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Chandragupta Maurya (c. 340–c. 297 BCE) built the Maurya Empire, quickly spreading throughout India and into modern-day Pakistan. The life and achievements of Chandragupta are described in ancient Greek, Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain sources, but they differ greatly.
Chandragupta Maurya was a pivotal person in Indian history, laying the groundwork for the first kingdom to unite the country’s majority. Under Chanakya’s instruction, Chandragupta formed a new empire founded on statecraft ideals a vast army and continued to expand the limits of his kingdom until, in his later years, he renounced it for an austere life.
Chandragupta Maurya History- Early life
- Chandragupta Maurya is thought to have been born around 340 BCE in Patna (modern-day Bihar, India).
- Some Texts suggest his rule that Chandragupta’s parents were both Kshatriya (warrior or prince) caste members. In contrast, others claim that his father was a monarch and his mother was a Shudra (service Sarvarthasiddhi of the Nanda Kingdom) was Chandragupta Maurya’s father.
- Ashoka the Great, Chandragupta’s grandson, eventually claimed a blood tie with Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha, but the claim was never proven.
Chandragupta Maurya History- Maurya Empire
- Chandragupta Maurya destroyed the Nanda Dynasty, formed the Maurya Empire in 322 BCE and quickly pushed his influence westward across central and western India with the support of Chanakya.
- His advance took advantage of local power disturbances caused by Alexander the Great’s army retreating westward. By 316 BCE, the empire had completely overrun Northwestern India, battling and conquering Alexander’s satraps.
- The expedition commanded by Seleucus I, a Macedonian general in Alexander’s army, was then repelled, and Chandragupta acquired additional land west of the Indus River.
- The Maurya Empire was one of the world’s largest empires.
- He is credited with bringing together the country’s tiny, dispersed kingdoms and uniting them into a single huge empire.
- During his rule, the Maurya Empire spanned Bengal and Assam in the east, Afghanistan and Balochistan in the west, Kashmir and Nepal in the north, and the Deccan Plateau in the south.
- The Nanda Empire was brought to an end because Chandragupta Maurya and his mentor Chanakya.
- Chandragupta Maurya abandoned all worldly pleasures and became a Jain monk after a prosperous reign of roughly 23 years. He allegedly committed ‘Sallekhana,’ a practice of fasting till death, and therefore willingly took his own life.
Chandragupta Maurya Wife
Durdhara was Chandragupta Maurya wife, according to the known Jain text. While Durdhara was depicted in popular culture as Dhana Nanda’s daughter, Durdhara was Chandragupta’s first cousin, according to Mahavamsa-tika. She was the daughter of Chandragupta’s eldest maternal uncle, who had travelled to Patliaputra with Chandragupta’s mother.
Durdhara, Chandragupta Maurya’s wife, was also the mother of his only son Bindusar, who became his heir and the Mauryan Empire’s second Samrat. Durdhara, on the other hand, didn’t live long enough to watch her kid grow up since she died before she could see him.
According to tradition, Prime Minister Chanakya was worried that his adversaries might poison Chandragupta, so he began giving little quantities of poison into the emperor’s meals to build up a tolerance. When Chandragupta Maurya’s wife Durdhara was pregnant with their first kid, he was ignorant of the plot and shared part of his meal with her. Durdhara passed away, but Chanakya arrived in time to perform an emergency operation to remove the full-term baby. Bindusara survived, but a drop of his mother’s poisoned blood landed on his forehead, leaving a blue Bindu—the inspiration for his name.
Chandragupta Maurya’s wife died, leaving behind a great ruler. His subsequent wives and children are hardly unknown. Bindusara, Chandragupta’s son, is likely to be remembered more for his son than for his own rule.
Chandragupta Maurya Son
Chandragupta Maurya’s son was Bindusara. Bindusara, also known as Bindusara Maurya, was the second Mauryan emperor who seized the throne in 297 BCE. He was a Greek Amitrochates (born c. 320 BCE—died 272/3 BCE). According to Greek sources, he was known as Amitrochates, derived from the Sanskrit word amitraghata, which means “destroyer of opponents.” His victorious campaign in the Deccan may have inspired the name. Northern India had already been conquered by Chandragupta, Bindusara’s father and the founder of the Mauryan empire. Bindusara’s expedition ended around what is now Karnataka, most likely because the Cholas, Pandyas, and Cheras, who ruled in the far south, had strong ties with the Mauryas. Following Bindusara’s death, his sons fought a succession war, from which Ashoka emerged triumphant after several years of fighting.
Conclusion
Chandragupta established a dynasty that ruled India and the southern portion of Central Asia until 185 BCE. In numerous aspects, Chandragupta Maurya’s wife was not mentioned in any pillar or places where he describes his family. Bindusara was the Chandragupta Maurya son, who became the second Mauryan Emperor. Undoubtedly, he was a legendary ruler of that era. Chandragupta Maurya’s history is full of brave stories and honour.
