The Gupta–Vakataka Relationship
A New Interpretation of Ramagiri Evidence (2)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/rosa.v5i1/2.293Keywords:
Candragupta, dynastic history, epigraphy, Gupta, Kevala Narasiṃha Temple inscription, Prabhāvatī Guptā, Rāmagiri, VākāṭakaAbstract
The stone inscription found in the Kevala Narasimha Temple on top of the Ramagiri (Ramtek, Maharashtra) is an unusual personal document telling the story of a Vakataka princess (Atibhavati) who was married to her maternal uncle (Ghatotkacagupta), viceroy in Vidisa (first half of the fifth century ce). This Ghatotkaca lost the succession war against Skandagupta, after which the princess’s brother, the Vakataka king Pravarasena II, brought the widowed princess back home to Vidarbha. The inscription is incomplete; only one third of the original text is readable. A step-by-step analysis and reconstruction of the prasasti part of the inscription reveals the dynastic interrelation of the Gupta and Vakataka dynasties, the construction of which was motivated by political considerations Rrather than by considerations of lawfulness (dharma).
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