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POST MAURYAN EMPIRE

SUNGAS

Post Mauryan India

After Ashoka’s death, his successors were not able to keep the vast Mauryan kingdom intact. Provinces started declaring independence. N-W India slipped out of Mauryan control & a series of foreign invasion affected this region.

Sungas

Sungas

From some Puranic descriptions as well as from the famous work ‘Harsha Charita’, written by Bana several centuries later, that the last King of the Maurya Dynasty named Brihadratha was killed by his own General named Pushyamitra Sunga in about 185 or 186 B.C. the meaning of "sunga" is the fig tree in sanskrit. so sungas took their dynastic name from the fig tree.

ORIGIN

ORIGIN

  • There is no clear evidence regarding the origins of sungas.
  • Patanjali in his Mahabhashya and Panini in his Ashtadhyayi clearly states Pushyamitra Sunga was a Brahmin from Bhardwaj Gotra.
  • There are many references of the Sunga teachers in the vedic texts

Pushyamitra Sunga

About

  • According to the Puranas, Pushyamitra belong to the Sunga family who were Brahmins.
  • The coins and Greek accounts show that the economic condition was deteriorating and personal character of the later Mauryan Kings was not exemplary.
  • This popular discontent increased when the Mauryans could not protect the empire against the Bactrian Greeks.
  • Pushyamitra took undue advantage of the circumstances of the Mauryans. Thus, he seized the throne and founded the Sunga dynasty.
  • pushyamitra became the ruler of magadha.

Conquest of Vidarbha

  • The first event of Pushyamitra's reign was his conflict with Vidarbha, a new kingdom established in the Deccan.
  • Taking advantage of the confusion that prevailed in the country after the downfall of the Mauryan dynasty, Yajnasena, the ruler of Vidarbha, became independent. A fierce battle was fought in which Yajnasena was defeated and was obliged to acknowledge the suzerainty of the Sunga ruler.

Ashvamedha Sacrifice

To proclaim his sovereignty, Pushyamitra undertook the performance of "Ashvamedha" (horse sacrifice). This Vedic sacrifice was regarded as a symbol of royal power and glory. there is a reference to the performance of this sacrifice in Patanjali's "Mahabhasya".

Was Pushyamitra Defeated?

Pushyamitra's defeats as described by Prof. Rapson are assumptions.

Was Pushyamitra Defeated?

first thought that he lost Ujjain to the Andra monarch Satakarni I. He relied on Andra coins bearing the name Sata and identifiies Sata with Satakarni I.

The second discovery is proved erroneous. He believe dthat Sata is an abbreviation of Satavahanas and does not stand for satkarni.

The Jain traditions preserved by Merutunga counts Pushyamitra amongst the rulers and they believed he ruled for 30 years.

Extent of the Empire

The Sunga empire under Pushyamitra Sunga included the central portion of the old Mauryan Empire and extended as far as Narmada and Vidarbha in the south. According to "Divyavadana" and "Taranatha" his empire extended to Jalandhar and Sakala(Sialkot) in the Punjab. The Sunga Empire included 3 important cities: Pataliputra, Ayodhya and Vidisa.

Persecution of the Buddhists

  • Following the Mauryans, the first Brahmin emperor was Pushyamitra Shunga, and is believed by some historians to have persecuted Buddhists and contributed to a resurgence of Brahmanism that forced Buddhism outwards.
  • Buddhist scripture such as the "Asokavadana" account of the "Divyavadana" and ancient Tibetan historian Taranatha have written about persecution of Buddhists.

  • Pushyamitra is said to have burned down Buddhist monasteri...
  • Pushyamitra is said to have burned down Buddhist monasteries, destroyed stupas, massacred Buddhist monks and put rewards on their heads, but some consider these stories as probable exaggerations.
  • The Buddhists disliked Pushyamitra because he revived Brahmanism. He revived Brahmanic rituals and sacrifices. It is true that Pushyamitra was a strong supporter of Brahmanic religion. But there is nothing to show that he did it at the cost of Buddhism.

Successors

After a long and eventful reign of nearly 36 years, Pushyamitra died in or about 151 BC. The following were his successors:

Successors

  • Agnimitra
  • Sujyeshtha
  • Vasumitra
  • Andhraka
  • Pulindaka
  • Ghosha
  • Vajramitra
  • Bhagavata
  • Devabhuti

Agnimitra

  • Agnimitra was the second king of the sunga dynasty. he succeeded his father, pushyamitra sunga
  • he was the hero of kalidasa's play "malavikaagnimitra".
  • agnimitra had been governing vidisa or eastern malva during his father's reign.
  • the uneventful reign of agnimitra lasted for eight years.

Other Rulers

  • Agnimitra was succeeded by Sujyestha. He ruled for seven years. There is no much information about him and his reign.
  • The fourth Sunga ruler was Vasumitra,the son of Agnimitra.
  • The next three names in Puranic list, Andhraka, Pulindaka and Ghosa, do not belong to the Sunga family and may have crept mistakely in the list.
  • Vajramitra ruled for nine years,but no events have been recorded of his reign.
  • After a long reign of 32 years, Bhagavata was succeeded by Devabhuti in 82 BC

Other Rulers

Downfall of the Sunga Empire

Devabhuti ruled for 10 years till 72 BC. According to Bana, Devabhuti was fond ...

Devabhuti ruled for 10 years till 72 BC. According to Bana, Devabhuti was fond of women and became victim of a conspiracy hatched by his Brahmin minister, Vasudeva.

He was killed by a slave-girl who approached him in the guise of a queen.

This brought about the downfall of the Sunga dynasty. However, thought the Sungas lost Magadha, they did not altogether disappear from the stage of Indian history.

Significance of the Sunga Period

  • The Sungas did not play any great role in Indian history. Nevertheless, the Sunga period had certain significant achievements.
  • The bactrian greeks cultivated friendly relations with the sungas.
  • the sunga period is also noteworthy for the progress in art and architecture.
  • the fine gateway railings that surround the sanchi stupa, built by ashoka, are attributed to the patronage extended by the sunga rulers.

THANK YOU

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