Shilahara

The Shilahara/Shelara Kingdom (IAST: Śilāhāra; also Shelara, Selara, Shilara, Silara) was a royal dynasty that established itself in northern and southern Konkan in 8th century CE, present-day Mumbai and Southern Maharashtra (Kolhapur) during the Rashtrakuta period.[7]

Shilahara Kingdom
8th century CE–13th century CE
An anonymous silver drachma (perhaps from the North Konkan Silaharas) dating from the 11th-12th centuries. This kind of currency was found in the district of Nimar of Madhya Pradesh and in the Huzur Jawhirkhana of Indore. Dimension: 14 mm Weight: 4.4 g. of Shilahara
An anonymous silver drachma (perhaps from the North Konkan Silaharas) dating from the 11th-12th centuries. This kind of currency was found in the district of Nimar of Madhya Pradesh and in the Huzur Jawhirkhana of Indore. Dimension: 14 mm Weight: 4.4 g.
Main South Asian polities in 1000, on the eve of the Ghaznavid invasions of the subcontinent.[1][2]
CapitalThane
Common languagesKannada,[3][4]Sanskrit, Marathi[5][6]
Religion
Hinduism
Jainism
GovernmentMonarchy
History 
• Established
8th century CE
• Disestablished
13th century CE
Preceded by		Succeeded by
Rashtrakuta dynasty
Seuna (Yadava) dynasty
Today part ofIndia
Shilahara coin, c. 1210 - 1302.
Obv: Head of a king. Rev: A horseman fighting two foot-soldiers with a third behind him and a fourth dead at his horse's feet.

Shilahara Kingdom were split into three branches:

Origins

The dynasty originally began as vassals of the Rashtrakuta dynasty which ruled the Deccan plateau between the 8th and 10th centuries. Govinda II, a Rashtrakuta king, conferred the kingdom of North Konkan (the modern districts of Thane, Mumbai and Raigad) on Kapardin (Sanskrit: Wearing the kaparda, a peculiar braid or knot of hair - also a term for god Shiva/ Rishabhanatha) I, founder of the Northern Silhara family, around 800. Since then North Konkan came to be known as Kapardi-dvipa or Kavadidvipa. The capital of this branch was Puri, now known as Rajapur in the Raigad District.

The dynasty bore the title of Tagara-puradhishvara, which indicates that they originally hailed from Tagara (modern Ter in the Osmanabad District).

Around 1343 the island of Salsette, and eventually the whole archipelago, passed to the Muzaffarid dynasty.

Shilaharas of Southern Maharashtra at Kolhapur was the latest of the three and was founded about the time of downfall of the Rashtrakuta Empire.

All the branches of this family traced their descent from the legendary Vidyadhara prince Jimutavahana, who sacrificed himself to rescue a Naga prince from the clutches of Garuda. The family-name Shilahara (meaning "mountain-peak food" in Sanskrit) is supposed to have been derived from this incident. Even single inscriptions have more than one form of the name; one has the three forms Silara, Shilara and Shrillara.

North Konkan (Thane) branch (c. 800–1265 CE)

After Rashtrakuta power became weak, the last known ruler of this family, Rattaraja, declared his independence. But Chalukya Jayasimha, the younger brother of Vikramaditya, overthrew him and appropriated his possessions. North Konkan was conquered by the Rashtrakuta king Dantidurga sometime in the second quarter of the eighth century.[10]

Rulers
  1. Kapardin I (800–825 CE)
  2. Pullashakti (825–850 CE)
  3. Kapardin II (850–880 CE)
  4. Vappuvanna (880–910 CE)
  5. Jhanjha (910–930 CE)
  6. Goggiraja (930–945 CE)
  7. Vajjada I (945–965 CE)
  8. Chhadvaideva (965–975 CE)
  9. Aparajita (975–1010 CE)
  10. Vajjada II (1010–1015 CE)
  11. Arikesarin (1015–1022 CE)
  12. Chhittaraja (1022–1035 CE)
  13. Nagarjuna (1035–1045 CE)
  14. Mummuniraja (1045–1070 CE)
  15. Ananta Deva I (1070–1127 CE)
  16. Aparaditya I (1127–1148 CE)
  17. Haripaladeva (1148–1155 CE)
  18. Mallikarjuna (1155–1170 CE)
  19. Aparaditya II ( 1170–1197 CE)
  20. Ananta Deva II (1198–1200 CE)
  21. Keshideva II (1200–1245 CE)
  22. Ananta Deva III (1245–1255 CE)
  23. Someshvara (1255–1265 CE)

South Konkan branch (c. 765–1020 CE)

This house's history is known through one record, the Kharepatan plates of Rattaraja issued in 1008. Rattaraja was the last ruler of this dynasty. The document is extremely important as it not only gives the genealogy of the ten ancestors of Rattaraja but also mentions their exploits. The founder, Sanaphulla, was vassal of the Rastrakuta emperor Krisna I who had established his power over Konkan by 765 and probably handed it to Sanaphulla. The Kharepatan plates declare that Sanaphulla obtained lordship over the territory between Sahya mountain and the sea through the favour of Krisnaraja.

Sana-phulla's son Dhammayira is known to have built a fort at Vallipattana on the Western Coast. Aiyaparaja secured victory at Chandrapuri (Chandor) in Goa. The reign of Avasara I proved to be uneventful. His son Adityavarman, who is described as brilliant as the Sun in valour, offered help to the kings of Chandrapuri and Chemulya (modern Chaul), 30 miles to the south of Bombay, so the influence of the Shilaharas had spread over the whole of Konkan. At this time Laghu Kapardi, the ruler of the Thane branch, was just a boy and the help given to the ruler of Chaul must have been at his expense. Avasara II continued the policy of his father. Indraraja's son Bhima is styled as 'Rahuvadgrasta Chandramandala' because he overthrew the petty ruler of Chandor. At this time the Kadamba ruler Sasthadeva and his son Chaturbhuja were trying to overthrow the Rastrakuta rule. This explains Bhima's opposition to Chandrapuri or Chandor. Avasara III, no doubt, ruled in troubled times, but had no contribution of his to make. Finally, Rattaraja, loyal to the Rastrakutas, was compelled to transfer his allegiance to Taila II.

Soon after the issue of the plates in 1008, the rule of Konkan passed over to the later Chalukyas. (Dept. Gazetteer: Kolaba, 1964, Dept. Gazetteer: 2002)

Rulers
  1. Sanaphulla (765–795 CE)
  2. Dhammayira (795–820 CE)
  3. Aiyaparaja (820–845 CE)
  4. Avasara I (845–870 CE)
  5. Adityavarma (870–895 CE)
  6. Avasara II (895–920 CE)
  7. Indraraja (920–945 CE)
  8. Bhima (945–970 CE)
  9. Avasara III (970–995 CE)
  10. Rattaraja (995–1020 CE)

Kolhapur branch (c. 940–1212 CE)

The Shilahara family at Kolhapur was the latest of the three and was founded about the time of the downfall of the Rashtrakuta Empire. They ruled over southern Maharashtra and Northern Karnataka, the modern districts of Satara, Kolhapur and Belagavi. Their family deity was the goddess Mahalakshmi, whose blessing they claimed to have secured in their copperplate grants (Mahalakshmi-labdha-vara-prasada). Like their relatives of the northern branch of Konkan, the Shilaharas of Kolhapur claimed to be of the lineage of the Vidyadhara Jimutavahana. They carried the banner of golden Garuda. One of the many titles used by the Shilaharas was Tagarapuravaradhisvara, or supreme sovereign ruler of Tagara.[12]

The first capital of the Shilaharas was probably at Karad during the reign of Jatiga-II as known from their copper plate grant of Miraj and 'Vikramankadevacharita' of Bilhana.[10] Hence sometimes they are referred as 'Shilaharas of Karad'. Later on although the capital was shifted to Kolhapur, some of their grants mention Valavada, and the hill fort of Pranalaka or Padmanala (Panhala) as the places of royal residence. Even though the capital was shifted to Kolhapur, Karhad retained its significance during the Shilahara period. This branch rose to power during the latter part of the Rashtrakuta rule and so, unlike the kings of the other two branches, those of this branch do not mention the genealogy of the Rashtrakutas even in their early grants. Later on they acknowledged the suzerainty of the later Chalukya for some time. This branch continued to hold the Southern Maharashtra from circa 940 to 1220.

It seems that Bhoja II, the last ruler of this family, was overthrown and dispossessed by Singhana in or soon after 1219-20 (Saka 1131) as is borne out by one of Singhana's inscriptions dated Saka 1160.[13]

Rulers
  1. Jatiga I (940–960 CE)
  2. Naivarman (960–980 CE)
  3. Chandra (980–1000 CE)
  4. Jatiga II (1000–1020 CE)
  5. Gonka (1020–1050 CE)
  6. Guhala I (1050 CE)
  7. Kirtiraja (1050 CE)
  8. Chandraditya (1050 CE)
  9. Marsimha (1050–1075 CE)
  10. Guhala II (1075–1085 CE)
  11. Bhoja I (1085–1100 CE)
  12. Ballala (1100–1108 CE)
  13. Gonka II (1108 CE)
  14. Gandaraditya I (1108–1138 CE)
  15. Vijayaditya I (1138–1175 CE)
  16. Bhoja II (1175–1212 CE), last ruler of dynasty

Monuments

A number of ancient monuments in Mumbai and Kolhapur district pay tribute to this dynasty's prowess:

See also

References
  1. Chandra, Satish (2004). Medieval India: From Sultanat to the Mughals-Delhi Sultanat (1206-1526) - Part One. Har-Anand Publications. pp. 19–20. ISBN 978-81-241-1064-5.
  2. Schwartzberg, Joseph E. (1978). A Historical atlas of South Asia. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. p. 32, 146. ISBN 0226742210.
  3. Kannada Inscriptions From Maharashtra (PDF).
  4. The Shilaharas were Kannadigas as established in their inscriptions (Govind Pai, 1993, p. 99)
  5. Richard Salomon (1999). Indian Epigraphy: A Guide to the Study of Inscriptions in Sanskrit, Prakrit, and the Other Indo-Aryan Languages. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0195099842.
  6. V. V. Mirashi, ed. (1977). "Texts and Translations". Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum Vol.6 (inscriptions Of The Silaharas). Archaeological Survey of India, Delhi.
  7. K. M. Shrimali (1996). "How monetized was the Śilāhāra economy?". In Ram Sharan Sharma; Dwijendra Narayan Jha (eds.). Society and ideology in India: essays in honour of professor R.S. Sharma. Munshiram Manoharlal. p. 95. ISBN 9788121506397. Linguistically, 32 out of a total of 45 records of the two branches of Konkan area are in Sanskrit and the rest are sprinkled mostly with Marathi
  8. "Nasik History - Ancient Period". State Government of Maharashtra. Archived from the original on 29 April 2005. Retrieved 14 October 2006.
  9. Mirashi 1977, pp. xi–xiii.
  10. Dept. Gazetteer 2002.
  11. Mirashi 1977, p. xiii.
  12. Bhandarkar 1957; Fleet 1896.
  13. Fleet 1896.
  14. Banganga, Walkeshwar history
  15. "प्राचीन श्रीस्थानक ते आधुनिक ठाणे शहर" (in Marathi). Thane Municipal Corporation. Retrieved 8 August 2015.

Bibliography
  • Neerkaje Thirumaleshwara Bhat, M. Thirumaleshwara Bhat (1993). Govind Pai. Sahitya Akademi. ISBN 978-81-720-1540-4.
  • Dr. Nalini Avinash Waghmare (2018). KANNADA INSCRIPTION FROM MAHARASHTRA (PDF).
  • Bhandarkar, R.G. (1957). Early History of Deccan. Calcutta: Sushil Gupta (I) Pvt Ltd.
  • Fleet, J.F. (1896). The Dynasties of the Kanarese District of The Bombay Presidency.. Written for The Bombay Gazetteer.
  • Department of Gazetteer, Govt of Maharashtra (2002): Itihaas : Prachin Kal, Khand -1 (Marathi)
  • Department of Gazetteer, Govt of Maharashtra (1960): Kolhapur District Gazetteer
  • Department of Gazetteer, Govt of Maharashtra (1964): Kolaba District Gazetteer
  • Department of Gazetteer, Govt of Maharashtra (1982): Thane District Gazetteer
  • Altekar, A.S. (1936). The Śilāhāras of Western India.
  • Mirashi, V. V., ed. (1977). Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum. Vol. VI: Inscriptions of the Śilāhāras. Archaeological Survey of India. OCLC 5240794.
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