Pushyamitra Shunga: Difference between revisions

Pushyamitra Shunga
Pushyamitra Shunga
	Man on a relief, Bharhut, Sunga period, 2nd century BCE.
Shunga Emperor
Reign	c. 185 – c. 149 BCE
Predecessor	Brihadratha Maurya
Successor	Agnimitra
Issue	Agnimitra
Dynasty	Shunga

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Pushyamitra Shunga (IAST: Puṣyamitra Śuṅga) (c. 185 – c. 149 BCE) was the founder and first ruler of the Shunga Empire in East India.

Pushyamitra was originally a Senapati "General" of the Maurya Empire. In 185 BCE he assassinated the last Mauryan Emperor, Brihadratha Maurya, during an army review, and proclaimed himself King. Inscriptions of the Shungas have been found as far as the Ayodhya (the Dhanadeva-Ayodhya inscription), and the Divyavadana mentions that he sent an army to persecute Buddhist monks as far as Sakala (Sialkot) in the Punjab region in the northwest.

The Buddhist texts state that Pushyamitra cruelly persecuted the Buddhists, although some modern scholars have expressed skepticism about these claims.

Ancestry

Bronze coin of the Shunga period, Eastern India. 2nd–1st century BCE.

Several sources suggest that Pushyamitra was a Brahmin, and the 16th century Buddhist scholar Taranatha explicitly calls him a Brahmin king.^[1] However, the various sources offer differing suggestions about which Brahmin gotra (clan) Pushyamitra belonged to. A Puranic manuscript mentions persons who were born of "Shunga, a descendant of Bharadvaja, by a woman married in the family of Kata, a descendant of Vishvamitra". Based on this, K. P. Jayaswal theorized that Shunga was a Brahmin with two gotras (dwaimushyayana or dvigotra): his family traced their ancestry to both Bharadvaja and Vishvamitra lineages.^[2] The Pravara Kanda of the Apastamba mentions a "Shunga-Shaishiri" gotra. J. C. Ghosh theorized that the Shunga family derived from the Shunga of the Bharadvaja gotra, and the Shaishiri of the Vishvamitra gotra (Kata group).^[3]^[4]

However, the Matsya Purana mentions the "Shunga-Shaishiri" dwaimushyayana gotra (named "Shaunga-Shaishireya" here) as a combination of the Bharadvaja and Kashyapa (not Vishvamitra) gotras. The Harivamsa mentions a twice-born general of the Kashyapa gotra who performed the Ashvamedha sacrifice. Some scholars such as Jayaswal identify this general with Pushyamitra. The Malavikagnimitra describes Pushyamitra as a "Baimbaki". H. C. Raychaudhuri, who read this term as "Baimbika", identified it with Baimbakayah of the Baudhayana Shrauta Sutra, who was of the Kashyapa gotra (although other scholars believe that the term "Baimbaki" signifies descent from a person named Bimba, or refers to a heroic lover in general).^[5] Bela Lahiri theorizes that the constituents of a dwaimushyayana gotra may have differed during different periods, and Pushyamitra may have belonged to one of these gotras.^[6]

According to the Puranas, Pushyamitra became the king after killing his master Brihadratha, the last Mauryan king. However, the Buddhist text Divyavadana names Pushyamitra as the last Mauryan king.^[1] This text appears to have confused Brihadratha with Pushyamitra.^[3]

H. C. Raychaudhuri theorized that the name "Shunga" is derived from the Sanskrit word for the fig tree.^[7]

Alleged persecution of Buddhists

Buddhist accounts

Buddhist texts state that Pushyamitra cruelly persecuted the Buddhists. The earliest source to mention this is the 2nd Century CE text Ashokavadana (a part of Divyavadana). According to this account, Pushyamitra (described as the last Mauryan king) wanted to be famous. His ministers advised him that as long as Buddhism remained the dominant faith, he would never be as famous as his ancestor Ashoka, who had commissioned 84,000 stupas. One advisor told him that he could become famous by destroying Buddhism. Pushyamitra then tried to destroy the Kukkutarama monastery, but it was saved by a miracle. He then proceeded to Shakala in the north-west, where he offered a prize of one hundred dinaras (gold coins) for every head of a Buddhist monk brought to him. Next, he proceeded to the Koshthaka kingdom, where a Buddhist yaksha named Damshtranivasin killed him and his army with help of another yaksha named Krimisha.^[8]^[6]

... Pushyamitra equipped a fourfold army, and intending to destroy the Buddhist religion, he went to the Kukkutarama (in Pataliputra). ... Pushyamitra therefore destroyed the sangharama, killed the monks there, and departed. ... After some time, he arrived in Sakala, and proclaimed that he would give a ... reward to whoever brought him the head of a Buddhist monk.^[9]

Vibhasa, another 2nd century text, states that Pushyamitra burned Buddhist scriptures, killed Buddhist monks, and destroyed 500 monasteries in and around Kashmir. In this campaign, he was supported by yakshas, kumbhandas, and other demons. However, when he reached the Bodhi tree, the deity of that tree took the form of a beautiful woman and killed him.^[10] Shariputrapariprichha, translated into Chinese between 317 and 420 CE also mentions this legend, but this particular version is more detailed, and describes eastern India (not Kashmir) as the center of Pushyamitra's anti-Buddhist campaign.^[10]

The medieval-era Arya-Manjushri-Mula-Kalpa mentions a wicked and foolish king named Gomimukhya ("cattle-faced"), or Gomishanda ("Gomin, the bull"), who seized the territory from the east to Kashmir, destroying monasteries and killing monks. Ultimately, he and his officers were killed in the north by falling mountain rocks.^[10]^[11] This king is identified with Pushyamitra by some scholars.^[12]

The 16th-century Tibetan Buddhist historian Taranatha also states that Pushyamitra and his allies killed Buddhist monks and destroyed monasteries from madhyadesha (midland) to Jalandhara. These activities wiped out the Buddhist doctrine from the north, within five years.^[10]

Authenticity of Buddhist claims

Based on the Buddhist legends, some scholars believe that Pushyamitra was indeed a persecutor of the Buddhist faith. However, others believe that Buddhist scholars were biased against Pushyamitra, because he did not patronize them.^[13]

V. A. Smith and H. P. Shastri believed that Pushyamitra's rebellion against the Maurya dynasty was a Brahminical reaction to the rise of Buddhism.^[14] According to archaeologist John Marshall, there is evidence of some damage to Buddhist establishments at Takshashila around the time of Shunga rule. He also theorized that the Sanchi stupa was vandalized in 2nd century BCE (that is, during Pushyamitra's reign), before being rebuilt on a larger scale.^[15] G. R. Sharma, who excavated the Buddhist ruins at Kaushambi, suggested that the destruction of the local monastery might have happened during the reign of Pushyamitra Shunga. P. K. Mishra believes that the damage to the Deur Kothar stupa is also datable to Pushyamitra's period.^[16] H. C. Raychaudhari pointed out that Buddhist monuments were constructed at Bharhut during the Shunga rule.^[14] However, according to N. N. Ghosh, these were constructed during the reign of later Shunga rulers, not Pushyamitra's period.^[16]

H. Bhattacharya theorized that Pushyamitra might have persecuted Buddhists for political, rather than religious, reasons: the politically active Buddhists probably supported the Indo-Greek rivals of Pushyamitra, which might have prompted him to persecute them.^[17] The Ashokavadana states that Pushyamitra declared a reward for killing Buddhist monks in Shakala (present-day Sialkot), which was located near the Indo-Greek frontiers. According to K. P. Jayaswal, this further highlights a political motivation behind his alleged persecution of Buddhists.^[18]

Many other scholars have expressed skepticism about the Buddhist claims of persecution by Pushyamitra. Étienne Lamotte points out that the Buddhist legends are not consistent about the location of Pushyamitra's anti-Buddhist campaign and his death.^[19] The Ashokavadana claims that Pushyamitra offered dinaras as a reward for killing Buddhist monks, but the dinara did not come into circulation in India before the 1st century CE. Ashokavadana also claims that Ashoka persecuted Nirgranthas (Ajivikas), which is an obvious fabrication, considering that Ashoka's edicts express tolerance towards all religious sects.^[20] The Sri Lankan Buddhist text Mahavamsa suggests that several monasteries existed in present-day Bihar, Awadh and Malwa at the time Pushyamitra's contemporary Dutthagamani ruled in Lanka. This suggests that these monasteries survived Pushyamitra Shunga's reign.^[17]

H. C. Raychaudhury argued that Pushyamitra's overthrow of the Mauryans cannot be considered as a Brahmin uprising against Buddhist rule, as Brahmins did not suffer during the Mauryan rule: Ashoka's edicts mention the Brahmins before Shramanas, and the appointment of a Brahmin general (Pushyamitra) shows that the Brahmins were honoured at the Mauryan court.^[14] The fact that the Ashokavadana mentions Pushyamitra as a Mauryan further erodes its historical credibility, and weakens the hypothesis that he persecuted Buddhists because he was a Brahmin.^[20] Raychaudhury also aruged that according to Malavikagnimitra, a Buddhist nun named Bhagavati Kaushiki attended Pushyamitra's court, which indicates that they did not persecute Buddhists. However, Shankar Goyal states that there is no evidence of Kaushiki being a Buddhist nun.^[21] Romila Thapar writes that the lack of concrete archaeological evidence casts doubt on the claims of Buddhist persecution by Pushyamitra.^[22]

It is possible that the Buddhist influence at the Mauryan court declined during Pushyamitra's reign, and the Buddhist monasteries and other institutions stopped receiving royal patronage. This change might have led to discontent among the Buddhists, resulting in exaggerated accounts of persecution.^[18]

Michael Witzel states that Manudharma, which emphasizes the role of orthodox faith in state-craft and society, was first compiled under Pushyamitra's rule. According to Kaushik Roy, it was a Brahmanical reaction to the rise of Buddhism and Jainism.^[23]

Succession of the throne

Pushyamitra Shunga was succeeded in 148 BCE by his son Agnimitra.^[24]

In literature

According to Vicarasreni of Merutunga, Pushyamitra or Pushpamitra got his throne in 204 BC.^[25]

References

Citations

^ ^a ^b Lahiri 1974, p. 29.
^ Lahiri 1974, pp. 28–29.
^ ^a ^b Lahiri 1974, p. 30.
^ Ghosh, J.C.,"The Dynastic-Name of the Kings of the Pushyamitra Family," J.B.O.R.S, Vol. XXXIII, 1937, p.360
^ Lahiri 1974, pp. 29–30.
^ ^a ^b Lahiri 1974, p. 33.
^ Raychaudhari Hemchandra, "Tha Audvijja Senani of the Harivansa?", Indian culture, Vol. IV, 1938, P. 360-365
^ Simmons & Sarao 2010, pp. 95–96.
^ Strong 1989, p. 293.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Simmons & Sarao 2010, p. 96.
^ Lahiri 1974, p. 33-34.
^ Bandyopadhyaya, Jayantanuja (2007). Class and Religion in Ancient India. Anthem. p. 209. ISBN 978-1-84331-332-8.
^ Lahiri 1974, pp. 34–35.
^ ^a ^b ^c Lahiri 1974, p. 34.
^ Simmons & Sarao 2010, pp. 96–97.
^ ^a ^b Simmons & Sarao 2010, p. 97.
^ ^a ^b Simmons & Sarao 2010, p. 100.
^ ^a ^b Simmons & Sarao 2010, pp. 99–100.
^ Simmons & Sarao 2010, p. 98.
^ ^a ^b Simmons & Sarao 2010, p. 99.
^ Shankar Goyal (1993). Aspects of ancient Indian history and historiography. Harman. p. 30. ISBN 9788185151694.
^ Aśoka and the Decline of the Mauryas by Romila Thapar, Oxford University Press, 1960 P200
^ Roy, Kaushik (2012). Hinduism and the Ethics of Warfare in South Asia: From Antiquity to the Present, p.109-118. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781107017368
^ Sen, Sailendra Nath (1999). Ancient Indian History and Civilization. New Age International, 1999. p. 170. ISBN 978-8-12241-198-0.
^ Jain 1991, p. 85.

Sources

Jain, Kailash Chand (1991). Lord Mahāvīra and His Times. Motilal Banarsidass. ISBN 978-81-208-0805-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
Simmons, Caleb; Sarao, K. T. S. (2010). Danver, Steven L. (ed.). Popular Controversies in World History. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-59884-078-0. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
Lahiri, Bela (1974). Indigenous states of northern India, circa 200 B.C. to 320 A.D. University of Calcutta. p. 31. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
Strong, John S. (1989). The Legend of King Aśoka : a study and translation of the Aśokāvadāna. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-01459-0. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)

Preceded by Mauryan Dynasty Brihadratha Maurya	King of Shunga Dynasty 185–149 BCE	Succeeded by Agnimitra

[FOOTNOTELahiri197429-1] Lahiri 1974, p. 29.

[FOOTNOTELahiri197428–29-2] Lahiri 1974, pp. 28–29.

[FOOTNOTELahiri197430-3] Lahiri 1974, p. 30.

[4] Ghosh, J.C.,"The Dynastic-Name of the Kings of the Pushyamitra Family," J.B.O.R.S, Vol. XXXIII, 1937, p.360

[FOOTNOTELahiri197429–30-5] Lahiri 1974, pp. 29–30.

[FOOTNOTELahiri197433-6] Lahiri 1974, p. 33.

[7] Raychaudhari Hemchandra, "Tha Audvijja Senani of the Harivansa?", Indian culture, Vol. IV, 1938, P. 360-365

[FOOTNOTESimmonsSarao201095–96-8] Simmons & Sarao 2010, pp. 95–96.

[FOOTNOTEStrong1989293-9] Strong 1989, p. 293.

[FOOTNOTESimmonsSarao201096-10] Simmons & Sarao 2010, p. 96.

[FOOTNOTELahiri197433-34-11] Lahiri 1974, p. 33-34.

[12] Bandyopadhyaya, Jayantanuja (2007). Class and Religion in Ancient India. Anthem. p. 209. ISBN 978-1-84331-332-8.

[FOOTNOTELahiri197434–35-13] Lahiri 1974, pp. 34–35.

[FOOTNOTELahiri197434-14] Lahiri 1974, p. 34.

[FOOTNOTESimmonsSarao201096–97-15] Simmons & Sarao 2010, pp. 96–97.

[FOOTNOTESimmonsSarao201097-16] Simmons & Sarao 2010, p. 97.

[FOOTNOTESimmonsSarao2010100-17] Simmons & Sarao 2010, p. 100.

[FOOTNOTESimmonsSarao201099–100-18] Simmons & Sarao 2010, pp. 99–100.

[FOOTNOTESimmonsSarao201098-19] Simmons & Sarao 2010, p. 98.

[FOOTNOTESimmonsSarao201099-20] Simmons & Sarao 2010, p. 99.

[21] Shankar Goyal (1993). Aspects of ancient Indian history and historiography. Harman. p. 30. ISBN 9788185151694.

[22] Aśoka and the Decline of the Mauryas by Romila Thapar, Oxford University Press, 1960 P200

[roy-23] Roy, Kaushik (2012). Hinduism and the Ethics of Warfare in South Asia: From Antiquity to the Present, p.109-118. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781107017368

[24] Sen, Sailendra Nath (1999). Ancient Indian History and Civilization. New Age International, 1999. p. 170. ISBN 978-8-12241-198-0.

[FOOTNOTEJain199185-25] Jain 1991, p. 85.

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@@ Line 41: / Line 41: @@
 == Alleged persecution of Buddhists ==
-The first alleged persecution of Buddhists in India took place in the 2nd century BC by King [[Pushyamitra]].<ref>Encyclopedia of Buddhism: "Persecutions", P. 640.</ref> After he assassinated [[Brihadratha]], the Mauryan Empire became divided with the [[Greco-Bactrian Kingdom|Greek-Bactrian Empire]] taking over the northwestern portion, Sunghas taking the central one while the east was retaken by [[Kalinga (historical region)|Kalingas]] under the [[Jainism|Jain]] king [[Kharavela]]. Thus the patronisation of Buddhism ceased in most of the Indian subcontinent. The loss of patronisation by the Sunghas resulted in tensions between the Buddhists and Sunghas.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Simmons|first1=Caleb|last2=Sarao|first2=K. T. S.|editor1-last=Danver|editor1-first=Steven L.|title=Popular Controversies in World History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=slVobUjdzGMC&pg=RA1-PA89&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjPuN7PyfnYAhVHpI8KHU2wApoQ6AEIIzAA#v=onepage&f=false |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2010 |isbn=9781598840780 |page=89 |chapter = Pushyamitra Sunga, a Hindu ruler in the second century BCE, was a great persecutor of Buddhists}}</ref>
-Buddhist texts state that Pushyamitra cruelly persecuted Buddhists. The most important and perhaps the earliest source to mention this is the 2nd century C.E. text called ''[[Divyavadana]]'', a Buddhist text containing the history of Indian rulers and their relationships with the Buddhists,  and its constituent ''[[Ashokavadana]]'' which state he wanted to achieve everlasting fame. While his ministers told him to emulate Ashoka's construction of 84,000 Buddhist [[reliquaries]] (''[[stupas]]''), a Brahmin minister advised him to do the opposite by destroying Buddhism. According to it, he attacked Buddhist monasteries, killing monks and nuns while offering rewards to anyone who killed a monk. The account of ''Ashokavadana'' is similar but is greater in detail concerning the four elements of his army - elephants, cavalry, chariots and infantry - he used to attack the monasteries.<ref name=Caleb>{{cite book |last1=Simmons|first1=Caleb|last2=Sarao|first2=K. T. S.|editor1-last=Danver|editor1-first=Steven L.|title=Popular Controversies in World History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=slVobUjdzGMC&pg=RA1-PA95&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjPuN7PyfnYAhVHpI8KHU2wApoQ6AEIIzAA#v=onepage&f=false |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2010 |isbn=9781598840780 |pages= 86, 95–96 }}</ref>
-Per ''Divyavadana'', Pushyamitra tried to destroy the [[Kukkutarama]] monastery, but it was saved by a lion's roar. He however destroyed its residence and slaughtered the monks.<ref name=Caleb/> He next proceeded to [[Shakala]] where he offered a prize of one hundred ''[[dinar]]as'' (gold coin) for the head of every monk. From there he went to the kingdom of Koshthaka where he and his army was defeated by a ''[[yaksha]]'' named Damshtranivasin along with another yaksha named Krimisha.<ref name=Bela>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vdu1AAAAIAAJ |title=Indigenous states of northern India, circa 200 B.C. to 320 A.D. |first=Bela |last=Lahiri |publisher=University of Calcutta |year=1974 |page=33 }}</ref> The ''[[Mañjuśrī-mūla-kalpa|Aryamañjuśrimūlakalpa]]'' follows the same tradition as of ''Divyavadana'' while talking about anti-Buddhist acts by a ruler called "Gomimukhya" who came to power after the fall of Mauryans. The context of his description and activities indicate he was Pushyamitra.<ref name=Bela/>
-''Vibhasa'', a [[Sarvastivadin]]-[[Vaibhashika]] text dated to 2nd century, states that Pushyamitra hated Buddhism, burnt holy scriptures, killed Buddhist monks, and destroyed stupas and monasteries including 500 on the borders of the kingdom of [[Kashmir]]. Per it, he was assisted by ''[[kumbhanda]]s'', yakshas and other demons making him invincible. But he was vanquished by the deity of the [[Bodhi tree]]. ''Shariputrapariprichha'', a Mahāsāṃghika text translated into Chinese between 317 and 420 CE, however describes [[Bihar]] as the center of Pushyamitra's anti-Buddhist campaign. The 16th century Tibetan Buddhist historian [[Taranatha]] stated that "the ''brahman'' king Pushyamitra, along with other ''[[tirthika]]sās'', started war and thus burnt down numerous Buddhist monasteries from ''madhyadesha'' to [[Jalandhara]]. They also killed a number of vastly learned monks. which wiped out the Buddhism from the north in five years. As a result, within five years, the doctrine was extinct from the north."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Simmons|first1=Caleb|last2=Sarao|first2=K. T. S.|editor1-last=Danver|editor1-first=Steven L.|title=Popular Controversies in World History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=slVobUjdzGMC&pg=RA1-PA96&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjPuN7PyfnYAhVHpI8KHU2wApoQ6AEIIzAA#v=onepage&f=false |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2010 |isbn=9781598840780 |page=96 }}</ref>
-While some scholars believe he did persecute Buddhists based on the Buddhist accounts, others consider them biased because of him not patronising them.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vdu1AAAAIAAJ |title=Indigenous states of northern India, circa 200 B.C. to 320 A.D. |first=Bela |last=Lahiri |publisher=University of Calcutta |year=1974 |pages=34–35}}</ref> Many other scholars have expressed skepticism about the Buddhist claims. [[Étienne Lamotte]] points out that the Buddhist legends are not consistent about the location of Pushyamitra's anti-Buddhist campaign and his death: "To judge from the documents, Pushyamitra must be acquitted through lack of proof."<ref> Lamotte, E., Dantinne, J., & Webb-Boin, S. (1988). History of Indian Buddhism: From the origins to the Śaka era. Louvain-la-Neuve: Université Catholique de Louvain, Institut Orientaliste.</ref> Agreeing with him, D. Devahuti states that Pushyamitra's sudden destruction after offering rewards for Buddhist heads is "manifestly false". R. C. Mitra states that "The tales of persecution by Pushyamitra as recorded in ''Divyavadana'' and by Taranatha bear marks of evident absurdity."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Simmons|first1=Caleb|last2=Sarao|first2=K. T. S.|editor1-last=Danver|editor1-first=Steven L.|title=Popular Controversies in World History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=slVobUjdzGMC&pg=RA1-PA98&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjPuN7PyfnYAhVHpI8KHU2wApoQ6AEIIzAA#v=onepage&f=false |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2010 |isbn=9781598840780 |page=98 }}</ref>
-[[Romila Thapar]] writes that the lack of concrete archaeological evidence casts doubt on the claims of Buddhist persecution by Pushyamitra.<ref>Aśoka and the Decline of the Mauryas by Romila Thapar, Oxford University Press, 1960 P200</ref> The Sri Lankan Buddhist text ''[[Mahavamsa]]'' suggests that several monasteries existed in [[Bihar]], [[Awadh]] and [[Malwa]] at the time of Pushyamitra's contemporary Lankan ruler [[Dutthagamani]], suggesting they survived Pushyamitra Shunga's reign.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Simmons|first1=Caleb|last2=Sarao|first2=K. T. S.|editor1-last=Danver|editor1-first=Steven L.|title=Popular Controversies in World History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=slVobUjdzGMC&pg=RA1-PA100&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjPuN7PyfnYAhVHpI8KHU2wApoQ6AEIIzAA#v=onepage&f=false |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2010 |isbn=9781598840780 |page=100 }}</ref> The ''Ashokavadana'' states him offering dinaras for killing monks, however the currency wasn't introduced in India till 1st century CE. In addition, ''Divyavadana'' mentions Pushyamitra as a descendant of Ashoka though he wasn't a Mauryan, further eroding its historical accuracy.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Simmons|first1=Caleb|last2=Sarao|first2=K. T. S.|editor1-last=Danver|editor1-first=Steven L.|title=Popular Controversies in World History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=slVobUjdzGMC&pg=RA1-PA99&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjPuN7PyfnYAhVHpI8KHU2wApoQ6AEIIzAA#v=onepage&f=false |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2010 |isbn=9781598840780 |page=99 }}</ref>
-K. T. S. Sarao states that the Buddhist legends appear doubtful on various other counts, with the earlies texts mentioning the persecution being written much later than the Sungha era and the narrative of ''Divyavadana'' is dated to two centuries after Pushyamitra's death. Sarao states that the narrative is likely a Buddhist version of Pushyamitra's attack on the Mauryas and relfects the fact that the attention to Buddhism lessened with its declining influence at the royal court.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Simmons|first1=Caleb|last2=Sarao|first2=K. T. S.|editor1-last=Danver|editor1-first=Steven L.|title=Popular Controversies in World History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=slVobUjdzGMC&pg=RA1-PA99&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjPuN7PyfnYAhVHpI8KHU2wApoQ6AEIIzAA#v=onepage&f=false |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2010 |isbn=9781598840780 |page=99 |chapter = Pushyamitra Sunga, a Hindu ruler in the second century BCE, was a great persecutor of Buddhists}}</ref>
-P. C. Bagci in an ''Indian Historical Quarterly'' suggested that the "Krmisa" mentioned in ''[[Mañjuśrī-mūla-kalpa|Manjusrimulakalpa]]'' is [[Demetrius I Soter|Demetrius]]. His conclusion however is not accepted by all scholars. Damstranivasin, a Buddhist viceroy of Muryas, beseeched him for an alliance against Pushyamitra for being anti-Buddhist. He agreed and the first two Greek invasions under Pushyamitra began. The ''[[Hathigumpha inscription]]'' also links Demetrius to Buddhists and calls him "Dharmamitra" or the friend of [[Dharma]]. After the Greeks withdrew however during the first invasion, he began to punish those who sided against him among whom the Buddhist monasteries were the most outspoken. The Buddhists in western [[Punjab (region)|Punjab]] were treated as political enemies. B.C. Sinha states in ''The History of Sunga dynasty'' that he lessened the persecution and patronised several stupas later in his reign, though this is disputed. Regardless, this was short-lived as the second Greek invasion was also tied to Buddhism. Caleb Simmons states that his persecution of the Buddhists were due to him seeing them as traitors due to their cooperation with the Greeks and also as a threat.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Simmons|first1=Caleb|last2=Sarao|first2=K. T. S.|editor1-last=Danver|editor1-first=Steven L.|title=Popular Controversies in World History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=slVobUjdzGMC&pg=RA1-PA89&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjPuN7PyfnYAhVHpI8KHU2wApoQ6AEIIzAA#v=onepage&f=false |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2010 |isbn=9781598840780 |pages=89–92 |chapter = Pushyamitra Sunga, a Hindu ruler in the second century BCE, was a great persecutor of Buddhists}}</ref>
-It is possible that the Buddhist influence at the Mauryan court declined during Pushyamitra's reign, and the Buddhist monasteries and other institutions stopped receiving royal patronage. This change might have led to discontent among the Buddhists, resulting in exaggerated accounts of persecution.<ref name=Sarao>{{cite book |last1=Simmons|first1=Caleb|last2=Sarao|first2=K. T. S.|editor1-last=Danver|editor1-first=Steven L.|title=Popular Controversies in World History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=slVobUjdzGMC |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2010 |isbn=9781598840780 |pages=99–100}}</ref> [[Haridas Bhattacharya|H. Bhattacharya]] and [[K.P. Jayaswal]] suggested that Pushyamitra might have persecuted them due to political reasons.<ref name=Sarao/>
-Paul Williams states that the persecution claims with alleged dates of Buddha's nirvana (400 BCE) and the subsequent Pusyamitra reign, as depicted in the Mahasanghika school of early Buddhism are the "most far fetched of all the arguments and hardly worth of any further discussion".<ref>{{cite book|author=Paul Williams|title=Buddhism: Buddhist origins and the early history of Buddhism in South and Southeast Asia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tg2-QU2J10YC |year=2005|publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-33227-9 |pages=66 footnote 8 }}</ref>
-Archaeologist [[John Marshall (archaeologist)|John Marshall]] stated there is evidence of some damage to Buddhist establishments at [[Takshashila]] around the time of Shunga rule. He also theorized that the [[Sanchi Stupa|Sanchi stupa]] was vandalized during Pushyamitra's rule. [[G. R. Sharma]], who excavated Buddhist ruins at [[Kosambi|Kaushambi]], suggested that the destruction of the local monastery might have happened during his reign. P. K. Mishra of the [[Archaeological Survey of India]] (ASI) believes that the damage to the [[Deur Kothar]] stupa is also datable to Pushyamitra's period.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Simmons|first1=Caleb|last2=Sarao|first2=K. T. S.|editor1-last=Danver|editor1-first=Steven L.|title=Popular Controversies in World History |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=slVobUjdzGMC |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2010 |isbn=9781598840780 |page=97 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.archaeology.org/online/news/deorkothar/index.html |title=Does Newly Excavated Buddhist Temple Provide A Missing Link?|publisher=Archaeology.org |date=4 April 2001 |accessdate=27 May 2013}}</ref>
-According to other scholars, most of the later Shunga kings were seen as more amenable to Buddhism and as having contributed to the building of the stupa at [[Bharhut]]<ref name="HirakawaGroner1993p223">{{cite book |last1=Hirakawa |first1=Akira |last2=Groner |first2=Paul |date=1993 |title=A history of Indian Buddhism : from Śākyamuni to early Mahāyāna |location=Delhi |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |page=223 |isbn=81-208-0955-6}}</ref> and an inscription at Bodh Gaya at the [[Mahabodhi Temple]] records the construction of the temple as follows, "''The gift of Nagadevi the wife of King Brahmamitra''". Another inscription reads: "''The gift of Kurangi, the mother of living sons and the wife of King Indragnimitra, son of Kosiki. The gift also of Srima of the royal palace shrine''."<ref>[http://ccbs.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-ENG/bar.htm ''Old Buddhist Shrines at Bodh-Gaya Inscriptions''] By B.M. Barua, "The Indian Historical Quarterly", Vol. VI, No. 1, MARCH 1930, pp. 1–31</ref>
 === Buddhist accounts ===
 [[File:Sunga horseman Bharhut.jpg|thumb|Sunga horseman, Bharhut.]]