Mahajanpadas || UPSC.

Map Showing Mahajanapadas | Image via Wikimedia Commons

Mahajanapadas were 16 kingdoms or oligarchic republics that existed in ancient India. 2 of them were most probably republics and others had forms of monarchy. Ancient Buddhist text like Anguttara Nikaya make frequent reference to them. Jain literature Bhagavati Sutra also mentions 16 great states.

Mahajanpada	Capital
Kasi	Benaras.
Kosala	Capital was Shravasti. Modern day Awadh in UP. Prasenjit was an important ruler and was contemporary of Gautam Buddha. Later defeated and merged in Magadh empire.
Anga	Champa (munger and Bhagalpur).
Magadha	Initially Rajgriha/Girivraja. Later shifted to Pataliputra by Bimbsara.
Vajji/Vriji	Vaishali.
Chedi/Cheti	Suktimati/Sotthvati(Banda, UP)
Vatsa	Kausambi.
Kuru	Indraprashta/Hastinapur/Isukara.
Panchala	Ahichhtra(western Panchal) and Kampilya(eastern Panchal, modern day Farukhabad).
Matysa	Viratnagar(Jaipur, Rajasthan)
Surasena	Mathura.
Assaka	Potali(Godavari).
Avanti	Ujjain and Mahismati.
Gandhara	Taxila.
Kamboja	Rajpur(Kashmir).
Malla	Kushinagar,Pava.

Magadha : 

Dynasty	Rulers	Notes
Haryanka(544-412 BCE)	Bimbisara-- Ajatshatru--Udayin--Anuruddha--Munda--Nagadasaka.	Bimbisara married the sister of Prasenjit of Kosala and gained a part of Kashi as dowry in the marriage. Ajatshatru followed a more aggressive policy, gained a complete control over Kashi and broke the earlier amicable relations with his maternal uncle Prasenjit of Kosala. Udayin founded Pataliputra (at confluence of Ganga, Gandhaka and son; it formed jal durga). Succeeded the  mythological Barhadratha dynasty. The famous historical physician Jivaka, contemporary of Lord Buddha was related to the court of Bimbisara.
Shishunaga Dynasty(413- 345 BCE)	Shishunaga --> Kalashoka--Intermediate Kings>Mahanandin.	Second Buddhist Council by Kalashoka.
Nanda(344- 323 BCE )	Mahapadma Nanda/Ugrasen (Shudra) --> intermediate rulers -- > Dhana.	Hathigumpha inscription  of Kharvel gives evidence of King Nand. According to this inscription, King Nand built a canal at Kalinga. Mahapadmananda was also called Sarvakshatrantaka ( uprooter of all Kshatriyas) and  Aparoparashurama.
Mauryan(323-184 BCE)	Chandragupta-->Bindusara-->Asoka--> intermediate rulers -->Brihadratha.	Chandra Gupta Maurya embraced Jainism on retiring. While Bindusara was follower of Ajivika sect. William Jones was first scholar who identified Sandrokottas as Chandragupta Maurya.  Greek authors mentioned Bindusara as Amitrachates(Amitrghat).
Shunga (184- 75 BCE)	Pushyamitra Sunga -- .Agnimitra (hero of Kalidas's dramas)  --> intermediate kings---> Devabhuti.       (total 10 kings).	Was a brahmin dynasty.  Empire rapidly disintegrated after Agnimitra.  Pushyamitra is said to have persecuted Buddhists. Last king Devabhuti was assassinated by his minister Vasudev Kanva who founded the Kanva dynasty.  Contributions to art and architecture include Bharhut stupa, Sanchi stupa . Patanjali's Mahabhasya was written during this period. Ayodhaya inscription of Dhana provides details about the empire.  Heliodorus Pillar is a stone column erected in 113 BCE in Vidisha/Besnagar, by Heliodorus, an Indo-Greek ambassador of the Indo-Greek King Antialcidas of Taxila to the court of Shunga king Bhagabhadra. The pillar was surmounted by a sculpture of Garuda and was dedicated by Heliodorus to god Vasudeva. It is one of the earliest known inscription related to Vaishnavism in India.

Mauryan Dynasty : 

The Saptang theory of state was introduced in Arthashastra, which includes 7 elements of state - King(swami), Minister(amatya), Territory(janpada), Fort(durg), Treasury(kosa), Army(bal) and allies(mitra).

  

The Sohgaura Copper Plate, of Mauryan period is the oldest Indian copper plate inscription known. Sohgaura is village on the banks of Rapti river in the Gorakhpur district of UP. It consists of a line of symbolic drawings and 4 lines of text. The text mentions the establishment of 2 grain depots to fight against famine. 

Chandragupta Maurya

Conquered Deccan, Malwa, Gujrat and Maharastra. Defeated Seleucus Nikator, administrator of Sindh and Afghanistan. Junagarh/Girnar rock inscription of Rudradaman prove his sway over western India. The inscription also describes the work of Chandragupta and Asoka on the Sudarshan lake. Chandragupta built a dam and Asoka took out canals from the lake. Around 150 AD , the lake was repaired by Rudradaman. Megasthenes visited his court. In his book Indica, he has divided India into 7 categories - Philosophers, farmers, herdsmen, artisans,soldiers, spies and assessors.

Asoka

Built first hospital and herbal garden in India. Visited Bodhgaya-->Kushinagar-->Lumbini-->Kapilvastu-->Sarnath and Shravasti as a part of pilgrimage after accepting Buddhism. Rummindei Pillar was put up to mark birth of Buddha. Established Rajdharma on triplex bases of longanimity, liberty and compassion.

Arthashastra : 

It is an ancient Indian treatise on statecraft, economic policy and military strategy, written in Sanskrit. It disappeared in 12th century and was rediscovered in 1905 by R. Shamasastry. It is divided into 15 books, 150 chapters and 180 topics. Some of the important contents of the text are : 

• There are 4 necessary fields of knowledge - the Vedas, the Anvikshaki ( philosophy of Samkhya, Yoga and Lokayata), the science of government and the science of economics.
• Describes the nature/virtues of Rajan/King.
• Describes the process for the selection of ministers.
• Explains causes for the lack of motivation and disaffection among the people. 
• Explains the civil, criminal and marriage laws- explains the types of marriages and conditions for remarriage. 
• Calls for protection of forests and wildlife. 
• Provides details of war, peace, spying, propaganda and information. 
• Discusses a mixed economy. It stipulates fair tax and also calls for restraint on taxes. 

Edicts of Asoka : 

Edicts of Asoka are dispersed through India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nepal. According to edicts, extent of Buddhist proselytism reached as far as Mediterranean. The identification of Devanampiya with Asoka was confirmed by an inscription discovered in 1915 by C. Beadon, at Maski, in Raichur district of Karnataka. Another minor rock edict found at village Gujjara in Datia district of Madhya Pradesh also used the name of Asoka with his title : Devanampiya Piyadasi Asokaraja. The edicts were mostly written in Brahmi and Kharoshti script. The edicts are divided into 4 categories - according to their size (minor or major) and according to their medium( rocks and pillars). 

      Minor Rock Edicts :  are rock inscriptions which form the earliest part of Edicts of Asoka. There is variation in  contents but a common designation is usually used. The Kandhahar bilingual Rock Inscription is also sometimes  considered as one of several minor rock edicts. It is the very first known inscription of Asoka and was discovered in 1958. It is in Greek and Armaic languages. 

     Major Rock Edicts : refer to 14 separate major edicts of Asoka which are significantly detailed. 3  languages - Prakrit, Greek and Armaic and 4 scripts were used. 

Major Rock Edict 1	Bans animal slaughter.
Major Rock Edict 2	Provides for care of animals and man.
Major Rock Edict 3	Generosity to Brahmins; rules of morality and their implementation through civil servants.
Major Rock Edict 4	Impact of Dhamma on society.
Major Rock Edict 5	Concerns about policy towards slaves.
Major Rock Edict 6	King's desire to get informed about the conditions of the people constantly.
Major Rock Edict 7	Tolerance for all religions.
Major Rock Edict 8	Describes Asoka's first Dhamma yatra to Bodhgaya and Bodhi tree.
Major Rock Edict 9	Condemns popular ceremonies.
Major Rock Edict 10	Condemns desire for fame and glory.
Major Rock Edict 11	Elaborates Dhamma major.
Major Rock Edict 12	Request for tolerance among all religions.
Major Rock Edict 13	Largest inscription from the edicts.  Kalinga war description Provides information about his relations with 5 Yavana kings namely - Antioch of Syria(Antiochus II of Syria) , Turmaya/Ptolemy of Egypt, Antakini/Anikini of Macedonia, Mag/Megaras of Cyrene and Alik Sundar/Aliero Sentro of Epirus.
Major Rock Edict 14	Describes engraving of inscriptions in different part of the country.

Asokan Pillars :  

Are a series of columns dispersed throughout the Indian subcontinent, erected or at least inscribed by edicts of King Asoka. Of the pillars erected, 20 still survive including those with inscriptions of his edicts. Only a few with animal capitals survive of which 7 complete specimen are known. 2 pillars were relocated by Firuz Shah Tughluq to Delhi. Most of them had the characteristic Mauryan Polish. 

Delhi- Topra, Firoz Shah Kotla	Moved from Topra Kalan in Yamunanagar in Haryana to Delhi by Firoz Shah Tughluq.
Delhi -Meerut	Moved from Meerut to Delhi by Firoz Shah Tughluq.
Nigali Sagar ,Lumbini, Nepal
Rummindei,Lumbini, Nepal	To commemorate Asoka's visit to Lumbini.
Allahabad Pillar	Also known as Prayag Prashasti. Is an Ashokan pillar but contains 4 different inscriptions. Queen edict regaling charitable deeds of his wife; Samudragupta inscriptions ; Jahangir's inscription.
Rampurva,Champaran
Sanchi, Bhopal
Sarnath, Varanasi	Famous Lion Capital of Asoka.
Lauriya-Nandangarh, Champaran
Lauriya-Araraj, Champaran
Vaishali, Bihar

Minor Pillar Edicts : refers to 5 separate edicts of Asoka inscribed on columns.

The Schism Edicts	Asoka's injunction against schism in Sangha. Found on the Sarnath, Sanchi and Allahabad pillars.
The Queen's Edicts	Asoka announces that the queen should be credit for her gifts. Found on the Allahabad pillar.
The Rummindei Edict	Records the visit of Asoka to Lumbini, birthplace of Buddha.
The Nigali Sagar Edict	Asoka mentions his dedication for the enlargement of the Stupa dedicated to the Kanakamuni Buddha.

Major Pillar Edicts : refer to 7 separate edicts of Asoka inscribed on columns - Pillars of Asoka. Many pillars of Asoka -such as bull pillar of Rampurva and pillars of Vaishali - do not have any inscriptions. Only one language is used - Prakrit in Brahmi script.

Major Pillar Edict 1	Asoka's principle of protection of the people.
Major Pillar Edict 2	Defines dhamma as a minimum of sins, many virtues, compassion, liberality, truthfulness and purity.
Major Pillar Edict 3	Abolishes sins of harshness, cruelty, anger, pride.
Major Pillar Edict 4	Deals with duties of Rajukas.
Major Pillar Edict 5	List of birds and animals which should not be killed on some days and another list of animals which have not to be killed at all occasions.
Major Pillar Edict 6	Dhamma Policy.
Major Pillar Edict 7	Works done by Asoka for Dhamma Policy.