A.D. 815 Nagabhata II emerged as the unquestioned master of North India and made Kanauj
his capital.4 He is stated to have visited Prabhasa to worship Someshvara, travelling by
way of Raivataka, Pindataraka, Shankhodhara and Dwarka.5
The shrine of Somanatha thus enjoyed great importance in about the first quarter
of the eighth century. The red stone Third Temple, a large structure for the age, cannot
be placed much later than A.D. 800 and may be taken to have been constructed during this
After a short intervening reign of Ramabhadra, brother of
Nagabhata, his son Mihira Bhoja the Great (A.D. 835-886), one of the most powerful rulers
in Indian history, succeeded to the empire of Kanauj.
4 HR. 1. 181.
5 Prabhavakacharita, p. 108, st. 704-708.