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Maurya Empire (322–180 BCE)
Chandragupta 322–297 BCE Bindusara 297–273 BCE Ashoka the Great 273/268–232 BCE Dasharatha 232–224 BCE Samprati 224–215 BCE Shalishuka 215–202 BCE Devavarman 202–195 BCE Shatadhanvan 195–187 BCE Brihadratha 187–180 BCE
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Chandragupta Maurya (reign: 321–298 BCE) was the founder of the Maurya Empire in ancient India. He was born in a humble family, orphaned and abandoned, raised as a son by another pastoral family, was picked up, taught and counselled by Chanakya – a Hindu Brahmin also known as Kautilya and the author of the Arthashastra. Chandragupta with his counsellor Chanakya thereafter together built one of the largest empires ever on the Indian subcontinent. According to Jain sources, he then renounced it all, became a monk in the Jain tradition. His grandson was emperor Ashoka, famous for his historic pillars and for his role in helping spread Buddhism outside of ancient India. Chandragupta's life and accomplishments are described in ancient Greek, Hindu, Buddhist and Jain texts, but they vary significantly. In Greek and Latin accounts, Chandragupta is referred to as Sandrokottos or Androcottus.

Chandragupta Maurya was a pivotal figure in the history of India. Prior to his consolidation of power, Alexander the Great had invaded the northwest Indian subcontinent, then abandoned his campaign in 324 BCE and left a legacy of several Indo-Greek kingdoms in the northwest ancient India. Chandragupta created a new empire, applied the principles of statecraft, built a large army and continued expanding the boundaries of his empire. Greek rulers such as Seleucus I Nicator avoided war with him, entered into a marriage alliance instead, and retreated into Persia. Chandragupta's empire extended from Bengal to most of the Indian subcontinent except for parts that are now Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Odisha.

Chandragupta's reign, as well the dynasty that followed him, was an era of economic prosperity, reforms and expansion of infrastructure such as irrigation, roads and mines. In his empire and those of his descendants, many religions thrived in India, with Buddhism, Jainism and Ajivika gaining prominence along with the Brahmanism traditions. A memorial to Chandragupta Maurya exists on the Chandragiri hill, along with a 7th-century hagiographic inscription, on one of the two hills in Shravanabelagola, Karnakata.

Biography

The historical sources which describe the life of Chandragupta Maurya vary considerably in details. His main biographical sources in chronological order are:

• Greek and Roman sources, which are the oldest surviving records that mention Chandragupta or circumstances related to him; these include those by Nearchus, Onesicritus, Aristobulus, Strabo, Megasthenes, Diodorus, Arrian, Pliny the Elder, Plutarch and Justin.
• among the oldest dated Indian sources on Chandragupta are Hindu texts such as the Puranas and Arthashastra; later composed Hindu sources include legends in Vishakhadatta's Mudrarakshasa, Somadeva's Kathasaritsagara and Kshemendra's Brihatkathamanjari.
• the earliest mentions of Chandragupta in Buddhist sources are those dated in 4th-century or after; these include the Sri Lankan Pali texts Dipavamsa (rajavamsa section), Mahavamsa, Mahavamsa tika and Mahabodhivamsa.
• the earliest sources that the Digambara Jain tradition state to be mentioning Chandragupta with Bhadrabahu appear in 7th– to 10th-century inscriptions at Sravana Belgola; this is disputed by scholars as well as the Svetambara Jain tradition; the first Digambara text mentioning the Maurya emperor are dated to about the 10th-century such as in the work of Harisena, while the complete Jain legend about Chandragupta is found the 12th-century Parisishtaparvan by Hemachandra.

The Greek and Roman texts, but for one exception, do not mention Chandragupta directly. They predominantly mention a mean and cruel king named Nanda, born to a queen after her affair with a barber, one who assassinated the king and came to power by a coup. Chandragupta later removed Nanda from power. The exception that does mention Chandragupta directly is the 2nd-century text by the Roman historian Justin. He states Chandragupta was of “humble origin”, then includes stories of miraculous legends associated with him, such as a wild elephant appearing and submitting itself as a ride to him before a war. The Justin version states Chandragupta and Chanakya defeated and removed the evil Nanda king. The account of Megasthenes, as it has survived in Greek texts that quote him, state that Alexander the Great and Sandracottos (Chandragupta) met, which if true would mean his rule started earlier than 321 BCE. He is described as a great king, but not as great in his power and reach as Porus in northwestern India or Agrammes (Dhana Nanda) in eastern India.

The pre-4th century Brahmanical (Hindu) Puranic texts mostly mirror the Greek sources. These Hindu texts do not discuss the details of Chandragupta’s ancestry, rather cover the ancestry of the Nanda king he unseated from the kingdom. The Nanda king is described as someone mean and cruel, persecuting people, as one against dharma and sastras, born out of an illicit relationship followed by coup. The Chanakya’s ‘’Arthasastra’’ refers to the Nanda rule as against the “spiritual, cultural and military” interests of the country, a period where intrigue and vice multiplied. Chanakya states that Chandragupta returned dharma, nurtured a diversity of views, and a virtuous rule that kindled love among the subjects for his rule.

Hindu sources are inconsistent. One medieval commentator states Chandragupta to be the son of one of the Nanda’s wives with the name “Mura”. Another Sanskrit dramatic text Mudrarakshasa uses the terms "Vrishala" and "Kula-hina" to describe Chandragupta. The word "Vrishala” has two meanings, one the "son of a Shudra”, another meaning being the "best of kings". A later commentator used the former interpretation to posit that Chandragupta came from a Shudra background. However, historian R. K. Mookerji opposes this theory, and states that the word should be interpreted as "the best of kings”. The same drama also refers to Chandragupta as someone of humble origin, in a manner similar to Justin. According to the 11th-century texts of the Kashmiri Hindu tradition – Kathasaritsagara and Brihat-Katha-Manjari – the Nanda lineage was very short, of two competing Shudra power centers. Chandragupta was a son of Purva-Nanda, the older Nanda based in Ayodhya. The most common theme in the Hindu sources is that Chandragupta came from a humble background and with Chanakya he emerged as a dharmic king loved by his subjects.

The Buddhist texts such as Mahavamsa describe Chandragupta as of Kshatriya origin. These sources, written about seven centuries after his dynasty ended, state that both Chandragupta and his grandson Ashoka – the great patron of Buddhism, were of the same noble family of Sakyas from which the Buddha came, but one that branched off. These Buddhist sources thus attempt to link the dynasty of their patron Ashoka directly to the Buddha – the founder of their faith. The branching, claim these sources, occurred to escape the persecution of a cruel king from Kosala and Chandragupta’s ancestors moved into a secluded Himalayan kingdom known for its peacocks. The Buddhist sources explain the epithet Moriya comes from these peacocks, or Mora in Pali (Sanskrit: Mayura). The Buddhist texts are, however, also inconsistent. Some offer other legends to explain his epithet. For example, they mention a city named "Moriya-nagara" where all buildings were made of bricks colored like the peacock's resplendent neck. The Maha-bodhi-vamsa states he hailed from Moriya-nagara, while the Digha-Nikaya states he came from the Moriya clan of Pipphalivana. The Buddhist sources also mention that “Brahmin Chanakya” was his counselor and with whose support Chandragupta became the king at Patliputra.

The 12th-century Jain text Parishishtaparvan by Hemachandra is the main and earliest Jain source of the complete legend of Chandragupta. It was written nearly 1,400 years after his Chandragupta's death. In Canto 8, verses 170 to 469, this text describes the legend of Chandragupta and Chanakya’s influence on him.

Othe Jain sources state he moved to Karnataka after renouncing his kingdom. There he ultimately performed Sallekhana – the Jain religious ritual of peacefully welcoming death by fasting.

Date

None of the ancient texts mention when Chandragupta was born. Plutarch claims that he was a young man when he met Alexander during the latter's invasion of India (c. 326-325 BCE). Assuming the Plutarch account is true, Raychaudhuri proposed in 1923 that Chandragupta may have been born after c. 350 BCE. According to other Greco-Roman texts, Chandragupta attacked the Greek-Indian governors after Alexander's death (c. 323 CE) with Seleucus I Nicator entering into a treaty with Chandragupta years later. Seleucus Nicator, under this treaty, gave up Arachosia (Kandahar), Gedrosia (Makran) and Gedrosia (Kabul) to Chandragupta, in exchange for 500 war elephants.

The texts do not include the start or end year of Chandragupta's reign. According to some Hindu and the Buddhist texts, Chandragupta's ruled for 24 years. The Buddhist sources state Chandragupta Maurya ruled 162 years after the death of the Buddha. However, the birth and death of the Buddha varies by source and all these lead to a chronology that is significantly different than the Greek-Roman records. Similarly, Jain sources composed nearly 1,200 years after Chandragupta’s death give different gap between Mahavira’s death and his accession. As with Buddha's death, the date of Mahavira's death itself is a matter of debate, and the inconsistencies and lack of unanimity among the Jain authors casts doubt on Jain sources. The Jain chronology, in addition, is not reconcilable with the chronology implied in other Indian and non-Indian sources.

Historians such as Irfan Habib and Vivekanand Jha assign Chandragupta's reign to c. 322-298 BCE. Upinder Singh dates his rule from 324 or 321 BCE to 297 BCE. Kristi Wiley states he reigned between 320 and 293 BCE.

Early life

According to the Sinhalese Buddhist tradition, Chandragupta's father - who was the chief of the Moriya clan - was killed in a battle, when his mother was pregnant. His mother escaped to the Puppha-pura (Pushpa-pura, literally "flower city") city escorted by her brothers. This city is identified with Pataliputra, which was also known as Kusuma-pura (also meaning "flower city"). For his safety, Chandragupta's maternal uncles moved him to a cow-pen, where he was brought up by a cowherd. When Chandragupta grew up, the cowherd sold him to a hunter, who employed him to tend cattle.

According to the Roman records of Justin, Chandragupta ("Sandrocottus") offended the Nanda king ("Nandrum" or "Nandrus") by his disrespectful behaviour, because of which the king ordered him to be killed. Chandragupta escaped, and became a rebel.

Justin mentions a couple of incidents involving Chandragupta and animals. In the first incident, when Chandragupta was asleep after having escaped from Nandrum, a big lion came up to him, gently woke him up by licking him, and then left. In the second incident, when Chandragupta was readying for war with Alexander's generals, a huge wild elephant came to him, became tame, and guided him in the war. According to Raychaudhuri, these narratives suggests that Justin was aware of the Buddhist legends, which mention Chandragupta's association with a hunter.

Career

Influence of Chanakya (Kautilya)

The ancient Indian sources suggest that Chandragupta's mentor Chanakya played an important role in educating and training Chandragupta, as well as the overthrow of the Nanda dynasty. According to the Buddhist tradition, Chanakya was a native of Taxila ("Takkasila"), and came to Pataliputra in pursuit of learning. Dhana Nanda, the reigning Nanda king of Pataliputra, insulted him for his ugly physical appearance. Chanakya then swore to destroy the Nanda dynasty. Subsequently, he happened to see Chandragupta, who would play king with other boys as his subordinates. As part of this game, Chandragupta would hold mock courts, where he would administer justice. Chanakya saw him at one of these mock courts, and impressed by his leadership qualities, bought him by paying his hunter foster-father 1,000 karshapanas (coins). He took Chandragupta to Taxila, which was renowned as a seat of learning, and gave the boy an all-round education for 8-9 years.

According to Hemachandra, Chanakya was a Jain layperson and a Brahmin. When Chanakya was born, Jain monks prophesied that Chanakya will one day grow up to help make someone an emperor and will be the power behind the throne. Chanakya believed in the prophecy. He began making it true by agreeing to help the daughter of the chief of a peacock breeding community to deliver a baby boy. In exchange, for his fee, he asked the mother to give up the boy and let him adopt him at a later date. The Jain Brahmin then went about making money through magic, and returned later to claim boy Chandragupta. He taught and trained him. Together, they recruited soldiers and began their violent attack of the local kingdom. First they failed, but later through alliances, they won the Nanda kingdom and proclaimed Patliputra as their capital. The 12th-century Jain legend by Hemachandra includes incredible stories about Jain monks who could become invisible to steal food from royal storage, the Jain Brahmin Chanakya using violence and cunning tactics to expand Chandragupta’s kingdom and increase royal revenues. It states in verses 8.415 to 8.435, that for 15 years as king, Chandragupta was follower of “ascetics with wrong view of religion” (non-Jain), ascetics who “lusted for women”. Chanakya persuaded Chandragupta to convert to Jainism by showing Jain ascetics avoided women and focused on their religion. The legend mentions Chanakya aiding the premature birth of Bindusara – the son Chandragupta and his dying queen, but makes no mention of Chandragupta’s migration or sallekhana (voluntary fasting to death). It states in verse 8.444 that "Chandragupta died in meditation and went to heaven". According to the Hemachandra’s legend, it was Chanakya who committed sallekhana'’ by first fasting and then burning himself on a dungheap in a motionless posture, and was "reborn as a Jain goddess in that place".

The Mudrarakshasa also states that Chanakya swore to destroy the Nanda dynasty after he felt insulted by the king. Greco-Roman writer Plutarch, in his Life of Alexander, states that Chandragupta ("Andracottus") met Alexander as a young man, and later declared that the Nanda king was so unpopular that Alexander could have easily conquered India.

Building the empire

Chandragupta Maurya was the founder of the Maurya Empire in ancient India.

Formation of the army

According to the Buddhist text Mahavamsa Tika, after the completion of Chandragupta's education at Taxila, he and Chanakya raised an army by recruiting soldiers from different places. Chanakya made Chandragupta the leader of this army. The Jain text Parishishtaparvan states that this army was raised using the wealth obtained through metallurgy (dhatu-vada). According to Roman historian Justin, Chandragupta organized a body of armed men after escaping from Alexander. Some modern translations have characterized these men as robbers, but the original expression used by Justin may mean mercenary soldier, hunter, or robber.

Conquest of the Nanda empire

Chandragupta's army conquered the Nanda capital Pataliputra around 322 BCE. Historically reliable details of Chandragupta's campaign into Pataliputra are unavailable and legends written centuries later are inconsistent. According to Buddhist texts such as Milindapanha, Magadha was ruled by the evil Nanda dynasty, which, with Chanakya's counsel, Chandragupta easily conquered to restore dhamma. According to Hindu and Jain records, the campaign was bitterly fought because the Nanda dynasty had a well-trained, powerful army. Chandragupta and Chanakya built alliances and a formidable army of their own first.

According to the Mahavamsa Tika, Chandragupta's army plundered villages in the frontier region, and then proceeded towards the Nanda capital, but was defeated. He realized his mistake when he overheard a woman scolding a kid for eating only the centre of the food, and leaving the edges. She told the kid that he was behaving like Chandragupta, who attempted to invade the capital before capturing the frontier regions. Realizing his mistake, Chandragupta began a new campaign at the frontier of the Nanda empire, gradually conquering various territories on his way to the Nanda capital. However, he committed the mistake of not consolidating his rule over the conquered territories, whose rulers would regain power and attack his army's rear. He then refined his strategy by establishing garrisons in the conquered territories, and finally besieged the Nanda capital Pataliputra, where he killed king Dhana Nanda.

According to a similar legend mentioned in the Parishishtaparvan, Chanakya and Chandragupta realized that they had been attacking the Nanda kingdom like a child who burns his finger in the middle of hot food, instead of eating it from edges. Chanakya then entered into an alliance with king Parvataka of Himavatkuta kingdom. The army of Chandragupta and Chanakya then gradually conquered the Nanda territories, and finally invaded the Nanda capital Pataliputra. The Nanda king was defeated, but allowed to leave Pataliputra alive along with his two wives and a daughter. The daughter, however, fell in love Chandragupta, and married him.

In Questions of Milinda, Bhaddasala is named as a Nanda general during the conquest.

The conquest was fictionalised in Mudrarakshasa, in which Chandragupta is said to have first acquired Punjab and then allied with a local king named Parvatka under the advice of Chanakya, and advanced upon the Nanda Empire. Chandragupta laid siege to Kusumapura (now Patna), the capital of Magadha, with the help of mercenaries from areas already conquered and by deploying guerrilla warfare methods. Historian P. K. Bhattacharyya states that the empire was built by a gradual conquest of provinces after the initial consolidation of Magadha.

With the end of the Nanda dynasty and possessing the resources of the Gangetic plains, Chandragupta used Chanakya's strategies. To expand and consolidate an empire, Chandragupta may have allied with the King of Simhapura in Rajputana and King of Kalinga (modern-day Odisha).

Conquest of north-west regions

The Greeks led by Indian campaign of Alexander the Great had invaded north-western India during 327-325 BCE. Alexander left India in 325 BCE, leaving the control of his newly-conquered territories under Greek governors and local vassals.

The Indian accounts make no mention of Chandragupta's enmity towards the Greeks ("Yavanas" or "Yonas" in Indian literature): they only mention the Nanda king as his primary rival. However, Justin mentions Chandragupta as a rival of the Alexander's successors in the north-western India. Justin states that after Alexander's death, the Indians put his governors to death, and that Sandrocottus (identified with Chandragupta) was the leader who achieved India's freedom from the Greek rule.

By 323-321 BCE, within a few years of Alexander's retreat, Chandragupta's army had defeated some of the Greek-ruled cities in the north-west subcontinent. Chandragupta's mercenaries may have assassinated two of Alexander's governors, Nicanor and Philip. Megasthenes served as a Greek ambassador in his court for four years.

War and marriage alliance with Seleucus

Seleucus I Nicator, a Macedonian general of Alexander who in 312 BCE established the Seleucid Kingdom with its capital at Babylon, reconquered most of Alexander's former empire in Asia and put the eastern territories as far as Bactria and the Indus under his own authority In 305 BCE he entered into conflict with Chandragupta (in Greek Sandrocottus):

Always lying in wait for the neighboring nations, strong in arms and persuasive in council, he acquired Mesopotamia, Armenia, 'Seleucid' Cappadocia, Persis, Parthia, Bactria, Arabia, Tapuria, Sogdia, Arachosia, Hyrcania, and other adjacent peoples that had been subdued by Alexander, as far as the river Indus, so that the boundaries of his empire were the most extensive in Asia after that of Alexander. The whole region from Phrygia to the Indus was subject to Seleucus. He crossed the Indus and waged war with Sandrocottus , king of the Indians, who dwelt on the banks of that stream, until they came to an understanding with each other and contracted a marriage relationship. Some of these exploits were performed before the death of Antigonus and some afterward.

— Appian, History of Rome, The Syrian Wars 55

According to R. C. Majumdar and D. D. Kosambi, Seleucus appears to have fared poorly, having ceded large territories west of the Indus to Chandragupta. The Maurya Empire added Arachosia (Kandahar), Gedrosia (Balochistan), and Paropamisadae ( Gandhara).

According to Strabo, Chandragupta engaged in a marital alliance with Seleucus to formalise the peace treaty:

The Indians occupy in part some of the countries situated along the Indus, which formerly belonged to the Persians: Alexander deprived the Ariani of them, and established there settlements of his own. But Seleucus Nicator gave them to Sandrocottus in consequence of a marriage contract (Epigamia, Greek: Ἐπιγαμία), and received in return five hundred elephants.

— Strabo 15.2.1(9)

The details of the engagement treaty are not known. The extensive sources available on Seleucus never mention an Indian princess so it is thought the marital alliance went the other way, with Chandragupta or his son Bindusara marrying a Seleucid princess in accordance with the contemporaneous Greek practice of forming dynastic alliances. An Indian Puranic source, the Pratisarga Parva of the Bhavishya Purana, described the marriage of Chandragupta to a Greek ("Yavana") princess, daughter of Seleucus. The source accurately describes early Mauryan genealogy:

Chandragupta married with a daughter of Suluva, the Yavana king of Pausasa. Thus, he mixed the Buddhists and the Yavanas. He ruled for 60 years. From him, Vindusara was born and ruled for the same number of years as his father. His son was Ashoka.

— Pratisarga Parva

In a return gesture, Chandragupta sent 500 war elephants, which played a key role in the victory of Seleucus at the Battle of Ipsus. In addition to this treaty, Seleucus dispatched an ambassador Megasthenes to Chandragupta and later Antiochos sent Deimakos to his son Bindusara at the Maurya court at Patna.

Greek rulers such as Seleucus I Nicator avoided war with him, entered into a marriage alliance instead, and retreated into Persia. According to Greek sources, the two rulers maintained friendly relations and continued exchanging presents. Classical sources state that following their treaty, Chandragupta sent various aphrodisiacs to Seleucus:

And Theophrastus says that some contrivances are of wondrous efficacy in such matters as to make people more amorous. And Phylarchus confirms him, by reference to some of the presents which Sandrakottus, the king of the Indians, sent to Seleucus; which were to act like charms in producing a wonderful degree of affection, while some, on the contrary, were to banish love. Athenaeus of Naucratis, "The deipnosophists" Book I, chapter 32

Southern conquest

After annexing Seleucus' provinces west of the Indus river, Chandragupta had a vast empire extending across the northern Indian sub-continent from the Bay of Bengal to the Arabian Sea. Chandragupta then began expanding his empire southwards beyond the barrier of the Vindhya Range and into the Deccan Plateau. By the time his conquests were complete, Chandragupta's empire extended over most of the subcontinent. A "Moriya" war in south is referred three times in the Tamil work Ahananuru and once in Purananuru. According to these texts, Moriya army chariots cut through rocks. It is unclear whether the texts refer to Chandragupta Maurya or the Moriyas in the Deccan region in the 5th century CE.

Army

Chandragupta's army was large, well trained and paid directly by the state as suggested by his counsellor Chanakya. It was estimated at hundreds of thousands of soldiers in Greek accounts. For example, his army is mentioned to have 400,000 soldiers, according to Strabo, "Megasthenes was in the camp of Sandrocottus, which consisted of 400,000 men". Pliny the Elder, who also drew from Megasthenes' work, reported numbers of 600,000 infantry, 30,000 cavalry, and 9,000 war elephants. Mudrarakshasa mentions that Chandragupta's army consisted of Sakas, Yavanas (Greeks), Kiratas, Kambojas, Parasikas, and Bahlikas. Plutarch and Pliny the Elder estimated that Chandragupta's army would later number 600,000 by the time it had subdued all of India, Pliny and Plutarch also estimated the Nanda Army strength in the east as 200,000 infantry, 80,000 cavalry, 8,000 chariots, and 6,000 war elephants. These estimates were based in part on the earlier work of Megasthenes, the Seleucid ambassador to the Maurya.

Names and titles

Greek writer Phylarchus (c. 3rd century BCE), who is quoted by Athenaeus, calls Chandragupta "Sandrokoptos". The later Greco-Roman writers Strabo, Arrian, and Justin (c. 2nd century) call him "Sandrocottus". In Greek and Latin accounts, Chandragupta is known as Sandrakottos (Template:Lang-el) and Androcottus (Template:Lang-el).

The king's epithets mentioned in the Sanskrit play Mudrarakshasa include "Chanda-siri" (Chandra-shri), "Piadamsana" (Priya-darshana), and Vrishala. Piadamsana is similar to Piyadasi, an epithet of his grandson Ashoka. The word "Vrishala" is used in Indian epics and law books to refer to non-orthodox people. According to one theory, it may be derived from the Greek royal title Basileus, but there is no concrete evidence of this: the Indian sources apply it to several non-royals, especially wandering teachers and ascetics.

Extent of the empire

After gaining control over the former Nanda territories around 320 BCE, Chandragupta seems to have consolidated his rule over northern India in the subsequent years. However, there are no records of his military conquests during this period. In the north-west, his empire included parts of present-day Afghanistan and Pakistan, as Seleucus I Nicator had ceded to him all the territories east of present-day Kabul and Baluchistan.

In the west, Chandragupta's rule over present-day Gujarat is attested to by the 2nd century Junagadh rock inscription of Rudradaman. The inscription states that the Sudarshana lake in the area was commissioned by Chandragupta's governor Vaishya Pushyagupta. The Mauryan control of the region is further corroborated by Ashoka's inscription on the same rock. This also suggests that Chandragupta controlled the Malwa region in Central India, which was located between Gujarat and his capital Pataliputra in Magadha.

There is uncertainty about the other conquests that Chandragupta may have achieved, especially in the Deccan region of southern India. At the time of his grandson Ashoka's ascension in c. 268 BCE, the empire extended up to present-day Karnataka in the south, so the southern conquests may be attributed to either Chandragupta or his son Bindusara. If the Jain tradition about Chandragupta ending his life as a renunciate in Karnakata is considered correct, it appears that Chandragupta initiated the southern conquest.

Maurya built one of the largest-ever empires on the Indian subcontinent.

Rule

After unifying much of India, Chandragupta and Chanakya passed a series of major economic and political reforms. Chandragupta established a strong central administration from Pataliputra (now Patna). Chandragupta Maurya applied the statecraft and economic policies described in Chanakya's text Arthashastra. There are varying accounts in the historic, legendary and hagiographic literature of various Indian religions about Chandragupta but Allchin and Erdosy, these claims are suspect. They add that the evidence is not limited to texts and includes those discovered at archeological sites, epigraphy in the centuries that followed, and the numismatic data. They wrote, "one cannot but be struck by the many close correspondences between the (Hindu) Arthashastra and the two other major sources the (Buddhist) Asokan inscriptions and (Greek) Megasthenes text". The Maurya rule was a structured administration; Chandragupta had a council of ministers (amatya). Chanakya was his chief minister. Megasthenes served as a Greek ambassador in his court for four years. The empire was organised into territories (janapada), centres of regional power were protected with forts (durga), and state operations were funded with treasury (kosa).

During Chandragupta's reign and that of his dynasty, many religions thrived in India, with Buddhism, Jainism and Ajivika gaining prominence along with the Brahmanism traditions.

Infrastructure projects

The empire built infrastructure such as irrigation, temples, mines and roads, leading to a strong economy. Ancient epigraphical evidence suggests Chandragupta Maurya, under counsel from Chanakya, started and completed many irrigation reservoirs and networks across the Indian subcontinent to ensure food supplies for the civilian population and the army, a practice continued by his dynastic successors. Regional prosperity in agriculture was one of the required duties of his state officials. Rudradaman inscriptions found in Gujarat mention that 400 yers later, it repaired and enlarged the irrigation infrastructure built by Chandragupta and enhanced by Asoka. Chandragupta's state also started mines, manufacturing centres, and networks for trading goods. His rule developed land routes for transporting goods across the Indian subcontinent. Disfavouring water transport, Chandragupta expanded "roads suitable for carts", preferring these over narrow tracks suitable for only pack animals.

According to Kaushik Roy, the Maurya dynasty rulers beginning with Chandragupta were "great road builders". The Greek ambassador Megasthenes credited this tradition to Chandragupta with the completion of a thousand-mile-long highway connecting Chandragupta's capital Pataliputra in Bihar to Taxila in the north-west where he studied. The other major strategic road infrastructure credited to this tradition spread from Pataliputra in various directions, connecting it with Nepal, Kapilavastu, Dehradun, Mirzapur, Odisha, Andhra, and Karnataka. According to Roy, this network boosted trade and commerce, and helped move armies rapidly and efficiently.

Chandragupta and Chanakya seeded weapon manufacturing centres, and kept them a state monopoly of the state. The state, however, encouraged competing private parties to operate mines and supply these centres. They considered economic prosperity essential to the pursuit of dharma (morality), adopting a policy of avoiding war with diplomacy yet continuously preparing the army for war to defend its interests and other ideas in the Arthashastra.

Arts and architecture

The evidence of arts and architecture during Chandragupta's time is mostly limited to texts such as those by Megasthenes and Kautilya's Arthashastra. The edict inscriptions and carvings on monumental pillars are attributed to his grandson Ashoka. The texts imply the existence of cities, public works, and prosperous architecture but the historicity of these is in question.

Archeological discoveries in the modern age, such as Didarganj Yakshi discovered in 1917 buried beneath the banks of the River Ganges suggest exceptional artisanal accomplishment. The site has been dated to the 3rd century BCE by many scholars but later dates such as 2nd century BCE and the Kushan era (1st-4th century CE) have also been proposed. The competing theories state that the art linked to Chandragupta Maurya's dynasty was learnt from the Greeks and West Asia in the years Alexander the Great waged war; and that these artifacts belong to an older indigenous Indian tradition. According to Frederick Asher, "we cannot pretend to have definitive answers; and perhaps, as with most art, we must recognize that there is no single answer or explanation".

Administration

According to a report by Megasthenes, which survives in Strabo's writings, Chandragupta used to accompanied by 40,000 people while in camp. Despite such a large crowd, the administration maintained good order, and thefts were rare.

Justin suggests that Chandragupta was a strict ruler. According to Justin, Chandragupta came to power claiming to overthrow the preceding tyrannical rulers, but himself became an oppressive ruler.

Chandragupta appears to have been greatly concerned about possible revolts. According to Strabo, whose source was probably Megasthenes, female slaves guarded Chandragupta, and the king frequently changed bedrooms to confuse conspirators. He left his palace only for certain tasks: to go on military expeditions, to visit his court for dispensing justice, to offer sacrifices, for celebrations, and for hunting. During celebrations, he was well-guarded, and on hunts, he was surrounded by women guards.

Succession, renunciation and death

According to Jain accounts, a 12-year famine shook Chandragupta so much that he decided to retire as a Jain ascetic in present-day Karnataka. These Jain accounts were written more than 1,200 years later, and appear in texts such as Brihakathā kośa (931 CE) of Harishena, Bhadrabāhu charita (1450 CE) of Ratnanandi, Munivaṃsa bhyudaya (1680 CE) and Rajavali kathe. According to the Jain tradition, Chandragupta renounced his throne in favour of his son, Bindusara, and followed Jain teacher Bhadrabahu to south India. He is said to have lived as an ascetic at Shravanabelagola for several years before fasting to death as per the Jain practice of sallekhana.

Along with texts, several Jain monumental inscriptions dating from the 7th–15th century refer to Bhadrabahu and Chandragupta together. The hill on which Chandragupta is stated to have performed asceticism is now known as Chandragiri hill; a temple named Chandragupta basadi is sited there. While this evidence is very late and anachronistic, historian Mookerji believes that there is no evidence to disprove the idea that Chandragupta converted to Jainism in his later life. Mookerji quotes Vincent Smith and concludes that Chandragupta's conversion to Jainism provides adequate explanation of abdication and sudden exit at a relatively young age and at the height of his power. According to historians Irfan Habib and Vivekanand Jha, the Jain narrative is a "possible, though implausible" story.

According to the Jain legends, Chandragupta's minister Chanakya was also a Jain. The Hindu texts acknowledge the close relationship between the Jain community in Pataliputra and the royal court, and that Chanakya – the champion of Brahmanism – employed Jains as his emissaries. This also indirectly confirms the possible influence of Jain thought on Chandragupta. Chandragupta's abdication of throne can be dated to c. 298 BCE, and his death to c. 297 BCE.

Legacy

A memorial to Chandragupta Maurya exists on Chandragiri hill in Shravanabelagola, Karnakata. The Indian Postal Service issued a commemorative postage stamp honouring Chandragupta Maurya in 2001.

In popular culture

• Mudrarakshasa is a political drama in Sanskrit by Vishakadatta composed 600 years after the conquest of Chandragupta – probably between 300 CE and 700 CE.
• D. L. Roy wrote a Bengali drama named Chandragupta based on the life of Chandragupta. The story of the play is loosely borrowed from the Puranas and the Greek history.
• Chanakya's role in the formation of the Maurya Empire is the essence of a historical/spiritual novel The Courtesan and the Sadhu by Dr. Mysore N. Prakash.
• The story of Chanakya and Chandragupta was made into a film in Telugu in 1977 titled Chanakya Chandragupta.
• The television series Chanakya is an account of the life and times of Chanakya, based on the play "Mudra Rakshasa" (The Signet Ring of "Rakshasa").
• In 2011, a television series called Chandragupta Maurya was telecast on Imagine TV.
• In 2016, the television series Chandra Nandini was a fictionalized romance saga.
• In 2018, a television series called Chandragupta Maurya portrays the life of Chandragupta Maurya.
• He is a leader of the Indian civilization in the Civilization VI expansion Rise and Fall and Gathering Storm .

See also

• List of Indian monarchs
• List of Jain Empires and Dynasties
• Mauryan art
• Shashigupta

Notes

1. According to Kaushik Roy, Chandragupta Maurya was a Shudra lineage king.
2. Some early printed editions of Justin's work wrongly mentioned "Alexandrum" instead of "Nandrum"; this error was corrected in philologist J. W. McCrindle's 1893 translation. In the 20th century, historians Hem Chandra Raychaudhuri and R. C. Majumdar believed "Alexandrum" to be correct reading, and theorized that Justin refers to a meeting between Chandragupta and Alexander the Great ("Alexandrum"). However, this is incorrect: research by historian Alfred von Gutschmid in the preceding century had clearly established that "Nandrum" is the correct reading supported by multiple manuscripts: only a single defective manuscript mentions "Alexandrum" in the margin.

1. Aria (modern Herat) "has been wrongly included in the list of ceded satrapies by some scholars ... on the basis of wrong assessments of the passage of Strabo ... and a statement by Pliny". Seleucus "must ... have held Aria", and furthermore, his "son Antiochos was active there fifteen years later". (Grainger, John D. 1990, 2014. Seleukos Nikator: Constructing a Hellenistic Kingdom. Routledge. p. 109).

References

Citations

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3. ^ Chandragupta Maurya, Emperor of India, Encyclopædia Britannica
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5. ^ Singh 2016, p. 331.
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7. ^ Roy 2012, p. 62.
8. Modelski, George (1964). "Kautilya: Foreign Policy and International System in the Ancient Hindu World". American Political Science Review. 58 (03). Cambridge University Press: 549–560. doi:10.2307/1953131.; Quote: "Kautilya is believed to have been Chanakya, a Brahmin who served as Chief Minister to Chandragupta (321–296 B.C.), the founder of the Mauryan Empire."
9. ^ Kulke & Rothermund 2004, p. 59-65.
10. Boesche 2003, p. 7-18.
11. Mookerji, Radhakumud (1962). Aśoka (3rd Revised., repr ed.). Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass (reprint 1995). pp. 60–64. ISBN 978-81208-058-28.
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29. Mookerji 1966, p. 13.
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31. ^ Roy 2012, pp. 61–62.
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39. Constance Jones; James D. Ryan (2006). Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Infobase Publishing. p. xxviii. ISBN 978-0-8160-7564-5.
40. Raychaudhuri 1923, p. 142.
41. Raychaudhuri 1923, p. 137.
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44. Thapar 1961, p. 13.
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48. ^ Raychaudhuri 1967, p. 143.
49. ^ Mookerji 1966, p. 6.
50. ^ Habib & Jha 2004, p. 14.
51. Trautmann 1970, pp. 240–241.
52. Mookerji 1966, p. 32.
53. Mookerji 1966, pp. 16–18.
54. ^ Mookerji 1966, p. 18.
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56. ^ Cite error: The named reference “Hemacandra1998” was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
57. ^ Hemacandra; R.C.C. Fynes (Translator) (1998). The Lives of the Jain Elders. Oxford University Press. pp. 185–188. ISBN 978-0-19-283227-6. {{cite book}}: |author2= has generic name (help)
58. Stoneman 2019, p. 155.
59. Mookerji 1966, p. 22.
60. Raychaudhuri 1967, pp. 144–145.
61. Raychaudhuri 1967, p. 144.
62. Thapar 2013, pp. 362–364.
63. ^ Sen 1895, pp. 26–32.
64. Mookerji 1966, pp. 28–33.
65. Mookerji 1966, p. 33.
66. Mookerji 1966, pp. 33–34.
67. Mookerji 1966, p. 34.
68. Roy 2012, pp. 27, 61–62.
69. R.G. Grant: Commanders, Penguin (2010). pg. 49
70. ^ Bhattacharyya 1977, p. 8.
71. Mookerji 1966, pp. 47–53, 79–85.
72. Roy 2015, pp. 46–50.
73. Mookerji 1966, pp. 2, 25–29.
74. Mookerji 1966, pp. 31–33.
75. Boesche 2003, pp. 9–37.
76. Appian, History of Rome, The Syrian Wars, p. 55. sfn error: no target: CITEREFAppian,_History_of_Rome,_The_Syrian_Wars (help)
77. Mookerji 1966, p. 36.
78. Kosmin 2014, p. 34.
79. Mookerji 1966, pp. 36–37, 105.
80. Walter Eugene, Clark (1919). "The Importance of Hellenism from the Point of View of Indic-Philology". Classical Philology. 14 (4): 297–313. doi:10.1086/360246.
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88. Translation given in: Encyclopaedia of Indian Traditions and Cultural Heritage, Anmol Publications, 2009, p.18. Also online translation: Pratisarga Parva p.18 Archived 23 April 2016 at the Wayback Machine.
89. Original Sanskrit of the first two verses given in Foreign Influence on Ancient India, Krishna Chandra Sagar, Northern Book Centre, 1992, p.83: "Chandragupta Sutah Paursadhipateh Sutam. Suluvasya Tathodwahya Yavani Baudhtatapar".
90. India, the Ancient Past, Burjor Avari, p. 106-107
91. Majumdar 2003, p. 105.
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106. Raychaudhuri 1967, p. 140.
107. Kulke & Rothermund 2004, p. 61.
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109. Kulke & Rothermund 2004, p. 64.
110. Kulke & Rothermund 2004, pp. 59–65.
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112. Mookerji 1966, pp. 13–18.
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116. Modelski, George (1964). "Kautilya: Foreign Policy and International System in the Ancient Hindu World". American Political Science Review. 58 (3): 549–560. doi:10.2307/1953131. JSTOR 1953131.; Quote: "Kautilya is believed to have been Chanakya, a Brahmin who served as Chief Minister to Chandragupta (321–296 B.C.), the founder of the Mauryan Empire."
117. Singh 2017, p. 220.
118. Allchin & Erdosy 1995, pp. 189–192.
119. Obeyesekere 1980, pp. 137–139 with footnote 3.
120. Allchin & Erdosy 1995, pp. 187–195.
121. ^ Roy 2012, pp. 62–63.
122. Allchin & Erdosy 1995, pp. 192–194.
123. Allchin & Erdosy 1995, p. 189.
124. Allchin & Erdosy 1995, pp. 194–195.
125. ^ Guha-Thakurta 2006, pp. 51–53, 58–59.
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128. Mandal 2003, p. 46.
129. Brown & Hutton 2015, p. 435.
130. Roy 2012, pp. 63–64.
131. Roy 2012, pp. 64–68.
132. Olivelle 2013, pp. 49–51, 99–108, 277–294, 349–356, 373–382.
133. Harrison 2009, pp. 234–235.
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137. Samuel 2010, pp. 60.
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140. Jones & Ryan 2006, p. xxviii.
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142. Jerry Bentley (1993), Old World Encounters: Cross-Cultural Contacts and Exchanges in Pre-Modern Times, Oxford University Press, pages 44–46
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Sources

• Allchin, F. R.; Erdosy, George (1995), The Archaeology of Early Historic South Asia: The Emergence of Cities and States, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0-521-37695-2
• Asher, Frederick (2015), Rebecca M. Brown and Deborah S. Hutton (ed.), A Companion to Asian Art and Architecture, John Wiley & Sons, ISBN 978-1-119-01953-4
• Bhattacharyya, P. K. (1977), Historical Geography of Madhyapradesh from Early Records, Motilal Banarsidass
• Boesche, Roger (2003), "Kautilya's Arthaśāstra on War and Diplomacy in Ancient India" (PDF), The Journal of Military History, 67 (1): 9, doi:10.1353/jmh.2003.0006, ISSN 0899-3718
• Brown, Rebecca M.; Hutton, Deborah S. (22 June 2015), A Companion to Asian Art and Architecture, John Wiley & Sons, ISBN 9781119019534
• Ghosh, Ajit Kumar (2001), Dwijendralal Ray, Makers of Indian Literature (1st ed.), New Delhi: Sahitye Akademi, ISBN 978-81-260-1227-5
• Guha-Thakurta, Tapati (2006), Chatterjee, Partha; Ghosh, Anjan (eds.), History and the Present, Anthem, ISBN 978-1-84331-224-6
• Habib, Irfan; Jha, Vivekanand (2004), Mauryan India, A People's History of India, Aligarh Historians Society / Tulika Books, ISBN 978-81-85229-92-8
• Harrison, Thomas (2009), The Great Empires of the Ancient World, Getty Publications, ISBN 978-0-89236-987-4
• Jones, Constance; Ryan, James D. (2006), Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Infobase Publishing, ISBN 978-0-8160-7564-5
• Kosmin, Paul J. (2014), The Land of the Elephant Kings: Space, Territory, and Ideology in Seleucid Empire, Harvard University Press, ISBN 978-0-674-72882-0
• Kulke, Hermann; Rothermund, Dietmar (2004), A History of India (4th ed.), London: Routledge, ISBN 978-0-415-15481-9
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• Mani, Braj Ranjan (2005), Debrahmanising history: dominance and resistance in Indian society, Manohar, ISBN 978-81-7304-640-7
• Mookerji, Radhakumud (1962), Aśoka (3rd Revised., repr ed.), Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass (reprint 1995), ISBN 978-81208-058-28
• Mookerji, R. K. (1966), Chandragupta Maurya and His Times, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-81-208-0405-0
• Obeyesekere, Gananath (1980), Doniger, Wendy (ed.), Karma and Rebirth in Classical Indian Traditions, University of California Press, ISBN 978-0-520-03923-0
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• Roy, Kaushik (2012), Hinduism and the Ethics of Warfare in South Asia: From Antiquity to the Present, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-1-107-01736-8
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• Samuel, Geoffrey (2010), The Origins of Yoga and Tantra. Indic Religions to the Thirteenth Century, Cambridge University Press
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• Singh, Upinder (2016), A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century, Pearson Education, ISBN 978-93-325-6996-6
• Singh, Upinder (2017), Political Violence in Ancient India, Harvard University Press
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• Thapar, Romila (1961). Aśoka and the Decline of the Mauryas. Oxford University Press. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Trautmann, Thomas R. (1970), "Alexander and Nandrus in Justin 15.4.16.", Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, 51 (1/4): 240–242
• Vallely, Anne (2018), Kitts, Margo (ed.), Martyrdom, Self-Sacrifice, and Self-Immolation: Religious Perspectives on Suicide, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-065648-5
• Varadpande, Manohar Laxman (2006), Woman in Indian Sculpture, Abhinav, ISBN 978-81-7017-474-5

Further reading

• Resources in your library
• Resources in other libraries

• Bongard-Levin, Grigory Maksimovich (1985). Mauryan India. New Delhi: Sterling Publishers. OCLC 14395730.

External links

• Indica by Megasthenes

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See also	Rajgir Bodh Gaya Nalanda University Rajgir Mahotsav Sonepur Cattle Fair
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• Articles with links needing disambiguation from July 2019
• 3rd-century BC Indian monarchs
• 4th-century BC Indian monarchs
• 290s BC deaths
• Mauryan emperors
• Indian Jain monks
• 3rd-century BC Indian Jains
• 3rd-century BC Jain monks
• 3rd-century BC Indian monks
• Suicides by starvation
• 3rd-century BC Indian Jain monarchs