Tag: the vardhans

Harsha became the king of Thanesar after his father and elder brother died. Hisbrother-in-law was the ruler of Kanauj and was killed by the ruler of Bengal.

Harsha is also known as Harshavardhana, was an Indian emperor who ruled North India from 606 to 647 CE. He was a member of the Vardhana dynasty; and was the son of Prabhakarvardhana who defeated the Alchon Huna invaders, and the younger brother of Rajyavardhana, a king of Thanesar, present-day Haryana.

His biography was written by Banabhatta. We also know about Harshavardhana from Xuan Zang.

Harshavardhana ascended the throne of Thanesar in 606 A.D. after the death of his brother Rajyavardhana.

Harshavardhana's expansion into the Deccan was halted by the Chalukya king Pulakeshin II at the battle on the banks of the Narmada.

Hieun Tsang, the Chinese pilgrim, visited India during the reign of Harshavardhana with an aim of securing authentic Buddhist scripts. The Kannauj assembly (643 AD) was held in the honour of Hieun Tsang and to popularise Mahayana sect of Buddhism. Bāṇabhaṭṭa was a 7th-century Sanskrit prose writer and poet of India. He was the Asthana Kavi in the court of King Harsha Vardhana. Fa-hien was a Chinese pilgrim who visited India during the reign of Chandra Gupta II. Hence, these are incorrect. 

Harshavardhana belonged to the Pushyabhuti dynasty, also known as the Vardhana dynasty, which ruled from Thanesar.

Harshavardhana was initially a devotee of Shiva but later became a patron of Buddhism, particularly after meeting the monk Xuanzang.

Harshavardhana shifted his capital from Thanesar to Kannauj to better control the Gangetic plains.

Agriculture was the primary occupation of the people during the reign of Harshavardhana, as it was in most ancient Indian kingdoms.

Harshavardhana convened a great Buddhist assembly at Kannauj in 643 A.D. to discuss Buddhist philosophy.