Class Notes Class: 6th Topic: Kingdoms, Kings and an Early Republic Subject: SOCIAL SCIENCE BRAINSTORM Case study: Magadha and Vajji Magadha From the sixth century BCE onwards, India's history was marked by struggles among the mahajanapadas. Eventually the kingdom of Magadha emerged as the most powerful. The name Magadha first appears in the Atharva Veda and later in the Yajur Veda. It came to prominence during the reign of Bimbisara who belonged to the Haryana dynasty. He expanded his kingdom by direct conquests and matrimonial alliances. Bimbisara was succeeded by his son Ajatashatru who also followed a policy of expansion. The rise of Magadha is also attributed to able rulers Bimbisara, Ajatashatru and Mahapadmananda. The earliest capital of Magadha was at Rajgir Later, in the fifth century BCE, the capital was shifted to Pataliputra. It was located on the confluence of Ganges, Gandak and Son. During these pre-industrial days armies could move north, west, south and east by following the courses of the rivers. This also means the people of Magadha had access to fertile agricultural lands. There was also an abundance of timber. People lived in wooden houses. Magadha was located in a geographically suitable position. It was situated near to the iron deposits. The ready availability of iron helped the Magadhan princes to equip themselves with weapons. Magadha enjoyed a special position in military organisation. It was the first state to use elephants in wars. Vajji Magadha was all along ruled by a dynasty. Not far from it was another mahajanapada called Vajji with its capital at Vaishali. Unlike Magadha, Vajji was a confederacy of the eight clans (atthakula). Each of the eight clans were independent and autonomous. Vajji was administered by a Vajji Sangha (Vajji confederation), which consisted of several janapadas, gramas (villages) and gosthas (groups). The eminent people were chosen from each khandas (districts) to represent them in the Vajji ganaparishad (people's council of Vajji). These representatives were called ganamukhyas. The chairman of the council was called ganapramukh (head of the state), but often he was addressed as the king, though his post was not dynastic. The other executives were mahabaladhrikrit (equivalent to the minister of internal security), binishchayamatya (chief justice), and dandadhikrit (other justices). This document is prepared at home. Q1. Read the above case study and Answer the following question i. Name the king who expanded his kingdom by direct conquests and matrimonial alliances. ii. The name Magadha first appeared in which Veda. iii. List the names of four Vedas. iv. Mention the name of the capital of Vajji Mahajanapadas. v. Give the literal meaning of term ‘atthakula ‘. Q2. Which of the following statements below is/are correct? i. Priests performed the rituals including the sprinkling of sacred water. ii. Usually, the tax was fixed at 1/6th of what was produced. This was known as bhaga or a share. iii. The word kammakaras used for slave men and women. iv. Raja composed later Vedic books. v. Shudras had to serve the other three groups and could not perform any rituals. vi. In Magadha elephants were captured and used in army. Q3. Fill in the blanks. i. ‘Rajas’ who let the ______________horse pass through their lands were invited to the sacrifice. ii. Archaeologists have found huts in the settlements of the______________. iii. Pots to store grain were made out of Painted________________. iv. Herders were also expected to pay taxes in the form of ____________and ________________. v. ______________were paid regular salaries and maintained by the king throughout the year. vi. Both the Buddha and Mahavira belonged to _________or____________. vii. Ajatasattru wanted to attack the _____________. This document is prepared at home. This document is prepared at home. .