Kushan Empire | History Notes

 Kushan Empire

Kushan Empire or the imperial Kushanas established their empire in the vast areas of Asia, transcending the language and racial barriers. It was during their reign that different ethics and cultures came in contact and influenced each other. The sources of the history of Kushanas are primarily the Chinese chronicles, prominent among them being the Ch’ien Han-Shu and the Hon Han-Shu. Kushan Empire was a major ruler of the post-Mauryan period.

The Kushan dynasty was one of the five clans of the Yueh-chi group, nomads who ruled over areas near Dunhuang. In this article, we will be discussing the Kushan Dynasty UPSC topic in detail, along with its founder, time period, religion, etc.

Kushan Empire

The Kushan Empire (Mid. Pers. Kušān-šahr) was a major world power in Central Asia and northern India from the first to the mid-third centuries CE. One of the five Great Yueh-chi (tribes) was the Kushans, also known as Kuei-Shang. The Kushan empire was made up of people from many different places who moved to Bactria and India over a long period of time. 

Kushan Empire	Details
Founder of Kushan Dynasty	Kujula Kadphises
Time Period	1st century CE–3rd century CE
Religion	Majorly Greek and Buddhism
Kings	Kujula Kadphises or Kadphises, Vima Kadphises, Kanishka, Huvishka, Vasudeva I
Kushan Coins	Majorly made of gold; more than 30 different gods appear ranging from different religions.
Who was the Last Kushan Ruler?	Vasudeva I

History of Kushan Empire

Go through the following points to understand who the Kushans were and a brief history of the Kushan empire:

• The Kushans were most probably one of the confederation’s five branches.
• Nomadic Indo-European people may have Tocharian ancestral roots; they came from northwestern China and settled in ancient Bactria.
• In Chinese sources, they are called Guishuang.
• After some time, they began to rule the other Yuezhi tribes.

Founder of Kushan Dynasty

The founders of the Kushan Dynasty were the Hsi-hou (Yuvaga or leaders) of Kuei-Shuang (Kushana), perhaps a clan which was a part of Ta Yueh-chin or the Great Hueh-chin people. The Chinese chronicles, the Ch’ien Han-Shu and the Hon Han-Shu mention the Ta-hsia was divided among five Hsi-hou (Yuvaga or leaders) of Ta-Yueh-chin. One of these Hsi-hou was of Kuei- Shuang (Kushana).

• The first known Kushana ruler was Miaos (Eraos), who was independent. Kujula Kadphises succeeded Miaos, either immediately or sometime later.
• Kujula captured the Kabul area from Arsacids (the imperial Parthians) and Chi-pin from the Indo Parthians.
• The Hon Han-Shu further says that Kujula died at the ripened age of more than eighty, and he was succeeded by his son Vima Kadphises (known in Chinese chronicles as Yen-Kao-Chen).

Kushan Dynasty Kings

The significance of the Kushan Empire in the political history of the subcontinent and its north-western borderlands is enormous. Due to the political integration of the region and massive empire, the Kushan Empire is sometimes also called the Central Asian Empire.

The list of Kushan Dynasty Kings important for the UPSC Exam is as follows:

Kujula Kadphises or Kadphises:

• The foundation of the Kushan Empire in India was laid by the first Yuezhi chief Kujula Kadphises.
• His reign stretched over Kandahar, Kabul, and Afghanistan.
• Vima Taktu or Sadashkana, Kadphises’s son succeeded him (80 C.E. -95 C.E.). Vima Taktu expanded the Kushan Empire to the northwest of India.

Vima Kadphises:

• Vima Kadphises (113 CE to 127 CE) was one of the Kushan Dynasty Kings. According to the Rabatak inscription, he was the son of Vima Takto and the father of the great ruler, Kanishka.
• Vima Kadphises was the first ruler to issue gold coins extensively due to the favourable trade conditions between Rome and the Indian subcontinent at the time.
• He was a devotee of Shiva, which can be seen from the coins he issued.
• The king’s name is engraved in both Greek and Kharoshti on the Khadphises series of coins. The coins show bi-scriptalism.
• The coins issued by Vima Kadphises throw light upon the state, polity, administration, religious ties, and trade processes of the Kushan Empire during his reign.

Kushan Dynasty Kings – Kanishka:

• Kanishka (127 CE – 150 CE) was the son of Vima Kadphises and is considered the greatest Kushan Dynasty king.
• According to the Rabtak inscription, upon his accession, Kanishka ruled over a huge territory of all of northern India, south to Ujjain and Kundina, and east beyond Pataliputra.
• Under him, the Kushan empire included Peshawar, Gandhara, Pataliputra, Oudh, Kashmir, and Mathura. The Kushan kingdom also comprised parts of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
• Kanishka administered his territory from two capitals, Purushapura (now Pakistan) and Mathura, in northern India. However, the main capital was Purushapura.
• It was at Purushapura that Kanishka adopted Buddhism and became its zealous patron. He is claimed to have taken the Buddhist monk Ashvaghosha to Purushapura after capturing Pataliputra.
• Kanishka patronized Buddhism, which is evident through his coins, which contain a mix of Indian, Greek, and Zoroastrian deities. He was tolerant of all religions.
• He summoned the 4th Buddhist Council at Kundalvana (Kashmir). The fourth Buddhist council was held in Sanskrit.
• He patronized the Greek engineer Agesilaus, and scholars in his court included Parsva, Ashvaghosha, Vasumitra, Nagarjuna, Charaka, and Mathara.
• The Gandhara School of Art prospered under Kanishka, and he spread the Mahayana form of Buddhism.

Huvishka:

• Huvishka (150 CE – 180 CE) was the emperor of the Kushan Empire from the death of Kanishka until the succession of Vasudeva I.
• His rule was a period of consolidation for the Empire.
• His reign seems to have been peaceful, consolidating power in northern India and moving the centre of the Kushan Empire to the southern capital city of Mathura.

Vasudeva I:

• Vasudeva I (190 CE- 230 CE) was the last of the Great Kushans.
• He was the last great Kushan emperor, and the end of his rule coincided with the invasion of the Sasanians as far as northwestern India.
• The decline of the Kushana Empire started during his reign.

Kushan Empire Religion

The Kushan Dynasty was influenced by Hellenistic kingdoms and maintained a wide variety of faiths, including Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, and Hinduism.

• The Kushans are thought to have mostly followed Zoroastrianism, one of the world’s earliest monotheistic religions founded by the Prophet Zoroaster.
• But after Kanishka, they turned towards Buddhism.
• Kanishka, under his reign, founded a number of monasteries, erected many Stupas and Buddhist temples, and encouraged the missionary activities of Buddhist monks.
• It was under his rule that Buddhism began to spread widely in Central Asia and China.

The reign of Huvishka corresponds to the first known epigraphic evidence of the Buddha Amitabha, on the bottom part of a 2nd-century statue found in Govindo-Nagar, and now at the Mathura Museum.

Kushana Dynasty: Achievements

Some of the prominent achievements during the Kushan Dynasty are as follows:

• During this time, Sanskrit literature started to develop. In Sanskrit, the fourth Buddhist council was carried out in Kashmir at Kundalvana.
• Ashvoghosha is believed to be the first person to write plays in Sanskrit.
• During the rule of the Kushanas, Buddhism spread to China. Also, at this time, Buddhism started to transmit to Japan and Korea.
• The Kushanas were foreign invaders, and they have become totally Indian in their ways and culture.
• The Kushan Dynasty kings helped build beautiful sculptures, many towers, chaityas, and towns.
• The Kushana period in the history of India was the perfect push to the Guptas’ golden age.
• India and China, as well as India and the Roman Empire, did a great deal of business.
• At this time, three different art schools did well: the Amaravati School in Andhra, the Mathura School in the Ganges valley, and the Gandhara School in northwest India.

Decline of Kushan Dynasty

After the death of Vasudeva I in 225 CE, the Kushan Empire was divided into eastern and western halves. The western Kushans were defeated by the Persian Sassanid Empire in Afghanistan. The eastern Kushan Empire was based in Punjab, and the territories on the Gangetic Plain became independent under local dynasties, such as the Yaudheyas. In the mid of the 4th century, they were conquered by the Gupta Empire under its leader, Samudragupta.