Rise of Magadha empire and the 16 Mahajanapadas

Magadha was a region in Bihar and one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas, and also the most dominant kingdom
By Siachen Team |
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Rise of Magadha and Mahajanapadas

magadhaempire

Rig Vedic Period Later Vedic Period 6th Century BC
Jana (tribes) Janapadas Shodasa Mahajanapadas(16 big Kingdoms

Magadha was a region and one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas, ‘Great Kingdoms’ of the Second Urbanization in what is now south Bihar at the eastern Ganges Plain. Magadha was ruled by the Brihadratha dynasty, Pradyota dynasty, Haryanka dynasty, and the Shishunaga dynasty.

  • Out of 16 big kingdom’s biggest kingdom was Magadha

  • The Source of these kingdoms was written in Buddhist Pali texts called Angutarranikaya

16 Mahajanapadas

Mahajanapadas capitals
1.Magadha Girivraja, Rajagriha, Pataliputra
2.Anga champa
3.Shravasti kosala
4.Kashi varanasi
5.Kuru Hastinapur
6.Panchala ahichatra
7.vatsa kaushambi
8.vajji(republic) vaishali
9.Malla Pava (Mahavir died) and Kusi (Buddha died)
10.Avanthi (Mahishmati) Ujjain
11.chedi sukthimathi
12.Matsya Viratnagar
13.shurasena mathura
14.gandhara(Afghanistan) takshila
15.kamboja(Pakistan) Rajapura
16.Asmaka(nizamabad) Podana

Note: there is no state until Magadha emerged as it follows the koutilya’s definition of state called Saptangas

Features of Saptangas (very important)

  1. Amatyas(Ministers)

  2. Friends (ally kingdoms)

  3. Swamy(Ruler)

  4. Dauthya (diplomats)

  5. Danda (Judiciary)

  6. Jana (people , considerable population)

  7. Durga( Fortified Capital)

Why Magadha is Powerful?

  1. First advantageous is Geographical advantage, full of Resources like Iron mines and fortified Capitals, had full of Forests covers

  • Major advantage is Elephants and Timber(weapons) from Forests Reserves

  • Some weapons names Rathamusala and Mahasilakantaka(both were shown in the Bahubali movie were originally used in Magadha empire

  1. Magadha served by great Intellectuals like Jeevaka (first Doctor in India), Koutilya also called as Chanakya also known as vishnugupta who wrote the Greatest masterpiece treatise on statecraft, political science, economic policy and military strategy called Arthashastra

Another intellectual is Rakshasa(greatest diplomat)

Pingalaka (spy)

Assakara (senapati of Ajatashatru)

  1. All Magadha Rulers are monarchs, so there is continuity of policies

Why couldn’t Magadha capture Gandhara and Kamboja?

  • One of many reasons was Geographical distance and Iran (Persian kingdoms at that time were very powerful under Darius-1)

  • Later Greece invaded and the Kingdom of Ambi(first Drhohi of India) invited Alexander to join his hands and defeat his local enemy.

  • 326 BC battle of hydaspes on the banks of Jhelum Porus defeated Alexander(Indian Version, Greeks version is opposite), overall battle was neutral

Alexander defeated small indian kingdoms upto Ravi river and stayed there for 18 months but didn’t enter India because he Feared Ruler of Magadha Dhanananda as he was having 6000 Mighty elephants and 9000 infantry(horses) and 100,000 + soldiers

But the Greek’s answer is different, as Herodotus said that Greek soldiers were exhausted and felt homesick.

Rulers of Magadha

It is stated that Magadha has 3 powerful dynasties

Haryanka dynasty

  1. Bimbisara

  • Bimbisara followed Matrimonial policy to expand the Kingdom, he married Kosala Devi (sister of Prasenjit, Kashi Ruler), as he got Kashi as Dowry

  • He followed diplomacy, sent Jeevaka to Avanthi and cured the Ruler and Avanthi became a subordinate Kingdom(Samantha rajyam)

  1. Ajatashatru

  • He killed his father Bimbisara and repented later (touched Buddha’s feet, Bharhut stupa)

  • Through wars he conquered Avanthi, Vajji, Malla, and Vatsa

  1. Udayana
  • He shifted capital to Pataliputra

2nd dynasty- Shishunaga dynasty

  1. 1st ruler Shishunaga

  2. 2nd ruler Kalashoka

3rd dynasty - Nandas(Powerful)

  • Mahapadma Nanda(father)(shudras) later practiced jainism

  • Dhananada(son)

  • They captured the rest of Mahajanapadas