Latest / The Hidden History of Bengal: Kingdoms, Empires, and Revolution — Fexingo History / The Forgotten Hindu Kingdom of Bengal: The Chandra Dynasty's Lost Glory
Transcript
- Lucas: So we've covered the Palas, the Senas, the Mughals, the Nawabs—but there's a whole dynasty that ruled over what's now southeastern Bangladesh for nearly two centuries, and most people have never heard of them. I'm talking about the Chandra dynasty, who held sway over the Harikela region from about the 10th to 11th centuries. Luna: Chandra—like the moon? That's a great name. But wait, why have I never heard of them? Lucas: Partly because they left behind very few written records, and partly because they were kind of overshadowed by the Palas and Senas. But archaeological work at Mainamati—that's a low hill range near Comilla in Bangladesh—has uncovered a whole lost world. There's a massive Buddhist monastery called Shalban Vihara, along with dozens of smaller stupas and temples, and a bunch of copper-plate inscriptions that tell us about the Chandras. Luna: So they were Buddhists? Like the Palas? Lucas: Exactly. They were devout Buddhists, and their heartland was the ancient city of Pattikera, which might be the same as modern Mainamati. The dynasty's founder, Puranchandra, seems to have consolidated power there around 900 CE. But it's his son, Ladahachandra, who really put them on the map. A copper-plate inscription from his reign mentions him performing a 'great horse sacrifice'—which is a Vedic ritual, interestingly, so there might have been some Hindu influence too, or at least royal posturing. Luna: A horse sacrifice? That's a big deal. So he was claiming imperial status. Lucas: Right. And his grandson Govindachandra seems to have been the most powerful. He issued several copper plates that describe him as 'the lord of Gauda' in some contexts, which is a huge claim—Gauda was the heart of Bengal. But it's likely he was really ruling over Harikela and parts of the Brahmaputra valley, maybe even into what's now Assam. The plates also mention that he built a monastery called the Ananda Vihara, which has been identified with one of the ruins at Mainamati. Luna: What happened to them? They just disappear? Lucas: The historical record gets blurry. The last known Chandra ruler is maybe someone called Kalyanachandra, but after that, the Sena king Vijayasena claims to have defeated the ruler of Vanga—that's a region to the south. It's possible the Chandras were absorbed or overthrown by the expanding Sena empire around the 12th century. Or maybe the rivers shifted—the Brahmaputra changed course dramatically over the centuries, and their cities might have been abandoned or silted over. Luna: That's such a sad end—lost to geography as much as to enemies. Lucas: It is. And that's part of why I love talking about these overlooked dynasties. Their story is pieced together from a handful of copper plates and the ruins of monasteries that were rediscovered only in the 20th century. Luna: You know, speaking of fragile histories—this kind of deep-dive into lost kingdoms is exactly why I support the show. It's like we're keeping these stories alive. Lucas: That's really kind of you to say. And it's true—this podcast exists because of listeners who feel the same way. If you've been enjoying these journeys into Bengal's hidden corners, and you want us to keep digging, you can support the show at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It's a simple way to help us stay ad-free and independent. Luna: Yeah, every little bit helps. Now, speaking of discoveries—those copper plates, what do they actually say? Lucas: They're written in Sanskrit, in a script called Siddhamatrika, which is an early form of Nagari. They record land grants to Buddhist monks and monasteries. One of the most famous is the Mainamati copper plate of Ladahachandra, which mentions the donation of a village to a monastery. It also gives us a genealogy of the Chandra kings, which is how we know their names and approximate chronology. Luna: So no epic poems or chronicles—just legal documents? Lucas: Pretty much. But from those, we can piece together their political relationships. For instance, the plates mention that they fought against the Palas—at one point, Govindachandra claims to have defeated the Pala king Mahipala I. That's a big claim, because Mahipala is often called the 'second founder' of the Pala empire after a period of decline. So the Chandras were a real thorn in the Pala side. Luna: And they were also trading with Southeast Asia, right? I remember something about Srivijaya connections. Lucas: Excellent point. There's evidence that the Chandra kings maintained ties with the Srivijaya empire, based in Sumatra. A Tamil inscription from the 11th century mentions a king of Kadaram—that's Srivijaya—who built a monastery at Nagapattinam in South India. And some scholars think that Harikela, the Chandra kingdom, was a key stop on the maritime silk route. They likely exported textiles, ivory, and maybe even Bengali muslin. Luna: So they were plugged into a whole Indian Ocean network—not just a little local kingdom. Lucas: Exactly. And the archaeological site at Mainamati shows evidence of that—there are artifacts from as far away as China and the Middle East. So the Chandras were part of a globalized medieval world, but their story has been almost forgotten because they didn't leave behind grand inscriptions or a literary tradition. It's really only in the last 60 years that excavations have brought them to light. Luna: I want to go see Mainamati now. Are the monasteries still standing? Lucas: Parts of them. Shalban Vihara is a huge square courtyard with 115 cells around it, and in the center there's a cruciform temple—a classic Pala-style design. The main structure is built of brick, and you can still see the intricate terracotta plaques that decorated the walls. There's also a smaller monastery called the Ananda Vihara, and the whole area is dotted with stupas and temples. It's a truly atmospheric place. Luna: So it's like a Bengali version of Nalanda? Lucas: On a smaller scale, yes. But what's interesting is that Nalanda itself was patronized by the Palas, while Mainamati was built by the Chandras. So you have these two parallel Buddhist university-temple complexes flourishing at the same time, just a few hundred kilometers apart. And they might have been rivals for scholarly prestige as well as political power. Luna: That's fascinating. So why did the Chandras end up so obscure while the Palas are famous? Lucas: Partly because the Palas lasted longer and ruled over a bigger area. Partly because they left behind more texts—the Palas patronized Buddhist philosophers like Atisa and Santarakshita, who traveled to Tibet and had their works translated. The Chandras don't seem to have sponsored such famous intellectuals. And then the shift of the Brahmaputra and the rise of the Senas literally buried their cities. The ruins were covered by jungle and silt until the 20th century. Luna: So it's a combination of bad luck and being eclipsed by bigger neighbors. Lucas: Exactly. But their legacy survives in those copper plates and the ruins at Mainamati. And there's even a modern resonance—the name Chandra is still used as a surname in Bengal, though most people don't know its royal roots. Luna: I love that. A little piece of a lost kingdom just living on in people's names. Lucas: And that's one of the things that makes history so personal. Next time you meet a Chandra, you can wonder if their ancestors once ruled from Pattikera. Luna: I definitely will. Thanks for bringing this story to light, Lucas. Lucas: My pleasure. And for anyone who wants to explore further, I'll put links in the show notes to some of the key archaeological reports and translations of the copper plates.