Category History

 

 

          Gandhara Art, the Buddhist visual art in which images were carved in a realistic Greco-Roman style with graceful bodies and curly hair, developed during the Kushana reign. Buddhist and Jaina sculptures of a different style were produced in Mathura too. These Buddha, statues were made of red sand-stone and looked fatter and happier. Many stupas too were built in this era.

          Literature flourished during the Kushana reign. Ashvaghosha was an important writer who belongs to this period who wrote Buddhacharita, a biography of Buddha. Mahayana Buddhist texts including the Mahavastu and the Divyavadana were also scripted around the same time. Jatakas or stories about the Buddha’s previous births too were written around this time.

          Astronomy, astrology and medicine were other fields that progressed during the Kushana rule. Charaka and Sushruta, two notable Ayurvedic practitioners wrote on numerous plants and herbs that were used in the treatment of diseases.

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          The Kushanas were a branch of the Yueh-Chih tribe who ruled over north India from about AD 50 to 300. They were spread across Afghanistan to the northern parts of the Indian subcontinent at least till Varanasi.

          Kujula, the first known Kushana king defeated the Parthians and occupied Kabul around AD 50. Kadphises II, who called himself Lord of the World, succeeded Kujula and conquered parts of north India.

          Kanishka was the most famous among the Kushana kings. His territory spanned from the north-west over most of the Gangetic valley and had two capitals Purushapura (Peshawar) in present-day Pakistan and Mathura. He even tried to expand his territory to China. Emperor Kanishka was a great patron of Buddhism and was instrumental in the establishment of the Buddhist way of life in the Indian subcontinent, Central Asia and China.

          Though their territories slowly grew smaller, the Kushana rule continued for another 150 years until they were finally overpowered by the Sassanians in the north-west and the Guptas in the north.

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          The Shakas or Scythians were nomadic tribes of central Asia who over-threw the Greeks to establish their kingdom in Bactria. They moved to the Indian subcontinent as a result of the attack by the Yueh-Chih tribe of the Gansu province of northwestern China.

          Different parts of India were under the control of Shakas. Maues or Moga was the first Shaka king to establish a kingdom around Taxila, in 80 BC. It was his successor, Azes who attacked Hippostratos, the last of the Greek kings in northern India.

          Rudradaman I, who ruled over Gujarat, the Konkan, the Narmada valley, Malwa and Kathiawar is unarguably the most important Shaka king. He is credited with the repairing of Sudarshana Lake, built by the Mauryas, to irrigate the dry region of Saurashtra.

          The Shaka kingdom was divided into provinces, each headed by a military governor called mahakshatrapa. These provinces were further sub-divided into units that came under the control of lesser governors. The mahakshatrapas were vested with the power to issue their own inscriptions and mint their own coins.

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          While the Mauryans perished, many other kingdoms flourished; the north-west was under the control of Indo-Greeks, Scythians and Parthians while Kalinga became an independent kingdom. The Shungas, followed by the Kanvas ruled Magadha and the Gangetic valley and the Shakas ruled Gujarat.

          Around 200 BC, Demetrios, the Bactrian Greek king, moved towards India. Around the same time, the Scythians who were Eurasian nomads, began invading India. North-west India did not have a powerful ruler after the decline of the Mauryan Empire. Therefore, it was easy for the lndo-Greek invaders including Menander and Demetrios to establish their kingdoms, as far as Uttar Pradesh. But these kings did not rule for long.

          Menander was the most famous among the lndo-Greek rulers. A description from the book Milinda Panha or The Questions of Menander indicates that his capital at Sakala -in present-day Pakistan- was full of parks, gardens, tanks, beautiful buildings, well laid out streets and strong walls.

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          We know about, life during the Mauryan rule through the accounts Of Chanakya and Megasthenes. People lived in cities and villages. Agriculture was the main source of livelihood. A lot of artisans thrived during this period.

          Also, there were traders and merchants who sold their goods to far-off lands and even overseas. Soldiers defended the kingdom while philosophers and religious practitioners sought the truth of life and death.

          The Mauryans had contact with different regions of the world including Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Egypt, Syria and Macedonia. Ring wells and stupas were common during this period, the most famous stupa being the Sanchi Stupa in Madhya Pradesh.

          Punch-marked coins, silver coins stamped with different symbols like the sun, elephants, snakes, and trees, dogs catching hares, rabbits and mushrooms were also widespread.

          There are hundreds of other symbols. They may have been signs of particular kings, or may have indicated groups of merchants and artisans.

          The Mauryan Empire had set exemplary standards in administration as well.

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          After the war with Kalinga, Ashoka found himself busy with the mission of eradicating sorrow from his land. He called himself Devanam priya priyadarsin, or the beloved of the gods, the one dear to be-hold. His policy of Dharma was carved onto rock pillars and the rest of his life was devoted to charity. He had trees planted, wells dug, and hospitals built for humans and animals. He also made sure that parents were honoured and received respectful treatment from their children.

          He made sure that animals were not killed unnecessarily and banned the killing of animals for meat. He also made a long list of animals, birds and fish which were never to be killed; the list included animals with young ones, squirrels, monkeys, boneless fish, and the queen ant. Ashoka appointed officials, known as Dhamma Mahamattas, to see that all this was done.

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