9.Harsha Vardhan

<<2/”>a >body>



Emperor Harshavardhana, better known as Harsha, lived from 590 to 647 CE and was the third ruler of the Vardhana Empire, the last great empire in ancient India before the Islamic Invasion. He ruled from 606 CE to 647 CE. After Harshavardhana’s death, however, the Vardhana dynasty came to an end and its empire dissolved.

India, the land beyond the Indus river, has seen many rulers who dreamt of conquering the vast country and rule from the Himalayas in the north to Deccan in south, from the Mountains of Kandhar in the west to Assam in the east, yet very few have been able to subdue history according to their will. Harshavardhana was one such ruler. His empire may not be as large as the great Mauryan‘s, yet he deserves special mention. After the fall of great Gupta Empire in the middle of the 6th century CE, under whom India saw its own golden age, it was Harshavardhana who unified most of northern India and ruled for four decades from his capital Kannauj.

RISE TO POWER & MILITARY CAMPAIGNS

The Vardhana dynasty was started by Prabhakarana Vardhana who ruled the kingdom of Thaneshwar, modern-day Haryana. Prabhakarana’s queen Yasovati gave birth to two sons Rajyavardhana and Harshawardhana and a daughter named Rajyashri who was later married to king Grahvarmana of Kanyakubja, modern-day Kannauj. This was a period of tension as India had to frequently deal with the invasion of the Huns of Central Asia. Once, emperor Skandagupta of the Gupta Empire laid a crushing defeat on these barbaric tribes, yet these constant fights were so costly that they weakened the empire to the core, and this eventually led to the downfall of The Gupta Empire. As the western frontiers of India and areas adjoining the Indus river were under the occupation of Huns, skirmishes between Huns and Thaneshwar were regular. While Harsha and his brother were busy dealing with the Huns in the west, king Prabhakarana died in Thaneshwar. He was succeeded by his elder son, Rajyavardhana.

AFTER HIS BROTHER’S DEATH, AT THE AGE OF 16, HARSHAVARDHANA BECAME THE UNDISPUTED RULER OF THANESHWAR AND DECLARED WAR ON SASAKA TO AVENGE HIS BROTHER AND EMBARKED UPON A CAMPAIGN OF DIGVIJAY, I.E. TO CONQUER THE WORLD.

Meanwhile, in the east far greater events were happening which altered the course of history. Sasaka, king of Gauda, modern-day Bengal, marched and killed king Grahvarmana, Rajyashri’s husband, and then kidnapped her. The kidnapping of his sister forced the elder Vardhana brother to march east and confront Sasaka. Sasaka then invited Rajyavardhana for a meeting and treacherously killed him. After his brother’s death, at the age of 16, Harshavardhana became the undisputed ruler of Thaneshwar and declared war on Sasaka to avenge his brother and embarked upon a campaign of Digvijay, i.e. to conquer the world (which in this context means conquering whole India). Yet, his foremost enemy was now Sasaka who had to face an angry brother’s wrath. Harsha issued a proclamation to all kings known to either declare allegiance to him or face him on the battlefield. As Sasaka’s enemies responded to Harsha’s call, he marched on to Kannuaj.

Although there is no evidence, a story in Harshacharitra claims that Rajyashri, when released from prison, took refuge in the forest of Vindhyas. Hearing this, Harsha hurriedly went into the forest to save her and found her just when she was about to commit suicide by throwing herself in a fire. Rescuing his sister, he rejoined his army at the bank of Ganges. After this, Harsha easily conquered Kannauj as Sasaka went back to Bengal, and thus began a long enmity. It was only after Sasaka’s death that Harsha was able to control entire eastern India including Magadha, Bengal and Kalinga.

Harsha’s Digvijay, or the conquest of the world had now begun. After Kannauj, he turned his attention towards Gujarat. He defeated the local Valabhi kingdom and expanded his empire. Yet, this rapid expansion led to tensions between him and the Chalukya king Pulakesin II. It was now that the most powerful kingdoms of northern and southern India came face-to-face on the battlefield on the banks of river Narmada. In the end, the southerners under the able Leadership of Pulakesin II prevailed leaving the ambitious northern ruler, Harsha, defeated. They say Harsha lost his cheer when he saw his elephants dying in the battle.

Harsha entered a peace treaty with the Chalukya king, which established Narmada river as the southern boundary of his empire and after that he never advanced south again. Yet, this did not halt his conquest of the north. He took the title of sakal uttara patha natha (lord of northern India). Hieun Tsang tells us that:

He waged incessant warfare, until in six years he had fought thr five Indians(referring to  five largest kingdoms). Then, having enlarges his territory, he increased his army, bringing the elephant corps upto 60,000 and the cavalry upto 100,000, and reigned in peace for thirty years without raising a weapon (Majumdar, 252).

Yet many historians believe his claim may be exaggerated. Still, this gives a glimpse of his military prowess.

The Vardhana Empire consisted of two distinctive types of territories: areas directly under Harsha’s rule such as Central Provinces, Gujarat, Bengal, Kalinga, Rajputana, and the states and kingdoms which had become feudatories under him including Jalandhar, Kashmir, Nepal, Sind, Kamarupa (modern-day Assam). Thus, many historians do not find the title justified as he was never able to bring the entire north under a single command. Yet, this does not mean his power was not felt beyond the limits of his direct rule. His writ ran across entire north India. Under his command, King of Jalandhar escorted the Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang to the frontiers of India. Another time, king of Kashmir had to submit a tooth relic of Buddha to Harsha. The Chinese source suggests that the King of Kamarupa could not dare to detain a Chinese pilgrim in his capital against the wishes of Harsha.

ART & Education

Harsha was a patron of both art and education. He himself was an author and wrote three Sanskrit plays, Nagananda, Ratnavali, Priyadarshika. One-fourth of his revenue went for patronizing scholars. Hiuen Tsang gives a quite vivid description of the famous Nalanda University which was at its zenith during Harsha’s reign. He described how the regularly laid-out towers, forests of pavilions, temples seemed to “soar above the mists in the sky” so that from their cells the monks “might witness the birth of the winds and clouds”.
The pilgrim states:

An azure pool winds around the monasteries, adorned with the full-blown cups of the blue lotus; the dazzling red flowers of the lovely kanaka hang here and there, and outside groves of mango trees offer the inhabitants their dense and protective shade (Grousset,158,159).

In its heyday, Nalanda had around 10,000 students and 2,000 teachers. The admission process was very strict. Records say there was a rigorous oral examination conducted by gatekeepers, and many used to be rejected. The curriculum included VedasBuddhism-2/”>Buddhism, philosophy, logic, urban planning, medicine, law, astronomy, etc.

Society & RELIGION

Caste system was prevalent among Hindus. They were divided into four castes or varna: Brahmana, Vaishya,Kshariya and Shudra, which among them had their own subcastes. The untouchables, who came at the lowest in the hierarchy, led a miserable life. The status of Women declined as compared to the liberal era of earlier times. Satipratha (widow immolation) was common, and widow remarriage was not allowed in higher castes.

Harsha was a worshiper of Shiva in the beginning but later became a Mahayana Buddhist. Yet, he was tolerant of other faiths. With a view to popularize and propagate the doctrines of Mahayana Buddhism, Harsha arranged at Kannauj a great assembly which was presided over by Hiuen Tsang. Hiuen Tsang took a lot of manuscripts to China and translated more than 600 of them from Sanskrit. Another great ceremony was held for 75 days at Prayag (Allahabad). The images of Buddha, Sun and Siva were worshiped, and gifts of valuable articles and clothing were distributed in charity. Every five years religious ceremonies were celebrated at the ancient city of Allahabad. Here, he held the ceremony of Dana, or giving, which lasted for three months. During this, most of the wealth accumulated in the last five years was exhausted. Once, he even gave his clothes and jewellery and begged his sister for an ordinary garment to wear.

DEATH & LEGACY

Harsha’s empire marked the beginning of feudalism in India. Land was granted in villages, which made the local landlords powerful. This led to the weakening of the empire and gave rise to local feuds. Harsha had to be in constant movement to keep things in order.

Harsha died in 647 AD, and the empire with him. The death of Harshavardhana is not well documented. It is said that he was married to Durgavati and had two sons named Vagyavardhana and Kalyanvardhana. The story goes that they were killed by a minister in his court, even before the death of Harsha himself. Therefore, Harsha died without any heir. As a result, Arjuna, one of the chief ministers took up the thrones. Later in 648 CE, Arjuna was captured and held prisoner in an attack by the Tibetians.

 


,

Harsh Vardhan is an Indian politician who is the Minister of Health and Family Welfare in the Government of India. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and has been a member of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian Parliament, since 2012.

Vardhan was born in 1952 in New Delhi, India. He studied medicine at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi, where he received his MBBS degree in 1974. He then went on to specialize in cardiology at the AIIMS and the University of London.

Vardhan began his career as a doctor at the AIIMS. He later served as the director of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhopal, from 1994 to 1998. He was also the vice-chancellor of the Dr. B. R. Ambedkar National institute of technology, Jalandhar, from 2000 to 2004.

Vardhan entered politics in 2004 when he was elected to the Rajya Sabha. He has been a member of the BJP since 1991. He has served as the Minister of Science and Technology and Earth Sciences in the Government of India from 2014 to 2017. He is currently the Minister of Health and Family Welfare.

Vardhan is married and has two children. He is a recipient of the Padma Shri, India’s fourth-highest civilian award.

Early life and education

Harsha Vardhan was born on 10 July 1952 in New Delhi, India. His father, Dr. K. L. Shrimali, was a cardiologist and his mother, Smt. Pushpa Shrimali, was a homemaker. Vardhan has two brothers, Dr. Sanjay Shrimali and Dr. Sunil Shrimali.

Vardhan studied at the Modern School, Barakhamba Road, New Delhi. He then went on to study medicine at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi, where he received his MBBS degree in 1974. He then went on to specialize in cardiology at the AIIMS and the University of London.

Career

Vardhan began his career as a doctor at the AIIMS. He later served as the director of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhopal, from 1994 to 1998. He was also the vice-chancellor of the Dr. B. R. Ambedkar National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar, from 2000 to 2004.

Vardhan entered politics in 2004 when he was elected to the Rajya Sabha. He has been a member of the BJP since 1991. He has served as the Minister of Science and Technology and Earth Sciences in the Government of India from 2014 to 2017. He is currently the Minister of Health and Family Welfare.

Personal life

Vardhan is married to Dr. Nutan Vardhan. They have two children, a son and a daughter.

Awards and honors

Vardhan has received several awards and honors, including the following:

References

External links

Official website

Category:1952 births
Category:Living people
Category:People from New Delhi
Category:All India Institute of Medical Sciences,

Harsh Vardhan is an Indian politician who is the Minister of Health and Family Welfare in the Government of India. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and has been a member of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian Parliament, since 2012.

Vardhan was born in 1952 in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh. He studied medicine at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi and obtained a degree in medicine and surgery (MBBS) in 1974. He then went on to specialize in cardiology and obtained a degree in internal medicine (MD) in 1978.

Vardhan began his political career in 1991 when he was elected to the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament, from the Gorakhpur constituency in Uttar Pradesh. He served as a minister in the government of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee from 1998 to 2004.

After the BJP lost the 2004 general election, Vardhan returned to his medical practice. He was re-elected to the Lok Sabha in 2009 and 2014. In 2014, he was appointed Minister of Science and Technology and Earth Sciences in the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

In 2017, Vardhan was appointed Minister of Health and Family Welfare. In this role, he has been responsible for the implementation of the National Health Mission, a government program aimed at improving access to healthcare in India.

Vardhan is a controversial figure. He has been criticized for his views on issues such as Climate change and vaccination. However, he is also a popular figure among many Indians. He is seen as a strong leader who is committed to improving the lives of the people of India.

Here are some frequently asked questions about Harsh Vardhan:

  1. What is Harsh Vardhan’s full name?
    Harsh Vardhan is his full name.
  2. When was Harsh Vardhan born?
    Harsh Vardhan was born on 10 July 1952.
  3. Where was Harsh Vardhan born?
    Harsh Vardhan was born in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India.
  4. What is Harsh Vardhan’s educational background?
    Harsh Vardhan studied medicine at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi and obtained a degree in medicine and surgery (MBBS) in 1974. He then went on to specialize in cardiology and obtained a degree in internal medicine (MD) in 1978.
  5. What is Harsh Vardhan’s political career?
    Harsh Vardhan began his political career in 1991 when he was elected to the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament, from the Gorakhpur constituency in Uttar Pradesh. He served as a minister in the government of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee from 1998 to 2004. After the BJP lost the 2004 general election, Vardhan returned to his medical practice. He was re-elected to the Lok Sabha in 2009 and 2014. In 2014, he was appointed Minister of Science and Technology and Earth Sciences in the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In 2017, Vardhan was appointed Minister of Health and Family Welfare.
  6. What are some of Harsh Vardhan’s achievements?
    Harsh Vardhan is a controversial figure. He has been criticized for his views on issues such as Climate Change and vaccination. However, he is also a popular figure among many Indians. He is seen as a strong leader who is committed to improving the lives of the people of India.
  7. What are some of Harsh Vardhan’s challenges?
    Harsh Vardhan faces a number of challenges in his role as Minister of Health and Family Welfare. These include the need to improve access to healthcare in India, the need to address the issue of Malnutrition, and the need to combat the spread of diseases such as HIV/AIDS and malaria.
  8. What is Harsh Vardhan’s vision for the future of India?
    Harsh Vardhan has a vision for India that is based on the principles of Good Governance, Economic Development, and social justice. He believes that India can become a developed country by 2022.
  9. What is Harsh Vardhan’s legacy?
    Harsh Vardhan’s legacy is still being written. However, he is already seen as a significant figure in Indian politics. He has played a key role in the development of the BJP and has been a vocal advocate for the rights of the poor and marginalized.
  1. The first Indian Prime Minister was:
    (a) Jawaharlal Nehru
    (b) Indira Gandhi
    (c) Narendra Modi
    (d) Atal Bihari Vajpayee

  2. The capital of India is:
    (a) New Delhi
    (b) Mumbai
    (c) Chennai
    (d) Kolkata

  3. The national language of India is:
    (a) Hindi
    (b) English
    (c) Tamil
    (d) Telugu

  4. The currency of India is:
    (a) Rupee
    (b) Dollar
    (c) Euro
    (d) Pound

  5. The national animal of India is:
    (a) Tiger
    (b) Lion
    (c) Elephant
    (d) Rhinoceros

  6. The national bird of India is:
    (a) Peacock
    (b) Parrot
    (c) Eagle
    (d) Swan

  7. The national flower of India is:
    (a) Lotus
    (b) Rose
    (c) Jasmine
    (d) Sunflower

  8. The National Flag of India is:
    (a) Orange, white, and green
    (b) Saffron, white, and green
    (c) Red, white, and blue
    (d) Blue, white, and red

  9. The National Anthem of India is:
    (a) Jana Gana Mana
    (b) Vande Mataram
    (c) Saare Jahan Se Accha
    (d) Hum Honge Kamyab

  10. The national motto of India is:
    (a) Satyameva Jayate
    (b) Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam
    (c) Jai Hind
    (d) Bharat Mata Ki Jai

  11. The Population of India is:
    (a) 1.3 billion
    (b) 1.4 billion
    (c) 1.5 billion
    (d) 1.6 billion

  12. The area of India is:
    (a) 3.287 million square kilometers
    (b) 3.287 million square miles
    (c) 3.287 million square meters
    (d) 3.287 million square feet

  13. The highest mountain in India is:
    (a) Mount Everest
    (b) K2
    (c) Kanchenjunga
    (d) Dhaulagiri

  14. The longest river in India is:
    (a) Ganges
    (b) Brahmaputra
    (c) Indus
    (d) Yamuna

  15. The largest city in India is:
    (a) Mumbai
    (b) Delhi
    (c) Kolkata
    (d) Chennai

  16. The official religion of India is:
    (a) Hinduism-2/”>Hinduism
    (b) Islam
    (c) Christianity
    (d) Sikhism

  17. The Literacy rate in India is:
    (a) 74%
    (b) 80%
    (c) 86%
    (d) 92%

  18. The life expectancy in India is:
    (a) 68 years
    (b) 72 years
    (c) 76 years
    (d) 80 years

  19. The GDP of India is:
    (a) $2.6 trillion
    (b) $3.0 trillion
    (c) $3.4 trillion
    (d) $3.8 trillion

  20. The currency exchange rate of the Indian rupee is:
    (a) 1 USD = 74 INR
    (b) 1 USD = 80 INR
    (c) 1 USD = 86 INR
    (d) 1 USD = 92 INR

  21. The time zone in India is:
    (a) UTC+5:30
    (b) UTC+6:00
    (c) UTC+6:30
    (d) UTC+7:00

  22. The climate in India is:
    (a) Tropical
    (b) Subtropical
    (c) Temperate
    (d) Arctic

  23. The main exports of India are:
    (a) Software, IT Services, and pharmaceuticals
    (b) Gems and jewelry, textiles, and leather goods
    (c) Machinery, chemicals, and transport equipment
    (d) Iron Ore, coal, and petroleum products

  24. The main imports of India are:
    (a) Crude oil, petroleum products, and gold
    (b) Machinery, electrical equipment, and chemicals
    (c) Iron ore, coal, and petroleum products
    (d) Foodgrains, edible oils, and Fertilizers

Exit mobile version