Hindu Shahis
The Hindu Shahis, also referred to as the Kabul Shahis and Uḍi Śāhis, were a dynasty established between 843 CE and 1026 CE. They endured multiple waves of conquests for nearly two centuries and their core territory was described as having contained the regions of Gandhara and in current Eastern Afghanistan, encompassing the area up to the Sutlej River in modern day Punjab, expanding into the Kangra Valley. The empire was founded by Kallar in after overthrowing Lagaturman, the last Turk Shahi king.
The history of the Hindu Shahis begins in 843 CE with Kallar deposing the last Turk Shahi ruler, Lagaturman. Samanta succeeded him, and it was during his reign that the region of Kabul was lost to the Persianate Saffarid dynasty. Lalliya replaced Samanta soon after and re-conquered Kabul whilst also subduing the region of Zabulistan. He is additionally noteworthy for coming into conflict with Samkaravarman of the Utpala dynasty, resulting in his victory and the latter's death in Hazara. Bhimadeva, the next notable ruler, is most significant for vanquishing the Samanid Empire in Ghazni and Kabul in response to their conquests. Jayapala then gained control and was brought into conflict with the newly formed Ghaznavid Empire, however, he was eventually defeated. During his rule and that of his son and successor, Anandapala, the kingdom of Lahore was conquered. The following Shahi rulers all resisted the Ghaznavids but were ultimately unsuccessful, resulting in the downfall of the empire in 1026 CE.
Literature
No literature survives from Hindu Shahi courts. Unlike the case of Turk Shahis, only fragmented information can be obtained from chronicles of neighboring powers — Kashmir and Ghaznavi. Of the former, Kalhana's Rajatarangini is the only extant source. Of the latter, there are Tārīkh al-Hind by Al-Biruni, Tārīkh-i Bayhaqī by Abu'l-Faḍl Bayhaqi, Zayn al-Akhbar by Abu Sa'id Gardezi, and Kitab-i Yamini by al-Utbi .Coins
The Hindu Shahis issued silver jital coinage which underwent wide circulation from nearby Sindh to northeastern Europe. They were first "discovered" by James Tod, a British orientalist in 1822. These coins exhibit progressive debasement with time, with a regular decrease of silver content, allowing for the sequencing of the coinage. Early issues do not mention personal names but only generic titles, thereby not matching with the names found from literature. The characteristic motif of a horseman on the reverse with a bull on the obverse goes back to the Indo-Scythian ruler Azes I.Inscriptions and archaeology
A. R. Rahman of the Quaid-i-Azam University and Ahmad Hasan Dani did rudimentary field surveys in the late 1960s. Afterwards, the Italian Archaeological Mission in Pakistan extensively surveyed the regions in and around Swat. In 1996, Khan and Meister obtained a license from Department of Archaeology for an "integrated study of Hindu-Śāhi sites"; excavation at Kafir-kot and field-surveys of the Salt Range were engaged in with aid from the University of Pennsylvania and the American Institute of Pakistan Studies.Inscriptions remain scarce. Mostly found in Udabhanda, they either commemorate the commissioning of temples or are affixed at the base of idol-pedestals. Of the former kind—Mir Ali Inscription, Dewal Inscription, Dewai Inscription, Ratnamanjari Inscription, Veka Inscription, Hund Stone Inscription, Kamesvaridevi Inscription, Barikot Inscription, and Isvara Inscription—most are disfigured to various extents due to their use as grinding stones in medieval times and are decipherable only in parts. The latter kind is relatively abundant but only provides snippets of trivia. The language is exclusively Sharda. A samvat is mentioned in all of them whose zero year is understood to correspond to 822 C.E. based on the Zalamkot Bilingual Inscription; it has been assumed to be initiated by Kallar on his coronation, as was typically the case for most Hindu dynasties of medieval India. Copper land grants etc. are yet to be documented.
Origins
, an Iranian polyglot and the only contemporary source on the dynasty, described that the Hindu Shahis as Brahmins. However this view goes against the opinions of authors from later centuries. Kashmiri historian, Kalhana in his 12th century work Rajatarangini, described the Hindu Shahis of being of Kshatriya origin. André Wink confirms Biruni's description of the Shahi dynasty as Brahmins.The 10th century Arab historian, Al-Masudi mentioned in his work, that in his time, the kings of Gandhara were all called "", Elliot transliterated the character to "Hahaj" and Cunningham had it equated to the Janjua tribe/clan, who were held to be descendants of the Rouran Khaganate. Rahman doubts this theory and instead transliterates to "J.haj", an Arabicised form of Chhachh, while the area of Gandhara itself was called "country of the Rahbūt" which is even today the name of the region around the Hindu Shahi capital of Hund. In the 10th century, this region was occupied by the tribes of the Gakhars and Khokhars, who formed a large part of the Hindu Shahi army according to the Persian historian Firishta.
Abdul Rahman accepted folklore among current inhabitants of Hund about pre-Muslim kings of the region belonging to the Hodi tribe, and proposed an Odi origin for the Hindu Shahis belonging to Oddiyana, a region in Gandhara. He also pointed to the famous Senvarma inscription as evidence in support and suggested Odi Shahis or Uḍi Śāhis as an accurate name for the dynasty. Michael W. Meister found Rahman's arguments to be convincing.
History
Kallar: The first Hindu Shahi
Establishment
The Abbasids led by caliph Al-Ma'mun defeated the Kabul branch of the Turk Shahis in 815 CE who had invaded Khorasan. Following this defeat, the Turk Shahis not only had to convert to Islam but also had to cede key cities and regions. Another campaign against the Gandhara branch seems to have followed soon, with the Caliphate reaching as far East as the Indus river and imposing a critical defeat. A hefty annual tribute was to be paid in return for sovereignty rights to both territories.The Turk Shahis ended up in a precarious state and in, the last ruler Lagaturman was deposed by one of his ministers, a Brahmin vazir called Kallar. The sole description of events comes from Al-Biruni: Lagatarman's unbecoming manners had led his subjects to lodge multiple complaints with Kallar, who having chanced upon a treasure trove, was rapidly purchasing his way to power. Kallar imprisoned the King for corruption and became the acting regent before usurping the throne permanently. The new "Hindu Shahi" dynasty was thus established in Gandhara. None apart from Al-Biruni mentions Kallar; nothing is known about his rule or territorial extent or even his regnal dates.File:Hindu Shahis Spalapatideva type, Kabul mint.jpg|thumb|Non-debased Spalapati series — weighs between 3.1 and 3.5 g with a uniform content of 70% silver. Obverse: Bull with trisula mark on the hump, with Nagari legend: Śri Spalapatideva "Lord Commander-in-Chief". Reverse: Horseman with a in Nagari to left and symbol to right.Historians such as that of Alexander Cunningham suggest that coin series bearing the obverse title 'Spalapati' were minted by Kallar. According to Edward Clive Bayley's misreading of the corrupted remains of a Bactrian legend as Arabic numerals, he proposed that another series of coins bearing the legend 'Samanta' were also minted by Kallar. He argued the 'Spalapati' series to have been minted for circulation in Persian regions of his territory and the 'Samanta' series for Sanskrit-speaking regions. and it has been adduced that Kallar may have felt insecure about the legitimacy of his rule as long as the imprisoned Turk Shahi ruler Lagaturman was alive, and hence affirmed his claim to leadership by such indirect titles.
File:Hindu Shahis coinage in the name of Samanta Deva Kabul mint.jpg|thumb|Rather debased Samantadeva series — weighs between 2.9 and 3.9 g with a variable content of 60 to 70% silver. Obverse: Bull with trisula mark on the hump, with Nagari legend: Śri Samantadeva. Reverse: Horseman with bhī in Nagari to left and symbol to right.
The 'Spalapati' series may also have been minted by the last Turk Shahi rulers instead as 'Pati Dumi', who was defeated by the Abbasid Caliph Al-Ma'mun, is described by Al-Azraqi and Al-Biruni as an 'Ispahbadh', equivalent to the title Spalapati. Rahman therefore believes that Kallar did not initiate any changes in the currency system of the last Turk Shahis and the Samanta series was minted by succeeding Hindu Shahi rulers. Numismatist and historian Michael Alram's publications take note of this view; however some scholars attribute the entirety of the bull/horserider coinage, including the Spalapati series, to the Hindu Shahis.