Back إمبراطورية شونغا Arabic شونقا ایمپراتورلوغو AZB শুঙ্গ সাম্রাজ্য Bengali/Bangla Sunga carstvo BS Imperi Sunga Catalan Šungové Czech Shunga-Dynastie German Sunga imperio Esperanto Imperio Śuṅga Spanish امپراتوری شونگا Persian
Shunga Empire | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 187 BCE–73 BCE | |||||||||
Territory of the Shungas c. 150 BCE.[1] | |||||||||
| Capital | |||||||||
| Common languages | |||||||||
| Religion | |||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | ||||||||
| Emperor | |||||||||
• c. 185 – c. 151 BCE | Pushyamitra (first) | ||||||||
• c. 151–141 BCE | Agnimitra | ||||||||
• c. 83–73 BCE | Devabhuti (last) | ||||||||
| Historical era | Ancient India | ||||||||
• Assassination of Brihadratha by Pushyamitra Shunga | 187 BCE | ||||||||
• Assassination of Devabhuti by Vasudeva Kanva | 73 BCE | ||||||||
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| Today part of | |||||||||
The Shunga dynasty (IAST: Śuṅga) was the fifth ruling dynasty of Magadha and controlled most of the northern Indian subcontinent from around 187 to 73 BCE. The dynasty was established by Pushyamitra, after taking the throne of Magadha from the Mauryas. The Shunga Empire's capital was Pataliputra, but later emperors such as Bhagabhadra also held court at Besnagar (modern Vidisha) in eastern Malwa.[2] This dynasty is also responsible for successfully fighting and resisting the Greeks in Shunga-Greek War.[3][4][5]
Pushyamitra ruled for 36 years and was succeeded by his son Agnimitra. There were ten Shunga rulers. However, after the death of Agnimitra, the second king of the dynasty, the empire rapidly disintegrated:[6] inscriptions and coins indicate that much of northern and central India consisted of small kingdoms and city-states that were independent of any Shunga hegemony.[7] The dynasty is noted for its numerous wars with both foreign and indigenous powers. They fought the Kalinga, the Satavahana dynasty, the Indo-Greek Kingdom and possibly the Panchalas and Mitras of Mathura.
Art, education, philosophy, and other forms of learning flowered during this period, including small terracotta images, larger stone sculptures, and architectural monuments such as the stupa at Bharhut, and the renowned Great Stupa at Sanchi. The Shunga rulers helped to establish the tradition of royal sponsorship of learning and art. The script used by the empire was a variant of Brahmi script and was used to write Sanskrit.
The Shungas were important patrons of culture at a time when some of the most important developments in Hindu thought were taking place. Patanjali's Mahābhāṣya was composed in this period. Artistry also progressed with the rise of the Mathura art style.
The last of the Shunga emperors was Devabhuti (83–73 BCE). He was assassinated by his minister Vasudeva Kanva and was said to have been overfond of the company of women. The Shunga dynasty was replaced by the Kanvas. The Kanva dynasty succeeded the Shungas around 73 BCE.
- ^ Schwartzberg, Joseph E. (1978). A Historical atlas of South Asia. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. p. 145, map XIV.1 (c). ISBN 0226742210.
- ^ Stadtner, Donald (1975). "A Śuṅga Capital from Vidiśā". Artibus Asiae. 37 (1/2): 101–104. doi:10.2307/3250214. JSTOR 3250214.
- ^ Mani, Chandra Mauli (2005). A Journey Through India's Past. Northern Book Centre. p. 38. ISBN 978-81-7211-194-6.
- ^ Sen, Sailendra Nath (1999). Ancient Indian History and Civilization. New Age International. p. 170. ISBN 978-81-224-1198-0.
- ^ Raychaudhuri, Hem Channdra (1923). Political history of ancient India, from the accession of Parikshit to the extinction of the Gupta dynasty. Robarts - University of Toronto. Calcutta, Univ. of Calcutta. p. 205.
- ^ K.A. Nilkantha Shastri (1970), A Comprehensive History of India: Volume 2, p.108: "Soon after Agnimitra there was no 'Sunga empire'."
- ^ Bhandare, Shailendra. "Numismatics and History: The Maurya-Gupta Interlude in the Gangetic Plain". in Between the Empires: Society in India, 300 to 400, ed. Patrick Olivelle (2006), p.96
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