Bhagabhadra (Brāhmī: 𑀪𑀸𑀕𑀪𑀤𑁆𑀭 , ) was a Shunga Emperor who reigned in northern and central India from around 114 BCE to 83 BCE. Although the capital of the Shungas was at Pataliputra, he was also known to have held court at Vidisha. It is thought that the name Bhagabhadra also appears in the regnal lists of the Shungas in the Puranic records, under the name Bhadraka, fifth ruler of the Shungas.
Heliodorus inscription He is best known from an inscription at the site of Vidisha in central India, the Heliodorus pillar, in which contacts with an embassy from the Indo-Greek King Antialcidas of Taxila is recorded, and where he is named Kasiputra Bhagabhadra, the Saviour, son of the princess from Benares":
Translation:
(Archaeological Survey of India, Annual Report (1908-1909))
The Indo-Greeks and the Shungas seem to have reconciled and exchanged diplomatic missions around 113 BCE, as indicated by the Heliodorus pillar, which records the dispatch of a Greek ambassador named Heliodorus, from the court of the Indo-Greek king Antialcidas, to the court of the Shunga emperor Bhagabhadra at the site of Vidisha in central India. The text of the inscriptions is in the Brahmi script of the Sunga period, the language is Monumental Prakrit, with a few Sanskritized spellings. The first inscription describes the private religious dedication of Heliodorus (Translations: Richard Salomon):
This inscription is important in that it tends to validate that the Shungas ruled in the area of Vidisa around 100 BCE. This is also corroborated by some artistic realization on the nearby Sanchi stupa thought to belong to the period of the Shungas. Altogether, three Shunga pillars have also been found in the area. The Garuda pillar erected by Heliodorous and the inscription written on this pillar is regarded as the earliest material evidence of Bhagavatism in India.
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External links Photo of the pillar with Brahmi inscription Heliodorus pillar at Vidisha Text of the inscriptions on Heliodorus pillar Vedic archeology