1. Who among the following was the last king of the Mauryan empire?
A. Ashoka
B. Bindusara
C. Chandragupta
D. Brihadratha
Solution
The correct answer is Brihatratha.
Key Points
- Brihadratha:
- Last Mauryan ruler.
- Assassinated by Pushyamitra Sunga and established his own Sunga dynasty.
Additional Information
- Chandragupta Maurya (321 BCE – 297 BCE):
- Founder of the Maurya Dynasty and credited with the setting up of the first (nearly) pan-Indian empire.
- Known as Sandrakottos to the Greeks and Androkottus by Aerian and Plutark.
- Kautilya mentored Chandragupta and prepared him for a takeover of Magadha.
- Set up a vast centralized empire (details of whose functioning, society, military, and economy are well preserved in Kautilya’s Arthashastra).
- Defeated the invading army of the Eastern part of Alexander’s empire Seleucus (305 BCE).
- Megasthenese was a Greek ambassador sent to the court of Chandragupta Maurya.
- Chandragupta in his later years accepted Jainism.
- Bindusara (297 BCE – 273 BCE):
- 2nd Mauryan Emperor of India and he was the son of Chandragupta Maurya.
- Known as Amitrochates to the Greeks. In Jain texts, he was known as Simhasena.
- Antiochus sent Deimachus as an ambassador to Bindusara’s court.
- Chanakya also remained the chief advisor of Bindusara.
- Bindusara was an able monarch who was successful in consolidating the empire established by his father.
- Bindusara patronized the Ajivikas.
- Ashoka the Great (268 BCE – 232 BCE):
- 3rd king of the Mauryan Empire.
- He was known for:
- Renunciation of war after the Kalinga war.
- Development of the concept of Dhamma (pious social conduct, welfare of humanity).
- Promotion of Buddhism.
- Effective reign of a nearly pan-Indian political entity.
- Under Ashoka, the Mauryan Empire stretched from modern-day Iran through almost the entirety of the Indian subcontinent.
- Ashoka initially rules this vast empire through the political treatise’s precepts known as the Arthashastra.
- In his inscriptions, he was called Devanampriya or Devanapiyadasi.
- Most of the inscriptions were written in Prakrit language in Brahmi script except only two which was in Kharoshti script.
- In 1837, James Prinsep become the 1st scholar who deciphered Ashoka’s inscription.
2. Who among the following was a contributor to the subject of medicine in ancient India?
A. Bhasa
B. Charaka
C. Panini
D. Harsha
Solution
The correct answer is Charaka.
Key Points
- Charaka was a contributor to the subject of medicine in ancient India.
- He was the court physician of Kaniska.
- Charaka was one of the principal contributors to Ayurveda medicine in ancient India.
- He is best known for his work Charaka Samhita.
- Charaka Samhita:
- It is also called Caraka-Samhita.
- It is a detailed text on ancient Indian medicine attributed to Charaka, a practitioner of Ayurveda, India’s traditional medical system.
- Charaka-Samhita, also spelt Caraka-Samhita or Caraka- samhita, comprehensive text on ancient Indian medicine credited to Charaka.
- He was a practitioner of the traditional system of Indian medicine known as Ayurveda.
- Charaka is thought to have flourished sometime between the 2nd century BCE and the 2nd century CE.
- The Charaka-Samhita, in its current form, is believed to have originated in the first century CE.
- According to ancient Indian medicine studies, the original text was written by Agnivesha.
- One of six disciples of Ayurvedic scholar Punarvasu Atreya, many centuries ago,
- (The other five disciples were Bhela, Jatukarna, Parashara, Harita, and Ksharapani).
- Each of the disciples went on to write their own Samhitas, combining both Atreya’s ideas and their own understanding of the subject.
- The Agnivesha-Samhita, written by Agnivesha, was unlike any other in terms of depth and quality.
- It came to be known as the Charaka-Samhita after Charaka refined and annotated it.
- The treatise was divided into eight parts, or ashtanga sthanas, by Charaka:
- sutra, nidana, vimana, sarira, endriya, chikitsa, Kalpa, and Siddha; each section had multiple chapters.
Additional Information
- Panini:
- He was born in Shalatula on the Indus River in present-day Pakistan.
- He was a Sanskrit grammarian and gave a comprehensive and scientific theory of phonetics, phonology, and morphology.
- He is considered the founder of the language and literature of Sanskrit.
- His major work involves a treatise called Astadhyayi (or Astaka). It consists of eight chapters, each subdivided into quarter chapters.
- Under Astadhyayi, he distinguished between the language of sacred texts and the usual language of communication.
- He gave formal production rules and definitions to describe Sanskrit grammar.
- He gave about 1700 basic elements like nouns, verbs, vowels, and consonants he put them into classes.
- Pushyamitra Shunga is a post-Mauryan king whereas the birth year of Panini is not known. Experts give dates of Panini in the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th centuries which are all Pre-Mauryan.
- Astadhyayi (or Astaka) is Panini’s major work related to Sanskrit grammar.
- Harsha:
- Harshavardhana ruled from 606-647 CE.
- He lived from 590 to 647 CE and was the last ruler of the Vardhana Empire.
- He was the king of the Vardhana dynasty and was the son of Prabhakarvardhana.
- He took the title of sakal uttara patha natha (lord of northern India).His biography Harshacharita (“Deeds of Harsha”) was written by Sanskrit poet Banabhatta.
- He authored Nagananda, Ratnavali, Priyadarshika all written in the Sanskrit language.
3. Ashvaghosha was a poet in the court of King __________
A. Kanishka
B. Chandragupta Maurya
C. Harshavardhana
D. Ashoka
Solution
The correct answer is Kanishka.
Key Points
- Ashvaghosha was a poet in the court of King Kanishka.
- Ashvaghosha and other Buddhist scholars from Kanishka’s period (around 1900 years ago) began writing in Sanskrit.
- Earlier Buddha’s teachings were in the common man’s language (Prakrit) but later kings changed the practice gradually to the needs of the time.
- He was a Buddhist writer and was very famous among Buddhist writers.
- He wrote Buddhacharita which is the biography of Buddha.
- It is written in the Sanskrit language.
- He also wrote Sutralankar.
Additional Information
- Kanishka was the most famous Kushana ruler.
- He ruled around 1900 years ago.
- The fourth Buddhist council-
- Held in 72 AD at Kundalvana, Kashmir.
- It was presided over by Vasumitra.
- Ashvaghosha was his deputy.
- The council was held under the patronage of Kanishka.
4. After which war, Ashoka abandoned the policy of physical occupation?
A. Kalinga War
B. Battle of the Hydaspes
C. Battle of the Tarain
D. Magadha – Anga war
Solution
The correct answer is Kalinga War.
Key Points
- Kalinga War
- Ashoka is considered one of the greatest rulers of Indian history who ruled between 273BC to 232BC.
- The Kalinga war was fought in 261BC which was the turning event of his life.
- The war caused large-scale destruction where 1,00,000 soldiers and civilians were killed.
- After the war, Ashoka renounced violence and embraced Ahimsa, the teaching of Buddha.
- He implemented the principles of Ahimsa in his empire and spread Buddhism.
- He banned violent sports activity and hunting.
- He tried to maintain friendly relations with neighbours and avoided war.
- Inspired by buddha he advocated the principles of Dhamma which promoted the morality of the empire.
- Thus, it is cleared that after the Kalinga War, Ashoka adopted the Policy of Ahimsa.
Additional Information
- Battle of the Hydaspes
- Battle of Hydaspes was fought in the year 326 BC.
- It was fought between Alexander The Great and King Porus.
- It was fought on the Banks of River Jhelum.
- Alexander defeated Porus in the battle but restored him his Kingdom.
- Alexander stayed in India for 19 months.
- Battle of the Tarain
- The First Battle of Tarain was fought between The Ghurids (Muzz-Ad-din Mohammad Ghori) against The Chahamanas on 13th November 1191.
- The Ghurids (Muzz-Ad-din Mohammad Ghori) were represented by Mu’izz-Ad-Din Mohammad Ghori’s Army and The Chahamanana was represented by Prithviraj Chauhan.
- The First Battle of Tarain was fought at Tarain presently (Taraori, Haryana).
- The Ghurids king (Mu’izz-Ad-Din Mohammad Ghori) and his Army captured the Tabarhindah Fort (Presently Bathinda), which was presumably under The Chahamana’s control.
- In 1191, Prithviraj Chauhan marched against The Ghurids (Ghori’s) Army when he got the news of the Invasion of The Ghurids Army he moved with his Infantry, Cavalry force, and an Elephant Force.
- Magadha – Anga war
- Magadha came into prominence under the leadership of Bimbisara.
- He had a rivalry With Avanti king Pradyota, but later became friends.
- Bimbsara even sent his royal physician Jivaka to Ujjain, when Pradyota had jaundice.
- The most notable conquest by Bimbisara was that of Anga.
5. Which Mauryan emperor led a military campaign to conquer Kalinga, around 260 BCE?
A. Brihadratha
B. Ashoka
C. Bindusara
D. Chandragupta Maurya
Solution
The correct answer is Ashoka.
Key Points
- Ashoka
- He was the son of Vindusara who invaded Kalinga in 261 B.C. and succeeded in occupying Kalinga.
- The Kalinga War was of colossal nature in which as many as 1,00,000 were killed and 1,50,000 were taken captives while as many as that number died as an aftermath of the war.
- Ashoka was deeply moved by the terrible bloodshed caused by this war and was converted to Buddhism .
- Kalinga became one of the administrative provisions in the empire of Magadha with headquarters of a Kumara (Viceroy) located at Tosali.
Additional Information
- Brihadratha
- He was the last ruler of the Mauryan Empire.
- He ruled from 187 to 185 BCE, when he was killed by his general, Pushyamitra Shunga, who went on to establish the Shunga Empire.
- Bindusara
- Bindusara also Amitraghāta or Amitrakhāda or Amitrochates was the second Mauryan emperor of India.
- He was the son of the dynasty’s founder Chandragupta and the father of its most famous ruler Ashoka.
- Chandragupta Maurya
- He was a ruler of Iron Age South Asia who expanded a geographically-extensive kingdom based in Magadha and founded the Maurya dynasty.
- He reigned from 321 BCE to 293 BCE.
6. The Maurya dynasty ruled over Magadha after the reign of the ____________.
A. Nanda dynasty
B. Gupta dynasty
C. Sunga dynasty
D. Kushana dynasty
Solution
The correct answer is Nanda Dynasty.
. Key Points
- The Maurya dynasty ruled over Magadha after the Nanda dynasty.
- Mahapadma Nanda, murdered Kalasoka to become the king and acquired the throne.
- The empire developed and grew under his reign.
- It expanded from the Kuru country in the north to the south of Godavari Valley and from Magadha in the east to West in Narmada.
- Mahapadma Nanda conquered several kingdoms including Kalinga.
- Nandas were very fond of wealth and were disliked because of their heavy taxes and undue exaction from the public.
- According to the Greek writers the army of the Nandas consisted of 20,00,000 infantry, 20,000 cavalries, 2,000 four-horsed charioteers, and 30,000 elephants.
- The last ruler was Dhana Nanda who was overthrown by Chandra Gupta Maurya thus founding Mauryan Empire in 321 BC.
.Additional Information
- Magadha was an ancient Indian kingdom in Bihar.
- The First capital of Magadha was Rajgir.
- The first ruling dynasty of Magadha was the Haryak dynasty.
- Bimbasar ruled Magadha Empire for almost 52 years.
- Nanda Dynasty ruled the Magadha Empire during the Alexander invasion of India.
- The last of the Nanda Dynasty, Dhana Nanda was overthrown by Chandragupta Maurya.
- Bimbisara on the throne of Magadha 545 BC Was sitting in
- Bimbisara was the founder of the Harayak dynasty.
- Bimbisara defeated Brahmadatta and merged with the Anga kingdom in Magadha.
- Bimbisara was a follower of Buddhism.
- Nanda dynasty:
- Nanda Dynasty ruled during 344 BC-323 BC.
- Mandivardhana the last ruler of the Shishunaga dynasty was overthrown by Mahapadma Nanda and started the Nanda dynasty.
- It is considered to be the first non-Kshatriya dynasty and ruled for 100 years.
- Mahapadma is known as Sarvashatrantak i.e., uprooter of all the Kshatriyas and Ugrasena, i.e., owner of a huge army.
- Dhanananda was The last king of the Nanda Dynasty.
7. As the Mauryan empire was so large, different parts were ruled differently. The area around ______ was under the direct control of the emperor.
A. Taxila
B. Ujjain
C. Pataliputra
D. Lumbini
Solution
The correct answer is Pataliputra.
Key Points
- As the Mauryan empire was so large, different parts were ruled differently.
- The area around Pataliputra was under the direct control of the emperor.
- This meant that officials were appointed to collect taxes from farmers, herders, craftspersons and traders, who lived in villages and towns in the area.
- Many of these officials were given salaries.
- Messengers went to and fro and spies kept a watch on the officials.
- And of course, the emperor supervised them all, with the help of members of the royal family, and senior ministers.
- There were other areas or provinces. Each of these was ruled from a provincial capital such as Taxila or Ujjain. Although there was some amount of control from Pataliputra, and royal princes were often sent as governors, local customs and rules were probably followed. Besides, there were vast areas between these centres.
- Here the Mauryas tried to control roads and rivers, which were important for transport, and to collect whatever resources were available as tax and tribute.
- For example, the Arthashastra tells us that the north-west was important for blankets, and south India for its gold and precious stones. It is possible that these resources were collected as tribute.
Additional Information Maurya Empire-
- The Maurya Empire was founded by Chandragupta Maurya. He reigned from 321-297 BCE.
- Bindusara was the second emperor of the Mauryan Empire.
- He was the son of Chandragupta Maurya. He reigned from 297-273 BCE
- Ashoka, the most famous ruler was the son of Bindusara. He succeeded his father, Bindusara.
- He reigned from 273-232 BCE.
- Brihadratha was the last ruler of the Maurya dynasty.
- He reigned from 187-180 BCE. He was killed by Pushyamitra Shunga who then established the Shunga dynasty.
8. Emperor Ashoka was the son of ________.
A. Bimbisara
B. Bindusara
C. Chandragupta Maurya
D. Ajatashatru
Solution
The correct answer is Bindusara.
Key Points
- Bindusara is known as “The Son of a Great Father and the Father of a Great Son” because he was the son of a great father Chandragupta Maurya and the father of a great son Ashoka, the Great.
- He ruled the Mauryan dynasty from 298 BC to 273 BC.
- Bindusara brought sixteen states under the Mauryan Empire and thus conquered almost the entire Indian peninsula.
- The Mauryas were a dynasty, more than 2300 years ago, with three important rulers — Chandragupta, his son Bindusara, and Bindusara’s son, Ashoka.
- Ashoka was one of the greatest rulers known to history and on his instructions, inscriptions were carved on pillars, as well as on rock surfaces.
- Most of Ashoka’s inscriptions were in Prakrit and were written in the Brahmi script.
9. Who among the following was a Shaka ruler in India (AD 130 – 150)?
A. Bindusara
B. Panduka
C. Rudradaman
D. Chashtana
Solution
The correct answer is Rudradaman.
Key Points
- The correct answer is option 3, Rudradaman.
- The Shaka rulers were a group of nomadic people who migrated from Central Asia to various parts of India from the 2nd century BCE to the 4th century CE.
- Rudradaman was a Shaka ruler who ruled over the western Indian region of Malwa and parts of Gujarat from around AD 130 to 150.
- He was known for his military campaigns against other regional powers like the Satavahanas and the Yaudheyas.
- Rudradaman is also famous for his rock inscriptions, particularly the Junagadh inscription in Gujarat, which gives us valuable information about his reign and the political situation of his time.
- The other options in the question are also related to Indian history but are not Shaka rulers.
- Bindusara was a Mauryan emperor who ruled in the 3rd century BCE, Panduka was a Kushan king who ruled in the 1st century CE, and Chashtana was a Parthian king who ruled in the 2nd century CE.
Additional Information
- The Shaka rulers were also known as the Scythians in ancient literature.
- They were mainly concentrated in western and central India, and their reigns overlapped with those of other regional powers like the Satavahanas, the Kushans, and the Guptas.
- Bindusara was the son of the famous Mauryan emperor Chandragupta Maurya and ruled over a vast empire that included much of modern-day India.
- He was known for his diplomatic skills and his patronage of Buddhism.
- Panduka was a Kushan king who ruled parts of northern India, Central Asia, and China.
- He was a patron of Buddhism, and his reign saw the spread of Gandhara art, which combined Indian and Greek artistic styles.
- Chashtana also known as Caṣṭana, was a prominent ruler of the Saka Western Satraps in northwestern India during the 1st and 2nd centuries CE. His reign, spanning from approximately 78 to 130 CE, marked a significant period of expansion and stability for the dynasty.
10. Who among the following was the founder of the Kanva dynasty?
A. Narayana
B. Susharman
C. Vasudeva
D. Devabhuti
Solution
The correct answer is Vasudeva.
Key Points:
- The Kanva dynasty had a Brahmanic origin.
- The dynasty was named after the gotra of the ruler Kanva.
- Vasudeva Kanva founded the Kanva dynasty.
- It is believed that Vasudeva Kanva killed the Shunga ruler Devabhuti and established his own empire in 72 BCE.
- He ruled for a short period and was succeeded by Bhumimitra.
- The empire was extended into parts of eastern India and central India.
- The Kanva dynasty had claimed Vidisa as their capital.
The major rulers during that phase were:
- Vasudeva Kanva
- Bhumimitra
- Narayana
- Susarman
- Bhumimitra ruled for a period of 14 years and his son Narayana ruled for 12 years.
- The Satvahana dynasty defeated the Kanva dynasty and established their empire.
- The last Kanva king Susarman was killed by the Satavahana (Andhra) king.
Additional Information: Bimbisara
- Bimbisara, (born c. 543—died 491 BCE), was one of the early kings of the Indian kingdom of Magadha.
- His expansion of the kingdom, especially his annexation of the kingdom of Anga to the east, is considered to have laid the foundations for the later expansion of the Mauryan empire.
- He is also known for his cultural achievements and was a great friend and protector of the Buddha.
- Bimbisara built the city of Rajagriha, famous in Buddhist writings.
- He was succeeded on the throne by his son Ajatashatru, who murdered his father to obtain power.
Kalashoka
- Kalashoka or Kakavarna was the son and successor of Shishunaga.
- He divided his kingdom between his ten sons and crowned his ninth son, Nandivardhana as the king of Magadha.
- Shishunaga had transferred the capital of Magadha to Vaishali.
- Kalashoka succeeded his father Shishunaga.
- Kalashoka again transferred the capital to Pataliputra.
- According to Buddhist literature, the Second Buddhist Council was held 100 years after the Maha Parinirvana of Lord Buddha, in Vaishali, was patronized by King Kalashoka.
Ajatashatru
- Ajatasattu in the Buddhist tradition, or Kunika (Kūṇika) and Kuniya (Kūṇiya) in the Jain histories, (c. 492 to 460 BCE or early 5th century BCE) was one of the most important kings of the Haryanka dynasty of Magadha in East India.
- He was the son of King Bimbisara and was a contemporary of both Mahavira and Gautama Buddha.
- He forcefully took over the kingdom of Magadha from his father and imprisoned him.
- He fought a war against the Vajjika League, led by the Licchavis, and conquered the republic of Vaishali.
