Empires and Kingdoms: 6th to 10th Centuries
Introduction
After the great Gupta Empire weakened, India entered the early medieval period. From the 6th to the 10th centuries, no single empire ruled the whole land. Instead, many strong regional kingdoms rose, each with its own cities, temples, languages and ways of governing.
1. New regional powers
- Harshavardhana (Harsha) built a large kingdom in north India in the 7th century, with his capital at Kanauj.
- In the south and Deccan, the Pallavas (Kanchipuram) and Chalukyas (Badami) were powerful rivals and great temple builders.
- Later, three powers — the Pratiharas, Rashtrakutas, and Palas — fought a long "tripartite struggle" to control Kanauj and the rich Ganga plains.
- The Cholas of the south were beginning to rise toward their later greatness.
2. Temples, art and bhakti
This age is famous for temple architecture — the rock-cut and stone temples of Mahabalipuram, Badami, Ellora and Kanchipuram. Religious life grew through the bhakti movement in the south, where saints sang of devotion in local languages, bringing people closer to worship.
3. Contacts with the world
India was connected to the wider world by trade and travel. Merchants, pilgrims (like the Chinese traveller Xuanzang, who visited Harsha's court), and later Arab traders on the western coast brought exchange of goods, ideas and beliefs. Such contacts could mean trade and learning, and sometimes conflict.
4. Society and administration
Different regions developed their own administration, land grants, guilds and towns. Kings gave land to temples and learned people, which shaped local society and economy.
Key terms
- Early medieval period: roughly the 6th–13th centuries in India.
- Tripartite struggle: the three-way fight (Pratiharas, Rashtrakutas, Palas) for Kanauj.
- Bhakti: devotion to a personal god, often in local languages.
- Dynasty: a line of rulers from the same family.
Let's recall
- Who was Harsha and where was his capital? (A 7th-century north-Indian king; capital Kanauj.)
- Name the three powers in the tripartite struggle. (Pratiharas, Rashtrakutas, Palas.)
- Which traveller visited Harsha's court? (Xuanzang of China.)
- Name two great temple-building dynasties of the south. (Pallavas and Chalukyas.)
Quick revision
- Part II of Exploring Society: India and Beyond — History.
- 6th–10th centuries: many regional kingdoms, no single empire.
- North: Harsha (Kanauj); Deccan/South: Pallavas, Chalukyas; then Pratiharas, Rashtrakutas, Palas.
- Tripartite struggle for Kanauj; Cholas rising.
- Age of great temples, bhakti, and trade contacts with the world.
