Kanishka

Kanishka I descended from Kujula Kadphises, founder of the Kushan empire, and came to power around 127 CE. Under his rule the empire hit its peak, spanning from Central Asia and Gandhara down to Pataliputra on the Gangetic plain, with capitals at Puruṣapura (Peshawar) and Mathura. That same year he replaced Greek with Bactrian as the empire's administrative language. Though he never converted, his conquests and support of Buddhism were decisive—he helped develop the Silk Road as a channel of commerce and faith, transmitting Mahayana Buddhism from Gandhara across the Karakoram into China. His r…