Kamboja-Pala Dynasty of Bengal - Opinions of Some Scholars

Opinions of Some Scholars

Dr V. A. Smith:

• "During the later part of tenth century, the rule of Palas was interrupted by the intrusion of hillmen known as Kambojas, who set up one of their chief as the king. His rule is commemorated by an inscribed pillar at Dinajpore created apparently in AD 966"

Dr Benjamin Walker:

• "A branch of Kambojas seem to have migrated eastwards along the Himalayan foothills, hence their notices in the Tibetan and Nepali chronicles. Later, they entered the Gangetic plains and by ninth century AD came into conflict with the Palas of Bengal. In the 10th c, the Pala rule in Bengal was terminated by Kambojas who had set up one of their chiefs as king. The Kamboja rule in Bengal lasted until they were deposed by resurgent Palas in 980 AD. The descendants of Kambojas are still found in Northern Bengal

Dr P. C. Baghci:

• "The Kambojas, a nomadic tribe, lived beyond Himalayas in Central Asia. One of their branches entered India in very early times and after a while lost its identity as distinct people by merging into the local population, but other batches of them must have entered east Tibet and the valley of Mekong from another direction. By this assumption only, we can explain why the name Kambuja was given to the kingdom founded in the middle valley of the Mekong. In eastern Tibet their name can be traced in the name of the province of Khams and it was probably from this region that the Kamboja invasion of Assam took place in later times. A branch of them migrated to North Bengal at an early period though their actual invasion came at a later date"

Dr B. C. Law:

• "In 9th c AD, the Kambojas are said to have been defeated by Devapala, the great king of the Pala dynasty of Bengal. But during latter part of 10th c, the tables were turned and the rule of Palas kings was interrupted by the Kambojas, who had set up one of their chiefs as a king. In a certain place called Vanagarh in Dinajpore, mention is made of a certain king of Gauda, born in Kamboja family. It is probable that during the reign of Devapaladeva, the Kambojas first attempted to conquer Gauda, but were, at that time defeated. Dr. R. R. Chanda supposes that in the middle of 10th c AD, the Kambojas of Himalayas again attacked North-Bengal and took away north-east Bengal from them. The present inhabitants of North Bengal viz Koch, Mech and Palia were descended from them. The Kamboja rule in Bengal was terminated by Mahapala I, the 9th king of Pala line, who is known to have been reigning in AD 1026 and may be assumed to have regained his ancestral throne from Kambojas at about 980 AD" .

B. G. Karlsson:

• Cf: "The Rajbansis (which means of 'royal race') intellectuals have traced their lineage to the purer ancient Kamboj dynasty in the northwestern India. It was the wrath of Parsurama that forced them away from their original homeland and led them to settle in north Bengal (Basu 1994, p 59-61)".

Hasna Jasimuddin Mouddud:

• Cf: After Devapala's death, the decline of the Pala dynasty in North India was rapid. Northern Bengal was first invaded and annexed by the king of Pratihara, Mahendrapala, sometime before 898 AD and later northern and western Bengal were annexed by the Kambojas, a powerful hill tribe from the north or the east India"

R. R. Diwarkar:

• "In course of his military campaign, Pala king Devapala is said to have reached Kamboja. The Kambojas of ancient India are known to have been living in north-west, but in this period, they are known to have been living in the north-east India also, and very probably, it was meant Tibet. Thus Devapala might have come into conflict with Tibet, there is nothing surprising in this because Tibetan sources claim that their kings Khri-Srong-Ide-Btson and his son Mu-Tag-Btsan-Po subdued India and forced Dharamapala to submit. Devapala may have also clashed with them and defeated them"

Alternative View (in line with view of R. R. Diwarkar)

• A branch of the Pamirian Kambojas seems to have migrated eastwards towards Tibet hence their notice in the chronicles of Tibet (Kam-po-tsa, Kam-po-ce, Kam-po-ji) and Nepal (Kambojadesa). Burmese chronicles refer to it as Kampuchih. The Pamirian Kambojas may have receded to Tibet in wake of the Kushana (1st century) or Huna (5th century) pressure. Later the same Kamboja branch appears to have moved towards Assam from where they may have invaded Bengal during the bad days of the Palas and wrested north Bengal. Fifth century AD Brahma Purana mentions Kambojas around Pragjyotisha and Tamraliptika. Buddhist text Sasanavamsa also attests the Kambojas in/around Assam. These Kambojas had made first bid to conquer Bengal during the reign of king Devapala (810 AD-850 AD) but were repulsed. A latter attempt was crowned with success when they were able to deprive the Palas of the suzerainty over North and West Bengal and set up a Kamboja dynasty in Bengal towards the middle of 10th century.

A Short History of Bengal

• "On the other hand, they may be the Kambojas from north west India from where the Pala used to get their horses, the Tibetans, or the Koca tribe (the related tribe Mleca may be the origin of the term Mleccha). There is also a south Indian reference to a Kamboja king gifting a stone to Rajendra Cola for the Nataraja temple. Other references to Kambojas abound in the ancient literature, and this may have been just the expansion of an Indo-European tribe with both Persian and Indic affinity from their homeland in the Afghanistan-Turkistan (Some relate their name to Cambyses of the Achaemenian empire of early 6th century BC) region along the foothills of the Himalayas towards Bengal, along the coast to Gujarat, to Ceylon, and maybe to Cambodia. Extracted from: "

Dr Debala Mitra:

• "A section of the Kambojas, originally living on the north-western frontier of India, most probably in Afghanistan, and belonging to the Parasaka vanna, according to the Buddhaghosa, came and permanently settled in different parts of India. They lent their name to some of the localities occupied by them. A few of the families went to the extent of carving out principalities like the one temporarily eclipsing the fortunes of the Palas of eastern India (Bengal) in the tenth century A.D. …..".

Dr A. D. Pusalkar:

• "It is held by some scholars that the Kambojas were a hill tribe from tribe from Tibet or other regions who had conquered Bengal. But it is more likely that some high official of the Palas belonging to the Kamboja family or tribe took advantage of the weakness of the Pala kings and set up an independent kingdom".

Dr R. C. Majumdar:

• "The Palas employed mercenaries forces, and certainly recruited horses from Kamboja tribe. N. G. Majumdar has very rightly observed that if horses could be brought into Bengal from north-western frontiers of India during Pala period, it is not unreasonable to suppose that for trade and other purposes, some adventurers could also have found their way into that province". Mercenary soldiers (speciality cavalry) might have been recruited from Kambojas and some of them might have been influential chiefs. It has been suggested that the Kambojas might have come to Bengal with the Pratiharas when the latter conquered part of this province Indian.

Airavat Singh

• "Devpala in the 9th Century repeated his father's feat by leading an army into the Punjab region and further north into the lands of Kamboja (near the Indus). But no territory was gained in this campaign—even the neighboring kingdoms of Kamarupa (Assam) and Utkala (Orissa) were only compelled to render tribute. The two successors of Devapala were more religious-minded and in that period the Pratihars annexed both Magadha and Varendri (Bengal) while Kamarupa and Utkala also resumed independence. To make matters worse feudatories of the Palas also carved out their own states like the Chandras of East Bengal and the Kambojas of Radha—the latter are believed to be descendants of the Kamboja officers and men that had joined the army of Devapala during his campaign in their country near the Indus....".

Dr. H. C. Ray:

• Dr. H. C. Ray writes that Kamboja rulers of Bengal came from Punjab with Gurjara Pratiharas. The Kambojas had joined the forces of Gurjara Pratiharas and there were separate regiments of the Kambojas in the Pratihara army which were entrusted with the defense of north-eastern borders of the Pratihara empire. The Kambojas did not leave the province after the collapse of Pratihara power. They rather took advantage of the weakness of the Pala kings and set up an independent kingdom which was not a difficult task for them Dr H. C. Ray also writes: "I must also admit however, that the Kambojas of Bengal may also have come from north-west as mercenaries and then formed into an independent army under a Kamboja chief by successful rebellion"

Dr H. Chander Raychaudhury:

• Dr Hem Chander Raychaudhury also states that the Kambojas came to Bengal with the armies of the Gurjara Pratiharas

Nagendra Nath Vasu"

• According to Nagendra Nath Vasu, the Kambojas came to Bengal from Kambey in Gujarat

Dr Jogindra Ghosh:

• Dr Jogindra Ghosh also says that the Kamboja rulers of Bengal had come from the Kambey in Gujarat, but curiously he connects the Kamboja rulers of Bengal with the Pratiharas of Gujarat.

Dr J. L. Kamboj:

• According to Dr J. L. Kamboj, during second/first centuries BCE, many clans of the Kambojas entered India in alliance the with Sakas, Pahlavas, Yavanas and spread into Sindhu, Saurashtra, Malwa, Rajasthan, Punjab and Surasena. The Kamboh Darwaza in the city of Meerut is named after the Kambojas. An offshoot of these Kambojas moved eastwards and entered Bengal, Bihar and Orissa and in 10th century, they founded a large empire in north-west Bengal.

Dr B. R. Chattetjee:

• Interestingly, Dr B. R. Chattetjee supposes that the Kambojas who founded the Kamboja empire in Bengal may have come from the Kambuja of Indo China.