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Dr. Charlotte Krause : Her Life & Literature
nor by a long and glorious peace, nor by a fame which transcended the oceans, and of whom no extraordinary personal achievements or merits are reported138.
Skandagupta might be thought of, especially since it is he whose deeds Somadeva sings in his Kathāsaritsāgara139 under the names of Vişamaśīla and Vikramāditya and who would appear a hero worthy of the eulogies of a Siddhasena Divākara140 ! One might believe the name of Vişamaśīla to be indirectly reflected in St. 12 of the Gunavacanadvātrimśikā, where the poet contrasts his patron with the other princes, characterizing the latter ironically as bhadraśīla. Besides, the title of Vikramāditya would well suit the tradition of the Jaina Prabandhas and Pattāvalis, which connect Siddhasena persistently with a Vikramāditya, and would also be in conformity with St. 24 of the Dvātriṁśikā, if taken as an indication that Siddhasena's patron did possess a title containing a synonym for ‘sun'. Yet Skandagupta, too, must be ruled out on account of the shortness of his reign, the deterioration of the finances of the Gupta Emprire which characterized his later years, and his having no sons worthy to succed him41
Appellations like 'Indra', 'Mahendra', 'Maghavan', which Siddhasena frequently applies to his patron, as well as the word 'Candra' or its synonym 'Indu', if interpreted as paranomasia, might be looked upon as references to Kumāragupta I who, a great conqueror and a ruler of many years standing, bore the title of ‘Mahendrāditya’ and is also sometimes designated as 'Candra' on his coins. Besides, some of his coins bear the legend of ‘Vikramāditya', too. These arguments, however, are not sufficient to prove anything by their own strength. They are, on the contrary, invalidated by the fact that the political conditions which Siddhasena describes as having prevailed at the beginning of his patron's reign, viz., the earth being troubled by incessant wars waged by numerous petty princes with one another and the prosperity of the land and the wealth of the king being unstable, do not apply to this ruler at all,
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