Mauryan Empire Explained – NCERT & UPSC History Guide

Mauryan Empire

Mauryan Empire

322 BCE – 184 BCE

Maximum extent of the Maurya Empire, as shown by the location of Ashoka's inscriptions, and visualized by
ASI (Archeological Survey Of India) based on ancient inscriptions, ancient Greecian , ancient Indian
texts,
[1 ]
modern archaeologist :Nayanjot Lahiri
[2 ]
, Dougald J. W. O'Reilly
[3 ]
old archeologist :D.R.
Bhandarkar
[4 ]
, Myra Shackley
[5 ]
modern historian : Robert W. Strayer
[6 ]
, Eric Nelson
[6 ]
, Upinder Singh
[7 ]
, Jackson
J. Spielvogel
[8 ]
, Hugh Bowden
[9 ]
, Ram Sharan Sharma
[1 0 ]
, Charles Allen
[1 1 ]
, Neil MacGregor
[1 2 ]
, Grigory Bongard-
Levin
[1 3 ]
old historians:Mark F. Whitters
[1 4 ]
, Jiu-Hwa Lo Upshur
[1 4 ]
, Janice J. Terry
[1 4 ]
, Michael J.
Schroeder
[1 4 ]
, Marsha E. Ackermann
[1 5 ]
, Radha Kumud Mukherjee
[1 6 ]
, John Haywood
[1 7 ]
, Patrick Karl
O'Brien
[1 8 ][1 9 ]
, H. C. Raychaudhuri
[2 0 ]
, John F. Cady
[2 1 ]
, Gerald Danzer
[2 2 ]
, Vincent Arthur Smith
[2 3 ]
, Robert Roswell
Palmer
[2 4 ]
, Geoffrey Parker
[2 5 ]
, R. C. Majumdar
[2 6 ]
and historical geographer:Joseph E. Schwartzberg
[2 7 ]
,
Anthropologist and Bioarcheologist : Ian Barnes
[2 8 ]

Capital Pataliputra
(present-day Patna)
Common languages Sanskrit (literary and academic), Magadhi Prakrit (vernacular)
Religion
 Hinduism
[2 9 ][3 0 ][3 1 ]

 Jainism
[3 2 ][3 3 ][3 4 ]

 Buddhism
[3 0 ][3 5 ]

 Ajivikism
[3 0 ][3 5 ]

 Greek polytheism
Zoroastrianism (northwest)
[3 6 ]

Government Absolute monarchy, as described in Kautilya's Arthashastra
and Rajamandala
[3 7 ]

Emperor
• 322–298 BCE Emperor Chandragupta
• 298–272 BCE Emperor Bindusara
• 268–232 BCE Emperor Ashoka
• 232–224 BCE Emperor Dasharatha
• 224–215 BCE Emperor Samprati
• 215–202 BCE Emperor Shalishuka
• 202–195 BCE Emperor Devavarman
• 195–187 BCE Emperor Shatadhanvan
• 187–184 BCE Emperor Brihadratha
Historical era Iron Age
• Conquest of the Nanda
Empire
322 BCE
• Assassination of
Brihadratha
by Pushyamitra
Shunga
184 BCE
Area
250 BCE
[3 8 ]

(high-end estimate of
peak area)
5,000,000 km
2
(1,900,000 sq mi)
Currency Panas
Preceded by Succeeded by

Mahajanapadas

Nanda Empire

Shunga Empire

Satavahana dynasty

Mahameghavahana

dynasty
Indo-Scythians

Indo-Greek Kingdom

Vidarbha kingdom
(Mauryan era)

Maurya Empire
(322–180 BCE)

Chandragupta 322–297 BCE
Bindusara 297–272/268 BCE
Ashoka 272/268–232 BCE
Dasharatha 232–224 BCE
Samprati 224–215 BCE
Shalishuka 215–202 BCE
Devavarman 202–195 BCE
Shatadhanvan 195–187 BCE
Brihadratha 187–180 BCE

 v
 t
 e
The Mauryan Empire, also known as the Maurya Empire, was a historically
significant power during the Iron Age on the Indian subcontinent, with its core in
Magadha. It was founded by Chandragupta Maurya in 322 BCE and declined around
184 BCE.
[39]
The Maurya Empire centralized its power through the conquest of
the Indo-Gangetic Plain, with its primary capital located at Pataliputra, modern-
day Patna. However, the empire also had other regional capitals,
including Taxila, Ujjain, Suvarnagiri, and Tosali, which were governed by appointed
governors and governers controlled by the Emperor.
[40]
The empire directly or
indirectly ruled by Ashoka was extensive, stretching from the Hindu
Kush to Bengal and from the Himalayas to Karnataka.
[41]

It declined for about 50 years after Ashoka's rule, and dissolved in 185 BCE with the
assassination of Brihadratha by Pushyamitra Shunga and the foundation of
the Shunga Empire in Magadha.
Chandragupta Maurya raised an army, with the assistance of Chanakya, his teacher
and the author of Arthashastra,
[42]
and overthrew the Nanda Empire in c. 322 BCE,
laying the foundation for the Maurya Empire. Chandragupta rapidly expanded his

power west across central and western India by defeating the satraps left
by Alexander the Great, and by 317 BCE the empire had fully occupied northwestern
India.
[43]
The Mauryan Empire then defeated Seleucus I Nicator, a diadochus and
founder of the Seleucid Empire, during the Seleucid–Mauryan war, thus acquiring
territory west of the Indus River, including Aria, Arachosia, Gedrosia, and
the Paropamisadae
[44]

Under the Mauryas, internal and external trade, agriculture, and economic activities
thrived and expanded across India due to the creation of a single and efficient
system of finance, administration, and security. The Maurya dynasty built a precursor
of the Grand Trunk Road from Pataliputra to Taxila.
[45]
After the Kalinga War, the
Empire experienced nearly half a century of centralized rule under Ashoka the Great.
Ashoka's embrace of Buddhism and sponsorship of Buddhist missionaries allowed
for the expansion of that faith into Sri Lanka, northwest India, and Central Asia.
[46]

The population of South Asia during the Mauryan period has been estimated to be
20 million by Sumit Guha, 15-30 million by Dyson and 50 million by Wiesner-
Hanks.
[47]

The Maurya period was marked by exceptional creativity in art, architecture,
inscriptions and texts. The Edicts of Ashoka and Greek records are the primary
sources of written records of Mauryan times. The Lion Capital of
Ashoka at Sarnath is the national emblem of the Republic of India.
[48][49]

Etymology
The name "Maurya" does not occur in Ashoka's inscriptions, or the contemporary
Greek accounts such as Megasthenes's Indica, but it is attested by the following
sources:
[50]

 The Junagadh rock inscription of Rudradaman (c. 150 CE) prefixes "Maurya" to
the names Chandragupta and Ashoka.
[51]

 The Puranas (c. 4th century CE or earlier) use Maurya as a dynastic
appellation.
[50]

 The Buddhist texts state that Chandragupta belonged to the "Moriya" clan of the
Shakyas, the tribe to which Gautama Buddha belonged.
[52]

 The Jain texts state that Chandragupta was the son of a royal superintendent of
peacocks (mayura-poshaka).
[50]

 Tamil Sangam literature also designate them as moriyar and mention them after
the Nandas
[53]

 Kuntala inscription (from the town of Bandanikke, North Mysore) of 12th century
AD chronologically mention Mauryya as one of the dynasties which ruled the
region.
[54]

 The Kalpasutra of the Jains mentions a Mauryaputra of the Kasyapa gotra, which
shows that the Mauryas were regarded as high class folk who was the disciple of
Mahavira.
[55]

 Kharavela' Hathigumpha inscription (2nd-1st century BC) mentions era of Maurya
Empire as Muriya Kala (Mauryan era),
[56]

According to the Buddhist tradition, the ancestors of the Maurya kings had settled in
a region where peacocks (mora in Pali) were abundant. Therefore, they came to be
known as "Moriyas", literally meaning, "belonging to the place of peacocks".

According to another Buddhist account, these ancestors built a city called Moriya-
nagara ("Moriya-city"), which was so called, because it was built with the "bricks
coloured like peacocks' necks".
[57]
The dynasty's connection to the peacocks, as
mentioned in the Buddhist and Jain traditions, seems to be corroborated by
archaeological evidence. For example, peacock figures are found on the Ashoka
pillar at Nandangarh and several sculptures on the Great Stupa of Sanchi. Based on
this evidence, modern scholars theorize that the peacock may have been the
dynasty's emblem.
[58]

Some later authors, such as Dhundhi-raja (an 18th-century commentator on
the Mudrarakshasa and an annotator of the Vishnu Purana), state that the word
"Maurya" is derived from Mura and the mother of the first Maurya king. However, the
Puranas themselves make no mention of Mura and do not talk of any relation
between the Nanda and the Maurya dynasties.
[59]
Dhundiraja's derivation of the word
seems to be his own invention: according to the Sanskrit rules, the derivative of the
feminine name Mura (IAST: Murā) would be "Maureya"; the term "Maurya" can only
be derived from the masculine "Mura".
[60]

History
Founding
Prior to the Maurya Empire, the Nanda Empire ruled over a broad swathe of the
Indian subcontinent. The Nanda Empire was a large, militaristic, and economically
powerful empire due to conquering the Mahajanapadas. According to several
legends, Chanakya travelled to Pataliputra, Magadha, the capital of the Nanda
Empire where Chanakya worked for the Nandas as a minister. However, Chanakya
was insulted by the Emperor Dhana Nanda when he informed them of Alexander's
invasion. Chanakya swore revenge and vowed to destroy the Nanda Empire.
[61]
He
had to flee in order to save his life and went to Taxila, a notable center of learning, to
work as a teacher. On one of his travels, Chanakya witnessed some young men
playing a rural game practicing a pitched battle. One of the boys was none other
than Chandragupta. Chanakya was impressed by the young Chandragupta and saw
royal qualities in him as someone fit to rule.
Meanwhile, Alexander the Great was leading his Indian campaigns and ventured into
Punjab. His army mutinied at the Beas River and refused to advance farther
eastward when confronted by another army. Alexander returned to Babylon and re-
deployed most of his troops west of the Indus River. Soon after Alexander died in
Babylon in 323 BCE, his empire fragmented into independent kingdoms led by his
generals.
[62]

Chandragupta was taken to Taxila by Chanakya and was tutored about statecraft
and governing. Requiring an army Chandragupta recruited and annexed
local military republics such as the Yaudheyas that had resisted Alexander's Empire.
The Mauryan army quickly rose to become the prominent regional power in the North
West of the Indian subcontinent. The Mauryan army then conquered the satraps
established by the Macedonia ns.
[63]
Ancient Greek historians Nearchus, Onesictrius,
and Aristobolus have provided lot of information about the Mauryan empire.
[64]
The
Greek generals Eudemus and Peithon ruled in the Indus Valley until around
317 BCE, when Chandragupta Maurya (with the help of Chanakya, who was now his

advisor) fought and drove out the Greek governors, and subsequently brought the
Indus Valley under the control of his new seat of power in Magadha.
[43]

Chandragupta Maurya's ancestry is shrouded in mystery and controversy. On one
hand, later Indian accounts, such as the drama Mudrarakshasa (Signet ring of
Rakshasa – Rakshasa was the prime minister of Magadha) by Vishakhadatta,
describe his royal ancestry and even link him with the Nanda family. Radha Kumud
Mukherjee similarly considers Mudrakshasa play without historical basis.
[65]
On the
other hand, a Kshatriya clan known as the Mauryas (Pali: Moriya) are referred to in
the earliest Buddhist texts, Mahaparinibbana Sutta of Tipitaka. Chandragupta first
emerges in Greek accounts as "Sandrokottos". As a young man he is said to have
met Alexander.
[66]
Chanakya is said to have met the Nanda king, angered him, and
made a narrow escape.
[67]
In Plutarch’s account, when Chandragupta met Alexander,
he described the Nanda ruler as being of ―low birth,‖ which implies that
Chandragupta himself was likely not from a low-born background.
[68]

Empire
During the Mauryan Empire, forests were considered state property. A special
department managed them under a revenue officer known as the samāharta. A
forest officer supervised activities such as collecting forest resources, setting prices,
and selling forest products. Water supply and rules governing forest use were also
regulated. An official called the Akshatapala was responsible for auditing accounts.
This administrative system helped maintain effective control over forest resources.
[69]

Historian Ram Sharan Sharma noted that the Mauryan Empire maintained a large
army and a strong judicial system, particularly to maintain order in tribal regions
prone to unrest.
[70]
Archaeologist Dilip Chakrabarti argued that the distribution of
Ashoka’s edicts across the subcontinent indicates a centralized administrative
system, including control over large forested regions of central India. Edict sites
along the Kaimur hills and routes through Sasaram, Ahraura, Rupnath, and
Panguraria suggest these areas were under Mauryan authority.
[71]

D. R. Bhandarkar stated that the empire was well-administered, with viceroys
governing different regions to ensure tight control.
[72]
Radha Kumud Mookerji
observed that Ashoka’s empire was too large for him to visit personally.
[73]
Nayanjyot
Lahiri noted that Ashoka’s edicts have been discovered at over 50 locations across
India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, with potentially more still
undiscovered.
[74]
Patrick Olivelle cautioned against defining the empire’s boundaries
solely based on the locations of Ashokan edicts, calling this method overly simplistic
and potentially misleading.
[75]

Empire expansion
Conquest of the Nanda Empire
Historically reliable inscription details of Chandragupta's campaign against Nanda
Empire are unavailable and but later written Buddhist, Jain, and Hindu texts which
claim Magadha was ruled by the Nanda dynasty, which, with Chanakya's
counsel, Chandragupta conquered Nanda Empire.
[76][77][78]
The army of Chandragupta
and Chanakya first conquered the Nanda outer territories, and finally besieged the
Nanda capital Pataliputra. In contrast to the easy victory in Buddhist sources, the
Hindu and Jain texts state that the campaign was bitterly fought because the Nanda
dynasty had a powerful and well-trained army.
[79][77]

Nanda_Empire 323 BCE
The Buddhist Mahavamsa Tika and Jain Parishishtaparvan records Chandragupta's
army unsuccessfully attacking the Nanda capital.
[80]
Chandragupta and Chanakya
then began a campaign at the frontier of the Nanda empire, gradually conquering
various territories on their way to the Nanda capital.
[81]
He then refined his strategy by
establishing garrisons in the conquered territories, and finally besieged the Nanda
capital Pataliputra. There Dhana Nanda accepted defeat.
[82][83]
.
These legends state that the Nanda king was defeated, deposed and exiled by some
accounts, while Buddhist accounts claim he was killed.
[84]
With the defeat of Dhana
Nanda, Chandragupta Maurya founded the Maurya Empire.
[85]

Conquest of the Eastern Seleucid Empire

Seleucid Empire 281 BCE

Chandragupta Maurya Empire c.290 BCE

Greek historians mentioned the result of Seleucid–Mauryan war where Seleucid
Empire's eastern satrapies( Gedrosia,Arachosia, Aria, and Paropamisadae) ceded to
Mauryan Empire :
" Seleucus crossed the Indus and waged war with Sandrocottus [Maurya], king of he
Indians, who dwelt on the banks of that stream, until they came to an understanding
with each other and contracted a marriage relationship. Some of these exploits were
performed before the death of Antigonus and some afterward."
— Appian, History of Rome, The Syrian Wars 55
" The geographical position of the tribes is as follows: along the Indus are the
Paropamisadae, above whom lies the Paropamisus mountain: then, towards the
south, the Arachoti: then next, towards the south, the Gedroseni, with the other tribes
that occupy the seaboard; and the Indus lies, latitudinally, alongside all these places;
and of these places, in part, some that lie along the Indus are held by Indians,
although they formerly belonged to the Persians. Alexander [III 'the Great' of
Macedon] took these away from the Arians and established settlements of his own,
but Seleucus Nicator gave them to Sandrocottus [Chandragupta], upon terms of
intermarriage and of receiving in exchange five hundred elephants. "
— Strabo , 15.2.9
[86]

Greecian historian Pliny also quoted a passage from Megasthanes work about
Chandragupta Empire boundaries:
Most geographers, in fact, do not look upon India as bounded by the river Indus, but
add to it the four satrapies of the Gedrose, the Arachotë, the Aria, and
the Paropamisadë, the River Cophes thus forming the extreme boundary of India.
According to other writers, however, all these territories, are reckoned as belonging
to the country of the Aria.
— Pliny, Natural History VI, 23
[87][88]

The conquest of the south by Chandragupta Maurya may also perhaps be inferred
from the following statement of Plutarch. "The throne" in the context is the Magadhan
throne, the occupation of which by Chandragupta is thus followed by two other
events, viz., the defeat of Selucus, and the conquest of the remaining part of India
not included in the Magadhan empire of the Nandas:
"Not long afterwards Androkottos, who had by that time mounted the throne,
presented Selukos with 500 elephants, and overran and subdued the whole of India
with an army of 600,000."
— Chapter LXII ,Life of Alexander, Plutarch
[89]

Megasthenes defined the region that Chandragupta won from Seleucus as likely
western side Gedrosia which shares boundaries with the Euphrates River, and
eastern side Arachosia shares boundaries with the Indus. The northern frontier
boundary formed by Hindukush mountain range:

Satrapian provinces in northwestern India which ceaded to Chandragupta by Selucus due
to Treaty of Indus.
Sandrokottos the king of the Indians, India forms the largest of the four parts into
which Southern Asia is divided, while the smallest part is that region which is
included between the Euphrates and our own sea. The two remaining parts, which
are separated from the others by the Euphrates and the Indus, and lie between
these rivers. [...] India is bounded on its eastern side, right onwards to the south, by
the great ocean; that its northern frontier is formed by the Kaukasos
range(Hindukush Range) as far as the junction of that range with Tauros; and that
the boundary.
— Book I Fragment II , Indica, Megasthanes
[90]

Treaty of the Indus
The ancient historians Justin, Appian, and Strabo preserve the three main terms of
the Treaty of the Indus:
[91]

1. Seleucus transferred to Chandragupta's kingdom the easternmost satrapies of
his empire, certainly Gandhara, Parapamisadae, and the eastern parts of
Gedrosia, Arachosia and Aria as far as Herat.
2. Chandragupta gave Seleucus 500 Indian war elephants.
3. The two kings were joined by some kind of marriage alliance (ἐπιγαμία οι
κῆδος); most likely Chandragupta wed a female relative of Seleucus.
Later account
Ashoka brought under his rule without bloodshed all the countries including those to
the south of the Vindhya. And he conquered the northern Himalayas, the snowy
ranges beyond Li-yul (Khotan)," the entire land of Jambudvipa bounded by seas on
east, south and west, and also fifty small islands.
— History Of Buddhism In India ,Taranatha
[92]

Ashoka served as a viceroy during the rule of his father Bindusara. According to
established constitutional usage, Asoka as Prince served as viceroy in one of the
remoter provinces of the Empire. This was the province of Western India called
Avantirattham or province of Avanti with headquarter at Ujjain.
— Mahabodhivamsa, pg.98
[93]

Bindusara Empire 273 BCE
Conquest of the Saurashtra
Chandragupta conquered Southern-Western part of India. Especially his conquest
over Saurashtra and Sudarshana lake construction is preseved in later Satrapian
king Rudradaman inscription:
8. mauryasya rājyaḥ candra-guptasya rāṣṭriyena vaiśyena puṣpa-guptena kāritam
śokasya mauryasya kṛte yavana-raj tuṣāra-saphenādhāyā
—Junagadh rock inscription of Rudradaman
[94]

Translation : for the sake of ordered to be made by the Vaishya Pushyagupta, the
provincial governor of the Maurya king Chandragupta; adorned with conduits
for Ashoka the Maurya by the Yavana king Tushaspha while governing; and by the
conduit ordered to be made by him, constructed in a manner worthy of a king (and)
seen in that breach.
Rule over territories of Yonas , Kambojas, Nabhakas,
Nabhapamktis, Bhojas, Pitinikas, Andhras and Palidas
The Kambojas are a people of Central Asian origin who had settled first
in Arachosia and Drangiana (today's southern Afghanistan), and in some of the other
areas in the northwestern Indian subcontinent in Sindhu, Gujarat and Sauvira. The
Nabhakas, the Nabhapamkits, the Bhojas, the Pitinikas, the Andhras and
the Palidas were other people under Ashoka's rule:
9. hidā laja viśavashi Yona Kambojeshu Nabhaka Nabhapamtishu Bhoja
Pitinikyeshu 10. Adha Paladeshu shavata Devānampiyashā dhammanushathi
anuvatamti[] yata pi dutā
— Ashoka, Rock Edict 13 , Kalsi Rock, South Portion.
[95]

Translation : Likewise here in the king's (Ashoka ) territory, among
the Yonas and Kambojas, among the Nabhakas and Nabhapamkits, among
the Bhojas and the Pitinikas, among the Andhras and the Palidas, everywhere
(people) are conforming to Beloved-Of-God (Ashoka) instruction in morality.
Conquest of the Kalinga
Kalinga War plays a very important role in Mauryan history which changes a cruel
Emperor Chanda-Ashoka to Priyadarshi Ashoka.

"Beloved-of-the-Gods, King Priyadarsi(Ashoka)conquered the Kalingas eight years
after his coronation. One hundred and fifty thousand were deported, one hundred
thousand were killed and many more died (from other causes). After the Kalingas
had been conquered, Beloved-of-the-Gods came to feel a strong inclination towards
the Dharma, a love for the Dharma and for instruction in Dharma. Now Beloved-of-
the-Gods feels deep remorse for having conquered the Kalingas. "
— Ashoka, Major Rock Edict 13
[96]

Conquest of the Kuntala
Shikarpur Taluq inscription mentioned about Mauryan ruling in the region
of Kuntala .The Kuntala country is an ancient Indian political region included the
western Deccan and some parts of central,south Karnataka and north Mysore.

South India , Kuntala present in Western coastal region
Kuntala-kshôpiyam pesarvett â-nava-Nanda-Gupta-kula-Mauryya-kshmâpar aldar
llasaj-jasad
— Shikarpur Taluq, inscription 225
[97][98]

Translation : The Kuntala country, which is like curls (kuntaja) to the lady Earth,
was-ruled by the renowned nine Nandas, the Gupta and Mauryan kings.
Conquest of the Nepala
It is noteworthy that Ashoka was responsible for the construction of several
significant structures in Nepal. These include the Ramagrama Stupa,Gotihawa Pillar
of Ashoka, Nigali-Sagar Ashoka Pillar inscription , and the Lumbini pillar
inscription of Ashoka.The Chinese pilgrims Fa-Hien (337 CE – c. 422 CE)
and Xuanzang (602–664 CE) describe the Kanakamuni Stupa and the Asoka Pillar
of currently Nepal region in their travel accounts. Xuanzang speaks of a lion capital
atop the pillar, now lost. A base of a Pillar of Ashoka has been discovered
at Gotihawa, a few miles from Nigali Sagar, and it has been suggested that it is the
original base of the Nigalar Sagar pillar fragments.
[99]

According to the Asokavadana, it is stated that in his youth, Ashoka subdued the
revolt in the of the Khasas (present day Nepala region) and Taksasila. Similarly, in
contrast, according to Taranath:
Meanwhile, peoples of the hilly countries like Nepal and Khasya revolted. Asoka was
sent with the army to subdue them. Without difficulty Asoka subdued .the hilly races,

imposed levy and annual tax on them, realised ransom from them and offered these
to the king.
— History Of Buddhism In India ,Taranatha
[100]

Boundaries sharing territories
Ashoka in his Second Major Rock Edict discovered at Kalsi, Mansehra, Girnar, and
Shahbazgarhi, mentions the boundaries of his empire four times across different
inscriptions. Notably, he does not mention any unconquered or independent regions
within these boundaries. This possibly suggests that Ashoka’s empire was likely
contiguous, with no significant autonomous regions enclosed within it.
[101]

1. Sarvata vijitamhi Devānaṃpriyasa Piyadasino rāño'
2. evamapi pracaṃtesu yathā Coḍa Pāḍā Satiyaputo Ketalaputo ā Taṃba-
3. paṃṇī Aṃtiyako Yona-rājā ye vā pi tasa Aṃtiyakasa sāmīpaṃ
4. rājāno sarvatra Devānaṃpriyasa Priyadasino rāño dve cikīcha katā
5. manusa-cīkichā ca pasu cikīchā ca
—Second Rock Edict
[102]

— James Prinsep Translation : Everywhere within the conquered province of Raja
Piyadasi (Ashoka), the beloved of the gods, as well as in the parts occupied by the
faithful, such as Chola, Pandiya, Satiyaputra, and Keralaputra, even as fart as
Tambapanni (Sri Lanka) and, moreover, within the dominions the Greek (of
which Antiochus generals are the rulers ) everywhere the heaven-beloved Raja
Piyadasi’s double system of medical aid is established— both medical aid for men,
and medical aid for animals, together with the medicaments of all sorts, which are
suitable for men, and suitable for animals.
[103]

— E. Hultzsch Translation: Everywhere in the dominions of Dévanampriya
Priyadarsina, and (of those) who (are his) borderers, such as the Cholas, the
Pandyas, the Satiyaputra, the Kéralaputra, Tamaraparni, the Yona(Greek) king
named Antiyoka , and the other kings who are the neighbours of this Antiyoka,
everywhere two kinds of medical treatment were established by king Devanampriya
Priyadarsin, (viz.) medical treatment for men and medical treatment for cattle.
[104]

Possible Mauryan Empire size according to details given in Ashoka Second Rock Edict of
Shahbazgarhi , Kalsi ,Mansera and Girnar.

Empire reconstruction from fragments
According to the account of Fa Hein who was the first Chinese pilgrim to visit India
during 399 and 414 CE. His work "The travels of Fa-Hian (400 A.D.)" mentioned that
Ashoka constructed 84,000 Buddhist stupas and pillars after destroying seven
stupas that initially housed Buddha relics. Ashoka divided the relics from these
seven stupas into 84,000 parts :
" King Asoka having destroyed seven (of the original) pagodas, constructed 84,000
others. The very first which he built is the great tower which stands about three li to
the south of this. city. In front of this pagoda is an impression of Buddha’s foot, (over
which) they have raised a chapel, the gate of which faces the north. To the south of
the tower is a stone pillar, about a chang and a half in girth (18 feet), and three cluing
or so in height (35 feet). On the surface of this pillar is an inscription to the following
effect: ―King Asoka presented the whole of Jambudvipa to the priests of the four
quarters, and redeemed it again with money, and tins he did three times.‖ Three or
four hundred paces to the north of the pagoda is the spot where Asoka was horn (or
resided). On this spot he raised the city of Ni-li, and in the midst of it erected a stone
pillar, also about 35 feet in height, on the top of which he placed the figure of a lion,
and also engraved an historical record on the pillar giving an account of the
successive events connected with Ni-li, with the corresponding year, day, and
month."
— Chapter XXVII , The travels of Fa-Hian (400 A.D)
[105]

" When King Asoka was living he wished to destroy the eight towers and to build
eighty-four thousand others. Having destroyed seven, he next proceeded to treat this
one in the same way."
— Chapter XXIII ,The travels of Fa-Hian (400 A.D)
[106]

Ashoka built one pillar beside every stupa :
" In after times Asoka, wishing to discover the utmost depths to which these ladders
went, employed men to dig down and examine into it. They went on digging till they
came to the yellow spring (the earth's foundation), but yet had not come to the
bottom. The king, deriving from this an increase of faith and reverence, forthwith built
over the ladders a and facing the middle flight he placed a standing figure (of
Buddha) sixteen feet high. Behind the vihara, he erected a stone pillar thirty cubits
high, and on the top placed the figure of a lion. Within the pillar on the four sides are
figures of Buddha; both within and without it is shining and bright as glass. It
happened once that some heretical doctors had a contention with the Sramanas
respecting this as a place of residence. Then the argument of the Sramanas failing,
they all agreed to the following compact: "If this place properly belongs to the
Sramanas, then there will he some supernatural proof given of it." Immediately on
this the lion on the top of the pillar uttered a loud roar."
—Chapter XVII, The travels of Fa-Hian (400 A.D)
[107]

Ashoka commissioned the construction of 84,000 stupas for the preservation of
Buddha's relics. However, over time, many of the Ashoka pillars , inscriptions and
stupas have been subject to complete destruction and deterioration. According to the
British historian Charles Allen, historical records of Ashoka were effectively cleansed

to the extent that his name was largely forgotten for nearly two thousand years.
However, very few mysterious stone monuments and inscriptions miraculously
survived, preserving his historical legacy.
[108]

North-East and South influence
Ashoka's influence in North-East and South India is evident through the
dissemination of Buddhist principles, rock edicts, and the broader cultural exchanges
facilitated by the Mauryan Empire. While the direct impact may vary, Ashoka's legacy
remains a significant part of India's historical and cultural tapestry.
[109]

Popular Maps
Indian New Parliament already have carved Mauryan Empire over mural which
represents Indian integrity and glorious past.
[110]
. Several historians have
reconstructed the map of the Mauryan Empire based on details from Ashoka's
inscriptions and accounts from Greek historians, among other sources. For
example :
Renowned Scholars Authoritative Crafted Maps
Mauryan empire maps created by
Historians/Other Scholars
Map Link
ASI (Archeological Survey Of India) Rough Map by ASI
NCERT Their designed map
British Historian Geoffrey Parker His designed map
British historian Patrick Karl O'Brien His designed map
Australian historian Craig Benjamin His designed map
American historian Gerald Danzer His designed map
British Historian Charles Allen His designed map
Historian Robert W. Strayer and Eric Nelson Their designed map

Irish Historian and Indologist Vincent
Arthur Smith
His designed map
Anthropologist and
Bioarcheologist Professor Ian Barnes
His designed map
Group of Historian, Archeologist and
Historical Geographer, published by
Millennium House
Their designed map
American Historian Albert M. Craig His designed map
Indian Historian Kashi Prasad Jayaswal His designed map
Historical Geographer C. Collin Davies His designed map
Indologist Prof. N.A. Nikam and American
Philosopher Prof. Richard McKeon
Their designed map
Group of historian namely Jeremy
Adelman, Peter Brown, Benjamin A.
Elman, Stephen Kotkin, Xinru Liu, Gyan
Prakash, Brent Shaw and Archeologist Holly
Pittman
Their designed world map for 250 BCE
Professor of East Asian Studies, William J.
Duiker
His designed map
Italian historian Gianni Sofri His designed map
History Professor of Oxford
University Harold Arthur Harris
His designed map
Pakistani popular known historian
Muhammad Hussain Panhwar
His designed map
Indian Historian Dwijendra Narayan Jha His designed map
Linguist Dr. Aaron Ralby and University of
Oklahoma professor Amanda Lomazoff
Their designed map
History professor of Southern Methodist Their designed map

University, Johan Elverskog
Group of Historian, Archeologist and
Historical Geographer, published by
Berkshire
Their designed map
National Geographic Maps
Their designed map
Other
Territorial span on a national scale
The territorial expanse of the Mauryan Empire, when correlated with contemporary
nations, is delineated as follows:
[111]

Present day
countries
Mauryan Empire Extent
Bangladesh (Whole)
Pakistan (Whole)
Bhutan (Southern part)
Afghanistan (Northern and eastern part)
India (Whole except southernmost tip)
Iran (Eastern Gedrosia part only within Jaz Murian Lake)
Myanmar (Western tip closer to Rangakuta Stupa)
Wars Involving the Mauryan Empire
Conflict
Mauryan
Emperor
Opponent Outcome
Conques
t of
Magadh
Chandragupt
a Maurya
Dhana
Nanda of Nand
Mauryan Victory
 Chandragupta establishes the Mauryan

a
(322
BCE -
320
BCE)
a Empire Empire replacing Nandas.
 He married the princes of the
Nanda's Durdhara
Seleucid
-Maurya
War
(305
BCE -
303
BCE)
Chandragupt
a Maurya
Seleucid
Empire
Mauryan Victory
 Treaty of the Indus.
[112]

 Seleucid Empire's eastern satrapies ceded to
Mauryan Empire
 Seleucus gives the hand of his daughter to
Chandragupta, founding a dynastic alliance
 Chandragupta gives 500 war elephants to
Seleucus
 Establishment of diplomatic relations
 Conquest of the Persian territories such
as Aria
(region) Arachosia, Gedrosia and Paropamisa
dae by the Mauryans
[113]

[112][114]

Conques
t of
Kalinga
(265
BCE -
261
BCE)
Ashoka the
Great
Kalinga
Kingdom
Mauryan Victory
 Kalinga conquered by the Emperor Ashoka.
 150,000 people died on the Kalinga side and
an almost equal number of Ashoka's army.
Total death count approx 3 lakh.
 Ashoka elder brother son inspire Ashoka to
became Buddhist, to devote the rest of his
life to ahimsa (non-violence).
 Ashoka changes hispolicy of Diga-Vijaya
(conquest of all four direction) to Dhamma-
Vijaya (victory through Dharma).
Founding Emperors
Chandragupta Maurya
Main article: Chandragupta Maurya
Further information: Seleucid–Mauryan war

Pataliputra, capital of the Mauryas. Ruins of pillared hall at Kumrahar site.

The Pataliputra capital, discovered at the Bulandi Bagh site of Pataliputra, 4th–3rd c. BCE.
After the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BCE, Chandragupta led a series of
campaigns in 305 BCE to take satrapies in the Indus Valley and northwest
India.
[115]
When Alexander's remaining forces were routed, returning westwards,
Seleucus I Nicator fought to defend these territories. Not many details of the
campaigns are known from ancient sources. Seleucus was defeated and retreated
into the mountainous region of Afghanistan.
[116]

The two rulers concluded a peace treaty in 303 BCE, including a marital alliance.
Under its terms, Chandragupta received the satrapies of Aria, Paropamisadae-
(Kamboja, Gandhara), Arachosia (Kandhahar) and Gedrosia (Balochistan). Seleucus
I received the 500 war elephants that were to have a decisive role in his victory
against western Hellenistic kings at the Battle of Ipsus in 301 BCE. Diplomatic
relations were established and several Greeks, such as the
historian Megasthenes, Deimakos and Dionysius resided at the Mauryan court.
[117]

Megasthenes in particular was a notable Greek ambassador in the court of
Chandragupta Maurya.
[118]
His book Indika is a major literary source for information
about the Mauryan Empire. According to Arrian, ambassador Megasthenes (c. 350 –
c. 290 BCE) lived in Arachosia and travelled to Pataliputra.
[119]
Megasthenes'
description of Mauryan society as freedom-loving gave Seleucus a means to avoid
invasion, however, underlying Seleucus' decision was the improbability of success.
In later years, Seleucus' successors maintained diplomatic relations with the Empire
based on similar accounts from returning travellers.
[115]

Chandragupta established a strong centralised state with an administration at
Pataliputra, which, according to Megasthenes, was "surrounded by a wooden wall
pierced by 64 gates and 570 towers". Aelian, although not expressly quoting
Megasthenes nor mentioning Pataliputra, described Indian palaces as superior in
splendor to Persia's Susa or Ecbatana.
[120]
The architecture of the city seems to have
had many similarities with Persian cities of the period.
[121]

Chandragupta's son Bindusara extended the rule of the Mauryan empire towards
southern India. The famous Tamil poet Mamulanar of the Sangam
literature described how areas south of the Deccan Plateau which comprised Tamil
country was invaded by the Maurya army using troops from Karnataka. Mamulanar
states that Vadugar (people who resided in Andhra-Karnataka regions immediately
to the north of Tamil Nadu) formed the vanguard of the Mauryan army.
[53][122]
He also
had a Greek ambassador at his court, named Deimachus.
[123]
According to Plutarch,

Chandragupta Maurya subdued all of India, and Justin also observed that
Chandragupta Maurya was "in possession of India". Chandragupta renounced his
throne and followed Jain teacher Bhadrabahu.
[124][125][ 126]
He is said to have lived as an
ascetic at Shravanabelagola for several years before fasting to death, as per the Jain
practice of sallekhana.
[127]

Bindusara
Main article: Bindusara

A silver coin of 1 karshapana of the Maurya empire, period of Bindusara Maurya about 297–272
BC, workshop of Pataliputra. Obv: Symbols with a sun. Rev: Symbol. Dimensions: 14 × 11
mm. Weight: 3.4 g.
Bindusara was born to Chandragupta, the founder of the Mauryan Empire. This is
attested by several sources, including the various Puranas and the Mahavamsa.
[128][full
citation needed]
He is attested by the Buddhist texts such
as Dipavamsa and Mahavamsa ("Bindusaro"); the Jain texts such as Parishishta-
Parvan; as well as the Hindu texts such as Vishnu
Purana ("Vindusara").
[129][130]
According to the 12th century Jain
writer Hemachandra's Parishishta-Parvan, the name of Bindusara's mother
was Durdhara.
[131]
Some Greek sources also mention him by the name
"Amitrochates" or its variations.
[132][133]

Historian Upinder Singh estimates that Bindusara ascended the throne around 297
BCE.
[122]
Bindusara, just 22 years old, inherited a large empire that consisted of what
is now, Northern, Central and Eastern parts of India along with parts of Afghanistan
and Baluchistan. Bindusara extended this empire to the southern part of India, as far
as what is now known as Karnataka. He brought sixteen states under the Mauryan
Empire and thus conquered almost all of the Indian peninsula (he is said to have
conquered the 'land between the two seas' – the peninsular region between the Bay
of Bengal and the Arabian Sea). Bindusara did not conquer the
friendly Tamil kingdoms of the Cholas, ruled by King Ilamcetcenni, the Pandyas,
and Cheras. Apart from these southern states, Kalinga (modern Odisha) was the
only kingdom in India that did not form part of Bindusara's empire.
[134]
It was later
conquered by his son Ashoka, who served as the viceroy of Ujjaini during his father's
reign, which highlights the importance of the town.
[135][136]

Bindusara's life has not been documented as well as that of his father Chandragupta
or of his son Ashoka. Chanakya continued to serve as prime minister during his
reign. According to the medieval Tibetan scholar Taranatha who visited India,
Chanakya helped Bindusara "to destroy the nobles and kings of the sixteen
kingdoms and thus to become absolute master of the territory between the eastern
and western oceans".
[137]
During his rule, the citizens of Taxila revolted twice. The
reason for the first revolt was the maladministration of Susima, his eldest son. The
reason for the second revolt is unknown. Bindusara could not suppress it in his
lifetime but it was crushed by Ashoka.
[138]

Bindusara maintained friendly diplomatic relations with the Hellenic
world. Deimachus was the ambassador of Seleucid emperor Antiochus I at
Bindusara's court.
[139]
Diodorus states that the king of Palibothra (Pataliputra, the
Mauryan capital) welcomed a Greek author, Iambulus. This king is usually identified
as Bindusara.
[139]
Pliny states that the Egyptian king Philadelphus sent an envoy
named Dionysius to India.
[140][141]
According to Sailendra Nath Sen, this appears to
have happened during Bindusara's reign.
[139]

Unlike his father Chandragupta (who at a later stage converted to Jainism),
Bindusara believed in the Ajivika sect. Bindusara's guru Pingalavatsa (Janasana)
was a Brahmin
[142]
of the Ajivika sect. Bindusara's wife, Queen Subhadrangi (Queen
Dharma/ Aggamahesi) was a Brahmin
[143]
also of the Ajivika sect from Champa
(present Bhagalpur district). Bindusara is credited with giving several grants to
Brahmin monasteries (Brahmana-bhatto).
[144]

Historical evidence suggests that Bindusara died in the 270s BCE. According to
Upinder Singh, Bindusara died around 273 BCE.
[122]
Alain Daniélou believes that he
died around 274 BCE.
[137]
Sailendra Nath Sen believes that he died around 273–272
BCE, and that his death was followed by a four-year struggle of succession, after
which his son Ashoka became the emperor in 269–268 BCE.
[139]
According to
the Mahavamsa, Bindusara reigned for 28 years.
[145]
The Vayu Purana, which names
Chandragupta's successor as "Bhadrasara", states that he ruled for 25 years.
[146]

Ashoka
Main article: Ashoka

Lion Capital of Ashoka at Sarnath. c. 250 BCE.

Ashoka pillar at Vaishali.

Fragment of the 6th Pillar Edict of Ashoka (238 BCE), in Brahmi, sandstone, British Museum.
As a young prince, Ashoka (r. 272–232 BCE) was a brilliant commander who
crushed revolts in Ujjain and Taxila. As monarch he was ambitious and aggressive,
re-asserting the Empire's superiority in southern and western India. But it was his
conquest of Kalinga (262–261 BCE) which proved to be the pivotal event of his life.
Ashoka used Kalinga to project power over a large region by building a fortification
there and securing it as a possession.
[147]
Although Ashoka's army succeeded in
overwhelming Kalinga forces of royal soldiers and quarter of a million soldiers died in
the furious warfare. Hundreds of thousands of people were adversely affected by the
destruction and fallout of war. When he personally witnessed the devastation,
Ashoka began feeling remorse. Although the annexation of Kalinga was completed,
Ashoka embraced the teachings of Buddhism, and renounced war and violence. He
sent out missionaries to travel around Asia and spread Buddhism to other countries.
He also propagated his own dhamma.
[148]

Ashoka implemented principles of ahimsa by banning hunting and violent sports
activity and ending indentured and forced labor (many thousands of people in war-
ravaged Kalinga had been forced into hard labour and servitude). While he
maintained a large and powerful army, to keep the peace and maintain authority,
Ashoka expanded friendly relations with states across Asia and Europe, and he
sponsored Buddhist missions. He undertook a massive public works building
campaign across the country. Over 40 years of peace, harmony and prosperity made
Ashoka one of the most successful and famous monarchs in Indian history. He
remains an idealized figure of inspiration in modern India.
The Edicts of Ashoka, set in stone, are found throughout the Subcontinent. Ranging
from as far west as Afghanistan and as far south as Andhra (Nellore District),
Ashoka's edicts state his policies and accomplishments. Although predominantly
written in Prakrit, two of them were written in Greek, and one in both Greek
and Aramaic. Ashoka's edicts refer to the Greeks, Kambojas, and Gandharas as
peoples forming a frontier region of his empire. They also attest to Ashoka's having
sent envoys to the Greek rulers in the West as far as the Mediterranean. The edicts

precisely name each of the rulers of the Hellenic world at the time such
as Amtiyoko (Antiochus), Tulamaya (Ptolemy), Amtikini (Antigonos), Maka (Magas)
and Alikasudaro (Alexander) as recipients of Ashoka's proselytism. The Edicts also
accurately locate their territory "600 yojanas away" (a yojanas being about 7 miles),
corresponding to the distance between the center of India and Greece (roughly
4,000 miles).
[149]

Decline
Ashoka was followed for 50 years by a succession of weaker kings. He was
succeeded by Dasharatha Maurya, who was Ashoka's grandson. None of Ashoka's
sons could ascend to the throne after him. Mahinda, his firstborn, became a Buddhist
monk. Kunala Maurya was blind and hence couldn't ascend to the throne; and
Tivala, son of Kaurwaki, died even earlier than Ashoka. Little is known about another
son, Jalauka.
The empire lost many territories under Dasharatha, which were later reconquered
by Samprati, Kunala's son. Post Samprati, the Mauryas slowly lost many territories.
In 180 BCE, Brihadratha Maurya, was killed by his general Pushyamitra Shunga in a
military parade without any heir. Hence, the great Maurya empire finally ended,
giving rise to the Shunga Empire.
Reasons advanced for the decline include the succession of weak kings after Aśoka
Maurya, the partition of the empire into two, the growing independence of some
areas within the empire, such as that ruled by Sophagasenus, a top-heavy
administration where authority was entirely in the hands of a few persons, an
absence of any national consciousness,
[150]
the pure scale of the empire making it
unwieldy, and invasion by the Greco-Bactrian Empire.
Some historians, such as H. C. Raychaudhuri, have argued that Ashoka's pacifism
undermined the "military backbone" of the Maurya empire. Others, such as Romila
Thapar, have suggested that the extent and impact of his pacifism have been
"grossly exaggerated".
[151]

Shunga coup (185 BCE)
Buddhist records such as the Ashokavadana write that the assassination of
Brihadratha and the rise of the Shunga empire led to a wave of religious persecution
for Buddhists,
[152]
and a resurgence of Hinduism. According to Sir John
Marshall,
[153]
Pushyamitra may have been the main author of the persecutions,
although later Shunga kings seem to have been more supportive of Buddhism. Other
historians, such as Etienne Lamotte
[154]
and Romila Thapar,
[155]
among others, have
argued that archaeological evidence in favour of the allegations of persecution of
Buddhists are lacking, and that the extent and magnitude of the atrocities have been
exaggerated.
Establishment of the Indo-Greek Kingdom (180 BCE)
Main article: Indo-Greek Kingdom
The fall of the Mauryas left the Khyber Pass unguarded, and a wave of foreign
invasion followed. The Greco-Bactrian king, Demetrius, capitalized on the break-up,
and he conquered southern Afghanistan and parts of northwestern India around
180 BCE, forming the Indo-Greek Kingdom. The Indo-Greeks would maintain
holdings on the trans-Indus region, and make forays into central India, for about a
century. Under them, Buddhism flourished, and one of their kings, Menander,

became a famous figure of Buddhism; he was to establish a new capital of Sagala,
the modern city of Sialkot. However, the extent of their domains and the lengths of
their rule are subject to much debate. Numismatic evidence indicates that they
retained holdings in the subcontinent right up to the birth of Christ. Although the
extent of their successes against indigenous powers such as
the Shungas, Satavahanas, and Kalingas are unclear, what is clear is that Scythian
tribes, renamed Indo-Scythians, brought about the demise of the Indo-Greeks from
around 70 BCE and retained lands in the trans-Indus, the region of Mathura, and
Gujarat.
[citation needed]

Military
Megasthenes mentions military command consisting of six boards of five members
each, (i) Navy (ii) military transport (iii) Infantry (iv) Cavalry with Catapults (v) Chariot
divisions and (vi) Elephants.
[156]

Historians theorise that the organisation of the Empire was in line with the extensive
bureaucracy described by Chanakya in the Arthashastra: a sophisticated civil service
governed everything from municipal hygiene to international trade. The expansion
and defense of the empire was made possible by what appears to have been one of
the largest armies in the world during the Iron Age.
[157]
According to Megasthenes, the
empire wielded a military of 600,000 infantry, 30,000 cavalry, 8,000 chariots and
9,000 war elephants besides followers and attendants.
[158]

Administration

Statuettes of the Mauryan era
The Empire was divided into four provinces, with the imperial capital at Pataliputra.
From Ashokan edicts, the names of the four provincial capitals are Tosali (in the
east), Ujjain (in the west), Suvarnagiri (in the south), and Taxila (in the north). The
head of the provincial administration was the Kumara (royal prince), who governed
the provinces as king's representative. The kumara was assisted by Mahamatyas
and council of ministers. This organizational structure was reflected at the imperial
level with the Emperor and his Mantriparishada (Council of Ministers). The Mauryans
established a well developed coin minting system. Coins were mostly made of silver
and copper. Certain gold coins were in circulation as well. The coins were widely
used for trade and commerce
[159]

The economy of the empire has been described as, "a socialized monarchy", "a sort
of state socialism", and the world's first welfare state.
[160]
Under the Mauryan system
there was no private ownership of land as all land was owned by the king to whom
tribute was paid by the by the laboring class. In return the emperor supplied the
laborers with agricultural products, animals, seeds, tools, public infrastructure, and
stored food in reserve for times of crisis.
[160]

Local government

Arthashastra and Megasthenes accounts of Pataliputra describe the intricate
municipal system formed by Maurya empire to govern its cities. A city counsel made
up of thirty commissioners was divided into six committees or boards which
governed the city. The first board fixed wages and looked after provided goods,
second board made arrangement for foreign dignitaries, tourists and businessmen,
third board made records and registrations, fourth looked after manufactured goods
and sale of commodities, fifth board regulated trade, issued licenses and checked
weights and measurements, sixth board collected sales taxes. Some cities such as
Taxila had autonomy to issue their own coins. The city counsel had officers who
looked after public welfare such as maintenance of roads, public buildings, markets,
hospitals, educational institutions etc.
[161]
The official head of the village was Gramika
(in towns Nagarika).
[162]
The city counsel also had some magisterial powers. The
taking of Census was regular process in the Mauryan administration. The village
officials (Gramika) and municipal officials (Nagarika) were responsible enumerating
different classes of people in the Mauryan empire such as traders, agriculturists,
smiths, potters, carpenters etc. and also cattle, mostly for taxation
purposes.
[163]
These vocations consolidated as castes, a feature of Indian society that
continues to influence the Indian politics till today.
Economy
See also: Economic history of India and Coinage of India

Maurya statuette, 2nd century BCE.
For the first time in South Asia, political unity and military security allowed for a
common economic system and enhanced trade and commerce, with increased
agricultural productivity. The previous situation involving hundreds of kingdoms,
many small armies, powerful regional chieftains, and internecine warfare, gave way
to a disciplined central authority. Farmers were freed of tax and crop collection
burdens from regional kings, paying instead to a nationally administered and strict-
but-fair system of taxation as advised by the principles in the Arthashastra.
Chandragupta Maurya established a single currency across India, and a network of

regional governors and administrators and a civil service provided justice and
security for merchants, farmers and traders. The Mauryan army wiped out many
gangs of bandits, regional private armies, and powerful chieftains who sought to
impose their own supremacy in small areas. Although regimental in revenue
collection, Maurya also sponsored many public works and waterways to enhance
productivity, while internal trade in India expanded greatly due to new-found political
unity and internal peace.
Under the Indo-Greek friendship treaty, and during Ashoka's reign, an international
network of trade expanded. The Khyber Pass, on the modern boundary of Pakistan
and Afghanistan, became a strategically important port of trade and intercourse with
the outside world. Greek states and Hellenic kingdoms in West Asia became
important trade partners of India. Trade also extended through the Malay
peninsula into Southeast Asia. India's exports included silk goods and textiles, spices
and exotic foods. The external world came across new scientific knowledge and
technology with expanding trade with the Mauryan Empire. Ashoka also sponsored
the construction of thousands of roads, waterways, canals, hospitals, rest-houses
and other public works. The easing of many over-rigorous administrative practices,
including those regarding taxation and crop collection, helped increase productivity
and economic activity across the Empire.{{citation needed|date=August
In many ways, the economic situation in the Mauryan Empire is analogous to the
Roman Empire of several centuries later. Both had extensive trade connections and
both had organizations similar to corporations. While Rome had organizational
entities which were largely used for public state-driven projects, Mauryan India had
numerous private commercial entities. These existed purely for private commerce
and developed before the Mauryan Empire itself.
[164]

Maurya Empire coinage

Hoard of mostly Mauryan coins.


Silver punch mark coin of the Maurya empire, with symbols of wheel and elephant. 3rd century BCE.
[citation needed]


Mauryan coin with arched hill symbol on reverse.
[citation needed]


Mauryan Empire coin. Circa late 4th-2nd century BCE.
[citation needed]


Mauryan Empire, Emperor Salisuka or later. Circa 207-194 BCE.
[165]

Religion
Throughout the period of empire, Vedic was an important religion.
[166]
The Mauryans
favored Brahmanism as well as Jainism and Buddhism. Minor religious sects such
as Ajivikas also received patronage. A number of Hindu texts were written during the
Mauryan period.
[167]

Bhadrabahu Cave, Shravanabelagola where Chandragupta is said to have died
According to a Jain text from the 12th century, Chandragupta Maurya
followed Jainism after retiring, when he renounced his throne and material

possessions to join a wandering group of Jain monks and in his last days, he
observed the rigorous but self-purifying Jain ritual of santhara (fast unto death),
at Shravana Belgola in Karnataka.
[168][126][169][125]
Nevertheless, it is possible that
Chandragupta Maurya "did not give up the performance of sacrificial rites and was
far from following the Jaina creed of Ahimsa or non-injury to animals."
[170]
Samprati,
the grandson of Ashoka, also patronized Jainism. Samprati was influenced by the
teachings of Jain monks like Suhastin and he is said to have built
125,000 derasars across India.
[171]
Some of them are still found in the towns of
Ahmedabad, Viramgam, Ujjain, and Palitana.
[citation needed]
It is also said that just like
Ashoka, Samprati sent messengers and preachers to Greece, Persia and the Middle
East for the spread of Jainism, but, to date, no evidence has been found to support
this claim.
[172][173]

The stupa, which contained the relics of Buddha, at the center of the Sanchi complex was
originally built by the Maurya Empire, but the balustrade around it is Sunga, and the decorative
gateways are from the later Satavahana period.

The Dharmarajika stupa in Taxila, modern Pakistan, is also thought to have been established by
Emperor Asoka.
The Buddhist texts Samantapasadika and Mahavamsa suggest that Bindusara
followed Hindu Brahmanism, calling him a "Brahmana bhatto" ("monk of the
Brahmanas").
[174][175]

Magadha, the centre of the empire, was also the birthplace of Buddhism. Ashoka
initially practised Brahmanism
[citation needed]
but later followed Buddhism; following
the Kalinga War, he renounced expansionism and aggression, and the harsher
injunctions of the Arthashastra on the use of force, intensive policing, and ruthless
measures for tax collection and against rebels. Ashoka sent a mission led by his
son Mahinda and daughter Sanghamitta to Sri Lanka, whose king Tissa was so
charmed with Buddhist ideals that he adopted them himself and made Buddhism the
state religion. Ashoka sent many Buddhist missions to West Asia, Greece and South
East Asia, and commissioned the construction of monasteries and schools, as well

as the publication of Buddhist literature across the empire. He is believed to have
built as many as 84,000 stupas across India, such as Sanchi and Mahabodhi
Temple, and he increased the popularity of Buddhism in Afghanistan and Thailand.
Ashoka helped convene the Third Buddhist Council of India's and South Asia's
Buddhist orders near his capital, a council that undertook much work of reform and
expansion of the Buddhist religion. Indian merchants embraced Buddhism and
played a large role in spreading the religion across the Mauryan Empire.
[176]

Architectural remains
Main articles: Edicts of Ashoka, Sanchi, and Mauryan art

Mauryan architecture in the Barabar Caves. Lomas Rishi Cave. 3rd century BCE.
The greatest monument of this period, executed in the reign of Chandragupta
Maurya, was the old palace at Paliputra, modern Kumhrar in Patna. Excavations
have unearthed the remains of the palace, which is thought to have been a group of
several buildings, the most important of which was an immense pillared hall
supported on a high substratum of timbers. The pillars were set in regular rows, thus
dividing the hall into a number of smaller square bays. The number of columns is 80,
each about 7 meters high. According to the eyewitness account of Megasthenes, the
palace was chiefly constructed of timber, and was considered to exceed in splendour
and magnificence the palaces of Susa and Ecbatana, its gilded pillars being adorned
with golden vines and silver birds. The buildings stood in an extensive park studded
with fish ponds and furnished with a great variety of ornamental trees and
shrubs.
[177]
Kauṭilya's Arthashastra also gives the method of palace construction from
this period. Later fragments of stone pillars, including one nearly complete, with their
round tapering shafts and smooth polish, indicate that Ashoka was responsible for
the construction of the stone columns which replaced the earlier wooden ones.

An early stupa, 6 meters in diameter, with fallen umbrella on side. Chakpat, near Chakdara.
Probably Maurya, 3rd century BCE.
During the Ashokan period, stonework was of a highly diversified order and
comprised lofty free-standing pillars, railings of stupas, lion thrones and other
colossal figures. The use of stone had reached such great perfection during this time
that even small fragments of stone art were given a high lustrous polish resembling
fine enamel. This period marked the beginning of Buddhist architecture. Ashoka was
responsible for the construction of several stupas, which were large domes and
bearing symbols of Buddha. The most important ones are located
at Sanchi, Bodhgaya, Bharhut, and possibly Amaravati Stupa. The most widespread
examples of Mauryan architecture are the Ashoka pillars and carved edicts of
Ashoka, often exquisitely decorated, with more than 40 spread throughout the Indian
subcontinent.
[178]

The peacock was a dynastic symbol of Mauryans, as depicted by Ashoka's pillars at
Nandangarh and Sanchi Stupa.
[58]

Maurya structures and decorations at Sanchi
(3rd century BCE)

Approximate reconstitution of the Great Stupa
at Sanchi under the Mauryas.

Remains of the Ashokan Pillar in polished stone (right of the Southern Gateway).


Remains of the shaft of the pillar of Ashoka, under a shed near the Southern Gateway.


Pillar and its inscription (the "Schism Edict") upon discovery.


The capital nowadays.
[179]

Natural history

The two Yakshas, possibly 3rd century BCE, found in Pataliputra. The two Brahmi inscriptions
starting with ... (Yakhe... for "Yaksha...")
.
[180]
]]
The protection of animals in India was advocated by the time of the Maurya dynasty;
being the first empire to provide a unified political entity in India, the attitude of the
Mauryas towards forests, their denizens, and fauna in general is of interest.
[181]

The Mauryas firstly looked at forests as resources. For them, the most important
forest product was the elephant. Military might in those times depended not only
upon horses and men but also battle-elephants; these played a role in the defeat
of Seleucus, one of Alexander's former generals. The Mauryas sought to preserve
supplies of elephants since it was cheaper and took less time to catch, tame and
train wild elephants than to raise them. Kautilya's Arthashastra contains not only
maxims on ancient statecraft, but also unambiguously specifies the responsibilities of
officials such as the Protector of the Elephant Forests.
[182]

On the border of the forest, he should establish a forest for elephants guarded by
foresters. The Office of the Chief Elephant Forester should with the help of guards
protect the elephants in any terrain. The slaying of an elephant is punishable by
death.
— Kautilya, Arthashastra
The Mauryas valued certain forest tracts in strategic or economic terms and
instituted curbs and control measures over them. They regarded all forest tribes with
distrust and controlled them with bribery and political subjugation. They employed
some of them, the food-gatherers or aranyaca to guard borders and trap animals.
The sometimes tense and conflict-ridden relationship nevertheless enabled the
Mauryas to guard their vast empire.
[183]

When Ashoka embraced Buddhism in the latter part of his reign, he brought about
significant changes in his style of governance, which included providing protection to
fauna, and even relinquished the royal hunt. He was the first ruler in history
[failed
verification]
to advocate conservation measures for wildlife and even had rules inscribed in
stone edicts. The edicts proclaim that many followed the king's example in giving up
the slaughter of animals; one of them proudly states:
[183]

However, the edicts of Ashoka reflect more the desire of rulers than actual events;
the mention of a 100 'panas' (coins) fine for poaching deer in royal hunting preserves
shows that rule-breakers did exist. The legal restrictions conflicted with the practices
freely exercised by the common people in hunting, felling, fishing and setting fires in
forests.
[183]

Contacts with the Hellenistic world

Mauryan ringstone, with standing goddess. Northwest Pakistan. 3rd Century BCE
Foundation of the Empire
Relations with the Hellenistic world may have started from the very beginning of the
Maurya Empire. Plutarch reports that Chandragupta Maurya met with Alexander the
Great, probably around Taxila in the northwest:
[184]

Sandrocottus(Chandragupta), when he was a stripling, saw Alexander himself, and
we are told that he often said in later times that Alexander narrowly missed making
himself master of the country, since its king (Dhananda) was hated and despised on
account of his baseness and low birth.
— Plutarch 62-4
[184][185]

Reconquest of the Northwest (c. 317–316 BCE)
Main article: Chandragupta Maurya's Macedonian campaigns
Chandragupta ultimately occupied Northwestern India, in the territories formerly
ruled by the Greeks, where he fought the satraps (described as "Prefects" in
Western sources) left in place after Alexander (Justin), among whom may have
been Eudemus, ruler in the western Punjab until his departure in 317 BCE
or Peithon, son of Agenor, ruler of the Greek colonies along the Indus until his
departure for Babylon in 316 BCE.
India, after the death of Alexander, had assassinated his prefects, as if shaking the
burden of servitude. The author of this liberation was Sandracottos, but he had
transformed liberation in servitude after victory, since, after taking the throne, he
himself oppressed the very people he has liberated from foreign domination.
— Justin XV.4.12–13
[186]

Later, as he was preparing war against the prefects of Alexander, a huge wild
elephant went to him and took him on his back as if tame, and he became a
remarkable fighter and war leader. Having thus acquired royal power, Sandracottos
possessed India at the time Seleucos was preparing future glory.
— Justin XV.4.19
[187]

Conflict and alliance with Seleucus (305 BCE)
Main article: Seleucid–Mauryan war

A map showing the north western border of Maurya Empire, including its various neighboring
states.
Seleucus I Nicator, the Macedonian satrap of the Asian portion of Alexander's former
empire, conquered and put under his own authority eastern territories as far as
Bactria and the Indus (Appian, History of Rome, The Syrian Wars 55), until in
305 BCE he entered into a confrontation with Emperor Chandragupta:
Always lying in wait for the neighbouring nations, strong in arms and persuasive in
council, he [Seleucus] acquired Mesopotamia, Armenia, 'Seleucid' Cappadocia,
Persis, Parthia, Bactria, Arabia, Tapouria, Sogdia, Arachosia, Hyrcania, and other
adjacent peoples that had been subdued by Alexander, as far as the river Indus, so
that the boundaries of his empire were the most extensive in Asia after that of
Alexander. The whole region from Phrygia to the Indus was subject to Seleucus.
— Appian, History of Rome, "The Syrian Wars" 55
[188]

It is clear that Seleucus fared poorly against the Indian Emperor as he failed to
conquer any territory, and in fact was forced to surrender much that was already his.
Regardless, Seleucus and Chandragupta ultimately reached a settlement and
through a treaty sealed in 305 BCE, Seleucus, according to Strabo, ceded a number
of territories to Chandragupta, including eastern Afghanistan and Balochistan.
Marriage alliance

Figure of a foreigner, found in Sarnath, 3rd century BCE.
[189]
This is a probable member of the
West Asian Pahlava or Saka elite in the Gangetic plains during the Mauryan period.
[190][191][192]

Chandragupta and Seleucus concluded a peace treaty and a marriage alliance in
303 BCE. Chandragupta received vast territories and in a return gave Seleucus
500 war elephants,
[193][ 194][ 195][196][197]
a military asset which would play a decisive role at
the Battle of Ipsus in 301 BCE.
[198]
In addition to this treaty, Seleucus dispatched an
ambassador, Megasthenes, to Chandragupta, and later Deimakos to his
son Bindusara, at the Mauryan court at Pataliputra (modern Patna in Bihar).
Later, Ptolemy II Philadelphus, the ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt and contemporary
of Ashoka, is also recorded by Pliny the Elder as having sent an ambassador
named Dionysius to the Mauryan court.
[199]

Mainstream scholarship asserts that Chandragupta received vast territory west of the
Indus, including the Hindu Kush, modern-day Afghanistan, and
the Balochistan province of Pakistan.
[200][201]
Archaeologically, concrete indications of
Mauryan rule, such as the inscriptions of the Edicts of Ashoka, are known as far
as Kandahar in southern Afghanistan.
He (Seleucus) crossed the Indus and waged war with Sandrocottus [Maurya], king of
the Indians, who dwelt on the banks of that stream, until they came to an
understanding with each other and contracted a marriage relationship.
— Appian, History of Rome, The Syrian Wars 55
After having made a treaty with him (Sandrakotos) and put in order the Orient
situation, Seleucos went to war against Antigonus.
— Junianus Justinus, Historiarum Philippicarum, libri XLIV, XV.4.15
The treaty on "Epigamia" implies lawful marriage between Greeks and Indians was
recognized at the State level, although it is unclear whether it occurred among
dynastic rulers or common people, or both.
Exchange of presents

Classical sources have also recorded that following their treaty, Chandragupta and
Seleucus exchanged presents, such as when Chandragupta sent
various aphrodisiacs to Seleucus:
[132]

And Theophrastus says that some contrivances are of wondrous efficacy in such
matters [as to make people more amorous]. And Phylarchus confirms him, by
reference to some of the presents which Sandrakottus, the king of the Indians, sent
to Seleucus; which were to act like charms in producing a wonderful degree of
affection, while some, on the contrary, were to banish love.
— Athenaeus of Naucratis, The deipnosophists, Book I, chapter 32
[202]

His son Bindusara 'Amitraghata' (Slayer of Enemies) also is recorded in Classical
sources as having exchanged presents with Antiochus I:
[132]

But dried figs were so very much sought after by all men (for really,
as Aristophanes says, "There's really nothing nicer than dried figs"), that even
Amitrochates, the king of the Indians, wrote to Antiochus, entreating him (it
is Hegesander who tells this story) to buy and send him some sweet wine, and some
dried figs, and a sophist; and that Antiochus wrote to him in answer, "The dry figs
and the sweet wine we will send you; but it is not lawful for a sophist to be sold in
Greece.
— Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae XIV.67
[203]

Greek population in India

The Kandahar Edict of Ashoka, a bilingual edict (Greek and Aramaic) by king Ashoka,
from Kandahar. Kabul Museum. (See image description page for translation.)
An influential and large Greek population was present in the northwest of the Indian
subcontinent under Ashoka's rule, possibly remnants of Alexander's conquests in the
Indus Valley region. In the Rock Edicts of Ashoka, some of them inscribed in Greek,
Ashoka states that the Greeks within his dominion were converted to Buddhism:
Here in the king's dominion among the Greeks, the Kambojas, the Nabhakas, the
Nabhapamkits, the Bhojas, the Pitinikas, the Andhras and the Palidas, everywhere
people are following Beloved-of-the-Gods' instructions in Dharma.

— (Rock Edict Number 13)
Now, in times past (officers) called Mahamatras of morality did not exist before.
Mahdmatras of morality were appointed by me (when I had been) anointed thirteen
years. These are occupied with all sects in establishing morality, in promoting
morality, and for the welfare and happiness of those who are devoted to morality
(even) among the Greeks, Kambojas and Gandharas, and whatever other western
borderers (of mine there are).
— (Rock Edict Number 5)
Fragments of Edict 13 have been found in Greek, and a full Edict, written in both
Greek and Aramaic, has been discovered in Kandahar. It is said to be written in
excellent Classical Greek, using sophisticated philosophical terms. In this Edict,
Ashoka uses the word Eusebeia ("Piety") as the Greek translation for the ubiquitous
"Dharma" of his other Edicts written in Prakrit:
Ten years (of reign) having been completed, King Piodasses (Ashoka) made known
(the doctrine of) Piety (εὐσέβεια, Eusebeia) to men; and from this moment he has
made men more pious, and everything thrives throughout the whole world. And the
king abstains from (killing) living beings, and other men and those who (are)
huntsmen and fishermen of the king have desisted from hunting. And if some (were)
intemperate, they have ceased from their intemperance as was in their power; and
obedient to their father and mother and to the elders, in opposition to the past also in
the future, by so acting on every occasion, they will live better and more happily.
— Trans. by G.P. Carratelli [16]
[usurped]

Dhamma Vijaya to the West (c. 250 BCE)

The distribution of the Edicts of Ashoka.
[204]


Map of the Buddhist missions during the reign of Ashoka.


Territories "conquered by the Dharma" according to Major Rock Edict No. 13 of
Ashoka (260–218 BCE).
[205][206]

Also, in the Edicts of Ashoka, Ashoka mentions the Hellenistic kings of the period as
recipients of his Buddhist proselytism, although no Western historical record of this
event remains:
The conquest by Dharma has been won here, on the borders, and even six
hundred yojanas (5,400–9,600 km) away, where the Greek king Antiochos rules,
beyond there where the four kings
named Ptolemy, Antigonos, Magas and Alexander rule, likewise in the south among
the Cholas, the Pandyas, and as far as Tamraparni (Sri Lanka).
— Edicts of Ashoka, 13th Rock Edict, S. Dhammika.
Ashoka also encouraged the development of herbal medicine, for men and animals,
in their territories:
Everywhere within Beloved-of-the-Gods, King Piyadasi's [Ashoka's] domain, and
among the people beyond the borders, the Cholas, the Pandyas, the Satiyaputras,
the Keralaputras, as far as Tamraparni and where the Greek king Antiochos rules,
and among the kings who are neighbors of Antiochos, everywhere has Beloved-of-
the-Gods, King Piyadasi, made provision for two types of medical treatment: medical
treatment for humans and medical treatment for animals. Wherever medical herbs
suitable for humans or animals are not available, I have had them imported and
grown. Wherever medical roots or fruits are not available I have had them imported
and grown. Along roads I have had wells dug and trees planted for the benefit of
humans and animals.
— 2nd Rock Edict

The Greeks in India even seem to have played an active role in the spread of
Buddhism, as some of the emissaries of Ashoka, such as Dharmaraksita, are
described in Pali sources as leading Greek ("Yona") Buddhist monks, active in
Buddhist proselytism (the Mahavamsa, XII)
[207]

Subhagasena and Antiochos III (206 BCE)
Part of a series on the
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 e
Sophagasenus was an Indian Mauryan ruler of the 3rd century BCE, described in
ancient Greek sources, and named Subhagasena or Subhashasena in Prakrit. His
name is mentioned in the list of Mauryan princes. He may have been a grandson
of Ashoka, or Kunala, the son of Ashoka. He ruled an area south of the Hindu Kush,
possibly in Gandhara. Antiochos III, the Seleucid king, after having made peace
with Euthydemus in Bactria, went to India in 206 BCE and is said to have renewed
his friendship with the Indian king there:
He (Antiochus) crossed the Caucasus and descended into India; renewed his
friendship with Sophagasenus the king of the Indians; received more elephants, until
he had a hundred and fifty altogether; and having once more provisioned his troops,
set out again personally with his army: leaving Androsthenes of Cyzicus the duty of
taking home the treasure which this king had agreed to hand over to him.
— Polybius, The Histories, 11.39
[208]

Fa-Hian, the Chinese Buddhist monk and traveler, mentioned Dharmavarddhana,
who was believed to be Subhagsena by historians :
From this, descending eastward, journeying for five days, we arrive at the country of
Gandhara (Kien-to-wei). This is the place which Dharmavarddhana, the son of
Asoka, governed. Buddha also in this country, when he was a Bodhisattva, gave his
eyes in charity for the sake of a man. On this spot also they have raised a great
stupa, adorned with silver and gold. The people of this country mostly study the Little
Vehicle.
—The travels of Fa-Hian (400 A.D.) Chapter X
Later Mauryas
The Rājataranginī mentions Jalauka as the successor of Aśoka in Kashmir, while
Tāranātha refers to another successor named Vīrasena, who ruled in Gandhāra. As
Dr. Thomas suggests, Vīrasena was probably the predecessor of Subhāgasena.
[209]

Petty Maurya kings continued to rule in western India as well as in Magadha long
after the extinction of the imperial line. King Dhavala of the Maurya dynasty is
referred to in the Kanaswa inscription of c. A.D. 738. Professor Bhandarkar identifies
him with Dhavalappadeva, the overlord of Dhanika mentioned in the Dabok (Mewar)
inscription of A.D. 725. Maurya chiefs of the Konkan and Khandesh regions are also
referred to in early epigraphs. A Maurya prince of Magadha named Pūrṇavarman is
mentioned by the Chinese traveller Xuanzang (Hiuen Tsang).
[210]

In the 7th century A.D., Xuanzang wrote about small dominions in eastern India. He
relates that shortly before his visit, Pūrṇavarman, king of Magadha and a descendant
of Aśoka, had restored the Bodhi Tree, which had been destroyed by Śaśāṅka.
Xuanzang also mentions a Mauryan ruler named Narendragupta of Karnasuvarṇa
(Bengal).
[211]

During the 6th century, Kolaba along with the northern Konkan coast was probably
ruled by Mauryas and Nāla chiefs, since Kīrtivarman I (550–567), the first of the
Chalukyas, is described as ―the night of death to the Nālas and Mauryas.‖
[212]

From inscribed stones of the 5th and 6th centuries discovered in the Thāna District
of North Konkan, it appears that a Mauryan king named Suketuvarman was ruling in
the region. Konkan was given in charge of a Maurya family.
[213][214][215]

The Vada (Vāla) inscription of Suketuvarman, dated Śaka 322 (A.D. 400), records
the installation of the deity Koṭīśvara by one Simhadatta, son of Anankiparadatta,
and mentions grants to the deity by Īśuprakki, the Vallabha-Talavara of the Maurya
Dharma-mahārāja Suketuvarman of the Bhojas. The inscription adds one more
name to the list of the Mauryas of Konkan.
[215]

Interestingly, More is a name still common among the Marathas, Kunbis, and in the
local rolls of Kolaba, possibly derived from Maurya. Two small landing places named
More, one in Elephanta (Gharapuri) and another in Karanja may be relics of the
ancient Mauryan power in the Konkan. The Mauryas of the Konkan, previously
subdued, were eventually overwhelmed, and the city of Puri (either Gharapuri, i.e.,
the island of Elephanta near Mumbai, or Rājpuri near Janjira), located in the Arabian
Sea and probably the Maurya capital, was invaded and captured by Pulakeshin II’s
naval forces.
[216]

The Mori Rajputs of Rajasthan are believed to have descended from a branch of the
ancient Maurya dynasty. Historical traditions and bardic accounts identify the Moris
as the rulers of Chittor before the rise of the Guhila (Sisodia) clan. The Chittorgarh
inscription and later chronicles, such as those cited by James Tod, note that the Mori
dynasty held sway over parts of Mewar during the early medieval period. The most
prominent among them was Man Mori, who is said to have ruled Chittor until it was
captured by Bappa Rawal in the 8th century CE.
[217][218]

Rediscovery
Coins of the Kalachuri king Kṛṣṇarāja have been found on the island of Bombay
(Mumbai). The region was not directly administered by the Kalachuris but was
governed by their feudatories, the Mauryas. The Kanaswa inscription (A.D. 738–739)
mentions Maurya king Dhavalappa, probably holding Chittorgarh, whose dynasty
later succumbed to Arab invasions. Another Maurya branch ruled at Valabhi (Vala) in
Saurashtra, with Govindarāja Maurya reigning from Vāghli in Khandesh under
Seunacandra II. In North Konkan, Mauryas are mentioned in the Aihole inscription of
Kīrtivarman I (A.D. 566–598), which calls him ―the night of destruction to the Nālas,
Mauryas, and Kadambas,‖ the latter said to be a sub-clan of the southern
Mauryas.
[219]

The Mauryas of Konkan region
Suketuvarman is known from a solitary stone inscription found at Vada to the north
of Thana near Bombay but now preserved in the Prince of Wales Museum, Bombay.
The epigraph, which is damaged and written in the southern characters of about the
4th or 5th century A.D. and refers to a king named Suketuvarman of the Maurya
dynasty. He appears to have been ruling near about Thana during that period.
[220]

The Mauryas of Western coastline
Two copper plate grants discovered in the Goa territory on the west coast reveal the
existence of two kings named Chandravarman and Anirjitavarman who belonged to
the Maurya dynasty as per their inscription. As both the grants are dated in the
regnal years of the ruling kings, from the palaeographical point of view, they may be
assigned to the 6th or 7th century A.D., the grant of Chandravarman being slightly

earlier than that of Anirjitvarman. Both these rulers, who assume the epithet of
Mahārāja in their records. The charter of Chandravarman records the donation, by
the king, of some lands to the Mahāvihāra situated in Sivapura which is identified
with the village bearing the same name near Chandor in Goa. The grant of
Anirjitavarman, registers certain gifts, made by the king, to a Brāhmaņa named
Hastyärya. It is issued from a a place called Kumāradvīpa which appears to be
located somewhere in the Goa territory. These two records show that Candravarman
and Anirjitvarman were ruling somewhere in the Goa territory about the 6th-7th
century A.D.
[221]

The Mauryas of the Mathura region
Dindirāja alias Karka fragmentary stone inscription from Mathura city in Uttar
Pradesh which, on palaeographical grounds, is referred to the latter half of the 7th
century A.D., mentions four members of the Maurya dynasty viz. Krşņarāja in his
family, Chandragupta his son, Aryarāja and, probably his son, Dindirāja alias
Karka.
[222][223]
The last named ruler of this Mauryan branch appears to have burnt the
city of Kanyakubja (Kannauj). The Maurya kings mentioned in this record seem to
have held sway over the south-western areas of Uttar Pradesh. The Jaina tradition
represents king Yasovarman (circa 728-53 A.D.) of Kannauj as a descendant of
Chandragupta Maurya. This may refer to Yasovarman's relations with Karka-
Dindirāja who, in all probability, was the grandson of a Maurya ruler named
Chandragupta of 7th century A.D.
[224]

The Mauryas of the Rajasthan region
King Dhavala or Dhavalātman inscription" from Kanaswa in the old Kota, State of
Rajasthan, dated in the Mälava year (i.e. Vikrama Samvat) 795 or 738. A.D., refers
to the Brahmana Sivagana as a feudatory of king Dhavala of the Maurya lineage. Dr.
D.C. Sircar has suggested, on grounds of palaeographical resemblance and
geographical proximity, that the Mauryas of the Mathura region mentioned above
may be connected with the Maurya king Dhavala of the Kanaswa record.
[225]
It has
also been suggested that the Mauryas who are stated to have been defeated by the
Tājika (i. e. Arab) army in the Navsari plates of the Gujarat Chalukya chief Pulakeśin,
dated 738 A.D., were probably these Mauryas of the Malwa Rajasthan region.
[226]

Dhavala inscription from Dabok about 8 miles to the east of Udaipur in Rajasthan,
mentions a Guhila chief Dhanika of Dhabagarta and his lord Dhavalappa Deva.
Bhandarkar was inclined to identify Dhavalappa of this epigraph with the Maurya
king Dhavalātman of the Kanaswa inscription referred.
[227]
It is possible that they were
related to the Mauryas of the West Coast region and might have extended their
suzerainty over Rajasthan which then formed part of Harsa's (606-47 A.D.)
dominion. As pointed out by Dr. Sircar, the date of the Dabok record as read by him
shows that Harsa must have lost parts of Rajasthan before his death in 647 A.D.,
though the Mauryas of Rajasthan must have owed allegiance to him before.
[228][229]

Jhalrapatan (Jhalwar District Rajasthan) inscription dated 689 A.D. mentions a
Maurya ruler named Durgagana.
[230]
Further, Bappa, son of Guhila or Guhadatta,
founder of the Guhila family, supplanted his uncle known as the Mori (i.e. Maurya)
ruler of Chitor in whose service he was before.
[231]

The Mauryas of Khandesh region
Govindarāja stone record from Väghli in the Khandesh District, Maharastra State,
dated Saka 991 or 1069 A.D. refers to a Maurya chief Govinda or Govindaraja as a

subordinate of the early Yadava king Seuņachandra II. The epigraph mentions
twenty princes or chiefs who were predecessors of Mauryan King Govindaraja, the
earliest member being Kikața. It is also stated that originally the capital of the
Mauryas was at Valabhī in Surashtra.
[232]

Modern Assertion
Ashoka appointed the princes of the royal blood as viceroys in the outlying provinces
of his vast empire to carry on the administration.Four such Mauryan princes viceroys
ruling at Taxila, Ujjain, Tosali and Suvarnagiri are known from lithic records of
Ashoka edicts. So Mauryan lineage kings spreaded from the time of Ashoka.The
Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang (7th century A.D.) mentions a Maurya ruler of
Magadha named Pürņavarman. While some of the later Mauryan rulers enjoyed
independent status, others were either semi-independent or feudatories or even
petty chiefs. Future discoveries may throw further light on these later Mauryas.
Timeline
 322 BCE: Chandragupta Maurya conquers the Nanda Empire, founding Maurya
dynasty.
[233]

 317–316 BCE: Chandragupta Maurya conquers the Northwest of the Indian
subcontinent.
 305–303 BCE: Chandragupta Maurya gains territory by defeating the Seleucid
Empire.
 298–269 BCE: Reign of Bindusara, Chandragupta's son. He conquers parts of
Deccan, southern India.
 269–232 BCE: The Mauryan Empire reaches its height under Ashoka,
Chandragupta's grandson.
 261 BCE: Ashoka conquers the kingdom of Kalinga.
 250 BCE: Ashoka builds Buddhist stupas and erects pillars bearing inscriptions.
 184 BCE: The empire collapses when Brihadratha, the last emperor, is killed
by Pushyamitra Shunga, a Mauryan general and the founder of the Shunga
Empire.
Sources of Mauryan History
Mauryan History Sources Authentic Names
Jain Scriptures
1 - Brihatkalpa Sutra
2 - Brihatkathakosha
3 - Aradhana Satkathaprabandh
4 - Shri Chandravirachita Kathakosha
5 - Nemichandrakrita Kathakosha
6 - Parishishtaparvana
7 - Vividhtirthakalpa

8 - Punyashravakathakosha
9 - Nisitha Sutra
Buddhist Scriptures
1 - Mahavansha
2 - Dipavansha
3 - Mahabodhivansha
4 - Tripitaka
5 - Divyavadana
6 - Ashokavadana
7 - Vinayapitaka
8 - Mahavansatika (Vansatthappakasini)
9 - Uttara Vihara Attakatha
Vedic Scriptures
1 - Matsya Purana
2 - Vishnu Purana
3 - Bhagavata Purana
4 - Bhavishya Purana
5 - Brahmanda Purana
6 - Vayu Purana
7 - Kamandaka Neetisara
Inscriptions / Rock Edicts
Evidence
1 - Ashoka's Rock Edicts, Cave Inscriptions, Pillar
Edicts
2 - Kharavela's Hathigumpha Rock Edicts
3 - Rudradaman Inscription of Junagarh
Ancient Historical Books
1 - Arthashastra, Kautilya
2 - Mudrarakshasa, Vishakhadatta
3 - Mahabhashya, Patanjali
4 - Malavikagnimitram, Kalidasa
5 - Harshacharita, Banabhatta
6 - Rajatarangini, Kalhana
7 - Indica, Megasthenese
8 - Naturalis Historia, Pliny
9 - Epitome of Trogus, Justin
10 - Geographica, Strabo

11 - Anabasis Alexandri, Arrian
12 - The travels of Fa-Hian, Fa Hian
In literature
According to Vicarasreni of Merutunga, Mauryans rose to power in 312 BC.
[234]

List of rulers
Rulers-
Ruler Reign Notes
Chandragupta
Maurya

322–
297
BCE
Founder of first Indian united empire.
Bindusara

297–
273
BCE
Known for his foreign diplomacy and crushed
of Vidarbha revolt.
Ashoka

268–
232
BCE
Greatest emperor of dynasty. His
son Kunala was blinded and died before his
father. Ashoka was succeeded by his grandson.
Also known for Kalinga War victory.
Dasharatha
Maurya

232–
224
BCE
Grandson of Ashoka.
Samprati

224–
215
BCE
Brother of Dasharatha.
Shalishuka

215–
202
BCE

Devavarman

202–
195

BCE
Shatadhanvan

195–
187
BCE
The Mauryan Empire had shrunk by the time of
his reign
Brihadratha

187–
184
BCE
Assassinated by his Commander-in-
chief Pushyamitra Shunga in 185 BCE.
See also
 Magadha
 Gupta Empire
 History of India
 List of Hindu empires and dynasties
Notes
1. Indian Historical Quarterly, Vol-13, Issue no.-1-4. p. 412.
2. Lahiri, Nayanjot (2015-08-05). Ashoka in Ancient India. Harvard University Press.
p. 5. ISBN 978-0-674-05777-7. In relation to his predecessors, he was the first
Indian king to rule over an empire embracing much of India and its western
borderlands, from Afghanistan to Orissa and towards the south as far as Karnataka.
In relation to the rulers who followed him, it was his example which influenced
thought-philosophical, religious, cultural-in Asia more profoundly than that of any
other political figure of antiquity.
3. O'Reilly, Dougald J. W. (2007). Early Civilizations of Southeast Asia. Rowman
Altamira. p. 178. ISBN 978-0-7591-0279-8.
4. Bhandarkar, D. R. Asoka. Central Archelogical Library. p. 42-43. ISBN 978-93-837-
2346-1. We thus obtain a fairly accurate idea of the extent of Asoka's dominions.
They included the whole of India except the southern extremity of the peninsula held
by the Choda, Pandya, Satiya- putra and Keralaputra kings. This southern boundary
is marked roughly by a line drawn from Pulicat near Madras in the east, to Gooty and
Chitaldrug in the north where the four copies of Aśoka's Minor Rock Edicts have
been discovered right up to the northern point of the South Canara District on the
west. Let us now see what Greek princes have been mentioned by Aśoka as his
contemporaries, and try to identify them. They have all been named in Rock Edict
XIII. Of course, Amtiyoka is the first to be named as he was a neighbour of Asoka.
Beyond his kingdom, we are told, were ruling the four princes Turamaya, Amtekina
or Amtikini, Maga and Alikasumdra. Amtiyoka is, of course, Antiochus II. Theos (B.C.
261-246), king of Syria, and Turamaya, Ptolemy II. Philadelphos of Egypt (285-247).
Amtekina or Amtikini, as Bühler has remarked, corresponds to the Greek Antigenes
rather than to Antigonus.
5. Shackley, Myra L. (2006). Atlas of travel and tourism development. Internet Archive.
Amsterdam ; Boston : Elsevier. p. 67. ISBN 978-0-7506-6348-9. After Alexanderâs
retreat from the Indus the Emperor Chandragupta Maurya established the first

indigenous empire to exercise control over much of the subcontinent, and eventually,
under his successors, this covered all but the tip of the peninsula. Asoka, the
greatest of the Mauryan emperors, took power in 272 BC and extended the empire
from Afghanistan to Assam and from the Himalayas to Mysore, leaving behind a
series of inscriptions recording his edicts on pillars and rocks across the continent.
6. Robert W. Strayer : Eric W. Nelson (2016). Ways of the World. Internet Archive.
Bedford/St. Martin's. p. 121. ISBN 978-1-319-05448-9.
7. Upinder Singh (2008). History Of Ancient And Early Medeival India From The Stone
Age To The 12th Century. p. 740,748. Pg.740 : Chandragupta and Seleucus Nikator,
who had inherited the eastern provinces of Alexander empire. This may have
occurred in about 301 BCE and was resolved by an agreement. Chandragupta
obtained the territories of Arachosia (the Kandahar area of south-east Afghanistan),
Gedrosia (south Baluchistan), and Paropomisadai (the area between Afghanistan
and the Indian subcontinent) and handed over 500 elephants in return. Pg.748 : The
distribution of Ashoka's inscriptions suggests the extent of the Maurya empire. In the
north-west, it extended up to Kandahar in Afghanistan, with the kingdom of
Antiochus II of Syria lying to the west. Its eastern frontier extended to Orissa. It
included almost the entire subcontinent, except the southernmost parts, which,
according to rock edict 13, were inhabited by the Cholas and Pandyas, and
according to rock edict 2, by the Keralaputras and Satiyaputras. {{cite
book}}: line feed character in |quote= at position 425 (help)
8. Spielvogel, Jackson J. (2012). Western civilization. Internet Archive. Boston, MA :
Wadsworth Cengage Learning. p. 106. ISBN 978-0-495-91329-0. Seleucid Kingdom
Another Hellenistic monarchy was founded by the general Seleucus (suh-LOO-
kuss), who established the Seleucid dynasty of Syria. This was the largest of the
Hellenistic kingdoms and controlled much of the old Persian Empire from Turkey in
the west to India in the east, although the Seleucids found it increasingly difficult to
maintain control of the eastern territories. In fact, an Indian ruler named
Chandragupta Maurya (chundruh-GOOP-tuh MOWR-yuh) (324-301 B.c.E.) created
a new Indian state, the Mauryan Empire, and drove out the Seleucid forces. His
grandson Asoka (uh-SOH-kuh) (269-232 b.c.e.) extended the empire to include most
of India and is considered the greatest ruler in India's history Asoka, a pious
Buddhist, sought to convert the remaining Greek communities in northwestern India
to his religion and even sent Buddhist missionaries to Greek rulers. The Seleucid
rulers maintained relations with the Mauryan Empire. Trade was fostered, especially
in such luxuries as spices and jewels. Seleucus also sent Greek and Macedonian
ambassadors to the Mauryan court. Best known of these was Megasthenes (muh-
GAS-thuh-neez), whose report on the people of India remained one of the western
best sources of information on India until the Middle Ages.
9. The Times ancient civilizations. Internet Archive. London : Times Books. 2002.
p. 122. ISBN 978-0-00-710859-6. India's first approach towards becoming a unified
state occurred under the first three kings of the Mauryan Empire. The founder of the
dynasty, Chandragupta Maurya (c.310-286 BCE) , king of Magadha in Eastern India,
unified under his control the other kingdom of the Gangetic Plain. His grandson,
Ashoka (c.270-234 BCE) , consolidated Mauryan imperial rule, extending it into
eastern and southern.
10. Sharma, Ramsharan (1990). Prachin Bharat Me Rajneetik Vichar Avam Sansthae.
p. 355. hi->en: The biggest fact of Maurya political history was the establishment of
the Magadha Empire, which included the whole of India except the far south. This
empire was established with the strength of the sword and it could be protected only
with the strength of the sword. Strong military power was necessary for both external
security and internal peace. [..] The tribal people living inside the empire and on its
borders were equally a cause of trouble. So for this, there was a huge permanent
army and tight judicial system.

11. Allen, Charles (2012-02-21). Ashoka: The Search for India's Lost Emperor. Little,
Brown Book Group. p. 1 ,60 and his created map on pg. 12. ISBN 978-1-4087-0388-
5. Pg.1 : Ashoka Maurya—or Ashoka the Great as he was later known—holds a
special place in the history of Buddhism and India. At its height in around 250 BCE,
his empire stretched across the Indian subcontinent to Kandahar in the east, and as
far north as the Himalayas. Through his quest to govern by moral force alone,
Ashoka transformed Buddhism from a minor sect into a major world religion, while
simultaneously setting a new yardstick for government that had lasting implications
for all of Asia. His bold experiment ended in tragedy, however, and in the tumult that
followed the historical record was cleansed so effectively that his name was largely
forgotten for almost two thousand years. Yet, a few mysterious stone monuments
and inscriptions miraculously survived the purge." " Pg. 60 : Pliny admits to the loss
of Greek territory: "The Indians afterwards held a large part of Ariane [a satrapy of
the Persian Empire encompassing what is now eastern Iran, south-western
Afghanistan and Baluchistan] which they had received from the Macedonians,
entering into marriage relations with him, and giving in return five hundred elephants,
of which Sandrakottos had nine thousand. {{cite book}}: line feed character
in |quote= at position 787 (help)
12. MacGregor, Neil (2011). A history of the world in 100 objects. Internet Archive. New
York : Viking. p. 205. ISBN 978-0-670-02270-0. Chandragupta, who had risen to the
throne following a military campaign that created a huge empire reaching from
Kandahar in modern Afghanistan in the west to Bangladesh in the east. This
included the great majority of modern India, and was the largest empire in Indian
history. In 268 BC Ashoka took his place on the throne but not without considerable
struggle.[ .] When he became emperor he set out to complete the occupation of the
whole subcontinent and attacked the independent state of Kalinga modern-day
Orissa on the east coast. {{cite book}}: line feed character in |quote= at position
365 (help)
13. G. Bongard-Levin (2010). India in the Magadha and Mauryan Periods. pp. 69–70.
14. Encyclopedia Of World History 7 Volumes Set Facts On File 2008. p. 33,262,270 &
590.
15. ― Pg.33 : Ashoka (Asoka) was the third ruler of the MAURYAN Empire. Under his
long rule the empire that he inherited reached its zenith territorially and culturally.
Soon after his death the Mauryan Empire split up and ended. He is remembered as
a great ruler in world history and the greatest ruler in India. Chandragupta Maurya
founded the Mauryan dynasty in 326 B.C.E. Both he and his son Bindusara were
successful warriors, unifying northern India and part of modern Afghanistan for the
first time in history. Ashoka was not Bindusara's eldest son, and there is a gap of
time between his father's death and his succession, due perhaps to war with his
brothers. Ashoka continued to expand the empire by conquering southward. One
war against Kalinga in the southeast was particularly bloody and filled him with
remorse. As a result he converted to Buddhism (from Vedic Hinduism) and
renounced war as an instrument of policy.‖ ―Pg.262 : Chandragupta Maurya founded
the Mauryan Empire in 326 B.C.E. in northern India. His son Bindusara and
grandson AsHOKA (Asoka) continued his conquest that unified the entire
subcontinent, with the exception of the southern tip, and part of Afghanistan into
India's first great empire. ― ―Pg.270 :In 324 B.C.E. Chandragupta Maurya unified
northern India by defeating his rivals. He went on to war against the successor of
ALEXANDER THE GREAT in Asia, Seleucus Nicator, expelling his forces from the
borderlands of India. In 305 B.C.E. the two men concluded a treaty in which the
Greeks withdrew from the Punjab in northwestern India and which fixed the western
boundary of the MAURYAN EMPIRE to the crest of the Hindu Kush. ― & ―Check
Mauryan Empire Map , Pg:590. ―ENCYCLOPEDIA OF WORLD HISTORY 7
Volumes. p. 33,262,270,590.

16. " Pg.12 : Asoka had the singular good fortune of being spared the ifficult task of
founding and organising an inpare That ask was effectively executed by his
grandfather, Chandragupta Maurya, who bequeathed to his successors an empire
extending approximately from Afghanistan to Mysore Territories which are even now
outside the Government of India were parts of the Indian Empire under
Chandragupta, the four satrapies of Aria, Arochosia, Gedrosia, and the
Paropanisadai, which Chanaragupta wrested in about 304 B C from the empire of
Selukos as the penalty for his ill-advised aggression." " Pg.13 :Yuan Chwang saw
Asokan topes in Kapis (Kafiris- tan), Nagar (Jelalabad), and Udyana in the north-
west. In Bengal, the authority of Asoka is proved by his stūpa at Tamralipti, the
capital of Suhma, and the famous port of embarkation for voyages towards the
south. According to Yuan Chwang, there was also a stupa of Asoka in the capital of
Samatata or the Brahmaputra Delta, and others in different parts of Bengal and
Bihar, viz., Punyavardhana (northern Bengal) and Karnasuvarna (modern Burdwan,
Birbhum and Murshidabad districts) [Watters, ii 184 f]. Yuan Chwang refers to
Asokan topes being erected at various places in the south, in Chola and Dravida, of
which the capital, Kanchipura, has been sought to be identified with the Satiyaputra
country of the Edict Indeed, the distribution of the Asokan topes as mentioned by
Yuan Chwang is almost coterminous with that of the inscriptions, and is equally
significant of the vastness of his empire.Lastly, the extent of his empire is also
indicated by his own mention in the Edicts (R.E. II, V, and XIII] of the peoples on its
borders In the south, these are mentioned as the Cholas, Pandyas, the Satiyaputra
and Keralaputra, who were all within his sphere of influence Towards the north-west,
his empire marched with that of the Synan monarch, Antiochos [R.E. II], and hence
extended up to Persia and Syria which were held by Antiochos, while it is also
known how Asoka's grandfather, Chandragupta, had wrested from Selukos the
provinces of Aria, Arachosia, Paropanisadai and Gedrosia, which descended to
Asoka as his inheritance. Lastly, the extent of his empire is also indicated by his own
mention in the Edicts (Rock Edict II, V, and XIII] of the peoples on its borders In the
south, these are mentioned as the Cholas, Pandyas, the Satiyaputra and
Keralaputra, who were all within his sphere of influence Towards the north-west, his
empire marched with that of the Synan monarch, Antiochos [Rock Edict II], and
hence extended up to Persia and Syria which were held by Antiochos, while it is also
known how Asoka's grandfather, Chandragupta, had wrested from Selukos the
provinces of Aria, Arachosia, Paropanisadai and Gedrosia, which descended to
Asoka as his inheritance ." " Pg.16 : The capital of the empire at Pataliputra [Rock
Edict V. Girnar], and of outlying towns, such as Bodh-Gaya [Rock Edict VIII),
Kosambi (Allahabad Pillar Edict], Ujjeni, Takkhasilä [K.R.Edict),Suvarnagiri, Isila
[M.R.Edict], and Tosali and Samāpā in the province of Kalinga [K.R.Edict] Thus we
have a fairly definite idea of the limits of Asoka's empire in different directions. We
may even hazard the conjecture that the empire was so large that Asoka did not live
to visit all its parts, and inspect the execution of his inscriptions in different
localities."Mookerji, Radhakumud (1962). Asoka. Motilal Banarsidass Publishe.
p. 12,13,16. ISBN 978-81-208-0582-8.
17. Haywood, John (1997). Atlas of world history. Internet Archive. New York : Barnes &
Noble Books. p. 24. ISBN 978-0-7607-0687-9. In 321 Chandragupta Maurya (321-c.
293) seized the throne of the kingdom of Magadha, overthrowing the Nanda dynasty.
Chandragupta spent most of his reign building a strong central administration, but he
defeated a Seleucid invasioin, adding all of northwest India to his domains. His son
Bindusara also conquered much of southern India. Under Ashoka the Mauryan
empire reached its greatest extent. Appalled by his bloody conquest of the east
coast kingdom of Kalinga in 261 Ashoka abjured further warfare and, becoming a
Buddhist, tried to impose Buddhist standards of behavior on his people.

18. Philip's Atlas of World History: From the Origins of Humanity to the Year 2000.
Internet Archive. The Softback Preview. 1999. p. 46. ISBN 978-0-540-07858-5. By
500 BC kingdoms existed throughout the Ganges region. Chief among these was
Magadha, favourably located for control both of riverborne trade and of the sources
of raw materials such as iron. Magadha gradually expanded at the expense of its
neighbours and before 297 BC its king, Chandragupta Maurya, ruled most of north
India . His grandson Ashoka (r. 272-231 BC) further extended the empire,
conquering Kalinga in 261 BC, and only the extreme south retained its
independence. Pillar and rock edicts mark the extent of Mauryan political authority:
these proclaimed Ashoka's ethical code of social responsibility and toleration. It was
an age of peace and prosperity.
19. https://books.google.nl/books?id=ffZy5tDjaUkC&pg=PA46&redir_esc=y#v=onepage
&q&f=false
20. "Pg.273 : The ceded country comprised a large portion of Ariana itself, a fact ignored
by Tarn. In exchange the Maurya a monarch gave the comparatively small
recompense of 500 elephants. It is believed that the territory ceded by the Syrian
king included the four satrapies: Aria, Arachosia, Gedrosia and the Paropanisadai,
i.e., Herat, Kandahar, Makran and Kabul. Doubts have been entertained about this
by several scholars including Tarn. The inclusion of the Kabul valley within the
Maurya Empire is, however, proved by the inscriptions of Asoka, the grandson of
Chandragupta, which speak of the Yonas and Gandharas as vassals of the Empire.
And the evidence of Strabo probably points to the cession by Seleukos of a large
part of the Iranian Tableland besides the riparian provinces on the Indus." " Pg.297:
The conquest of the territory between the eastern and western seas has been taken
by some scholars to refer to the annexation of the Deccan. But we should not forget
that already in the time of Chandragupta the Maurya Empire extended from
Saurashtra to Bengal (Gangaridae), i.e., from the western to the eastern sea. " "
Pg.327 : The full political effects of this change of policy became manifest only after
the death of Ashoka, perhaps even after the 27th year of his consecration. From the
time of Bimbisara to the Kalinga war' the history India was the story of the expansion
of Magadha from a tiny state in South Bihar to a gigantic Empire extending from the
foot of the Hindukush to the borders of the Tamil country."Raychaud, Hem Chandra
Raychaudhuri (1953). Political history of ancient India. p. 273,297,327.
21. Cady, John F. (John Frank) (1964). Southeast Asia: its historical development.
Internet Archive. New York, McGraw-Hill. p. 34. The India from whose culture
Southeast Asian peoples borrowed so extensively was partly united for the first time
politically in the third century B.C. The Mauryan Empire (330 to 180 By.) included the
north Indian valleys westward to Greek Bactria and southward along the eastern
Indian coast to the mouths of the Kistna and Godavari Rivers. Mauryan power
centering at Patna in the lower Ganges Valley reached its peak in the mid-third
century B.c. under the leadership of the great Asoka, who was a political exemplar of
Buddhist ideals and humanitarian principles of government. Asoka unified and
promoted the Buddhist faith without persecuting dissident elements; he built India's
first shrines of cut stone and burned brick; he sponsored missionary efforts within
India and beyond. Mauryan rule declined rapidly after his death in 237 B.c.
22. Danzer, Gerald A. (2000). An atlas of world history. Internet Archive. Ann Arbor, MI :
Borders Press. p. 44. ISBN 978-0-681-46572-5. The Mauryan Empire reached out
from the Ganges valley to annex the Indus valley peoples shortly after the death of
Alexander the Great. Asoka extended the empire in all directions, but had an even
greater impact in spreading the teachings of the Buddha throughout his realm. He
had pillars erected at crossroads locations covered with edicts written in stone to
proclaim his ideals. [...] In the generation after Alexander, however, information
resurfaces with the establishment of the Mauryan Empire by Chandragupta in 324
BCE. By 240 bce the Mauryan Empire reached its greatest extent, controlling the

great river valleys of both the Ganges and Indus rivers. Of even more importance
was the conversion of the emperor, Asoka, to Buddhism.
23. Pg.75: The Indian conquests of Alexander to the east of the Indus, which extended
across the Panjab as far as the Hyphasis or Bias river, quickly passed, as we have
seen, soon after the death of Alexander, into the hands of Chandragupta Maurya,
and the four satrapies of Aria, Arachosia, Gedrosia, and the Paropanisadai were
ceded to him by Seleukos Nikator about B. c. 305. The Maurya frontier was thus
extended as far as the Hindu Rush Mountains, and the greater part of the countries
now called Afghanistan, Baluchistan and Makran, with the North- Western Frontier
Province, became incorporated in the Indian Empire. That empire included the
famous strongholds of Kabul, Zabul, Kandahar, and Herat, and so possessed the
scientific frontier ' for which Anglo-Indian statesmen have long sighed in vain. There
is no reason to suppose that the trans-Indus provinces were lost by Bindusara, and it
is reasonable to assume that they continued under the sway of Asoka, who refers to
Antiochos, King of Syria, in terms which suggest that the Syrian and Indian empires
were conterminous. Costly buildings ascribed to Asoka were seen by Hiuen Tsang in
different parts of Afghanistan. Among others he mentions a stone stupa, a hundred
feet high, at the town of Kapisa, somewhere in Kafiristan, and a remarkable building
of the same kind, three hundred feet in height and richly decorated, at Nangrahar,
near Jalalabad, on the Kabul river. The Swat valley also contained evidences of
Asoka's passion for building ." "Pg.81 : Asoka's empire, therefore, comprised the
countries now known as Afghanistan, as far as the Hindu Kush, Baluchistan,
Makran, Sind, Kachh (Cutch), the Swat valley, with the adjoining regions, Kashmir,
Nepal, and the whole of India proper, except the extreme south, Tamilakam or Tamil
Land. His dominions were far more extensive than British India of to-day, excluding
Burma. "Smith, Vincent Arthur, The Oxford History of India: From the Earliest Times
to the End of 1911, Clarendon Press, pp. 75, 81
24. Rand McNally and Company; Palmer, R. R. (Robert Roswell) (1965). Rand McNally
atlas of world history. Internet Archive. Chicago. p. 106. Based on Magadha in the
Ganges valley, the Mauryan empire flourished from 322 B.C., when its founder
Chandragupta seized the capital city of Pataliputra to 185 B.C., when the last ruler of
the dynasty died. Chandragupta united north India from the mouths of the Ganges to
the watershed west of the Indus. He then took over, from a satrap of the Alexandrian
empire, the regions of Arachosia and Gandhara up to the Hindu Kush mountains.
His son Bindusara extended the empire to about the fifteenth parallel of latitude,
except for Kalinga on the east coast, which was later annexed by Asoka. The reign
of Asoka (273-232 B.C.) -saw the height of the Mauryan empire, and is one of the
great periods of Indian history. Shortly after the conquest of Kahnga Asoka was
converted to Buddhism, whereupon, forswearing mihtarism. he devoted himself to
the welfare of his people and the propagation of Buddhism. His missionaries brought
Buddhism and Indian civilization to Ceylon and elsewhere.
25. The Times compact history of the world. Internet Archive. London : Times Books.
2008. p. 28. ISBN 978-0-00-726731-6. A further turning point came in 320 BC when
Chandragupta Maurya seized the state of Magadha on the lower Ganges, and
occupied large parts of central India, and in 305 BC annexed the province of Trans-
Indus from the successors of Alexander the Great (see page 32). Chandragupta's
grandson Ashoka (273-232 BC) expanded this Mauryan empire southwards,
bringing the greater part of the sub-continent under his rule and inscribing edicts on
pillars and rock-faces all over India as a permanent reminder of his power (map 2).
Ashoka's death introduced a troubled period, punctuated by invasions of both
Greeks and nomads who founded states in the north-west, such as the Kushan
empire, where Hellenistic and Indian influences mingled.
26. "Pg.101 : Towards the close of the reign of Chandrgupta, the Maurya empire
received a further extension in the north-west Seleucus the general of Alexander,

who had made himself master of Babylon, gradually extended his empire from the
Mediterranean Sea to the Indus and even tried to regain the provinces to the east of
that river. He failed and had to conclude a treaty with Chandragupta by which he
surrendered a large territory including, in the opinion of certain writers, the satrapies
of Paropanisadai {Kabul), Aria (Herat), Arachosia (Qandahar), and Gedrosia
(Baluchistan), in return for 500 elephant. "Pg.104 : The conquest of this province
rounded off the Maurya empire, which now embraced almost the whole of nonTamil
India and a considerable portion of Afganistan. It stretched from the land of the
Yonas, Kambojaa and Gandharas in the Kabul valley and some adjoining mountain
territory to the country of the Andhra in the Godavari-Krishna basin and the
district(Ahara) of Isila in the north of Mysore* and from Sopara and Girnar in the west
to Dhauli and Jaugada in the east. In the north-west the empire touched the realm of
Antiochos II the Greek king of Syria and Western Asia, and in the south it extended
as far as the Kingdom of tho Chodas, Pandyas, Satiyaputra and Keralaputras in the
Tamil country. If tradition is to be believed, the dominions of Ashoka included the
secluded vales of Kashmir and Nepal as well as the riparian plins of
Pundravardhana (North Bengal) and Samatata [East Bengal), The inclusion of the
Himalayan valleys is rendered probably by the discovery of inscriptions at Mansera
in the Hazara district, at Kalsi in the Dehradun district at Nigali Sagar and
Rummindei in the Nepaleso Tarai and at Rampurva in the Champaran district of
North Bihar. "Majumdar, R. C. (1953). Advanced history of India. Macmillan &
Company. p. 101,104.
27. Schwartzberg, Joseph E. (1992). A Historical Atlas of South Asia (2nd ed.).
Minneapolis: University of Minnesota. pp. 18, 145. Retrieved 26
January 2021. Plates III.B.4b and XIV.1a–c
28. Barnes, Ian; Hudson, Robert; Parekh, Bhikhu C. (1998). The history atlas of Asia.
Internet Archive. New York : Macmillan. p. 42. ISBN 978-0-02-862581-2. Threatened
by Chandragupta's growing power, Seleucis of Syria, Alexander's successor,
challenged him by invading northern India in 305 BC but suffered a devastating
defeat. A treaty ending the conflict gave Chandragupta all lands north to the Hindu
Kush, including Baluchistan and Afghanistan. Chandragupta used an extensive and
elaborate civil service, an army, and a secret service to rule. A virtual dictatorship
coincided with widespread public works, building roads and developing irrigation
systems. […] The Mauryan dynasty's greatest ruler was Asoka, Chandragupta's
grandson. He came to the throne after fighting his brothers for the succession. His
policy was to continue enlarging the empire, and in 251 BC, he invaded and
conquered Kalinga, part of modern Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, and Madhya Pradesh.
The Kalinga campaign caused such extensive misery and destruction to the local
population that Asoka renounced armed conquest and adopted a policy of "conquest
by dharma," by spiritual rectitude and law. & Check Mauryan Empire on Pg.
43 {{cite book}}: line feed character in |quote= at position 1015 (help)
29. Nath sen, Sailendra (1999). Ancient Indian History and Civilization. Routledge.
p. 164. ISBN 9788122411980.
30. Bronkhorst, Johannes; Flood, Gavin (July 2020). The Oxford History of Hinduism:
Hindu Practice. Oxford University Press. p. 68. ISBN 978-0-19-873350-8.
31. Omvedt, Gail (18 August 2003). Buddhism in India: Challenging Brahmanism and
Caste. SAGE Publications. p. 119. ISBN 978-0-7619-9664-4.
32. Smith, vincent A. (1981). The Oxford History Of India Part. 1-3, Ed. 4th. Oxford
University Press. p. 99. the only direct evidence throwing light ....is that of Jain
tradition. ...it may be that he embraced Jainism towards the end of his reign. ...after
much consideration I am inclined to accept the main facts as affirmed by tradition ....
no alternative account exists.
33. Dalrymple, William (2009-10-07). Nine Lives: In Search of the Sacred in Modern
India. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4088-0341-7. It was here, in the third

century BC, that the first Emperor of India, Chandragupta Maurya, embraced the
Jain religion and died through a self-imposed fast to the death,......
34. Keay, John (1981). India: A History. Open Road + Grove/Atlantic. pp. 85–
86. ISBN 978-0-8021-9550-0.
35. Long, Jeffery D. (15 April 2020). Historical Dictionary of Hinduism. Rowman &
Littlefield. p. 255. ISBN 978-1-5381-2294-5.
36. Boyce, Mary; Grenet, F. (January 1991). A History of Zoroastrianism, Zoroastrianism
under Macedonian and Roman Rule. BRILL. p. 149. ISBN 978-90-04-29391-5.
37. Avari, Burjor (2007). India, the Ancient Past: A History of the Indian Sub-continent
from C. 7000 BC to AD 1200 Archived 23 November 2022 at the Wayback
Machine Taylor & Francis. ISBN 0415356156. pp. 188-189.
38. Turchin, Peter; Adams, Jonathan M.; Hall, Thomas D (December 2006). "East-West
Orientation of Historical Empires". Journal of World-Systems Research. 12 (2):
223. ISSN 1076-156X. Archived from the original on 20 May 2019. Retrieved 16
September 2016.
39. Yelle, Robert A. (8 April 2022). "Was Aśoka really a secularist avant-la-lettre?
Ancient Indian pluralism and toleration in historical perspective". Modern Asian
Studies. Cambridge University Press. 56 (3): 749–
775. doi:10.1017/S0026749X21000160. The Mauryan dynasty (322–185 bce) was
the first real imperial formation to span the subcontinent, and it included a diversity of
languages and cultures, including religious cultures.
40. Thapar, Romila (1990). A History of India, Volume 1. Penguin Books.
p. 384. ISBN 0-14-013835-8.
41. Alain Daniélou (2003). A brief history of India. Internet Archive. Inner Traditions.
pp. 114–115. ISBN 978-0-89281-923-2. The empire directly or indirectly ruled by
Ashoka was thus immense, running from the Hindu Kush to Bengal, and from the
Himalayas to the River Pennar in the south. It included Kalinga in the east and
Saurashtra (Kathiawar) in the west.
42. Keay, John (2000). India: A History. Grove Press. p. 82. ISBN 978-0-8021-3797-5.
43. R. K. Mookerji 1966, p. 31.
44. Dani, A. H.; Bernard, P. "Alexander and His Successors in Central
Asia" (PDF). History of Civilizations of Central Asia, Vol II. UNESCO. p. 68.
Retrieved 22 December 2024. The Indus region fell to the rise of the Mauryans and
later when Seleucus Nicator tried to recover this lost territory, he had further to cede
to Candragupta Maurya the provinces of Aria, Arachosia, Gedrosia and the
Paropamisadae.
45. Bhandari, Shirin (2016-01-05). "Dinner on the Grand Trunk Road". Roads &
Kingdoms. Retrieved 2016-07-19.
46. Thapar, Romila (2012). "Internal Administration and Foreign Relations". Aśoka and
the Decline of the Mauryas (3rd ed.). New Delhi: Oxford University Press. The
establishment of the Mauryan state ushered in a new form of government, that of a
centralised empire. Under this regime, the king had the central authority, and he not
only defended social usage according to the traditional concept of kingship, but
could also make his own laws.
47. Adams, Paul Vauthier; Langer, Erick Detlef; Hwa, Lily; Stearns, Peter N.; Wiesner-
Hanks, Merry E. (2000-08-03). Experiencing World History. NYU Press. ISBN 978-0-
8147-2423-1.
48. Mahajan, V. D. Ancient India. S. Chand Publishing. pp. 273–280. ISBN 978-93-
5283-603-1.
49. Goudgeri, Anantha B. (2024). Significance of the Maurya Rule and State Control.
Vol. 14. International Journal of Current Science. pp. 78–79.
50. Irfan Habib & Vivekanand Jha 2004, p. 14.

51. F. Kielhorn, Junagadh Rock Inscription of Rudradaman, Epigraphia Indica, Volume
VIII, No. 6, pages 36-49
52. Upinder Singh 2016, p. 330.
53. Singh, Upinder (2008). A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the
Stone Age to the 12th Century. Pearson Education India. ISBN 9788131716779.
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55. Purushottam Lal Bhargava. Chandragupta Maurya. BRAOU, Digital Library Of India.
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56. Epigraphia Indica Vol.20. Archaeological Survey of India. 1920. p. 80.
57. R. K. Mookerji 1966, p. 14.
58. R. K. Mookerji 1966, p. 15.
59. H. C. Raychaudhuri 1988, p. 140.
60. R. K. Mookerji 1966, p. 8.
61. Sugandhi, Namita Sanjay (2008). Between the Patterns of History: Rethinking
Mauryan Imperial Interaction in the Southern Deccan. pp. 88–
89. ISBN 9780549744412.
62. Kosmin 2014, p. 31.
63. Nath sen, Sailendra (1999). Ancient Indian History and Civilization. Routledge.
p. 162. ISBN 9788122411980.
64. Nath sen, Sailendra (1999). Ancient Indian History and Civilization. Routledge.
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65. Chandragupta Maurya and His Times, Radhakumud Mookerji, Motilal Banarsidass
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66. :"Androcottus, when he was a stripling, saw Alexander himself, and we are told that
he often said in later times that Alexander narrowly missed making himself master of
the country, since its king was hated and despised on account of his baseness and
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quidem genere natus, sed ad regni potestatem maiestate numinis inpulsus. Quippe
cum procacitate sua Nandrum regem offendisset, interfici a rege iussus salutem
pedum ceieritate quaesierat. (Ex qua fatigatione cum somno captus iaceret, leo
ingentis formae ad dormientem accessit sudoremque profluentem lingua ei detersit
expergefactumque blande reliquit. Hoc prodigio primum ad spem regni inpulsus)
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68. "Plutarch 62.9". topostext.org. Retrieved 2024-03-25. Alex.62.9 Androcottus, when
he was a stripling, saw Alexander himself, and we are told that he often said in later
times that Alexander narrowly missed making himself master of the country, since its
king was hated and despised on account of his baseness and low birth.
69. Chakrabarti, Ranjan (2020). Critical Themes in Environmental History of India. Indian
Council of Historical Research. p. 180. ISBN 978-93-5388-316-4.
70. Sharma, Ram Sharan (1990). Prachin Bharat Me Rajneetik Vichar Avam Sansthae.
Rajkamal Prakashan. p. 355. ISBN 9788126707584. The tribal people living inside
the empire and on its borders were equally a cause of trouble. So for this, there was
a huge permanent army and tight judicial system.
71. Chakrabarty, Dilip K. (2010-10-18). The Geopolitical Orbits of Ancient India: The
Geographical Frames of the Ancient Indian Dynasties. Oxford University Press.
pp. 42–43. ISBN 978-0-19-908832-4. Among other things, different versions of the
edicts could not have been engraved in different parts of the subcontinent unless
there was a centralized machinery for the purpose in place. There is no reason to

claim that the vast spaces of hilly and forested central India lay outside the Mauryan
rule. If this were the case, we would not have found the chain of edict sites along the
Kaimur and central Indian section of the Deccan routes-Sasaram, Ahraura, Rupnath,
and Panguraria.
72. Bhandarkar, D. R. (1925). Asoka. University of Calcutta. p. 46.
73. Mookerji, Radha Kumud (1962). Asoka. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 16.
74. Lahiri, Nayanjot (2023). Searching For Ashoka. State University of New York Press,
Albany. p. 10.
75. Olivelle, Patrick (2023). Ashoka: Portrait of a Philosopher King. Yale University
Press. p. 52. ISBN 9780300270006. Archived from the original on 2024-03-20.
76. Thapar 2013, pp. 362–364.
77. Sen 1895, pp. 26–32.
78. Upinder Singh 2008, p. 272.
79. Mookerji 1988, pp. 28–33.
80. Hemacandra 1998, pp. 175–188.
81. Mookerji 1988, p. 33.
82. Malalasekera 2002, p. 383.
83. Mookerji 1988, pp. 33-34.
84. Mookerji 1988, p. 34.
85. Roy 2012, p. 62.
86. [1]
87. Pliny, Natural History VI, 23[2]
88. Pliny, Natural History VI, 23[3]
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208-0582-8.
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101. Ramesh, Sangaralingam (2023-10-14). The Political Economy of India's
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102. Second Rock Edict, Girnar by E. Hultzsch[12]
103. Cunningham, Alexander (1969). Complete Works of Alexander Cunningham:
Inscriptions of Asoka Vol I. Indological Book House, Varanasi. p. 117.
104. Hultzsch, E. (1989). Inscriptions of Asoka, Vol. I. Indological Book House,
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105. Chapter XXVII , The travels of Fa-Hian (400 A.D)[13]
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108. Allen, Charles (2012-02-21). Ashoka: The Search for India's Lost Emperor.
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110. "New Parliament Ashoka Empire
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111. Thomas, F.W. "Cambridge History of India, Volume 1, The Maurya
Empire". Internet Archive.
112. Kosmin 2014, p. 33–34.
113. Strabo, Geography, xv.2.9
114. Smith, Vincent Arthur (1920), The Oxford History of India: From the Earliest
Times to the End of 1911, Clarendon Press, pp. 104–106
115. From Polis to Empire, the Ancient World, C. 800 B.C.-A.D. 500. Greenwood
Publishing. 2002. ISBN 0313309426. Retrieved 16 August 2019.
116. Kistler, John M. (2007). War Elephants. University of Nebraska Press.
p. 67. ISBN 978-0803260047. Retrieved 16 August 2019.
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119. Arrian. "Book 5". Anabasis. Megasthenes lived with Sibyrtius, satrap of
Arachosia, and often speaks of his visiting Sandracottus, the king of the Indians.
120. "In the royal residences in India where the greatest of the kings of that
country live, there are so many objects for admiration that neither Memnon's city
of Susa with all its extravagance, nor the magnificence of Ectabana is to be
compared with them. ... In the parks, tame peacocks and pheasants are
kept." Aelian, Characteristics of animals book XIII, Chapter 18, also quoted in The
Cambridge History of India, Volume 1, p411
121. Romila Thapar (1961), Aśoka and the decline of the Mauryas, Volume 5,
p.129, Oxford University Press. "The architectural closeness of certain buildings in
Achaemenid Iran and Mauryan India have raised much comment. The royal palace
at Pataliputra is the most striking example and has been compared with the palaces
at Susa, Ecbatana, and Persepolis."
122. Upinder Singh 2008, p. 331.
123. Kosmin 2014, p. 32.
124. R. K. Mookerji 1966, pp. 39–40.
125. Geoffrey Samuel 2010, pp. 60.
126. Romila Thapar 2004, p. 178.
127. R. K. Mookerji 1966, pp. 39–41.
128. Srinivasachariar 1974, p. lxxxvii.
129. Vincent Arthur Smith (1920). Asoka, the Buddhist emperor of India. Oxford:
Clarendon Press. pp. 18–19. ISBN 9788120613034.
130. Rajendralal Mitra (1878). "On the Early Life of Asoka". Proceedings of the
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131. Motilal Banarsidass (1993). "The Minister Cāṇakya, from the Pariśiṣtaparvan
of Hemacandra". In Phyllis Granoff (ed.). The Clever Adulteress and Other Stories: A
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132. Kosmin 2014, p. 35.
133. Alain Daniélou 2003, p. 108.
134. Dineschandra Sircar 1971, p. 167.
135. William Woodthorpe Tarn (2010). The Greeks in Bactria and India.
Cambridge University Press. p. 152. ISBN 9781108009416.
136. Mookerji Radhakumud (1962). Asoka. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 8. ISBN 978-
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137. Alain Daniélou 2003, p. 109.
138. Eugène Burnouf (1911). Legends of Indian Buddhism. New York: E. P.
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139. S. N. Sen 1999, p. 142.
140. "Three Greek ambassadors are known by name: Megasthenes, ambassador
to Chandragupta; Deimachus, ambassador to Chandragupta's son Bindusara; and
Dyonisius, whom Ptolemy Philadelphus sent to the court of Ashoka, Bindusara's
son", McEvilley, p.367
141. India, the Ancient Past, Burjor Avari, pp. 108–109
142. Arthur Llewellyn Basham, History and doctrines of the Ājīvikas: a vanished
Indian religion, pp. 138, 146
143. Anukul Chandra Banerjee, Buddhism in comparative light, p. 24
144. Beni Madhab Barua, Ishwar Nath Topa, Ashoka and his inscriptions, Volume
1, p. 171
145. Kashi Nath Upadhyaya (1997). Early Buddhism and the Bhagavadgita. Motilal
Banarsidass. p. 33. ISBN 9788120808805.
146. Fitzedward Hall, ed. (1868). The Vishnu Purana. Vol. IV. Translated by H. H.
Wilson. Trübner & Co. p. 188.
147. Allchin, F. R.; Erdosy, George (1995). The Archaeology of Early Historic
South Asia: The Emergence of Cities and States. Cambridge: Cambridge University
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148. Ringmar, Erik (2019). History of International Relations - A Non-European
Perspective. p. 53. Above all, the spectacular bloodshed which took place at the
battle of Kalinga in 260 BCE, in which, reputedly, no fewer than a quarter of a million
soldiers died, made him change his ways. Remorseful and disgusted with his
previous way of life,..Ashoka the Great, 268-232 BCE, renounced violence,
converted to Buddhism, and started a number of projects to improve the lot of the
poor, the aged and the widowed.
149. Edicts of Ashoka, 13th Rock Edict, translation S. Dhammika.
150. Thapar, Romila (2012). Aśoka and the Decline of the Mauryas. Oxford
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151. Singh 2012, p. 131, 143.
152. According to the Ashokavadana
153. Sir John Marshall (1990), "A Guide to Sanchi", Eastern Book
House, ISBN 81-85204-32-2, p. 38
154. E. Lamotte, History of Indian Buddhism, Institut Orientaliste, Louvain-la-
Neuve 1988 (1958)
155. Romila Thapar (1960), Aśoka and the Decline of the Mauryas, Oxford
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156. Kangle, R. P. (1986). A Study. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. ISBN 978-81-208-
0041-0.
157. Gabriel A, Richard (30 November 2006). The Ancient World :Volume 1 of
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p. 28. ISBN 9780313333484.
158. R. C. Majumdar 2003, p. 107.
159. Nath sen, Sailendra (1999). Ancient Indian History and Civilization.
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160. Roger Boesche (2003). The First Great Political Realist: Kautilya and His
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161. Indian History. Allied Publishers. 1988. ISBN 9788184245684.
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163. "Explained: History and politics of caste census in Bihar | India News - Times
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168. R. K. Mookerji 1966, pp. 39-41.
169. Hermann Kulke 2004, pp. 64-65.
170. Majumdar, R. C.; Raychauduhuri, H. C.; Datta, Kalikinkar (1960), An
Advanced History of India, London: Macmillan & Company Ltd; New York: St
Martin's Press, If the Jaina tradition is to be believed, Chandragupta was converted
to the religion of Mahavira. He is said to have abdicated his throne and passed his
last days at Sravana Belgola in Mysore. Greek evidence, however, suggests that the
first Maurya did not give up the performance of sacrificial rites and was far from
following the Jaina creed of Ahimsa or non-injury to animals. He took delight in
hunting, a practice that was continued by his son and alluded to by his grandson in
his eighth Rock Edict. It is, however, possible that in his last days he showed some
predilection for Jainism ...
171. John Cort 2010, p. 142.
172. John Cort 2010, p. 199.
173. Tukol, T. K. Jainism in South India. Archived from the original on 4 March
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175. Beni Madhab Barua (1968). Asoka and His Inscriptions. Vol. 1. p. 171.
176. Jerry Bentley, Old World Encounters: Cross-Cultural Contacts in Pre-Modern
Times (New York: Oxford University Press), 46
177. "L'age d'or de l'Inde Classique", p23
178. "L'age d'or de l'Inde Classique", p22
179. Described in Marshall p.25-28 Ashoka pillar.
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185. "Plutarch, Alexander, chapter 1, section 1". www.perseus.tufts.edu.
186. "(Transitum deinde in Indiam fecit), quae post mortem Alexandri, ueluti
ceruicibus iugo seruitutis excusso, praefectos eius occiderat. Auctor libertatis
Sandrocottus fuerat, sed titulum libertatis post uictoriam in seruitutem uerterat; 14
siquidem occupato regno populum quem ab externa dominatione uindicauerat ipse
seruitio premebat." Justin XV.4.12–13 Archived 20 April 2017 at the Wayback
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187. "Molienti deinde bellum aduersus praefectos Alexandri elephantus ferus
infinitae magnitudinis ultro se obtulit et ueluti domita mansuetudine eum tergo
excepit duxque belli et proeliator insignis fuit. Sic adquisito regno Sandrocottus ea

tempestate, qua Seleucus futurae magnitudinis fundamenta iaciebat, Indiam
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188. "Appian, The Syrian Wars 11". Archived from the original on 3 November
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189. Bachhofer, Ludwig (1929). Early Indian Sculpture Vol. I. Paris: The Pegasus
Press. pp. 239–240.
190. Page 122: About the Masarh lion: "This particular example of a foreign model
gets added support from the male heads of foreigners from Patna city and Sarnath
since they also prove beyond doubt that a section of the elite in the Gangetic Basin
was of foreign origin. However, as noted earlier, this is an example of the late
Mauryan period since this is not the type adopted in any Ashoka pillar. We are,
therefore, visualizing a historical situation in India in which the West Asian influence
on Indian art was felt more in the late Mauryan than in the early Mauryan period. The
term West Asia in this context stands for Iran and Afghanistan, where the Sakas and
Pahlavas had their base-camps for eastward movement. The prelude to future
inroads of the Indo-Bactrians in India had after all started in the second century
B.C."... in Gupta, Swarajya Prakash (1980). The Roots of Indian Art: A Detailed
Study of the Formative Period of Indian Art and Architecture, Third and Second
Centuries B.C., Mauryan and Late Mauryan. B.R. Publishing Corporation. pp. 88,
122. ISBN 978-0-391-02172-3..
191. According to Gupta this is a non-Indian face of a foreigner with a conical hat:
"If there are a few faces which are nonIndian, such as one head from Sarnath with
conical cap ( Bachhofer, Vol . I, Pl . 13 ), they are due to the presence of the
foreigners their costumes, tastes and liking for portrait art and not their art styles."
in Gupta, Swarajya Prakash (1980). The Roots of Indian Art: A Detailed Study of the
Formative Period of Indian Art and Architecture, Third and Second Centuries B.C.,
Mauryan and Late Mauryan. B.R. Publishing Corporation. p. 318. ISBN 978-0-391-
02172-3.
192. Annual Report 1907-08. 1911. p. 55.
193. R. C. Majumdar 2003, p. 105.
194. Ancient India, (Kachroo, p.196)
195. The Imperial Gazetteer of India (Hunter, p.167)
196. The evolution of man and society (Darlington, p.223)
197. W. W. Tarn (1940). "Two Notes on Seleucid History: 1. Seleucus' 500
Elephants, 2. Tarmita", The Journal of Hellenic Studies 60, p. 84–94.
198. Kosmin 2014, p. 37.
199. "Pliny the Elder, The Natural History (eds. John Bostock, H. T. Riley)".
Archived from the original on 28 July 2013.
200. Vincent A. Smith (1998). Ashoka. Asian Educational Services. ISBN 81-206-
1303-1.
201. Walter Eugene Clark (1919). "The Importance of Hellenism from the Point of
View of Indic-Philology", Classical Philology 14 (4), pp. 297–313.
202. "Problem while searching in The Literature Collection". Archived from the
original on 13 March 2007.
203. "The Literature Collection: The deipnosophists, or, Banquet of the learned of
Athenæus (volume III): Book XIV". Archived from the original on 11 October 2007.
204. Reference: "India: The Ancient Past" p.113, Burjor Avari, Routledge, ISBN 0-
415-35615-6
205. Kosmin 2014, p. 57.
206. Thomas Mc Evilly "The shape of ancient thought", Allworth Press, New York,
2002, p.368
207. Mahavamsa chapter XII Archived 5 September 2006 at the Wayback Machine

208. "No document found". www.perseus.tufts.edu. Archived from the original on 7
March 2008.
209. Raychaudhuri, Hemchandra (1932). Political History of Ancient India. p. 238.
210. Raychaudhuri, Hemchandra (1932). Political History of Ancient India. p. 240.
211. Rapson, E. J. (1935). The Cambridge History of India, Vol. I. p. 513.
212. Indian Antiquary, Vol. VIII, p. 24.
213. Literary and Historical Studies in Indology: Dr. Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi MLBD
Varanasi. MLBD Varanasi. p. 128.
214. Mirashi, Vasudev Vishnu (1955). Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum, Vol. IV,
Part I. Government Epigraphist for India, Ootacamund. p. 75.
215. Dikshit, K. N. (1995). Puratattva: Bulletin of the Indian Archaeological Society,
No. 25 (1994–95). Indian Archaeological Society, New Delhi. p. 32.
216. "Early History". Maharashtra State Gazetteers. Retrieved 21 October 2025.
217. Tod, James (1920). Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan. Vol. I. Oxford
University Press. pp. 221–223.
218. Dasharatha Sharma (1959). Early Chauhān Dynasties: A Study of Chauhān
Political History, Chauhān Political Institutions, and Life in the Chauhān Dominions
from 800 to 1316 A.D. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 14.
219. Maharashtra State Gazetteers (1967). Ancient History of Maharashtra. p. 140.
220. N. V. SundaraRaman, Chairman; P. Setu Madhava Rao, Member; V. B.
Kolte, Member; C. D. Deshpande, Member; B. R. Rairikar, Member; Sarojini Babar,
Member; V. T. Gune, Member; P. N. Chopra, Member; V. N. Gurav, Member-
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Times Press. p. 65.
221. epigraphia-indica. p. 295.
222. "Jhalarpatan inscription (AD 689) of Durgagana, the Kudarkot inscription of
about the second half of the seventh century, the Nagar inscription (AD 684) of
Dhanika, and the Kanaswa inscription (AD 738) of Sivagana." The inscription was
composed "in adoration of a god whose epithets kal- anjana-rajah-punja-dyuti,
(ma)havaraha-rupa and jangama have only been preserved". It leaves "no doubt that
the reference is to the god Vishnu since the expression mahavaraha-rupa certainty
speaks of the Boar incarnation of the deity." The hero of the prasasti is a king named
Dindiraja of the Maurya dynasty.Ed Sitaram Goel (1993). Hindu Temples Vol. II (Ed
Sitaram Goel). p. 80-81.
223. D. C. Sircar (1969). Pracyavidya-Tarangini. p. 208-209.
224. Epigraphia indica (1957-1958). Servants of Knowledge. The director general
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226. Ray, H. C. (1935-11-18). The Dynastic History Of Northern India Vol. 2.
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(help)
229. "The Mauryas are referred to in a record at Jhalrapatan dated A.D. 690.
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friend of king Dhavala of Maurya lineage..As already noted above, the Mauryas fell a
victim to the Arab aggression, and it was probably after this catastrophe that Bappa
defeated them and took possession of Chitor." Munshi K. M. (1954). The Classical
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230. Peterson, Peter (1885). The Auchityalamkara of Kshemendra, with a note on
the date of Patanjali, and an inscription from Kotah; two papers read before the

Bombay branch of the Royal Asiatic society, with a preface in reply to Professor
Bhandarkar. University of California. Bombay, Printed at the Education society's
press, Byculla.
231. BANERJEE, ANIL CHANDRA (1958). MEDIEVAL STUDIES. A.
MUKHARJEE AND COMPANY , CALCUTTA. p. 23-30.
232. epigraphia-indica. p. 418.
233. D. C. Ahir (1998). Buddhism in North India and Pakistan. p. 121.
234. Kailash Chand Jain 1991, p. 85.
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72651-2
External links
 Livius.org: Maurya dynasty
 Extent of the Empire
 Ashoka's Edicts
Preceded by
Nanda dynasty
Magadha
Maurya Empire
Succeeded by
Shunga dynasty

Mauryan Empire Explained – NCERT & UPSC History Guide

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Mauryan Empire Explained – NCERT & UPSC History Guide