Sasanka, the Enemy and Oppressor of Jainism

Summary

Chittaranjan Pal examines the career of Śaśāṅka (r. early 7th century), the first sovereign of Gauḍa in Bengal, and explains why later Jain and Buddhist sources portray him as a persecutor. According to Pal, Śaśāṅka consolidated his hold over Bengal and then made an ambitious bid to conquer northern India, but his endeavour ended in failure because a dual alliance was formed between Harsa­vardhana of Kanauj and Bhāskara­varman of Kāmarūpa. The Buddhist chronicle Ārya‑Mañjuśrī‑Mūla‑Kalpa, couched as a prophetic text, reports that Harsavardhana defeated Śaśāṅka, confined him within his homeland and later avenged the harm he had done to the Buddhists and Jains. Pal analyses the chronicle’s reliability and notes that although composed long after the events, it preserves earlier traditions and should not be dismissed outright. The chronicle accuses Śaśāṅka of anti‑Buddhist and anti‑Jain acts: he ordered the bodhi‑tree at Bodhgayā to be cut down; destroyed viharas; beheaded Buddha images; and desecrated Jina icons by chiselling moustaches on their faces and substituting liṅgas in their temples. He is also said to have killed Jain monks and novices, forcing them to flee. Pal compares these narratives with other sources, including Bāṇa’s Harṣacarita and the Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang’s Si‑yu‑ki. Although these works do not explicitly mention Śaśāṅka’s anti‑Jain measures, they corroborate his conflict with Harsavardhana and suggest that religious persecution occurred. Pal emphasises that Śaśāṅka’s reign was brief—he ruled effectively for little more than a decade—and his intolerance alienated subjects and neighbouring kings. After his defeat, Gauḍa was absorbed by Harsavardhana’s kingdom and Śaśāṅka’s dynasty disappeared.