The Kadamba dynasty were an ancient royal family from modern Karnataka, India, that ruled northern Karnataka and the Konkan from Banavasi in present-day Uttara Kannada district in India. The kingdom was founded by Mayurasharma in , and at later times showed the potential of developing into imperial proportions. An indication of their imperial ambitions is provided by the titles and epithets assumed by its rulers, and the marital relations they kept with other kingdoms and empires, such as the Vakatakas and Guptas of northern India. Mayurasharma defeated the armies of the Pallavas of Kanchi possibly with the help of some native tribes and claimed sovereignty. The Kadamba power reached its peak during the rule of Kakusthavarma.
The Kadambas were contemporaries of the Western Ganga dynasty and together they formed the earliest native kingdoms to rule the land with autonomy. From the mid-6th century the dynasty continued to rule as a vassal of larger Kannada empires, the Chalukya and the Rashtrakuta empires for over five hundred years during which time they branched into minor dynasties. Notable among these are the Kadambas of Goa, the Kadambas of Halasi and the Kadambas of Hangal. During the pre-Kadamba era the ruling families that controlled the Karnataka region, the Mauryas and later the Satavahanas, were not natives of the region and therefore the nucleus of power resided outside present-day Karnataka. The Kadambas were the first indigenous dynasty to use Kannada, the language of the soil, at an administrative level. In the History of Karnataka, this era serves as a broad-based historical starting point in the study of the development of the region as an enduring geo-political entity and Kannada as an important language.
History Origin
There are several legends regarding the origin of the Kadambas. According to one such legend the originator of this dynasty was a three-eyed four-armed warrior called Trilochana Kadamba (the father of Mayurasharma) who emerged from the sweat of the god Shiva under a Kadamba tree. Another legend tries to simplify it by claiming Mayurasharma himself was born to Rudra and the earth goddess. According to yet another legend, Mayurasharma was born to the sister of a Jain Muni under a Kadamba tree. Other legends tie them without any substance to the Nagas, and the Nandas of northern India. An inscription of claims that Kadamba Rudra, the founder of the kingdom, was born in a forest of Kadamba trees. As he had "peacock feather"-like reflections on his limbs, he was called Mayuravarman.Majumdar (1986), p.237 From the Talagunda inscription, one more legend informs that the founding king of the dynasty, Mayurasharma was anointed by "the six-faced god of war Skanda".Mann (2011), p. 227
Historians are divided on the issue of the geographical origin of the Kadambas, whether they were of local origin or earlier immigrants from northern India.Chaurasia (2002), p.252 The social origin of the Kadamba family is also a subject of scholarly debate, with some historians interpreting the Talagunda inscription as describing the dynasty as being of Brahmin origin, while others have proposed a local tribal origin.Chopra, Ravindran & Subrahmanian (2003), p. 161 Historians Chopra et al. claim the Kadambas were none other than the Kadambu tribe who were in conflict with the Chera kingdom (of modern Kerala) during the Sangam era. The Kadambas find mention in the Sangam literature as totemic worshipers of the Kadambu tree and the Hindu god Subramanya.Historians Sastri, Kamath and Moraes maintain that the family was of Brahmin origin, followed the Vedic tradition and performed Vedic sacrifices. According to the Talagunda and the Gudnapur inscriptions, they belonged to the Manavya Gotra and were Haritiputrās ("descendants of Hariti lineage"), which connected them to the native Chutus of Banavasi, a vassal of the Satavahana empire and the Chalukyas who succeeded them.Sastri (1955), p.99 According to Rao and Minahan, being native Kannadigas, the Kadambas promptly gave administrative and political importance to their language Kannada after coming to power.Rao, Seshagiri in Amaresh Datta (1988), p. 1717Minahan (2012), p. 124
Birth of kingdom One of their earliest inscriptions, the Talagunda inscription of crown prince Santivarma () gives what may be the most possible cause for the emergence of the Kadamba kingdom. It states that Mayurasharma was a native of Talagunda, (in present-day Shimoga district of Karnataka state) and his family got its name from the Kadamba tree that grew near his home.Kamath, S.U. (1980), p.30 The inscription narrates how Mayurasharma proceeded to Kanchi in along with his guru and grandfather Veerasharma to pursue his Vedic studies at a Ghatika ("school"). There, owing to some misunderstanding between him and a Pallava guard or at an Ashvasanstha ("horse sacrifice"), a quarrel arose in which Mayurasharma was humiliated. Enraged, the Brahmin discontinued his studies, left Kanchi swearing vengeance on the Pallavas and took to arms. He collected a faithful group of followers, routed the Pallava armies and Antarapalas (frontier guards) and firmly rooted himself in the dense forests of the modern Srisailam (Sriparvata) region. After a prolonged period of low intensity warfare against the Pallavas and other smaller kings such as the Brihad-Banas of Kolar region, he was able to levy tributes from the Banas and other kingdoms and finally proclaimed independence. According to Indologist Lorenz Franz Kielhorn who deciphered the Talagunda inscription, unable to contain Mayurasharma the Pallavas under king Skandavarman had to accept his sovereignty between the Arabian Sea (known as Amara or Amarawa) to Premara or Prehara which could be interpreted as either ancient Malwa in central India or the Tungabhadra or Malaprabha region in central Karnataka. According to the historian and epigraphist M. H. Krishna Iyengar a fragmentary inscription of Mayurasharma at Chandravalli which pertains to a water reservoir contained the names of Abhiras and Punnatas, two contemporary kingdoms who ruled as the northern and southern neighbors of Mayurasharma's Kadamba kingdom.Kamath, S.U. (1980), pp. 30–31Sen (1999), p. 468 The Talagunda inscription also confirms Mayurasharma was the progenitor of the kingdom.Ramesh, K.V. (1984), p. 6Sastri (1955), pp. 99–100Chopra, Ravindran & Subrahmanian (2003), pp.26, 161–162 The inscription gives a graphic description of the happenings after the Kanchi incident: Thus, according to Ramesh, in an act of righteous indignation was born the first native kingdom of Karnataka, and the Pallava King Skandavarman condescended to recognize the growing might of the Kadambas south of the Malaprabha river as a sovereign power.Ramesh, K.V. (1984), p. 3 Majumdar however feels even an inscription as important as the Talagunda pillar inscription leaves many a detail unanswered.Majumdar (1986), pp. 235–237 Scholars such as Moraes and Sastri opine that Mayurasharma may have availed himself of the confusion in the south that was created by the invasion of Samudragupta who in his Allahabad inscription claims to have defeated Pallava King Vishnugopa of Kanchi. Taking advantage of the weakening of the Pallava power, Mayurasharma appears to have succeeded in establishing a new kingdom. According to epigraphist M.H. Krishna, Mayurasharma further subdued minor rulers such as the Traikutas, the Abhiras, the Pariyathrakas, the Shakasthanas, the Maukharis, the Punnatas and the Sendrakas.Kamath, S.U. (1980), p.31. The fact that Mayurasharma had to travel to distant Kanchi for Vedic studies gives an indication that Vedic lore was quite rudimentary in the Banavasi region at that time. The Gudnapur inscription which was discovered by epigraphist B.R. Gopal states that Mauryasharma, whose grandfather and preceptor was Veerasharma and his father was Bandhushena, developed the character of a Kshatriya (warrior caste). Sen feels the successor of Mayurasharma, Kangavarma changed his surname from "Sharma" to "Varma".Sen (1999), p. 468
Expansion Mayurasharma was succeeded by his son Kangavarma in . He had to fight the Vakataka might to protect his kingdom (also known as Kuntala country). According to Jouveau-Dubreuil he was defeated by the King Prithvisena but managed to maintain his freedom. Majumdar feels Kangavarma battled with King Vidyasena of the Basin branch of the Vakataka kingdom with no permanent results.Kamath, S.U. (1980), p. 32Sastri (1955), p. 100Majumdar (1986), p. 239 His son Bhageerath who came to power in is said to have retrieved his fathers losses. According to Kamath, the Talagunda inscription describes Bhageerath as the sole "lord of the Kadamba land" and the "great Sagara" (lit, "great Ocean") himself indicating he may have retrieved their losses against the Vakatakas. But contemporary though Vakataka inscriptions do not confirm this. His son Raghu died fighting the Pallavas in though some inscriptions claim he secured the kingdom for his family. He was succeeded by his younger brother Kakusthavarma in . Kakusthavarma was the most powerful ruler of the dynasty. According to Sastri and Moraes, under the rule of Kakusthavarma, the kingdom reached its pinnacle of success and the Talagunda record calls him the "ornament of the family". The Halasi and Halmidi inscriptions also hold him in high esteem.Sastri (1955), p. 101Majumdar (1986), p.240
From the Talagunda inscription it is known that he maintained marital relations with even such powerful ruling families as the imperial Guptas of the northern India. One of his daughters was married to King Madhava of the Ganga dynasty. According to the Desai one of his daughters was married to Kumara Gupta's son Skanda Gupta (of the Gupta dynasty), and from Balaghat inscription of Vakataka king Prithvisena we know another daughter called Ajitabhattarika was married to the Vakataka prince Narendrasena.Kamath, S.U. (1980), p. 33Sen (1999), p. 244 He maintained similar relations with the Bhatari vassal and the Alupas of South Canara. According to Desai and Panchamukhi evidence from Sanskrit literature indicates that during this time the notable Sanskrit poet Kalidasa visited the Kadamba court. Moraes and Sen feel the visit happened during the reign of Bhageerath. According to Sen, Kalidasa was sent by Chandragupta II Virakmaditya to conclude a marriage alliance with the Kadambas.Majumdar (1986), p.239