Short Notes on Mauryan Dynasty

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First Empire

1. The Mauryan Empire was the first major empire in the history of India, ruled by Mauryan Dynasty from 321BC. to 185 BCE.
2. Chandragupta Maurya was the founder of this dynasty. Other important rulers were his son Bindusara & Bindusara’s son Asoka.
3. Mauryan Empire was one of the largest empires to rule the Indian subcontinent. It stretched to the natural boundaries of Himalayas & to the east stretching into what is now Assam. To the west, it stretched beyond modern Pakistan, annexing Baluchistan, including heart & Kandhar provinces. 
4. Most of our knowledge about the Maunyan period, in general & the rule of Chandragupta is obtained from 2 sources (literary)

• Arthashastra written by Chanakya
• Indica, written by the ancient Greek writer Megasthenes.

1. The Arthashastra talks about the principles of governance & lays dawn the rules of administration. 
2. The Indica of Megasthenes, on the other hand, gives vivid description of the ‘Mauryan Society. Megasthenes described the glory of Maurjan capital Pataliputra, & talked about the lifestyle in the lilies & villages & the prosperities of the Mauryan lilies. 
3. Chandragupta had united the whole of N. India under one rule. Thus Mauryan Empire was the first large, powerful, centralized state in India. 
4. During Chandragupta’s reign, the state regulated trade, levied taxes & standardized weights & measures. Trade & commerce also flourished. King was the head of the centralized administrative system & was ably assisted by the council of ministers. 
5. Chandragupta Maurya becomes the first monarch to initiate as religious transformation at tightest level, when he embraced Jainism. However Bindusara, his son, preserved Hindu traditions while Asoka embraced Buddhism.
6.  The Mauryans implemented a common economic system & enhanced trade & commerce with increased agricultural productivity under the suidance of chanakya.
7.  An international network of trade expanded during Asoka’s reign under the Indo-Greek treaty. Like the kyber pass (on the boundary Pakistan & Afghanistan) became inp. Part of trade & commerce. Greek states & Hellenic kingdoms in W. Asia became trade partners of India. Trade also extended through the Malay Penisula to S.E. Asia. India’s export included silk goods & textiles, spices & exolic food, gold & precious stones.
8. Ashoka sponsored the construction of roads, waterways, canals, hospitals, rest houses & other public works.
9.  Asoka was the most famous Mauryan ruler, who tried to take his message to the people through the inscriptions. Most of the inscriptions were in Prakrit & were written in Brahmi script.
10.  The war of kalinga was a turning point in Asoka’s life. The large scale carnage moved Asoka & he embraced. Buddhism, shunning all farms of vidence. He is the only king to give up conquest after winning a war.
11.  He believed in high ideals, which according to him could lead people to be virtuous & peace loving. This he called “Dhamma” (Prakrit form of Sanskrit word Dharma). His rock edicts & pillar inscriptions propagate the true essence of Dhamma.

Asoka asked the different religious groups (Brahmins, Buddhists & Jains (to live in peace. His lofty ideals included

• Shunning violence & was
• Stopping animal sacrifice
• Respect for elders
• Respect of staves by their masters
• Vegetarism  

1. Asoka sent edicts to different parts of the Empire, where they were engraved on rocks & pillars for common man to see tread. 
2. Asoka sent his son Mahendra to Srilanka to propagate Buddhism. He propagated Buddhims to Chola & Pandya Kingdoms in the southern part of India & then Buddhist missions to Burma & S.E. Asia too. 
3. Asoka introduced a new cadre of officials – Dhamma Mahamatta, who was sent across the empire to spread the message of Asoka’s Dhamma.

 Important Facts:

3 most imp. Cities of Mauryan period

1. Pataliputra
2. Taxila
3. Ujjain

• Before ascending the throne Asoka served as a viceroy of Taxila. 
• Taxes & tributes were collected by the Mauryan officials. Taxes were collected on regular basis from farmers, herders, craftsmen & tracers. Tributes were collected as an when it was possible from people who gave a variety of thins, more or less willingly. exmaple
• Elephant, timber, honey & wax was collected from forested region of C. India.
• Gold & precious stones from S. India.
• Blankets from N.W. India.

The Mauryan Empire collapsed about 2200 yrs. ago.

1. They were followed by the Indo-Greek rulers for 100 yrs. in the N.W., & parts of N. India.
2. The, the Central Asian people known as the Sakas set up kingdoms in N.W., North & Western India. Saka Kingdom lasted for about 500 yrs.
3. Shakas fought several battles with Satavahanas who ruled over western & parts of central India. The Satuahanas who established about 2100 yrs. ago lasted for 400 yrs. around 1700 years ago, a new rulings family known as the Vakatakas became powerful in Central & western India.
4. In the north & parts of C. India, Pushya Mitra Sugna, a general of Mauryas set up a kingdom. They were followed by Kanvas & by rolers of other families till the establishment of Gupta Empire about 1700 yrs. ago.