Question

Which of the following was the contemporary of the Bengal king during the time of Harsha of Kannauj?
a.Bhaskar Varman
b.Divakarmitra
c.Devagupta
d.Sasanka

Answer 1

Hint: For a king to be contemporary of another king, he has to reign during the same time in his own territory. The contemporary of Harshavardhana in Bengal is regarded as the first sovereign ruler of Bengal whose rule began from 590 CE.

Complete step by step solution: The people mentioned in this question are all the contemporaries of Harshavardhana. Therefore, we shall take a look at the options one by one to reach the correct answer.
a.Bhaskar Varman: Bhaskarvarman was the last ruler of Varman dynasty. He was a contemporary of Harshavardhana but was not a ruler of Bengal. He was the ruler of Kamarupa, which is in the modern-day Assam. So, it is an incorrect option.
b.Divakarmitra: Divakarmitra was the son of Khetra Mohan Mitra. He was not a ruler and was a Buddhist monk who had helped Harshavardhana to find his sister Rajyashree after her husband was killed in war by the king of Malwa, Devagupta. So, it is an incorrect option.
c.Devagupta: Devagupta was the Gupta king of the Malwa region. He was in a secret alliance with the Gauda ruler of Bengal and had imprisoned Harshavardhana’s sister. So, it is an incorrect option.
d.Sasanka: Sasanka was the ruler of Gauda dynasty. This Gauda ruler was the first sovereign ruler of Bengal who had killed the elder brother of Harshavardhana, Rajyavardhana. So, it is the correct option.

Note: Such questions require the knowledge of kings as well as their territories. The question specifically asks for the contemporaries of Bengal, hence the last option is correct, otherwise all are contemporaries of Harshavardhana.