+- The Kushan Empire

ORIGIN

The age of the Mauryans (322-185 BC) in ancient India is remembered for the greatness of the empire. However, weak rulers and the subsequent weakening of the highly centralized administrative structure caused the decline of the Mauryan Empire. The post-Mauryan period from 185 BC to AD 300 saw the emergence of a number of kingdoms all over the Indian subcontinent. Some of these states were small, while others like that of the Kushans were large. This period witnessed a spurt in migrations into India, rise in foreign trade, and development of art. In short, the time scale between 1st century BC and 3rd century AD was a period of flux.

MIGRATIONS

A number of foreigners came to India in successive waves of migrations between 200 BC and AD 100. These people settled down in different parts of India. They brought with them their own distinct cultural flavor, which, after mixing with the local cultures, enriched the cultural ethos of India. The foreigners who came into India were the Bactrian Greeks (also called the 'Indo-Greeks'), the Parthians, the Sakas, and the Kushans. With the exception of the Greeks, all others came from Central Asia.

INDO-GREEKS

The Bactrian Greeks or the Indo-Greeks were the generals of Alexander, who had stayed back in Persia and parts of Central Asia. With the disintegration of the Mauryan Empire, the Indo-Greeks moved towards India and captured parts of Punjab, Kabul valley, and the province of Gandhara. They ruled their state from Gandhara or Bactria. We get to know more about the Indo-Greeks from the coins issued by them. They were the first ones in India to issue gold coins. Some of these rulers became Buddhist, while the others became Hindu, a pointer to the fact that their culture was assimilated into Indian traditions.

THE SAKAS

The Saka people settled down in the western part of India, including Gujarat and Malwa. The Saka rulers were constantly at war with the Satvahanas, who ruled central and parts of Deccan India. On the other hand, the Sakas could not expand their rule to the north, as the Kushans held them back.

THE KUSHAN EMPIRE

The Kushans originated from the Turkistan region of China. They moved towards Afghanistan in the 1st century AD and after displacing the Indo-Greeks, the Parthians and the Sakas, they established themselves in Taxila and Peshawar. In the course of time, they occupied entire Punjab and took parts of the western Gangetic plains beyond Mathura. Mathura was an important city at the time of the Kushans. Soon the Kushan Empire spread from Central Asia in the north to the plains near Mathura.

Two successive Kushan dynasties ruled the Kushan Empire. Kanishka was an important king, who belonged to the second Kushan dynasty. He extended the Kushan Empire to the north to such an extent that he came into open conflict with the Chinese armies of the Hun Empire, in Central Asia. Kanishka was a great patron of Mahayana Buddhism and during his reign, a large number of Buddhist monasteries, sculptures, and stupas were built in the Gandhara region. He also took active part in religious debates, which went on at that time. The fourth Buddhist Council was held during his reign, where many important decisions pertaining to the future of Buddhism were taken. In the fourth Buddhist Council, the division of Buddhist faith into two branches, namely Mahayana (the greater vehicle) and Hinayana (the lesser vehicle), was recognized and accepted.

KUSHAN ART

The Kushans were great patrons of art. It was under the rule of the Kushans that principles were formed for making sculptural images, which continued to influence making of sculptures ever after. During this time, Buddha was first shown in human form (earlier he was represented by symbols like lotus and footsteps). Other Hindu and Jain deities also began to be shown in human form.

Mathura and Gandhara were the two main centers of art during the time of the Kushans. The Gandhara School of Art and the Mathura School of Art developed their own distinct styles. The Gandhara School was highly influenced by Greco-Roman philosophies and mainly concentrated on depicting the image of the Buddha and the legends associated with his life, while the Mathura School drew inspiration from local folk deities and themes from day?to?day life.

GANDHARA SCHOOL

The artists and sculptors belonging to this school were highly influenced by Greek ideals of beauty and sculpture making. The Greco-Roman influence, generally known as Hellenistic, is evident in the Kushan sculptures from Gandhara. The most striking feature of this influence is the Apollo-like representation of Buddha: He is often depicted as having a youthful, almond-shaped face, with full lips, long straight nose, a masculine body (Greek influence in the study of human anatomy), etc. The spiral or curly hair and the well-defined delicate drapery covering the body are other important Hellenistic influences.

The artists from this school also made carved stone panels depicting scenes from the life of Buddha and Buddhist stories from the Jataka tales. Apart from images relating to Buddha, the sculptors also made studies of heads and icons depicting young men, women, and children. The sculptors from Gandhara generally used grayish schist stone and stucco (a mixture of lime and clay) in the later part of the period.

MATHURA SCHOOL

The artists associated with this school drew their inspiration from images and legends of folk deities, called Yakshas and Yakshis and other local gods and goddesses. The Mathura school is famous for its representation of the beauty of the female form. The style perpetuated by this school is marked by female figures, which are sensuous and voluptuous, while the men are represented as being sophisticated and urbane. The artists at Mathura succeeded in creating the ideal Indian beauty: oval faced, with ample breasts, slender waist, and broad hips.

Apart from depiction of beautiful damsels in different poses and scenes from day-to-day life, the sculptors also depicted different Hindu deities, along with stories and myths associated with them. The artists also depicted various Jain deities. Of the Jain images, the important ones are Ayagapattas or homage stone tablets, which are carved with auspicious symbols like fish, flag, jewel box, etc. The sculptors from Mathura used mottled red sandstone, which was quarried close to Agra.

IMPACT OF MIGRATIONS

The Kushan belonged to a time when India experienced new arrivals, which led to exchange of ideas between the east and the west. This period also saw the rise of trade between Indian kingdoms and the west and exchange of ideas in the field of art and culture.