Kalachuris of Mahishmati
Kalachuri | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 550–625 | |||||||||
Silver coin of king Krishnaraja (r. c. 550-575) of the Kalachuri dynasty, on the model of the Western Satraps.
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Map of the Kalachuris of Mahishmati circa 600 CE. | |||||||||
| Capital | Mahishmati | ||||||||
| Common languages | Sanskrit | ||||||||
| Religion | Hinduism | ||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | ||||||||
| King | |||||||||
• 550–575 | Krishnaraja | ||||||||
• 575–600 | Shankaragana | ||||||||
• 600–625 | Buddharaja | ||||||||
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| Today part of | India | ||||||||
The Kalachuris of Mahismati, or the Early Kalachuris, were an early medieval Indian dynasty that ruled present-day Maharashtra, as well as parts of mainland Gujarat and southern Madhya Pradesh. Their capital was located at Mahishmati. Epigraphic and numismatic evidence suggests that the earliest of the Ellora and Elephanta cave monuments were built during the Kalachuri rule.
The origin of the dynasty is uncertain. In the 6th century, the Kalachuris gained control of the territories formerly ruled by the Guptas, the Vakatakas and the Vishnukundinas. Only three Kalachuri kings are known from inscriptional evidence: Shankaragana, Krishnaraja, and Buddharaja. The Kalachuris lost their power to the Chalukyas of Vatapi in the 7th century. One theory connects the later Kalachuri dynasties of Tripuri and Kalyani to the Kalachuris of Mahishmati.