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Summary
The chapter describes historical changes in India after the decline of the Harappan civilisation. Over 1,500 years, new settlements appeared, including agricultural villages in different regions and pastoral groups in the Deccan. People developed new burial practices, building large stone structures called megaliths. By the sixth century BCE, states and kingdoms emerged. Alongside political changes, agriculture expanded, and new towns developed.
Historians use inscriptions, texts, coins, and visual material to study this period. In the 1830s, James Prinsep deciphered two ancient scripts, Brahmi and Kharosthi. Many inscriptions mentioned a king called Piyadassi, later identified as Ashoka. These discoveries helped reconstruct early Indian political history.
During the sixth century BCE, sixteen large states, called mahajanapadas, existed. Some were ruled by kings, while others, known as ganas or sanghas, were governed by groups of leaders. Magadha became the most powerful state due to its fertile land, iron resources, and strong leadership. It expanded under rulers like Bimbisara and Ajatasattu, who built fortifications and maintained armies.
The Mauryan Empire grew from Magadha, starting with Chandragupta Maurya around 321 BCE. His grandson Ashoka became famous for his conquest of Kalinga. After witnessing the violence, Ashoka promoted dhamma, encouraging respect, kindness, and tolerance. His messages were inscribed on rocks and pillars. He established administrative centres across the empire, appointing officials to spread his ideas and maintain order.
Different regions had different levels of control. The empire’s administration was strongest in areas near the capital, Pataliputra. Communication was difficult, and armies were needed to protect trade routes. Ashoka also created a group of officers, the dhamma mahamattas, to ensure his policies were followed.
After the Mauryan Empire declined, new kingdoms appeared. In the south, the Cholas, Cheras, and Pandyas controlled trade and land. The Kushanas ruled a vast area, using coins and statues to project their power. Some rulers claimed divine status, calling themselves “sons of god.”
Agriculture advanced with iron ploughs and irrigation. Landowners, village heads, and peasants had different roles, and some groups, like forest dwellers, remained outside direct control. From the early centuries CE, rulers granted land to Brahmanas and religious institutions. Some grants recorded in inscriptions showed the changing rural economy.
New cities grew along trade routes, including river ports and coastal towns. Merchants and artisans formed guilds to regulate trade and production. Coins, such as punch-marked silver pieces, were used for transactions. Indian goods, including spices and textiles, were traded with the Roman Empire. The Kushanas issued the first gold coins, and the Guptas later minted high-quality currency.
Epigraphists, who study inscriptions, face challenges in interpreting ancient scripts. Some inscriptions are damaged, and meanings of words are uncertain. Ashoka’s inscriptions promoted non-violence after his conquest of Kalinga, but the message was not found in that region, raising questions about its reach. Not all aspects of daily life were recorded in inscriptions, so historians use multiple sources to understand the past.
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1. Discuss the evidence of craft production in Early Historic cities. In what ways is this different from the evidence from Harappan cities?
Answer: In Early Historic cities, evidence of craft production includes fine pottery bowls and dishes with a glossy finish known as Northern Black Polished Ware, along with ornaments, tools, weapons, and vessels made from materials such as gold, silver, copper, bronze, ivory, glass, shell, and terracotta. Short votive inscriptions from the second century BCE mention craftsmen like carpenters, potters, goldsmiths, blacksmiths, and weavers. Guilds or shrenis, which regulated production and trade, are also mentioned.
In contrast, Harappan cities show evidence of craft production in the form of stone beads, shell objects, metal tools, terracotta figurines, and pottery, produced in specialised workshops. The presence of standardised weights and measures indicates a highly organised economic system. Unlike Early Historic cities, Harappan craft production was more centrally controlled, with planned workshops and large-scale production for trade.
2. Describe the salient features of mahajanapadas.
Answer: The sixth century BCE is often regarded as a major turning point in early Indian history. It is an era associated with early states, cities, the growing use of iron, the development of coinage, etc. It also witnessed the growth of diverse systems of thought, including Buddhism and Jainism. Early Buddhist and Jaina texts mention sixteen states known as mahajanapadas. Some prominent ones included Vajji, Magadha, Koshala, Kuru, Panchala, Gandhara, and Avanti. Most mahajanapadas were ruled by kings, but some, known as ganas or sanghas, were oligarchies where power was shared by a number of men, often collectively called rajas. Each mahajanapada had a capital city, often fortified. The rulers collected taxes from cultivators, traders, and artisans. Some states acquired standing armies and maintained regular bureaucracies, while others relied on militias recruited from the peasantry. Magadha emerged as the most powerful mahajanapada due to its agricultural productivity, access to iron resources, and strategic location along the Ganga river.
3. How do historians reconstruct the lives of ordinary people?
Answer: Historians attempt to reconstruct the lives of ordinary people by examining stories contained in anthologies such as the Jatakas and the Panchatantra. Many of these stories likely originated as popular oral tales before being written down. The Jatakas, composed in Pali around the middle of the first millennium CE, provide insights into the experiences and struggles of common people. One story, the Gandatindu Jataka, describes the plight of subjects under a wicked king, including elderly individuals, cultivators, herders, and even animals, all of whom suffered due to high taxes and robberies. To escape, they abandoned their village and moved to the forest. These stories indicate the strained relationship between rulers and their subjects, particularly the rural population. Historians analyze such narratives to understand the challenges, aspirations, and daily lives of ordinary people in the past.
4. Compare and contrast the list of things given to the Pandyan chief (Source 3) with those produced in the village of Danguna (Source 8). Do you notice any similarities or differences?
Answer: The Pandyan chief Senguttuvan received various gifts, including ivory, fragrant wood, fans made of deer hair, honey, sandalwood, red ochre, antimony, turmeric, cardamom, pepper, coconuts, mangoes, medicinal plants, fruits, onions, sugarcane, flowers, areca nut, bananas, baby tigers, lions, elephants, monkeys, bears, deer, musk deer, foxes, peacocks, musk cats, wild cocks, and speaking parrots.
In contrast, the village of Danguna produced goods such as grass, animal hides for seats, charcoal, fermenting liquors, salt, mines, khadira trees, flowers, milk, hidden treasures, and deposits, along with major and minor taxes.
A similarity between the two lists is the presence of agricultural and forest products, including flowers and medicinal plants. However, the main difference lies in the nature of goods—while the Pandyan chief received luxury items, animals, and forest products, Danguna primarily contributed essential goods, raw materials, and revenue-related items.
5. List some of the problems faced by epigraphists.
Answer: Epigraphists face several problems in deciphering inscriptions. Sometimes, letters are very faintly engraved, making reconstructions uncertain. Inscriptions may be damaged or have missing letters, complicating their interpretation. The exact meaning of words used in inscriptions is not always clear, as some terms may be specific to a particular place or time. Scholars often debate and discuss alternative readings of inscriptions. Additionally, not all inscriptions have been deciphered, published, or translated, and many have been lost over time. Another major challenge is that inscriptions focus on grand events rather than routine aspects of daily life. Since they usually present the perspective of those who commissioned them, historians must compare them with other sources to gain a more complete understanding of the past. Thus, epigraphy alone does not provide a full picture of political and economic history.
Short essay-type answers
6. Discuss the main features of Mauryan administration. Which of these elements are evident in the Asokan inscriptions that you have studied?
Answer: The Mauryan administration was highly centralized, with the king as the supreme authority. The empire was divided into several provinces, each under a governor. There were five major political centers in the empire: Pataliputra, Taxila, Ujjayini, Tosali, and Suvarnagiri. These centers were crucial for administrative control, trade, and communication.
The Mauryan rulers maintained a large standing army, with divisions for infantry, cavalry, chariots, elephants, and navy. Megasthenes mentioned a committee with six subcommittees to coordinate military activities, including transport, provisioning, and recruitment.
The Mauryan administration also focused on taxation, infrastructure, and law enforcement. Officials were appointed to oversee various functions such as irrigation, agriculture, trade, mining, and policing. There was also a system of spies and informers to keep the king informed about public affairs.
Asoka, the most famous Mauryan ruler, used inscriptions on rocks and pillars to communicate with his subjects. His inscriptions reflect several administrative features, including governance, social welfare, and moral directives. He appointed officers called Dhamma Mahamattas to spread his policy of Dhamma, which emphasized respect for elders, kindness to servants, and religious tolerance. The inscriptions also indicate that Asoka issued direct orders to officials, ensuring that reports of public affairs reached him at all times.
The use of inscriptions as a means of governance shows the emphasis on a well-organized administrative structure and an attempt to establish moral and ethical governance throughout the empire. These elements highlight the centralized control, communication system, and administrative efficiency of the Mauryan Empire.
7. This is a statement made by one of the best-known epigraphists of the twentieth century, D.C. Sircar: “There is no aspect of life, culture and activities of the Indians that is not reflected in inscriptions.” Discuss.
Answer: Inscriptions in India serve as a valuable source of historical information, covering various aspects of life, culture, and activities of the people. These inscriptions are found on hard surfaces such as stone, metal, and pottery, making them virtually permanent records. They provide insights into political history, with details about the exploits of kings, the administration of empires, and governance strategies. For instance, Asoka’s inscriptions on rocks and pillars reflect his policies of dhamma, including respect for elders, kindness to servants, and religious tolerance.
Economic activities such as land grants, taxation, and trade are also documented in inscriptions. Land grants recorded on copper plates indicate the transfer of land to religious institutions and Brahmanas, showing the socio-economic structure of different periods. The Mauryan period inscriptions highlight state-controlled trade routes and taxation systems, while later inscriptions reveal information about local rulers and their patronage of religious institutions.
Religious and social life is another prominent theme in inscriptions. Many inscriptions commemorate donations made to Buddhist and Jaina monasteries, temples, and stupas by kings, merchants, and common people. They provide insights into religious practices, patronage, and sectarian affiliations. The Prayaga Prashasti, composed in praise of Samudragupta, reflects the glorification of rulers and their divine status, a concept that evolved significantly in the post-Mauryan period.
Inscriptions also reveal details about urban centers and craft production. Votive inscriptions from various cities mention the names of donors, often specifying their occupations such as goldsmiths, potters, and weavers. This indicates the presence of organized guilds (shrenis) and an active commercial economy.
Epigraphy also provides information about social hierarchies and rural life. Some inscriptions mention different categories of people, including landowners, agricultural laborers, and traders. The terms used in inscriptions, such as gahapati for large landholders and vellalar for Tamil landowners, indicate the stratification of society.
Inscriptions serve as a crucial source for reconstructing Indian history, reflecting the diverse aspects of life, culture, and activities in different periods. They offer direct, authentic evidence of the past, supporting the claim made by D.C. Sircar that no aspect of Indian life remains unrepresented in inscriptions.
8. Discuss the notions of kingship that developed in the post-Mauryan period.
Answer: The notions of kingship that developed in the post-Mauryan period were shaped by the emergence of new dynasties, regional states, and changing socio-political structures.
The new kingdoms that emerged in the Deccan and further south, including the chiefdoms of the Cholas, Cheras, and Pandyas in Tamilakam, proved to be stable and prosperous. Chiefs were powerful men whose position may or may not have been hereditary. They derived support from their kinfolk and performed functions such as special rituals, leadership in warfare, and arbitrating disputes. Chiefs received gifts from subordinates, unlike kings who usually collected taxes, and often distributed these among their supporters. Generally, there were no regular armies and officials in chiefdoms.
Early Tamil Sangam texts contain poems describing chiefs and the ways in which they acquired and distributed resources. Many chiefs and kings, including the Satavahanas who ruled over parts of western and central India (c. second century BCE–second century CE) and the Shakas, a people of Central Asian origin who established kingdoms in the north-western and western parts of the subcontinent, derived revenues from long-distance trade. Their social origins were often obscure, but once they acquired power, they attempted to claim social status in a variety of ways.
One means of claiming high status was to identify with a variety of deities. This strategy is best exemplified by the Kushanas (c. first century BCE–first century CE), who ruled over a vast kingdom extending from Central Asia to northwest India. Their history has been reconstructed from inscriptions and textual traditions. The notions of kingship they wished to project are best evidenced in their coins and sculpture.
Colossal statues of Kushana rulers have been found installed in a shrine at Mat near Mathura, Uttar Pradesh. Similar statues have been found in a shrine in Afghanistan as well. Some historians feel this indicates that the Kushanas considered themselves godlike. Many Kushana rulers also adopted the title devaputra, or “son of god,” possibly inspired by Chinese rulers who called themselves sons of heaven.
By the fourth century CE, there is evidence of larger states, including the Gupta Empire. Many of these depended on samantas, men who maintained themselves through local resources, including control over land. They offered homage and provided military support to rulers. Powerful samantas could become kings, while weak rulers might find themselves being reduced to positions of subordination.
Histories of the Gupta rulers have been reconstructed from literature, coins, and inscriptions, including prashastis, composed in praise of kings in particular and patrons in general by poets. While historians attempt to draw factual information from such compositions, those who composed and read them often treasured them as works of poetry rather than as literal accounts of history. The Prayaga Prashasti (also known as the Allahabad Pillar Inscription) composed in Sanskrit by Harishena, the court poet of Samudragupta, is a case in point.
9. To what extent were agricultural practices transformed in the period under consideration?
Answer: There was a significant transformation in agricultural practices during the period under consideration. One of the key strategies was the shift to plough agriculture, which spread in fertile alluvial river valleys such as those of the Ganga and the Kaveri from around the sixth century BCE. The iron-tipped ploughshare was used to turn the alluvial soil in areas with high rainfall. In some parts of the Ganga valley, the introduction of transplantation dramatically increased the production of paddy, although this meant back-breaking work for the producer.
While the iron ploughshare led to a growth in agricultural productivity, its use was restricted to certain parts of the subcontinent—cultivators in semi-arid regions, such as parts of Punjab and Rajasthan, did not adopt it until much later. In the hilly tracts of the northeastern and central parts of the subcontinent, hoe agriculture was practiced, as it was better suited to the terrain.
Another strategy adopted to increase agricultural production was the use of irrigation through wells, tanks, and, less commonly, canals. Both communities and individuals organized the construction of irrigation works. Kings and powerful individuals often recorded their contributions to irrigation projects in inscriptions, highlighting their role in maintaining agricultural productivity.
Despite these technological and organizational advancements, the benefits of agricultural improvements were not evenly distributed. There was a growing differentiation among people engaged in agriculture. Buddhist texts refer to landless agricultural laborers, small peasants, and large landholders. The term gahapati was used in Pali texts to designate both small and large landowners, and the village headman, whose position was often hereditary, emerged as a powerful figure controlling cultivators. Early Tamil literature (Sangam texts) also mentions different categories of people in villages—large landowners (vellalar), ploughmen (uzhavar), and slaves (adimai). These differences were based on access to land, labor, and new technologies.
Legal texts also reflect concerns over land ownership and boundaries. The Manusmriti, compiled between the second century BCE and the second century CE, advises kings to establish clear land boundaries to avoid disputes. Land grants became a prominent feature from the early centuries of the Common Era. Many of these grants were recorded in inscriptions and were mostly given to religious institutions or Brahmanas.
One example is the land grant by Prabhavati Gupta, the daughter of Chandragupta II, who donated a village to a religious teacher. Such grants often exempted the village from taxes and royal obligations. These land grants led to the emergence of new rural elites and marked a shift in the control and distribution of agricultural resources.
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