Culture, History, People, Places, Religions

A 2000-Year-Old Inscription Holds The Clues | Hathigumpha Inscription

What happened to Kalinga after its devastating war with Ashoka? Did Buddhism simply sweep across the region? A 2000-year-old inscription offers some fascinating clues. Carved into the walls of the Udayagiri-Khadagiri Caves in Odisha, the Hathigumpha inscription tells the remarkable story of King Kharavela, a powerful ruler who emerged in Kalinga centuries after Ashoka’s conquest.

Image attributions

1.King Asoka’s Kalinga War

Anandajoti, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:179_King_Asokas_Kalinga_War.jpg

2.Ashoka with his two Queens visiting the Deer Park Sanchi Stupa

Biswarup Ganguly, CC BY 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ashoka_with_his_two_Queens_visiting_the_Deer_Park_Sanchi_Stupa_1_Southern_Gateway.jpg

3.Buddha Statue, Udayagiri

Amartyabag, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Buddha_statue_at_Udayagiri_Buddhist_Complex_08.jpg

4.Ratnagiri, Odisha

sabyasachi jana, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ratnagiri_Odisha.jpg

5.Lion Statue Overlooking Dhauli Hill, Bhubaneswar

Debashis Pradhan, CC BY 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dhauli-Giri-Lion-King-Bhubaneswar-Orissa.jpg

6.Elephant Scultpure, Dhauli

Kumar shakti, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Elephant-sculpture-dhauli.JPG

7.Buddhist monument at Sanchi Hill

Biswarup Ganguly, CC BY 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ashokan_Pillar_-_Stupa_1_-_Sanchi_Hill_2013-02-21_4361.JPG

8.Chandragupta Maurya and Bhadrabahu

KaeroMan, CC BY 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chandragupta_Maurya_and_Bhadrabahu_-_at_the_entrance_to_Chandragupta_Basadi_(cropped).jpg

9.Bhadrabahu Cave, Karnataka

Ilya Mauter, CC BY-SA 2.5 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5>, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shravanabelagola2007_-_44.jpg

10.Barabar Caves

Sumitsurai, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Barabar_And_Nagarjuni_Caves_(7).jpg

11.Dasaratha Maurya inscription on entrance of Gopika cave

Neil Satyam, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dasaratha_Maurya_inscription_on_entrance_of_Gopika_cave.jpg

12.Ashoka pillar at Vaishali, Bihar

Bpilgrim (talk · contribs), CC BY-SA 2.5 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5>, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ashoka_pillar_at_Vaishali,_Bihar,_India.jpg

13.Buddha in Sarnath Museum

พระมหาเทวประภาส วชิรญาณเมธี (ผู้ถ่าย-ปล่อยสัญญาอนุญาตภาพให้นำไปใช้ได้เพื่อการศึกษาโดยอยู่ภา่ยใต้ cc-by-sa-3.0) ผู้สร้างสรรค์ผลงาน/ส่งข้อมูลเก็บในคลังข้อมูลเสรีวิกิมีเดียคอมมอนส์ – เทวประภาส มากคล้าย, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Buddha_in_Sarnath_Museum_(Dhammajak_Mutra).jpg

14.Parshvanatha, Uttar Pradesh

KGBedits, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kakandi.jpg

15.Vishnu of Mathura

Woudloper, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vishnu_of_Mathura,_5th_century.jpg

Tags: Ashoka, Hathigumpha, Kalinga, Kharavela, Odisha, Udayagiri-Khandagiri

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