Sena Dynasty

The Sena dynasty ruled Bengal for a little over a century, from about 1097 to 1225 CE. It succeeded Pala authority in a period of fragmentation and was itself displaced in the early thirteenth century by the Turkish conquest. The dynasty’s origins before its arrival in Bengal, the chronology of its early members, and several attributions made to it in later tradition are all recorded by the sources used here as uncertain.

Origins and rise

The Senas originally belonged to the Karnata country in South India, the Kanarese-speaking region in modern Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, and were Brahma-Ksatriyas — those who were Brahmanas first and became Ksatriyas afterwards ¹.

The retrieved entry states that it is very difficult to conclude satisfactorily when the Senas came to and assumed power in Bengal, and that it is impossible to give a definite answer as to how the family came to Bengal; suggestions recorded include their coming as Karnata officials or generals of the Palas, or accompanying an invader from the Deccan ¹. See Disputed points.

It is recorded in the Deopara inscription of Vijayasena that Virasena and others, born in the family of the moon, were rulers of the southern region, and that in that family was born Samantasena, whose descendants ruled in Bengal ¹. Samantasena, the first historical figure of the dynasty, spent his early life in the Karnata country and settled in his old age on the bank of the Ganges; his son Hemantasena is described as rajaraksasudaksah (skilful in the protection of kings), suggesting he was a feudatory chief in the Pala empire ¹.

Taking advantage of the revolt of the Samantachakra in Varendra during the reign of Mahipala II, Vijayasena gradually consolidated his position in western Bengal and ultimately assumed an independent position during the reign of Madanapala ¹.

Vijayasena

Vijayasena (c. 1097–1160 CE) was the founder of the dynasty; he inherited the position of a subordinate ruler in Radha under the Palas and was possibly the same as Vijayaraja of Nidravali, one of the fourteen Samanta kings who helped Ramapala recover Varendra ¹². His marriage to Vilasadevi, a princess of the Sura dynasty, helped him establish power in Radha ².

Vijayasena defeated the Pala king Madanapala, whose authority over north Bengal continued to his eighth regnal year, 1152–53 CE, extending his supremacy in north and north-western Bengal sometime after that year ². He extended his hold over Vanga, issuing his Barrackpur copperplate from Vikramapura, the capital of the Varmans, so that by the middle of the 12th century he had supplanted the Varmans and ousted the Palas, establishing Sena rule over the whole of Bengal ².

His reign lasted about 62 years. He was a Shaiva and assumed the imperial titles Paramamaheshvara, Paramabhattaraka and Maharajadhiraja ². The Deopara Prashasti records that he defeated Nanya, Vira, Raghava and Vardhana and the kings of Gauda, Kamarupa and Kalinga, and that he led a naval expedition along the course of the Ganges; it was composed by Umapatidhara and is often called a precursor of the modern Bengali alphabet ²⁵.

Vallalasena and Laksmanasena

Vallalasena (c. 1160–1178 CE) was the second ruler and son of Vijayasena; he married Ramadevi, a Chalukya princess ³. He was a scholar and author who wrote the Danasagara in 1168 and began the Adbhutasagara in 1169 without completing it; like his father he was a worshipper of Shiva ³. He is credited in the Kulajigranthas with having introduced social reforms, especially the system of Kulinism ³. See Disputed points.

Laksmanasena (c. 1178–1206 CE) was the third king and ruled for about 28 years; he was the first Sena king to assume the title Gaudeshvara ⁴. He was a Vaishnava and took the title Paramavaisnava, while his father and grandfather were devout Shaiva; his generosity attracted the notice of Minhaj-us-Siraj, the author of the Tabaqat-i-Nasiri, who called him a great Rae of Bengal ⁴. His court included the poets Jayadeva, author of the Gitagovinda, Sharana and Dhoyi, and his chief minister and chief judge was Halayudha Mishra ⁴.

The end of Sena rule

Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji first stormed Bihar and then invaded Nadia, compelling Laksmanasena to flee to eastern Bengal; Laksmanasena died sometime in 1206 CE ⁴⁷. The date of the capture of Nadia is given as 1205 CE in the "Sena Dynasty" and "Laksmanasena" entries and as 1204 CE in some sources used elsewhere in Banglapedia ¹⁴. See Disputed points.

After Laksmanasena’s death his two sons, Vishvarupasena and Keshavasena, occupied the throne one after the other, and their plates granted lands in the Vikramapura and Vanga areas ¹. It is learnt from the Tabaqat-i-Nasiri that the descendants of Laksmanasena ruled in Vanga at least up to 1245 CE; in the third quarter of the 13th century the Devas supplanted the Senas from their hold over Vikramapura, and by the end of the century the whole of Bengal came under Muslim control ¹.

Religion and society

The rule of the Senas in Bengal is usually connected with the emergence of orthodox Hinduism in a Hindu-Buddhist society; the retrieved entry states that the onslaught on the Buddhists in Bengal is believed to have started in this period, which resulted in large-scale Buddhist migration to neighbouring countries ¹. The Senas were champions of Brahmanical religion and their rule gave great impetus to Brahmanical culture; the power and position of Brahmans in society grew, and the Varmans and Senas, both of external origin, played important roles in the Brahmanisation of Bengal ⁶.

Related articles

Pala Empire · Ancient Bengal · Bengal Sultanate · History of Bangladesh

Disputed points

The positions below are reported as their holders state them. This reference does not take a position on the disagreement, and none of the positions is presented as the default.

When and how the Senas came to Bengal. The entry states that it is impossible to give a definite answer; the suggestions recorded are that they came as Karnata officials or generals of the Palas, or in the train of an invader from the Deccan ¹. [disputed]

The chronology of Samantasena and Hemantasena. Their exact dates are unknown and can be placed only in the second half of the 11th century CE ¹. [disputed]

The attribution of Kulinism to Vallalasena. None of the Sena epigraphic records refer to Kulinism; the Kulagranthas were composed five or six centuries after his reign and are described by the entry as full of irregularities, with scholars having generally expressed grave doubts as to their antiquity and authenticity as sources of sober history. The entry states it is quite probable that the advocates of Kulinism tried to give it a historical basis ¹³⁶. [disputed]

The date of the Turkish capture of Nadia. Banglapedia is internally inconsistent: the "Sena Dynasty" and "Laksmanasena" entries give 1205 CE, while other sources used by Banglapedia give 1204 CE ¹⁴. [disputed]

Whether the title Gaudeshvara implies a reconquest. The title is absent from the plates of Vijayasena and Vallalasena; the entry calls the argument that its assumption implies a reconquest of Gauda very weak, given that Sena rule over the whole of Bengal was already established under Vijayasena ⁴. [disputed]

The outcome of the conflict with the Cedi/Kalachuri feudatory. The Akaltara inscription records that Vallabharaja, a feudatory of the Kalachuri king of Ratnapura, defeated the king of Gauda, while Laksmanasena claimed victory over him; the entry states the outcome is not known ⁴. [disputed]

Buddhist persecution under the Senas. The retrieved entry phrases this as a belief — the onslaught on Buddhists "is believed to have started in this period" — rather than as a documented event, and this article reproduces that framing rather than treating it as settled ¹. [disputed]

Sources

7 sources cited. Tiers: T1 official or primary, T2 scholarly or curated, T3 media of record.

1. Sena Dynasty — Banglapedia, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh (via Internet Archive Wayback Machine) (T2, accessed 2026-09-19). https://web.archive.org/web/2023id_/https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Sena_Dynasty
2. Vijayasena — Banglapedia, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh (via Internet Archive Wayback Machine) (T2, accessed 2026-09-19). https://web.archive.org/web/2023id_/https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Vijayasena
3. Vallalasena — Banglapedia, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh (via Internet Archive Wayback Machine) (T2, accessed 2026-09-19). https://web.archive.org/web/2023id_/https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Vallalasena
4. Laksmanasena — Banglapedia, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh (via Internet Archive Wayback Machine) (T2, accessed 2026-09-19). https://web.archive.org/web/2023id_/https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Laksmanasena
5. Deopara Prashasti — Banglapedia, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh (via Internet Archive Wayback Machine) (T2, accessed 2026-09-19). https://web.archive.org/web/2023id_/https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Deopara_Prashasti
6. Kulinism — Banglapedia, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh (via Internet Archive Wayback Machine) (T2, accessed 2026-09-19). https://web.archive.org/web/2023id_/https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Kulinism
7. Bakhtiyar Khalji — Banglapedia, Asiatic Society of Bangladesh (via Internet Archive Wayback Machine) (T2, accessed 2026-09-19). https://web.archive.org/web/2023id_/https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Bakhtiyar_Khalji

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