whole house there is not the slightest remnant in existence. We must say that in all their grandeur, they never slackened in the ardent desire of doing that which is good and right, that they were men of noble sentiment and noble bearing."Kalhana writes about the sad fate of the Shahis:
"Where is the Shahi dynasty with its ministers, its kings, and its great grandeur? ... The very name of the splendor of Shahi kings has vanished. What is not seen in dream, what even our imagination cannot conceive, that dynasty accomplished with ease"The
Janjua Rajputs of Punjab are the descendants of the House of Jayapala.
* Khingala of Kapisa (7th c.)
* Surendra of Gilgit (6-7th c.)
* Kallar (c. 890-895) of Kabul
* Kamaluka (895-921)
* Bhima (921-964), son of Kamaluka
*
Jayapala (964-1001)
* Anandapala (1001-c.1010), son of Jayapala
* Trilochanapala (ruled c.1010-1021-22; assassinated by mutinous troops)
* Bhímapála (died in 1022-1026)
*
List of Indian monarchs*
Pre-Islamic period of Afghanistan*
Janjua*
Gandhara
