(1) Candra Gupta Maurya
flourished 4th–3rd
centuries BC, India
Founder of the Maurya
dynasty and the first emperor (r. c. 321–c. 297 BC) to unify most of India
under one administration (see Mauryan empire).
Born to a destitute
migrant Mauryan family, he was sold into slavery and eventually purchased by a
Brahman politician, who gave him an education in military tactics and the arts.
Chandragupta gathered mercenary soldiers, secured public support, overthrew the
Nanda dynasty, and established his own in modern-day Bihar. On the death of
Alexander the Great (323 BC), he won control of the Punjab (c. 322). He
expanded his empire east to the borders of Persia, south to India's tip, and
north to the Himalayas and the Kabul River valley. His administration was
patterned on that of the Persian Achaemenian dynasty. He died fasting in
sympathy for his people during a time of famine.
(2) Asoka
born c. 304
died c. 232 BC
Last major emperor
(c. 269–232 BC) of the Mauryan empire in India and a patron of Buddhism.
After his bloody
conquest of Kalinga in the eighth year of his reign, Ashoka renounced military
aggression and resolved to live according to the dharma. He spoke of Buddhism
only to fellow Buddhists and adopted a policy of toleration for other
religions. He spread Buddhist teachings through inscriptions known as the Rock
Edicts and Pillar Edicts. He enjoined officials to be aware of the needs of
common people and to dispense justice impartially; dharma ministers were
appointed to relieve suffering and look to the special needs of other
religions, women, outlying regions, and neighbouring peoples. He erected stupas
and monasteries, developed a course of study for adherents, and sent
missionaries to Sri Lanka. He is remembered as the ideal Buddhist ruler.
(3) Gupta
dynasty (4th–6th centuries)
Rulers of an empire
in northern and parts of central and western India.
The dynasty was
founded by Chandra (Candra) Gupta I (r. 320–c. 330). The Gupta era was once regarded
as India's Classical period, but new archaeological evidence has given the
Mauryan empire that designation. Nevertheless, the Gupta period is noted for
the flourishing of Sanskrit literature (see Kalidasa), its sophisticated metal
coins, its advanced mathematics (which made use of decimal notation and the
numeral zero and at that time was more advanced than anywhere else), and its
astronomical advances.
(4) Candra Gupta II
or Vikramaditya
flourished 4th–5th
centuries AD, India
Powerful emperor (r.
c. 380–c. 415) of the Gupta dynasty of northern India.
A grandson of Chandra
Gupta I (r. 320–c. 335), who founded the dynasty, he is thought to have
achieved power by assassinating a weak elder brother. He inherited a large
empire and extended control over neighbouring territories through battle and
marriage alliances. Under him, India enjoyed peace and relative prosperity. His
system of government and his charity were admired by the Chinese pilgrim
Faxian. He was a patron of the poet Kalidasa. Though a devout Hindu, he
tolerated the Buddhist and Jain religions.
(5)
Harsa or Harsavardhana
born c. 590
died c. 647
Ruler of a large
empire in northern India (606–47).
He was a Buddhist
convert in a Hindu era. He brought what are now Uttar Pradesh and parts of
Punjab and Rajasthan under his hegemony, but he contented himself with tribute
and homage and never built a centralized empire. His chroniclers, including the
Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang, describe him as benevolent and energetic. He set up
institutions to benefit the poor and the sick and established the first
diplomatic relations between India and China (641). A patron of scholars, he
was himself a poet.
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