Huvishka
Huvishka (Skt. Huviṣka) was the emperor of the Kushan Empire from the death of Kanishka (c. 150 CE) until the succession of Vasudeva I about thirty years later.
His rule was a period of consolidation for the Empire. Huvishka's territory encompassed Balkh in Bactria to Mathura in India, locations where it is known that he minted his coinage.
Gold coins and amulets in his effigy were found as far as Pataliputra and Bodh Gaya.[1] His reign seems to have been essentially peaceful, consolidating Kushan power in northern India, and moving the centre of the Kushan Empire to the southern capital city of Mathura.[2]
There is evidence that Huvishka was a follower of Mahāyāna Buddhism. A Sanskrit manuscript fragment in the Schøyen Collection describes Huvishka as one who has "set forth in the Mahāyāna." This depiction of Huviska as a Mahayana follower does not necessarily confirm his involvement in promoting Mahayana. However, it does suggest that "Huviska's era was a crucial period in the evolution of Mahayana."[3]
The reign of Huvishka corresponds with the first known epigraphic evidence of the Buddha Amitabha, on the bottom part of a 2nd-century statue which has been found in Govindo-Nagar, and now at the Mathura Museum. The statue is dated to "the 28th year of the reign of Huvishka", and dedicated to "Amitabha Buddha" by a family of merchants.[4][5]
Further reading
Huvishka, Wikipedia
Notes
- ↑ Sinha, Bindeshwari Prasad; Narain, Lala Aditya (1970). Pāṭaliputra Excavation, 1955-56. Directorate of Archaeology and Museums, Bihar. pp. 52–53.
- ↑ Rezakhani, Khodadad (2017). From the Kushans to the Western Turks. King of the Seven Climes. p. 202.
- ↑ Neelis, Jason. Early Buddhist Transmission and Trade Networks. 2010. p. 141-142
- ↑ Rhie, Marylin M. (2010). Early Buddhist Art of China and Central Asia, Volume 3: The Western Ch'in in Kansu in the Sixteen Kingdoms Period and Inter-relationships with the Buddhist Art of Gandh?ra. BRILL. p. xxxvii, Fig 6.17a. ISBN 978-90-04-18400-8.
- ↑ Schopen, Gregory (1987). "The Inscription on the Kuṣān Image of Amitābha and the Charakter of the Early Mahāyāna in India" (PDF). The Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies. 10 (2): 99–138. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 7, 2019. Unknown parameter
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