Ramagupta
Topic: Gupta Empire and the Classical Age · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
Ramagupta is said to have been a Gupta king between Samudragupta and Chandragupta II, in the late 4th century CE. His story comes mainly from a later Sanskrit play, Devichandraguptam, by Vishakhadatta. Some copper coins and Jain image inscriptions found near Vidisha (MP) also carry his name. Whether the full story really happened is still debated.
Example
In the play, Ramagupta is defeated by a Shaka king. He agrees to hand over his queen, Dhruvadevi. His younger brother Chandragupta goes into the enemy camp dressed as the queen and kills the Shaka king. Later, Chandragupta kills Ramagupta, marries Dhruvadevi and becomes king as Chandragupta II.
Don't confuse with
- Ramagiri (Ramtek): a hill in Maharashtra linked with Prabhavati Gupta's temples to Vishnu. It is a place, not a king.