Political History of Northern India

Author(s): Gulabchandra Chaudhary
Publisher: Sohanlal Jain Dharm Pracharak Samiti Amrutsar

Page 84

POLITICAL HISTORY OF N. INDIA FROM JAIN SOURCES
to the Solar or other ancient races. Bengal was the citadel of Buddhism at that time. It is said in the Prabhāvaka-carita that there was a great Buddhist controversialist, by name Vardhamānakuñjara, in the court of the king Dharmapāla and he had great influence upon the king. It seems that Buddhism must have been enjoying the patronage of the Pāla king. The copper-plates of the Pālas begin with an invocation to the Lord Buddha and many kings of the dynasty are known to have been great patrons of Buddhism. The silence of the Pālas on their origin may indicate their rise from a low or unimportant family. But it is simply a negative inference.
Location: As regards the exact location of the Pāla kingdom we have no definite information from the Jain sources. It is referred to only that they were called the kings of the Gauda country. The capital city of Dharmapāla is said to have been Lakşaņāvati (Lakhanauti.)? It is, however, generally accepted that the city of Lakşaņāvati was founded by the king Laksmanasena of the Sena dynasty. It may be suggested here that it was perhaps renamed.
Kings: As to who was the first king of this dynasty we have no information from the Jain sources. A certain Gopāla is generally regarded as the founder of the dynasty. According to the inscriptions of the Palas he was a king elected by people to recover the country from anarchy. The Prabhāvaka-carita mentions a certain Dharma different from Dharmapāla, who was attacked and killed in a battle by king Yaśovarma of Kanauj.? It seems that he must have been one of the rulers whose names are mentioned in the Tibetan lists as the predecessors of Dharmapăla. Vākpatirāja, the renowned author of the Gaudavaho, was formerly in the court of this king Dharma. He was among the captives whom Yaśovarman kept in prison after his victorious return at Kanauj. Vākpati composed the Gaudavaho, celebrating the exploit of Yasovarman's invasion of Bengal and thus got released from the prison.
Dharmapāla: It is generally accepted by historians that Dharmapāla was a son and successor of Gopāla, but on this point, Jain sources do not
1 SJGM., XIII, p. 96: V. 392 : araquery art Tha
__धर्मः संवाहयामास गीष्पतिं वासवो यथा ॥ 2 Ibid., p. 85, V. 162.: Fit: maiscargata :
श्रीलक्षणावतीपुर्यां प्रापारामावनीतलम् ॥ 3 Ibid., p. 98, V. 463 : siaha 22 ja
तस्माद्विगुणतन्त्रस्तं भूपं युद्धेऽवधीत् बली ॥ 4 See supra, p. 20.