Toramana also called Toramana Shahi Jauvla[3] (
Gupta script: Toramāṇa,[4] ruled circa 493-515 CE) was a king of the
Alchon Huns who ruled in northern India in the late 5th and the early 6th century CE.[5] Toramana consolidated the Alchon power in
Punjab (present-day
Pakistan and northwestern
India), and conquered northern and central India including
Eran in
Madhya Pradesh. Toramana used the title "Great King of Kings" (Mahārājadhirāja), equivalent to "Emperor",[6] in his inscriptions, such as the
Eran boar inscription.[7]
The
Sanjeli inscription of Toramana speaks of his conquest and control over Malwa and Gujarat. His territory also included
Uttar Pradesh,
Rajasthan and
Kashmir.[8] He probably went as far as
Kausambi, where one of his seals was discovered.
Toramana is known from
Rajatarangini, through coins and inscriptions.
Punjab inscription
An inscription found at Kura in the
Salt Range records the building of a Buddhist monastery by a person named Rotta Siddhavriddhi during the reign of the
Huna ruler Toramana. The donor expresses the wish that the religious merit gained by his gift be shared by him with the king and his family members.[11] In the
Khurā inscription (495-500, from the
Salt Range in
Punjab and now in Lahore), Toramana assumes the Indian regnal titles in addition to central Asian ones: Rājādhirāja Mahārāja Toramāṇa Shahi
Jauvla.[3][12][13] Among which Shahi is considered to be his Title and Jauvla being an epithet or Biruda. This is a Buddhist record in hybrid Sanskrit, recording the gift of a monastery (vihāra) to members of the
Mahīśāsaka school.[14][15]
"A ruler of [the earth], of great merit, who was renowned by the name of the glorious Tôramâna; by whom, through (his) heroism that was specially characterized by truthfulness, the earth was governed with justice."
The
Eran Boar inscription (in
Eran, Malwa, 540 km south of
New Delhi, state of
Madhya Pradesh) of his first regnal year indicates that eastern
Malwa was included in his dominion. The Eran Boar inscription was erected in honor of the deity
Vishnu as his avatar,
Varaha.
Om ! Victorious is the god (
Vishnu), who has the form of a
Boar; who, in the act of lifting up the earth {out of the waters}, caused the mountains to tremble with the blows of {his} hard snout ; {and) who is the pillar {for the support) of the great house which is the three worlds !
— Eran Boar Inscription
The statue is of the deity in form of a boar, with engravings display it protecting
rishis and upholding
Dharma. Additionally, the statue contains
Sanskrit inscriptions inscribed on the neck of the boar, in 8 lines of in
Brahmi script.
It also records the building of the temple in which the current
Varaha image stands, by Dhanyavishnu, the younger brother of the deceased Maharaja Matrivishnu.[18] The first line of the inscription, made after 484/85 CE mentions the "Maharajadhiraja Toramana" ("The great king of king Toramana")[2] and reads:
"In year one of the reign of the King of Kings Sri-Toramana, who rules the world with splendor and radiance...."
The presence of seals in the name of "Toramana" and "Hunaraja" in
Kausambi, suggests that the city was probably sacked by the Alkhons under Toramana in 497–500.[2][20][21][22]
Toramana may also have been defeated by the Indian Emperor
Bhanugupta of the
Gupta Empire in 510 A.D. according to the
Eran inscription, although the "great battle" to which Bhanagupta participated is not explicited.[29][30][31]
A few silver coins of Toramana closely followed the Gupta silver coins. The only difference in the obverse is that the king's head is turned to the left. The reverse retains the fantailed peacock and the legend is almost similar, except the change of name to Toramana Deva.[32][33]
A Jaina work of the 8th century, the Kuvalayamala states that he lived in Pavvaiya on the bank of the
Chandrabhaga and enjoyed the sovereignty of the world.[34]