KALINGA WAR MAURYAN ADMINISTRATION
Kalinga war
is an event of paramount significance for the history of both Odisha as well as India.
Fought in the year 261 B.C. by the third Mauryan emperor Ashoka, the war had a huge impact
on political, social, economic, religious and cultural fronts.
The kingdom
of Magadha (modern Gaya and Patna region of Bihar) rose into prominence
in 6th century B.C. under Haryanka dynasty. It maintained its status-quo during the reign
of Saisunagas and Nandas. In 322 B.C. Chandragupta Maurya brought an end to Nanda rule
and the foundation of Mauryan empire was laid. He ruled for almost half a
century
followed by
his son and successor Bindusara. Ashoka was the third ruler of the dynasty who Succeeded
his father Bindusara in 273 B.C.
The
beginning was however not smooth for Ashoka. He had to face a war of succession with his
own brothers. The story goes that Ashoka was extremely cruel and violent
towards
his
brothers and opponents. It was a bloody beginning for which Ashoka earned the
notorious title of Chandasoka. Though there are a lot of
fabrications and exaggerations it is certain that he had to
face initial problems for which his coronation ceremony was delayed for four
years.
It took
place in 269 B.C. His position now became safe and secure on the Mauryan
throne.
Then he
carved out the traditional policy of expansion and conquest to extend the
boundaries
of his
empire.
KALINGA WAR
An event of
far-fetching importance during
Ashoka's
reign was Kalinga War. Kalinga
was the neighbouring
kingdom of Magadha
which had
maintained its unique identity for a
very long
period. The long cherished desire of
Ashoka to
acquire Kalinga prompted him for a
vigorous
military campaign eight years after his
coronation
in 26l B.C. A lot of factors worked
behind this
aggressive memorable war.
Political Cause
The
accounts of Kalinga war have been vividly inseribed by Ashoka himself in Rock Edict
XIII. The kingdom of Kalinga since 4th century B.C. was politically vibrant,Economically prosperous,commerciallly
affluent and militarily advanced.
Its
singular identity,distinctive existence and strategic location led to a
prestigious position in the easterm coast of India.
On the other hand, Magadha had inaugurated
its imperialistic policy since 6th century
B.C. It began to expand under the ruler of several dynasties. The founder of
Mauryan Dynasty, Chandragupta Maurya not being an exception,carried on
the same policy of war and aggrandisement. Even though he was the ruler of a
vast empire, he didn't run the risk of conquering Kalinga because
Kalinga had
been branded as abijita (which cannot
be conquered).This indirectly refers to
the military prowess and
invincibility of the Kalingan people. In fact,
the people of Kalinga were indomitable,independent-minded.
The Kalingan army was
unconquerable. It is known from the account of Lama Taranath (the Tibetan
Buddhist monk)
that
Bindusara, the father of Ashoka, Who was a great conqueror and had assumed the
title of 'amitraghata' (the slayer of foes), did not
venture after Kalingan military expedition.
Thus, it can be concluded that the first two Mauryan
rulers were well aware of the heroism and gallantry of the forces of Kalinga. Therefore,
the very independent existence of Kalinga was always a possible danger to growing
Magadhan imperialism. Also Kalinga was surrounded
by Magadha from North,and west. As a logical outcome, Ashoka, the bold and the bravest, wanted to complete unfnished task of
his predecessors. He also wanted to provide a mighty base to his empireby annexing Kalinga.
Economic and Commercial Causes
Besides
political considerations, the rivalry between Kalinga and Magadha was further intensified
by economic and commercial causes. Kalinga was highly prosperous. Behind this economic
abundance of Kalinga, there was the role of an undaunted mercantile class.
This
valiant mercantile community had monopolised the overseas trade in Bay of
Bengal and Indian
Ocean. They maintained commercial relationship with Srilanka and other South.
Eastern
Asian region of Java, Sumatra and Malay. The people of Kalinga were very rich
due to
commercial bounty. This thriving economic condition of Kalinga was the cause of
jealousy because
Magadha was deprived of this economic prosperity. In addition, all the trade
routes from
Gangetic valley in North passed to Deccan via Kalinga. This commercial
predominance of Kalinga
prompted Ashoka to pursue his policy of conquest. Another
cause has been put forward by Lama Taranath for Kalinga war. As per his account the
Nagas (sea-faring people of Kalinga) took away, the valuable presentations of Ashoka
coming from abroad. The incident sparked further anger. Therefore, Ashoka made claborate
plans to conquer Kalinga.
Legendary Cause
A legendary
cause is in vogue for Ashoka's Kalinga war. Ashoka wanted to marry Karuvaki,
the beautiful girl from a fishermen class. She was the fiancee of Kalingan
prince. In
order to
marry her, Ashoka declared war against Kalinga. This Karuvaki episode is very
much prevalent
among the fishermen class which shows Karuvaki as the cause of the war.
Kalinga War
The much
expected Kalinga war took place in 261 B.C. on the bank of Daya river near Bhubaneswar.
A narrative account of the war is found from Rock Edict XIII of Ashoka which nuns in the
following way "Kalinga
was conquered by His Sacred and Gracious Majesty when he had been consecrated
cight years. 1,50,000 persons were thence carried away captives. 1,00,000 persons
were slain and many times that number died. The
description is a brief account of the violence of Kalinga War. The furious
nature of the war, death and devastation, the precarious condition of the wounded and
orphans, touched Ashoka very much. Psychologically upset and mentally weak, he was in
search of solace and peace mind. At this fateful hour, Ashoka came in contact
with the
Buddhist monk, Upagupta. A complete transformation occurred within him. He
embraced Buddhism.
Results
The results
of Kalinga war have been summarized by Prof. H.C. Roychoudhury. It narrates :
"The
conquest of Kalinga was a great landmark in the history of Magadha and of
India.
It marks
the close of that career of conquest and aggrandizement xxx, It opens a new era
of peace, of
social progress, of religious propaganda."
In fact. Kalinga war proved to be a turning
point in the annals of India. The war brought an end to
the policy of imperialism and conquest and inaugurated the era of
humanitarianism
and peace.
The
immediate result of Kalinga war was the transformation of the emperor himself-
from Chandasoka (Ashoka, the ogre or Ashoka
the demon) to Dharmasoka (Ashoka, the pious
or Ashoka, the virtuous). The inner
realization led him to believe that victory through
vioilence,
horror and bloodshed was not the real one. The real victory was the conquest of human heart
by lofty ideals of mercy. pity, tolerance, forgiveness and all such humanistic
value.
Ashoka hes reflected himself very
aply in his edict:
"In
conquering, indeed an unconquered country the slaying, death and deporting that Ogur there,
are considered extremely painful and serious by Devanampriya (Ashoka)...
there
commenced in the mind of Devanampriya ardent desire for practice of Dhamma, intense
love for Dhamma and longing for inculcation of Dhamma."
Thus, after
Kalinga war Ashoka became the universal messenger of truth, non-violence,Peace and
amity. Bherighosh or war drums were converted
to Dharmaghosa or religious-drum that would sound
the message of dharma. Yuddhavijay or conquest
through war was replaced by Dharmavijay or conquest of
human heart through love and service.
Dharmayatra or religious tour took the place
of Viharijatra or pleasure trip. As a part of religious tour, Ashoka now visited
places of Buddhist importance like Lumbini, Sarnath, Bodhgaya etc. This royal effort not
only glorified Buddhism but also touched popular minds. Thus, Buddhism got rid
of
its
regional status to a religion of the masses.
The next
phase was to achieve the international status. Ashoka now took concrete steps to spread
Buddhism beyond the borders of India - from Greece to Myanmar (Burma) and
Himalaya to
Ceylon (Srilanka). The Buddhist message of mercy, love, non-violence touched the foreign
heart and soil.
With the
spread of Buddhism, art tradition of the country came under this spell Buddhist teachings
were inscribed on inscriptions, pillars in Brahmi or Kharosti script. Pali
language
became the
medium of preaching. Considerable amount of money was spent by Ashoka for he
construction of stupas, pillars or vihars etc. A new diversion was added to the
artistic
legacy of
the country.
The
political boundary of the Mauryan empire was extended by the inclusion of
Kalinga as the
fifth province with its capital at Tosali. It became a part and parcel of
Mauryan ministration.
The invincible legacy of the Kalingan people was lost. The reformed emperor took
healing measure by erecting two separate Kalinga edicts at Tosali (Dhauli) and
Samapa (Jaugada)
and ushered in a benevolent rule in Kalinga where he declared, "All
men are my children. Just as for my children, I desire that they should enjoy
all
happiness
and prosperity both in this world and the next, so for all men I desire the
like happiness
and prosperity."
Thus,
renouncing warfare for good, Ashoka now became the messenger of universal love and
fraternity for all times to come - a feat unequalled in the whole of history.
MAURYAN
ADMINISTRATION
The
systematic, well-organised, well-planned Mauryan
administration
constitutes a significant
chapter in ancient Indian polity. The founder of the dynasty
Chandragupta Maurya was not
only a great conqueror, an imperialist of his time but also a
far-sighted administrator who
implemented an effective administrative system throughout his empire. The system was further
regulated and streamlined during the successive reigns of
Bindusara and Ashoka.
Glimpses of Mauryan administration
are available in Arthashastra of Kautilya, Indica of
Meghasthenes, various edict of Ashoka and fragmentary references from the
writings of Greek
authors. Of all these source materials, Arthasastra is the most comprehensive
one written by
Kautilya, friend, philosopher and guide of Chandragupta Maurya. It is a vivid
informative
manual that deals with ideals of kingship, civil and criminal administration,
judiciary, revenue,
espionage system etc. A fair idea can be formed about Mauryan administrative system from
the above mentioned sources which are summarised below.
Central
Administration
Monarchy
was the prevailing form of government where king or the emperor was the pivot of
power. But it was a welfare administration with the aim to provide peace,
security and
happiness
to the subjects. King was the embodiment of all powers: He was the head of the administration,
fountain head of justice, highest law maker and the commander-in-chief of the army. But
he was far from being a tyrant. Kautilya has briefly explained this ideal:
"The happiness of the subject is
the happiness of the king; their well-being is his well being. The
king's welfare lies not in his own pleasure, but in that of the subjects."
This ideal was further broadened
during the reign of the third Mauryan emperor, Ashoka whose rule
was a sort of paternal form of govermment-everything founded for the people by the king.
Thus, the life of the king wis almost dedicated to the good and welfare of the subjects.
Kautilya
has mentioned in Arthasastra -
Sahayasadhya rajatwam chakramekam na vartate
Kurbat sachivamstasmatesam cha sraunuyanmatam.
It means a
single wheel cannot move without support. Similarly a king alone cannot manage the
entire administration without help and assistance of various officers like sachivas or amalyas.
That is why
in the Mauryan administration we find the presence of ministers, adhyakshas, sachivas and amatyas who helped
the system to move in proper motion.
In the stupendous task of administration
of the empire, the king was assisted by a council of
ministers. Prominent among them were Prime minster, Purohita (Chief priest),
Senapati
(commander of the army) and Yuvaraj (prince): They were assisted by Durgapala (Governor
of the fort), Antapala (Governor of the frontier), Samaharta
(collector-general),Sannidhata
(Head of treasury), Antarvamsika (Leader of the harem-guards), Prasasta(Head of
the police) etc: In this context, Kautilya has referred to a number of
departments under
Central administration which included Revenue, Excise, Weights and Measures,
Tolls, Spinning
and Weaving, Mines, Forest Produce, Metals etc.,. The Adhyakshas were there to royal
treasury. Sutradhyaksha was the head of the textile unit while Sulkadhyaksha
looked after
collection of taxes and tolls. As a matter of fact, Council of ministers was
purely an advisory
body where the members provided valuable suggestions and inputs to the king.
Kautilya had also made references
to a class of amatyas or sachivas who were also look after
the functioning of their respective departments. Kosadhyaksha was in charge of active
helping hands to the king in providing administrative details.
Provincial
Administration
For
administrative convenience the empire was divided into four provinces which
were Uttarapatha,
Avantiratha, Prachya, Dakshinapatha, with their capitals at Taxila, Ujjain, Pataliputra
and Survamagiri respectively. The capital of the newly conquered province
Kalinga was Tosali.
Provincial governors were usually princes of royal blood and were styled as Kumaras.
The province had a separate council of ministers which was an exact replica of
the central
govemment to help the Kumars in administration.
Provinces were divided into Visayas
(modern district) with Visaypati as the head. He was
answerable to Kumar for administrative happenings. According to Dr. A.S.
Altekar,
"The
provincial government was required to maintain law and order, collect taxes for central
government, cooperate in the works of different departments and keep a watch
over the
feudatories and frontier people."Thus, it
acted as the connecting link between Centre on one hand, vishayas and villages on the
other.
Village
Administration
Municipal
Administration
The Mauryan
rulers had evolved an excellent system of Municipal administration whÃch carned the
admiration of the foreigners. The chief administrative officer of the city was
'Nagaradhyakha'
According to Meghasthenes, the capital city of Pataliputra was governed by a group
of 30 municipal commissions who formed themselves into 6 boards. Kautilya has too thrown
a flood of light on this topic. Each board had separate functions allotted to
it.
·
Board of Industries looked
after industrial arts,
·
Board of Foreigners looked
after the comfort of the foreigners in the city.
·
Board of Census recorded the
births and deaths of citizens.
·
Board of Manufactured Goods
supervised manufactured articles.
·
Board of Merchants regulated
trade and commerce.
·
Board of Taxes collected
taxes on the value of the goods sold.
Besides,
the commissioners in their collective capacity were in charge of public
welfare. repairs of
public works and such other matters.
Judicial
Administration
Both Meghasthenes
and Kautilya have given vivid references to the judicial administration
of the Mauryan state. According to Indian jurisprudence, the law of the land was de
facto if not the de jure sovereign of the country. Being the fountain head of
justice, the king was to
administer the existing laws of the land. But the special tribunals in the city
and country
were presided by Mahamatras and Rajukas respectively. The petty village cases were
decided by the village elders,
Arthasastra refers to two types of law courts -
Dharmasthiya Court and Kantakasodhan
Court. The former looked after civil matters relating to sales, marriage,agreement,
gift, property, contracts, boundary disputes etc. Here three amatyas used to
act as judges
being assisted by three learned Brahmin pundits. The latter court, that is Kantakasodhana
Court, dealt with criminal matters like theft, robbery, murder, fraud and treason.
The amatya judges used to impart justice with the help of spies and legal
experts.
The cases
against the vedict of these subordinate courts could be filed in the Supreme Court at
the capital where king was the highest court of appeal. The penal
code was very harsh. The culprit was punished by mutilation, whipping and
beheading.
Even for ordinary offence, heavy fines with capital punishment was in practice.
As a result
theft was a thing of rare occurrance.
Revenue
Administration
Like other
Hindu states the Mauryan state also aimed at realization of trivarga that is dharma,
artha and kama. Kautilya too puts emphasis on artha or money because with an insufficient
treasury, the king, would be forced to resort to resources which would evoke popular
resentment, revolution. So money matters a lot. The primary
source of state's income was land revenuc for which lands were divided into two
categories. The produce of the crown land was shared in tax form called Sita
while Bhaga was
the share of revenue from private lands. The collection of taxes varied from
one- fourth to
one-sixth depending upon the fertility of the soil. Setu was levied on
vegetables and fruits. In
addition to land tax, villagers also paid Pindakara, Senabhaktam at the time of
the
army's
march through the village. Bali seems to have been an extra impost from the
payment of which
certain tracts were exempted. Taxes were collected on excise, trade and
forests. A considerable
part of revenue was spent on army, artisans, philosophers and sramanas. Vast sums were
also spent for irrigation, construction of roads and buildings, fortifications
and during the reign
of Ashoka on charitable purposes.
Military
Administration
The vast
Mauryan empire maintained a highly disciplined and
well-equipped army. The military department
itself was very
competent and advanced under the able
stewardship of
military
head Baladhakshya. From an account it is known that
the Mauryan ammy consisted of 6,00,000
infantry, 30,000
cavalry,
8,000 chariots and 9,000 elephants.
Such a vast army was organised by a
council of 30
members which was further sub-divided into 6
Boards of 5
members
each. They were Board of Navy, Board of
ManagingTransport,
Board of Infantry, Board of Cavalry,
Board of Elephantry and Board of Chariore Different
Boards had their respective functions. The chief of cavalry, elephantry and charioteers were known
as Aswadhakshya,
Hastyadhakshya and Rathadhakshve respectively.
These 30 members no doubt were collectively responsible for the functioning of the entire
military organization. Kaytilya further adds a Board of Medical Aid which was
in charge of
medicines and herbs, serving the injured during the time of war.
The recruitment of army was made
from various sources. There were hereditaru soldiers.
The soldiers of an allied king, capitives from enemy camp, were included at the
time of
necessity.Swords, spears, bows and arTows were used in the battle-field. A
particularly developed
weapon Sataghni could kill hundred enemies at a time. Such a vast military organisation
was the base of a strong Mauryan empire.
Spy
system
The
Mauryans had developed an efficient system of
espionage or spies. Their duty was to
supervise what is done throughout the country and in the cities and to make reports to the king.
Arthsastra refers to two categories of spies like Samsthah or stationery one and the Samcharaka
or mobile one. Women were also appointed
in this department who proved themselves
more efficient than the men folk. The efficiency of such a spy system helped for the
smooth
running of administration to a considerable extent.
Administrative
Additions of Ashoka
As
mentioned earlier, the foundation of the Mauryan administration was laid by Chandragupta
Maurya. It was a highly organised system of administration under a powerful
bureaucracy
at the centre though much room was left for local-self-government. The system was further
enriched with the addition of some new measures by the third ruler of the
dynasty, Ashoka.
Being an organiser of victory and peace, had introduced some reforming measures
to give it a
more benevolent outlook.
After Kalinga war, he was a
changed personality more lofty, humanitarian in approach, and tender
hearted in outward manifestations. After becoming a Buddhist, he wanted to make the
religion a universal one. So he added certain new steps in administrative
machinery. For the first
time religion was attached with administration.
Three new classes of officers like
Rajukas, Pradesikas and Yutas were included religious
functionaries. The Pradesikas assisted the Kumars in the provincial
administratiol.
Rajukas,
were appointed for public welfare activities. Yutas or Dharmayutas were meant
for the
spiritual and moral uplift of the people. Again the three combined were
directed to go on
tours to
several places of the empire for imparting principles of dharma in alien lands.
The Dharma Mahamatras were totally a
new grade of officers who aimed at bringing material
and spiritual progress of the people by inculcating the principles of piety.
For the
frontier
population, its corollary Anta-Mohamatra group was set up.
It was benevolence and kindness for
all- that marked the improvement of Asokan administration
over the previous order. Both man and animal tasted the fruit of welfare dministration
in health and hygiene. Construction of hospitals, rest houses, roads and public buildings,
planting of trees, digging of wells and tanks were parts of his populist
programmes.
Even in the
field of judiciary, Ashoka made an egalitarian approach by introducing danda
samata (uniformity of punishment), vyavahara samata (uniformity of legal procedure).
High-low, poor-rich, touchable-untouchable - all came under the altar of equal treatment.
To sum up, Mauryan administration
created a strong centre which gave stability to the empire.
This administrative frame-work being a systematic one, has been highly
appreciated for its
liberal spirit and humanistic approach. Several aspects of this administration
constituted he base for
all future administration of the Guplas, the Muslims and the British. To
conclude vith the
works of K.M.Panikkar:
'If the
present Indian administration in analysed to its base the principles and
practices of Mauryan
state organisation will be found to be still in force.'
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