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The Mauryas - Part 1
1.0 Introduction
The Maurya dynasty was founded by Chandragupta Maurya, who seems to have belonged to some ordinary family. According to the brahmanical tradition he was born of Mura, a shudra woman in the court of the Nandas, but an earlier Buddhist tradition speaks of the existence of a kshatriya clan called Mauryas living in the region of Gorakhpur adjoining the Nepalese terai. In all likelihood, Chandragupta was a member of this clan. He took advantage of the growing weakness and unpopularity of the Nandas in the last days of their rule. With the help of Chanakya, who is known as Kautilya, he overthrew the Nandas and established the rule of the Maurya dynasty. The machinations of Chanakya against Chandragupta's enemies are described in detail in the Mudrarakshasa, a drama written by Visakhadatta in the ninth century. Several plays have been based on it in modern times.
Justin, a Greek writer, says that Chandragupta overran the whole of India with an army of 6,00,000. This may or may not be true. But Chandragupta liberated North-western India from the thraldom of Seleucus, who ruled over the area west of the Indus. In the war with the Greek viceroy, Chandragupta seems to have come out victorious. Eventually peace was concluded between the two and in return for 500 elephants Seleucus gave him eastern Afghanistan, Baluchistan and the area west of the Indus. Chandragupta thus built up a vast empire which included not only Bihar and good portions of Orissa and Bengal but also Western and North-Western India, and the Deccan. Leaving Kerala, Tamil Nadu and parts of North-eastern India the Mauryas ruled over the whole of the subcontinent. In the North-west they held sway over certain areas which were not included even in the British Empire.
2.0 Imperial Organization
The Mauryas organized a very elaborate system of administration. This is known from the accounts of Megasthenes and the Arthashastra of Kautilya. Megasthenes was a Greek ambassador sent by Seleucus to the court of Chandragupta Maurya. He lived in the Maurya capital of Pataliputra and wrote an account not only of the administration of the city of Pataliputra but also of the Maurya Empire as a whole. The account of Megasthenes does not survive in full, but quotations occur in the works of several subsequent Greek writers. These fragments have been collected and published in the form of a book, which throws valuable light on the administration, society and economy of Maurya times.
The account of Megasthenes can be supplemented by the Arthashastra of Kautilya. Although the Arthashastra was finally compiled a few centuries after the Maurya rule, some of its books contain material that is genuine and gives authentic information about the Maurya administration and economy. On the basis of these two sources we can draw a picture of the administrative system of Chandragupta Maurya.
Chandragupta Maurya was evidently an autocrat who concentrated all power in his hands. If we believe in a statement of the Arthashastra, the king had set a high ideal. He stated that in the happiness of his subjects lay his happiness and in their troubles lay his troubles. But we do not know how far the king acted up to these norms. According to Megasthenes the king was assisted by a council whose members were noted for wisdom. There is nothing to show that their advice was binding on him, but the high officers were chosen from the councillors.
The Empire was divided into a number of provinces, and each province was placed under a prince who was a scion of the royal dynasty. The provinces were divided into still smaller units, and arrangements were made for both rural and urban administration. Excavations show that a large number of towns belonged to Maurya times. Pataliputra, Kaushambi, Ujjain and Taxila were the most important cities. The administration of Pataliputra, which was the capital of the Mauryas, was carried on by six committees, each committee consisting of five members. These committees were entrusted with sanitation, care of foreigners, registration of birth and death, regulation of weights and measures and similar other functions. Various types of weights belonging to Maurya times have been found at several places in Bihar.
In addition to all this the central government maintained about two dozen departments of the state, which controlled social and economic activities at least in the areas which were near the capital. The most striking feature of Chandragupta's administration is the maintenance of a huge army. According to the account of a Roman writer called Pliny, Chandragupta maintained 6,00,000 foot-soldiers, 30,000 cavalry and 9000 elephants. Another source tells us that the Mauryas maintained 8000 chariots. In addition to this it seems that the Mauryas also maintained a navy. The administration of the armed forces, according to Megasthenes, was carried on by a board of 30 officers divided into six committees, each committee consisting of five members. It seems that the six wings of the armed forces - the army, the cavalry, the elephants, the chariots, the navy and the transport - were each assigned to the care of a separate committee. The Mauryas military strength was almost three times that of the Nandas. This happened apparently on account of a much-larger Empire and far more resources.
One more matter of special attention is how could the Mauryans afford such a large army. If we rely on the Arhashastra of Kautilya it would appear that the state controlled almost all the economic activities in the realm. The state brought new land under cultivation with the help of cultivators and shudra labourers.
The virgin land, which was opened to cultivation, yielded handsome income to the state in the form of revenue collected from the newly settled peasants. It seems that taxes collected from the peasants varied from one-fourth to one-sixth of the produce. Those who were provided with irrigation facilities by the state had to pay for it. In addition to this, in times of emergency peasants were compelled to raise more crops. Tolls were also levied on commodities brought to town for sale, and they were collected at the gate. Moreover, the state enjoyed a monopoly in mining, sale of liquor, manufacture of arms, etc. This naturally brought money to the royal exchequer. Chandragupta thus established a well-organised administrative system and gave it a sound financial base.
3.0 Ashoka (273-232 B.C.)
Chandragupta Maurya was succeeded by Bindusara, whose reign is important for continued links with the Greek princes. His son, Ashoka is the greatest of the Maurya rulers. According to Buddhist tradition he was so cruel in his early life that he killed his 99 brothers to get the throne. But since the statement is based on a legend, it may well be wrong. His biography, prepared by Buddhist writers, is so full of fiction that it cannot be taken seriously. King Ashoka has been a source of inspiration for Hindi writers, poets and playwrights. He had nearly 70 years of eventful life.
3.1 Ashokan edicts
We can reconstruct the history of Ashoka on the basis of his inscriptions. He is the first Indian king to speak directly to the people through his inscriptions, which seem to be the earliest specimens of Prakrit language in India. They were engraved on rocks, on polished stone pillars mounted by capitals, in the caves, and in one case even on a clay bowl. They are found not only in the Indian subcontinent but also in Afghanistan. These inscriptions communicate royal orders. So far they have been found at 45 places, their total versions numbering 181. Composed in Prakrit, they were written in Brahmi script throughout the greater part of the Empire. But in the NorthWestern part they appear in Aramaic and Kharoshthi script, and in Afghanistan they were composed in both Aramaic and Greek scripts and languages. The Ashokan inscriptions were generally placed on Ancient highways. They throw light on the career of Ashoka, his external and domestic policies, and the extent of his Empire.
3.2 Impact or the Kalinga War
The ideology of Buddhism guided Ashoka's state policy at home and abroad. After his accession to the throne Ashoka fought only one major war called the Kalinga War. According to him 1,00,000 people were killed in this war, several lakhs perished, and 1,50,000 were taken prisoners. These numbers are exaggerated, because the number a hundred thousand is used as a cliche in Ashokan inscriptions. At any rate it seems that the king was moved by the massacre in this war. The war brought to the brahmana priests and the Buddhist monks great suffering, which caused Ashoka much grief and remorse. So he abandoned the policy of physical occupation in favour of a policy of cultural conquest. In other words, bherighosha was replaced with dhammaghosha. The words of Ashoka from his thirteenth Major Rock Edict follow:
When he had been consecrated eight years the beloved of the Gods, the King Piyadassi, conquered Kalinga. A hundred and fifty thousand people were deported, a hundred thousand were killed and many times that number perished. Afterwards, now that Kalinga was annexed, the beloved of the Gods very earnestly practised Dhamma, desired Dhariuna, and taught Dhamma. On conquering Kalinga the beloved of the Gods felt remorse, for when an independent country is conquered the slaughter, death and deportation of the people is extremely grievous to the beloved of the Gods and weighs heavily on his mind. What is even more deplorable to the beloved of the Gods, is that those who dwell there, whether brahmanas, shramanas, or those of other sects, or householders who show obedience to their teachers and behave well and devotedly towards their friends, acquaintances, colleagues, relatives, slaves, and servants all suffer violence, murder and separation from their loved ones.
The Beloved of the Gods considers victory by Dhamma to be the foremost victory.
Ashoka now made an ideological appeal towards the tribal peoples and the frontier kingdoms. The subjects of the independent states in Kalinga were asked to obey the king as their father and to repose confidence in him. The officials appointed by Ashoka were instructed to propagate this idea among all sections of his subjects. The tribal peoples were similarly asked to follow the principles of dhamma.
Ashoka no longer treated foreign dominions as legitimate areas for military conquest. He tried to conquer them ideologically. He took steps for the welfare of men and animals in foreign lands which was a new thing considering the condition of those days. He sent ambassadors of peace to the Greek kingdoms in West Asia and Greece. All this can be said on the basis of Ashoka's inscriptions. If we rely on the Buddhist tradition it would appear that he sent missionaries for the propagation of Buddhism to Sri Lanka and Central Asia. As an enlightened ruler Ashoka tried to enlarge his area of political influence through propaganda.
It would be wrong to think that the Kalinga war made Ashoka an extreme pacifist. He did not pursue the policy of peace for the sake of peace under all conditions. On the other hand he adopted a practical policy of consolidating his Empire. He retained Kalinga after its conquest and incorporated it into his Empire. There is also nothing to show that he disbanded the huge army maintained from the time of Chandragupta Maurya. Although he repeatedly asked the tribal people to follow the policy of dharma, he threatend them if they violated the established rules of social order and Righteousness (dharma). Within the Empire he appointed a class of officers known as the rajukas, who were vested with the authority of not only rewarding people but also punishing them, wherever necessary. The policy of Ashoka to consolidate the Empire through dharma bore fruit. The Kandhar inscription speaks of the success of his policy with the hunters and fishermen, who gave up killing animals and possibly took to a settled agricultural life.
3.3 Internal policy and Buddhism
Ashoka was converted to Buddhism as a result of the Kalinga war. According to tradition he became a monk, made huge gifts to the Buddhists and undertook pilgrimages to the Buddhist shrines. The fact of his visiting the Buddhist shrines is also suggested by the dharma yatras mentioned in his inscriptions.
According to tradition the third Buddhist council was held by Ashoka and missionaries were sent not only to south India but also to Sri Lanka, Burma and other countries to convert the people there. Brahmi inscriptions of the second and first centuries B.C. have been found in Sri Lanka.
Ashoka set a very high ideal for himself, and this was the ideal of paternal kingship. He repeatedly asked his officials to tell the subjects that the king looked upon them as his children. As agents of the king, the officials were also asked to take care of the people. Ashoka appointed dhammamahamatras for propagating dhamma among various social groups including women. He also appointed rajukas for the administration of justice in his Empire.
He disapproved of rituals, especially those observed by women. He forbade killing certain birds and animals, and completely prohibited the slaughter of animals in the capital. He interdicted gay social functions in which people indulged in revelries.
But Ashoka's dharma was not a narrow dharma. It cannot be regarded as a sectarian faith: Its broad objective was to preserve the social order. It ordained that people should obey their parents, pay respect to the brahmanas and Buddhist monks, and show mercy to slaves and servants. These instructions can be found in both the Buddhist and brahmanical faiths.
Ashoka taught people to live and let live. He emphasised compassion towards animals and proper behaviour towards relatives. His teachings were meant to strengthen the institution of family and the existing social classes. He held that if the people behaved well they would attain heaven. He never said that they would attain nirvana, which was the goal of Buddhist teachings. Ashoka's teachings were thus intended to maintain the existing social order on the basis of tolerance. He does not seem to have preached any sectarian faith.
3.4 Ashoka's place in history
It is said that the pacific policy of Ashoka ruined the Maurya Empire, but this is not true. On the contrary Ashoka has a number of achievements to his credit. He was certainly the greatest missionary ruler in the history of the Ancient world. He worked with great zeal and devotion to his mission and achieved a lot, both at home and abroad.
Ashoka brought about the political unification of the country. He bound it further by one dharma, one language and practically one script called Brahmi which was used in most of his inscriptions. In unifying the country he respected such scripts as Brahmi, Kharoshthi Aramaic and Greek. Evidently he also accommodated such languages as Greek, Prakrit and Sanskrit and various religious sects. Ashoka followed a tolerant religious policy. He did not try to foist his Buddhist faith on his subjects. On the other hand he made gifts to non-Buddhist and even anti-Buddhist sects.
Ashoka was fired with zeal for missionary activities. He deputed officials in the far-flung parts of the Empire. This helped the cause of administration and also promoted cultural contacts between the developed Gangetic basin and the backward distant provinces. The material culture, typical of the heart of the Empire, spread to Kalinga and the lower Deccan and Northern Bengal.
Above all Ashoka is important in history for his policy of peace, non-aggression and cultural conquest. He had no model in early Indian history for pursuing such a policy; nor did such an example exist in any country except Egypt where Akhnaton had pursued a pacific policy in the fourteenth century B.C. But it is obvious that Ashoka was not aware of his Egyptian predecessor. Although Kautilya advised the king to be always intent on physical conquest, Ashoka followed just the reverse policy. He asked his successors to give up the policy of conquest and aggression, which had been followed by the Magadhan princes till the Kalinga war. He counselled them to adopt a policy of peace, which was badly needed after a period of aggresive wars lasting for two centuries. Ashoka consistently stuck to his policy. Although he possessed sufficient resources and certainly maintained a huge army, he did not wage any war after the conquest of Kalinga. In this sense Ashoka was certainly far ahead of his day and generation.
However, Ashoka's policy did not make any lasting impression on his viceroys and vassals, who declared themselves independent in their respective areas after the retirement of the king in 232 B.C. Similarly the policy could not convert his neighbours, who swooped on the North-Western frontier of his Empire within 30 years of Ashoka's exit from power in 232 B.C.
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