Mauryan Empire
Mauryan Empire
The Mauryan Empire (c. 322-185 BCE) was India's first pan-subcontinental state, founded by Chandragupta Maurya with Chanakya's help after overthrowing Dhana Nanda. It is the first period for which we have inscriptions, a statecraft manual and a foreign eyewitness together, which is why it is the best documented phase of ancient India.
The rulers
| Ruler | Reign | What to remember |
|---|---|---|
| Chandragupta Maurya | c. 322-298 BCE | Defeated Seleucus Nikator around 305 BCE, gaining Kabul, Kandahar, Herat and Baluchistan for 500 elephants; became a Jain and is said to have died at Shravanabelagola |
| Bindusara | c. 298-273 BCE | Called Amitraghata; Greek envoy Deimachus at his court; supported the Ajivika sect |
| Ashoka | c. 268-232 BCE | Kalinga war in his eighth regnal year; adopted dhamma; issued edicts across the empire |
| Later Mauryas | c. 232-185 BCE | Rapid decline; last ruler Brihadratha killed by his commander Pushyamitra Shunga |
Administration
The Arthashastra describes a highly centralised bureaucratic state with the king at the apex advised by a mantriparishad. The empire was divided into provinces under kumaras - the four known provincial capitals are Taxila, Ujjain, Tosali and Suvarnagiri. Below them, pradeshika were district officers, rajukas handled land revenue and later judicial functions, and yuktas were subordinate accounting staff.
Land revenue = bhaga (share of produce, usually one-sixth) + bali (additional levy)
- Ashoka created dhamma-mahamattas to propagate and supervise dhamma
- Megasthenes describes a six-committee municipal board of thirty for Pataliputra
- Sita was crown land cultivated directly by the state; sitadhyaksha supervised it
- An elaborate espionage system of sanstha (stationary) and sanchara (wandering) spies
- Punch-marked silver karshapana were the main currency
प्रांतीय राजधानियाँ याद रखने का सूत्र - तक्षशिला (उत्तर-पश्चिम), उज्जैन (पश्चिम), तोसलि (पूर्व, कलिंग) और सुवर्णगिरि (दक्षिण) | ये चारों दिशाओं में एक-एक हैं, इसलिए दिशा से जोड़कर याद करना आसान है |
Ashoka and dhamma
The Kalinga war, described in Rock Edict XIII, is the turning point. Ashoka's dhamma was not Buddhism imposed as a state religion but a public ethic: non-violence, respect for elders and teachers, kindness to servants and animals, truthfulness, tolerance towards all sects, and charity. He calls himself Devanampiya Piyadasi in the edicts; his personal name Ashoka appears only in the Maski, Gujarra, Nettur and Udegolam minor rock edicts.
| Edict | Content most asked |
|---|---|
| Major Rock Edict I | Prohibition of animal slaughter at festivals and in the royal kitchen |
| Major Rock Edict XII | Tolerance among all religious sects - the clearest statement of dhamma |
| Major Rock Edict XIII | Kalinga war, remorse, and dhamma-vijaya over military victory; names Greek kings |
| Pillar Edict VII | Ashoka's summary of his own dhamma measures - the last edict |
| Kalinga Edicts (separate) | Instructions on just administration of newly conquered Kalinga |
| Barabar cave inscriptions | Caves donated to Ajivikas, showing his tolerance in practice |
The edicts are in Prakrit, written in Brahmi in most of India, Kharosthi in the north-west, and Greek and Aramaic in Afghanistan - the Kandahar bilingual inscription is the standard example. The Sarnath lion capital, adopted as India's State Emblem in 1950, comes from an Ashokan pillar; the wheel on the national flag is its Dharmachakra.
✗ Ashoka's edicts are written in Sanskrit | ✓ The edicts are in Prakrit, using Brahmi, Kharosthi, Greek or Aramaic script
Decline
Explanations include Ashoka's pacifism weakening the military, though this is disputed since he never disbanded the army; an oppressive and over-centralised bureaucracy resented in the provinces; a financial crunch visible in debased later punch-marked coins; weak successors and division of the empire; a Brahmanical reaction against Ashoka's restriction of sacrifice; and pressure on the north-west frontier. The empire ended in 185 BCE when Pushyamitra Shunga killed Brihadratha.
Linkage: the Mauryan pillars and Sarnath capital reappear in Art and Culture; the Arthashastra returns in the Sources topic and in Polity when comparing ancient statecraft with modern administration; Ashoka's missions to Sri Lanka and West Asia connect to India's cultural diplomacy in current affairs; and Mauryan decline leads directly into the Post-Mauryan chapter of Shungas, Indo-Greeks and Kushanas.
Exam pointer: one to two questions a year, with Ashoka far more likely than Chandragupta. The safest preparation is edict-wise content plus administrative vocabulary. Traps: assuming dhamma means Buddhism, thinking Ashoka's name appears in all edicts, dating the Kalinga war to his accession year rather than the eighth regnal year, and pairing rajuka with military duties. Match-the-following on official designations and on provincial capitals is a standing favourite.
FAQ
Was Ashoka's dhamma the same as Buddhism?
No. Ashoka was personally a Buddhist, but dhamma as declared in the edicts is a broad civic ethic - non-violence, tolerance, respect for elders and welfare of all beings. It contains no specifically Buddhist doctrine such as the Four Noble Truths, and Ashoka also patronised the Ajivikas at Barabar.
Which edict mentions the Kalinga war?
Major Rock Edict XIII, which records the deaths and deportations, Ashoka's remorse, and his shift from military conquest to dhamma-vijaya. It also names contemporary Hellenistic kings, which helps historians date Ashoka's reign.
Who deciphered the Ashokan edicts and when?
James Prinsep deciphered the Brahmi script in 1837. Because the edicts use the title Devanampiya Piyadasi rather than Ashoka, the ruler was identified only later, when minor rock edicts carrying the name Ashoka were found at Maski and other sites.
60-second recap
- Chandragupta founded the empire c. 322 BCE with Chanakya; defeated Seleucus around 305 BCE.
- Provincial capitals: Taxila, Ujjain, Tosali, Suvarnagiri - one per direction.
- Rajuka for revenue, pradeshika for districts, yukta for accounts, dhamma-mahamatta for dhamma.
- Kalinga war in the eighth regnal year; Rock Edict XIII records it; Edict XII teaches tolerance.
- Edicts in Prakrit; Brahmi, Kharosthi, Greek and Aramaic scripts; Ashoka named only in minor edicts.
- Empire ended in 185 BCE when Pushyamitra Shunga killed Brihadratha.
Now test what you have just revised - practise Ancient India questions from this chapter in the ExamAtlas UPSC Prelims mock test and check which of these facts you can recall under exam pressure.