First Battle of Eran
A major battle took place in Malwa, where a local Gupta ruler named Bhanugupta was in charge, likely as a governor. According to the Bhanugupta Eran inscription, his army fought in a big battle at Eran in 510 CE, but suffered heavy losses. It is believed that Bhanugupta was defeated by Toramana in this battle, which led to the western Gupta region of Malwa being taken over by the Hunas.[2]
| First Battle of Eran (510 CE) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Gupta–Hunnic Wars | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
| Gupta Empire | Alchon Huns | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
|
Bhanugupta Narshimagupta |
Toramana Prakataditya | ||||||||
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Battle
changeAccording to the 6th-century CE Buddhist text Manjusri-mula-kalpa, Bhanugupta lost the region of Malwa to the powerful Shudra ruler Toramana, who then continued his campaign towards Magadha. This forced Narasimhagupta Baladitya to retreat to Bengal. Toramana, described as a mighty leader with a formidable army, went on to conquer the city of Tirtha in the Gauda region (modern-day Bengal). The text also mentions that Toramana installed a new king in Benares, named Prakataditya, who is depicted as the son of Narasimhagupta.[2]
Mahārājadhirāja Shrī Toramāṇa
"Great King of Kings, Lord Toramana"
in the Eran boar inscription of Toramana in the Gupta script.[4]
After defeating the Guptas and taking control of the Malwa region, Toramana is prominently mentioned in a renowned inscription found in Eran, affirming his rule over the area.[2] The Eran Boar Inscription, located in Eran (about 540 km south of New Delhi in Madhya Pradesh), dates to his first regnal year and confirms his dominion over eastern Malwa. The inscription, which is written in Sanskrit using the Brahmi script, spans 8 lines and is engraved beneath the neck of a boar. The opening line introduces Toramana as Mahararajadhiraja ("The Great King of Kings")[7] :
In year one of the reign of the King of Kings Sri-Toramana, who rules the world with splendor and radiance...
On his gold coins minted in India in the style of the Gupta Emperors, Toramana presented himself confidently as:
Avanipati Torama(no) vijitya vasudham divam jayati
The lord of the Earth, Toramana, having conquered the Earth, wins Heaven
The Alchon Huns issuance of gold coins, such as the Toramana issue, alongside their silver and copper currency, indicates that their empire in India was both wealthy and influential. However this victory was temporary as he was defeated and drown away by Gupta–Aulikara alliance in 515 CE.
References
change- ↑ ALRAM, MICHAEL (2003). "Three Hunnic Bullae from Northwest India" (PDF). Bulletin of the Asia Institute. 17: 180, Figure 11. ISSN 0890-4464. JSTOR 24049314.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Mookerji, Radhakumud (1989). The Gupta Empire. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. p. 120. ISBN 978-81-208-0089-2.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Coin Cabinet of the Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna". Archived from the original on 1 November 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
- ↑ Fleet, John Faithfull (1960). Inscriptions Of The Early Gupta Kings And Their Successors. pp. 158–161.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "CNG: Feature Auction Triton XIX. HUNNIC TRIBES, Alchon Huns. Toramana. Circa 490-515. AV Dinar (18mm, 9.53 g, 12h)". www.cngcoins.com. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 "The Identity of Prakasaditya by Pankaj Tandon, Boston University" (PDF). Retrieved 2 April 2023.
- ↑ Sinha, Bindeshwari Prasad (1977). Dynastic History of Magadha, Cir. 450-1200 A.D. Abhinav Publications.