The Gwalior inscription traces the dynasty's origin to the legendary hero Lakshmana. Nagabhata's historical antecedents are not fully known, but he ruled from Ujjain in the Avanti region. The Jain text "Harivamsa" (783-784 CE) states that his grand-nephew Vatsaraja was the king and a "son of Avanti soil" ("Avanti-bhūbriti"). It also describes the other neighbouring kingdoms leaving one in no doubt about its location. The 871 CE Sanjan copper-plate inscription of the Rashtrakuta ruler Amoghavarsha also suggests the association of the Gurjara-Pratiharas with Ujjain. Based on this, a number of historians, including R. C. Majumdar and Baij Nath Puri, hold the view that Ujjain, the capital of Avanti, was the original home of Nagabhata's dynasty.