Samudra Gupta, the second ruler of the Gupta
dynasty was a great soldier, an excellent empire builder, a winner on the battlefield and an exceptional patron of art and literature. He defeated the Nagas of North India, the rulers of the South and the hill tribes. He annexed the territories won by him in the north. But in the case the southern territories, he did not annex those as he knew that he would not be able to efficiently administer them. Samudra Gupta built a large empire and his reign came to be known as the golden period of Gupta rule in India.
Samudra Gupta was not only a conqueror, but also a poet, a musician and a scholar too. His coins depict him as playing the musical instrument, Veena
. He also patronized well known literary personalities of his time such as Harisena and Vasubandhu. Although a follower of Hinduism
, Samudra Gupta was tolerant towards other religions. He ruled for 40 years and died in AD 375.