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{{short description|King of the Utpala dynasty, 885 to 902}}
{{Infobox royalty
| title =
| name = Sankaravarman
| image = Sankaravarman, Dupatalas (Kashmir) Circa 883-902 CE.jpg
| caption = Coinage of King Sankaravarman, Dupatalas (Kashmir) Circa 883–902 CE<ref>{{Cite book |last=Mitchiner |first=Michael |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tMeWoAEACAAJ |title=Oriental coins and their values: Non-islamic states and Western colonies : A.D. 600–1979 |date=1979 |publisher=Hawkins |language=fr}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Cunningham |first=a |url=http://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.127720 |title=Coins Of Mediaeval India From The Seventh Century |date=1894}}</ref>
| succession = King of Kashmir
| reign = 855–902 CE
| predecessor = [[Avantivarman (Utpala dynasty)|Avantivarman]]
| successor = [[Utpala dynasty#Gopalavarman|Gopalavarman]]
| house = [[Utpala dynasty]]
| father = [[Avantivarman (Utpala dynasty)|Avantivarman]]
| mother =
| spouse = [[Sugandha|Sugandha Devi]]
| issue = Gopalavarman
| religion = [[Shaivism]]
}}
'''Sankaravarman''' was the [[Chamar]] ruler<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Ain-i-Akbari Vol II |url=http://www.indianculture.gov.in/rarebooks/ain-i-akbari-vol-ii |access-date=2023-03-22 |website=INDIAN CULTURE |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Sarkar |first=Jadunath |url=http://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.460916 |title=Ain-i-akbari Of Abul Fazl I Allami Vol. 2 Ed. 2nd |date=1949}}</ref> of the [[Utpala dynasty]], which ruled over the [[Kashmir]] region from 8th to 10th century CE. The kingdom was established by [[Avantivarman of Kashmir|Avantivarman]], who ended the rule of [[Karkota dynasty]] in 855 CE.

Following the death of Avantivarman in 883 CE, a civil war broke out among his descendants resulting in Sankaravarman ruling from 885 CE until his death in 902 CE.<ref name="Culture">{{cite book|title=Cultural heritage of Jammu and Kashmir|page=88|first=K|last=Warikoo|publisher=Pentagon Press|year=2009|isbn=978-8182-743-76-2}}</ref><ref name="Sen">{{cite book|title=Ancient Indian History and Civilization|first=Sailendra Nath|last=Sen|publisher=New Age International|year=1999|page=295|isbn=978-8122-411-98-0}}</ref>

== Accession and Early Rule ==
The death of [[Avantivarman of Kashmir|Avantivarman]] led to a power struggle, His son and Successor Sankaravarman, had at first to contend for the throne with his cousin Sukhavarman, who had been set up as Yuvaraja, as well as with other rivals. When the civil war was successfully ended, Sankaravarman, according to the Chronicler, started on a round of foreign expeditions. Kalhana, with poetic magniloquence, describes these as " reviving the tradition of the conquest of the world," such as he attributes to earlier Kasmir heroes.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Marc Aurel Stein |url=http://archive.org/details/RajataranginiVol1 |title=Kalhana's Rajatarangini Vol 1 |date=1900}}{{PD-notice}}</ref>

== Military ==
The Sankaravarman's force included "Nine lakhs infantrymen, Three hundred elephants and one lakhs cavalry".<ref name=":0" />

Sankaravarman was a great conqueror,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lawrence |first=Sir Walter Roper |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ue8LAAAAIAAJ&dq=shankaravarman+was+a+great+conqueror&pg=PA188 |title=The Valley of Kashmír |date=1895 |publisher=H. Frowde |language=en}}</ref> He led many conquests in South and North of his Empire.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=j4ZIEAAAQBAJ |title=Google Books}}</ref>

The Darvabhisara was the first conquered territory, we must conclude that Sankaravarman's initial efforts were directed towards the recovery of the hill-trade which stretches from the Pir Pantsal range towards the plains of the [[Punjab, India|Punjab]], and which had been lost to Kasmir during the rule of the later [[Karkota dynasty|Karkotas]].<ref name=":0" /> At the advance of Sankaravarman's host, Prthivicandra, ruler of [[Trigarta Kingdom|Trigarta]], the present Kangra, is said to have approached the king in order to offer homage, but to have subsequently fled in terror.<nowiki>''</nowiki> Kalhana's words do not indicate an actual conquest of his territory. Considering that Sankaravarman's subsequent route lies towards the Indus, it does not seem probable that any material success was achieved by him in the hills east of the Ravi. Prthivicandra's name is not found in the genealogical list of the [[Katoch]] Rajas who have ruled Kungra from an early period. But its formation, with the ending -candra, agrees with the traditional naming of members of that family.<ref name=":0" />

The main force of Sankaravarman's attack appears to have spent itself in a victory over Alakhana, the ruler of Gurjara. This territory, the name of which is preserved in that of the modern town of [[Gujarat]], comprised, as I have shown else where, the upper portion of the flat Doab between the Jehlam and Cinab rivers south of Darvabhisara, and probably also a part of the [[Punjab, India|Punjab]] plain farther east, Alakhana is said to have saved his kingdom by ceding to Sankaravarman the [[Taank Kingdom|Takka-land]], by which designation a tract adjoining the lower hills east of the Cinab is probably meant. Where ' the superior king ' [[Mihira Bhoja|Bhoja]] is to be located, whose power Sankaravarman is next supposed to have curbed, remains doubtful. His identity with the king Bhoja whose rule over Kanauj is indicated by inscriptions ranging between a.d. 862-883, has been frequently assumed, but cannot be proved.<ref name=":0" /> During the regin of [[Mahendrapala I|Mahendrapala]], Bjoja's successor, Sankaravarman, had wrested all the territories and areas from the [[Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty|Gujara-pratiharas]] which had earlier been subjugated by [[Mihira Bhoja|King Bhoj]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Singh |first=Fauja |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fLW1AAAAIAAJ&q=shankaravarman |title=History of the Punjab: A.D. 1000-1526. Editor: Fauja Singh |date=1972 |publisher=Department of Punjab Historical Studies, Punjabi University |language=en}}</ref>

Sankaravarman's greatest victory against the king of Gujara in the [[Punjab, India|Punjab]], the latter being helped by the Lalliya Shahi.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sen |first=Sailendra Nath |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Wk4_ICH_g1EC&dq=shankaravarman&pg=PA296 |title=Ancient Indian History and Civilization |date=1999 |publisher=New Age International |isbn=978-81-224-1198-0 |language=en}}</ref> Sankaravarman led a successful expendition to [[Kabul]], where he defeated Lalliya, the Brahman ruler of [[Kabul]].<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zsoC6GWr47QC&dq=shankaravarman&pg=PA24 |title=Explore Kashmiri Pandits |publisher=Lulu.com |isbn=978-0-9634798-6-0 |language=en}}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

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[[Category:Hindu monarchs]]
[[Category:Utpala dynasty]]
[[Category:Kashmir]]

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Sankaravarman - Revision history

Ajay Kumar: Created a new article