Gupta Empire

320-550 AD
Kharavela

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• Kamanduka: Nitisara: administration
• Koumudimhostavam: Vajjika: political
• Sudraka: Mruchchakatika: social and political
• Kavya-nataka: History
• Visakhadatta: Devichandraguptam: political
• Kalidas: political, social and religion
:Abhignana sakuntalam
:Meghadhutam
:Raghuvasam
:Kumarasambhavam
:Ritisamhara
:Malavikagnimitram
Religious sources:

Dharma sutras: Narada Smriti and Brihaspati

smriti, Vayu and mastya puranas etc
Inscriptions: 23 Private : 19 official
Allahabad Iron Pillar Inscription
The Econ stone inscription of Samudragupta
Foreign sources:
Fahien: fu-kuo-ki or record of Buddhists kingdoms,
Hiuen Tsang and I-sting
• Founder of the dynasty: Sri Gupta
• According to many historians Gupta dynasty was
a Vaishya dynasty
• Early kings they were feudatories of the kushanas
in U.P
• Second ruler: Ghatotkacha
• Chandra Gupta :319-335 AD
• Samudra Gupta :335-380 AD
• Chandra Gupta II: 380-412 AD
• Kumara Gupta I : 412-454 AD
• Skanda Gupta : 454-467 AD
Empire Rajya King

Provinces Bhukti Uparika

District Vishyas Vishayapati

Nagara Srestin ( head of all guild)
Prathama Kulika (chief of trader)
Sardhavaha ( chief artisan )
Tahasil Vithis Ayukta

Village Grama Gramapati

Town Pura Purapala

Nagara Rakshaka
Mauryan Guptas
King King
Mantriprishad Manrti parishad Guilds
Amatyas officials
Adhakshayas -
Provincial level Provincial level ( Bhukti)
kumara/ nobles Uparika Guilds
Mahamattas -
District Level District Level ( Vishya)
pradeshika Vishyapati
Rajuka Nagara Srestin (merchant) Guilds
Yukta Pradhama Kulika (artisan)
Tahsil Tahsil (Vithis)
Gopa Vithi Guilds
Stanika Ayuktas
Village Village ( Grama)
Gramika Gramika
grama Vrudha grama vrudhas
• King had titles like parameswara, maharajadhiraja,
paramabhattraka etc.
• Samudra Gupta declared him self a god dwelling on
the earth.
• Kingship was hereditary, but royal powers were
limited.
• Guptas continued the traditional machinery of
bureaucratic administration but it was not as
elaborate as that of the Mauryas.
• They ruled according to Rajadharma and with the
advises of ministers.
• The king looked after the material and
spiritual welfare of its subjects.

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 Central Administration
Maha Mantri (Chief minister): stood at the head of civil
administration
King’s Council
It consisted of prices, high official and feudatories.
Ministers: 8to 9 ministers
Foreign, finance and law ministries were important
Sandhivgrahika: the foreign minister
Maha-dandanayaka : Chief justice
Among other imperial officers were included the
Maha-pratihara: chief of palace guards
Maha-baladhikrta : Commander-in-chief
Military department:
The Guptas did not possess a big army and the
feudatories supplied the troops.
Senapati, Mahasenapati, Baladhikrita and
mahabaladhikrita were officials of dept.
Maha-bladhikrita controlled staff or subordinate
officers of military department.
Mahadandanayaka also acted as judicial officer.
The army was paid cash and officer-in-charge of
army stores called ranabhandagarika. 15
• Dharmasthana : Dharmadhikaras
• They were required to be well-versed in Dharma
and had to maintain order in the town.
• Most brutal form of capital punishment in this
period was the infliction of death by elephant.
• Another cruel punishment was the scooping out of
the eyes for committing treason, especially in case
of Bhrahmans.
•

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Revenue department:
The main the activity of the department proper
survey and measurement of land as well for the
collection of land revenue.
Akshapatadhikrita chief of the department
Matters related accounts registers, recover royal
dues, to check misappropriation and recover
fines.
Pustapala: record keeper 17
 Provincial administration
Uparikas were the heads of provincial administration.
Uparikas were the high officers and the personal
staff of the Emperor and were appointed by the king.
• Bladhikarnika: head of army or military
• Dandapasadhikarnika: chief police officer
• Dandanayaka: chief justice
• Vinayashiti Sthapaka: Law and order in-change
• Tadayuktaka: treasury officers
 District administration
District or vishya was under the control of Vishayapati.
Their appointment was made by the provincial governors
District level Vishyapati assisted by
Ngara Srethin: Chief merchant
Prathama Kulika: chief artisan
Prathama Kayastha: chief scribe
Pustapla: custodian of records
dhruvathikarnika: land revenue in charges
There was a municipal board for the administration of
town Adhisthanadhikarana
City administration
• Head of city administration:
• purapla or Nagara Rakshaka
• Avasthika: superintendent of Dharmasalas
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 Social conditions
The traditional caste system continued in the period.
The foreign elements in Indian society were absorbed in
the traditional social order.
The Sakas, Yavanas, pahalavas etc. were regarded as
Ksahtriyas.
The Hunas and Gurjaras later became the Rajputs and
were considered as part the society.
The connection between the caste and occupation was
not rigid.
Land grants were given to the Brahmans on large
scale indicating the Brahman supremacy in Gupta
times.
The term dvija was now beginning to be used
increasingly for the brahmans.
Number of sudra castes and untouchables were
increased.
a lot Guilds of craftsmen were transformed into
castes.
The king was the upholder of the social order.
It was his duty to prevent the unlawful mixture of
caste.
The position of the Sudras improved in this period
and they were now permitted to listen to the epics
and the Purans.

They were also allowed to perform certain domestic

rites which naturally brought fee to the priests.

The practice of untouchbility became more strong

than the earlier period.
• Some Brahmans and Kshatriyas adopted the
occupation of castes below them while some of
the Vishyas and Sudras followed the occupations of
the upper castes

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 Position of women
Women were given a subordinate position
With the influence of Buddhism liberal policy was
adopted towards women.
Early marriages were encouraged and practiced.
The practice of sati gained approval of the
jurists
No widow marriages
Women were denied any right to property except for
stridhana in the form of jewellery and garments
made to the bride on the occasion of her marriage.
They were not entitled to formal education.
Like sudras, women also allowed to listen to
epics and the puranas.
Only upper-class women entitled to receive
education
Devadasi system was prevailed in the society.
 (devadasi  is a girl “married” to a deity and
dedicated to worship and service of the
deity or a temple for the rest of her life)

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 Economic Conditions
The Gupta age was an age of economic
prosperity. Agricultural Officers, priests and
temples
handicrafts Guilds
trade and commerce. Guilds
Agriculture:
The state encouraged agriculture. State was
the exclusive owner of the land.
Two harvests were found in the method of
irrigation.
The Persian water-wheel was use for irrigation
Water wheels were used to draw water from
the tanks, wells and channels.
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• Rice, wheat and barley were produced.
• Sugar-cane, fruits, vegetables and other crops
were grown.
• Scientific methods were followed for better
and more agriculture production.
 Land grants
• There was a tradition of giving land grants to
the priests, temples and officers with free of
taxes, and some villages were granted to
officials with administration rights.
• Increase in land grants was responsible for
bringing large areas under cultivation.
• Agrahara grants: Religious Devagrahara:
secular
• The officials exploited village resources to a
great extent.
• land grants paved the way for feudalism
development in India.

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Trade and commerce (guilds)
There were several native professions such as
garlanders, washer men, carpenters,
blacksmiths, jewelers, goldsmiths, potters,
weavers, architects etc.
Indian craftsmen produced fine quality cotton,
silk and woolen clothes.
Trade was carried on by land and sea.
Important cities and ports were connected by
roads.
Foreign trade took place with South East
Asian countries through Tamralipti, the sea-
port in Bengal.

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• Compared to the earlier period, there was
decline in long distance trade.
• The expansion of the Arabs under the banner of
Islam further disrupted Indian’s trade.
• Guilds ( nigama, sreni ) continued as the major
institution in the manufacture of goods and in
commercial enterprise.
• Guilds remained almost autonomous in their inter
organization, the government respecting their
laws which were generally drafted by the guilds.
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• Each guild had a president called Srestin or
Prathama
• The Gupatas issued the largest number of gold
coins in ancient India.
• Guilds were organized for traders, bankers and
manual workers like weavers and stone cutter.
• Mining and metallurgy occupied the top position.
• Ship building was another big industry which
was well developed in the period that facilitated
trade and communication activities.
Science and technology

Aryabhata:
• Calculated ∏ to 3.1416
• Length of the solar year to 358. 6805 days
• Aryahbattiyam : deals with algebra, arithmetic and
geometry.
Varahamihira: Astronomy and horoscopy
Hastayurveda: veterinary science
Navaneitakam: medical science
Amarakosam: study of metallurgy and plants
Decline of empire
• Huna invasions from Chandra Gupta II
• Decentralized administration
• Land grants
Varnashrama Dharma
• Varna: caste
• Ashrama: station of life
• Dharma: Justice or duty

• Varna dharma or caste duty

• There is a dharma appropriate to each class
• hierarchy of classes each with its separate duties
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• Brahmachaya (Student Life)
. Grihasta (Household Life)
• Vanaprashta (Retired Life)
• Sannyasa (Renounced Life)
To fully control the mind and senses, and to fix the mind on
the Supreme.
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• According to western view,
the dasyas who are regarded as the original inhabitants of
India and said to be the ancestors of the surdras, were
foiled and subjected by Vedic gods.
• Colour difference between Aryans and dasyas
• Aryasns and dasyas were rivals

• There is also no reference to the separation of society by

varna

• Exclusion of sudras from the religious rites

(might be due to original antipathy or voluntary exclusion)
Western view
Brahmnical view:

The Brahma created a four folders of society

Manu states the purpose of the creator thus for the sake of
the preserving the universe (Brahma, the creator)
devoted separate duties to those who created
respectively from his body.

Since Brahamana originated from the most excellent part,

since he was the first born and since he possesses the
Veda he is by right the chief of the w hole creation
According to Gita (Lord Krishna)
• the four fold order was created on the basis of quality
(guna) and action (karma)

• the statement clearly rejecting the divine origin of the

castes based on the birth and dines most categorically
the Brahmins claim of inherent superiority.

• It only proves the functional differentiation based on

quality and action (guna and karma)

• The Chandogya Upanishad says that a person’s birth in

particular form as Brahamana or sudra depends on his
karma in the past birth.