Abstract:  The Rājataraṅgiṇī (12th century CE) by Kalhaṇa is one of the earliest sophisticated historical chronicles in Sanskrit literature. It gives an account of a sweeping political, cultural, and religious evolution of Kashmir, far beyond a mere record of rulers and events. Kalhaṇa weaves a cyclical vision in which kingship is judged through ethical lenses, and the dynasties that he records rise and fall according to their observance of dharma. This paper traces the history of Kashmir as reflected in the Rājataraṅgiṇī, mythic origins, and all. It examines what Kalhaṇa tells about recorded history, periods of prosperity and decline, external forces impacting the sovereign and subjugated, and his own philosophy of time and power. Reconstructing the Rājataraṅgiṇī serves double duty: as both a method of writing history with moral reflection and as a way of understanding human ambition in Kashmir.