Completed B.Com from DAVV, Indore
Cleared CS, CWA (CMA) and CA Final (Group I)


Abhyudaya Kelkar

This part is Part –VII, dealing with the period between the Guptas and the end of the Ancient Period in India, i.e. roughly between 500 AD and 700 AD, a span of approximately 200 years. The course will cover the following: The Chalukyas, The Pallavas, The North Before Harsha, Harshavardhana, The North After Harsha, Post Gupta Economy, Art and Architecture, Post Gupta Religion and Society, The Birth of Islam and its arrival in India, The Expansion of the Caliphate , The South-east Asian Principalities, The Chinese Travellers, The End of the Ancient Period and conclusion. This part will be followed by the next course - The Medieval India.

Crack UPSC CSE Prelims and Mains Exams. Know how to prepare for UPSC 2019 and 2020, complete syllabus, exam patterns, latest notifications to join IAS, IFS, IPS and other cadres of Civil Services.

UPSC CSE - GS

UPSC - Civil Services Examination (IAS) Preparation

Hindi

(Hindi) Ancient History: Post Gupta Period

Indian History

Harsha & His Times

Ancient History

History

UPSC CSE

Ace the toughest competitive and government exams in India 

Test Preparation

Union Public Service Commission Exams (UPSC)

This course will cover the following lessons:
1.	The Chalukyas
2.	The Pallavas
3.	The North Before Harsha
4.	Harshavardhana
5.	The North After Harsha
6.	Post Gupta Economy, Art and Architecture
7.	Post Gupta Religion and Society
8.	The Birth of Islam and its arrival in India
9.	The Expansion of the Caliphate 
10.	The South-east Asian Principalities
11.	The Chinese Travellers
12.	The End of the Ancient Period

With this, the entire course on Ancient India will be concluded.

The Overview of Part - VII The Post-Gupta Period (in Hindi)

As far as the southern India is concerned, the Badami Chalukyas had an extremely important role in shaping the politics, art and culture of the region.

After the collapse of the Gupta Empire, there was anarchy throughout the southern Asia. By early 500s, there was no political power in the region that could have influence over the whole region. Here began the era of numerous parallel empires.

The land lying to the south of Narmada, particularly the Deccan was ruled by the Chalukyas, one of the most powerful empires that India ever saw. These Chalukyas ruled from Vatapi (now known as Badami). That’s why they were called Badami Chalukyas.

One of their branches started ruling from Vengi. This is how the ‘Vengi Chalukyas’ or the ‘Eastern Chalukyas’ came into existence.

The Chalukyas (in Hindi)

The Pallavas were yet another power in the southern India to be reckoned with. They constantly bickered with the Badami Chalukyas for the supremacy over the southern Deccan. The Pallavas even managed to capture Vatapi, the imperial capital of the Chalukya and led to a split in the empire, giving birth to the eastern branch, the Vengi Chalukyas.

Although this victory was short-lived, the see-saw war against the Chalukyas continued throughout the century and afterwards into the first century of the Medieval Period, until the existence of Badami Chalukyas.

Pallavas were great builders of monuments, particularly temples, just like the Badami Chalukyas. The Mahabalipuram monuments, including the Shore Temple, are credited to them. Moreover, they had a deep cultural influence over the ‘Indianized states’ of the south-eastern Asia.

The Pallavas (in Hindi)

As the Gupta Empire declined, the northern India plunged into a long anarchy. Many small warring states came into being. 

In this lesson, we will be talking about these warring states with the aid of various maps. Before understanding the ‘Digvijaya’ of Harsha, it will be useful to understand the basics of the various states and principalities existing at that time.

So, we will also cover the ancestors of Harsha and the events before his coronation, i.e. the northern India between c.500 AD and 606 AD., a span of roughly one century.

The North before Harsha (in Hindi)

Harshavardhana was undoubtedly the greatest personality of the Post-Gupta Period. He was the only person who tried to create a unified political entity during these two centuries. And to a large extent, he succeeded. Although his empire disappeared soon after his death, he managed to do the following the political arena :
1.	Making Kannyakubja (Kannauj) the seat of power of the northern India for next six centuries, that was to last well into the Medieval Period.
2.	Rejuvenating the declining Buddhism.
3.	Bringing the northern India under his political influence.

Huien Tsang, a Chinese traveler and scholar, came to India during the reign of Harsha and wrote a lot about him. Most of the knowledge about Harshavardhana are derived either from his writings or the biography of Harsha, Harshacharita, written by the court-poet of Harsha, Banabhatta.

So in this lesson, we will discuss those facts about Harshavardhana.

Harshavardhana (in Hindi)

The empire of Harsha died with him. The following period is a very poorly documented one. But it is certain that there was a power vacuum throughout the northern India for at least one century, i.e. for the rest of the Ancient Period.

However, Kannauj remained the symbol of power and prosperity, a trend set by Harsha.
Many regional states and smaller principalities re-appeared after Harsha, which will be briefly discussed in this lesson. They continue to war against each other throughout the rest of the Ancient Period.
The most important element of this lesson is the rarely discussed matter of Sindh and the early Arab invasions of the seventh century. Many history text-books omit the case of Sindh, although it is the point from where the Medieval Period begins in India.

The North after Harsha (in Hindi)

The general trend of the Gupta Period’s economy continued almost uninterrupted during the post-Gupta Period too.

However, there was a massive expansion in the foreign trade, particularly to the south-east Asia.

There some significant changes in religions during the Gupta Period, which continued during this period too. Also, Buddhism got revived, after the slowdown it faced during the Gupta Period, perhaps due to the patronage of Harsha.

The downward trend in the social structure due to social evils, like Sati and dowry system, which began at the end of the Gupta Period, continued during this period giving birth to many malpractices and superstitions. ‘Hinduism’ started getting its present shape. 
The rest has been explained in the lesson.

Post-Gupta Economy, Society and Religion (in Hindi)

The post-Gupta Period can be best remembered for the contribution in two spheres, as far as art and architecture are concerned :
1.	Mathematics
2.	Temple Architecture

Although Takshashila vanished due to the Huna invasions, many centres of learning flowered in the sub-continent, especially in the eastern and central India.

India saw many great mathematicians in this period, viz. Brahmagupta, Bhaskara I, Varahamihir, etc. This trend continued into the medieval period too.

Regarding the architecture, both Nagara (the northern temple architecture) and Dravida (the southern temple architecture) styles, evolved through two different streams.
The details are available in this lesson.

Post-Gupta Art and Culture (in Hindi)

The Islamic culture had a deep influence on India in the Medieval Period. But it was born when the Ancient Period was about to end in India. Apart from that, the political rise of Arabs shook the whole of the then known-world. India felt it much later, in the Medieval Period. But the 7th century was undoubtedly the century of Islam for the Western world and the Mid-east. 
Unless we understand its origin, the rise of Arab polity, its impact on the western world and the Mod-east, it will not be possible for us to correlate with the events of the Medieval Period, that’s why these two lessons.

In this lesson, we will discuss Prophet Mohammed, his life and family, the new religion, the beginning of Islamic Era and the schism between Sunni and Shia sects.

The Birth of Islam (in Hindi)

This lesson is a sequel to the previous one, dealing with Islam. Here in this lesson, the events that took place during the Rashidun Caliphate will be discussed.

The immediate successors of Mohammed got divided as Sunnis and Shias. They followed different political streams. Sunnis had their ‘Caliphs’, while Shias had their ‘Imams’.
After the first three caliphs, Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthman (Usman), the first Imam of the Shias, Ali, also became the fourth Caliph of the Sunnis. 

At the same time, the first Muslim Civil War (the First Fitna) started and Ali was assassinated ending the Rashidun Caliphate.

Umayyads succeeded them who were tyrants, according to the chroniclers. How the confrontation between them and the successors of Ali culminated into the Karbala Incident, has been explained in the lesson.

The Early Expansion of Islam (in Hindi)

India had a strong trade relation with south-eastern Asia. It expanded greatly during the Post-Gupta period. As a result, that region came into the cultural ‘sphere of influence’ of India, or ‘Indosphere’, according to some historians.

This was largely due to the spread of Hinduism and Buddhism in that region.

Many Hindu-Buddhist states came into existence, both on the mainland and the archipelago the south-eastern Asia. Although their languages were altogether different from the Indic languages, the cultural impact of India in that region was absolute.

Therefore, modern scholars call these entities, ‘Indianized States’.

This lesson contains a brief description and list of those Indianized states, many of which remained in existence during the Medieval Period of India.

The South-east Asia (in Hindi)

There were some Chinese travellers who came to India in search of Buddhist texts and scriptures and perhaps pilgrimage. Some of them influenced China and the east very deeply.  This trend began from the appearance of the Silk Road from China to the West via northern India. These travellers not only visited 

Fa-Hien came during the Gupta Period, while Song Yun, Huien Tsang and I-tsing, during the post-Gupta Period. 

Fa-Hien wrote mostly about the social conditions of the ‘Middle Kingdom’, as he called the Indian empire existing at that time, i.e. the Gupta Empire.

Huien Tsang, a Chinese traveller came to India during his reign and wrote highly of Harsha and his reign as well as the socio-cultural and political conditions of India during that time. 

I-tsing, on the other hand, was the person through which we got most of the information we have about the ‘Indianized States’ of the south-eastern Asia, up to that period.

The Chinese Travellers (in Hindi)

We studied a lot of things throughout the 74 lessons. Let us have a quick revision about how things changed and how the various aspects of human life evolved, from the early man to the imperial man.

There were many shifts in technology and sea-changes in situations and scenarios. The preferences and choices too evolved from basic necessities to luxuries, which went on to become essential and unavoidable.

Similarly there was thorough development in philosophy, language, script, art, architecture, in a nutshell, the culture. 

Many occupations and professions evolved.

The sequences and conclusions are explained in the lesson.

Finally we end with the Ancient Period with this last lesson. Now the next course – ‘Medieval Period’ will be available shortly.

End of the Ancient Period (in Hindi)

MCQs on Post-Gupta Period I (in Hindi)

MCQs on Post-Gupta Period II (in Hindi)

MCQs on Post-Gupta Period III(in Hindi)

MCQs on Post-Gupta Period IV (in Hindi)

MBA | 7+ Years of teaching Experience | Appeared in MPPSC Mains | Teaching- History, Polity & MPGS at top offline institute of MP.

Hari Singh Rajput

Discussions About Chalukyas.......Pallavas.......Rastrakuta.....and Cholas

(Hindi) South Dynasty for UPSC CSE

Story teller.Lets reconstruct our hi(story) together📚 
Use code:ARTI1702
Join my community: https://unacademy.com/community/FVOPNU 


Arti Chhawari

This course will help learners to studied about Harshavardhan and society,economy,administration of his time.Thus course will also focus on state of Buddhism in his time.

(Hindi) Harshavardhan and His Time

this course will cover all new kingdoms in south which emerged in second phase of Ancient India i.e. 300AD-750AD

(Hindi) New States in Indian Peninsula (South Indian Kingdoms)

The course covers Discussions About Harshwardhana and his Achievements

(Hindi) Wardhan Dynasty And Harshwardhana for UPSC CSE

"We should not give up & we should not allow the problem to defeat us"...A.P.J Abdul Kalam

Divya Sinha

After the downfall of the Gupta empire in the middle of the 6th century,North India reverted to small republics and small monarchical states. Harsha united the small republics from Punjab to central India. In south India, the Pallavas and the Chalukyas dynasties fought for the Supremacy. So in this lesson, Divya Sinha will discuss the Post Guptas kingdom.

(Hindi) Post Gupta's Era Or Harshavardhan: UPSC CSE

In this course, the educator discusses the rise and growth of Gupta Empire, which was the biggest Empire in 3rd century after the Kushans. The course will be beneficial for UPSC CSE Aspirants.

Lessons

17 lessons • 2h 35m