THE MAURYAN EMPIRE (322 -185 BC)
Chandragupta Maurya (322-298 BC)
In 322 BC: Chandragupta Maurya captured Magadha after overthrowing NANDAS
with the aid of Chanakya (Kautilya), who is also known as the Indian Machiavelli
and established THE MAURYAN EMPIRE. Alexander's invasion prompted
Indians to develop a centralised state.Chandragupta declared war and defeated
Selucus Nicator,the Macedonian ruler of the Northwestern territories captured
by Alexander the Great.Along with the the astute advice of Chanakya,
Chandragupta also seized Punjab, Kabul, Khandahar, Gandhara and Persia from
Selucas.
The most important result of this treaty was that Chandragupta's fame spread
far and wide and his empire was recognised as a great power in the western
countries.
Mauryan Administration
Mauryan empire was the first really large and powerful centralised state in India.
It was very well governed, with tempered autocracy at the top and democracy
at the city and village levels.Megasthenes,the Greek ambassador at the court
of Chandragupta Maurya in Pataliputra, had expressed his admiration for the
efficient administration of the empire. His book 'Indica' is a collection of
comments of other Roman Greek travelers, and Megasthenes wrote about the
prosperity of the Mauryan cities.He further reported that agriculture was healthy,
water abundant and mineral wealth was in plenty. Speaking of the general
prosperity,Megasthenes wrote, "the Indians, dressed in bright and rich colors,
they liberally used ornaments and gems." He also spoke of the division of society
according to occupation and the large number of religious sects and foreigners
in the empire.
Bindusara
Chandragupta Maurya's son Bindusara became the new Mauryan Emperor by
inheriting an empire including the Hindukush, Narmada, Vindhyas,Mysore, Bihar,
Bengal, Orissa, Assam, Baluchistan and Afghanistan.
Reign of Bindusara (298 BC - 273 BC)
After ruling for about twenty five years, Chandragupta left his throne to his son
Bindusara and became a Jain ascetic. Bindusara inherited an empire including the
Hindukush, Narmada, Vindhyas, Mysore, Bihar, Bengal, Orissa, Assam, Baluchistan
and Afghanistan.Bindusara extended his empire further as far south as Mysore.
He conquered sixteen states and extended the empire from sea to sea.
The empire included the whole of India except the region of Kalinga
(modern Orissa) and the Dravidian kingdoms of the south. The Dravidian
kingdoms of the Cholas, Pandyas and Cheras were very friendly with the Mauryan
empire and so the king felt no need to conquer them. However, Kalinga was not
friendly with the Mauryans and so a war was fought between the people of
Kalinga and Mauryans led by Bindusara's son Ashoka. Administration during
Bindusara's Reign Bindusara maintained good relations with Selucus Nicator and
the emperors regularly exchanged ambassadors and presents. He also maintained
the friendly relations with the Hellenic West established by his father.
Ambassadors from Syria and Egypt lived at Bindusara's court. He preferred the
Ajivika philosophy rather than Jainism.
Asoka (273 BC - 232 BC)
Ashoka, the most trusted son of Bindusara and the grandson of Chandragupta
Maurya, was a brave soldier. He was the most famous of the Mauryan kings and
was one of the greatest rulers of India.During his father's reign, he was the
governor of Ujjain and Taxila. Having sidelined all claims to the throne from his
brothers, Ashoka was coronated as an emperor. Ashoka extended the Maurya
Empire to the whole of India except the deep south and the south-east,
reaching out even into Central Asia.
261 BC: The Kalinga War Ashoka succeeded in conquering Kalinga after a bloody
war in which 100,000 men were killed, 150,000 injured and thousands were
captured and retained as slaves.The sight of the slaughter involved in his
conquest deeply distressed Ashoka and deeply affected his mind. This was a
turning point in his life. He renounced war and sought peace in Buddha's
preachings of love and ahimsa (non-violence). The war also developed in him a
hatred for all kinds of violence. So he gave up hunting and slaughtering of animals.
He became a strict vegetarian.Under his reign Buddhism spread to Syria,Egypt,
Macedonia, Central Asia,Burma. For propagation of Buddhism, he started
inscribing edicts on rocks and pillars at places where people could easily read
them.These pillars and rocks are still found in India, spreading their message of
love and peace for the last two thousand years. To his ideas he gave the name
Dharma Ashoka died in 232 BC. The capital of Ashoka pillar at Sarnath is adopted
by India as its national emblem. The "Dharma Chakra" on the Ashoka Pillar adorns
our National Flag.
Fall of Mauryas
After Asoka's death seven kings (some say 10) followed Ashoka within a period
of 50 years. The Mauryan empire was breaking up. There are different opinions
about the fall of the kingdom. Some say that since the later part of Ashoka's
reign was devoid of wars, the military were inactive and this weakened them.
Others say after Ashoka there were no strong kings to rule such a vast empire.
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