Harsha of Kashmir

Harsha Of Kashmir

Harsha (ruled 1089-1111 AD) was a king of Kashmir who is frequently mentioned because of his unusual conduct. William Dalrymple in a review of The Buddha and the Sahibs by Charles Allen published in The Guardian writes:

"It was because of this persecution, several centuries before the arrival of Islam, that the philosophy of the Buddha, once a serious rival to Hinduism, virtually disappeared from India: Harsha Deva, a single Kashmiri raja, for example boasted that he had destroyed no less than 4,000 Buddhist shrines."

According to Kalhana, Harsha was built like a god and was extremely handsome. Harsha's conduct has recently been a subject of discussion. Harsha started out as a capable and noble king, then ran into financial trouble because of his spending habits. For the gold, he started raiding temples and destroying statues.