Takht-i-Bahi Inscription and Parthian Rule in Pakistan

Post-Mauryan Developments in Ancient India

• The Takht-i-Bahi inscription, dated 45 AD, is an important inscription indicating Parthian rule in northwestern Pakistan.
• The inscription refers to Gondophernes or Gondophares as a Parthian ruler.
• Gondophernes is associated with St. Thomas, who converted him and his brother to Christianity.

The Kushanas

• The Kushanas originally belonged to western China and were also called Yueh-chis.
• They defeated the Shakas and Pahlavas and created a big empire in Pakistan.
• The first prominent ruler of the Kushana dynasty was Kujula Kadphises.
• He was succeeded by his son Wema Kadphises, and then Kanishka, who is the most famous of the Kushanas.
• Kanishka probably ascended the throne in 78 AD and started a new era, now known as the Shaka era.
• Under Kanishka, the Kushana empire reached its maximum territorial limits, extending from Central Asia to north India.
• The empire included Varanasi, Kaushambi, and Sravasti in Uttar Pradesh.

The Satavahanas

• The Satavahanas had their capital at Pratishthana (modern Paithan) near Aurangabad in Maharashtra.
• The Satavahana kingdom was divided into subdivisions called aharas or rashtras, meaning districts.
• The lowest level of administration was a grama, which was under the charge of a Gramika.
• There were also officers called amatyas who were perhaps ministers or advisors of the king.
• Revenue was collected both in cash and kind.
• The Satavahanas were the first in Indian history to make tax-free land grants to Buddhists and Brahmanas to gain religious merit.
• The Satavahana kings claimed to be Brahmanas and considered it their primary duty to uphold the varna system.

Guilds and Artisans

• The communities of merchants were organized into groups known as Shreni or guilds under the head called sreshthi.
• Another type of mercantile group was called sartha, which signified mobile or caravan trading corporation of interregional traders.
• The leader of such a guild was called sarthavaha.
• Like merchants, almost all craft vocations were also organized into guilds, each under a headman called Jyestha.
• These included weavers, corn dealers, bamboo workers, oil manufacturers, potters, etc.
• The guilds were basically associations of merchants and craftsmen following the same profession or dealing in the same commodity.
• They elected their head and framed their own rules regarding prices and quality, etc., to regulate their business on the basis of mutual goodwill.

Art and Architecture

• Art in the post-Mauryan period was predominantly religious.
• The Sangam literature, composed between 300 BC and 300 AD, is a remarkable feature of this period.
• It vividly portrays the contemporary society and culture of Tamilaham, or Tamil region, and its peaceful and harmonious interaction with the northern (Aryan) culture.

The Tamil Region

• Tamilaham stretches between the hills of Tirupati and the tip of Kanyakumari.
• It was divided amongst large number of chieftains, and the chieftainship was hereditary.
• The important chieftains who dominated the Tamil region during the Sangam Age were the Cholas, with their capital at Uraiyur, the Cheras with their capital at Vanji, and the Pandyas with their capital at Madurai.
• The Cholas, Pandyas, and Cheras had several subordinate chiefs.
• The discovery of monsoons and the use of direct sea routes between Indian coasts and the western world led to the growth of trade in this region.
• It led to the rise of important towns and craft centers in the Tamil region.
• Vanji, identified with the present-day Karur in Tamil Nadu, was the capital of the Cheras and an important center of trade and craft.
• Muzris, i.e., Cranganore on the south-west coast, was the foremost port of the Cheras.
• Madurai, the capital of the Pandyas, is described in the Sangam poems as a large city enclosed by a wall.
• It was an important center of fine textile and ivory working.
• Korkai, in the Tirunnelveli district of Tamil Nadu, was an important Pandya port.
• It was famous for its pearls.
• Uraiyur (Tiruchirapalli in Tamil Nadu), the capital of the Cholas, was a grand city with magnificent buildings.
• Kaveripattinam or Puhar was the main Chola port.
• The Sangam poems refer to the busy markets guarded by soldiers.

Religion

• The Sangam period witnessed a close and peaceful interaction between north Indian and south Indian traditions.
• The Brahmanas who performed religious ceremonies popularized the worship of Indra, Visnu, Siva, etc., in south India.
• There are also references to the presence of Buddhists and Jainas in the Tamil region.
• The local people, particularly those of the hills, worshipped a deity called Murugan, which in northern India came to be identified with Kartikeya, a war god.