UNIT 22 DISINTEGRATION of the EMPIRE Structure
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The Mauryan Empire - History Study Materials
The Mauryan Empire - History Study Materials THE MAURYAN EMPIRE (321-289 BC) In 322 BC, Chandragupta Maurya, the ruler of Seleucus, Alexander's successor in Persia, he Magadha, began to assert its authority over the undeiwent a treaty liberating the empire bam Greco- neighbouring kingdoms. Chandragupta (320-300 BC), Persian authority. It also assured him a respectful was the builder of the first Indian imperial power, the place in later Greek ond Roman histories. He used Mauryan Empire. He had his capital at Pataliputru, the administrative system established by the Nandas near Patna, in Bihar. fa his full advantage, and established dose and friendly relations with Babylon and the lands farther CHANDRAGUPTA MAURYA (320-300 west. He was acknowledged as a brilliant general BC) having an army of well over half a million soldiers. Chandragupta Maurya was the founder of the He was also a brilliant king, who united India, Mauryan Empire. He founded the dynasty by restricting himself in not going beyond the overthrowing the Nandas around 320 BC. There is no subcontinent. Pata'ipufra become a cosmopolitan clear account available about his early life. He was city of such a large proportion that Chandragupta born in Pataliputra, but was raised in the forest in the had to create a special section of municipal officials company of herdsmen and hunters. It was Chanakya to look after its welfare, and special courts were who spotted him and he was struck by his personality. established to meet its judicial needs. Chanakya trained and transformed him into one of the most powerful rulers of that era. -
Unit 17 the Mauryas*
India: 6th Century BCE to 200 BCE UNIT 17 THE MAURYAS* Structure 17.0 Objectives 17.1 Introduction 17.2 Historical Background 17.3 Distribution of Inscriptions 17.4 Dhamma 17.4.1 Causes 17.4.2 Contents of Dhamma 17.4.3 Ashoka’s Dhamma and the Mauryan State 17.4.4 Dhamma-Interpretations 17.5 Mauryan Art and Architecture 17.5.1 Examples of Mauryan Art 17.6 Disintegration of the Empire 17.6.1 Successors of Ashoka 17.6.2 Other Political Factors for Disintegration 17.6.3 Ashoka and his Policies 17.6.4 Economic Problems 17.7 Growth of Local Polities in Post-Mauryan Period 17.8 Summary 17.9 Key Words 17.10 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises 17.11 Suggested Readings 17.0 OBJECTIVES After reading this Unit, you will be able to learn about: the historical background to the formulation of the policy of Dhamma; Ashoka’s Dhamma, its main characteristics; role of Dhamma-mahamattas; main features of Mauryan art and architecture; and the various factors responsible for the decline of the Mauryas. 17.1 INTRODUCTION Many historians consider Ashoka as one of the greatest kings of the ancient world. His policy of Dhamma has been a topic of lively discussion among scholars. The word ‘Dhamma’ is the Prakrit form of the Sanskrit word ‘Dharma’. Dhamma has been variously translated as piety, moral life, righteousness and so on, but the best way to understand what Ashoka means by Dhamma is to read his edicts. The edicts were written primarily to explain to the people throughout the empire the principles of Dhamma. -
Pre-Proto-Iranians of Afghanistan As Initiators of Sakta Tantrism: on the Scythian/Saka Affiliation of the Dasas, Nuristanis and Magadhans
Iranica Antiqua, vol. XXXVII, 2002 PRE-PROTO-IRANIANS OF AFGHANISTAN AS INITIATORS OF SAKTA TANTRISM: ON THE SCYTHIAN/SAKA AFFILIATION OF THE DASAS, NURISTANIS AND MAGADHANS BY Asko PARPOLA (Helsinki) 1. Introduction 1.1 Preliminary notice Professor C. C. Lamberg-Karlovsky is a scholar striving at integrated understanding of wide-ranging historical processes, extending from Mesopotamia and Elam to Central Asia and the Indus Valley (cf. Lamberg- Karlovsky 1985; 1996) and even further, to the Altai. The present study has similar ambitions and deals with much the same area, although the approach is from the opposite direction, north to south. I am grateful to Dan Potts for the opportunity to present the paper in Karl's Festschrift. It extends and complements another recent essay of mine, ‘From the dialects of Old Indo-Aryan to Proto-Indo-Aryan and Proto-Iranian', to appear in a volume in the memory of Sir Harold Bailey (Parpola in press a). To com- pensate for that wider framework which otherwise would be missing here, the main conclusions are summarized (with some further elaboration) below in section 1.2. Some fundamental ideas elaborated here were presented for the first time in 1988 in a paper entitled ‘The coming of the Aryans to Iran and India and the cultural and ethnic identity of the Dasas’ (Parpola 1988). Briefly stated, I suggested that the fortresses of the inimical Dasas raided by ¤gvedic Aryans in the Indo-Iranian borderlands have an archaeological counterpart in the Bronze Age ‘temple-fort’ of Dashly-3 in northern Afghanistan, and that those fortresses were the venue of the autumnal festival of the protoform of Durga, the feline-escorted Hindu goddess of war and victory, who appears to be of ancient Near Eastern origin. -
Yonas and Yavanas in Indian Literature Yonas and Yavanas in Indian Literature
YONAS AND YAVANAS IN INDIAN LITERATURE YONAS AND YAVANAS IN INDIAN LITERATURE KLAUS KARTTUNEN Studia Orientalia 116 YONAS AND YAVANAS IN INDIAN LITERATURE KLAUS KARTTUNEN Helsinki 2015 Yonas and Yavanas in Indian Literature Klaus Karttunen Studia Orientalia, vol. 116 Copyright © 2015 by the Finnish Oriental Society Editor Lotta Aunio Co-Editor Sari Nieminen Advisory Editorial Board Axel Fleisch (African Studies) Jaakko Hämeen-Anttila (Arabic and Islamic Studies) Tapani Harviainen (Semitic Studies) Arvi Hurskainen (African Studies) Juha Janhunen (Altaic and East Asian Studies) Hannu Juusola (Middle Eastern and Semitic Studies) Klaus Karttunen (South Asian Studies) Kaj Öhrnberg (Arabic and Islamic Studies) Heikki Palva (Arabic Linguistics) Asko Parpola (South Asian Studies) Simo Parpola (Assyriology) Rein Raud (Japanese Studies) Saana Svärd (Assyriology) Jaana Toivari-Viitala (Egyptology) Typesetting Lotta Aunio ISSN 0039-3282 ISBN 978-951-9380-88-9 Juvenes Print – Suomen Yliopistopaino Oy Tampere 2015 CONTENTS PREFACE .......................................................................................................... XV PART I: REFERENCES IN TEXTS A. EPIC AND CLASSICAL SANSKRIT ..................................................................... 3 1. Epics ....................................................................................................................3 Mahābhārata .........................................................................................................3 Rāmāyaṇa ............................................................................................................25 -
Kanvas (73 BC – 28 BC) Cheti Dynasty (Kalinga) Satavahanas
Kanvas (73 BC – 28 BC) As per the puranas, there were four kings of the Kanva dynasty namely, Vasudeva, Bhumimitra, Narayana and Susarman. The Kanvas were Brahmins. The Magadha Empire had diminished by this time considerably. Northwest region was under the Greeks and parts of the Gangetic plains were under different rulers. The last Kanva king Susarman was killed by the Satavahana (Andhra) king. Cheti Dynasty (Kalinga) The Cheti or Chedi dynasty emerged in Kalinga in the 1st century BC. The Hathigumpha inscription situated near Bhubaneswar gives information about it. This inscription was engraved by king Kharavela who was the third Cheti king. Kharavela was a follower of Jainism. Other names of this dynasty are Cheta or Chetavamsa, and Mahameghavahana. Satavahanas The Satavahana rule is believed to have started around the third century BC, in 235 BC and lasted until the second century AD. Some experts believe their rule started in the first century BC only. They are referred to as Andhras in the Puranas. The Satavahana kingdom chiefly comprised of modern-day Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Maharashtra. At times, their rule also included parts of Karnataka, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. Their capital cities varied at different times. Pratishthana (Paithan) and Amaravati were its capitals. Simuka founded the dynasty. They were the first native Indian rulers to issue their own coins with the portraits of the rulers. This practice was started by Gautamiputra Satakarni who derived the practice from the Western Satraps after defeating them. The coin legends were in Prakrit language. Some reverse coin legends are in Telugu, Tamil and Kannada. -
Early Career and Different Achievements of Asoka
International Journal of Research in Social Sciences Vol. 7 Issue 9, September 2017, ISSN: 2249-2496 Impact Factor: 7.081 Journal Homepage: http://www.ijmra.us, Email: [email protected] Double-Blind Peer Reviewed Refereed Open Access International Journal - Included in the International Serial Directories Indexed & Listed at: Ulrich's Periodicals Directory ©, U.S.A., Open J-Gage as well as in Cabell’s Directories of Publishing Opportunities, U.S.A Early career and different achievements of Asoka Manoj Malakar* Abstract Asoka was the greatest emperor in Mauriyan dynesty. He was a great patronage of Buddhism and art and architecture. This paper tries to high light about the early life and career of the great Mauryan emperor Asoka. There was lot of great emperor in Indian history, who wrote their name in golden letter in history and Asoka also one of among these rulers. Some different prominent writer had analysis about Asoka’s life and career. This paper tries to analyses how he (Asoka) began his career and got achievements during his region. This paper also tries to highlight Asoka’s Dhamma and his patronage of art and architecture during his region. This paper also tries to discuss Asoka’s patronage of Buddhism. He sent his own son and girl to Sri Lanka to spread Buddhism. Keywords: Career, Buddha Dhamma, Art and Architecture, Inscription. * Assistant Teacher & Faculty K.K.H.S.O.U. (Malaybari junior college study centre). 624 International Journal of Research in Social Sciences http://www.ijmra.us, Email: [email protected] ISSN: 2249-2496 Impact Factor: 7.081 Introduction Asoka was one of the greatest kings of India. -
History of India
HISTORY OF INDIA VOLUME - 2 History of India Edited by A. V. Williams Jackson, Ph.D., LL.D., Professor of Indo-Iranian Languages in Columbia University Volume 2 – From the Sixth Century B.C. to the Mohammedan Conquest, Including the Invasion of Alexander the Great By: Vincent A. Smith, M.A., M.R.A.S., F.R.N.S. Late of the Indian Civil Service, Author of “Asoka, the Buddhist Emperor of India” 1906 Reproduced by Sani H. Panhwar (2018) Preface by the Editor This volume covers the interesting period from the century in which Buddha appeared down to the first centuries after the Mohammedans entered India, or, roughly speaking, from 600 B.C. to 1200 A.D. During this long era India, now Aryanized, was brought into closer contact with the outer world. The invasion of Alexander the Great gave her at least a touch of the West; the spread of Buddhism and the growth of trade created new relations with China and Central Asia; and, toward the close of the period, the great movements which had their origin in Arabia brought her under the influences which affected the East historically after the rise of Islam. In no previous work will the reader find so thorough and so comprehensive a description as Mr. Vincent Smith has given of Alexander’s inroad into India and of his exploits which stirred, even if they did not deeply move, the soul of India; nor has there existed hitherto so full an account of the great rulers, Chandragupta, Asoka, and Harsha, each of whom made famous the age in which he lived. -
600 Bc-325 Bc)
Mahajanapada Period (600 BC-325 BC) S. No 16 Mahajanapadas Capital Anga (districts of Munger and 1. Champa / Champanagari Bhagalpur in Bihar) Girivraj, Rajgriha / Rajgir Magadha (districts of Patna, (Bimbisara), Patliputra (Udayin), 2. Gaya and Nalanda in Bihar) Vaishali (Shishunaga), Patliputra (Kalashok) Vajji (districts of Muzaffarpur & 3. Videha, Mithila, Vaishali Vaishali in Bihar) Malla (districts of Deoria, Basti, 4. Gorakhpur and Siddharthnagar Kuishinara and Pawa in U.P.) Kashi (district of Varanasi in 5. Varanasi U.P.) North Kosal-Sravasti / Sahet- Kosala (districts of Faizabad, 6. Mahet South Kosal-Saket/ Gonda, Bahraich in U.P.) Ayodhya Vatsa (districts of Allahabad, 7. Kausambi Mirzapuretc. in U.P.) 8. Chedi (Bundelkhand area) Shaktimati / Sotthivati 9. Kuru (Haryana and Delhi area) Indraprastha (modem Delhi) Panchala (Ruhelkhand, North Panchal-Ahichhatra South 10. Western U.P.) Panchal – Kampilya 11. Shurasena (Brajmandal) Mathura Matsya (Alwar, Bharatpur and 12. Viratnagar Jaipur in Rajasthan) North Avanti - Ujjayini South Avanti 13. Avanti (Malwa) – Mahishmati Ashmaka (between the rivers 14. Potana / Patali Narmada and Godavari) Gandhara (western part of Taxila (hear Rawalpindi, Pakistan) 15. Pakistan and Afghanistan) and Pushkalavati Kamboja (Hazara district of 16. Rajapur / Hataka Pakistan) 1. Buddhist literature (Anguttara Nikaya, Mahavastu) and Jain literature (Bhagavati Sutta) present a list of 16 Mahajanapadas with minor variation of names. 2. There were two types of states - monarchical and non-monarchical / republican. Monarchial states - Anga, Magadha, Kashi, Kosala, Vatsa, Chedi, Shursena, Matsya, Avanti, Gandhara. Republican States—Vajji, Malla, Kuru, Panchal, Kamboja, Shakya (Kapilvastu), Koliyas (Ramgrama), Moriya (Pipplivana). Rise of Magadha 1. The political history of India from 6th century BC onwards is the history of struggle between four states - Magadha, Kosala, Vatsa and Avanti - for supremacy. -
Copper Parchment & Stone
COPPER PARCHMENT & STONE Edited by John Reuben Davies & Swapna Bhattacharya Copper, Parchment, and Stone Studies in the sources for landholding and lordship in early medieval Bengal and medieval Scotland edited by John Reuben Davies and Swapna Bhattacharya University of Glasgow Ionad Eòlas na h-Alba is na Ceiltis| Centre for Scottish and Celtic Studies GLASGOW 2019 © The Contributors 2019 All rights reserved The moral rights of the authors have been asserted ISBN-10: 085261957X ISBN-13: 9780852619575 Published by Centre for Scottish and Celtic Studies, University of Glasgow, 1 University Gardens, Glasgow, G12 8QQ Contibutors Swapna Bhattacharya Professor, Department of South and South East Asian History, University of Calcutta (retired 2017) Dauvit Broun Professor of Scottish History, School of Humanities, University of Glasgow John Reuben Davies Research Fellow in Scottish History, School of Humanities, University of Glasgow Suchandra Ghosh Professor, Department of Ancient Indian History and Culture, University of Calcutta Sayantani Pal Associate Professor, Department of Ancient Indian History and Culture, University of Calcutta Rajat Sanyal Assistant Professor, Department of Archaeology, University of Calcutta Joanna Tucker Arts and Humanities Innovation Researcher (History), School of Humanities, University of Glasgow Contents Foreword 1 I Comparative diplomatic in the Latin West and early medieval Bengal: a brief overview Swapna Bhattacharya 15 II The forms and format of the copper-plate inscriptions of early Bengal Sayantani Pal 53 III The development of the charter in Scotland John Reuben Davies 69 IV Boundary clauses in Bengal inscriptions: revisiting sources Rajat Sanyal & Suchandra Ghosh 99 V Recording boundaries in Scottish charters in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries Joanna Tucker 151 VI Praśastis or panegyrics in early India: case studies from Bengal Suchandra Ghosh & Sayantani Pal 193 VII The genealogy of the king of Scots as charter and panegyric Dauvit Broun 209 Foreword When I was at sea last August, on my voyage to this country .. -
Cultural History of Indian Subcontinent; with Special Reference to Arts and Music
1 Cultural History of Indian subcontinent; with special reference to Arts and Music Author Raazia Hassan Naqvi Lecturer Department of Social Work (DSW) University of the Punjab, www.pu.edu.pk Lahore, Pakistan. Co-Author Muhammad Ibrar Mohmand Lecturer Department of Social Work (DSW) Institute of Social Work, Sociology and Gender Studies (ISSG) University of Peshawar, www.upesh.edu.pk Peshawar, Pakistan. 2 Introduction Before partition in 1947, the Indian subcontinent includes Pakistan, India and Bangladesh; today, the three independent countries and nations. This Indian Subcontinent has a history of some five millennium years and was spread over the area of one and a half millions of square miles (Swarup, 1968). The region is rich in natural as well as physical beauty. It has mountains, plains, forests, deserts, lakes, hills, and rivers with different climate and seasons throughout the year. This natural beauty has deep influence on the culture and life style of the people of the region. This land has been an object of invasion either from the route of mountains or the sea, bringing with it the new masses and ideas and assimilating and changing the culture of the people. The invaders were the Aryans, the Dravidians, the Parthians, the Greeks, the Sakas, the Kushans, the Huns, the Turks, the Afghans, and the Mongols (Singh, 2008) who all brought their unique cultures with them and the amalgamation gave rise to a new Indian Cilvilization. Indus Valley Civilization or Pre-Vedic Period The history of Indian subcontinent starts with the Indus Valley Civilization and the coming of Aryans both are known as Pre-Vedic and Vedic periods. -
Satavahana - Post Mauryan Period [Ancient Indian History Notes for UPSC]
UPSC Civil Services Examination UPSC Notes [GS-I] Topic: Satavahana - Post Mauryan Period [Ancient Indian History Notes for UPSC] The Sunga dynasty came to an end in around 73 BC when their ruler Devabhuti was killed by Vasudeva Kanva. The Kanva dynasty then ruled over Magadha for about 45 years. Around this time, another powerful dynasty, the Satavahanas came to power in the Deccan area. The term “Satvahana” originated from the Prakrit which means ” driven by seven” which is an implication of the Sun God’s chariot that is driven by seven horses as per the Hindu mythology. Origin & Development of Satvahana dynasty The first king of the Satvahana dynasty was Simuka. Before the emergence of the Satvahana dynasty, a brief history of the other dynasties are mentioned below: Kanvas (73 BC – 28 BC) As per the Puranas, there were four kings of the Kanva dynasty namely, Vasudeva, Bhumimitra, Narayana and Susarman. The Kanvas were Brahmins. The Magadha Empire had diminished by this time considerably. Northwest region was under the Greeks and parts of the Gangetic plains were under different rulers. The last Kanva king Susarman was killed by the Satavahana (Andhra) king. Cheti Dynasty The Cheti or Chedi dynasty emerged in Kalinga in the 1st century BC. The Hathigumpha inscription situated near Bhubaneswar gives information about it. This inscription was engraved by king Kharavela who was the third Cheti king. Kharavela was a follower of Jainism. Other names of this dynasty are Cheta or Chetavamsa, and Mahameghavahana.[/su_box] Satavahanas The Satavahana rule is believed to have started around the third century BC, in 235 BC and lasted until the second century AD. -
Jainism in Medieval India (1300-1800) Prologue
JAINISM IN MEDIEVAL INDIA (1300-1800) PROLOGUE - English Translation by S.M. Pahedia It is essential to weigh the contemporary social and political background while considering the conditions and thriving of Jainism in mediaeval India. During this period, Indian society was traditionally divided into Hindu and Jain religion. Buddhism had well-nigh disappeared from Indian scenario. The Indian socio-cultural infrastructure faced sufficient change owing to the influence of Islam that infiltrated into India through the medium of the Arab, the Turk, the Mughal and the Afghan attacks. Though the new entrants too were by and large divided into Sunni, Shiya and Sufi sects, they were all bound firmly to Islam. Ofcourse, Islam brought in new life-values and life-styles in Indian life owing to which the inevitability for reconsidering the shape of social structure and traditional-philosophico facets was felt, perhaps very badly. And this very condition caused rise of some new sects like Bhakti, Saint and Sikh invigorated primarily by the Vedantist, Ramanuja, Madhav, Nimbark, Ramanand Chaitanya, Vallabha etc. With this cultural background, centuries old Digambara and Shavetambara amnay (tradition) was telling its own separate tale. Fore more than one reason, these branches were further divided into sects, sub-sects, ganas , gachchas , anvayas , sanghas & C. as time rolled by. Same way, Bhattaraka, Chaityavasi, Taranpanth, Sthanakvasi practices came into view introducing their own religious formalities, life-fashions, code of conduct, and to some extent the philosophical views. Such being the condition, Jainism of medioeval India witnessed its wide extension. At the same time, it met with certain difficulty also.