Kallar
Kallar is considered to be the first Hindu Shahi according to Al-Beruni. None apart from Al-Biruni mentions Kallar; nothing is known about his rule or territorial extent or even his regnal dates.[1]
Variants
Establishment
The Abbasids led by caliph Al-Ma'mun defeated the Kabul branch of the Turk Shahis in 815 CE who had invaded Khorasan.[2][3] Following this defeat, the Turk Shahis not only had to convert to Islam but also had to cede key cities and regions.[4]Another campaign against the Gandhara branch seems to have followed soon, with the Caliphate reaching as far East as the Indus river and imposing a critical defeat.[5] A hefty annual tribute was to be paid in return for sovereignty rights to both territories.[6]
The Turk Shahis ended up in a precarious state and in c. 843 CE, the last ruler Lagaturman was deposed by one of his ministers, a Brahmin vazir called Kallar.[7][8] The sole description of events comes from Al-Biruni: Lagatarman's unbecoming manners had led his subjects to lodge multiple complaints with Kallar, who having chanced upon a treasure trove, was rapidly purchasing his way to power.[9] Kallar imprisoned the King for corruption and became the acting regent before usurping the throne permanently.[10] The new "Hindu Shahi" dynasty was thus established in Gandhara.[11]
None apart from Al-Biruni mentions Kallar; nothing is known about his rule or territorial extent or even his regnal dates.[12]
History
Historians such as that of Alexander Cunningham suggest that coin series bearing the obverse title 'Spalapati' ('Warlord) were minted by Kallar.[13] According to Edward Clive Bayley's misreading of the corrupted remains of a Bactrian legend as Arabic numerals, he proposed that another series of coins bearing the legend 'Samanta' ('Feudatory') were also minted by Kallar.[14] He argued the 'Spalapati' series to have been minted for circulation in Persian regions of his territory and the 'Samanta' series for Sanskrit-speaking regions.[15] and it has been adduced that Kallar may have felt insecure about the legitimacy of his rule as long as the imprisoned Turk Shahi ruler Lagaturman was alive, and hence affirmed his claim to leadership by such indirect titles.[16]
The 'Spalapati' series may also have been minted by the last Turk Shahi rulers instead as 'Pati Dumi', who was defeated by the Abbasid Caliph Al-Ma'mun, is described by Al-Azraqi and Al-Biruni as an 'Ispahbadh' ('Warlord'), equivalent to the title Spalapati.[17]Rahman therefore believes that Kallar did not initiate any changes in the currency system of the last Turk Shahis[18] and the Samanta series was minted by succeeding Hindu Shahi rulers.[19] Numismatist and historian Michael Alram's publications take note of this view;[20] however some scholars attribute the entirety of the bull/horserider coinage, including the Spalapati series, to the Hindu Shahis.[21]
External links
References
- ↑ Rehman 1976, p. 90, 93-94.
- ↑ Rehman, Abdur (January 1976). The Last Two Dynasties of the Sahis: An analysis of their history, archaeology, coinage and palaeography (Thesis). Australian National University. p.85
- ↑ Alram, Michael (1 February 2021). "The Numismatic legacy of the Sasanians in the East" in Sasanian Iran in the Context of Late Antiquity: The Bahari Lecture Series at the University of Oxford. BRILL. pp. 20–21. ISBN 978-90-04-46066-9.
- ↑ Rehman 1976, p. 85-86.
- ↑ Rehman 1976, p. 86.
- ↑ Rehman 1976, p. 86.
- ↑ Rehman 1976, p. 87-88
- ↑ Kuwayama, Shoshin (1976). "The Turki Śāhis and Relevant Brahmanical Sculptures in Afghanistan". East and West. 26 (3/4). Istituto Italiano per l'Africa e l'Oriente: 405. ISSN 0012-8376. JSTOR 29756318.
- ↑ Rehman 1976.
- ↑ Rehman 1976, p. 88.
- ↑ Rehman 1976, p. 91.
- ↑ Rehman 1976, p. 90, 93-94.
- ↑ Rehman 1976.
- ↑ Rehman 1976, p. 186.
- ↑ Rehman 1976, p. 186.
- ↑ Rehman 1976, p. 92.
- ↑ Rehman 1976, pp. 93, 175
- ↑ Rehman 1976, p. 96.
- ↑ Rehman 1976, p. 93.
- ↑ Paiman, Zafar; Alram, Michael (1 January 2010). "Tepe Narenj: A Royal Monastery on the High Ground of Kabul, with a Commentary on the Coinage". Journal of Inner Asian Art and Archaeology. 5: 33–58. doi:10.1484/J.JIAAA.1.103268. ISSN 1783-9025.
- ↑ Alram, Michael (1 February 2021). "The Numismatic Legacy of the Sasanians in the East", in "Sasanian Iran in the Context of Late Antiquity: The Bahari Lecture Series at the University of Oxford". BRILL. p. 21, full study pages 5–21. ISBN 978-90-04-46066-9.
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