The Rajatarangini
A verse history of Kashmir and one of the oldest histories written in South Asia.
Photo: Original work by Kalhana, manuscript written by an unknown scribe · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
The Rajatarangini, the River of Kings, tells Kashmir's history from legend to Kalhana's own day, becoming more detailed and more reliable as it approaches his time. Later writers, Jonaraja, Shrivara and Prajyabhatta with Shuka, extended it until the Mughal conquest of 1586.
Facts
- M. A. Stein's English translation of 1900 made it widely known.
- Its early chapters mix legend with history, while its later books read like eyewitness political history.