Pushyamitra Shunga
Pushyamitra Shunga (IAST: Puṣyamitra Śuṅga) or Pushpamitra Shunga (IAST: Puṣpamitra Śuṅga) (ruled c. 185 – c. 149 BCE) was the founder and the first ruler of the Shunga Empire which he established to succeed the Maurya Empire. His original name was Puṣpaka or Puṣpamitra and the confusion between Puṣyamitra and Puṣpamitra arose because of the erroneous readings of 'p' and 'y' in the manuscripts.
| Pushyamitra Shunga | |
|---|---|
A figure from the Shunga period | |
| 1st Shunga Emperor | |
| Reign | c. 185 – c. 149 BCE |
| Predecessor | Brihadratha Maurya (as Mauryan Emperor) |
| Successor | Agnimitra |
| General of the Mauryan Empire | |
| Dynasty | Shunga |
| Religion | Hinduism |
Pushyamitra is recorded to have performed the Ashvamedha ritual to legitimize his right to rule. Inscriptions of the Shungas have been found as far as the Ayodhya (the Dhanadeva–Ayodhya inscription), and the Divyavadana mentions that his empire stretched as far as Sakala (now Sialkot) in the northwestern Punjab region.
Buddhist texts claim that Pushyamitra persecuted Buddhists; scholars have rejected these claims.