A short note on Magadha

The second period of urbanization began in India in 600 BC and lasted till 400 BC. This period is popularly known as the pre-Mauryan period. The early vedic period saw emergence of ‘Janas’ meaning tribe, the later vedic period had ‘Janapadas’ which translates to Small tribes and finally by the pre-Mauryan period there was an emergence of Mahajanapadas. Mahajanapadas mean big state. During the pre-mauryan period, there were 16 Mahajanapadas. The most powerful and important of these Mahajanapadas was the Magadha empire. Magadha can be located in the current indian map in the north east central part of India including parts of now Madhya pradesh, Uttar pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West bengal and the seven sister states of North east India.

Pre mauryan period

Pre- mauryan period lasted from 600 to 400 BC. First time coins of copper and silver were found in India in this period. It is popularly known as the second urbanization of India, first one being the Harappan civilization. There was an abundance of trade and commerce during this period. There was trade amongst the sixteen mahajanapadas and also with other civilizations going on during that time. The pottery of this period was North Black polished ware.

Sources 

Anguttra Nikhaya of Sutta Pitaka mentions about the Sixteen Mahajanapadas during this period from where we find a valuable account of how the life of pre-mauryan people was led in the Indian subcontinent.

Dynasties

The Magadha empire had very able rulers rule it and saw some of the most capable dynasties. Some of the important ones are:-

1. Haryanka Dynasty: It lasted from 544 to 413 BC

Bimbisara was an important king of this dynasty. He is known as ‘Sreniya’ because he was the first king to have a standing army. He expanded the Magadha empire by means of conquest and diplomacy. He is known to have used matrimonial alliances to increase Magadha’s power. Bimbisara married Mahakosala Devi, a daughter of a Kosala king and sister of Prasenjit and got Kashi village in dowry. He also married Chellna, daughter of the Licchavi tribe’s tribal head and strengthened his alliances. He fathered a son Ajat Shatru with Chellna who became the next king.

Ajat Shatru (492-460 BC) followed aggressive policies rather than diplomacy like his father. He fortified Rajgriha, the capital of Magadha.

1. Shishunaga Dynasty: 413 BC to 345 BC

Shishunaga ruler Kalashoka moved the capital of magadha from rajgriha to patliputra. Second buddhist council was convened here during this Dynasty’s rule and also destroyed the power of Avanti.

1. Nanda Dynasty: 345 BC to 321 BC

These were the first non- Kshatriya rulers of India. Nandas maintained huge armies with the help of an effective taxation system. Dhanananda was overthrown by Chandragupta Maurya who then started the Mauryan empire in India and ended the period of pre-maurya.

Causes of Magadha’s success

1. Presence of able leadership like Bimbisara, Ajat Shatru and Mahapadma Nanda.
2. Girivraja- the capital of Magadha was Rajgriha and was also known as Girivraja as it was surrounded by five hills which acted as a natural fortress for the capital.
3. Patliputra was also called Jaldurga as it was located at a confluence of four rivers of ganga, ganduk, son and ghaghar. Rivers are important for defense, communication and trade and the Magadha empire had an abundance of them.
4. The Magadha empire was rich in natural resources, especially iron.
5. The Magadha region was recently formed into an empire and the orthodox people had little to no influence here.
6. Magadha maintained one of the most efficient systems of administration at that time which resulted in a boost in economy and hence effective taxation.

North-west India- Persian Invasions and Macedonian Invasions

In north east Magadha was a strong empire but in the north west the other mahajanapadas of Kamboj, Madra and Ghandhara were suffering due to infighting which resulted in them being vulnerable to foriegn invasions. Achaminid king Cyrus was the first to invade India who destroyed Kapisna (a region spread from south east to Hindukush). He also received a tribute from Gandhara and Kamboj.

A Persian king, Darius also invaded India in 516 BC when he annexed Punjab and Sindh regions. 

Impact of persian contact

Over two hundred years of indo-persian contact had influenced Indian empires politically , socially and economically. It can be seen by the introduction of Kharosthi script, a script written from right to left. Rock inscriptions were also inspired from Persian king Darius. Bell shaped lotus and preamble of Ashoka’s edicts had Persian influence.

Alexander’s Invasion

Macedonian king Alexander invaded India because Greeks and Persians at the time were fighting for world dominance and supremacy. He was also attracted to the vast wealth that was held by India.

Impact of Indo-greek contact

Later on, it gave inspiration to mauryans to capture the north west. Greeks were also keen historians and due to indo-greek contact, history has more record of what happened in the indian subcontinent during that time. The invasion by Alexander also exposed India to Europe because he took three land routes and one sea route. Greek influence can also be influenced in the Gandhara school of art.

Age of reaction

This time is also known as the age of reaction because it witnessed the emergence of new religions like buddhism and jainism which came in reaction to the increasing brutality of Hindu practices on certain groups of people who felt exploited. One of the reasons for this age of reaction is also that when the economy flourished, the trading community was the one paying most taxes but still coming third on the caste system scale.

Conclusion

Pre-mauryan period marked the beginning of the emergence of second urbanization and Mahajanapadas. The Magadha empire was the strongest of the sixteen Mahajanapadas that were present in the Indian subcontinent in the pre mauryan times. Dynasties like the Haryanka dynasty, Shishunaga dynasty and Nanda dynasty ruled the Magadha region. The success of Magadha is owed to these flourishing dynasties and their able rulers but also to the geographical advantages of having the capital of Magadha covered by five hills making it a natural fortress which is good for defense and also an abundance of rivers which contributed to a flourishing economy. While Magadha was a strong empire, the other mahajanapadas witnessed invasions from persian and greeks which politically and culturally affected the indian subcontinent. This was also the age of reaction against the injustices of hindu practices which gave birth to religions like Buddhism and Jainism.