The term "Parivrajaka" literally means a wandering ascetic. The family came from a lineage of
Brahmins of
Bharadvaja gotra, who may have been wandering ascetics some time in the past. Another possibility is that the term "Parivrajaka" is a reference to the practice of kings abdicating their thrones in old age and becoming wandering ascetics, in accordance with the
ashrama system.
Early rulers The earliest known member of the dynasty is Susharman, who is known only from the Khoh inscription of Samkshobha. The inscription describes Susharman as a learned ascetic from Bharadvaja gotra, and compares him to the legendary sage
Kapila. It states that he knew "the whole truth" and fourteen branches of science. Maharaja Devadhya was a descendant of Susharman, and was succeeded by his son Maharaja Prabhanjana. Prabhanjana was succeeded by his son Maharaja Damodara.
Maharaja Hastin plates of the
Maharaja Hastin, 482 CE. plates of Maharaja Hastin, 510 CE. Maharaja Hastin, the son of Damodara, is credited with several military victories, although the inscriptions do not mention any of his adversaries. According to K. C. Jain, these claims probably refer to his participation in Guptas' war against the
Hunas. He was a charitable king, and donated cows, horses, elephants, gold and land to
Brahmins. According to the Khoh inscription of his son Samkshobha, Hastin ruled the kingdom of ābhala (or āhala; later
Dahala) and the 18
aavi-rājya ("forest kingdoms"). The identity of these 18 forest kingdoms is not certain, but they were most probably in the
Vindhyan region. Hastin ruled for at least 42 years, as his earliest extant inscription is dated to the year 156, and his last inscription is dated to the year 198. Assuming these years to be in the
Gupta era, Hastin would have been a contemporary of the Gupta kings
Budhagupta,
Vainyagupta,
Bhanugupta and possibly
Narasimhagupta. Budhagupta was a relatively strong ruler among these, and Hastin appears to have been his vassal. This theory is corroborated by the discovery of a copper-plate inscription issued during Budhagupta's reign from Sankarapur in
Sidhi district. Hastin was a
Shaivite, as suggested by his Bhumara inscription, which describes him as meditating at the feet of Mahadeva (
Shiva). Some ancient silver coins bearing the legend "Raa Hastin" have been discovered. Historians such as
E. J. Rapson,
R. D. Banerji and
B. P. Sinha identified him with Hastin on palaeographic basis. However,
Dasharatha Sharma and P. L. Gupta identify him with the Pratihara king
Vatsaraja who held the title "Rana-hastin" according to the
Kuvalayamālā of Udyyotana Suri. According to Gupta, these coins cannot be dated before the 8th century CE. This theory is corroborated by the fact that no Gupta vassals issued coins in their own names.
Maharaja Samkshobha Maharaja Samkshobha (or Sakshobha) succeeded his father Hastin, and inherited the entire ancestral territory, including the 18 kingdoms. Like his father, he also made land grants for
religious merit. He maintained the orthodox
varna and
ashrama systems. Unlike his father who invoked
Shiva, Samkshobha's Khoh inscription opens with an invocation to the god
Vasudeva. He is the last known of the dynasty, which probably ended with him. The end of the Parivrajaka rule probably coincided with the end of the Gupta rule, which was followed by the
Aulikara rule in central India. == Genealogy ==