The dynasty appeared almost two centuries after the fall of the Sailendra dynasty that ruled Srivijaya, after the Chola invasion in 1025, led by Rajendra from Tamil Nadu, India. It seems that the family was once the member of the Srivijayan mandala and stepped into the power to rule the former Srivijayan mandala which included Sumatra and Malay Peninsula. The dynasty was based on the Batanghari river system, initially centered in Muaro Jambi, and considered as the successor state of Srivijaya. In the later period, the kingdom's capital shifted inland upstream from Batanghari to Dharmasraya, and later moved further inland to Pagaruyung in present-day West Sumatra province.