The Kushan empire was most likely one of five subdivisions of the Yuezhi confederation, which was composed of ancient Central Asian nomadic people. The Kushan dynasty ruled until 350 CE. Kanishka (127-150 CE) was the Kushana dynasty's most powerful ruler. He established the Saka era, which began in 78 A.D. He was not only a great conqueror, but also a religious and artistic patron. During Kanishka's reign, the Kushan kingdom was divided into two capitals: Purushapura and Mathura. In this article, we will discuss The Kanishka (127 CE-150 CE) which will be helpful for UPSC exam preparation.

Kanishka Statue in Mathura

The Kanishka - Features

• Kanishka I, also known as Kanishka the Great, was a Kushan dynasty emperor during whose reign the empire reached its peak.
• He is well-known for his military, political, and spiritual accomplishments. Kanishka, a descendant of Kujula Kadphises, the founder of the Kushan empire, rose to rule an empire that stretched from Central Asia and Gandhara to Pataliputra on the Gangetic plain.
• His empire's main capital was in Gandhara, at Purusapura (Peshawar), with another major capital at Mathura. Kanishka coins were discovered in Tripuri (present-day Jabalpur).
• His conquests and patronage of Buddhism were crucial in the development of the Silk Road and the transmission of Mahayana Buddhism from Gandhara to China across the Karakoram range.
• Around 127 CE, he replaced Greek with Bactrian as the empire's official language of administration.
• Previously, scholars believed Kanishka ascended to the Kushan throne in 78 CE, and that this date served as the start of the Saka calendar era.
• Historians no longer consider this date to be Kanishka's accession. Falk believes Kanishka ascended to the throne in 127 CE.

Kanishka’s Conquests

• His empire included Afghanistan, Gandhara, Sind, and Punjab at the time of his accession. He then conquered Magadha and extended his power all the way to Pataliputra and Bodh Gaya.
• Kanishka, according to Kalhana, invaded and occupied Kashmir. His coins have been discovered in a variety of locations, including Mathura, Sravasti, Kausambi, and Benares, implying that he conquered the majority of the Gangetic plain.
• He also fought against the Chinese and took some of their territory. He was defeated during the first expedition by the Chinese general Pancho. He launched a second expedition, which was successful, and he defeated Panyang, Pancho's son.
• Kanishka absorbed the territories of Kashgar, Yarkand, and Khotan into his empire. Kanishka's empire stretched from Gandhara in the west to Benares in the east, and from Kashmir in the north to Malwa in the south.
• His capital was Purushapura, or modern-day Peshawar. Mathura was another important city in his empire.

Conquests in South and Central Asia

• Kanishka's empire was undoubtedly vast. It stretched from southern Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, north of the Amu Darya (Oxus) in the north west to Northern India, as far as Mathura in the south east (the Rabatak inscription even claims he held Pataliputra and Sri Champa), and his territory also included Kashmir, where there was a town named after him, Kanishkapur (modern-day Kanispora), not far from the Baramula Pass, which still contains the base of a large stupa.
• His control over Central Asia is less well understood. According to Hou Hanshu, the Book of the Later Han, general Ban Chao fought battles near Khotan with a Kushan army of 70,000 men led by an otherwise unknown Kushan viceroy named Xie. Ban Chao claimed victory, using a scorched-earth policy to force the Kushans to retreat.
• Kashgar, Khotan, and Yarkand were Chinese dependencies in the Tarim Basin, modern-day Xinjiang. Several Kanishka coins have been discovered in the Tarim Basin.
• One of Kanishka's main imperial goals appears to have been to control both the land (the Silk Road) and sea trade routes between South Asia and Rome.

Kanishka’s Coins

• Kanishka's coins depict images of Indian, Greek, Iranian, and even Sumero-Elamite deities, demonstrating his religious syncretism.
• Kanishka's coins from the beginning of his reign have Greek legends and depict Greek divinities.
• Later coins bear legends in Bactrian, the Iranian language spoken by the Kushans, and Greek deities were replaced by corresponding Iranian deities.
• The king is typically depicted on his coins as a bearded man wearing a long coat and trousers gathered at the ankle, with flames emanating from his shoulders.
• He is dressed in large rounded boots and carries a long sword as well as a lance. He is often seen making a sacrifice on a small altar.
• The lower halfIranian and Indic of a lifesize limestone relief of Kanishka dressed similarly, with a stiff embroidered surplice beneath his coat and spurs attached to his boots beneath the light gathered folds of his trousers, remained in the Kabul Museum until it was destroyed by the Taliban.

Coins of Kanishka

Kanishka and Buddhism

• Kanishka's reputation in Buddhist tradition is extremely important because he not only believed in Buddhism but also promoted its teachings.
• As evidence, he presided over the 4th Buddhist Council in Kashmir as its head. Vasumitra and Ashwaghosha presided over it. During his lifetime, images of the Buddha were created based on 32 physical signs.
• He supported the Gandhara School of Greco-Buddhist Art as well as the Mathura School of Art.
• Kanishka appears to have embraced both Buddhism and Persian characteristics, but he favoured Buddhism more, as evidenced by his devotion to Buddhist teachings and prayer styles depicted in various books related to the Kushan empire.

Kanishka's Buddhist statues

• Several Buddhist statues, such as several Bodhisattva statues from the Art of Mathura, are directly linked to Kanishka's reign, while a few others from Gandhara are inscribed with a date in an era now thought to be the Yavana era, ranging from 186 to 175 BCE.

Kosambi Bodhisattva

Sarnath's Bala Bodhisattva

Conclusion

Kanishka convened the fourth Buddhist Council in Kashmir at Kundalvana. Although he was religiously tolerant, he patronised Buddhism. His coins feature deities from India, Greece, and Zoroastria. He was also an art and architecture patron. Under his leadership, the Gandhara School of Art flourished. He also promoted the Mahayana school of Buddhism, which he was largely responsible for spreading in China. It's unclear how he died.