School of Humanities and Social Sciences

Department of History and Philosophy

Course Name: Emergence of Bangladesh

Course Code: HIS103
Section No: 39

Submitted by:
Abdullah Al Rayhan - ID: #1931537030

Assignment Title: An assignment on Bengal during the

Ancient period

Submitted to: Dr. Mohammad Humayun Kabir (HyK1)

 Table of Contents
Introduction………………………………………………………………….3

Sources of the History of Ancient Bengal…………………………………...3

Formation of Bengal and Janapads…………………………………………3

Bangla Language……………………………………………………………4

Political development of Ancient Bengal…………………………………..4

The cultural and religious development in Dynastic Rules………………...5

Economic condition of Ancient Bengal during dynastic rules…………….6

Conclusion…………………………………………………………………6

References………………………………………………………………...7
Introduction
Since humans are social creature, our habit is to live in society. In ancient ages, people tried
to establish civilization near water sources. Thus, the Indus civilization was started in this
sub-continent in the banks of Indus River. Later, the advent of Aryans from the central Asia
and their merging made further progression of the civilization in Indian Sub-continent.
During ancient period, Bengal was introduced with many different races, religions, and
cultures. Being in possession of vast resources and strategic importance, Bengal had been
under the purview of many conqueror from ancient times.

Sources of the History of Ancient Bengal

It is said that Bengal is a 4,000 year old civilization. Many historical literature and
archeological sites are the main sources of history of then Bengal. Auto biographies such as
Harsha Charita and Vallal Charita and travelogues of many different travelers such as-
Tibetans, Chinese, Arabian accounts also described the ancient times cultures, religions and
developments of Bengal. Archeological sites such as Mahasthangar, Mainamati, Wari-
Bateshwar tell us the architectural development. Many inscriptions, well-worked copper
plates and stone epigraphs were also found from these sites which reflect on the religious
and cultural development.

Formation of Bengal and Janapads

After the advent and merging of Aryans with the indigenous people of the subcontinent
region, spread out throughout the region. The Aryans thought themselves as superiors and
spread their dominance. They started to settle at the bank of Ganges. Many old Aryan tribes
gradually formed comparatively larger political units which were called Janapads. Ancient
Bengal was divided into six Janapads.
 Vanga- They were inhabitants of the south and southeastern part of present
Bangladesh. Later, they may have spread in southern West Bengal. The core of this
territorial unit was two main streams of Ganges (Bhagirathi to Padma-Meghna).
 Radha- Possibly included a large part of the present Indian state of West Bengal. It
was divided into south and north radha and the boundary line was river Ajay.
 Gauda- It was the capital city of many rulers of ancient and medieval Bengal,
situating to the north-west of Bhagirathi river.
 Pundra- It was the earliest center in Bangladesh and known as the capital of
Pundranagar consisted of present Bogra and neighbor areas.
 Samtata- It was situated in the Meghna river valley. It appears to have consisted of
Cumilla and Noakhali areas of Bangladesh and some areas of Tripura in India.
  Harikela- A Chinese traveler from 7th century, has defined its position as 'the eastern
limit of eastern India'. It is believed to be consisted of Chittagong and its adjacent
areas.

Bangla Language
With the migration of Aryans in these regions, the Aryan language from Central-Asia also
have appeared. The Aryan language was reformed and named Sanskrit language. And the
Bangla was evolved from a version of Sanskrit language which is Maghdhi Prakrita. But as
many different tribes and races were already living in this region before the arrival of
Aryans, Bangla’s vocabulary were enriched from many different old languages such as
Alpine, Austroasiatic, Nodic etc. The Bengali linguist, Suniti Kumar Chatterji and Sukumar
Sen suggested that Bengali had its origin in the 10th century CE. And another Bengali
scholar Dr. Muhammad Shahidullah and his followers suggested a competing theory that
the language began in the 7th century CE.

Political development of Ancient Bengal

Throughout the ancient period, many different dynasties have ruled the then Bengal. Few
of them are very famous to the historians because of their ruling. Here are different events
and period of rulers in Bengal in chronological way.
 Maurya Dynasty (c.320-180 BC): Chandragupta Maurya established the Maurya
dynasty. It was the first great and well-organized empire of the subcontinent. The
Mauryan Empire was one of the largest empire in its time. It is believed that the
Janapad, Pundra was formed and Mahasthangar of Bogra was the provincial capital
of Pundra. During the reign of Chandragupta Maurya, Bengal flourished with riches
and its naval fleet got stronger.
 Gupta Dynasty (319-543 CE): The reign of Gupta Dynasty is considered to be the
Golden Age of Indian History. During the reign, India was governed by a central
government that brought political stability, peace and prosperity for a significant
amount of time. The dynasty was founded by Srigupta. One of the most powerful
emperors of Gupta Empire was Chandragupta II, who was also known as
Vikramaditya.
 Gauda Empire (590-626 CE): Bengal witnessed another flourishing period under
Shashanka of Gauda Empire. He ruled most of the Western Bengal part during 606-
637 AD. His capital was Karna Suvarna, which is the present Murshidabad. He is
infamous for oppressing Buddhist communities and driving them out of Bengal. It is
often depicted that he was defeated by another king named Harsha. But other
sources suggest that he still ruled most part of the Bengal after the defeat. his
empire even included ‘Dandabhukti’ janapada, near Orissa.
  The Matsanyam: After the death of Shashanka, chaos started and left the Bengal in
despair till the rise of Pala Dynasty. The in between decades of this two event known
as The Matsanyam. This usually means situation where there is no rule of law,
powerful people can gallop the weaker ones like the big fishes eat smaller fishes.
 Pala Dynasty: To end the Matsanyam, Gopal was made king by the powerful people
of then and thus the Pala Dynasty started. Pala Dynasty ruled in Bengal, Bihar and
Orissa for more than 400 years. They indulged in the politics of other parts of India
(Central and Northern India). Dharmapala conquered Kanouj which was the then
center of Indian Empire. As none of the later Emperors could not reach the success
level of Dharmapala and Devpala, there were complications regarding the
succession. During the reign of Mahipala II, the famous Varendra revolt under Divya
or Divvok. Rampala successfully ended the revolt, known as Kaivartya revolt and
extended the empire towards Orrissa, Kamrupa and Madhyadesha. Pala Dynasty
had a strong administration.
 Sena Dynasty: Samtata Sena first settled in Bengal near the river, Ganges, in Radha
Janapad. But the Dynasty was established by his son, Hemanta Sena, who was a
feudal king under the Pala Emperor Ramapala. And, his son, Vijaya Sena laid the
foundation of the Sena Kingdom. He was also a feudal king under Rampala, but later
at the end of Pala Dynasty, he established his supremacy in North and North
Western Bengal. He extended his emperor by conquering Bihar in the West and
Vanga in the east. His first capital was in Vijayapura and his second at Vikramapura
in the Dhaka district. His son, Vallala Sena succeeded his father. He was an able
general. It was during the rule of Laksmana Sena the declination of Sena Dynasty
happened and Muslim rule started in Bengal. By the ending of Sena rule in Bengal in
1204, the Ancient period of Bengal ended and the medieval period of Bengal started.
From start of the Maurya Dynasty till the end of Sena Dynasty, We see the later Emperors
were focusing and conquering outside of Bengal. Shashanka tried to conquer Thaneswar
but he was defeated. But, later in Pala reign, they were considered as a strong force as they
successfully expanded their Empire to the central India.

The cultural and religious development in Dynastic Rules

The emperors of Maurya dynasty were Buddhists in religion, also the most of the people of
the emperor. But in Gupta rule, the rulers practiced Hindu rituals and traditions. Yet the
people lived peacefully as the rule was characterized by religious freedom. In Shashanka
era, he oppressed the Buddhist communities and drove them out of Bengal. During the
Palas’, they promoted classical Indian philosophy, literature, painting and sculpture
studies. It was in their reign, epics and sagas were written in Bangla. The rulers of Pala
Empire followed Buddhist philosophy and patronized Mahayana Buddhism in all over
northern India. Bengal became famous in the Buddhist world for the cultivation of Buddhist
religion, culture and other knowledge in the various centers that grew under the patronage
of the Pala rulers. But the majority of their subjects were Hindus. Dharmapala accepted
religious tolerance as the state policy, which is also followed by his successors. There is no
evidence of any religious discord between the Buddhists and the Hindus in the society.
Religious toleration and mutual coexistence can be identified as the characteristic of the
social life of the people in the Pala period. In King Dharmapala’s reign, the Somapura
Mahaviharara was established, which was a religious and educational institution. But in the
Sena period, many Buddhist had to migrate to the neighboring countries because of the
onslaught of Buddhists.

Economic condition of Ancient Bengal during dynastic rules

The ancient Bengal had vast resources and fertile lands. There is a mention of trades of
cotton throughout the India in Maurya Arthashastra, which indicates transportation
advancements of then Bengal. In the accounts of Ptolemy, he mentioned about a great
market town on the banks of the Ganges during the Gupta reign. The discovery of a large
number of Gupta coins and ornaments in Bengal indicate the economic prosperity of the
region under the Guptas. In Pala rules, they had a firm administration, which helped them
to build up an efficient structure for revenue collection. There are many tokens of
patronization of higher study, religious institution (Viharas), Hindu temples in Pala reigns,
indicating the economic prosperity. Also, because of geographical advantage of being the
gateway to the eastern parts of the Indian subcontinent, ancient Bengal have always been a
commercial hub that connected the sea to the famous Silk Route.

Conclusion
From the beginning of establishment of 4000 years back to the end of the Sena Dynasty in
1204, the Bengal have developed in political, cultural, religious, economic condition and in
many other aspects greatly. The history also tells us the region always had a ruler of its
own region and majority of the rulers and their administration have worked well to lead
their subjects a good life. The religious tolerance built by some dynasties were monumental
in medieval period of Bengal. Although, at the end of ancient period, it did not existed. The
cultural and mental development through these dynastic rules have great impact on the
people of modern Bengal.

References
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September 2020, from
https://wikieducator.org/Ancient_And_Medieval_History_of_Bangladesh
3. The Formation of Bengal Civilization: A Glimpse on the Socio-Cultural Assimilations
Through Political Progressions in Bengal Delta, Abu Bakar Siddiq1 and Ahsan
Habib2
4. Ancient History of West Bengal : Other State Exams. (2020). Retrieved 26
September 2020, from https://gradeup.co/ancient-history-of-west-bengal-i
5. Today, E., & Affairs, G. (2020). History of Bengal: From Stone Age to Trinamool
Congress. Retrieved 26 September 2020, from
https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/gk-current-affairs/story/history-of-
bengal-324618-2016-05-20#:~:text=Ancient%20Bengal%3A,back%20to%20the
%20Vedic%20Period.
6. Hoque, M. (2020). Bangladesh History - Ancient Bengal. Retrieved 26 September
2020, from http://www.jollybengali.net/bangladesh-intro/bangladesh-history-
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