Väsisthiputra Sri Bahubala Säntamüla c. 239-252 AD

• Śrī Vīrapuruşadatta renounced the kingdom and was succeeded by his son Vasisthīputra Śrī Bahubala Śāntamūla, who ascended the throne of Andhradesa around 239-252 A.D..

• Vasisthīputra Śrī Bahubala Śāntamūla was likely the last of the Imperial Ikṣvākus.

• The death or renunciation of Śrī Vīrapuruşadatta may have occurred around the second day of the first fortnight of the rainy season in the 20th year of his reign, about the close of 235-239 A.D..

• The renunciation happened when the Pallava king Virakürcavarman was reigning at Vaijayanti, having overpowered his rival, Kadamba Śivaskandavarman.

• Śrī Vīrapuruşadatta may have abdicated due to his defeat in the south or possibly for religious reasons.

• From 15th to 18th year of his reign, the inscriptions reveal events including the efforts of his paternal aunt and mother-in-law, Mahatalavari Śānti Śrī, who erected pious foundations to ensure the king’s success.

• Virakürcavarman defeated the combined forces of the Ikṣvāku and Kadamba monarchs, establishing himself in Vanavāsa by 233-286 A.D..

• Vasisthīputra Śrī Bahubala Śāntamūla ascended the throne at a time when the Pallava king was supreme, and his brother-in-law Śivaskandavarman was in exile.

• Śrī Bahubala Śāntamūla contributed to the Kadamba prince’s victory over Virakürcavarman, helping him reclaim Vaijayanti.

• Sculptural representations on a pillar near Stūpa No. 9 suggest Śrī Bahubala Śāntamūla was a youth when he ascended the throne.

• Bahubala Śāntamūla was named after his grandfather Vāsisthīputra Śrī Śāntamūla the Great, with the name Bahubala likely distinguishing him from his illustrious grandfather.

• The custom of naming a child after their grandfather was unique to the Ikṣvākus, who likely introduced it to Indian dynasties, including the Gupta, Vākāṭaka, Pallava, and others.

• The custom is referenced in the Mahābhāṣya and the Kaiyāta with śāstric sanction.

• Only two records are available from Śrī Bahubala Śāntamūla’s reign, neither providing political details but shedding light on religious history.

• The records refer to the Bahusrutīyas and Mahimsāsakas as two Buddhist sects during his reign.

• The first inscription, dated the second year and 10th day of the sixth fortnight of the summer season, records the construction of a monastery, stūpa, caitya-gyha, and mantapa by Queen-Mother Mahādēvī Vāsisthī Bhattideva.

• The buildings were erected at Itikiralļa-bōdu, near Nāgārjunakonda, and dedicated to the acāryas of the Bahusrutīya sect.

• The second inscription records the construction of a vihāra, ayaka-khamba, caitya-gyha, mantapa, and catus-sala dedicated to the acāryas of the Mahimsāsaka sect.

• Mahādēvī Kodabali Siri (also called Kundavalli Śrī) dedicated the foundations to the Mahimsāsaka sect, mentioning her lineage: daughter of Mahārāja Māṭharīputra Śrī Vīrapuruşadatta and sister of Śrī Bahubala Śāntamūla.

• The construction was directed by Thera Dharma Ghoṣa, the Mahādharmakathaka (Great Preacher of the Law), of the Mahimsāsaka sect.

• The inscription dates the dedication to the 7th day of the 1st pakṣa in the 11th year of Śrī Bahubala Śāntamūla’s reign.

• Mahādēvī Kundavalli Śrī was prouder of her Ikṣvāku heritage than her role as the wife of the king of Vanavāsa.

• The inscription mentions her grandfather, father, and brother by name but refers to her husband as merely the Lord of Vanavāsa, indicating the importance of her Ikṣvāku lineage.

• This reflects the power and sovereignty of the Ikṣvākus, who were regarded as cakravartins or emperors in Dakṣiṇāpatha.

• The Ikṣvākus were considered a prominent and powerful family, leading to the queen’s pride in her lineage and her omission of her husband’s name.

• The kingdom of Vanavāsa or Vaijayanti was ruled by a branch of the Nāgas or Cuṭu-kula Satakarnis, whom the Purāṇas referred to as Andhrabhṛtyas (subordinate rulers of the Imperial Andhras).

• The term Cuṭu-kula suggests that the Nāgas were a subordinate family, adopting the Imperial Andhra title Satakarnī to signify their connection to the Imperial Andhras.

• Cuṭu-kula and Andhrabhṛtya in the Bhagavata and Viṣṇu Purāṇas denote a younger dynasty under the senior Andhra dynasty.

• The Cuṭu-kula-Satakarnis or Nāgas were a short-lived dynasty, and their history is linked to the Pallavas of Kāñci.

• The last of the Cuṭus was not a Cuṭu Śātakarṇi or Cuṭu-Nāga prince, but a scion of the Kadamba Naga alliance.

• This last ruler was the daughter’s son of king Härītiputra Viṣṇu-skanda Cuṭu-kulānanda Śātakarṇi and a contemporary of Vasisthīputra Śrī Bahubala Śāntamūla.

• He was known as Śivaskandavarman, Lord of Vaijayanti.