Harsa: A Buddhist

Dasharatha Sharma

Harsa: A Buddhist

Vol. 32 · No. 2 & 3June & September 1956pp. 168–169English

Summary

This biographical article examines the life and religious policy of King Harṣavardhana (Harsa, r. 606–647 CE), portraying him as a devout Buddhist monarch. Drawing on Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang’s account and Indian sources such as the Harṣacarita, the author recounts Harṣa’s early conversion from Śaivism to Buddhism and his subsequent patronage of monasteries and scholars. Harṣa convened the great assembly at Kannauj, welcomed delegates from across Asia and supported the University of Nālandā. The article emphasises his policy of religious tolerance: while he embraced Buddhism, he also donated to Brahmanical temples and Jain establishments. Harṣa’s charitable acts, including giving away his wealth every five years at Prayāga, are highlighted as examples of the Buddhist virtue of generosity. The author also notes his literary achievements; plays attributed to Harṣa, such as Nāgānanda, reveal the king’s devotion to the bodhisattva ideal. The article situates Harṣa’s reign within the broader context of the post‑Gupta period, arguing that his support helped sustain Buddhism during a time of political fragmentation.

AI-assisted summary, not yet checked. Consult the original PDF before citing.

Conclusion

Harṣa’s life illustrates how royal patronage and personal conviction could bolster Buddhism’s fortunes. His open‑minded patronage of multiple faiths fostered inter‑religious harmony, while his support for monasteries and scholars ensured the continued vitality of Buddhist learning. The article portrays Harṣa as an exemplar of compassionate kingship rooted in Buddhist principles.

Key passages

Chosen by AI from the article's text. Each one is checked word for word against the text before it is shown.

“Harga has generally been regarded as a Buddhist. But of late this view has been questioned by some writers, notably by Dr. R. C. Majumdar who cannot believe that Harsa ever ‘formally gave up his old faith’’, 1. ¢., his devotion to Siva, and regarded other religions as distinctly inferior.””
“To conclude, however, from this evidence that he continued as a Saiva to the end of his hife does hot seem reasonable, noc only in view of Yuan Chawang’s testimony which shows that by 643 A. D. Siva had gone to the third place in Harsa’s estimation, but also on account of the testimony from Harsa’s own works and his biography by the court historiographer and poet, Bana.”
“We have to notice also a passage in the Hlarsacarita, which has so far escaped the attention of practically all writers on Harga’s religion.”

Works cited in this article

Classical Age, Bharatiya VidyS Bhavan Series, pp. 119-120
Sec R. S, Tripachi’s History of Kanan}, p. 163.
Harsacarita, Nirnayasagar Edition, p. 202.
Harsa; A Buddbist 169
DaSHARATHA SHARMA

Discussed in this article

People

Places

Gauda 28

Texts & works

Harsacarita 24
Priyadar$ika
Ratnavali 7
Nagénanda
Hlarsacarita

AI guide

Discuss this record

Ask about the article, its topics, issue context, selected passages, or reading strategy.

Start with the record

I can unpack the summary, turn it into study questions, explain a selected passage, or compare it with the other articles in this issue.

Article order

In this issue

Vol. 32 · No. 2 & 3

109–114ForewordNarendra Nath Law 115–123The Master's Life in StoneRabis C. Kar 124–128Dates of Principal Events in the Buddha's LifePrabodh Chandra Sengupta 129–135The Buddha and LanguageFranklin Edgerton 136–138Phonetic Convergence in PaliMadhusudan Mallik 139–140Pali 'maraji': Sanskrit 'smarajic'Sukumar Sen 141–147The Buddhist Social IdealsB. G. Gokhale 148–162Buddhist Controversy over the Five PropositionsET. Lamotte 163–167Some Buddhist Thinkers of AndhraP. S. Sastri 168–169Harsa: A BuddhistDasharatha SharmaCurrent article 170–178Some Buddhist Antiquities and Monuments of RajasthanRatna Chandra Agrawala 179–210Buddhism in the Classical AgeSudha Sengupta 211–222Buddhism in the Sunga PeriodKunja Govinda Goswami 223–248Place of Buddhism in Indian ThoughtNalinaksha Dutt 249–253Duhkha-SatyaW. Rahula 254–260Nirodha-SatyaAnanta Kumar Nyaya-Tarkatirtha 261–264PratityasamutpadaAnukul Chandra Banerjee 265–269Buddhist PsychologyBratindra Kumar Sengupta 270–285Brahman of Sankara and Sunyata of MadhyamikasAjit Ranjan Bhattacharya 286–289A rare type of Bodhisattva-Images from SanchiDebala Mitra 290–296Scientific Background of the Buddhist TantrasBiswanath Bhattacharya 297–303Buddhism in South-East AsiaRamesh Chandra Majumdar 304–312Principle of the King's RighteousnessU. N. Ghoshal 313–318Buddhism in Ancient KambujadesaB. N. Puri 319–323Harivarman's Theory of CognitionN. Aiyaswami Sastri 324–328Narayanpur Image of VinayakaTapo Nath Chakravarti 329–337Zen Buddhism and BodhidharmaW. Pachow 338–340Buddhist View re. Eternity of the VedasHeramba Chatterjee 341–351Pataliputra: Its Importance in the History of BuddhismBinayendranath Chaudhuri 352–353An early Buddha Statue from YunnanWalter Liebenthal 354–357A Note on the AryadharmadhatugarbhavivaranaSuniti Kumar Pathak

Original PDF

Inline viewer

Checking source PDF

The viewer will load here if the archive file is reachable.

Same author