Bengal's Buddhist Legacy: The Pala Empire's Lost Golden Age

Long before the Mughals and the British, Bengal was the heart of a vast Buddhist empire that shaped the destiny of South Asia. In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the Pala dynasty (8th–12th centuries CE), whose kings ruled from the Ganges to the Himalayas and transformed Bengal into a center of learning, art, and diplomacy. They delve into the founding by Gopala, the military campaigns of Dharmapala and Devapala that rivaled the Guptas, and the empire's patronage of Buddhist universities like Nalanda and Vikramashila. The conversation uncovers the Palas' role in spreading Mahayana Buddhism to Tibet and Southeast Asia, their architectural legacy visible in the Somapura Mahavihara, and the eventual decline under the Senas and Muslim invaders. Lucas and Luna also discuss the little-known story of the Pala queens who wielded real power, the empire's sophisticated coinage system, and why this golden age remains overshadowed in popular history. A journey into a forgotten empire that laid the foundations for Bengal's medieval identity. #PalaEmpire #BengalHistory #BuddhistHistory #Gopala #Dharmapala #Devapala #Nalanda #Vikramashila #SomapuraMahavihara #MahayanaBuddhism #TibetanBuddhism #MedievalIndia #Hinduism #SenaDynasty #BengalArt #IndianHistory #History #FexingoHistory #BengalSultanate #BattleOfPlassey Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo