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Saturday 10 August 2013

INDIAN HISTORY STUDY MATERIALS I INDIAN HISTORY NOTES I

Mauryan Dynasty
1.Chandragupta Maurya (321-293 BC)
  • He was the founder of the Mauryan Dynasty. With the help of Chanakya, he overthrew the Nanda Dynasty (Dhanananda was the last ruler of Nanda Dynasty). His vast empire included Bihar, Bengal, Deccan (except modern Kerala,Tamilnadu and parts of North east India) , Eastern Afghanistan,Baluchistan and area west of Indus river.In this way he was the first emperor who tried to unify India politically.He is also considered as first genuine emperor of India.
  • When Alexander died in Babylon, soon after in 323 BC, his empire fragmented, and local kings declared their independence,leaving several smaller satraps in a disunited state
  • Chandragupta Maurya deposed Dhannanda with the help of Chanakya.The Greek generals Eudemus, and Peithon, ruled until around 316 BC, when Chandragupta Maurya (with the help of Chanakya, who was now his advisor) surprised and defeated the Macedonians and consolidated the region under the control of his new seat of power in Magadha.
  • Chanakya encouraged Chandragupta Maurya and his army to take over the throne of Magadha. Using his intelligence network, Chandragupta gathered many young men from across Magadha and other provinces, men upset over the corrupt and oppressive rule of king Dhana, plus resources necessary for his army to fight a long series of battles. These men included the former general of Taxila, other accomplished students of Chanakya, the representative of King Porus of Kakayee, his son Malayketu, and the rulers of small states.
  • According to the Jaina literatures, Chandragupta Maurya in his last days converted into jainism by Bhadrabahu and renounced his throne in favour of Bimbisar , his son.
  • 'Mura' was the name of mother of Chandragupta Maurya. Some historians say that Chandragupta was an illegitimate child of the Nanda Dynasty of Magadha in eastern India, born to a Nanda prince and a maid named "Mura",
  • Some other historians and literary texts say that Chandragupta may have been raised by peacock-tamers which earned him the Maurya epithet
  • There are other literary traditions according to which Chandragupta belonged to Moriyas, a Kshatriya clan of a little ancient republic of Pippalivana located between Rummindei in the Nepali Terai and Kasia in the Gorakhpur district of Uttar Pradesh.
2.Chanakya (Kautilya) (350-283 BC)
  • Chanakya was an adviser and a prime minister to the first Maurya Emperor Chandragupta , who was the chief architect of his rise to power. Born as Vishnu Sharma, Kautilya and Vishnugupta, the names by which this ancient Indian Politico-economical treatise called the Arthaśāstra identifies its author. 
  • He is known as "The Indian Machiavelli" in the Western world. Chanakya was a professor at Takshashila University and was responsible for the creation of Mauryan Empire. 
  • Strabo (a greek Geographer) gives him the name Palibrothus. Arien Plutarch give him the names of Androkottus. 
  • In Mudrarakshasa of Vishakhadatta he has been depicted by names Piyadamus, Vrishal, Chandrasiri & Kulihin. 
  • In Mudrarakshasa Chandragupta has been depicted as a weak insignificant young man and Chanakya being the real ruler. 
  • Historian Sir Thomas R. Trautmann has mentioned that Chanakya was born with a complete set of teeth , which gave a sign that he would become a King. However his teeth were broken so he would rule through someone else. 
  • He was thrown out of Nanda court which prompted him to swear to take revenge. 
  • Chanakya mixed poison to the food eaten by Chandragupta Maurya, now king, in order to make him immune. Unaware, Chandragupta feeds some of his food to his queen, who is in her ninth month of pregnancy. In order to save the heir to the throne, Chānakya cut the queen open and extracts the fetus, who is named Bindusara because he was touched by a drop (bindu) of blood having poison.
Arhashstra By Kautilya :
Arthshastra: It was written by Kautilya or Vishnugupta or Chanakya, who was a professor at Taxila University and later the prime minister of the Maurya Empire. The manuscript was discovered by Arya Sharma Shashtri in 1904. Arthshastra has been divided in 15 Adhikarans and 180 Prakarans. It is related to money and politics and contains 6000 shlokas. The 15 parts are as follows:
  1. Concerning Discipline 
  2. The Duties of Government Superintendents 
  3. Concerning Law 
  4. The Removal of Thorns 
  5. The Conduct of Courtiers 
  6. The Source of Sovereign States 
  7. The End of the Six-Fold Policy 
  8. Concerning Vices and Calamities 
  9. The Work of an Invader 
  10. Relating to War 
  11. The Conduct of Corporations 
  12. Concerning a Powerful Enemy 
  13. Strategic Means to Capture a Fortress 
  14. Secret Means 
  15. The Plan of a Treatise.
3.Bindusara (298-273 BC) :
  • Bindusara was son of Chandragupta Maurya and Durdhara. He inherited a vast empire from his father Chandragupta Maurya which included Northern, Central and Eastern parts of India along with parts of Afghanistan and Baluchistan. He was born in 320 BC and ruled from 298 BC to 272 BC. 
  • He is also known as Amitraghata (amitra-enemy, ghata-slayer) in Sanskrit Literature. Strabo has named him Amitrochates or Allitrochades which are greek version of the name Amitraghata.
  • In Rajvalli katha he is mentioned as Seemseri. Some texts even call in Bindupala. 
  • He had two sons Sumana & Ashoka. Ashoka later succeded him, after his death
  • Chanakya worked as Prime Minister of Bindusara too.
  • He brought sixteen states under the Mauryan Empire and thus conquered almost the entire Indian peninsula. That is why he is called the "conqueror of Land between the two seas", Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal.
  • Bindusara didn't conquer Dravidian kingdoms of the Cholas, Pandyas, and Cheras as they were friendly to him.
  • Kalinga was the only kingdom in India that didn't form the part of Bindusara's empire. It was later conquered by his son Ashoka.
  • Bindusara is known as "The Son of a Great Father and the Father of a Great Son" because he was the son of a great father Chandragupta Maurya and father of a great son Ashoka, the Great.
  • Bindusara had friendly relationships with Syrian King Antiochus-I . A Greek Daimachos from Antiochus-I had come to his court.
  • Ptolemy -II Philadelphus of Egypt had sent and ambassador Dionysios to Bindusara.
Sources of History of Mauryan Empire :
The starting of Mauryan Empire is from accession of Chandragupta Maurya to the Throne of Magadha in 321 BC. Sanskrit had emerged as a rich Indian Language by that time. Sources which gives an insight into the history of Maurya's are as follwos:
  1. Puranas like Vishnupurana, Bhagawat Purana, Markandeya Purana 
  2. Arthshastra by Kautilya
  3. MudraRakshasha by Vishakhadatta
  4. Mahabhasya by Patanjali
  5. Malvikagnimitra by Kalidas
  6. Harshcharita by Banabhatta
  7. Rajtarangini by Kalhan
  8. Some Buddhist Texts like Dipavansa, Mahavansa, Asokavadan , Milanda-Panho . Buddhist sources connect Maurya’s to some tribes of Sakya and gives details that their region was full of Peacocks (Mor in Hindi) and so known as Mauryas.
  9. Some Jaina texts like Brihatkathakosha of Harisena, Aradhana by Prabhachandra, Kathakosha by Shrichand etc. Some of them link Chandragupta Maurya with Moriya tribe of peacock tamers.
  10. The Brahamnical sources describe Maurya’s as Shudras. However Greek writers mention that they were from humble origin. In Greek sources Chandragupta is mentioned as Sandrokottas.
  11. Greek accounts : Indica by Mehgasthanes. Accounts of Plutarch, Strabo, Ptolemy, Arian & Justin. Besides some writings of Fa Hien, Huen Tsang, I-tsing etc. Chinese Buddhist Pilgrims.
  12. Asoka’s Inscriptions
  13. Rocks & Pillar Edicts of Maurya’s
  14. Hathigumpha Inscription gives account of Decline of Maurya’s
  15. Girnar ‘s Inscription of Rudradaman gives account of Chandragupta and Asoka 
  16. Cave edict of Nagarjuni gives account of Dasarath
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