Introduction

Towards the end of the Vedic period, tribal allegiance had begun to make away for territorial
allegiance and the loyalty of the people was getting transferred from tribal organizations to
polito-geographical units. Such a development was also reflected in a relationship between the
raja and others based on reciprocity rather than kinship, but it also indicated the emergence of
a class of non-kinsmen who eventually became the cronies of the raja contributing towards
the concentration of authority in the throne. By the middle of the Sixth century B.C., political
Janapadas, some with fairly well-defined boundaries, came into existence and the headquarters
of these Janapadas remained no longer rural.
Some of these Janapadas soon grew into Mahajanapadas with more than one urban settlement.
The legal and ideological outfit in these Mahajanapadas was supported by a well-defined caste
system under which the producers were saddled with economic obligations as well as social
disabilities. Such a mechanism functioned through the establishment of a professional army
and an administrative set-up that collected taxes and punished crimes against property,
family, and social order. The transition from chiefships to kingdoms is linked to two phases.
First, is the performance of major sacrifices, Yajnas, where the priests bestowed a divine status
on the chief (raja). The second phase is the emergence of the state in the form of Janapadas and
mahajanapadas.t Starting with the middle Ganga zone and its periphery, this phenomenon
became universal in the whole of India by the fourth century BC.
The earliest methodical postulation regarding the origin of the state has been made in the
Ambattha and the Agganna suttantas of the Digha Nikaya which belong to the earliest strata
of the Pali literature1. Here it has been pointed out that as a result of the origin of private
property and other social evils the golden age became gradually corroded. Consequently,
people got together and elected a male from among themselves to be their ruler so that he may
maintain order. In lieu of his services, he was granted the right to collect one-sixth of the
produce. Since such an orderly model of the origin of state was propounded only when the state
had become a firmly-established institution. In other words, state had come into origin before
the Buddha and Mahavira began their ministries.
The fiscal and administrative pattern reflected in the Pali texts, especially in majority of the
Jatakas, belongs to the Mahajanapadas period. In this literature, the use of terms such as
vetana/ bhattavetana (wages or professional fee) donamapaka (official responsible for the
measuring of revenue.) mahantasenagutta (chancellor of the exchequer), bhogagama (a
tributary village), rasika (revenue), donamapaka (minister measuring the revenue with dona),
rajabali (kingís share, revenue.), rajabhaga (kingís share), samudaya (revenue), bali (tax,
revenue.). sunka (toll tax, customs); sunkaghata (customsí frontier), sunkatthana (custom’s
house.) and so on…. helped in running the affairs of the state and maintaining law and order at
different levels of governing.
Texts of the mahajanapada period indicate that now the chief advisors of the kings did not
necessarily belong to the families of the heads of the state. For instance, Vassakara, the prime
minister of Ajatasattu, was a brahmana. Moreover, collaboration and integration of the
dominant with the defeated chiefs can also be seen during the mahajanapada period. Further,
the use of terms such as senanayaka (army general, minister of defence), anika army., anikattha
(royal guard.), anikadassana (troop inspection.), caturini (army consisting of hatthi-assa-
ratha-patti, i.e., elephants, chariots, cavalry and infantry and so on… indicates towards the
existence of professional armies. Apart from Magadha, at least five states in the north-western
part of the Indian subcontinent possessed well-organized military systems in the pre-Mauryan
period.
The existence of a variety of states in the sixth century BC is demonstrated in the early Pali
and Prakrit texts through the use of terms such as janapada, mahajanapada, rattha,
antararattha, tirorattha, desa, padesa, janapadapadesa, mahapadesa, gana, and samgha.

Janapadas
The term janapada in the context of the mahajanapada period meant a land where people lived
through many generations and were linked to each other not only through blood and geography
but also through customs, religious rituals, and dialects It was made up of a number of nagaras
(cities) nigamas (trading centres), and gamas (villages) and was based on a gemeinschaft-type
of society. Formed naturally, it neither had any well-defined territorial bounds nor did it include
uninhabited places, such as ghost towns and wasteland. In other words, primary meaning of
the term janapada in the context of the mahajanapada period may be taken as “cleared land”,
with strong kin and geographical ties. Thus, dakkhinajanapada was used in the Pali texts
vaguely to indicate the region of south India2.

Rattha
The term rattha means “a systematized kingdom” and was a gesellschaft-type of society
formed artificially for the purpose of governance. Thus, a rattha was an artificial society over
which a king’s rule extended; it was a proto gesellschaft-type of society with a far more
precisely defined territory and social organization than a janapada. Hence, a tirorattha was a
foreign kingdom and an antararattha, a subordinate kingdom, both with defined territories but
the latter existing as a vassal state.

Mahajanapadas
A mahajanapada, in its pristine stage, was not only much larger in size than a janapada as is
indicated by the term itself, it also appears to have taken on rattha-like characteristics and may
be considered as a proto-gesellschaft institution. However, under King Ajatasattu, the
mahajanapada of the Magadhas as well as the Vijjian Republic had become fully grown
gemeinschaft-type states with professional armies and administrative and judicial machinery.

Desa
The term desa in the pre-Mauryan context may be translated as country but basically as a
gemeinschaft-type society, formed naturally but with no clear territorial bounds. A good
example of this is the Majjhimadesa which included fourteen of the sixteen mahajanapadas
at the time of the Buddha and extended in the east to the town of Kajangala (Kankjol in Bihar),
on the south-east to the river Salalavati; on the south-west to the town of Setakannika; on the
west to the brahmana village of Thuna (Thaneshvar in Haryana); on the north to the
Usiraddhaja Mountain.
Terms such as padesa (district, region.) mahapadesa (province.), janapadapadesa (a rural
district) appear to have been used in the proto-gemeinschaft sense in the pre-Mauryan context.
 Gana and Sangh
The words gana and samgha have been use in the sense of republican form of government in
the Pali and Prakrit texts. The Vinaya Pitaka provides invaluable data on the organization of
the Buddhist samgha whose rules and regulations were adopted from the republican states of
the time of the Buddha and Mahavira. Both gana and samgha are synonymous words and have
been defined by scholars as “republics”, “republics with either complete or modified
independence”, states with “republican or oligarchic constitution”, a republican or quasi
republican form of government in which the supreme power of the state was vested in a
considerable portion of the population so qualified only on account of their birth, property or
merit. In short, it was a government by discussion.

Sixteen Mahajanapadas

The early Pali texts often mention the following sixteen mahajanapadas (solasa
mahajanapada) that existed at the time of the Buddha:
Anga, Magadha, Kasi, Kosala, Vajji, Malla, Ceti, Vamsa, Kuru, Panchala, Maccha, Surasena,
Assaka, Avanti, Gandhara, Kamboja
The first fourteen are included in the Majjhimadesa, the last two being in Uttarapatha. In the
Janavasabha Suttanta of the Digha Nikaya, only ten mahajanapadas are given and the first
two and the last four are omitted. However, the first two mahajanapadas are mentioned
separately in the same suttanta. The Niddesa adds Kalinga to the list of sixteen (hence making
seventeen) but substitutes Yona for Gandhara. The Jaina Bhagavati Sutra, which is a late text,
also gives a list of sixteen mahajanapadas. But majority of the names are somewhat different:
Anga, Banga, Magadha, Malaya, Malava, Accha, Vaccha, Kocchaka, Padha, Ladha, Bajji,
Moli, Kasi, Kosala, Avaha and Sambhuttara.
Apart from the above stated mahajanapadas, early Pali and Prakrit texts also mention the
following ganas/samghas that existed at the time of the Buddha:
1. Licchavis of Vaisali
2. Videhas of Mithila
3. The Sakyas of Kapilavatthu
4. Koliyas of Ramagama
5. Moriyas of Pipphalivana
6. Mallas of Kusinara
7. Mallas of Pava
8. Kalamas of Kesaputta
9. Bulis of Allakappa
10. Bhaggas of Sumsumaragiri
11. Nayas of Kundapura
Of these republics only the Licchavis and the Mallas are included in the list of the sixteen
mahajanapadas. The others, including the Sakyas, among whom the Buddha was born, are
not included in the list of the Solasa Mahajanapadas.

Anga
This mahajanapada was located to the east of Magadha from which it was separated by the
river Campa (the present Chandan Nala). D. K. Chakrabarti feels that Kiul River most
probably formed the boundary between Magadha and Anga. It had its capital at Champa,
identified with Nathnagar locality of Bhagalpur. Other than Campa, Bhaddiya and Assapura
were two important cities of this mahajanapada. Bhaddiya is identified with Bhadariya, located
about eight miles south of Bhagalpur. Early Buddhist texts mention it as Anga, i.e.,
mahajanapada of the Anga people. But in the commentaries, it is referred to as a rattha
indicating that at the time of the Buddha, it was a proto-gemeinschaft type of state. At the time
of the Buddha, the king of the Anga people appears to have been merely a wealthy nobleman
who had the authority only to grant pensions to a brahmana and such things. A janapada called
Anguttarapa, located to the north of the river Mahi, was most probably a part of Anga on the
other side of the river Mahi.
This janapada possibly comprised the districts of Begusarai, Saharsa, and Purnea of Bihar. As
Anguttarapa and Apana are always mentioned together, it seems Apana was the main urban
centre in Anguttarapa and possibly its rajadhani (capital) and a marketplace (nigama)
connecting north and south Bihar. The Samyutta Nikaya, mentions Apana as a nigama of the
Anga country. It appears Apana was situated to the north of the Ganga in the modern Purnea or
Saharsa district of Bihar and may be identified with Sikligarh near Banmankhi.

Magadha
According to Buddhaghosa, Magadha mahajanapada received its name from a tribe of
khattiyas called Magadha. Initially, Rajagaha was its capital which was later shifted to
Pataliputta. The core of the state was the area of modern Bihar south of the Ganga. At the time
of the Buddha, Magadha mahajanapada was bounded on the south by the Vindhya mountains,
on the west by the river Sona, on the north by the Ganga, and on the east by the river Champa,
the state of Anga being beyond the Champa. Sona formed the boundary between Magadha and
the Licchavis, and both the states evidently had equal rights over the river. In most of the pre-
Buddhist Brahmanical texts, Magadha was viewed as falling outside the pale of “Ariyan” and
Brahmanical culture, and was therefore looked down upon by Brahmanical writers. According
to one of the Jatakas, the state of Magadha was initially under the suzerainty of Anga.
According to early Buddhist texts, Magadha and Anga together consisted of eighty thousand
villages at the Buddha’s time and had a circumference of about three hundred yojanas. The
cornfields of Magadha were rich and fertile and it was known for a special kind of garlic. In
Saratthappakasini, the commentary of the Samyutta Nikaya, it has been mentioned that the
people of Anga and Magadha had a practice of performing a sacrifice annually to God
Mahabrahma in which a fire was kindled with sixty cartloads of firewood. These people held
the belief that anything cast into the sacrificial fire would bring a thousandfold reward.
Magadha was the cradle of two of India’s major religions, Jainism and Buddhism and it was
from here that they spread to different parts of the Indian subcontinent. The Buddha’s chief
disciples, Sariputta and Moggallana, were natives of Magadha. Two of India’s greatest
empires, the Maurya Empire and the Gupta Empire originated from Magadha. However, the
information available on the early rulers of Magadha is very scanty. According to the Puranas,
the Magadha Empire was established by the Brihadratha, who was the sixth in line from
Emperor Kuru of the Bharata dynasty.
The Brihadrathas were succeeded by the Pradyotas who in turn were followed by the Haryanka
dynasty. It appears that Magadha was ruled by the Haryanka dynasty for some 200 years, its
most important kings being Seniya Bimbisara and Ajatasattu, both of whom were
contemporaries of the Buddha. Bimbisara was responsible for expanding the boundaries of his
kingdom through matrimonial alliances and conquest. The states of Anga and Kasi became part
of Magadha during his reign. Ajatasattu is credited with building the fortress of Pataliputta,
which later became the capital of Magadha. The Avasyaka Sutra mentions that Ajatasatru
humbled Kosala and permanently annexed Kasi and also absorbed the state of Vaisali. Under
Bimbisara and Ajatasattu, Magadha rose to such political eminence that for several centuries
the history of northern India was practically the history of Magadha. The Haryanka dynasty
was overthrown by the Sisunaga dynasty. The last ruler of Sisunaga dynasty, Kalasoka, was
assassinated by Mahapadma Nanda, the first of the so-called Nine Nandas (Mahapadma and
his eight sons). The Nanda Dynasty is said to have ruled for about 100 years. Around 321 BC,
the Nanda dynasty was ended by Chandragupta who became the first king of the great Mauryan
dynasty.

Kasi
The mahajanapada of the Kasi, with an extent of three hundred yojanas, had its capital at
Baranasi. It consisted of the present-day Ballia, Azamgarh, Ghazipur, Varanasi itself, and parts
of the districts of Jaunpur and Mirzapur. At the time of the Buddha, it had been absorbed into
the Kosala mahajanapada under King Pasenadi who ruled over the two mahajanapadas jointly.
However, as the Vinaya Pitaka refers to a king of Kasi (Kasika-raja) who sent a gift of a robe
to Jivaka, the king of this mahajanapada may have continued as a vassal-king of Pasenadi.
Recurrent and protracted wars between the mahajanapadas of Kasi and Kosala have been
mentioned in the Pali texts and in one such war, the Kosala king Dighati lost to the Kasi king.
However, later Dighatiís son Dighavu reconquered Kashi. There is also a reference to another
war between the two sides in which the Kosalan king defeated the king of Kasi, Mahasilava,
and took him prisoner. But later Mahasilava was able to get his kingdom back. Other than Kiki
and Kalabu whose names are mentioned in the Jatakas as the kings of Kasi, the traditional name
of Brahmadatta as the king of Kasi is given in numerous Jatakas.
According to the Jatakas, there was also a time when king Manoja of Kasi was able to subdue
the kings of Assaka, Kosala, Anga, and Magadha. During the pre-Buddhist period, protracted
wars for supremacy between the rulers of Kasi and Kosala are said to have taken place which
culminated in the annexation of Kasi into Kosala under King Kamsa. Later, Mahakosala, father
of Pasenadi, appears to have been in control of Kasi as he gave it in dowry to Bimbisara, the
king of Magadha. Baranasi was a harbour (pattana) and was one of the six metropolitan cities
(mahanagaras) at the time of the Buddha.
Baranasi is mentioned in early Buddhist texts as a wealthy and prosperous place which was
the centre of trade and industry and was particularly known for its manufacture of ships,
sandalwood, and cloths where various kinds of businessmen (setthanusetthi) lived. Hundreds
of merchants are said to have frequented Baranasi harbour to buy cargo and from where rich
merchants are said to have sailed to Suvannabhumi. Existence of locations, such as ivory-
workers street (dantakaravithi) within the city of Varanasi and villages, such as a carpenter”
village (vaddhakigama) near its four gates indicate toward the existence of commercial
importance of this city.
According to one of the Jatakas, Varanasi was properly defended with rampart wall, gates,
towers, moats, and battlement. According to the Mahagovinda Sutta of the Digha Nikaya,
when Mahagovinda, the brahmana chaplain of King Renu, divided his empire, the
administration of Kasi mahajanapada fell into the hands of Dhatarattha who is represented as
a king of the line of Bharata. B.C. Law is of the opinion that the Bharata line of the Kasi kings
appears to have been supplanted by a new line of kings called the Brahmadattas who were
probably of Videhan origin.

Kosala
This mahajanapada, with its capital at Savatthi, was located to the north-west of Magadha and
in the neighbourhood of Kasi mahajanapada. The geographical unit of Kosala consisted of
large territory, divided into two parts: Dakkhina Kosala lying to the south of the river Sarabhu
(Sarayu) with Saketa/Ayojjha (Ayodhya) as its principal city and Uttara Kosala which lay to
the north of Sarayu with Savatthi as its major focus. The western boundary of Kosala could
have extended up to Sultanpur and possibly even up to Jaunpur on the one hand and up to the
Ganga on the other. Apart from Sarabhu and its tributary Aciravati, Sundarika/Bahuka is
mentioned as an important river that flowed through Kosala.
Many of the Vinaya rules were formulated in Kosala and the Buddha spent majority of his
vassavasas (rainy-retreats) near Savatthi. At the time of the Buddha, Kosala was a powerful
kingdom under king Pasenadi, who was succeeded by his son Vidudabha. Different kings of
Kasi and Kosala are mentioned as having protracted wars for territorial hegemony in the pre-
Buddhist period. There are also references in the Pali literature to the kings of these two
mahajanapadas having entered into matrimonial alliances.
The different kings of Kosala who fought wars against Kasi are mentioned as Dighiti Mallika,
and Chatta. Many other Kosala kings who are mentioned in the Jatakas as having successfully
subdued Kasi are mentioned as Dabbasena, Dighavu, Kamsa, and Vanka. The final annexation
of Kasi into Kosala appears to have taken place either under Kamsa or Mahakosala, father of
Pasenadi. It appears that with the capture of Kasi the power of Kosala increased rapidly.
However, this development seems to have put Kosala on a collision path with Magadha
which was also having territorial ambitions as Kosala. In the sixth century BC the Sakyas also
appear to have been subject to Kosala. For instance, in some of the Pali texts not only that the
Buddha is mentioned as a Kosalan but Kapilavatthu is also mentioned as being in Kosala.
Vajji
The mahajanapada of the Vajji people, with its headquarters at Vesali, was a confederacy of
several clans among whom the clans of the Licchavis and the Videhas were the most
dominant. On the basis of a reference in the Sumangala-Vilasini that atthakulaka were
responsible for administering justice in the country of the Vajjis, it has
sometimes been conjectured that the Vajjian confederacy was composed of eight clans.
However, there is no other evidence to indicate that the number of confederate clans was indeed
eight. With the passage of time, the Licchavis appear to have become so powerful that the
names Vajji and Licchavi began to be used synonymously. According to Xuanzang, who visited
it in the seventh century, the Vajji country was broad from east to west and narrow from north
to south. The Vajjian territory was bounded on the north and the east by the Bagmati river and
the entire area between the Gandaka and Bagmati lay in the Vajji territory thus including
the present Begusarai, Samastipur, Muzaffarpur, Motihari and Betiah in the Vajji
mahajanapada.
The river Vaggumuda flowed through the Vajjian mahajanapada. At the time of the Buddha,
the Vajjians were a prosperous and powerful mahajanapada. This was so according to the
Buddha because the different clans were united among themselves. However, shortly after the
death of the Buddha, Ajatasattu with the help of his minister Vassakara sowed seeds of
dissension among them and annexed their territory into Magadha. Apart from
Vesali, Ukkacela, Kotigama, Nadika, Beluvagama, Bhandagama, Bhogagama, and Hatthigama
were important settlements of the Vajjian confederacy.

Malla
The republican mahajanapada of the Mallas was located in the Gorakhpur district of Uttar
Pradesh, covering the territory between the Licchavis of Vesali and that of the Sakyas of
Kapilavatthu, the Moriyas, and the Koliyas, to the east of the Kosalas. At the Buddha’s time,
this mahajanapada appears to have been divided into autonomous parts with their respective
capitals at Pava and Kusinara, each with its own santhagara (motehall).
This has been suggested on the basis that after the death of the Buddha at Kusinara, the Mallas
of Pava had claimed a share of the Buddha’s relics. Whereas Kusinara is identified with Kasia,
Pava may be located in the Jharmatiya-Usmanpur sector rather than at Padrauna. The Buddha
took his last meal at Pava and breathed his last at Kusinara. Pava was the scene of Nigantha
Nataputta’s death. The Mallas, both of Pava and Kusinara, erected stupas over their respective
shares of the relics. of the Buddha. The Malla chiefs are said to have administered the affairs
of their state in turns. Like the Licchavis, the Malla republic appears to have fallen into the
hands of Ajatasattu, as did that of the Licchavis.

Ceti
The mahajanapada of the Cetis lay near the Yamuna, to the east, in the neighbourhood of
and adjoining the Kuru mahajanapada. B.C. Law has suggested that it corresponded roughly
to the modern Bundelkhand and the adjoining region. Its capital located at Sotthivati
was the city from where once Upacara, the first liar in the world, ruled. The Buddha preached
several discourses to the Cetis in the town of Sahajati. On the basis of the legend on a seal-die
of terracotta found at Bhita, ten miles from Allahabad, Sahajati has been identified with Bhita.
Vamsa
The mahajanapada of the Vamsas, with its capital at Kosambi (now Kosam), lay to the south
of Kosala and north of Avanti mahajanapada. The mahajanapada of the Cetis also appears to
have been its neighbour. At the time of the Buddha, Udena was the king of the Vamsas. In some
of the texts, such as the Divyavadana, the Vamsas are also called Vatsas. The area from the
western bank of the Ganga in the Allahabad sector to the Yamuna in the Kosambi-Pabhosa
sector could have constituted the domain of Vamsa mahajanapada. The Bhaggas of
Sumsumaragiri appear to have been subject to the Vamsa at the Buddha’s time.

Kuru
The mahajanapada of the Kurus comprised broadly the area of Haryana’s districts of Kaithal,
Thanesar, Karnal, Panipat, and Sonepat and the adjoin region of Uttar Pradesh till the Ganga
where Hastinapura is located. According to the Jatakas, this mahajanapada was three hundred
yojanas in extent and its capital, Indapatta, was seven yojanas in circumference. It is said that
Kuru was originally the name of the chieftains (rajakumara) of this country, who later lent their
name to the territory. From some of the texts it appears that the earlier name of Kururattha was
Uttarakuru.
Kururattha seems to have had very little political influence at the Buddha’s time, though, in the
past, Pancala, Kuru and Kekaka were evidently three of the most powerful kingdoms. The
ruling dynasty at Indapatta belonged to the Yudhittha-gotta. Among the kings of the past,
Dhananjaya Koravya is mentioned several times. The people of Kuru had a reputation for deep
wisdom and good health, and this reputation is mentioned as the reason for the Buddha having
delivered some of his most profound discourses to the Kurus such as the Mahanidana Sutta,
and the Mahasatipatthana Sutta. Indapatta is mentioned in the early texts as the capital of
Kururattha. The original settlement of Indapatta around which the Delhi of later times
developed stood on the banks of the Yamuna, between Kotla of Firoz Shah and the tomb of
Humayun. Though city is mentioned as a puruttama (lofty fortress) located on a mount, still
its defenses are said to have been so fragile that it could be taken with a very small army.
The Jatakas point out that in times past this city was one of the three chief cities of Jambudipa
(India), the other two being Kekaka (generally identified with Girjak or Jalalpur) and
Uttarapancala (possibly the famous Kampilla). Kammasadhamma and Thullakotthi were
important nigamas (market towns), located in the neighbourhood of Indapatta which are
identified respectively with Kamaspur (Sonepat district of Haryana) and Tilpat (Faridabad
district of Haryana).

Pancala
The mahajanapada of the Pancalas, located to the east of the Kururattha, may be identified
with the territory to the north and east of Delhi, from the foot of the Himalayas to the river
Chambal excluding probably Meerut district and the Mathura-Agra segment of Uttar Pradesh.
This mahajanapada consisted of two parts, northern and southern. The northern part appears
to have been the cause of protracted conflict between the Kurus and the southern Pancala, its
possession often changing hands between the two contesting powers.
Kampilla was most probably the capital of Southern Pancala but also seems to have work as
the capital of the entire Pancala mahajanapada whenever Northern Pancala formed part of it.
Some of the sources, including the Divyavadana and the Mahabharata, mention Hastinapura
and Ahicchatra respectively as the capitals of Northern Pancala.

Maccha
The mahajanapada of the Macchas is generally mentioned along with the Surasena. The
Maccha country lay to the south or south-west of Indapatta and to the south of Surasena. Its
capital was Viratanagara or Vairat, so called because it was the city of King Virata. The Vidhura
Pandita Jataka talks of the Macchas as among those who were present at the time of the game
of dice played between Punnaka and the king of Kururattha.

Surasena
This mahajanapada, which is generally mentioned along with the Macchas, was located in the
south of Kuru mahajanapada and covered the Mathura-Agra region of Uttar Pradesh and the
adjacent areas of Rajasthan between Bharatpur and Sawai Madhopur Madhura, sometimes
mentioned as Uttaramadhura in the Pali texts, was the capital of the Surasenas and was situated
on the Yamuna. Surasena is famous in the Epics and the Puranas because of its connection with
Krisna, and the Yadavas. The Ghata Jataka confirms the Brahmanical tradition as to the
association of Vasudeva’s family with Madhura. Avantiputta, as the name indicates, appears to
have been related to the Ujjeni royal family and ruled at Madhura after the death of Bimbisara.
Madhura which was connected to Veranja/Veranji through a high road (addhanamagga),
visited by the Buddha, but there is no record of his having stayed there. According to the Buddha,
this city had too much dust, uneven ground, too many dogs, bestial yakkahas, and was short of alms.

Assaka
The mahajanapada of the Assakas (Asmakas) was located in the Dakkhinapatha (southern
India). The janapada of Alaka (or Mulaka) was located within its territories around its capital
Patitthana. This mahajanapada is generally identified with Aurangabad district and the
neighbouring areas in the present state of Maharashtra. Its capital Patitthana, variously
mentioned in the texts as Potana, Potali, and Potanagara, is identified with modern Paithan
(Kausan and other mounds) situated on the northern bank of the river Godavari.
According to a story given in one of the Jatakas, once King Kalinga of Dantapura challenged
Aruna, the Assaka king of Potali to a war in which the former lost to the latter. However, later
Kalinga’s daughter was married to the Assaka king and the two states became friends. The
Hathigumpha Inscription of Kharavela mentions that Kharavela sent a huge army towards the
west to attack Asikanagara. B.C. Law has suggested that the Assaka of the Culla-Kalinga
Jataka, the Asikanagara of the Hathigumpha Inscription, and the Assaka of the Sutta-Nipata
were one and the same place.
The famous hermitage of Bavari was located in this mahajanapada. It has been pointed out in the
commentary of the Sutta-Nipata that the plot of land on which Bavari’s hermitage was constructed was
bought at the time of the Buddha for a thousand coins from the Assaka king who was the Andhakaraja.
In the Assaka Jataka mention is made of a king Assaka whose realm was in the kingdom of Kasi. These
references seem to indicate that there may have been times when the territories of the mahajanapada
of the Assakas may have extended till the regions controlled by the Kalingas, the Kasis, and the Andhras.
Avanti
The mahajanapada of the Avanti was one of four most important mahajanapadas at the time
of the Buddha, the other three being Magadha, Kosala and Vamsa. It may be identified with
the region north of the Vindhayas Mountains and north-east of Maharashtra, roughly
corresponding to Malwa, Nimar and the adjoining region. Though mostly Ujjeni is mentioned
as the capital of this mahajanapada in the Pali texts, but sometimes Mahissati is also cited as
having been the capital. On this basis, it has been suggested that at least for some time ancient
Avanti was divided into two parts, the northern part having its capital at Ujjeni and the southern
part (Avanti Dakkhinapatha) at Mahissati.
King Pajjota of Avanti, who was a contemporary of the Buddha was notorious for his violent
temper and is known as Canda Pajjota to Pali texts. He made several attempts to defeat king
Udena of the Vamsas but could not succeed. Pali texts also refer to the rumours of his plans to
attack. During the life-time of the Buddha, Avanti appears to have become an important centre
of Buddhism and many prominent monks and nuns including Mahakaccana, Nanda
Kumaraputta, Sona Kutikanna, Dhammapala, Abhayarajakumara, Isidatta, and Isidasi came
from this state. Apart from Ujjeni and Mahissati, Kuraraghara (identified by G. Bühler with
Kurawar located 100 km west of Sachi, and Sudarsanapura were the other two important towns
of this mahajanapada. Kuraraghara was identified by G. Bühler with Kurawar, a site of
considerable size located about 100 km west of Sanchi. Avanti appears to have become part of
the Magadhan kingdom during the pre-Mauryan period.

Gandhara
The mahajanapada of the Gandhara people included within its boundaries some parts of
modern eastern Afghanistan, the whole of Khyber Pakhtunkhawa, and the Kashmir Valley, the
two countries being always mentioned together as Kasmira-Gandhara. A large number of
Jatakas mention its capital Takkasila (modern Taxila in Pakistan) as the location of a famous
university where students from far and wide came to study.
At the Buddha’s time, the extent of this state is mentioned as over one hundred yojanas and the
distance from Takkasila to Savatthi was one hundred and ninety-two yojanas Its king Pukkusati
was a contemporary of the Buddha and there was friendly relationship between him and King
Bimbisara of Magadha. There was constant exchange of goods and valuables between
Magadha and Gandhara and transit of merchandise between the two states was allowed tariff-
free. Though Gandhara was regarded as a paccantimajanapada (border region), a well-known
caravan route linked the two mahajanapadas. Gandhara also had constant trade with Videha.

Kamboja
The mahajanapada of the Kambojas, along with Gandhara, lay outside the Majjhimadesa and
belonged to the Uttarapatha (North-western Indian subcontinent). It was well-known as the
birthplace of horse which was caught by the people by means of moss. The Assalayana Sutta
of the Majjhima Nikaya states that at the time of the Buddha in the states of the Yonas and the
Kambojas as well as the adjoining states, there were only two classes of people, masters and
slaves, with mutually interchangeable positions depending upon circumstances.
It has been pointed out in the Anguttara Nikaya that Kamboja was as a place not visited by
women of other countries and according to the Jatakas, the people of Kamboja had lost their
original customs and had become barbarous. Apparently, a great caravan route passed through
this mahajanapada, and it was also directly linked to Dvaraka through a road.

Gana Sanghas
There are some important characteristics of the gana-sanghas. These are:
➢ Some gana sanghas consisted of a single clan, such as the Shakyas, Koliyas and Mallas.
➢ Some gana sanghas had many clans, such as Vrijjis and Vrishnis.
➢ Gana sanghas did not observe a varna society.
➢ Governance by the assemblies was the major political strength of the gana sanghas.
These republican states had a Gana-parishad or an Assembly of senior and responsible
citizens. This Gana-Parishad had the supreme authority in the state. All the
administrative decisions were taken by this Parishad.
➢ The rajas sat as representatives in the assembly meetings of the ruling families. He
enjoyed social and political powers.
➢ In a gana sangha land was owned by the clan, but the hired labourers and slaves worked
on it.
➢ The gana sanghas tolerated individual and independent opinions and orthodox views.
➢ The gana sanghas ruled over a small geographical area.

Licchavis
The Licchavis were a powerful state at the time of the Buddha who claimed a share of the
Buddha’s relics on the basis that they were khattiyas. The Licchavis seem to have been on
friendly terms with Pasenadi, king of Kosala. They were separated from Magadha by the river
Ganga and the two states were not on friendly terms at all. Ajatasattu, after sowing seeds of
disunion among them, annexed the entire confederacy of the Vajjis to his kingdom. The
Licchavis followed a gana or a samgha form of government in which instead of one or a few,
a considerable portion of the population was entrusted with the final power and ultimate
authority of the state.
At the time of the Buddha, the Licchavi republic was the largest republic. Their capital was
Vesali, and they formed part of the Vajjian confederacy. Their strength lay in their great unity.
The young men among the Licchavis were evidently fond of archery. The governing class of
the Licchavi republic was fairly large who had the right to attend the assembly and were
individually called rajas. Altekar has suggested that the Licchavis had a council of nine though
the membership of their assembly numbered 7,707 which was the number of the Licchavi
khattiyas, all calling themselves rajas, who formed the General Assembly but usually a much
smaller body assembled in the santhagarasala (mote hall) to look after the day-to-day
administration. It was a normal activity of the republics at the time of the Buddha to hold their
meetings as well as different social and religious functions in the santhagarasala.
Most probably the General Assembly of the Licchavi republic met only once in a year on the
occasion of their annual spring festival. In all probability, the raja, who was the chief officer
of the state, was elected during this festival. In the Niryavalika Sutra of the Jainas, raja Cedaga
(Cetaka) is represented as an all-powerful king who is assisted by a council of nine kings when
he dealt with Licchavi affairs.
Most likely, the elected raja of the Licchavi gana held office only about ten to fifteen years,
except in an extraordinary situation. The chief raja was most probably elected by the Assembly
and the other eight members were the rajas elected by the eight clans of the Licchavis to
constitute the nine-member inner council. Most probably, it was this nine-member inner
council of the rajas that met quite frequently to discuss business. Though some prominent
brahmanas and ksatriyas may have been allowed full political rights and appointed to high
positions in the Licchavi republic, it was only the kshatriyas who wielded political authority
and participated in the formation of the government. Whenever a meeting had to be convened,
a drum was beaten and on hearing its sound members gathered at the santhagarasala where
seating-arrangement was taken care of by a seat-regulator (asanapannapaka).
Decisions were taken by majority vote (yebhuyyasika) which took place with salakas (wooden
sticks) collected and counted by the salaka-gahapaka. An officer called ganapuraka looked
after matters such as quorum and attendance at meetings. The raja, uparaja (deputy chief),
senapati (general), and bhandagarika (treasurer) were members of the executive of the state.
There was an intricate judicial procedure by which any person charged with an offence was
handed over, in turn, to the vinicchayamahamattas (inquirers), the voharikas (experts in law),
suttadharas (experts in tradition), the atthakulakas (eight chiefs), the senapati, the uparaja,
and finally to the raja, who imposed the appropriate punishment.

Videhas of Mithila
The republic of Videha with its capital at Mithila was about seven yojanas in circumference.
At the time of the Buddha, the Videhas of Mithila formed one of the two important constituents
of the Vajjian confederacy. The Videhas were bounded on the east by the river Kausiki (Kusi),
west by the river Gandaka, north by the Himalaya, south by the Ganga and occupied roughly
the present-day north Bihar, the Terai and the south-eastern portion of Nepal including the
lower range of hills. Chakrabarti feels that their capital Mithila was possibly located at the
present site of Balirajgarh as it appears to be a more suitable site as the capital of Videha. The
council of the Videha republic consisting of three councillors and the raja was most probably
similar to that of the Licchavis.
The Sakyas of Kapilavatthu
The Sakyas were a tribal republic to which the Buddha belonged. Their capital Kapilavatthu is
generally identified with Piprahwa. Within the Sakyan tribe there were probably several clans
(gotta), the Buddha himself being of the Gotama clan. The Sakyas appear to have been under
the suzereignty of Kosala at the time of the Buddha as in some of the references the Buddha is
called a Kosalan. However, it appears that despite being under the over-all control of Kosala,
the Sakyas enjoyed fair amount of internal freedom and appear to have managed their own
internal affairs. The Sakyan territory lay along the foothills of the Himalayas; to the west and
south lay the kingdom of Kosala, and to the east beyond the river Rohini (river Kohana) the
land of the Koliyas of Ramagama.
Apart from the settlements of Silavati and Catuma, the Pali texts mention at least five nigamas
(market towns) of the Sakyas” viz., Devadaha Identified by W. Vost with a mound near Pararia
village located about seven miles east of Piprahwa. The Sakyas discussed their administrative
and judicial affairs in their santhagara either at Kapilavatthu or Catuma. Apparently, the
Sakyas practised endogamy which earned them the ire of the Koliyans who accused them of
behaving like “like dogs, jackals, and such like beasts, cohabiting with their own sisters”.
Dispute relating to sharing the waters of the river Rohini was a cause of constant friction
between the Sakyas and the Koliyas to the extent that once the Buddha had to intervene to
pacify the two sides. It appears that after the massacre by Vidudhaba, the Sakyas virtually
disappeared from the historical scene both as a political power and an ethnic group, only
perhaps a few individual families surviving.

Koliyas of Ramagama
The Koliyas, with their capital at Ramagama (identified by Cunningham with Deokali), were
a republican state. The river Rohini divided the Koliyan territory from that of the Sakyas in the
northwest, and in the south-west, it probably bordered Kosala, to their east lay the territory of
the Moriyas of Pipphalivana, to the north-east were the Mallas of Kusinara, and to the north
lay the Himalayan hills.
Both the Sakyan and the Koliyan khattiyas intermarried and claimed relationship with the
Buddha. Thus, after the death of the Buddha, the Koliyans claimed a share in the relics of the
Buddha and after obtained one-eighth share built a stupa over them. Though closely related to
the Sakyas, the Koliyas looked down upon the former for their practice of endogamy and the
two tribes also often quarrelled over sharing the waters of the river Rohini.
The Koliyan state had a special body of officials who wore a special headgear with a drooping
crest (Lambaculakabhata) and were notorious for indulging in violence and extortion. Apart
from the nagaras (cities) of Ramagama and Uttara, at least four nigamas (market towns) of the
Koliyans are mentioned in the early Pali texts, viz. Haliddavasana, Kakkarapatta, Sapuga,
Sajjanela. Most probably the state of the Koliyas was ultimately annexed by Kosala, though
the possibility of Ajatasattu having directly conquered them after his victory over the Licchavis
cannot be overlooked.

Moriyas of Pipphalivana
Moriyas, situated to the west of the Koliyas and their close neighbours, were a small
community. To the south-west the river Anoma (Rapti) divided them from Kosala, the Mallas
lay to their east, and to their south flew the river Ghagra. Being khattiyas and the Buddha’s
kinsmen, they claimed a share of the Buddha’s relics but being late had to be satisfied with a
share of the ashes only.
Vidudabha’s onslaught was directed besides others against the Moriyas. Therefore, there is a
possibility that the Moriyas, who were the Buddha’s kinsmen, are the ones represented by the
Piprahwa Vase Inscription. The settlement has been variously identified with Bhadara and
Nyagarodhavana (Banyan Grove). But the choice of Piprahwa itself, due to the similarity of
two names and its geographical position, cannot be ruled out; especially if Kapilavatthu is
represented by Tilaurakot.

Kalamas of Kesaputta
The Kalamas were a republican clan of the khattiya caste. Their capital, a nigama (market
town) is mentioned in the texts as falling within Kosala. It has been identified by Cunningham
with the Kesariya mound measuring about 7.2 acres. Cunningham located the Kalamas to the
south of the Mallas, below the river Ghagra to the north of the Ganga and northeast of Baranasi.
It would place them just on the borders of the other republican communities, which seem to
have occupied a large territory, bounded on the west by the directly governed part of the
Kosalan kingdom.

Bulis of Allakappa
The Bulis of Allakappa were a republican khattiya clan who claimed a share in the Buddha’s
relics and having obtained them, built a stupa over them. According to the Dhammapada
Commentary, Allakappa was ten yojanas in extent and its king was on friendly terms with the
chief of Vethadipa, a brahmana village generally identified with Betiya. The republican Bulis
do not appear to have survived politically for much time. Cunningham identifies Allakappa
with Navandgarh/Nandangarh situated fifteen miles to the north-north-west of Betiya and ten
miles from the nearest point of the Gandak River.

Bhaggas of Sumsumaragiri
The tribal republic of the Bhaggas, with its capital at Sumsumaragiri, appears to have been
under the control of Vamsa mahajanapada as the Vamsa prince Bodhi, son of king Udena, is
mentioned as residing in a palace at Sumsumaragiri. As A. Ghosh identified Sumsumaragiri
with Chunar in Mirzapur district of Uttar Pradesh. The Bhaggas appear to have been located
south of the Ganga in and around Mirzapur district.

Naya
The republic of the Nayas, often referred to as the Naya-khattiyas or Jnata-ksatriyas, was a
close associate of the Licchavis and a member of the Vajjian confederacy. It occupied a small
region located to the northeast of Vesali and had its capital at Kundapura. Mahavira’s father
was the chief of this republic and was most probably assisted by a small council in running the
affairs of the republic. With the exception of some internal authority, matters of the republic
were most probably looked after by the Vajjian council.
Were Ganas or Sanghas democratic in nature?
Early studies on the ganas by Nationalist historians tended to glorify them by exaggerating
their democratic features. It was mainly to disapprove the assertions of Western scholars that
Indians had never known anything other than despotic rule.
The ancient Indian ganas were not, however, democracies. The translation of gana and sangha
as 'republic' is misleading. Power was vested in the hands of an aristocracy comprising the
heads of leading Kshatriya families. There was no single hereditary monarch, Instead, there
was a chief and an aristocratic council which met in a hall called the santhagara.
Effective executive power and day-to-day political management must have been in the hands
of a smaller group. The political system of the ganas seems to have been a compromise between
government by assembly and by an oligarchy within this assembly.
The Licchavis of Vaishali had, according to the Ekapana Jataka, 7707 rajas to govern the realm,
and a similar number of uparajas (subordinate kings), senapatis (military commanders) and
bhandagarika (treasurers). The Mahavastu, however, puts the number at 168,000 rajas in
Vaishali. These figures should not be taken literally but they definitely suggest that the
Licchavis had a large assembly, comprising the heads of Kshatriya families who called
themselves rajas. They usually met once a year to transact public business and elect their leader,
who had a fixed tenure. The Licchavi assembly had sovereign power and could pronounce
death or exile punishments. Daily administrative matters were dealt with by a smaller council
of nine men in the name of larger assembly. Women, significantly, were not included in the
assembly.
The ganas were closely associated with the Kshatriyas and were named after the ruling
Kshatriya clan; members were linked to each other through real or claimed kinship ties.
However, apart from this hereditary elite, various other groups- Brahmanas, farmers, artisans,
wage labourers, slaves, etc.- lived in these principalities and had a subordinate status,
politically, and probably also economically and socially. They were not entitled to use the clan’s
name and did not have rights of political participation. For instance, Upali, the barber who lived
in Sakya territory, and Chunda, the metal smith who lived in Malla territory, were not part of
the ruling elite and did not attend the assembly.

Conclusion
The period c. 600-300 BCE marks the early historical period in north India. It was an when the
increasing social, economic, and political complexities of the previous aturies manifested
themselves in the emergence of cities. The vast majority of people, however, continued to live
in villages. Urbanism created new socio-economic divisions and elites. The institution of Jati
(caste) started taking shape. The strengthening of patriarchal control within the household led
to the increasing subordination of women. These centuries were marked by a remarkable
prominence of the ideal of renunciation and an intense level of philosophical debate and
questioning. Buddhism and Jainism were two among many philosophical schools and
established long-enduring monastic institutions closely connected with their laity. At the
political level, there were two competing types of polities the oligarchies and monarchies. The
growth of the Magadhan empire was underway and involved the defeat and marginalization of
other states. It was a short step from the Nanda to the Maurya empire.
 References
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➢ Singh, Upinder, 2009. A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th
Century
➢ Basham, A.L. 1951. History and Doctrines of the Ajivikas: A Vanished Indian Religion. London: Luzac
& Co
➢ Chakrabarti, D.K. 2001. The Archaeological Geography of the Ganga Plain: The Lower and the Middle
Ganga. New Delhi: Permanent Black.
➢ Davids, T.W. Rhys & J.E. Carpenter (eds.), The Digha Nikaya. 3 vols., London: Pali Text Society, 1890-
1911. Tr. T.W. & C.A.F. Rhys Davids. The Dialogues of the Buddha, 3 vols. London: Pali Text Society,
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➢ Law, B.C. 1924. Some Ksatriya Tribes of Ancient India. Calcutta: University of Calcutta.
➢ Sharma, R.S. 1983. Material Culture and Social Formation in Ancient India. First edition, New Delhi:
Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers
➢ Thapar, R. 1984. From Lineage to State: Social Formations in the Mid-first Millennium B.C. in the
Ganga Valley. New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
➢ Self-Study History notes