Hindu Suratrana
Topic: Vijayanagara and the Deccan · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 3 "An Imperial Capital: Vijayanagara"
Meaning
"Hindu Suratrana" was a title used by the Vijayanagara rulers (14th–16th centuries). Suratrana is a Sanskrit form of the Arabic word Sultan, so the title means "Hindu Sultan". It shows that the rayas borrowed ideas of kingship from their Sultanate neighbours while still presenting themselves as Hindu rulers. It belongs with other ways they claimed divine support. The kings said they ruled on behalf of the god Virupaksha, a form of Shiva.
Example
Vijayanagara kings signed their royal orders "Shri Virupaksha", usually in Kannada script. This sat alongside the title "Hindu Suratrana", which joined a Hindu identity with a Sultan-style claim to power.
Don't confuse with
- "Establisher of the Yavana kingdom": Krishnadeva Raya was proud of this title because he backed rival claimants in the Deccan Sultanates. Yavana was the Sanskrit word for Greeks and other peoples from the north-west. That title is about his role in Sultanate politics, not about a kind of kingship.
Related concepts
- Sacred centre of Vijayanagara
- Pampadevi
- Virupaksha temple
- Gopuram
- Mandapa
- Vitthala temple
- Lepakshi temple