Sharabhapuriya dynasty

The Sharabhapuriya (IAST: Śarabhapurīya) dynasty ruled parts of present-day Chhattisgarh and Odisha in India, during 5th and 6th centuries. The dynasty probably served as Gupta vassals in their early days, but became practically independent as the Gupta empire declined. The Sharabhapuriyas were succeeded by the Panduvanshis and the Somavanshis. The dynasty is known mainly from its copper-plate inscriptions, and a few coins.

The self-designation of the dynasty is not known: the historians call the family Sharabhapuriyas, because the majority of the dynasty's inscription were issued from the Sharabhapura (IAST: Śarabhapura) town.

D. C. Sircar theorised that the dynasty was known as Amararyakula, based on the Malhar inscription of a ruler called Vyaghraraja. However, A. M. Shastri has opposed this theory, arguing that Vyaghraraja was not associated with the Sharabhapuriya dynasty.

A. M. Shastri estimates the reigns of the Sharabhapuriya rulers as follows: based on Sharabha's identification with the Sharabharaja mentioned in the 510 CE Eran inscription, he assigns Sharabha's reign to 475–500 CE (assuming a 25-year reign). Similarly, he assigns 25 years to the next two kings. Since Jayaraja's latest inscription is dated to 9th regnal year, Shastri assumes a 10-year reign for Jayaraja, and some subsequent kings.

Alternative dates have been proposed by other historians. For example, D. C. Sircar estimated Sharabha's reign as 465–480 CE, while V. V. Mirashi estimated it as 460–480 CE.

Most of the dynasty's grants have been found in and around Malhar and Raipur, in the historical Dakshin Kosala region. These inscriptions were issued from Shrabhapura and Shripura. The identification of Sharabhapura is not certain, while Shripura (IAST: Śripura) has been identified with modern Sirpur. Some scholars have identified Sharabhapura with places in present-day Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, but these places are located far away from the find spots of the inscriptions; it is more likely that Sharabhapura was located in or around the present-day Raipur district. KD Bajpai and SK Pandey identified Sharabhapura with Malhar, but A. M. Shastri points out that the excavations at Malhar reveal that the establishment of the town can be dated to c. 1000 BCE or earlier. Therefore, it cannot be identified as a city established by Sharabha who ruled nearly 1500 years later. Moreover, there is no evidence that Malhar was called Sharabhapura: its earliest known name is Mallala or Mallala-pattana. Hira Lal once theorised that the Sharabhapura was another name for Shripura, but this theory is now discredited.

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