Ancient History

of Bangladesh
Ancient Bengal was the site of several major
janapadas (kingdoms), although the oldest
cities date back to the Vedic period. Ancient
Bengal had strong trade relations with Persia,
Arabia and the Mediterranean which focused
on its profitable cotton muslin textiles.

The history of Bengal is intertwined with the

history of the larger Indian subcontinent and
the neighboring regions of South Asia and
Southeast Asia.

It contains modern-day Bangladesh and the

Indian states of West Bengal
Tripura and Assam’s Karimganj district,
located in the eastern part of the Indian
subcontinent, at the apex of the Bay of
Bengal and dominated by the fertile Ganges
delta.
Bengal in Vedic period

Scriptures suggest that Bengal was divided into many small kingdoms
during Vedic Period:
Vanga (southern Bengal), Pundra (Northern Bengal), Suhma (Western
Bengal). Anga, Harikela and Samatata kingdoms. At times, the region was
unified into a single realm, while it was also ruled by pan-Indian empires.
Background In the earliest period Bengal was known to be inhabited by
different groups of people, whose names came to be associated with the
area inhabited by them. Thus the ancient janapadas of VANGA, pundra,
radha and gauda came to be recognised as inhabited by non-Aryan ethnic
groups bearing those names. SAMATATA was an important janapada in the
trans-Meghna region of Bangladesh in its southeastern part (Comilla-
Noakhali area). The name of this janapada was purely descriptive and had
no ethnic connection. The Chittagong area with its adjacent areas was
known by the name of HARIKELA. The existence of these janapadas is
known from later Vedic literature, as areas inhabited by non-Aryan people.
Siddharta Gautama
Buddha and Buddhism
Around 566 BC, Siddharta Guatama was born into the warrior or Kshatriya
caste. He was a prince who was kept isolated inside a beautiful palace and not
allowed to see the real world. One day he left the walls of his palace and saw
the pain and misery of life. He decided from then on that he needed to find a
way of living that would allow people to find peace in life. He spent many years
trying different ways of life, following different philosophies. Finally he came up
with his own way, which is now called Buddhism. Gautama became known as
Buddha, which means “enlightened one.” He developed the Four Noble
Truths and The Eightfold Path. These are rules to live by that help people live
morally and find the “middle path,” without too much pain, or too much
pleasure.

Buddhism is one of the world's oldest religions, developed in India in the sixth
century BC around the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha. The
name of the founder of Buddhism was Siddhartha Gautama, with Buddha being
an honorific title given to him after he attained Samma-Sambodhi (perfect
enlightenment).

The Buddha was neither a god nor a prophet. While he was a prince, he was
still an ordinary man, awakened to the highest truth by his own efforts. He did
not claim to be a saviour. Instead, he exhorted his followers to depend upon
themselves and work out their own salvation. According to him, 'You yourself
must make the effort; Buddhas only point the way’.
Bengal under Magadha empires

Nanda Empire (c. 345 – 322 BCE)

The Nanda empire under Mahapadma
Nanda overextended to its peak.
Nanda started imperial conquest of
Bharatvarsh. He occupied and
defeated local kingdoms of Bengal.
The Nanda empire appears to have
stretched from present-day Punjab in
the west to Odisha and Bengal in the
east. According to the Jain tradition,
the Nanda minister conquered the
entire country up to the coastal areas.
Maurya Empire (c. 322 – 185 BCE)

The Mauryan Empire amalgamated most of the Indian subcontinent into

one state for the first time and was one of the largest empires in
subcontinental history. The empire was established by Chandragupta
Maurya. Under Mauryan rule, the economic system benefited from the
creation of a single efficient system of finance, administration, and
security. The reign of Ashoka accompanied an era of social harmony,
religious transformation, and expansion of the sciences and of knowledge.
Chandragupta Maurya's embrace of Jainism increased social and religious
renewal and reform across his society, while Ashoka's embrace of
Buddhism has been said to have been the foundation of the reign of social
and political peace and non-violence across the subcontinent. Ashoka
sponsored the spreading of Buddhist missionaries to various parts of Asia.
The Mauryans built the Grand Trunk Road, one of Asia's oldest and
longest major roads connecting the Indian subcontinent with Central Asia.
 Ashoka
Ashoka the Great (r. 268-232 BCE) was the third king of the Mauryan
Empire (322-185 BCE) best known for his renunciation of war,
development of the concept of dhamma (pious social conduct), and
promotion of Buddhism as well as his effective reign of a nearly pan-
Indian political entity.

At its height, under Ashoka, the Mauryan Empire overextended from

modern-day Iran through almost the entirety of the Indian subcontinent.
Ashoka was able to rule this vast empire initially through the precepts of
the political treatise known as the Arthashastra attributed to the Prime
Minister Chanakya (also known as Kautilya and Vishnugupta, 350-275
BCE) who served under Ashoka's grandfather Chandragupta ( 321-c.297
BCE) who founded the empire.

He is said to have been particularly ruthless early in his reign until he

launched a campaign against the Kingdom of Kalinga in c. 260 BCE
which resulted in such carnage, destruction, and death that Ashoka
renounced war and, in time, converted to Buddhism, devoting himself to
peace as exemplified in his concept of dhamma. Most of what is known of
him, outside of his edicts, comes from Buddhist texts which treat him as a
model of conversion and virtuous behavior.
 Chanakya
also known as Kautilya and
Vishnugupta (350-275 BCE)

Chanakya (l. c. 350-275 BCE, also known as Kautilya and Vishnugupta)

was prime minister under the reign of Chandragupta Maurya (r. c. 321-
c.297 BCE), founder of the Mauryan Empire (322-185 BCE). He is best
known as the author of the political treatise Arthashastra which he wrote as
an instruction manual for the young Chandragupta on how to rule
effectively.
The Arthashastra is considered Chanakya's training manual by which he
transformed Chandragupta from a citizen to a monarch. The precepts of
the Arthashastra not only enabled Chandragupta to seize power but to
maintain it, passing it down to his son, Bindusara (r. 297-c.273 BCE) and
then to his grandson Ashoka the Great (r. 268-232 BCE) whose initial
success can also be attributed to the Arthashastra until he grew disillusioned
by war and converted to Buddhism. The Arthashastra is informed by the
philosophical school of Charvaka (developed c. 600 BCE) which rejected
the supernatural explanation of phenomena in favor of a completely
materialistic world view. The practical, hands-on, nature of
the Arthashastra most likely could never have developed without the
foundation of Charvaka to build on.

A sculpture of ancient Bengal found in Chandraketugarh
Classical Bengal
Gupta Empire
The Gupta Empire is regarded as a Golden Age in
subcontinental history. It was marked by extensive
scientific and cultural advancements that crystallized
the elements of what is generally known as Hindu
culture. The Hindu numeral system, a positional
numeral system, originated during Gupta rule and
was later transmitted to the West through the Arabs.
Early Hindu numerals had only nine symbols, until
600 to 800 CE, when a symbol for zero was
developed for the numeral system. The peace and
prosperity created under leadership of Guptas
enabled the pursuit of scientific and artistic endeavors
in the empire. Bengal was an important province of
the Gupta Empire. The discovery of Gupta era coins
across Bengal point to a monetized economy.
Historians once regarded the Gupta
period as the classical age of India
during which the norms of Indian
literature, art, architecture, and
philosophy were established—but many
of those assumptions have been
challenged by more extensive studies of
Indian society and culture between the
Mauryan and Gupta periods. Among the
products traditionally thought to be from
the Gupta era were the decimal system
of notation, the great Sanskrit epics,
and Hindu art, along with contributions
to the sciences of astronomy,
mathematics, and metallurgy.
Administratively, the Gupta kingdom was divided into
provinces, and these in turn were divided into smaller
units called pradeshas or vishayas. The provinces were
governed by high imperial officers or members of the
royal family. A decentralized system of authority is
indicated by the composition of Gupta-era municipal
boards.
Gupta had developed advancements in Science,
Engineering, art, dialectics, literature, logic,
mathematics, astronomy, religion, and philosophy. The
golden age brought more knowledge including architects
making amazing temples and structures.
Contributions in the field of Mathematics
The Gupta Period scientists made some of the most notable contributions to the
field of Mathematics. The most significant of these contributions was the decimal
system of notation discovery. Based on the principle of the place value of the first
nine numbers, this notation system also depended upon the use of zero. This
ancient Indian empire also saw Geometry attaining great heights. It was because of
the numerous theorems related to circles and triangles. Still, the most appreciated
work in Mathematics was by the Aryabhatta scientists in the Gupta Empire. In
499 AD, the Aryabhatta scientists in the Gupta Empire wrote the Aryabhattiyam.
It was majorly about algebra, geometry, and mathematics. The list of achievements
of the Gupta empire in the field of Mathematics does not end here, as the period
also witnessed the cultivation of Trigonometry. The period is also said to have
witnessed the rise of Indians over the Greeks as far as Mathematics is concerned.

Achievements in the field of Medicine

When it comes to medicine, the most important works were the Charaka Samhita
by Charaka and the Sushruta Samhita by Susruta. The two placed high ideals for
physicians and suggested that a physician must be a yogi and not charge high for
his prescriptions. They suggested that a physician should be kind and support
mankind, i.e., he must not be partial to people based on their social class or
economical status. During the Gupta period, the process of distillation and the use
of disinfectants was discovered by Nagarjuna. By now, the smallpox vaccination
was also introduced. The surgical field also noticed a rise as the doctors could
amputate and improve deformed ears and noses. Numerous surgical instruments
were developed.
Gupta Art
Tolerance led to flowering of Buddhist Art under Gupta
Dynasty. Distinctive Gupta Buddhist style. Figures were
elongated, idealized. Faces had distant, meditative gazes.
Expressed ideals of restraint, discipline, harmony.
Characterized by “a turning inward, an ability to
communicate higher spiritual states…”
Most famous paintings are from Ajanta Caves. Supported
by a kingdom aligned with the Guptas through marriage,
usually understood as part of Gupta legacy.
Great universities of Nalanda and Vikramasila established,
receive influx of students from all over the world.
Astronomy under the Gupta Empire
The principal astronomers of this period were Varahamihira
and Aryabhatta. One of the notable discoveries by
Aryabhatta was that the moon comes over the shadow of
the earth or between the earth, which caused the eclipses.
He is known to be much more advanced than the
astronomers of Europe, and he soon began composing his
work Panchasiddhahtikain 505 AD. The astronomers and
scientists of the Gupta period are also credited with the
achievement they discovered that there were seven
planets in the solar system.
Contributions to the Astrological Field
The Vriddhi Garga Samhita, an assortment of old-fashioned
Indian learning and sciences, is the leading work before
Varahamihira’s Brihat Samhita. Other than the areas on
astrology in the Brihat Samhita, Varahamihira likewise made
four different works related to astrology, which manage
favourable muhurtas for marriage, and propitious omens for
the endeavours of lords and the hour of man’s birth to the
world, and its effect on his future.
Chemistry and Metallurgy under the Gupta Empire
Although no books from the Gupta age are found related to
Chemistry and metallurgy, Nagarjuna is considered a great
chemist. Also, the Iron Pillar near Qutub Minar from the
Gupta period depicts the metallurgical skills of the people of
that time.
The Gupta Age saw a great religious
upheaval affecting all faiths and all people.
This upheaval vastly influenced the
literature, philosophy, art and architecture,
promoting their development in many ways.

Ancient India brought inventions, ideas,

philosophies, art and social and cultural
traditions that have spread throughout
many of the world’s cultures. This huge
subcontinent with its rich and varied history
was certainly one of the greatest early
civilizations in the world.