Later Vedic Age (1100-600 BC) (5:09 PM)

• Aryans expanding to whole of ganga yamuna doab region.
• Kurus occupied the region around Hastnapur and adjoining areas.
• This age signifies the faint beginning of town life, for example, Hastinapur, Kosambhi, Mathura, Ayodhya, and Indraprastha were some of the early towns.
• The use of Iron occurred on an extensive scale.
• Economy:
• Agriculture became the most important activity.
• The term for Iron is Shyam Ayas.
• Shatpat Brahaman's commentary in Yajurveda speaks at length about farming rituals.
• This age also witnessed diverse art and craft tradition.
• Polity:
• The tribal authority became territorial.
• The position of Rajan became powerful.
• Tribal assemblies continued but now were controlled by warriors and brahmans.
• Bali became obligatory.
• An official known as "Sangrihitri" was appointed to collect taxes and tributes.
• 3 sacrifices became very popular:
• Aswamegha- unquestioned control over an area in which the royal horse ran uninterrupted.
• Raj Suya- it occurred during coronations for conferring the supreme powers on the king.
• Vajpeya- A chariot race in which the royal chariot was made to win against the kinsmen of the king.
• Society:
• Varna's system became rigid.
• 4th Varna was denied both Upnayana and Reciting Gayatri Mantra.
• Upanayana provided the status Dwaja(Twice born).
• The position of women declined.
• they were no longer allowed in tribal assemblies.
• Women were also denied both Upnayana and Reciting Gayatri Mantra.
• The institution of Gotra(a place where cattle belonging to the entire clan are kept and later signified descent from a common ancestor) emerged during this period.
• Gotra Endogamy was not allowed.
• The concept of 4 Ashram also immersed and signified life in 4 phases- Gristha(household life), Brahamancharya(to attain knowledge), Vanaprastha(partial renunciation), and Sanyasa( partial renunciation).
• Religion:
• Cult of sacrifice became more important than reciting prayers.
• Sacrifier was called Jajaman.
• Indra and Agni lost their importance and Prajapati, Rudra and Vishnu emerged as the main gods.
• Towards the end of the Vedic period, there was a strong reaction to priestly dominance which led to the compilation of many Upanishads that criticized rituals and emphasized on right lives and knowledge
• These settlements with access to agricultural produce, regular taxation, and extensive use of iron led to the emergence of small territorial states called Janpads.
• the term Janpad for the 1st time is mentioned in Brahaman literature around 800 BC.
• Some of these Janpads became larger kingdoms and were called Mahajanpads.

Mahajanpada period (600-300 BC) (6:12 PM)

• Sources:
• Epics.
• Puranas.
• Dhramsastra.
• Buddhist Literature:
• The earliest Buddhist literature is called Tripitaka:
• Sutta Pitaka:
• It contains a saying of Buddha himself.
• Complied just after the death of Buddha.
• Vinay Pitaka:
• Rule of monks and nuns of Buddhist sangha.
• It also contains the list of transgressions called Pratimokha and atonement for them.
• Abhidhamma Pitaka:
• It is a later work and contains philosophical enquires along with answers.
• Jatka stories:
• Stories of the previous birth of Buddha.
• Theragatha and Therigatha:
• Songs from Buddhist monks and nuns.
• Therigatha is the oldest text written in India from the perspective of women.
• Jains literature:
• They are collectively known as Siddhanta or Agam.
• Some early works are Bhagwati Sutra and Parishishtparvam among others.
• Ashtadhyayi by Panini:
• Panini was a Grammarian and his work Ashtadhyayi is one of the most intellectual achievements of ancient India.
• He belonged to the Gandhara region and studied at the university of Taxila.
• Even though it is a book of grammar it deals with places, people,c customs, coins, weights, and measures.
• Ancient Text mentioned 16 Mahajanpads.

16 Mahajanpads (6.52 PM)

• Diagramatic representation for Mahajanpadas:
• 
• Asmaka:
• South most mahajanpada.
• Situated near the Godavari and its capital was Podana/Potli.
• An ancient town called Pratiasthana was the capital of a Janpad named Mulag which was near asmaka.
• Anga:
• It includes the Munger and Bhagalpur regions of Bihar.
• It was near the Champa river.
• Its capital was also named Champa.
• Avanti:
• Situated in central India.
• It had 2 important cities- Mahismati and Ujjani.
• It was ruled by Pradiyot Dynasty.
• Cedi:
• It is in the Bundelkhand region.
• Its capital was Sothivottinagar.
• Gandhara:
• It included modern Peshawar and Rawalpindi in Pakistan.
• Its capital was Taxila(which became a great centre of learning).
• It was conquered by the Persian king Darius in the 6th century BC.
• Kamboj:
• It includes the Hazara region of Pakistan and the Kafiristan region of Afghanistan.
• Kashi:
• It was bound by Varun and Assi rivers.
• Its capital was Varanasi.
• Kosala:
• It was divided by the Saryu river into 2 parts,
• Its capital was Sharvasti while Ayodhya and Saket were important cities.
• Kuru:
• It was ruled by the Yuddisthilla family from the clan Yudhishthira belongs to.
• Its capital was Indraprastha.
• Magadha:
• It included the region of Patna and Gaya of Bihar.
• It later emerged as the most powerful Mahajanpada.
• Malla:
• It has 2 power centres Kushinagar(Buddha passed away here) and Pava.
• Matsya:
• Located near Jaipur in Rajasthan.
• The territory included Alwar and Bharatpur also
• Capital was Viratnagar.
• Panchal:
• It was divided into 2 parts by Ganga.
• It had two capital- Ahichhatra and Kampilya.
• Kanyakubja(Modern Kannuj) was also part of the kingdom.
• Shurasena:
• Its capital was Mathura.
• It maintained good relations with Avanti,
• Vajji:
• It was a confederacy of 8 clans.
• The most powerful clan was the Licchavi clan.
• The capital was Vishali.
• Licchavi clan was led by Chetak who was the bother of Trishala(Mother of Mahavir).
• The daughter of chetak was married to Bimbisara(ruler of Magadha).
• Vatsa:
• Its capital was Kusambhi.
• The ruler of Vatsa Udayana and the ruler of Avanti(Pradyota) had a rival relationship.
• Later Daughter of Pradyota was married to Udayana(the central plot of 3 romantic dramas- Swapnavasvadatta by Bhasa, Ratnavali, and Pryidarsikha by Harshvardhan).
• Magadha, Kosala, Vatsa, and Avanti were the most powerful Mahajanpadas.
• Magadha emerged as the most powerful because of the following reasons:
• It lies in the extensive fertile plains of Ganga.
• The availability of Iron from the Chotanapgur Plateau led to large-scale agriculture and tools and weapons.
• Elephants were domesticated and included in the army.
• The early capital of Magadha had a strategic location surrounded by hills.
• Similarly, the later capital Patliputra was a water fort that is surrounded by rivers.
• Rulers were ambitious, pragmatic, and flexible in their outlook.
• Kirats and Madghas were seen as lower by others as recently vedisized and showed more zeal for the expansion of their kingdom.
• The political setup can be divided into 2 categories:
• Monarchy(king as an absolute authority)
• Oligarchy/Jansagha( rule by a group of people like Vajji).

Magadha-Harnayaka Dynasty (7:44 PM)

• Bimbisar (544-492 BC):
• He was a contemporary of Budhha and Mahavira.
• He maintained a standing army and started matrimonial alliances to strengthen the position of his empire.
• He fought with the ruler of Avanti(Pradayot Mahasena) however sent his court physician Jeevak when Pradayot was ill.
• He was killed by his son Ajatshatru who became the next ruler.
• Ajatshatru (492-460 BC)
• He was a contemporary of Budhha and Mahavira.
• He convened the 1st Buddist council after the death of lord buddha.
• He is the presumed inventor of 2 weapons- Rathmushal and Mahashilakantaka(engine to throw big stones).
• His son Udaya sifted the capital from Rajgraha to Patliputra.

The topic of the next class: Magadha to continue.