Delhi Career Group

Subject- Ancient History

The Mahajanapada

The 16 Mahajanapadas were the large politico-geographical units that existed

in ancient India.
The 16 Mahajanapadas were established in the sixth century BC by
incorporating the Janapadas which were earlier autonomous.
• Nearly 1000 years after the decline of the Harappan civilization, new
urban centers began to emerge in the country in the sixth century BC.
For this reason, the sixth century BC is dubbed as the era of second
urbanization in the Indian subcontinent.
• Between the period of 600 BC to 300 BC, around 60 urban towns and
cities were established and they were the major centers for craft
development and trade activities. The 16 Mahajanapadas mentioned in
the early Buddhists and Jaina texts are among them.
• Magadha, Koshala, Avanti, Panchala were some of the important
Mahajanapadas.
Mahajanapadas
• The term Mahajanapada refers to the large Janapadas which were the
political units that existed in Indian subcontinent during the Vedic age.
• In the sixth century BC, Eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar became the
major political center of the country. Some of the territorial states in
these regions gained access to the iron production centers and used
them to make iron weapons and tools. With the help of these weapons,
they gradually expanded their territory. Such states came to be known
as the Mahajanapadas.
• Most of the Mahajanapadas were established by conglomerating
several Janapadas. One such example is the Kosala which incorporated
the Janapada of Sakyas and of Kashi.
• Several Buddhist texts repeatedly refer to the 16 Mahajanapadas and
their major settlements, which existed during the lifetime of Buddha (6th
century). However there were slight variations in the list of
Mahajanapadas mentioned in different Buddhist and Jaina texts.
• The Mahajanapadas were mostly situated to the north of Vindhyas and
extended from Bihar in the east to the north-west frontier.
Types of Mahajanapadas
Based on the form of government, Mahanjanapadas can be classified into two
types. They are
• Monarchical Mahajanapadas
o In Monarchical Mahajanapadas, the state was ruled by the
hereditary king or chieftain.
o Here, the rulers gave importance to brahmanas and vedic
sacrifices.
o In Mahajanapadas such as Kosala and Magadha, monarchical
type of government was followed.
• Republican Mahajanapadas
o In Republican or oligarchic Mahajanapadas, the king was elected
from the group of Rajas who were known for their fighting ability
and he runs the administration with the help of an assembly
called Sabha.
o Here, the brahmanas and vedic sacrifices were not given much
importance. It is evident from few Buddhist texts that the
brahmanas were placed below the kshatriyas in social hierarchy.
o In Vajji, the oligarchy form of government was followed. Such
Mahajanapadas were known as gana sangha.

Modern
Mahajanapadas Capital City Location Description

• It was located on the

confluence of river Champa
and River Ganga.
• Its capital, Champa was one of
the six great cities of the 6th
century BC and it was known
for its trade and commerce.
• Anga is mentioned in Atharva
Munger and veda and in Prajnapan which
is a highly revered text of
Anga Champa Bhagalpur
Jaina.
 • It was annexed into the
Magadha empire by
Bimbisara.
• It was one of the most
powerful and prosperous
Mahajanapadas.
• Its capital, Rajagirha was
protected by five hills.
• It started the policy of
imperialism by conquering
Rajagirha or Gaya and most of the areas.
• Magadha was separated from
Magadha Girivraja Patna
Anga by the river Champa.
• It was bounded by river
Gomathi in the west, river
Sadanira in the east, Nepal
hills in the north and river
Syandika in the south..
• Hiranyanabha, Mahakasala
Prasenajita and Suddhodana
were some of the rulers of
Kosala.
• During the reign of king
Vidudabha, Kosala was
Eastern Uttar merged into Magadha.
• Ayodhya, Saketa and Sravasti
Kosala Sravasti Pradesh
were its important towns.
• Its capital city, Varanasi is
located at the confluence of
rivers Ganga and Gomathi.
• They were known for their
horse markets and cotton
textiles.
• Brihadratha, the ruler of Kashi
conquered Kosala. However, it
was later annexed by Kosala,
Kasi Varanasi Banaras
which turned out to be a
 cause of war between
Magadha and Kosala.
• Oligarchy or Republic form of
government was followed in
Vajji.
• River Gandak separated Vajji
from Kosala Mahajanapada.
• It was ruled by the Licchavis.
Videhans, Vriji and Jnatrikas
were the important clans
which ruled Vajji.
• Vajji is listed as one of the 16
Mahajanapadas in both
Vajji Vaishali Bihar
Buddhist and Jaina texts.
• Oligarchy or Republic form of
government was followed in
Malla and they were referred
to as Gana Sanghas.
• It had several branches, out of
which the branches at Pava
and Kusinara towns were very
significant during the time of
Buddha.
Deoria and • Buddha died at Kusinara and
Lord Mahavira attained
Malla Kusinara Uttar Pradesh
Nirvana at Pava.
• It was a monarchical
Mahajanapada.
• Sahajati and Tripuri were the
important towns of Chedi
Mahajanapada.
• Its territory stretched up to
the Malwa plateau. It covers
the eastern region of present
Sothivati or day Bundelkhand.
• The chedis were mentioned in
Chedi Banda Bundelkhand
Mahabharata and Rig Veda.
 • Koravya, Isukara were the
important rulers of Kuru
Mahajanapada and they
belonged to the race of
Yudhisthira.
• They made matrimonial
alliances with the Bhojas, the
Panchalas and the Yadavas.
• The rulers of Kuru were
referred to as
Rajasabdopajivinah (consul of
Meerut and the King) in Arthashastra.
South East Thus, it is evident that
absolute monarchy was
Kuru Indraprastha Haryana
absent in Kuru Mahajanapada.
• According to ancient texts,
there were two lineages of
Panchalas – northern
Panchalas and southern
Panchalas.
• The two lineages were divided
by the river Bhagirathi.
• Ahichchatra was the capital of
northern Panchalas whereas
Kampilya was the capital of
southern Panchalas.
• Initially they followed a
monarchical form of
Ahichchatra Western government and later
switched to the republican
Panchala and Kampilya Uttar Pradesh
form.
• Vatsas were a branch of Kurus
who migrated to Vatsa.
• Most prominent ruler of Vatsa
was Udayana who had a
Vatsa Kausambi Allahabad
strong passion for hunting.
 • According to Puranas,
Nichaksu (A Pandava
descendant) shifted the
capital of Vatsa from
Hastinapur to Kausambi.
• It was known for trade and
other economic activities.
• It included the portions of
Alwar and Bharatpur regions
of Rajasthan.
• Matsya was separated from
Panchala by river Yamuna.
• Their capital city was famed as
the hiding place of Pandavas.
• It once formed a part of Chedi
Mahajanapada which is
evident from the fact that king
Sujata ruled over both matsya
Matsya Viratnagar Jaipur
and Chedi.
• The capital Mathura was
located on the bank of river
Yamuna.
• They followed the Oligarchy or
Republic form of government
and they were referred to as
Gana Sanghas.
• Avantiputra, one of the
prominent rulers of Surasena
was a chief disciple of Buddha.
He ensured the spread of
Buddhism in Mathura.
• It was later annexed into the
Surasena Mathura Mathura
vast Magadha empire.
• It was also known as Assaka.
Bank of • It was located in the
Dakshinapatha and it covered
Asmaka Paithan Godavari
the regions of Telangana,
 Maharashtra and Andhra
Pradesh.
• Brahmadatta and Aruna were
the important rulers of
Asmaka.
• It was one of the most
powerful Mahajanapadas.
• It was divided into two parts –
northern Avanti and southern
Avanti.
• Ujjain was the capital of
northern Avanti and
Mahishamati was the capital
of southern Avanti.
• Pradyota was the powerful
ruler of Avanti during the 6th
century BC. It is believed that
Vatsa was conquered by him.
• Another famous ruler of
Avanti was Prasenajit who
strengthened his position by
making matrimonial alliances
Malwa and with Magadha. While
Mahishamati Madhya marrying his sister Kosala Devi
to Bimbisara, he gifted Kasi as
Avanti and Ujjain Pradesh
the dowry.
• Its capital, Taxila was an
important learning center of
ancient India.
• Its territory extended from
Kabul in present day
Afghanistan to Rawalpindi in
the North Western Province.
• It was ruled by the king
Pukkusati during the 6th
century BC. He was the
Gandhara Taxila Rawalpindi
contemporary of Bimbisara.
 • According to Mahabharata,
Gandharas were the strong
allies of the Kurus who
together fought against the
Pandavas
• It was conquered by Persians
in the later half of the 6th
century BC.
• It was located in the
Northwest region around the
Hindukush mountains in
Punjab and Kashmir.
• In Brahmanical texts, the
Kambojas were regarded as
the uncultured people.
• The Arthashastra refers to
them as Varta-Sastropajivin
Samgha which means
Rajori and confederation of
agriculturists, traders,
Kamboja Pooncha Hajra
herdsmen and warriors.
Political Structure of the Mahajanapadas:
• The majority of the states were monarchs, but some, known as Ganas
or Sanghas, were republics.
• The king was elected and ruled with the help of a council in these
Ganasanghas, which were oligarchies.
• Vajji was a powerful Mahajanapada who governed under the Sangha
system.
• From republican states came the founders of Jainism and Buddhism.
• Each Mahajanapada had its own capital.
• For security from other rulers, most of them had fortifications built
around them.
• These new kings, or Rajas, maintained regular armies.
• They also took money from the people in the form of taxes. Crops were
usually taxed at 1/6th of their value.
• This was referred to as Bhaga, or sharing.
• Craftsmen, herders, hunters, and traders were all subject to taxes.
 • Out of the 16 Mahajanapadas, the Magadha emerged as the most
powerful state under the reign of Bimbisara and established a vast
empire by conquering most of the Mahajanapadas.
• Eventually, Magadha became the nerve center of political activity in
North India.
• The Magadha empire was the first empire in India.
• Iron ploughshares are becoming more popular.
• This resulted in higher output.
• Paddy was planted by the farmers.
• Instead of throwing seeds across the ground, saplings were cultivated
and planted in the fields.
• This considerably enhanced productivity, but it also resulted in a
significant increase in work.
Differences between Gana Sanghas and Kingdoms:
Gana Sanghas Kingdoms

1. The chief office, known as Ganapati or 1. The King and his family possessed
Ganaraja, was not hereditary. absolute power.

2. The Ganga valley’s lush alluvial

2. The Ganas lived in eastern India, near expanses were home to the majority of
or in the Himalayan foothills. the kingdoms.

3. Governance with a representative 3. The king wielded political power with

system of government. In a hall known as
Santhagara, the council discussed and
debated the topics. For voting, Salakas
(wooden blocks) were utilized, and a
Salaka-Gahapaka (vote collector) assured
honesty and impartiality.
the help of ministers and advisory
councils such as the Parishad and Sabha.
The importance of people assemblies
was lessened as the concept of king
divinity emerged, and greater emphasis
was placed on priestly ceremonies.

4. There were only two strata in the Gana-

Sanghas: the Kshatriya Rajakula (ruling
family) and the Dasa Karmakara (slaves 4. The focus was mostly on caste
and labourers). affiliations and kingly fidelity.
5. The Gana Sanghas were tolerant of
each other more than the kingdoms.
Mahavira (Jainism, Vajji confederacy) and
Buddha (Buddhism, Shakya clan) were
able to spread their ideas more freely in 5. The kingdoms were more strongly
Gana-Sanghas than in Kingdoms because rooted in Brahmanical political, social,
of this tolerance. and religious doctrine.