Kushana Studies: New Perspectives

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The Kushana period (c. 2nd half of the 1st century B.C. to c. mid-3rd century AD.) is one of the most important phases of history of not only the Indian subcontinent, but also the whole of the Orient. Momentous discoveries and propagation of new thought-provoking theories about the Kushanas in the last two decades have made a reassessment of our knowledge about them a desideratum for proper understanding of the Oriental as well as Indian history the present monograph aims at fulfilling this need.

Divided into different Articles and Appendices, the monograph deals with various aspects of initial, political, chronological, administrative, religious, socio-economic and commercial history and some problems and latest theories and hypotheses concerning the Kushanas. Latest informational data have been utilised in writing the concerned topics.

The Articles and Appendices are as follows:- I. Articles: The Kushana Empire - A Reassessment of its History, The Indo-European Question in Central Asia and the Yuch-Chih (Tokharian) People, The Ya'eti People, The Names of the Kushana Kings: V'ima Taktu, an Alleged Kushara King: The Kosar Problem; Northern Frontiers of the Kushana Empire, The So-called Old Saka Era, The Date of Kushana Conquest of Mathura, The Date of Kanishka (1), The Nature of Duty of a Kshatrapa in the Kushäna Administration, Religious Policy of the Imperial Kusharas, Imperial Cults in the Kushana Empire, The Common Man in the Kushäna Empire, Coastal and Overseas Trade in Pre-Gupta Vanga and Kalinga - Its Links with the Kushäna Empire.

. N. Mukherjee, formerly the Carmichael Professor of Ancient Indian History and Culture, University of Calcutta, is an internationally acclaimed authority on early Indian and Central Asian history and culture. He is connected with several academic bodies and has held responsible positions. He has published several books and contributed extensively in different learned journals in India and abroad. In 1983 he made a mojor breakthrough in palaeographical research by successfully deciphering the so-called Shell Script of ancient India. In 1989 he discovered a new variety of the Kharoshti script (Eastern Kharoshti) and also an early script consisting of Kharoshți and Brahmins letters. Probably called in the Lalitavistara as Vimisrita-lipi (Mixed script). In 1992 he was honoured with the award of Padmashri by the Government of India in reorganisation of his outstanding expertise in numismatics. A Fellow of the Society of Antiquary (London), an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland (London), an Honorary Life Member of the Hellenic Numismatic Society (Athens), an Honorary Fellow of The Asiatic Society (Calcutta) and an Honorary Fellow of the International Centre for the Study of Bengal Art (Dhaka). Prof. Mukherjee has been honoured in India and abroad. He has travelled widely, delivering lectures and presiding over numerous seminars and conferences. He was the General President of the sixty-first session of the Indian History Congress (2000-2001) and the National Fellow in History, ICHR (Delhi) (2000-2002).

Discoveries of some very important facts and propagation of several new theories in the field of Kushāņa studies have made a re-examination of the history of the Kushanas an imperative necessity for a proper understanding of the past of India or even of the whole of Asia. The present book aims at fulfilling this need. It can be considered a supplement to my monograph The Rise and Fall of the Kushana Empire, published in 1988.

In the spelling of the proper names of historical personages, we have tried to follow, with a few necessary exceptions, the conventional forms. For an example, the name of the son of Kujula is written as Vima Kadphises, and not as V'ima Kadaphisa the term 'India' denotes, unless otherwise indicated, the whole of the Indian subcontinent comprising the territories of Indian Republic, Pakistan and Bangladesh

Different major sections of the book deal with apparently divergent topics hence these are labelled as Articles, and not as Chapters.

Full bibliographical references to a publication are given at the place of its first citation. So we have not felt any necessity of furnishing a separate bibliography However, a list of abbreviations has been appended for the sake of convenience to the readers.

In course of writing the book I received various advices and suggestions from Prof Sukumari Bhattacharjee, Prof S. R. Banerjee and Prof HP Ray I am grateful to all of them.

The manuscript has been carefully typed out by Mr. Gias Uddin Mallick. The maps have been prepared by Sri Arun Kandar Mrs. Swati Mukherjee of the Firma KLM Pvt. Ltd. has arranged for publication of the monograph I am obliged to all of them.