Sassanid

Sassanid, Sasanid, or Sassanian, last dynasty of native rulers to reign in Persia before the Arab conquest. The period of their dominion extended from c.A.D. 224, when the Parthians were overthrown and the capital, Ctesiphon, was taken, until c.640, when the country fell under the power of the Arabs. The last Sassanid king died a fugitive in 651, but he had been forced to yield Ctesiphon to the Arabs in 636. Under the Sassanids, who revived Achaemenid tradition, Zoroastrianism was reestablished as the state religion. The name of the dynasty was derived from Sassan, an ancestor of the founder of the dynasty, Ardashir I, who took and ruled Ctesiphon (224-40). During his reign and many that followed, war with the Romans occupied much attention. Sassanid persecution of Christians led to wars with Byzantium. Syria and Armenia suffered particularly from invading armies. Ardashir I was succeeded by his son Shapur I, who was victorious over Roman Emperor Valerian and ruled until 272. The next reign of importance was that of Shapur II (309-79), a period of particular significance and glory. Bahram V, ruling 420-38, was defeated by the Emperor Theodosius but succeeded against the White Huns. The Armenians were overwhelmed by Yazdagird II in 451, and their land was overrun by Sassanids under Khosrow I, who reigned 531-79 and who also invaded Syria. Both countries were again overrun by Khosrow II (ruled 590-628), whose conquest of Egypt was the final victorious achievement of the dynasty. The last representative of the family on the throne was Yazdagird III, who began his reign in 632. His struggle against the Arabs ended in the fall of the Sassanid dynasty. See Persia.

The Indo-Sassanids, Kushano-Sassanids or Kushanshas (also Indo-Sassanians) were a branch of the Sassanid Persians who established their rule in the northwestern Indian subcontinent during the third and fourth centuries CE at the expense of the declining Kushans. They were in turn displaced in 410 CE by the invasions of the Indo-Hephthalites. They were able to re-establish some authority after the Sassanids destroyed the Hephthalites in 565 CE, but their rule collapsed under Arab attacks in the mid 600s.

History

First Indo-Sassanid period

The Sassanids, shortly after their victory over the Parthians, extended their dominion into Bactria during the reign of Ardashir I around 230 CE, then further to the eastern parts of their empire (modern Pakistan and India) during the reign of his son Shapur I (240-270). Thus the Kushans lost their western territory (including Bactria and Gandhara) to the rule of Sassanid nobles named Kushanshahs or "Kings of the Kushans".

Kartir, a high-priest that served as advisor to at least three of the early kings, instigated the persecution of non-Zoroastrians, that is, Christians, Buddhists, Jews, Hindus and - in particular - the Manichaeans, who were primarily in and from the eastern territories. The persecution ceased during the reign of Narseh (r. 293–302).

Around 325, Shapur II was directly in charge of the southern part of the territory, while in the north the Kushanshahs maintained their rule until the rise of the Kidarites.

The decline of the Kushans and their defeat by the Sassanids led to the rise of an indigenous Indian dynasty, the Guptas, in the fourth century. In 410 the Hephthalites or Indo-Hephthalites conquered Bactria and Gandhara, thus temporarily replacing the Indo-Sassanids.

Second Indo-Sassanid period

. The Hephthalites dominated the area until they were defeated in 565 AD by an alliance between the Gokturks and Sassanids, and some Indo-Sassanid authority was re-established. The Kushano-Hephthalites were able to set up a rival states in Kapisa, Bamiyan, and Kabul. The 2nd Indo-Sassanid period ended with the collapse of Sassanids to the Rashidun Caliphate in the mid 600s AD. Sind remained independent until the Arab invasions of India in the early 8th century. The Kushano-Hephthalites or Turkshahis were replaced by the Hindu Shahi in the mid 8th century.

Religious influences

The prophet Mani (210-276), founder of Manichaeism, followed the Sassanids' expansion to the east, which exposed him to the thriving Buddhist culture of Gandhara. He is said to have visited Bamiyan, where several religious painting are attributed to him, and is believed to have lived and taught for some time. He is also related to have sailed to the Indus valley area of India in 240 or 241, and to have converted a Buddhist King, the Turan Shah of India.

On that occasion, various Buddhist influences seem to have permeated Manichaeism: "Buddhist influences were significant in the formation of Mani's religious thought. The transmigration of souls became a Manichaean belief, and the quadripartite structure of the Manichaean community, divided between male and female monks (the 'elect') and lay follower (the 'hearers') who supported them, appears to be based on that of the Buddhist sangha" (Richard Foltz, Religions of the Silk Road).

Artistic influences

The Indo-Sassanids traded goods such as silverware and textiles depicting the Sassanid emperors engaged in hunting or administering justice. The example of Sassanid art was influential on Kushan art, and this influence remained active for several centuries in the northwest Indian subcontinent.

Coinage

The Indo-Sassanids created an extensive coinage with legend in Brahmi, Pahlavi or Bactrian, sometimes inspired from Kushan coinage, and sometimes more clearly Sassanid.

The obverse of the coin usually depicts the ruler with elaborate headdress and on the reverse either the zoroastrian fire altar or Shiva and his bull Nandi.

Main Indo-Sassanid rulers

• Ardashir I, Sassanid king and "Kushanshah" (circa 230 - 250)
• Peroz I, "Kushanshah" (circa 250 - 265)
• Hormizd I, "Kushanshah" (circa 265 - 295)
• Hormizd II, "Kushanshah" (circa 295 - 300)
• Peroz II, "Kushanshah" (circa 300 - 325)
• Shapur II Sassanid king and "Sakanshah" (circa 325)
• Varhran I, Varhran II, Varhran III "Kushanshahs" (circa 325 - 350; lasted until the Hephthalites invasion)
• Peroz III "Kushanshah" (circa 350 - 360; in Gandhara)

See also

• Indo-Parthian

External links

• Coins of the Kushano-Sassanids