Indravarma Explained

Indravarma
Apracha King
(Gāndhārī: Apacaraja)
Reign:1st century
Spouse:Uttarā
Royal House:Apracharajas
Dynasty:Apracha
Father:Vispavarma
Mother:Rukhuṇaka

Indravarman or Indravarma (Kharosthi: ' , [1]), also called Itravasu on his coinage, was an Apracharaja who ruled in Gandhara, with his capital in Bajaur. He succeeded the previous Apracharaja Indravasu, in 50 BC and was the son of the Apracha general. Vispavarma.[2] Indravarma had a son, Aspavarma, commander and later king, known from an inscription discovered at Taxila.

Bajaur casket

See main article: Bajaur casket. Indravarman is mainly known from his dedicatory inscription on the Bajaur casket, an ancient reliquary from the area of Bajaur in ancient Gandhara, in the present-day Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. It is dated to around 5-6 CE.

The inscription which is written in Kharoshthi, translates into English as:

The casket proves the involvement of the Scythian kings of the Apraca, in particular King Indravarman, in Buddhism.

Indravarma is also known from a seal inscription, which was discovered in Bajaur.[3] He may have had a sister named Vasavadatta, who is known from the dedication of a water pot.[3]

Silver reliquary

See main article: Apracaraja Indravarman's Silver Reliquary. Indravarma is also known for another Buddhist inscription on a silver reliquary in which he mentions him and his father Vispavarma, who was not yet a king. The inscription, which is written in Kharoshthi, translates into English as:

The date of the Silver reliquary is thought to be anterior to the Bajaur casket, as Indravarma describes his father as "Commander", rather than the later "King" title. It was probably dedicated in the end of the 1st century BCE.[4]

See also

References

Notes and References

  1. [Alexander Cunningham|Cunningham, Alexander]
  2. https://books.google.com/books?id=ospMAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA382 The World's Writing Systems
  3. https://books.google.com/books?id=dCz8NczNbcMC&pg=PA269 On the Cusp of an Era: Art in the Pre-Kuṣāṇa World
  4. https://www.jstor.org/stable/605147?seq=24#page_scan_tab_contents "An Inscribed Silver Buddhist Reliquary of the Time of King Kharaosta and Prince Indravarman"