page_title: Kadamba dynasty
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Kadamba dynasty / History
caption_attribution_description: English: This photograph was taken by me at the Tarakeshwara temple, Hangal, Haveri district of Karnataka state, India. The temple was built slightly prior to 1180 AD under Kadamba dynasty patronage in the Kalyani (western) Chalukyan architectural style. The inscription is dated Saka 1118 (or 1196 A.D.) Source:Pâli, Sanskrit and Old Canarese Inscriptions: From the Bombay Presidency and Parts of the Madras Presidency and Maisûr; John Faithful Fleet, James Burgess; H.M. Stationery Office, 1878 - Inscriptions, Canarese; Page 18, No.106
context_page_description: The Kadambas were an ancient royal family of Karnataka, India, that ruled northern Karnataka and the Konkan from Banavasi in present-day Uttara Kannada district. The kingdom was founded by Mayurasharma in c. 345 which at later times showed the potential of developing into imperial proportions, an indication to which is provided by the titles and epithets assumed by its rulers and the marital relations they kept with other kingdoms and empires, such as the Vakatakas and Guptas of northern India. Mayurasharma defeated the armies of the Pallavas of Kanchi possibly with the help of some native tribes and claimed sovereignty. The Kadamba power reached its peak during the rule of Kakusthavarma.
  The Kadambas were contemporaries of the Western Ganga Dynasty and together they formed the earliest native kingdoms to rule the land with autonomy. From the mid-6th century the dynasty continued to rule as a vassal of larger Kannada empires, the Chalukya and the Rashtrakuta empires for over five hundred years during which time they branched into minor dynasties. Notable among these are the Kadambas of Goa, the Kadambas of Halasi and the Kadambas of Hangal.
context_section_description: Origin
  There are several legends regarding the origin of the Kadambas. According to one such legend the originator of this dynasty was a three-eyed four-armed warrior called Trilochana Kadamba (the father of Mayurasharma) who emerged from the sweat of the god Shiva under a Kadamba tree. Another legend tries to simplify it by claiming Mayurasharma himself was born to Shiva and Bhudevi (goddess of the earth). Other legends tie them without any substance to the Nagas, and the Nandas of northern India. An inscription of c.1189 claims that Kadamba Rudra the founder of the kingdom was born in a forest of Kadamba trees. As he had "peacock feather" like reflections on his limbs, he was called Mayuravarman. From the Talagunda inscription, one more legend informs that the founding king of the dynasty, Mayurasharma was anointed by "the six-faced god of war Skanda".
  Historians are divided on the issue of the geographical origin of the Kadambas, whether they were of local origin or earlier immigrants from northern India. The social order (caste) of the Kadamba family is also an issue of debate, whether the founders of the kingdom belonged to the Brahmin caste as described by the Talagunda inscription, or of local tribal origin. Historians Chopra et al. claim the Kadambas were none other than the Kadambu tribe who were in conflict with the Chera kingdom (of modern Kerala) during the Sangam era. The Kadambus find mention in the Sangam literature as totemic worshipers of the Kadambu tree and the Hindu god Subramanya. According to R.N. Nandi, since the inscription states the family got its name by tending to the totem tree that bore the beautiful Kadamba flowers, it is an indication of their tribal origin. However the historians Sastri and Kamath claim the family belonged to the Brahmin caste, believed in the Vedas and performed Vedic sacrifices. According to the Talagunda and the Gudnapur inscriptions, they belonged to the Manavya Gotra and were Haritiputrās ("descendants of Hariti lineage"), which connected them to the native Chutus of Banavasi, a vassal of the Satavahana empire. According to Rao and Minahan, being native Kannadigas, the Kadambas promptly gave administrative and political importance to their language Kannada after coming to power.
  Birth of Kingdom
  One of their earliest inscriptions, the Talagunda inscription of crown prince Santivarma (c.450) gives what may be the most possible cause for the emergence of the Kadamba kingdom. It states that Mayurasharma was a native of Talagunda, (in present-day Shimoga district of Karnataka state) and his family got its name from the Kadamba tree that grew near his home. The inscription narrates how Mayurasharma proceeded to Kanchi in c.345 along with his guru and grandfather Veerasharma to pursue his Vedic studies at a Ghatika ("school"). There, owing to some misunderstanding between him and a Pallava guard or at an Ashvasanstha ("horse sacrifice"), a quarrel arose in which Mayurasharma was humiliated. Enraged, the Brahmin discontinued his studies, left Kanchi swearing vengeance on the Pallavas and took to arms. He collected a faithful group of followers and routed the Pallava armies near the Srisailam region. After a prolonged period of low intensity warfare against the Pallavas and other smaller kings such as the Brihad-Banas of Kolar region, he proclaimed independence. Unable to contain Mayurasharma, the Pallavas had to accept his sovereignty. The Talagunda inscription also confirms Mayurasharma was the progenitor of the kingdom. The inscription gives a graphic description of the happenings after the Kanchi incident:
  That the hand dexterous in grasping the Kusha grass, 
  fuel and stones, ladle, melted butter and the oblation vessel, 
  unsheathed a flaming sword, eager to conquer the earth
  Thus, according to Ramesh, in an act of righteous indignation was born the first native kingdom of Karnataka, and the Pallava King Skandavarman condescended to recognize the growing might of the Kadambas south of the Malaprabha river as a sovereign power. Majumdar however feels even an inscription a
caption: Old Kannada inscriptions of Kadamba king Kamadeva of the Hangal branch (c.1180) and Hoysala king Veera Ballala II (c. 1196) in the open mantapa of the Tarakeshwara temple at Hangal
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