1. Introduction: Gupta ** was a unique phase in the Indian history, due to the all-round development during this age. It has been described as the ‘Golden age and Ahe “Classical ** of Indian history”. Dr. R.N. Saletore has compared it with the ages of Augustus Caesar of Rome and Queen Elizabeth of England. Dr. L.D. Barnet compared it with the age of Pericles of Greece. The achievements in the fields of religion, education, literature, art, architecture, science and technology were extraordinary.
2. Religion: Revival of Hinduism (Hindu renaissance) was one of the outstanding features of the Gupta age. Guptas followed Vedic religion, but they were tolerant towards the other religions. The worship of Vishnu, Shiva and Durga became very popular. Pashupata sect of Shaivism became very popular.
Worship of the Saptamatrikas became widespread. The Shiva temple at Deogadh, the temple of Bhumara and the Mahakal temple of Ujjain were built in the Gupta age. The Gupta Rulers performed Vedic rites and sacrifices. Samudragupta and Chandragupta- II, were worshippers of Vishnu.
They assumed the titles ‘Parama Bhagavatha’ (Devotee of Vishnu). Image worship, rites, and ceremonies became very common. The Vedic rituals like Ashwameda, Vajapeya, and Rajasuya yagas-were performed with all splendour. Buddhism also enjoyed great popularity during the Gupta age The Buddhist caves at Ajantha, Ellora, Kanheri and Karle belong to the Gupta **.
Some of the Gupta rulers followed Buddhism and extended patronage to it. In fact, Buddha was adopted into Hinduism and he was regarded as one of the Avataras of Vishnu.
3. Education: Education flourished well under the Guptas. The rulers themselves were great scholars. They paid special attention to education. Taxi la, Nalanda, Ajantha and Saranatha were wellknown Universities of the Gupta era. Pataliputra and Vallabhi were great educational centres. The important subjects taught were Puranas, Literature, Philosophy, Arithmetic, Astrology, and Science.
4. Literature: The Gupta age is called ‘the Golden age of Sanskrit literature’. Samudragupta has been described as a King among poets in the Allahabad inscription. He got a title of ‘Kaviraja’. Chandragupta-II (Vikramaditya-II) patronized the ‘Nine gems’ (navaratnas) of Sanskrit scholars in his court.
Among them, Kalidasa was the most outstanding literary figure of that age. He wrote a number of excellent works like Malavikagnimithra, Vikramorvashiya, Shakunthala, Raghuvamsa, Kumara sambhava, Meghaduta, Rithusamhara, etc., Kalidasa emerges as the King of all poets and hailed as the ‘Indian Shakespeare”.
5. Other important writers and their works: Sudraka wrote Mrichchakatika, Bharavi – Kiratarjuneya, Dandhi – Kavyadhara, Vishnusimha – Panchatantra, AmarasimhaAmarakosa, Vishakadatta – Mudrarakshasa, BhavabuthiUttararam achari the, Charaka- Charakasamhithe, Shanku – Shilpashastra, Kshapanaka – Jyothishashastra, VethalabhattaManth rashasthra, and others.
The literary standard of this ** was high and Sanskrit became the common as well as the official language. Naturally, this led to a renaissance in Sanskrit literature.
6. Development of science: The Gupta age made a tremendous progress in the field of science, especially in the disciplines of Astronomy, Astrology, Mathematics, Medicine, and Metallurgy. Aryabhatta was one of the greatest scientists of this **. He wrote two great works-Aryabhatia and Surya siddhantha. He gave very valuable contributions to Indian science.
Brahmagupta was the great astronomer and mathematician, who wrote the book ‘Brahmaputra siddhantha. He showed the importance of zero. Varahamihira was the astronomer, who wrote Brihatsamhithe. Vridha Vagbhata (physician) wrote Ashtanga Sangraha. Dhanvantari (physician) wrote Ayurveda Nighantu.
He was regarded as the father of Indian medicine. Charaka and Sushrutha were the physicians who wrote Samhithes. The Meharauli iron pillar discovered near Delhi is an outstanding example of the metallurgical skill of that **. It is still free from rust, even though it has been exposed to the elements like wind, rain, sun, etc., all these hundreds of years.
7. Art and Architecture: The basic structural features of the Indian temple architecture were developed during the Gupta **. The Gupta art is famous for its simple expression and spiritual purpose. The art of the Guptas was purely Indian in nature. Naturalism, beauty, spiritualism, and realism were the main features of their art. Mathura, Benaras, Pataliputra, Udayagiri, Devgarh, etc were the centres of their artistic activities.
The Gupta architecture is represented by many brick temples. The temples have pyramidal roofs and the walls are decorated with scenes from Hindu mythologies. The Dashavatara temple of Devgarh (MP), has a tower of about 40 feet. It’* doorway is excellently carved and decorated.
Many images of Shiva such as the Ekamukhi and Chaturmukhi Shivalings were also carved during this **. The Ardhanarishwara i.e., oneness of Shiva and Shakti is also a remarkable piece of work. Some temples were flat-roofed and square in shape with a shallow porch in front. For example, the Shiva temple at Bhuniara, the Vishnu temple at Tigawa, the Buddhist Shrine at Sanchi, etc., follow this design.
8. Painting: In the field of painting, the artists of the Gupta age excelled in bringing out the emotions in a realistic manner. Many jataka stories have been illustrated. The scene of “Mother and child before Buddha” in the Ajantha cave no. 16, the great Bodhisatva in cave no. 1 and the paintings on the ceilings of cave no. 2 are remarkable. Thus, it has been known as the ‘Cradle of ***** art’.
