Sunday, June 27, 2010

history themes part 1

NOTE ON PLACES AND AREAS IN


ANCIENT INDIA

1. AIHOLE near Badami with rock cut and structural temples of

Western Chalukya period, is favous for the temples of Vishnu, Ladkhan

and Durga. It furnish examples of a well developed Deccan style of

architecture. The other three styles of ancient India being Nagar

Dravidian and Vesara. It is also famous for its inscription or Prasasti

composed by Ravikirti, the court poet of Pulkesin II. This prasasti

mentions the defeat of Harsha by the Chalukya king, Pulkesin II, a r

rare event of a Northern emperor or ruler being defeated by a ruler

south of Narmada.

2. ACHICHHATRA identified with modern Ramnagar in Bareily district

of U.P. was the capital of North Panchala in the first half of first

millennium B.C. Exacavation grove that it had moats and ramparts

around it, it has revealed terracottas of the Kushan period, and also

remarkable siries of coins of second century A.D. Its importance lies in

the fact that it was on the important ancient Indian northern trade

route linking Taxila and Inidraprastha with Kanyakubaj and Sravasti,

Rajgriha and Pataliputra indicating that trae could be one of the

reasons for its prominence.

3. AJANTA near Aurangabad (Maharashtra), is famous for wonderful

Buddist caves, and also paintings probably executed only b the

Buddhist monks. Paintings of exceptional skill belong to the period

between 2nd century B.C. and 7th Century A.D. One of the cave well

depicts the reception of a Persian mission in the Chalukya court of

Pulkasin II indicating cultural and commercial contacts with the Persian

empire.

4. ANUPA in Narmada valley mentioned in the Nasik inscription (dated

115 A.D.) of Gautami Balasri, mother of the Satvahana ruler Sri

Satakarni (Circa 72-95 A.D.) was conqured bythe latter from the

sakas, and was a bone of contention for long between the Sakas and

the Satvahanas. The sakas were responsible for driving the

Satavahanas. Into the south -eastern and western direction. In other

words, Anupa signifies the earlier homeland of the Satvahanas.

5. APARNTAKA (Aparanta), identified withk Konkan, i.e. North

western region of the Deccan, was a bone of contention between the

sakas and the Satavahanas and is mentioned in Nasik Inscription

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(dated circle 155 A.D.) of Gautami Balasri. Gautamiputa stakarni

conquered it from theSakas. According to the Mahavamsa, the third

Buddhist council deputed Great elder Dharamarakshita to do

missionary work in Aparantaka region. Literacy evience locates the

Abhiras in this region, who probably were responsible for identifying

Lord Krishna as the diety of cowherd and milk-maids.

In matters relating to trade and commerce it was famous for the

production of cotton textiles in ancient times and ated, as the

hinterland for the ancient ports of Bharukachechha and Sopara.

6. ARIKAMEDU near Pondicherry, known to the periplus as podoka,

wa port of call in Sangam Times (200 B.C.) on the route of Malaya and

china. Recent excavation during which a veryrich treasure of Roman

beads, glass and coins, and of Roman and south Indian Pottery were

found have proved that it was once a prosperous settlement of

Western trading people, including the Romans.

The favourable balance of Payments position ejoyed by India in its

trade with Rome is amply revealed by the rich haul of Roman gold

coins.

7. AYODHYA also known as A-yu-te or Abhur of Saketa on the river

Sarya (Modern Ghaghra) in Faizabad district of U.P. was the earliest

capital of the Kosala Janapade and was the seat of the epic hero,

Rama. It is also known for its short Sanskrit inscription of king

Dhandeva of Kosal (belonging probably to the first century B.C.) which

refers to the conducting of two Asvamedha sacrifices by king

Pushyamitra. From the economic view-point it was located on the

important trade of Tamralipti-Rajagriha-Sravasti which passed via

Ayodhya.

8. AMRAVATI near modern Vijayawada (Andhra Pradesh), is famous

for its stupa and as an art center flourishing under the Satavahanas

and the pallavas. Second century works of art khow mastery of stone

sculpture. Amravati bas-reliefs have the representation of ancient

Indian vehicles - the boat or the ship or the cart, and of a foreign

mission (like the Ajanta cave paintings) of marchants being received

by a king. In ancient times is was an important center of trade, and

ships from here sailed to Burma and Indonesia.

It is maintained by some scholars that a human figure, for the first

time, that a marble stone relief was executed.

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9. ASIKA (Probably on the left bankof the river Krishna), is mentioned

in the Nasik inscription (dated circe 115 A.D.) of Gautami Balasri, it

was conquered by the Satavahana rular Gautamiputra Satakarini

(………) The latter fact reveals that Gautamiputra Satakarni gained a

stronger hold of southern India which proved beneficial because of the

continuing Saka pressure even after his victory against the Sakas.

King Kharavela of Kalinga also made a claim of its conquest.

10. AVANTI (western Malva) one of the 16 Janapadas of 6th century

B.C. with its capital at Ujjain; struggle dhard against Magadhan

imperialism but in vain. According to Buddhist traditions, Asoka, the

Mauryan ruler, served as the Viceroy of Avanti, while he was a prince.

Since Malwa region is important politically, and economically it became

a bone of contention between the Sakas. And the Satavahanas,

Rashtrakutas and Pratiharas in ancient India. It is through this region

that the importanttrade routes from eastern and western Indian

passed Via Ujjain to the important Western ports Bharukachchha

(Broach) and Soparaka (Sopara).

11. ANGA one of the 16th Janapadas of 16th century B.C. Lay to the

east of Magadha with Champa, near Bhagalpur, as its capital. Some of

the Anga monarchas, like Brahmadatta, appear to have defeated their

Magadha contemporaries. Subsequently, however, Magadha emerged

supreme leading to the establishment of the first empire of ancient

India. In other words, the conquest of Anga by Magadha was one of

the stepping stones for the Magadhan Empire.

12. BARHUT in central Indian is famous for Buddhist Stupa and stone

railings which replaced the wooden ones in the Sunga period. Barhut

sculptures depict the visit of king Ajatasatru to the Buddha. Barhut

along with Sanchi and Bodh-Gaya represent the first organized art

activity of the Indian people as a whole. Furthermore, all these clearly

indicate the transition of sculpture from wood to stone.

13. BARYGAZA OR BHARUKACHCHA (Broach) was the oldest and

largest northern most entrepot on the mouth of the Narmada river in

modern Maharashtra. It handled the bulk of the trade with western

Asia (Jataka stories and the Periplus mention it). It was also one of the

district head quarters of the Saka rulers. According to Jain traditions, it

was the capital of the Saka empire. It was international trade that

mode Barygaza important in ancient India.

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14. BARBARICUM was an important port in the Indus delta, receiving

Chinese furs and silks through Bacteria for export to the West. It

added to the growing prosperity of India in the first century A.D.

15. BADAMI (MODERN NAME FOR VATAPI) in Bijapur district was

founded by pulkesin I as an early capital of the Western Chalukyas. It

as a hill-fort and an exquisite cave temple of lord Vishnu excavated

during the rule of Manglesh, the Chalukya ruler. Huen-tsang visited it.

16. BODH-GAYA situated six miles south of Gaya in Bihar on the

western bank of the Nilajan river, was the place where the Buddha

attained enlightenement. It was part of the Magadha janapada.

17. BANAVASI (north kanara in Karnataka) also known as Vaijayanti,

was the capital of the Kadambas who were defeated by the Chalukya

king Kirtivarman during the last quarter of the 6th century A.D.

According to the Ceylonese chronicles Ashoka sent a mission to Deccan

with the Monk Rkshita who went as far as Banavasi.

18. BRAHMAGIRI in Chitaldurg district of Karnataka, is remarkable

for its continuity of cultural heritage extending from Neolithic (stoneage

culture) to megalithic (early historic culture-3rd century B.C. to Ist

century B.C. with possible links with Mediter anean and Caucasian

Megaliths) revealing ancestory worship and animism pointing to the

practice of cist and pit burials. It is the site of one of the two minor

rock edicts of Askoka. These edicts suggest the provability of Ashoka

entering the Sangha as a full monk after two and a half years of his

conversion to Buddhism.

19. BURZAHOM in Kashmir Valley near Srinagar, is associated with

megalithic settlements (dating 2400 B.C.) where the people lived on a

plateau in pits using tools and weapons of stone (axe) and bones. (The

only other site which has yielded considerable bone implements is

Chirand, 40 km. West of Patna on the northern bank of the Ganges

and using coarse grey pottery. The information that we gather from

the two places, recently discovered, throws light on the proto-histroy

of India).

20. BAMIYAN an important Buddhist and Gandhara Art center in

Afghanistan in the early Christian centuries, has tall rock-cut Buddha

statues. The ancient trade route linking north western India with China

passed through it. It was the capital of the Hunas in the 5th and the

6th centuries A.D.

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21. BELUR with a group of Hoysala monuments including the famous

Chennakesava temple (built around 1117 A.D.) represents an art

which applies to stone the technique of the ivory worker or the

goldsmith.

22. CHIDAMBARAM a town in south Arcot district in Tamilnadu is

famous for its great Hindu Siva Temple dedicated to Nataraja, i.e. Siva

in his aspects of cosmic dance. The Nataraja sculptures are esteemed

as tehgreatest specimens of sculpture in the world. Also,

Chidambaram bears evidence to the birth as well as the development

of Shaivism to begin with insouthern Indian and its consequential

spread to the whole of India.

23. CHEDI OR CHETI one of the 16 Janapadas of 6th century B.C.

roughly corresponds to modern Bundelkhand and adjacent tracts. It

lay near the Kanuna, its metropolis was suktimati to Sottihivatinagar.

24. CAAMPA the capital city of the Anga Janapada on the border of

Bengal was of great commercial importance in ancient times; for it was

a river port from which ships would sail down the Ganges and the

coast the south India, returning with jewels and spices which were

much in demand in the North. By Mauryan times, with the eastward

expansion of Aryan culture, Tamralipti replaced in in importance. An

interesting feature of this is the fact that a Hindu Kingdom with the

same name came into existence in the mainland of South east Asia.

Indeed it is difficult to say how exactly this name came to be

transplanted in South-east Asia.

25. DASAPURA modern Mandasor in western Malwa, was disputed

between the Sakas and the Satavahanas. Its famous Siva temple of

the guild of Silk weavers, was built during the reign of kumar Gupta I

(414 A.D.-455 A.D.) the institution that is responsible for building the

Siva temple indicates the climax of Indian trading and commercial

activities in ancient Indian. It also reveals that manufacture of silk was

no longer the secret monopoly of China and it had taken roots in India

by the 5th century A.D.

26. DEVAKA modern Dokak in Nowgong district in Assam, a frontier

country which paid tribute to Samudragupta claiming the payment of

tribute by Kamarupa goes along with Devaka. However, it is to be

borne in mind that Harisena's Prasasti is of doubtful historical validity.

The one significant thing that is known is the fact that no ruler of the

northern India could ever conquer the Assam region but instead

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Burma conquered it and it was wrenched from Burma by the British in

1829 by the Treaty of Yandavoo.

27. DEOGARH in Jhansi district of U.P. is famous for its Dasvatara

Vishnu temple belonging to the Gupta period. The temple may be

considered as most respresentative and well known example of the

early sikhara style of temple architecture in example of the early

sikhara style of temple architecture on the panels of its walls. Deogarh

is one the temples with which began the temple architecture of India.

In particular, the Shikhara is the unique feature of the

northerntemples compared to those of southern Indian.

28. DWARAKA Legends associate this place toYadavas after the

battle of Kurukshetra. According to mythology Dwaraka was destroyed

by the huge tidal wave as per the forewarning of Lord Krishna. In very

recent times Dr. S.R.Rao with the cooperation of the Department of

Ocenography, did carry out under-sea explorations. Some artifacts

including stone anchors have been found dating back to the Harappan

period. The exploration is still continuing.

29. ELLORA With three distinct groups of rock-cut architecture

associated with Buddhism, Jainism and Brahmanical Hinduism, is

famous for its temple of Kailash (Siva) "an entire temple complex

completely hewn-out of the live rock in imitation of a distinctive

structural form". The temple ws built by the Rashtrakuta king Krishna I

(758-773 A.D.) and is one of the most magnificent examples of

Dravida architecture with its four principal characteristic components,

viz. Vimana, Mandapa, nandi mandapa and gopuram. The Ellora

sculptures are famous for their liveliness.

30. ERAN Besnagar district (Madhya Pradesh) is famous on account of

Eran Inscriptions dated 510 A.D. This inscription mentions the practice

of Sati, first of its kind. It is also famous for its colossal board, the

zoomorphic incarnation of Lord Vishnu.

31. ELEPHANTA beautiful little island off Bombay, with latest

cavetemples in Ellora style was famous for their sculpture, especially

the great Trimutti figure of Siva, emblem of the Maharashtar Govt.

representing the highest plastic expression of the Hindu concept of

divinity.

32. GANDHARA with Taxila and peshwar as two capitals, in earlier

and later ancient periods was one of the 16 Janapadas (6th century

B.C.) onthenorth-western frontier of India. Under the Kushans it

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become a popular center of Mahayana Buddhism and Gandhara art-

Indian images both secular and religious (the Buddha and Lord

Krishna) but in long floating garments, as is the tradition of early

Greek sculpture. It was a meeting ground for several civilizations and

mercantile communities belonging to different countries.

33. GORATHAGIRA A hill fortress on the modern Barabar hills in the

Gaya district of Bihar, was attacked by King Kharavela of Kalinga in

the 8th year of his reign. This fact is known from the Hathigumpha

Inscription of king Kharavela.

34. GANGAIKOND-CHOLA-PURAM was capital city of the greatest

Chola ruler Rajendra Chola I (1012-1044 A.D.) who built it after the

successful Chola military camaign upto the bank of the river Ganges in

1021-22. Currently the city lies inruins and its enormous tankshas

dried up.

35. GIRNAR hill near Janagarh in Gujarat, where a Mauryan governor

is said to have built an artificial lake, known as Sudarsana lake which

Rudradaman, the Saka ruler renovated. Rudradaman's Sanskrit

Inscription was located here and it is the first Sanskrit inscription It

had been a sacred place to the Jainas since remote times because Jain

shrines are also located here.

36. HASTINAPURA aim district Meerut in U.P. (known as Asandivant)

was the capital of the ancient tribe of the Kurus. Later the floods

destroyed it. Recent excavations prove that the people of this region

used iron by about 700 B.C. that is the Aryans had learnt the art of

making iron which revolutionized the whole socio-economic pattern of

Aryan communities. It was this fact that lay at the base of the

Economic Revolution that India passed through between 1000 B.C. to

600 A.D. with far too many consequences like the emergence of an

empire, various kinds of guilds, brisk trade both with in and with out

the country and links with buth South-east Asia and the Roman

empire.

37. HATHIGUPHA on Udaigir hill, three miles from Bhuvaneshwar in

the puri district of Orissa, is famous for an inscription in post-ashokan

character, engraved inside the elephant cave. It depicts the meteoric

and dazzling carer of Jaina king Kharavela, the 3rd ruler of the Cate

dynasty. It also refers to the building of an equeduct in Kalinga by one

of the Nanda rulers of Pataliputra. The importance of this inscription

lies in the fact that it is the first important sign-post in fixing the

chronology of ancient India.

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38. HAILBID is famous for Hoysalesvara temple (Hoysala period)

designed and built by Kedoroja, the master-building of Narasimha I.

The infinite wealth of sculpture over the exterior of this temple makes

it one of the most remarkable monuments of the world. Known as

Dwaramudra it was the capital of the Hoysalas.

39. INDRAPRASTHA identified by Jain scholars with the site around

the enclosure of the Purana Oila (Delhi) one of the sites of painted

Grey Ware (10th century B.C.) finda, was the legendry capital of the

Pandava brothers of the epic Mahabharata, which they lost to the

Kauravas having been defeated in the gambling match. After the

second battle of Tarain (1192) Moh. Gauri appointed Outbuddin Aibak

as his deputy at Indraprastha which became a base for Aibak's

successful operations against north Indian states.

40. KURA one of the 16 Janapadas of 6th century B.C., was in the

neighbourhood of Delhi. Among its towns may be mentioned

Indraprastha and Hastinapur. This place clearly brings home the truth

to us that Mahabharata was not purely fictional story but some amount

of historical evidence is embedded in the story. As a matter of fact,

Vasudeve Krishna is now known as a historical personality as borne

out by the writings of patanjali and other sources of evidence.

history themes part 2

41. KAJANGALA in Raj mahal district in Eastern Bihar, where king


Harsha (606-647 A.D.) held his court while campaigning in eastern

India.The Chiense pilgrim Huen-Tsang first saw Harsha here.

42. KAPISA It is the region near Kabul, probably Kipin as referred to

by Chineses writers. The presiding diety of the city according to

Chiense writers was zeus. The Greek god. The gold and silver coins

issued by the Greek kings have been discovered from this region in big

numbers. The Greeks were the first to issue gold coins in India. These

coins testify to the growing trade links between India and Central Asia

and China and also with the Roman world. Far more important is the

fact that these coins testify to the gowing worship of Vasudeva-krishna

or the Bhagavata cult which later repened as Vaishnavism.

43. KIPIN is identified with Kapisa or Kafirstan in Kashmir. It

indicated the wide region know in earlier times as the Mahajanapada

of Kamboja. It was ruled by the Sakas, the Kushans and the Hunas in

succession. The name Kamboja reappears as the name of kamboja, an

important of the mainland of South-East Asia.

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44. KAMPILYA was the capital of southern Panchalas, one of the

tribal communities of the Aryans. This fact proves that the Aryans, to

begin with in India, lived as various tribes. The tribes were in constant

war with eachother culminating in the emergence of the Magadha

Empire.

45. KUSAMDHVALA (Patliputara) Gargi-Samhita alludes that in the

2nd century B.C. the Yavanas (Indo-Bacterians) having reduced

Saketa, Panchala, and Mathura reached kusumdhvana. Demetrios,

was, most probably, the Yavana leader. He was defeated or he retired

withouth fighting.

46. KASI one of the 16 Janapadas of the 6th century B.C. with its

capital of the same name. It was also called Varanasi (69). It greatly

prospered under the rule of Brahmadatta.

47. KOSAL one of the 16 janapadas of the 6th century B.C. had three

different capitals (Saketa, Ayodhya and Sravasti) in three different

periods. It region roughly corresponded to modern oudh.

48. KUSINAGAR (Kusinara ?) moder Kasia, in Gorakhpur district in

UP was a small town where the Buddha attained Mahaparinirvana. It

was one of the two capitals of the Mall Janapada in pre-Buddhists

times. It was visited by Ashoka and the Chinese pilgrim Fa-hien.

49. KANYAKUBJA (Kanauj) on the bank of river Gangas in UP rose

to prominence during the time of Mukhar is, Harsha and Gujara-

Pratiharas. Under the pratiharas, Kanauj successfully resisted the

Arabs. In the 9th century A.D. It was disputed among the Palas of

Bengal, Prathiharas, and the Rashtrakutas. It was situated on a very

important trade-route linking north-Western regions of India with

Prayaga, Kasi, Vaishali, Pataliputra, Rajagriha, Tamralipti.

50. KAUSAMBI identified with the villagesof Kosam near Allahabad

was one of the earliest cities, so prominent that Anand, the Buddhist

monk, though it important enough for a Buddha to die in. Recent

excavation it here unearthed historically and culturally important

terracotta figures. It was built in the shape of a trapezium and was the

capital of the vastse Janapada. One of the Ashokan Pillars was located

here. It was also an inscription of the Kushan monarch.

60. KARNA-SUVARNA : refers to the region of Bengal and some

parts of Bihar and Orrisa, fuled by sasanka in the early 7th century

A.D. Harsha conquered the region from him after 619 A.D.

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61. KANHERI In Thana district near Bombay, has rock cut Chaitya

shrines with elaborately decorated railings belonging to the third

century A.D. One inscription of the last great ruler of the Satavahana

dynasty. Yajnasri Satakarni is found here. Kanheri Buddhist Tank

inscription makes mention of Matiemonial relationship between the

Sakas and the Satavahanas. It was the chief center of Buddhism in

Rashtrakuta times. Faint traces of the art of paintings may be traced in

the caves of Kanheri.

62. KANCHI modern canjeevaram, south-west to Madras is reckoned

among the seven sacred cities of the Hindus. It was an important

center of Jaina culture in the first half of the first millennium A.D. It

was one of the south Indian kingdoms conquered by Samudragupta. It

was visited by Huen-Tsang. It rose to prominence in 7th century A.D.

Under the Pallava king. It possesses the famous Kailashnath temple

(built by Pallava King Narsimhavarman - II) and Vaikuntha perumalla

(constructed sometime after the kailashnath). The Kailashnath temple

is a landmark in the development of dravida temple style with its

characteristic components-vimana, mandapa gopuram and an array of

vimanas along the walls of the court, i.e. peristyle cells.

63. KAVERIPATTANAM known as Puhar, was the Chola capital and

chief port in Sangam period (200 B.C.- 300 A.D.) with a large colongy

of foreigners. It was an important trade center. Ships sailing from here

to South-East Asia. A long poem on this Chola capital is the part of the

famous Sangam work pattupattu (Ten Idylls).

64. KURUKSHETRA near Thaneswar, to the north of Delhi in

Haryana, was the site of the great battle of Mahbharata. This battle

fought between the Kauravas and the Pandavas, formed the basis of

the story of the greatness of India epics the Mahabharata. It is in this

great war that Krishna prached his gospel of the Gita, to the Pandava

hero Arjuna who saw his own elders and kishmen arranged himself for

the fith and then early decided to renounce and retire. Krishna gave

him the message of disinterested perfomance of duty i.e. renunciation

in action but no renunciation of action. That a great war ws fought

between the cousin brothers - Kauravas and Pandavas is quite

possible.

65. MANYAKHET (modern Malkhed in Hyderabad region) was the

capital of Rashtrakuta Amoghavarsha I in the 9th century A.D.

66. MAHABALIPURAM is today a tiny coastal village 65 kms. south

of Madras. This port-city was founded by Pallava king

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Narasimhavarman in the 7th century A.D. Pallava kings created an

architecture of their own which was to be the basis of all the styles of

the south. In fact Mahabilipuram, the Pallava art with its monolithic

temples (rathas) and rocks sculptured in the shapes of animals with a

wonderfully broad and powerful naturalism, with whole cliffs worked in

stone frescoes, immenspictures unparalleled at the time in all Indian in

their order movement and lyrical value. The Descent of the Ganges,

the unique masterpiece of Pallava art was surely one of the most

remarkable compositions of all time (in which is portrayed the Ganges

coming down to earth, with gods, animals men and all creation in

adoration). The shore temple built by Rajasimha represents one of the

earliest examples of structural temples. the Pallvava monuments at

Mahabalipuram symbolize not only the transition from rockarchitecture

to structural stone temples but also significantly the

completion of the "Aryanisation" of South India during the Pallava

period.

67. MADHYAMIKA is identified with Nagari near Chitor in Rajasthan.

Patanjali alludes toYavana (Indo-Bacterian) invasion of Madhyamika.

68. MUSHIKAS on the lower Indus with its capital at Alord. Was the

greatest principality at the time of Alexander's invasion. Its king

mousikanas submitted to Alexander after brave resistance.

69. MATIPUR modern Mandawar in district Bijnor of UP was a center

of Hinayana Buddhist studies in the 6th and 7th centuries A.D. Huen-

Tsang stayed here for some time.

70. MADURAI popularly known as the city of festivals, was the seat

of the 3rd Sangam and was till the 14th century the capital of the

Pandyan kingdom which had sea-borne brade with Rome and Greece.

It is famous for the Minakshi temple.

80. MACCHA or Matsaya, was one of the 16 janapads. The Matsyas

ruled to the west of the Jamuna and south of the Kurus. Their capital

was at Viratnagar (modern Bairrat near Jaipur).

81. MALLA was one of the 16 Janapadas of the16th century B.C. The

territory of the Mallas was on the mountain slopes probably to the

north of the vijjain confederation. They had to branches with their

capitals at Kusinagar and Pawa. But in pre-Buddhist time the Mallas

were a monarchy.

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82. MUZIRIS modern canganors in Kerala at the mouth of the river

Periyar, an important port in Sangam period (20 B.C. - 300 A.D.)

abounded in ships with cargoes from Arabia and Roman world. Later

literature speaks of Roman settlements and a temple was built here ni

honour of Augustus.

83. NAGARJUNAKONDA is Krishna Velley, harboured a Neolithic

community with stone-axe-culture and primitive mode of agriculture.

With a few classical accidental looking sculptures in proves trade and

culture contacts with the Roman world. Survival of a Buddhist stupa

proves it to be a Buddhist center in early Christian centuries. The

beginning of Hindu temple architecture in south India are best traced

in the remains of the early brick temples of the Ikshavakus excavated

here anticipating the Nagara, Dravida and Vasars styles.

84. NASIK (also known as Naiskya and Govardhan) is famous for

exquisite rock-cut Buddhist temple (of the period 2nd BC - 1st A.D.)

with an engraved iscription of Gautami Balsari recording the

achievement of the Satavahanas ruler Gautamiputra Satakarni). A

large board of silver coins bearing the name, the titles of Nahapana

were discovered at Jogalthambi very close to the Nasik suggesting the

defeat of the Saka ruler bythe Satavahana knig. It is also famous for

the Chaitya and Vihar as pan-du-lonea.

85. PITHUNDA on the Godavari, was the capital of the Avapeople or

the Avamukta which was conquered as Samudragupta.

86. PADMAVATI was Nag capital is Gwalior region. Its king Ganapati

Naga was defeated by Samudragupta.

87. PRATISHTHANA (Paithan) at the mouth of the river godavri in

the Aurangabad district of Maharashtra, was the capital of Satavahana

kings. It was an important commercial mart linked with Sravasti.

88. PURUSHPURA (modern Peshawar) was the capital of

Kanishka's vast empire and the center of Gandhara art. It became the

chief center of Buiddhist activity and studies with building of number of

huge Chaityas and viharas and with one stupa. The Chiense pilgrims

refer to a many storied relic-tower in which some relics of Buddha

were enshrined. It is here that the icons of Buddha and other Hindu

gods were first finely carved. In provided the meeting place of the

marchants of India, China, central Asia, Persia, and the Roman world.

Dinesh Rathod Page 12 of 17

89. PATTADAKAL near Aihole Badami is famous for magnificentrockcult

and sculptures temples in Chalukya and Pallava style. The number

of such temples is ten - four in the northern style and six in southern.

Most famous of these temples is lokesvara temple (now called

Virupaksha).

90. PANCHALA was one of the 16 janapadas of the 6th century B.C.

Its area correspondent to modern Bundelkhand and the portion of the

Central Doab. It had two divisions northern and southern, the Ganges

forming the boundary line. Their capitals were Ahicchatra and

Kampilya respectively. One of the early Panchalas kings, Durmukha, is

credited with conquests in all directions.

91. PUSHKALAVATI i.e. the "city of lotuses' in Afganisthan to the

north of the river Kabul (modern Charasadda) in the district of

Peshawar was conquered by Alexandar. It was the old capital of

western Gandhara. A gold coin (belonging to the 2nd century B.C.)

with the city goddess (Lakshmi) holding a lotus in her right hand and

an appropriate Kharoshthi legend "Pakhalavati devata" had been

discovered here pointing to the popularity of Indian goddess. It

remained under the rule of the Indo-Greeks, the sakas and the

Kushana. It was an important link in India's trade relations with

central Asia and China.

92. RAJAGRIHA moder Rajgir, near Patna in Bihar was and ancient

capital of Magadha under Bimbisara and Ajatsatru. It was here that

first Buddhist council was held after the death of Buddha. The

cyclopean walls of the this old commercial town are among themost

remarkable finds in India.

93. SAKALA modern Sialkot, capital of Menander, was the refuge of

Buddhist monks. It was here, according to Buddhist tradition, that

Pushyamitra Sungha declared to give an award of 199 dinars for the

head of a Buddhist monk.

94. SANCHI :near Bhopal famous for a Buddhist stupa and for one of

Ashoka's Minor Pillar Edicts. Sanchi sculptures along with Bharhut

Godh-Gaya represent the first organized art activity of the Indian

People. There are reliefs of the Jatkas on the stone walls around the

stupa. Sanchi revealed historically important inscription of the

Satavahanas and the Gupta kings. Kakanodbota probably was the

ancient name for Sanchi, which was inhabited by the tribal people

Kakar, and was conquered by the Samudragupta.

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95. SRAVASTI moder Saket-Mahet on the borders of the Gonda and

the Bahraich districts of U.P. On the river Rapti - It was a famous

center of trade in ancient times, from where three important trade

routes emanated linking it with Rajagriha, Pratishthana, and Taxila. It

was one of the early capitals of the Janapad of Kosal. Later, it served

as the provincial headquarters of the Gupta kings. Fa-hien visited it.

96. SAKETA region around Ayodhya, was invaded by Yavanas (Indo-

Bacterin) is attested to by Patanjali.

97. SARNATH near Varanasi, is the place where the Buddha delivered

his frist sermon in the Deer park, this event being known as the

"Turning of the Wheel of Law". It is the site of the famous Ashokan

Pillar of Polished sand-stone whose lion capital was adopted by the

people of Free India as the state emblem. It was also the famous seat

of Gupta sculpture. Gupta plastic art reached its perfection e.g. the

seated Buddha in preaching posture.

98. SRAVANA-BELGOLA in Hasan district of Karnataka, is famous for

the monolithic statue of Gometeswara- 85fit. High, erected in 980 A.D.

by Chemundya Rai, the chief minister of the Ganga king Rachmal.

99. SOPARA port town known to the Periplus and ptolmey, carried

most of the ancient Indian trade with foreign countries; gradually it

began to lose its importance to Berygaza and Barharium- Ist century

A.D. onwards. It ahs survived as a village 40 miles north of Bombay.

100. TOSALI (Dhauli) near Bhuaneshwar in Puri district of Orissa,

was the seat of one of the Mauryan viceroyalties as well as one of the

fourteen major rock edicts of Ashoka. The Tosali rock edict refers only

to the conquered province.

101. TRIPURI now village near Jabalpur, was the capital of the

Kalachuri dynasty. The Kalachuri kings became independent in 10th

century A.D. In 1939, Tripuri had the distinction of being the venue of

the 54th session of Indian National congress.

102. TAMRALIPTI Tamluk in the Midnapur district of Western Bengal

was one of the most important port-towns of ancient India. Outlet to

south-east Asia when there was trade boom.

103. TANJORE is famous for Rajarajeswava or Brihadeswara temple

of lord Shiva which is the largest and tallest of all India temples with

its vimana towering to a height of nearly 200 feet over the

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Garbhagriha with Pyramidal body in thirteen tiers. It was the seat of

Chola government in the 9th century A.D. and later of an independent

kingdom after the fall of ther Vijayanagar Empire. Weight of the cap

80 tonnes. Conceived on a gigantic scale. Stone relief as minute as

that of jewelers.

104. THANESWAR near Kurukshetra, to the north of Delhi in the

province of Haryana, was the capital of the Pushyabhuti dynsty. The

kingdom of thanesar emerged into a powerful state under Harsha's

(606-647 A.D.) father, Prabhakarvardhan who was in constant warfare

against the Huns on the frontier and with the rulers of Malwa. Harsha

shifted his capital from Thaneswar to Kannauj. According to Heun-

Tsang the people of this city were specially inclined to trade. Thus

thanesar was a principal center of trade. It was attacked by Mahmud

of Ghazni in 1014 A.D. it is here that ahmad Shah Abdali first defeated

the Maratha army in 1759 boding to the Maratha collapse at Panipat in

1761.

105. UJJAIN in Madhya pradesh was the capital of Avanti (6th

century B.C.) and Chandragupta II, and was one of the provincial

capitals of the Mauryas. It was the modal point of two ancient trade

routes, one from Kausambui and the other from Mathura, its chief

exports being agate, jasper and carnelian. It has an observatory built

by Maharaja Savai Jai Sing II (1686-1743).

106. URAIYUR also known as Aragaru,on the river Kavari, was for

some time the Sangam chola capital, was famous for its pearls and

muslin, the latter being as think as the slough of the snake.

107. UTTARMERUR is a village of Tamil Nadu where nearly two

hundred inscriptions belonging to Pallava and Chola periods indicating

the nature and working of the village administration have been found.

According to Uttarmerur inscriptions Pallava and Chola villages enjoyed

maximum of autonomy inadministrative matters with popular village

assemblies like the Ur, Sabha, Mahasabha or Nagaram looking after

the village affains without any interference from royal officers. The

village of Uttarmerur was divided in thirty wards.

108. VATSGULMA modern Basim in the Ahoka district in the South of

Ajanta, was the capital of a Junior branch of the Vakatakas who are

mentioned in the Ajanta cave inscriptiona No. XVI.

109. VIDISA modern Besnagar, near Bhilsa, in East Malwa, was a

part of Sunga empire with Agnimitra, the sone of Pushyamitra Sunga

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as viceroy. The Vidisa guild of ivory worker was famous for these

workers carved the stone sculpture on the gateways and railings

surrounding the Sanchi Stupa. It indicates commercial prosperity. It

was also famous for the Garuda Pillar Inscription which testified its

erection by a Greak ambassabor named Heliodorus in honour of

Vasudeva Krishna, the god of the Bhagavatas.

110. VAISHALI indentified with modern Basali in Muzaffarpur district

of Bihar, was apulent and prosperous town in the Buddhist period. The

second Buddhist Councial was held here. It served as the capital of

lichchavis. Later, Ajatsatru annexed it to this kingdom. Ambapali, the

famous charming courtesan, lived here and hosted to the Buddha at

one time and later she became a convert to Buddhism.

111. VENGI (in Andhra Pradesh) one of the south Indian kingdoms

probably joined the Sangha conquered by Samudragupta. It was the

capital of the eastern Chalukyas, and was disputed between the

Chalukyas and the Pallavas.

MAKING USE OF THE MAPS AND THE ACCOMPANYING

NOTES

You have two maps on ancient India, one with place names along with

rivers and the other with numbers (accompanied by an index).

In the map outline for both, you will see that the outlines of Nepal,

Bhutan, Bangaladesh, Punjab, China and Burma are left out. There are

reasons for it. At times the examiners will provide you the map with no

outlines of other countries or with the outlines of one a couple of

countries. To avoid this risk, we have deleted all the outlines. Far more

important is the reason that every place and apporoximate boundary

of any area or empire confruning to either the coastline or the river

systems. It is these two that you have to master when you attempt

practicing for the map questions.

Talking of how exactly you have to make use of the notes the following

are the hints:

(a) Every time do remember whether the place time is along the

coastline or along or close to a river, it is the only way that you can be

nearly accurate inplacing the places names required in the

examination.

Dinesh Rathod Page 16 of 17

(b) Do like this. Do prepare a number of outline maps along with rivers

- doing the latter by hand, while for the former relying on a tracer with

outlines of the Indian sub-continent and a carbon paper along with a

plain sheet of paper. This part of preparing the map you must master

and it should be done in not more than three of four minutes, that is

your practice must bring downthe time involved in preparing the brae

outlines.

First of all study the map with place names. After some time pick up

the map with numbers. You should be able to remember which

number refers to which place name. Whether your memory is correct

or not, you can test from the index for the numbers. At that time try

to remember where exactly a practice lar place name is located along

the river (at the mouth. Away from the mouth or in the mid or the tail

end, etc.) Accurately grasp the distance, which is a must because the

size of the map that you would be getting in the examination would be

the same as the one before your. And at thattime please remember

whether you can remember the tributaries of any river involved Ina

place name. In other words. You must know at that measurement any

particular place name can be marked on the map with only the

coastline and the river systems. If in the first one or two attempts you

have gone wrong, please do not get discourgaged. Do it again and

again till the time you in attempting the and question, which is a

compulsory question in the examination.

the mauryan empire

The Mauryan Empire:


Magadha

Between the sixth and the fourth centuries BC Magadha became the

most powerful Mahajanapda.Modern historians explain this

development in a variety of ways: Magadha was a region where

agriculture was especially productive. Besides iron mines were

accessible and provided resources for tools and weapons. Elephants an

important component of the army was found in forests in the region.

Also the Ganga and its tributaries provided a means of cheap and

convenient communication. However early Buddhist and Jaina writers

who wrote about Magdha attributed its power to the policies of

individual's ruthlessly ambitious kings of whom Bimbisara, Ajatshastru

and Mahapadma Nanda are the best known and their ministers who

helped implement their policies. Initially Rajagaha was the capital of

Magadha.

The old name means house of the king.Rajagaha was a fortified

settlement located amongst hills later in the fourth century BC the

capital was shifted to Patliputra commanding routes of communication

along the Ganga.

Mauryans

The Mauryan Empire was the first and one of the greatest empires that

were established on Indian soil. The vast Mauryan Empire stretching

from the valley of the Oxus to the delta of Kaveri was given a well knit

common administration.Chandragupta Maurya was the first ruler who

unified entire India under one political unit. About Mauryan rulers we

have epigraphically sources, literary sources, foreign accounts and

materials obtained from archaeological excavations. The Arthashastra

gives us detailed information about the administrative system of the

Mauryan Empire. The work was written by Kautilya who is also known

as Chanakya.Some scholars think that Kautilya was the real architect

of the Mauryan Empire and was also the prime minister of

Chandragupta Maurya.

Megasthenese the Greek ambassador from the court of Selectus to

that of Chandragupta Maurya wrote accounts of India and Indian

people. His book 'Indica' is lost but some fragments of it are known to

us in the form of quotations in the works of the later Greek writers.

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However the most important and authentic source for the history of

Mauryan period is provided by the inscriptions of Ashoka.

Sources of Mauryan History

1.Epigraphical Evidences

The most authentic source of Mauryan history is the epigraphical

evidence. The edicts of Ashoka are the oldest, the best preserved and

the most precisely dated epigraphic records of India. The inscriptions

are engraved on rocks, boulders, cave walls and pillars of stone. The

inscriptions of Ashoka are of two kinds -the smaller group consists of

declaration of the king as a lay Buddhist to his church. These describe

his own acceptance of Buddhism and his relationship with the

Samgha.The second group of important inscriptions consists of Major

and Minor rock edicts and the pillar edicts.

They describe his famous policy of Dhamma.These inscriptions were

installed in prominent places either near towns or on important trade

and travel routes or in the proximity of religious centres and places of

religious importance.

2.Literary Sources

Of the religious sources the Buddhist and Jain traditions the early

Dharmashastra are of great importance. The Ashokavadana and

Divyavadana are two Buddhist texts containing information about

Bindusara,Ashoka's expeditions to Taxila to suppress a rebellion and

about his conversion to Buddhism.DipVamsa and Maha Vamsa describe

in detail the role played by Ashoka in the spreading of Buddhism in

SriLanka.Chaitra or Parisisthaparvan ( biography of Chanakya) of

Hemachandra provides very interesting information on Chandra Gupta

Maurya.

Amongst the Brahmanical works the Puranas give information on the

history of the Mauryas.Megasthenese 's Indica is another source in

which he had described the physical features of the country-

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soil,climate,animals and plants, its government and religion, the

manners of the people and their art.

This book in original form has been lost. But most passages have been

preserved in form of epitomes and quotations which are found

scattered here and there in the later writings of various Greek and

Roman authors such as Strabo, Arrian and Plinius.Another important

source which gives valuable information on the Mauryan period is the

Arthashastra.It is believed to be the work of Vishnu Gupta Kautilya

also known as Chanakya.He was the chief advisor of Chandragupta

Maurya.His book Arthashastra is a standard work on politics and art of

government.

It is considered to be the most valuable work in the field of secular

literature.Mudra Rakshasa is another important work which throws

some light on Chandragupta Maurya's career. It is a drama written by

Vaisakha Dutta in the Gupta period. The author collected all the

information available to him in the 5th century AD.This drama gives

the detail of the revolution by which Chandragupta Maurya overthrew

the Nandas.It also mentioned that Chandragupta belonged to a low

caste

3.Foreign sources

As a sequence of Alexander's invasions of India a number of Greek

travellers visited India. They gave valuable information of India to the

outside world.Neachus was deputed by Alexander to explore the coast

between the Indus and the Persian Gulf.Onesicritus took part in the

voyage with Neachus and afterwards wrote a book about the voyage

and India.Megasthanese was sent as an ambassador to the court of

Chandragupta Maurya by Seleucus Nikator the Greek ruler of Persia.

His account about Mauryan India is compiled in Indika.

4.Evidences from Art and Architecture

The Mauryan Art remains include chaityas, viharas, stupas, animal

capitals surmounting the pillars. On some pillars the Edicts were

inscribed. These remains give us an information about the material

used at that time about the craftsmanship, about the peaceful times,

efficient administration ,religion of the king and people etc.From these

stupas,pillars,caves we can see the progress of Mauryan art in

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different spheres like architecture,sculpture,art of polishing,

engineering and art of ornamentation.

5.Numismatic Evidence

The Mauryan empire was based on the money economy.Kautilya refers

to suvarna,silver pana and copper mashaka as a token currency. A

horde of punch marked silver coins were found at Golakhpur at a site

of ancient Patliputra belonging to Pre-Mauryan times. Most of these

coins have only symbols like tree in railing, sun, moon, mountain, and

animals, birds etc punched or stamped on them. These symbols on the

coins had probably some connection with local commerce such as the

guilds, local or provincial administration, the royal and dynastic

symbols etc.The sites from where these coins have been found imply

that these places were inhabited during the Mauryan period.

Causes of Magadhan Supremacy

The kingdom of Magadha rose to pre-eminence during the period of

Bimbisara and became the first great empire in India by the time of

Nanda.Magadha occupied a strategic position of geographical

importance. It was bound on the north and west by the river Ganges

and Son on the south by the spurs of the Vindhyas and on the east by

the river Champa.In this way it was safe from all four sides. Even its

two capitals Rajgriha and Patliputra were situated at a strategic

position from a geographic viewpoint. Its first capital Rajagriha was

surrounded by five hills forming a natural defence. While its second

capital Pataliputra being at the junction of the Ganges and the Son had

natural means of defence.

Natural resources were also favourable to Magadha.The rich iron

deposits were situated not far away from Rajgir.It was from this that

its rulers could make effective and strong weapons. Its adversaries

lacked reserves of iron ore and could not equip themselves with

weapons of such high quality. Hence they were easily defeated by

Magadhan rulers. Thus the local iron ore deposits made possible better

implements and weapons and a profitable trade in iron.

The land of Magadha was also fertile which yielded rich harvests.

Heavy rainfall made the land more productive even without irrigation.

They produced varieties of paddy which are mentioned in the early

Buddhist texts. Land taxes could be kept high which proved to be

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regular and substantial source of income to the state without which

the maintenance of a big army could not be possible and the empire

could neither be built nor consolidated. Neighbouring forests provided

timber for buildings and elephants for the army.

Chandragupta Maurya (324-300 BC)

The Buddhist sources like Mahavamsa and Dipavamsa describe

Chandragupta Maurya as a scion of the Kshatriya clan of the Moriyas

branch of Sakyas who lived in Pipphalivana in eastern Uttar Pradesh.

The Mudrarakshasa a play written by Vishakha Datta uses the terms

like Vrishla and Kulahina for Chandragupta which mean a person of

humble origin.Tuskin a Greek writer also says that Chandragupta was

born in humble life. According to Buddhist sources Chandragupta's

father was killed in a battle and he was brought up by his maternal

uncle.Chanakya finding the signs of royalty in the child Chandragupta

took him as his pupil and educated him at Taxila which was then a

great centre of learning.Chandragupta's early life and education at

Taxila is indirectly proved by the fact that the Greek sources says that

he had seen Alexander in course of the latter's campaign of Punjab.

Bindusara (300-273 BC)

Chandragupta Maurya was succeeded by his son Bindusara.The Jain

scholar Hemachandra and Tibetan historian Taranath say that

Chanakya outlived Chandragupta and continued as a minister of

Bindusara.From Divyavadana it come to know that Bindusara

appointed his eldest son Sumana as his viceroy at Taxila and Ashoka

at Ujjain.

It also tells that a revolt broke out at Taxila and when it could not be

suppressed by Susima Ashoka was sent to restore peace. Some

scholars give the credit of south India conquest to Bindusara but most

scholars believe that this was done by his father Chandragupta

Maurya.Bindusara continued the policy of friendly relations with

Hellenic world. Pling mentions that Ptolemy Philadelphus of Egypt sent

Dionysius as his ambassador to his court.

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ashoka

Ashoka (273- 232 BC)


After the death of Bindusara in 273 BC Ashoka succeeded to the

throne. According to the Buddhist sources his mother was Janapada

Kalyani or Subhadrangi.As a prince he served as a victory first at

Ujjain and then at Taxila.According to the Buddhist tradition Ashoka

was very cruel in his early life and captured the throne after killing his

99 brothers.Ashoka is the first king in the Indian history who has left

his records engraved on stones. The history of Ashoka and his reign

can be reconstructed with the help of these inscriptions and some

other literary sources. The inscriptions on rocks are called Rock edicts

and those on pillars, Pillar edicts.

The Ashokan inscriptions are found in India, Nepal, Pakistan and

Afganistan.Altogether they appear at 47 places. However the name of

Ashoka occurs only in copies of Minor Rock Edict I found at three

places in Karnataka and one in MP.All other inscriptions refer to him as

devanampiya (beloved of the gods) and piyadasi.The inscriptions of

Ashoka were written in different scripts. In Afghanistan they were

written in Greek and Aramaic languages and script and in Pakistan

area in Prakrit language and Kharosthi script. Inscriptions from all

other places are in Prakrit language written in Brahmi script.

Kalinga war and its impact

The earliest event of Ashoka's reign recorded in his inscription is his

conquest of Kalinga (modern Orissa) in the 8th year of his reign. This

turned out to be first and also the last battle fought by him. The Rock

Edict III describes vividly the horrors and miseries of this war and its

impact on Ashoka.According to this edict one lakh people were killed in

this war, several lakhs perished and lakh and a half were taken

prisoners. He felt great remorse for the atrocities the war brought in

its wake.

He thus abandoned the policy of aggression and tired to conquer the

hearts of the people. The drums declaring wars were replaced by the

drums announcing ethical and moral principals with dhamma ghasa.He

sent ambassadors of peace to the Greek Kingdoms in West Asia and

several other countries. Within the empire he appointed a class of

officers known as rejjukas who were vested with the authority of not

only rewarding people but also punishing them if required.

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He thus abandoned the policy of aggression and tired to conquer the

hearts of the people. The drums declaring wars were replaced by the

drums announcing ethical and moral principals with dhamma ghasa.He

sent ambassadors of peace to the Greek Kingdoms in West Asia and

several other countries. Within the empire he appointed a class of

officers known as rejjukas who were vested with the authority of not

only rewarding people but also punishing them if required.

Dhamma of Ashoka

There is no doubt that Ashoka's personal religion was Buddhism. In his

Bhabru edict he says he had full faith in Buddha,Dhamma and

Sangha.he showed respect to all sects and faiths and believed in using

among ethical and moral values of all sects. In Rock Edict VII he says

all seeks desire both self control and purity of mind. In Rock Edict XII

he pronounces his policy of equal respect to all religious sects more

clearly.

The Dhamma as explained in Ashoka's edicts is not a religion or a

religious system but a moral law, a common code of conduct or an

ethical order. In Pillar Edict II Ashoka himself puts the question what is

Dhamma? Then he enumerates two basic attributes or constituents of

Dhamma: less evil and many good deeds. He says such evils as

rage,cruelty,anger,pride and envy are to be avoided and many good

deeds like kindness,liberty,truthfulness,gentleness,selfcontrol,purity of

heart, attachment to morality ,inner and outer purity etc are to be

pursued vigorously.Ashoka established hospitals for humans and

animals and made liberal donations to the Brahmans and ascetics of

different religious sects.

He erected rest houses, caused wells to be dug and trees to be planted

along the roads.Ashoka took for the propagation of Buddhism. He

conducted Dharamyatras and instructed his officials to do the same.

He appointed special class of officials called Dharamahamatras whose

sole responsibility was to propagate Dhamma among the

people.Ashoka sent missions to foreign countries also to propagate

dhamma.His missionaries went to western Asia, Egypt and Eastern

Europe. Of the Foreign kings whose kingdoms thus received the

message of Buddhism five are mentioned in the inscriptions of Ashoka

namely Antiochus, Syria and Western Asia, Ptolemy Philadelphus of

Egypt, Antigonus Gonatas of Macedonia, Megas of Cyrene and

Alexander of Epirus.Ashoka even sent his son Mahendra and daughter

Sanghamitra to propagate Buddhism in Srilanka.

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Policy and Administration

The Mauryan Empire was one of the largest in the whole of the ancient

world. It ushered in a centralized form of government. From the

Arthashastra Ashokan inscription and from the fragments available

from Megasthense's account there have a good idea about the various

aspects of administration, economy, society and religion of the people.

The king was head of the state. He had judicial, legislative and

executive powers. The king issued what was known as sasana or

ordinances. The edicts of Ashoka are examples of the sansanas.The

king was assisted in administration by a council of ministers

(mantriparishad).Besides there were some referred as Adhyakshas

(superintendents).

Kautilya refers to a large number of superintendents like those of gold,

store houses, commerce, agriculture, ships, cows,

horses,chariots,infantry,the city etc.In the Maurya administration there

was an officer called yukta who was perhaps the subordinate officer in

charge of the revenues of the king.

The rajjukas were officers responsible for land measurement and fixing

their boundaries. They were also given power to punish the guilty and

set free the innocents. Another officer of the Mauryan Administration

was pradeshikas.Some scholars think that he was responsible for the

collection of revenue while others think that he was the provincial

governor. The Mauryan Empire was divided into provinces. During the

reigns of Bindusara, Ashoka was posted at Ujjain as Governor of the

Avanti region while his Brother Susima was posted at Taxila as the

governor of the north-western provinces. Provinces were subdivided

into the district each of these was further divided into groups of the

villages and the final unit of administration was the village. The

important provinces were directly under kumara (princes).According to

the Junagarh rock inscription of Rudradaman,Saurashtra was governed

by vaisya Pushyagupta at the time of Chandragupta Maurya and by

Yavana-raja Tushaspa at the time of Ashoka both provincial governors.

A group of officials worked in each district. The pradeshika was the

head of district administration who toured the entire district every five

years to inspect the administration of areas five years to impact the

administration of areas under his control. The rajjuka was responsible

for surveying and assessing the land, fixing its rent and record keeping

besides judicial functions. The duties of yukta largely comprised

secretarial work collection and accounting of revenue etc.There were

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intermediate levels of administration between district and that of

village. This unit comprised five to ten or more villages. The village

was the smallest unit of administration. The head of the village was

called gramika who was assisted in village administration by village

elders. It is difficult to say whether the gramika was a paid servant or

was elected by the village people. The villages enjoyed considerable

autonomy. Most of the disputes of the village were settled by gramika

with the help of village assembly. The Arthashastra mentions a wide

range of scales in salary, the highest being 48000 panas and the

lowest 60 panas.

City Administration

A number of cities such as Pataliputra, Taxila, Ujjain, Tosali,

Suvarnagiri, Samapa, Isila and Kausambi are mentioned in the edicts

of Ashoka.The Arthashastra has a full chapter on the administration of

cities.Megasthenese has described in detail the administration of

Pataliputra and it can be safely presumed that similar administration

system was followed in most of the Mauryan cities.Megasthenese

described that the city of Pataliputra was administered by a city

council comprising 30 members. These 30 members were divided into

a board of five members each. Each of these boards had specific

responsibilities towards the administration of city. The first board was

concerned with the industrial and artistic produce. Its duties included

fixing of wages, check the adulteration etc.The second board dealt with

the affairs of the visitors especially outsiders who came to

Pataliputra.The third board was concerned with the registration of birth

and death.

The fourth board regulated trade and commerce kept a vigil on the

manufactured goods and sales of commodities. The fifth board was

responsible for the supervision of manufacture of goods. The sixth

board collected taxes as per the value of sold goods. The tax was

normally 1/10th of the sold goods. The city council appointed officers

who looked after the public welfare such as maintenance and repairs of

roads,markets,hospitals,temples,educational

institutions,sanitation,water supplies etc.The officer in charge of the

city was known as Nagarka.The administrative machinery of the

Mauryan state was fairly developed and well organized. Numerous

depts regulated and controlled the activities of the state. Several

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important depts that Kautilya mentions are accounts, revenue, mines

and minerals, chariots, customs and taxation.

Economic Activities

The Mauryan state concerned machinery which governed vast areas

directly and to enforce the rules and regulations in respect of

agriculture, industry, commerce, animal husbandry etc.The measures

taken by the Maurya state for the promotion of the economy gave

great impetus to economic development during the period. The

vastness of India's agricultural and mineral resources and the

extraordinary skill of her craftsmen have been mentioned by

Megasthenes and other Greek writers. The large part of the population

was agriculturists and lived in villages. New areas were brought under

cultivation after cleaning the forest. People were encouraged to settle

down in new areas.

chief of the guild was called jesthaka.The guilds settled the disputes of

their members. A few guilds issued their own coins.

Among the crops rice of different varieties, coarse grains, sesame,

pepper, pulses, wheat, linseed, mustard, vegetable and fruits of

various kinds and sugarcane were grown. The state also owned

agricultural farms, cattle farms and dairy farms etc.Irrigation was

given due importance. Water reservoirs and dams were built and water

for irrigation was distributed. The famous inscription of Rudradaman

found at Junagarh mention that one of Chandragupta's governors,

Pushyagupta was responsible for building a dam on Sudarshana Lake

near Girnar in Kathiawad.From an inscription of Skandagupta it has

been known that this dam was repaired during his reign almost 800

years after it was built. Industry was organized in various guilds.

The chief industries were textile, mining and metallurgy, ship building,

jewellery making, metal working etc.The trade was regulated by the

state. India supplied to other states indigo, cotton and silk and

medicinal items. Provisions of warehouses, godowns and transport

arrangements were also made. Foreign trade was carried on by land as

well as by sea. Special arrangements were made for the protection of

trade routes. The state controlled and regulated the weights and

measures. The artisans and craftsmen were specially protected by the

state and offences against them were severely punished. The guilds

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were powerful institutions. It gave craftsmen great economic, political

and judicial powers and protection. The

The Sanchi Stupa inscription mentions that one of the carved gateways

was donated by the guilds of ivory workers.Similary the Nasik cave

inscription mentions that two weaver's guilds gave permanent

endowments for the maintenance of a temple.Kautilya says a full

treasury is a guarantee of the prosperity of the state and it is the most

important duty of the king to keep the treasury full at all the times for

all works. During the Mauryan period taxes were levied both in cash

and in kind and were collected by local officers. The chief source of

revenue was land tax and tax levied on trade etc.The land tax was

1/4th to 1/6th of the produce. Toll tax was levied on all times which

were brought for sale in the market. Tax was also levied on the

manufactured goods. Those who could not pay the tax in cash or kind

were to contribute their dues in the form of labor.Strabo mentions that

craftsmen, herdsmen, traders, farmers all paid taxes. The

Arthashastra describes revenues at great length. This was further

augmented by income from mines, forests, pasture lands, trade and

forts etc.Brahmans, children and handicapped people were exempted

from paying taxes. Also no tax was levied in areas where new trade

routes or new irrigation projects or new agricultural land were being

developed. Tax evasion was considered a very serious crime and

offenders were severely punished.

Society and Culture

Megasthenese speaks of Mauryan society as comprising seven castesphilosophers,

farmers, soldiers, herdsmen, artisans, magistrates and

councillors. He could not properly comprehend the Indian society and

failed to distinguish between jati, Varna and the occupation. The

chaturvana system continued to govern the society. But the craftsmen

irrespective of jati enjoyed a high place in the society. The material

growth mellowed the jati restrictions and gave people prosperity and

respectability. The urban way of life developed. The residential

accommodation and its wealth etc were entered into official records

and rules and regulation were well defined and strictly implemented.

The education is fairly wide spread. Teaching continued to be the main

job of the Brahmans. But Buddhist monasteries also acted as

educational institutions.Taxila, Ujjayini and Varanasi were famous

educational institutions. The technical education was generally

provided through guilds, where pupils learnt the crafts from the early

age. In the domestic life the joint family system was the norm. A

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married woman had her own properly in the form of bride gift and

jewels.

These were at her disposal in case of widowhood. The widows had a

very honourable place in the society. There are frequent references to

women enjoying freedom and engaged in many occupations. Offences

against women were severely dealt with.Kautilya laid down penalties

against officials in charge of workshops and prisons who misbehaved

with women.Megasthenese have stated that slavery did not exist in

India. However forced labour and bonded labour did exist on a limited

scale but were not treated so harshly as the slaves in the western

world. About one and half century of Mauryan rule witnessed the

growth of economy, art and architecture, education.

Art and Architecture

During the Mauryan period there was a great development in the field

of art and architecture. The main examples of the Mauryan art and

architecture that survived are

Ashokan pillars and capitals.

Remains of the royal palace and the city of Pataliputra

Rock-cut Chaitya caves in the Barabar and Nagarjuni hills

Individual Mauryan sculptures and terracotta figurines

Pillar and Sculpture

The pillars set up by Ashoka furnish the finest remains of the Mauryan

art. The pillars with Ashoka edicts inscribed on them were placed

either in sacred enclosures or in the vicinity of towns. The pillars are

made of two types of stone-the spotted red and white sandstone from

the region of Mathura and the buff coloured fine grained hard

sandstone usually with small black spots quarried in Chunar near

Banaras.The stone was transported from Mathura and Chunar to the

various sites where the pillars have been found and here the stone

was cut and carried by craftsmen. Each pillar has three parts: the prop

under the foundation, the shaft of the column and the capital. The

prop is buried in the ground. The shaft made of a single piece of sand

stone supports the capital made of another single piece of sandstone.

Thin round and slightly tapering shaft is highly polished and very

graceful in its proportions. The capital which is the third part of the

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pillar consists of some finally executed animal figures such as the lion

or the elephant.

The sacred dharmachakra with 24 spokes symbol engraved with

animal seulpures in relief and the inverted or bell shaped lotus. The

capital of the Sarnath Pillar is the magnificent and best piece of the

series. The wonderful life like figures of four lions standing back to

back and the smaller graceful and stately figures of four animals in

relief on the abacus and the inverted lotus- all indicate a highly

advanced form of art. The Indian government adopted this capital with

some modifications as its state emblem. The sculpture of the Mauryan

period is represented by the figures such as

• The Yakshi of Besnagar in MP.

• The Yaksha of Parkham near Mathura

• The Chauri bearer from Didarganj in Bihar

• The stone elephant from Dhauli in Orissa

Artistically these figures do not appear to belong to the same tradition

as the animal capitals. They were probably carved by local craftsmen

and not by the special craftsmen who were responsible for the animal

capitals

Decline of Mauryan Empire

Ashok ruled over 40 years and met with his death in 232 BC.The

decline set in and soon after the empire decline set in and soon after

the empire broke up. Seven kings followed Ashoka in succession in a

period of 50 years. The empire was divided into an eastern and

western part. The western part was governed by Kunala, Samprati and

others and the eastern part with southern India with its capital at

Pataliputra by six later Mauryan Kings from Dasarath to

Brihadratha.The revolt of the Andhras in the south and victorious raids

of Greek king in the west gave a blow to the power and prestige of the

Mauryan Empire. Due to the concern for the empire and total

disillusionment on kings unworthiness Pushyamitra the commander-inchief

killed the King Brihadratha while he was reviewing the army. This

is the only recorded and undisputed incident in the history of India till

the 12th century AD where the king was murdered and replaced.

Most of the historians agree that after Ashoka his successors were

weak who could not control the unrest and revolt in various parts of

the empire. Some historians hold Ashoka responsible for this

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decline.Ashoka's pacifist policies weakened the empire in terms of

wars and military strength. The centralised empire needed very strong

willed rulers which were not the case with Ashoka's successors. Some

historians think that Ashoka's welfare measures must have eaten away

a large chunk of income and overall income must have been very

inadequate to maintain the army and the administrative machinery.

Moral Codes of Ashoka

Ashoka in Rock Edict XII and many other edicts prescribes the

following codes:

Obedience to mother and father, elders, teachers and other

respectable persons.

Respect towards teachers

Proper treatment towards ascetics,relations,slaves,servants and

dependents, the poor and miserable,friends,acquaintances and

companions

Abstention from killing of living beings

Non-injury to all living creatures

Spending little and accumulating little wealth

Truthfulness

Purity of heart

Later Mauryas (232-184 BC)

The evidence for the later Maurya is very little and whatever is there is

in an uncertain form rendering the re construction of their history very

difficult. The Puranas besides Buddhist and Jaina literature do provide

us with some information on the later Maurya but there is no

agreement among them. Even among the Puranas there is lot of

variance between one Purana and another. But on one point which all

Puranas are in agreement is that the Mauryan dynasty lasted 137

years.Ashoka's death was followed by the division of the Mauryan

Empire into two parts-western and eastern. The western part was

ruled by Kunala (son of Ashoka) and then for a short time by

Samprati.It was later threatened by the Bactrian Greeks in the northwest

and by the Satvahanas and others in the Deccan.

The eastern part of the empire with Pataliputra as the capital came to

be ruled by Dasaratha.Dasaratha is also known as from the caves in

the Nagarjuni hills which he dedicated to Ajivikas.Three inscriptions

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ordered by Dasartha Devanampriya state that the caves were

dedicated immediately on his accession.Samprati also mentioned in

the Matsya Purana is referred to in both the Buddhist and Jaina

literature as the son of Kunala.

According to Jaina tradition he was a grandson of Ashoka and a patron

of Jainism. He is said to have been converted to Jainism by Suhastin

after which he gave the religion both his active support as a ruler and

encouragement in other ways. The western part including the northwestern

province ,Gandhara and Kashmir was governed by Kunala.It is

possible that Kunala gradually extended his territory to include the

western province of the empire.According to the Puranas Dasaratha

reigned for eight years.Jaina sources mention that Samprati ruled from

Ujjain and Pataliputra.

This would suggest that the capital of the western part of the empire

was moved from the north to Ujjain.The decade following was to see

the conflict between Antiochus III of Syria and Euthydemus of Bactria

with Bactria emerging as a strong power ready to threaten northwestern

India.A number of Principalities in the trans-indus region

broke away from the empire while Samprati was occupied in

establishing himself at Pataliputra.Gradually the concentration of

attention moved to Magadha and the main line of the Mauryan dynasty

lived out its years at Pataliputra unable to control or prevent the

breaking up of the empire in the more distant regions.

After the reign of nine years Samprati was followed by Salisuka who

ruled for thirteen years. The successor of Salisuka mentioned as

Somavarman or Devavarman ruled for seven years. The last two kings

of the Mauryan dynasty were Satadhanvan who is said to have ruled

for 8 years and finally Brihadratha who ruled for seven years and was

assassinated by Pushyamitra Sunga.

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vedic city truth

Vedic CITyS truths


Things to remember

It is believed that before the coming of the Aryans in India the

greater part of northern and north-western India was inhabited by a

group of people known as Dravidians

The Dravidians could not meet challenge and hence gradually

moved southwards. The horse played a very important role in the lives

of the Aryans.

There is no trace of totemism and animal worship.

Rig Veda is collection of 1017 hymns supplemented by 11 others

called Valakhilyas. Purusukta theory developed in the later Vedic

period.

The first three Vedas -Rig,Sam and Yajur Veda are collectively

known as Trayi.

The word Arya comes from the root word meaning to cultivate and

Aryans as a whole were agriculturists who considered agriculture a

noble profession or occupation.

In the later Vedic period the purohita or priest was described as the

rashtragopa or the protector of the realm of the raja.

The king in later Vedic age performed Rajsuya sacrifice which was

supposed to confer supreme power on him. The king also performed

Vajpeya or the chariot race .The ritual lasted for 17 days and it was

supposed to elevate him from the position of Raja to that of Samrat.

Indra and Varuna lost their previous importance and prajapati

attained the supreme position in later Vedic age.

Pushan became the God of Sudras.

Rudra and Vishnu became more important than before.

Delhi Sultanate

The Slave Dynasty

1.Qutub-ud-din Aibek

2.Iltutmish

3.Raziya

4.Balban

5.Rulers of the Sultanate Period

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Khalji Dynasty

Jalaluddin Firuz Khalji

Jalaluddin Firuz Khalji was the founder of the Khalji dynasty. He came

to power after the overthrow of slave dynasty. Their ascendancy is

known as Khalji imperialism because with the accession of Jalaluddin

on the throne of Delhi, the supremacy of the Turks ended in India. He

expanded the boundaries of his empire besides his achievements

include suppression of the revolt of Malik Chhaju with the governor of

Oudh.He suppressed the thuggees a band of robbers and send them

off peacefully to Bengal. He adopted conciliatory policy towards the

Mongols. He allowed some of the Mongols to settle in India.

It was during the conquest of Bhilsa that Alauddin the nephew of

Jalaluddin started realising the dream of being sultan. In 1292 AD

Alauddin led an expedition to Devagiri hearing of its wealth.Devagiri

was forced to pay a huge war indemnity. This helped Alauddin in

buying the nobles and pleasing the soldiers who were dissatisfied by

the rule of Jalaluddin.Alauddin than hatched a conspiracy and got

Sultan Jalaludin killed and proclaimed himself as the sultan.

Alauddin Khalji

In 1296 Alauddin became the sultan after Malika Jan the widow of

Jalaluddin and her younger son Qadir Khan left Delhi. He also

exterminated the old Balbani and Jalali nobles.The reign of Alauddin

Khalji marks the zenith of the power of the Delhi Sultanate. In 1297 he

set off for conquering Gujarat. He sent an expedition under Ulugh

Khan and Nusrat Khan to Gujarat. On the way Ulugh Khan conquered

Jaisalmer.During the plunder of the rich port of Cambay Alauddin's

commander Nusrat Khan acquired a Hindu turned Muslim slave Kafur

who later on rose to become a great military general and the Malik

Naib of Alauddin.After the conquest of Gujarat Alauddin sent an

expedition under Ulugh Khan and Nusrat Khan to

Ranthambhore.However they were beaten by the Rajputs and Nusrat

Khan died.Alauddin went to Ranthambhor and annexed it in 1301.The

next expedition was sent to Mewar and after the siege of 8 months he

captured Chittor in 1303.The government of Chittor was put in the

hands of Khizr Khan, the eldest son of Alauddin.Chittor was renamed

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as Khizrabad after the name of Khizr Khan. In 1305 Alauddin sent Ainul-

Mulk Multani for the conquest of Malwa which was placed under the

governorship of the latter. By the end of 1305 the whole of Northern

India fell into the hands of Alauddin and he directed his attention to

the conquest of Deccan.

Between 1307 and 1312 he began the southward expansion of his

empire. He invaded Devagiri in 1306-07 AD. The immediate cause for

this was unduly long delay in sending the annual tribute. In 1309 the

Kakatiya kingdom was attacked and its ruler Pratap Rudra Deva

accepted the suzerainty of Delhi and surrendered vast treasures. The

next expedition was against Vir Ballala III the Hoysala ruler in

1311.His capital Dwarsamudra was captured. The whole of Deccan was

forced to acknowledge the supremacy of Alauddin.His motives were to

secure the immense wealth and to force the southern states to accept

the suzerainty of the Sultanate. He had to face more than dozen

invasions. These invasions started from the end of 1296 and continued

upto 1308.The Mongols threatened not only Punjab,Multan and Sindh

but even Delhi and the Ganga-Yamuna Doab.This grave crisis

compelled him to take strong measures for the protection of the

northwest frontier. The 20 years of his rule came to an end with his

death on 2nd January 1316 AD.

Qutubuddin Mubarak Shah Khalji

A young son of the Sultan was placed on the throne and Malik Kafur

acted as the regent. Malik Kafur killed other members of the

Allauddin's family but he was murdered and Mubarak Khan the third

son became the regent. He imprisoned Sahibuddin and ascended the

throne as Qutub uddin Mubarak in the year 1316.He tried to win the

good will of the people.He liberalized Alauddin's rigorous

administrative policies and repealed economic regulations.All prisoners

were released and harsh regulations were cancelled. The lands which

were confiscated were given back to their legitimate owners. Taxes

were lowered. He was under the influence of youth called Hassan who

later was called Khusru Khan who conspired to kill him. Thus Khalji

dynasty came to an end.Khusro tried to strike a reign of terror to

control the nobles. This was resented by the nobles particularly Ghazi

Malik who captured and beheaded the sultan. He ascended the throne

under the title of Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq Shah.

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Ruler of the Khalji Dynasty

Ruler of the Khalji Dynasty AD

1. Jalaluddin Firuz Khalji 1290-1296

2. Alauddin Khalji 1296-1316

3. Qutubuddin Mubarak 1316-1320

Tughlaq Dynasty

Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq

Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq laid the foundation of the Ttughlaq Dynasty.The

word Tughlaq was not the name of any tribe or clan but was the

personal name of Ghiyasuddin.He had to face enormous problems as a

Sultan. There were riots in various parts of the empire and the royal

treasury was empty. He pursued a policy of reconciliation with the

nobles and the people who were severely restricted under Alauddin.He

liberalized administration in certain respects. He gave up the practice

of physical torture in case of economic offences and recovery of debts.

He also discarded Alauddin's system of measurement of land for the

assessment of land revenue. He attempted to improve the finances of

the state and perused a policy to encourage agriculture. His twin

object was to increase land under cultivation and improve economic

condition of the cultivators. He took keen interest in the construction

of canal for irrigation and formulated famine policy to provide relief to

peasants in time of drought. The state demand of revenue was fixed

between 1/5th and 1/3rd of the produce. He further instructed that the

land revenue should not be enhanced more than 1/11th of the

estimated produce.

He continued the system of Dagh and Chehra instituted by

Alauddin.He built the fortified city of Tughlaqabad and gave a new

touch to the architecture of the Sultanate period. In 1321 he

dispatched the crown prince Jauna Khan to re-establish Sultan's

authority in the south. He annexed Warangal.Madurai and Bengal.

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Mohammad Bin Tughlaq

Jauna Khan ascended the throne in 1325 AD with the title of

Mohammad Bin Tughlaq.He ruled up to 1351.He was a profound

scholar of Persian, a penetrating critic,a litterateur of repute. He was a

great scholar of Persian and Arabic. He faced many revolts and

rebellions. The first of these revolts included his attempt to consolidate

his empire by curbing the rebellions of 1327 by his cousin Bahauddin

Garsharp in the Deccan and other of Kishulu Khan the governor of

Multan and Sind in 1328.One of the much condemned experiments of

the Sultan was the transfer of capital from Delhi to Devagiri

(1327).The transfer was attempted primarily due to two reasons -for

its central location and secondly its close proximity to the south which

was a newly conquered region. The transfer of capital involved the

shifting of the army, officials, servants, tradesmen, court and shift of

population. There was a widespread resentment against the Sultan

who decided to retransfer the capital to Delhi. The order of going back

to the old capital caused much distress to the people. Another of his

novel and daring experiments was the introduction of the token

currency of bronze coins in place of silver tanka in 1329-30.The value

of the token coins was deemed to be equal to a silver coin. The main

reason for this measure was the scarcity of silver.

This measure proved useful in the beginning but later on it caused

serious problems. People soon began to manufacture counterfeits of

bronze in large numbers. There was a surfeit of coins in circulation.

This naturally led to its depreciation and most people began to prefer

copper tankas for payments and silver or gold issues for receipts. The

Sultan was compelled to withdraw the token currency. He offered to

exchange all the token coins for the silver coins resulting in huge

losses to the treasury. He planned an expedition for the conquest of

Khurasan and Iraq. He raised an army of 3, 70,000 soldiers and gave

it a whole year's salary in advance. But the army did not leave for the

expedition and was disbanded. The scheme was abandoned when the

Sultan learnt that the conditions in Iraq had improved and was not

conducive to an expedition. Towards the end of his reign the sultan

increased the land revenue in the doab. He decided to enhance the

land tax in the doab because of richness of its soil.Doab was facing

total famine which was followed by plague. The Sultan raised the tax

from 5 to 10%. Therefore the peasants instead of paying the taxes

abandoned their lands and adopted highway robbery. The tax

collectors continued to collect taxes by oppression. It resulted in

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extensive revolts. Mohammad Bin Tughlaq died in 1351.The whole of

south India became independent during his life time and three major

independent states- the empire of Vijaynagar,the Brahmani kingdom

and the Sultanate of Madura were founded in the territories of the

sultanate of the south.

Later Tughlaqs

Firoz Tughlaq was succeeded by his grandson who took up the title of

Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq Shah II.Within a year of his accession he fell

victim to intrigue and was beheaded in early 1389.For the next five

years Sultans- Abu Bakr, Muhammad Shah and Alauddin Sikandar

Shah ruled. In 1390 Nasiruddin entered Delhi and enthroned himself.

He was the last sultan of the dynasty and ruled from 1390-

1412.During his reign Timur the Mongol leader of Central Asia invaded

India. After plundering Delhi he returned to Samarkand.On his way

back he plundered Firozabad, Kangra, Meerut and Jammu.Khizr Khan

was appointed governor of Multan, Lahore and Dipalpur.Timur's

invasion dealt a fatal blow to the Tughlaq dynasty and the Sultanate of

Delhi. In 15th century the Sultanate completely disintegrated and

numerous provincial kingdoms emerged in various parts of the

country.

Rulers of the Tughlaq Dynasty

Rulers of the Tughlaq Dynasty AD

1. Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq Shah 1320-1325

2. Mohammad Bin Tughlaq 1325-1351

3. Firuz Tughlaq 1351-1388

4. Later Tughlaq 1388-1414

The Saiyyid Dynasty

Khizr Khan was not only the founder of the Saiyyid Dynasty but also

its ablest ruler. Khizr Khan did not rule as a sovereign ruler but

professed to rule as the deputy of Timur's son and successor. He

assumed the title of Shah and got the Khutba read in his name. In

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1412 he conquered Gujarat,Gwalior and Jaunpur.In 1416 he defeated

Bayana and in 1421 he attacked Mewat.Due to the illness he died in

the year 1421.He was succeeded by his son Mubarak Shah in 1421

who ruled till 1434.He was succeeded by his son Muhammad Shah in

1434 who ruled till 1445 AD. He remained in his capital sunk in

indolence and pleasure. He was succeeded by his son Alauddin Alam

Shah 1445-51.He was the weakest ruler of the Saiyyid Dynasty. He

was deposed by Bahlol Lodhi, the powerful governor of Lahore and

Sirhind who founded the Lodhi dynasty.

Rulers of the Saiyyid Dynasty

Rulers of the Saiyyid Dynasty AD

1. Khizr Khan 1414-1421

2. Mubarak Shah 1421-1434

3. Muhammad Shah 1434-1445

4. Alauddin Alam Shah 1445-1450