State formation and polity of Brahmapura-Kārttikeyapura in Central Himalayas (c. 5th–10th centuries CE)

Abstract

Research on state formation processes in pre-modern India has mainly focused on specific regions centring on the Ganga valley. It has left unattended the so-called fringe areas like the regions located in the Himalayan belt. It is a desideratum to work on the central Himalayan region with a particular focus on understanding the political processes and the formation of polity between the fifth and twelfth centuries CE. The period under study is usually labelled as early medieval in Indian historiography, which has contributed three major theoretical models—Feudalism, Segmentation and the Integrative Model. Whether any of these models work for this area is another subject of enquiry. The region was probably divided into many principalities such as Palethi, Lakhamandal, Brahmapura, Kārttikeyapura, Almora, Barahat, Gopesvar, Bagesvar, Jagesvar and experienced the early stages of state formation under the three Varman and two Nāga houses during c.5th–7th centuries CE. The consolidation or the mature stages of the state was under the Devas (c.8th–10th centuries CE). These were mostly local and locality level polities, distinct from supra-local, regional and supra-regional states found in Kashmir and the Ganga valley. Epigraphic sources are the major documents to understand this political formation. We have two Paurava and seven Deva charters along with some more inscriptions of other independent houses for this study. These are primarily endowment documents, which record the gift of landed property to the gods only. These institutional grants specify the measuring units like droṇavāpa, Kulyavāpa for the donated plots of land with the mention of agrahāra in one case. Temple building activities symbolised the prowess of the ruler and worked as a political tool for gaining legitimacy. That the region was a hub of pilgrims is also attested by several pilgrimage documents. The influx of people coming from different areas connected this area with distant lands. The analysis of the epigraphs sheds considerable light on the linkages with other regions.