Gaudeshwar Shashanka controlled his vast Hindu empire from Karnasuvarna! The foundation of that empire was originally wrapped in Bengali culture, heritage and folklore. Then, the ancient Bengali language was created from the degenerate language or ‘Apabhrangsh’ of Magadhi-Prakrit. This means that the birth of Bengali culture took place even earlier. That is when the Bengalis needed their own calendar — when and where would the Bengalis celebrate the ‘thirteen festivals in twelve months’ (Bārō māsē tērō pārbaṇa)! ‘Bangabda’ was created for the own needs of the Bengali Hindus.
It was not started by any foreign-infidel ruler of Delhi, as has been systematically spread over the last hundred years. It is natural for the Bengali calendar to be started by the Bengalis themselves and they did it. If the rulers of Delhi were to start the Bengali calendar, then why didn’t they start such regional calendars in other states as well? Why did they selectively favor Bengal? To put it simply, if the Bengali calendar is 1432, were the Mughal emperors the rulers of 1432 years ago?
This false propaganda is befitting of those historians for whom anti-Hinduism is a core issue. Therefore, let us reject falsehood and raise the slogan at the beginning of the Bengali New Year, “Jai Banga, Jai Shashank.” Just as Shivaji is enshrined in the hearts of Bengalis, Shashank and Maharaja Pratapaditya will also remain.
On social media, Bengalis who can grasp the plot are now reciting two lines from Rabindranath Tagore’s poem ‘Banshi’ (bām̐śi) over tea stall, “Suddenly I got the news that there is no difference between King Akbar and clerk Haripada” (haṭhāṯ khabara pā’i manē, ākabara bādaśāra saṅgē haripada kērānira kōnō bhēda nē’i).
Because none of them are the promoters of Bangabda! The promoter of Bangabda was Maharaja Shashanka.
The plot to seize Bangabda failed. Because, the pro-Akbar calendarists could not match the simple numbers of Bangabda. They could not even show proof of the Mughal emperor’s love for Bengal. There is no mention of the word “Bangaba” in contemporary documented history! Why did the Mughal emperor go and create another calendar after creating one, there is no answer. We do not see any other such stories about the calendar in other provinces under Mughal rule. Akbar’s supporters will now have to tell the story of Akbar showing more of himself after seeing him defeated by Shashank. Yet the historical account of the conspirator who took over Bengal is lagging behind.
It is the habit of Bengalis to forget, or to want to forget, the true Bengalis, the brave Bengalis. Shashanka was such a brave Bengali; he was the ruler of a sovereign empire. Shashanka was the ruler of Gaud, yet he is an almost forgotten name in the history of India. Why was he forgotten just because he was a Hindu hero?
Shashanka ruled the vast Gaud kingdom from Karnasuvarna or Kansona in present-day Murshidabad. With his bravery and prowess, Hindu Bengalis want to move forward again. But there is one obstacle. This obstacle is also given to Lord Ramchandra. If there is any glory of Hinduism, he will be removed from the consciousness of Bengalis.
Shashanka, the ruler of the independent, sovereign Bengali-Hindu empire, is an almost forgotten name in the history of India. His conquests began in the eastern part of India about fourteen hundred years ago. He established his capital at Karnasuvarna (present-day Rangamati near Berhampur) in present-day Murshidabad.
Some say that he was a Gupta king, his real name was ‘Narendragupta’ or ‘Narendraditya’. The name ‘Narendragupta’ is found in ‘Harshacharita’ written by Banabhatta. In some historical sources, it is said that ‘Srinarendra Binata’. He may have been the son or nephew of Mahasengupta, a descendant of the Gupta dynasty of Magadha. Some believe that Mahasengupta was a descendant of Govindagupta, the youngest son of Chandragupta II. While the Gupta emperors were Vaishnavites of the Bhagavata faith, Shashanka was a Shaivite emperor. Gold and silver coins from the reign of Shashanka have an image of Lord Mahadev seated on the back of Nandi on one side, while the other side shows the lotus-seated Lakshmi, or Kamalatmika, on the lotus seat.
Shashanka was a contemporary of the Buddhist emperor Harshavardhana of the Pushyabhuti dynasty. The accounts about Shashanka in the Chinese monk and traveler Hiuen Tsang’s ‘Ci-u-ki’ and in the ‘Harshacharita’ written by Banabhatta, a follower of Harshavardhana, may not be accurate. Many historians believe that a person close to Buddhism could not judge a king who was an enemy of his own religion, and that is what happened.
There is a legend about Shashanka, who killed the unarmed king Rajyavardhana (Harshavardhana’s elder brother) who had come for peace, and he made an alliance with Malava king Devagupta to kill Rajyavardhana’s sister-in-law, the king of Maukhari, Grahavarma, and ordered his sister Rajyashri to be imprisoned in the forest.
It is also said about Shashanka that he destroyed many Buddhist temples! But how is it possible that many Buddhist temples were intact near Shashanka’s capital, Karnasuvarna? The information is that he also maintained royal cooperation in the spread of education at Nalanda University, which was part of his empire.
It is known that during the reign of the Buddhist emperor Harshavardhana, when the Brahmins of northern India became disrespectful, Shashanka arranged for the migration of the Grahavipra from the region along the banks of the Sarayu to Gauda.
There is ample evidence that he was a good ruler. To relieve the people from water scarcity, he had a large pond called ‘Sharshank’ dug on 150 acres of land at Dantan near Midnapore. During his reign, the Gaud Empire made progress in the fields of agriculture, industry, commerce, and education.
It is known that King Shashanka introduced the solar calendar system ‘Bangabda in the year 592/593 AD. This solar calendar was started in 592/593 AD. His coronation was probably on the first day of the first Baishakh of this Bangabda.
His reign was approximately from 590 to 625 AD. The common language of his government was ancient Bengali and the state religion was Hindu. He was the first undefeated and sole ruler of the vast Bengal. He was a protector of religion and tolerant of other religions. He is a brilliant personality among the best Bengalis, but all his history has been lost in the womb of time. Whatever history is available is also biased. The search for the real history is essential.
Kalyan Gautam
Photo: Sirsho Acharya.
