The Great Empire of India

 

Blog#15

The Mauryan Empire

 

 

Abstracts:

               In the history of India, many significant empires evolved. One of those is the Mauryan Dynasty. Being one of the biggest and most powerful kingdoms in the Indian history, it was established by Chandragupta Maurya, with the help of Kautilya in 321 BCE. The throne of Magadha was seized by Chandragupta Maurya from the last Nanda Ruler, Dhanananda, who was defeated by the military of Chandragupta Maurya. The empire had got a very vast region, when its development was at its peak during Ashoka’s regime. The downfall of the empire started after the death of Ashoka in 232 BCE, and after about fifty years, the empire was disappeared from the land of Indian subcontinent.  

 

Introduction:

The Mauryan Empire was a massive and great kingdom ever established on the land of Bharatvarsh, with its capital as Patliputra (present day Patna). Chandragupta Maurya founded the empire in the fourth century BCE. He ascended to the throne after dethroning the last Nanda ruler, Dhanananda, at the age of about twenty. He was trained and supported by an elite guru named Chanakya also called Kautilya, and vishnugupta, a philosopher, guide, a great politician, scholar and author of the greatest ever book available on economics, politics, diplomacy and public administration system called “Arthshashtra” an associate epic of “Vedas”.

 

The Mauryan kings

 

Chandragupta Maurya:

               Chandragupta Maurya was the founder of the Mauryan Empire who deposed off the last Nanda ruler, Dhanananda to asend his throne. The is believed by the people that Dhanananda was strongly disliked by the people of his own kingdom, due to his greediness and ill treatment of his belongings. Once the then Nanda ruler Dhanananda insulted the scholar Chanakya and thrown him out of his court. Chanakya took this insult of a teacher and scholar by a king very serious and vowed to dethrone the immoral king to establish a king with ethics, morals and striving for the development of the people of the state. He started to find a deserving candidate for the purpose and eventually he found a young boy named Chandragupta, this young boy was wise, ambitious, brave and a good disciple, who was bore grudged against the Nandas. Chanakya accepted him as a disciple and groomed to conquer and replace the Nanda Rulers. Chanakya helped the boy Chandragupta to create an army and also taught him the tactics of war and diplomacy. During the initial stages, Chandragupta’s army had to suffer a long setback, but after a series of battle, they succeeded in conquering the Nanda capital, Patliputra (present day Patna). In 322 BCE, the Nanda dynasty fell and Chandragupta Maurya established his own empire, known as the Mauryan Empire.

               Chandragupta Maurya then set out to conquer one kingdom after the other. He became the powerful master of the western Punjab and Sindh (now in Pakistan) and controlled most of the northern India as far as the river Indus. In around 305 BCE, Chandragupta was attacked by Seleucus, one of the commanders of Alexander. The events of war between Chandragupta and Seleucus are uncertain. It is believed that Seleucus crossed the Indus and may have advanced towards the Ganga. When the war ended, the whole situation was in Chandragupta’s favour. Seleucus lost his claims over the eastern part of the Indus. They signed a treaty and Seleucus gave Kabul, Herat and Kandahar to Chandragupta. The treaty also ratified a marriage alliance and Seleucus gave his daughter, Helen, in marriage to Chandragupta. In return, he was given five hundred war elephants which played a major role in the Battle of Ipsus in 302 BCE.

Chandragupta Maurya then turned his attention towards the south and conquered almost the Indian Subcontinent, except Kalinga (now known as Odisha) in the eastern coastal region as well as the three kingdoms in the Southern Asia, the Cheras, the Cholas and the Pandyas. After ruling in his empire for about twenty-four years, Chandragupta Maurya handed over his kingdom to his son, Bindusara and adopted himself as a Jain Ascetic. He migrated towards the South region of today’s Karnataka and spent the remaining days of his life in a small cave.

 

Bindusara:

               Chandragupta was succeeded by his son, Bindusara. To the Greeks, Bindusara was known as Amitrochates, possibly the Greek translation of the Sanskrit name ‘Amitragatha’ meaning ‘the destroyer of foes’. Bindusara sent a campaign to the Deccan, extending the Mauryan Empire in the Peninsula to as far as Mysore. He is said to have conquered the land between the two seas, and probably could be the land between the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal.

At the time of Bindusara’s death around 272 BCE, practically the entire subcontinent had come under Mauryan Suzerainty (a dominion state controlling the external or foreign relations of its subordinate state but allowing it freedom in its internal matters). The extreme South was ready to submit, and thus, reducing the need of military conquests. Yet one area alone was hostile and unconquered, which was Kalinga on the Eastern coast. This was ahead dealt by Bindusara’s son Ashoka, who successfully conquered Kalinga.

 

Ashoka, the great

               Ashoka is known as the greatest of the Mauryan Dynasty. He ruled from about 268 BCE until his death, i.e. in 232 BCE. He was given the titles such as Devanampriya (beloved of the Gods) and Priyadarshi (the beautiful one) when he became the emperor. Legends say that Ashoka grew up to become a bold young man. He was extremely fond of hunting. At the early age he was not liked by the people even by his father as he was not handsome and his skin was very rough and untidy. This situation set him into a big depression and he started to hate the others. This nature of Ashoka was dominating even when he became the king. On a very simple mistakes he used to punish the people callously even to his female nurses and maids. Due to this ruthless and cruel behavior he was called Chand-Ashoka. Knowing this fact about him, His other brothers feared of Ashoka and convienced his father to post him as a war general in the distant frontiers of the Mauryan Empire. Ashoka proved himself to be a competent general putting down a rebellion in Taxila. Aware that his brothers viewed him as a rival for the throne, Ashoka went into exile for two years. Bindusara called his son Ashoka back after two years to help to suppress a revolt in Ujjain, where Ashoka got success. When Bindusara died around 272 BCE, a long two year war for succession continued between Ashoka and his brothers, in which Ashoka emerged victorious and became the third ruler of the Mauryan Dynasty.

 

The Kalinga War

The Kalinga war is one of the most significant wars in the history of India. Since its commencement, the Mauryan Empire was on a path of territorial expansion. Kalinga used to be under Magadha’s rule during the time of the Nandas, but it gained its independence during the Mauryan period of influence.  This was a matter of political prestige for the Mauryans. Ashoka faced tough resistance in the battle. According to the archaeological sources (Ashokan Edicts), one hundered and fifty thousand (one lakh and fifty thousand) people were imprisoned, one hundred thousand (one lakh) people were killed and suffering was extreme for the survivors. Ashoka won the war and captured Kalinga. However, he felt extreme guilty for the death and destruction caused by the war.

The war brought a great change in the personal as well as political life of Ashoka. As the result of the war;

§  Ashoka realized that the real conquest was not by sword but by the invasion of the heart. He came to believe that the victory by dharma was the only victory.

§  He vowed to give up the path of war and embrace the path of peace. He stopped hunting and eating meat.

§  Buddhism was declared as the religion of the state.

§  It is believed that the adoption of the policy of peace and led to the decline in the preparedness of the army for war. Later, this became a major weakness of the Mauryan Empire.

The empire saw the transformation of Ashoka from Chandasoka (Ashoka, the wicked one) to Dhammasoka (Ashoka, the righteous one) 

 

Ashoka’s Dhamma

Ashoka is known for the formulation of a code of conduct urging his subjects towards observing virtues such as respect for elders, following a path of non-violence and tolerance of each other’s beliefs and ideas. This code of conduct was known as the Dhamma. It was policy of dhamma to promote a harmonious relationship between the diverse elements of the empire. These are not just the teachings of Buddhism, but the noblest ideas of Humanism which form the essence of all religions.

Dhamma is the Prakrit equivalent of the Sanskrit word dharma, translated as religion in modern times. However, the term used in Ashokan edict has a broader connotation. The main features of the dhamma are as follows:

§  Dhamma was an ethical code aimed at building up an attitude of social responsibilities among people.

§  It emphasizes the quality of tolerance of people and of their religious beliefs.

§  It denounced all useless ceremonies and sacrifices held under the influence of superstition.

§  It emphasized non-violence and prohibited animal slaughter.

§  It also included measure of social welfare.

On his concept of dhamma, Ashoka laid stress on daya (compassion), dana (charity), suchita (purity), sadhuta (saintliness), samyama (self control) and satyam (truthfulness). Ashoka aspired for a harmonious environment where everyone could co-exist peacefully irrespective of his or her caste, creed and religion. 

Some of his ideals were to:

§  Shun war and spread peace,

§  Stop animal sacrifices,

§  Ensure obedience and respect for parents and elders,

§  Ensure masters were treating servants like humans, and

§  Promote vegetarianism.

 

The propagation of Dhamma

Ashoka took these measures for the propagation of Dhamma

§  For the purpose of permanently recording the doctrines of dhamma, Ashoka inscribed them on rocks and pillars.

§  He appointed a special class of officers called dhamma mahamatras for the propagation of dhamma and for promoting its practice throughout the kingdom.

§  He sent envoys as well as his son, Mahendra and daughter, Sanghamitra to propagate Buddhism in Ceylon (present Sri Lanka) and also in Western countries.

Emperor Ashoka ruled for about forty years. After his death, the Mauryan Dynasty lasted just for some another fifty years. He was one of the most significant moral reformers in the history of civilization and one of the pioneers of humanitarian values.

 

The Pan India Character of the Mauryan Empire

The Mauryan Empire, with Chandragupta Maurya coming to power, was not only vast but exhibited Pan Indian character. The empire rose to power after defeating the foreign invaders who were driven out of the country by Chandragupta Maurya. The empire of Ashoka extended from the Brahmaputra in the East to the Hindukush mountain ranges in the North-west and the Arabian Sea in the West. It extended from the Himalayas in the North to the Pennar River in the South, in north, some parts of Kashmir and Napal were under Ashoka’s empire whereas in north west It was spread up to the provinces of Kabul, Herat and Kandahar.

The chief advantages of this Pan Indian character were as follows:

§  It ended smaller independent states.

§  It established trade links with foreign countries and made India a power to reckon with and helped the Mauryan emperors to devote more energy and resources to the Social and Economic betterment of the people.

Thus, there was an all-round prosperity.

 

Conclusion:

               Decline of the great Mauryan Dynasty was approximately half a century after the demise of Ashoka, the great. The empire began to break down. By the mid second century BCE, the empire shrunk to its core areas with outlying provinces falling apart. The primary cause of the decline of the great Mauryan Empire was the successive weak rulers after the death of Ashoka named Dashratha Maurya, his grandson from 232 to 224 BCE. Mahindra, the son of ashoka did not ascend the throne after him as he became a Buddhist monk. After decline of the Maurya Empire the Shung Dynasty came into existence…

 

 

 

Total no. of words: 2000+

 

Sources of Data:

Wikipedia

Google and other websites

ICSE Ages and Events IX- Pearson

Other course materials