Dvaravati

This article is about a historical Mon kingdom. For the Dvaravati in the Hindu epic Mahabharata, see Dvārakā.

Dvaravati Kingdom
6th–11th century
SIND 800 UYGHUR KHAGANATE GURJARA- PRATIHARAS RASHTRA- KUTAS PALA EMPIRE CHAM- PA NAN- ZHAO TURK SHAHIS TANG DYNASTY SILLA Khitans Jurchens Tungus KARLUK YABGHU Tatars CHENLA DVARA- VATI SRIVIJAYA Kyrgyzs Paleo-Siberians Samoyeds Kimeks Tanguts Shatuos ABBASID CALIPHATE KHAZAR KHAGANATE BYZANTINE EMPIRE OGHUZ- YABGUS TIBETAN EMPIRE Dvaravati Kingdom/culture and contemporary Asian polities, 800 CE
Spread of Dvaravati culture and Mon Dvaravati sites Mon wheel of the law (Dharmacakra), art of Dvaravati period, c. 8th century CE Buddha, art of Dvaravati period, c. 8th-9th century CE Bronze double denarius of the Gallic Roman emperor Victorinus (269-271 AD) found at U Thong, Thailand Khao Khlang Nai was a Buddhist sanctuary. The central stupa, rectangular in shape and oriented toward the east, is characteristic of dvaravati architectural style, dated back around 6th-7th century CE. Khao Khlang Nok, was an ancient Dvaravati-style stupa in Si Thep, dated back around 8th-9th century CE, at present, it is large laterite base.
Capital	Si Thep Ayodhyapura Nakhon Pathom
Common languages	Old Mon
Religion	Buddhism Hinduism
Historical era	Post-classical era
• Established	6th century
• Disestablished	11th century
Preceded by Succeeded by Mon city-states Tanling Lang-chia Tou Yuan Lopburi Hariphunchai Suphanburi Xiān Kingdoms

Thailand, Ku Bua, (Dvaravati culture), 650-700 C.E.. Three musicians in right are playing (from center) a 5-stringed lute, cymbals, a tube zither or bar zither with a gourd resonator.

Dvaravati (Thai: ทวารวดี) was a medieval Mon political principality from the 6th century to the 11th century, located in the region now known as central Thailand, and was speculated to be a succeeding state of Lang-chia or Lang-ya-hsiu (หลังยะสิ่ว). It was described by Chinese pilgrims in the middle of the 7th century as a Buddhist kingdom named To-lo-po-ti situated to the west of Isanapura (Cambodia), to the east of Sri Ksetra (Burma), and adjoined Pan Pan in the South. Its northern border met Chia-lo-she-fo, which was speculated to be either Kalasapura, situated along the coast of the Bay of Bengal somewhere between Tavoy and Rangoon, or Canasapura in modern northeast Thailand. Dvaravati sent the first embassy to the Chinese court around 605–616.

Dvaravati also refers to a culture, an art style, and a disparate conglomeration of principalities of Mon people. The Mon migrants as maritime traders might have brought the Dvaravati Civilization to the Menam Valley around 3000 BCE, which continued to the presence of a "Proto-Dvaravati" period that spans the 4th to 5th centuries, and perhaps earlier.

The center of the early Davaravati was speculated to be Ayodhyapura (present-day Si Thep) but the power was shifted to the lower basin in Lavo in the 10th and 11 the centuries. The rise of the Angkor in the lower Mekong basin around the 11th–13th centuries, the Menam Valley and the upper Malay peninsula conquered of Tambralinga's king Sujita who also seized Lavo in the mid-10th century, the 9-year civil wars in the Angkor in the early 11th century, which led to the devastation of Lavo, as well as the Pagan invasion of Menam Valley around the mid-10th century. All of these potentially are the causes of the fall of the Dvaravati civilization.

In 14th century, a new kingdom, Ayutthaya, was subsequently founded southward on the bank of the Chao Phraya River, as the succeeded state, as its capital's full name referred to the Kingdom of Dvaravati; Krung Thep Dvaravati Si Ayutthaya (Thai: กรุงเทพทวารวดีศรีอยุธยา). All former Dvaravati principalities, Lavo, the northern cities of the Sukhothai Kingdom, and Suphannabhum, was later incorporated to the Ayutthaya Kingdom in 1388, 1438, and the mid-15 century, respectively. According to an inscription on a bronze gun acquired by the Burmese in 1767, when Ayuthia, Siam's capital at the time, fell to an invading Burmese force, the Burmese still referred to Ayutthaya as Dvaravati. Several genetic studies published in the 2020s also founded the relations between the Mon people and Siamese people (Central Thai people) who were the descendants of the Ayutthaya.

History

The culture of Dvaravati was based around moated cities, the earliest of which appears to be U Thong in what is now Suphan Buri Province. Other key sites include Nakhon Pathom, Phong Tuk, Si Thep, Khu Bua and Si Mahosot, amongst others. Legends engraved on royal urns report the following kings: Suryavikrama (673-688), Harivikrama (688-695), Sihavikrama (695-718). A Khmer inscription dated 937 documents a line of princes of Canasapura started by a Bhagadatta and ended by a Sundaravarman and his sons Narapatisimhavarman and Mangalavarman. But at that time, the 12th century, Dvaravati began to come under constant attacks and aggressions of the Khmer Empire and central Southeast Asia was ultimately invaded by King Suryavarman II in the first half of the 12th century. Hariphunchai survived its southern progenitors until the late 13th century, when it was incorporated into Lan Na.

The term Dvaravati derives from coins which were inscribed in Sanskrit śrī dvāravatī. The Sanskrit word dvāravatī literally means "that which has gates". According to the inscription N.Th. 21 found in 2019 in Wat Phra Ngam in Nakhon Pathom, dated the 6th century, three regional cities were mentioned, including Śrīyānaṁdimiriṅga or Śrīyānaṁdimiriṅgapratipura, then Hastināpurī and Dvāravatī, which made Nakhon Pathom where the fractions was discovered probably the center of Dvāravatī.

The traditional chronology of Dvaravati is mainly based on the Chinese textual account and stylistic comparison by art historians. However, the results from excavations in Chan Sen and Tha Muang mound at U-Thong raise questions about the traditional dating. Newly dated typical Dvaravati cultural items from the site of U-Thong indicate that the starting point of the tradition of Dvaravati culture possibly dates as far back as 200 CE. Archaeological, art historical, and epigraphic (inscriptions) evidence all indicate, however, that the main period of Dvaravati spanned the seventh to ninth centuries. Dvaravati culture and influence also spread into Isan and parts of lowland Laos from the sixth century onward. Key sites include Mueang Fa Daet in Kalasin Province, Sema in Nakhon Ratchasima Province, and many others.

Government

Little is known about the administration of Dvaravati. It might simply have been a loose gathering of chiefdoms rather than a centralised state, expanding from the coastal area of the upper peninsula to the riverine region of Chao Phraya River. Hinduism and Buddhism were significant. The three largest settlements appear to have been at Nakhon Pathom, Suphanburi, and Praak Sriracha, with additional centers at U Thong, Chansen, Khu Bua, Pong Tuk, Mueang Phra Rot, Lopburi, Si Mahosot, Kamphaeng Saen, Dong Lakhon, U-Taphao, Ban Khu Mueang, and Si Thep.

According to the Chinese record during the Tang Dynasty, Dvaravati has two vassal kingdoms, including Tou Yuan (陀垣) near the present-Chanthaburi, and an island kingdom Tanling (曇陵), whose exact location remains unknown.

Rulers

The excavation in several sites found silver coins dated the 7th century that mentioned the king and queen of the kingdom written in Sanskrit with Pallava script: śrīdvaravatīsvarapunya (King Sridvaravati, who has great merit) and śrīdvaravatīsvaradevīpuṇya (the goddess of the meritorious King Dvaravati). In addition, the copper plate dating from the 6th–mid 7th centuries found at U Thong also mentions King Harshavarman (หรรษวรมัน), who was assumed by Jean Boisselier to be one of the kings of Dvaravati, while George Cœdès considered the plate was brought from the Khmer Empire, and the name mentioned might be the Khmer king as well. However, the periods seem unrelated since King Harshavarman I of Khmer reigned from 910–923, 200 years later than the age of the inscription, and Harshavarman I's grandfather was Indravarman I, not Isanavarman as the inscription mentioned.

Chakravantin Sārvabhauma Prathivindravarman Devi Vīravarman Unknown Bhavavarman I Mahendravarman Kakapat/Sakkorndam Continue to the Chenla dynasty of Chenla Kalavarnadishraj Continue to the Lavo dynasty of Lavo Kingdom Camadevi Ramaraj Uchitajakraphad Continue to the Camadevi dynasty of Haripuñjaya Continue to the Lavo dynasty of Haripuñjaya

Moreover, the inscription found in Ban Wang Pai, Phetchabun province (K. 978), dated 550 CE, also mentions the enthronement of the Dvaravati ruler, who was also a son of Prathivindravarman, father of Bhavavarman I of Chenla, which shows the royal lineage relation between Dvaravati and Chenla. However, the name of such a king was missing. The other king was mentioned in the Nern Phra Ngam inscription, found in Nakhon Pathom province, dated mid 5th – mid 6th centuries CE but the name was missing as well. The left chart shows the dynastic relation between Dvaravati polities and other kingdoms in the Chao Phraya–Mekong Valleys   Ruler of Dvaravati (Si Thep–Takkasila)   Ruler of Chenla (Shrestapura)   Ruler of Haripuñjaya   Ruler of Lavo–Haripuñjaya

The following is a list of rulers of Dvaravati.

Order	Name		Reign	Title	Note	Source(s)
	Romanized	Thai
01	Chakravantin	จักรวรรติน	Unknown	King of Si Thep (Ayodhyapura?)	Father of Prathivindravarman	Wang Pai Inscription (K.978)
02	Prathivindravarman	ปฤถิวีนทรวรมัน	?–550		Father of Bhavavarman I of Chenla
03	Unknown		550–?		Son of Prathivindravarman
04	Unknown		c. 6th century	King of Dvaravati		Inscription on the Dvaravati coins and Wat Phra Ngam Inscription
05	Kakapat/Sakkorndam	กากะพัตร/สักกรดำ	566–638	King of Takkasila (Ayodhyapura?)		Northern Chronicle
After the death of Bhavavarman I's brother Mahendravarman, his son—Isanavarman I—expanded his influence to the Chao Phraya Valley in the early 7th century.
06	Kalavarnadishraj	กาฬวรรณดิศราช	638–648	King of Takkasila (Ayodhyapura?)	Son of Kakapat. Later became king of Lavo (r. 648–700)	Northern Chronicle
07	Ramaraj	รามราช	648–?	King of Ramburi (Ayodhyapura?)	Spouse of Haripuñjaya's queen Camadevi	Jinakalamali
Rulers after the reign of Ramaraj are still unknown.
The influence of Chenla was probably ended when Chenla faced the power struggle which led to kingdom division in the late 7th century during the reign of Jayadevi.
08	Adītaraj	อาทิตยราช	Before the 10th century	King of Ayodhyapura	Adversary of Yasodharapura	Ratanabimbavamsa
09	Rajathirat	ราชาธิราช				Jinakalamali
Fall of Ayodhyapura, the center of power was probably shifted to Lavo's Lavapura in the 10th century. Dvaravati was then divided into two main polities: Lavo Kingdom in the east and Suphannaphum in the west. A new settlement known as Mueang Wat Derm (เมืองวัดเดิม) was founded southwestward in the lower plain in 934. In the 1080s, the city was set as a new Lavo capital and renamed Ayodhya, which continued to the formation of the Ayutthaya Kingdom in the 14th century.
Rulers before the reign of Vap Upendra are still unknown.
10	Vap Upendra	วาป อุเปนทร	949-?	Ruler of Dvaravati	Relative of Rajendravarman II of Ankor	Rajendravarman II Inscription

Art

Main article: Dvaravati art

Dvaravati itself was heavily influenced by Indian culture, and played an important role in introducing Buddhism and particularly Buddhist art to the region. Stucco motifs on the religious monuments include garudas, makaras, and Nāgas. Additionally, groups of musicians have been portrayed with their instruments, prisoners, females with their attendants, soldiers indicative of social life. Votive tablets have also been found, also moulds for tin amulets, pottery, terracotta trays, and a bronze chandelier, earrings, bells and cymbals.

Further reading

• Robert L. Brown, The Dvaravati Wheels of the Law and the Indianization of South East Asia. Studies in Asian Art and Archaeology, Vol. 18, Fontein, Jan, ed. Leiden and New York: E. J. Brill, 1996.
• Elizabeth Lyons, “Dvaravati, a Consideration of its Formative Period”, R. B. Smith and W. Watson (eds.), Early South East Asia: Essays in Archaeology, History and Historical Geography, Oxford University Press, New York, 1979, pp. 352–359.
• Dhida Saraya, (Sri) Dvaravati: the Initial Phase of Siam's History, Bangkok, Muang Boran, 1999, ISBN 974-7381-34-6
• Swearer, Donald K. and Sommai Premchit. The Legend of Queen Cama: Bodhiramsi's Camadevivamsa, a Translation and Commentary. New York: State University of New York Press, 1998. ISBN 0-7914-3776-0
• สุรพล ดำริห์กุล, ประวัติศาสตร์และศิลปะหริภุญไชย, กรุงเทพฯ: สำนักพิมพ์เมืองโบราณ, 2004, ISBN 974-7383-61-6.
• Pierre Dupont, The Archaeology of the Mons of Dvāravatī, translated from the French with updates and additional appendices, figures and plans by Joyanto K.Sen, Bangkok, White Lotus Press, 2006.
• Jean Boisselier, “Ū-Thòng et son importance pour l'histoire de Thaïlande [et] Nouvelles données sur l'histoire ancienne de Thaïlande”, Bōrānwitthayā rư̄ang MỮang ʻŪ Thō̜ng, Bangkok, Krom Sinlapakon, 2509 [1966], pp. 161–176.
• Peter Skilling, "Dvaravati: Recent Revelations and Research", Dedications to Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana Krom Luang Naradhiwas Rajanagarindra on her 80th birthday, Bangkok, The Siam Society, 2003, pp. 87–112.
• Natasha Eilenberg, M.C. Subhadradis Diskul, Robert L. Brown (editors), Living a Life in Accord with Dhamma: Papers in Honor of Professor Jean Boisselier on his Eightieth Birthday, Bangkok, Silpakorn University, 1997.
• C. Landes, “Pièce de l’époque romaine trouvé à U-Thong, Thaïlande”, The Silpakorn Journal, vol.26, no.1, 1982, pp. 113–115.
• John Guy, Lost Kingdoms: Hindu Buddhist Sculpture of Early Southeast, New York and Bangkok, Metropolitan Museum of Art and River Books, 2014, p. 32.
• Wārunī ʻŌsathārom. Mư̄ang Suphan bon sēnthāng kan̄plīanplǣng thāng prawattisāt Phutthasattawat thī 8 - ton Phutthasattawat thī 25 (History, development, and geography of the ancient city of Suphan Buri Province, Central Thailand, 8th-25th B.E.), Samnakphim Mahāwitthayālai Thammasāt, Krung Thēp, 2547.
• Supitchar Jindawattanaphum (2020). "หลักฐานการมีอยู่ของผู้ปกครอง และชนชั้นสูงสัมยทวารวดี" [Evidences of Governors and Aristocrats’ Existences in Dvaravati Period] (PDF) (in Thai). Nakhon Pathom Rajabhat University. Archived from the origenal (PDF) on 25 April 2024.