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The Sātavāhana Empire was an Indian dynasty based from Dharanikota and Amaravati in Andhra Pradesh as well as Junnar (Pune) and Prathisthan (Paithan) in Maharashtra. The territory of the empire covered much of India from 230 BCE onward. Although there is some controversy about when the dynasty came to an end, the most liberal estimates suggest that it lasted about 450 years, until around 220 CE. The Satavahanas are credited for establishing peace in the country, resisting the onslaught of foreigners after the decline of the Mauryan Empire. The Sātavāhanas were vassals to the Mauryan dynasty until the decline of the latter. They are known for their patronage of Hinduism. The Sātavāhanas were early issuers of Indian state coinage struck with images of their rulers. They formed a cultural bridge and played a vital role in trade and the transfer of ideas and culture to and from the Indo-Gangetic Plain to the southern tip of India. They had to compete with the Shungas and then the Kanvas of Magadha to establish their rule. Later, they played a crucial role to protect a huge part of India against foreign invaders like the Sakas, Yavanas and Pahlavas. In particular their struggles with the Western Kshatrapas went on for a long time. The great rulers of the Satavahana Dynasty Gautamiputra Satakarni and Sri Yajna Sātakarni were able to defeat the foreign invaders like the Western Kshatrapas and stop their expansion. In the 3rd century CE the empire was split into smaller states. According to ancient Sangam literature the Satavahana rulers were allied with the Tamil rulers of the Chera dynasty, Chola dynasty and Pandyan Dynasty to defeat the foreign invaders like the Scythians.〔Ancient India: Collected Essays on the Literary and Political History of southern India by Sakkottai Krishnaswami Aiyangar p.42〕 == Origins == In the Pūrānas and on their coins the Andhra dynasty is variously referred to as the Sātavāhanas or Sālavāhaṇa, Sātakarnīs.〔INDIAN HISTORY by Dr. Sanjeevkumar Tandle p.152〕〔G. Durga Prasad, History of the Andhras up to 1565 A. D., P.G. Publishers, Guntur, p. 116, (http://igmlnet.uohyd.ernet.in:8000/gw_44_5/hi-res/hcu_images/G2.pdf 〕 A reference to the Sātavāhanas by the Greek traveler Megasthenes indicates that they possessed 100,000 infantry, 1,000 elephants, and had more than 30 well built fortified towns: The Sātavāhanas ruled a large and powerful empire that withstood the onslaughts from Central Asia. Aside from their military power, their commercialism and naval activity is evidenced by establishment of Indian colonies in Southeast Asia. The Sātavāhanas began as feudatories to the Mauryan Empire. They seem to have been under the control of Emperor Ashoka, who claims they were in his domain. among them: The Satavahanas declared independence some time after the death of Ashoka (232 BCE), as the Maurya Empire began to weaken. It is believed that they were originally practicing Sanatana Dharma (as per Sthala Purana of Amaravati).〔(''HISTORY – ANCIENT PERIOD'' "CHAPTER 2: SATAVAHANA EMPIRE AND ITS FEUDATORIES *" )〕 Some rulers like Maharaja Satakarni are believed to have performed Vedic sacrifices as well.〔 They were not only worshipers of Vishnu and Shiva but also other incarnations of Gauri, Indra, the sun and moon.〔Mahajan, P. 400 ''Ancient India''〕〔() G. Durga Prasad, History of the Andhras up to 1565 A. D., P.G. Publishers, Guntur〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Satavahana dynasty」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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