Yashodharman
Topic: Gupta Empire and the Classical Age · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
Yashodharman was a powerful king of Malwa. He ruled from Dashapura (Mandsaur, Madhya Pradesh) in the early 6th century CE. He is usually placed in the Aulikara family. He is famous for defeating the Huna king Mihirakula around c. 528 CE. His rise shows how regional rulers took over as the Gupta empire weakened.
Example
His Mandsaur pillar inscriptions claim that Mihirakula paid him homage. They also claim Yashodharman ruled lands that even the Guptas and Hunas had never held. Like all royal praise poems, this boast must be checked against other sources.
Don't confuse with
- Mandsaur silk weavers' inscription (473 CE): this is an earlier record from the same town. It is about a guild of silk weavers who moved there from Lata (Gujarat), not about Yashodharman.
- Skandagupta: a Gupta king who fought the Hunas earlier, in the 5th century CE, as his Bhitari inscription records.
Related concepts
- Hunas
- Skandagupta
- Bhitari pillar inscription
- Eran inscription of Bhanugupta
- Mihirakula
- Song Yun
- Aulikara dynasty
- Decline of the Guptas
- Valabhi