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कहाऊँ स्तम्भ एवं क्षेत्रीय पुरातत्व की खोज
Appendix.-3
The Bhilsa topes by Brev-Major Alexander Cuningham, 1854, pages 138-39, 141-42, 144.
THE GUPTA DYNASTY-DECLINE AND FALL OF BUDDHISM
(Page 138-39)
1. At the period of Fa Hian's pilgrimage, the Gupta dynasty occupied the throne of Magadha. Their dominions extended from Népal to the Western Ghats, and from the Indus to the mouths of the Ganges. The family was established by maharaja GUPTA, in 319 A.D., which became the first year of the GUPTA era. This epoch is not mentioned in the Allahabad inscription of Samudra Gupta; but it is used in the Sánchi and Udayagiri inscriptions of Chandra Gupta; in the Kuhaon Pillar inscription of Skanda Gupta; and in the Eran Pillar inscription of Budha Gupta. It is besides especially mentioned by Abu Rihan, who, in his account of Indian ears, identifies the GUPTAKÁL, or Gupta era, with the BALLABA-KÁL, or era of Balabhi, which commenced in A.D. 319. these eras are mentioned no less than three times by Abu Rihán; and each time he has identified them as starting from the same date.
३७
(Page 141-42)
The chronology of the Guptas as derived from all sources will then stand thus*:
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