Central Asian Contracts and Their Results

Indo-Greeks
After the decline of the Mauryas, northern India was split into several kingdoms. In the Magadha region, the Sungas came to power in about 185 BC. After that, the Kanvas came to power who were defeated by the Satavahanas originally from the Deccan. Northwest India was constantly under attack from powers in Central Asia and northwest. The Indo-Greek or the Graeco-Indian Kingdom has established around 180 BC when the Graeco-Bactrian king Demetrius invaded the Indian subcontinent.

Indo-Greeks – Initial presence of Greeks in India

• After Alexander invaded the northwest part of the subcontinent, one of his generals, Seleucus Nicator, founded the Seleucid Empire.
• In Seleucus’s conflict with the mighty Chandragupta Maurya, he ceded large parts to the west of the Indus, including the Hindu Kush, present-day Afghanistan and Balochistan to the Mauryan king.
• After this, Megasthenes was sent to reside at Chandragupta Maurya’s court. Other Greek residents at Mauryan courts were Deimachus and Dionysius.
• Greek populations lived in the north-western part of the Mauryan Empire as evident from Ashoka’s edicts.
• Mauryas also had departments to take care of foreigners like Yavanas (Greeks) and Persians.
• In ancient Indian sources, Greeks were called Yavanas (Sanskrit) and Yonas (Pali).

Indo-Greek Kingdom

• The Indo-Greek kingdom was ruled by over 30 Hellenistic (Greek) kings in the northwest and north India from the 2nd century BC to the beginning of the first century AD.
• The kingdom started when Graeco-Bactrian king Demetrius (son of Euthydemus I) invaded India around 180 BC. He conquered southern Afghanistan and parts of Punjab.
• The Indo-Greek kings imbibed Indian culture and became political entities with a mix of Greek and Indian culture.
• For about 25 years, the Indo-Greek kingdoms were under the Euthydemid rule.
• Many coins have been unearthed of these kings and most of the information we get about them is from these coins. Coins have been found with Indian and Greek inscriptions. Many coins have been found with images of Indian deities also. The Indo-Greek kings did this to perhaps placate the population most of whom were not Greeks.
• The civil wars among the many Bactrian kings after the death of Demetrius facilitated the independent kingdom of Apollodotus I who, in this way, can be regarded as the first proper Indo-Greek king (whose rule was not from Bactria).
• His kingdom included Gandhara and western Punjab.
• Most of the Indo-Greek kings were Buddhists and Buddhism flourished under their rule.
• Greek influence is mostly seen in art and sculpture, particularly the Gandhara School of art.

Indo-Greek Rulers – Menander I (Reign: 155 or 150 BC – 130 BC)

• Menander I Soter was also known as Minedra, Minadra, or Milinda (in Pali).
• He was initially a king of Bactria. His empire extended from Kabul river valley in the west to the Ravi River in the east, and from Swat valley in the north to Arachosia (Helmand in Afghanistan).
• According to some Indian sources, he went as far as Rajasthan and Pataliputra.
• He converted to Buddhism and patronised the faith.
• He died in 130 BC and was succeeded by his son Strato I.
• The Milinda Panha (composed around 100 BC) records a dialogue between Milinda and the Buddhist sage Nagasena. Originally written in Sanskrit, only the Pali version is available now. In the work, Milinda is described as a wise, learned, and able king. At the end of it, Milinda accepts Buddhism and converts.

Coins of Indo-Greeks
Coins circulated to the north of Hindu Kush region during the rule of Indo-Greeks

• There were gold, silver, copper and nickel coins.
• The coins had greek legends.
• The Indo-Greek coins had royal portraits on the obverse and greek deities (Zeus, Apollo, and Athena) on the reverse.

Coins circulated to the south of Hindu Kush region during the rule of Indo-Greeks

• There were silver and copper coins (mostly in square shape)
• Indian weight standards were followed in making of these coins.
• They had bilingual inscriptions – Greek and Kharoshthi
• On the obverse of the coin, royal portraits were present and on the reverse, religious symbols (mostly Indian in inspiration) were present

Decline of the Indo-Greek Kingdom

• The last Indo-Greek king was Strato II. He ruled the Punjab region until 55 BC, some say until 10 AD.
• Their rule ended with the invasions of the Indo-Scythians (Sakas).
• It is believed that Greek people lived for several centuries more in India under the Indo-Parthians and the Kushans.

The Shakas

The Greeks were followed by the Shakas. There were five branches of the Shakas with their seats of power in different parts of India and Afghanistan.
First Branch - Afghanistan, Second Branch - Punjab (Capital - Taxila), Third Brand Mathura, Fourth Branch - Western India and Fifth Branch - Upper Deccan.

• In about 57-58 B.C. a king of Ujjain fought against the Shakas and succeeded in driving them out in his time. He called himself  Vikramaditya.
• An era called the vikrama Samvat is reckoned from the event of his victory over Shakas in 57 B.C. From this time onwards, Vikramaditya became a coveted title. Whoever achieved anything great adopted this title just as the Roman emperors adopted the title of Caesar in order to emphasize their great power.
• As a result of this practice we have as many as 14 Vikramadityas in Indian history. Chandragupta was the most famous Vikramaditya,
• The Shaka benefited from the seaborne trade in Gujarat and issued large number of silver coins. The most famous Shaka ruler in India was Rudradaman-1 (A.D. 130-150), he is famous in history because of the repairs he undertook to improve the Sudarshana in the semi-arid zone of Kathiawar.

Saka Era Origin
The beginning of the Saka Era can be related to the ascent of the king Chashtana. The period of the Saka Era falls between 11 years and 52 years. This information was retrieved from the inscriptions of the king Chashtana.

• Scythians (referred to as Sakas in Indian sources) were a group of Iranian nomadic pastoral tribes.
• In the second century BC, central Asian nomadic tribes and tribes from the Chinese region invaded the region of present-day Kazakhstan whose inhabitants were Scythians.
• This promoted the Scythians to move towards Bactria and Parthia. After defeating the Parthian king, they moved towards India. Scythians who migrated to India are known as Indo-Scythians.
• The Sakas had an Indian kingdom larger than the Indo-Greeks.

Shakas – Rulers

Maues (Reign 80 BC – 65 BC)

• Maues, also known as Moga was the earliest Indo-Scythian king.
• He ruled over Gandhara (present Pakistan and Afghanistan).
• He invaded the Indo-Greek territories but unsuccessfully.
• His capital was at Sirkap (Punjab, Pakistan).
• Many coins issued by Maues have been found. They contain Buddhist and also Hindu symbols. The languages used in these coins were Greek and Kharoshti.
• His son Azes I acquired the remaining Indo-Greek territories by defeating Hippostratos.

Chashtana(Reign 78 AD – 130 AD)

• He was a Saka ruler of the Western Kshatrapas (Satraps) dynasty who ruled over Ujjain.
• The Saka Era is believed to have started at his accession to power in 78 AD.
• Ptolemy mentions him as “Tiasthenes” or “Testenes”.
• He was the founder of one of the two major Saka Kshatrapa dynasties in northwest India, the Bhadramukhas. The other dynasty was called Kshaharatas and included the king Nahapana (who was defeated by Satavahana king Gautamiputra Satakarni).

Rudradaman I (Reign 130 AD – 150 AD)

• He is considered the greatest of the Saka rulers.
• He is from the Western Kshatrapa dynasty.
• He was the grandson of Chastana.
• His kingdom included Konkan, Narmada valley, Kathiawar, other parts of Gujarat and Malwa.
• He conducted the repair work of the Sudarshana Lake at Kathiawar.
• He married a Hindu woman and had converted to Hinduism.
• He also issued the first long inscription in chaste Sanskrit.
• He took up the title of Mahakshatrapa after becoming king.
• He maintained marital relationships with the Satavahanas. Vashishtiputra Satakarni was his son-in-law.But he also fought numerous wars with them.
• He regained through conquests most of the territories previously under Nahapana.
• He supported Sanskrit literature and cultural arts.
• It was during Rudradaman’s reign that Yavaneshwara, the Greek writer lived in India and translated the Yavanajataka from Greek to Sanskrit.

Decline of the Shakas

• The Saka Empire started declining after their defeat at the hands of the Satavahana Emperor Gautamiputra Satakarni.
• The Saka rule in northwest India and Pakistan came to an end after the death of Azes II (12 BC) when the region came under the Kushanas.
• In western India, their rule came to an end in the 4th century AD when the last Western Satrap Saka ruler Rudrasimha III was defeated by Chandragupta II of the Gupta dynasty.

The Parthians

• The Shaka domination in north-western India was followed by that of the Parthians.
• Originally the Parthians lived in Iran from where they moved to India.
• They occupied only a small portion of north-western India in the first century.
• This most famous Parthian king was Gondophernes in whose reign St. Thomas is said to have come to India for the propagation of Christianity.
• In course of time, the Parthians, became an integral part of Indian polity and society.

Kushan Empire 

Origin

• Kushanas are considered to be one of the five branches of the Yuezhi tribe who lived in the Chinese frontier or central Asia.
• They are known as Guishuang in Chinese sources.
• They eventually acquired dominance over the other Yuezhi tribes.
• They moved eastward towards India defeating the Parthians and the Sakas in the 1st century AD.

Kushan Empire – Ruler Kujula Kadphises or Kadphises I [AD 30-AD 80)

• Kujula Kadphises was the first Yuezhi chief to lay the foundation of the Kushana Empire in India.
• He established his supremacy over Kabul, Kandahar and Afghanistan.
• He was succeeded by his son Vima Taktu or Sadashkana (AD 80 -AD 95) who expanded the empire into northwest India.

Kushan Empire – Ruler Vima Kadphises [AD 95-AD 127]

• An inscription found at Rabatak in Afghanistan mentions that he was the son of Vima Taktu and the father of Kanishka.
• He has issued a large number of gold coins.
• He was a Shiva devotee as is clear from coins issued by him.
• A large number of Roman gold coins found from this era indicate the prosperity of India at that time and also the growing trade with the Romans.

Kanishka of Kushan Dynasty [127 AD – 150 AD]

• Considered the greatest Kushana king and also a great king of ancient India.
• Son of Vima Kadphises.
• His kingdom included Afghanistan, parts of Sindhu, parts of Parthia, Punjab, Kashmir, parts of Magadha (including Pataliputra), Malwa, Benaras, perhaps parts of Bengal, Khotan, Kashgar, Yarkhand (last three in modern China). His empire covered Gandhara, Peshawar, Oudh, Pataliputra, Kashmir and Mathura. His kingdom also included parts of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.
• His main capital was Peshawar, then known as Purushpura.
• After the capture of Pataliputra, he is said to have taken away the Buddhist monk Ashvaghosha with him to Peshawar.
• The scholars in his court included Parsva, Ashvaghosha, Vasumitra, Nagarjuna, Charaka and Mathara. He also patronised the Greek engineer Agesilaus.
• Kanishka convened the fourth Buddhist Council at Kundalvana in Kashmir.
• He patronised Buddhism although he was very tolerant in his religious views. His coins contain a mix of Indian, Greek and Zoroastrian deities.
• He was also a patron of art and architecture. The Gandhara School of art flourished under him.
• He also propagated the Mahayana form of Buddhism and he was largely responsible for propagating it in China.
• It is not known how he died.

Achievements of Kushanas – Significance of the Kushana Empire

• Sanskrit literature began to be developed during this time. The fourth Buddhist council was held in Sanskrit.
• Ashvoghosha is considered to be the first Sanskrit dramatist.
• During this time, three distinct schools of art flourished: Gandhara School in northwest India, Amaravati School in Andhra and the Mathura School in the Ganges valley.
• Trade prospered between India and China, and India and the Roman Empire.
• The Kushanas controlled large parts of the Silk Route which led to the propagation of Buddhism into China. It was during this time that Buddhism began to spread to Korea and Japan also.
• Many towers, Chaityas, towns and beautiful sculptures were built under the patronage of the Kushana kings.
• Kushanas were foreign invaders, to begin with, but they were completely Indianised in ways and culture.
• It is said that the Kushana period in Indian history was a perfect forerunner to the golden age of the Guptas.

The decline of the Kushana Empire

• Kanishka was succeeded by his son Vasishka.
• Vasishka was followed by Huvishka and Kanishka II (son of Vasishka).
• Kanishka II was followed by Vasudeva I.
• Vasudeva I was the last great king of the Kushanas. After his death, the empire disintegrated away. He probably died in 232 AD.

Impact of Central Asian Contacts

Structures and Pottery

• The Shaka-Kushan phase registered a distinct advance in building activities.
• The period is also marked by the construction of brick-walls. Its typical pottery is red ware, both plain and polished, with medium to fine fabric.
• The distinctive pots are sprinklers and spouted channels.
   

Better Cavalry

• The Shakas and Kushans introduced better cavalry and the use of the riding horse on a large scale. They made common the use of reins and saddles.
• The Shakas and the Kushans were excellent horsemen.
• The Shakas and Kushans introduced turban, tunic, trousers, and heavy long coat.
• The Central Asians also brought in cap, helmet and boots.
   

Trade and Agriculture

• The Kushans controlled the Silk Route, which started from China and passed through their empire in Central Asia and Afghanistan to Iran, and Western Asia which formed part of the Roman empire in the eastern Mediterranean zone.
• This route was a source of great income to the Kushans, and they built a large prosperous empire because of the tolls levied from the traders.
• It is significant that the Kushans were the first rulers in India to issue gold coins on a wide scale. The Kushans also promoted agriculture.
   

Polity

• The Kushans adopted the pompous title of 'king of kings, which indicates their supremacy over numerous small princes who paid tributes.
• The Shakas and the Kushans strengthened the idea of the divine origin of kingship
• Ashoka was called 'dear to the gods, but the Kushan kings were called sons of god. This title was  dopted by the Kushans from the Chinese, who called their king the son of heaven.                                                     
• The Kushans also introduced the satrap system of government. The empire was divided into numerous satrapies, and each satrapy was placed under the rule of satrap.
• Some curious practices such as hereditary dual rule, two ruling in the same kingdom at one and the same time, were introduced.
• The Greeks also introduced the practice of military governorship.
• They appointed their governors called strategos.
   

New Elements in Indian Society

• The Greeks, the Shakas, the Parthians and the Kushans ultimately lost their identity in India. They became completely Indianized in course of time.
• Since most of them came as conquerors they were absorbed in Indian society as warrior class, that is, as the Kshatriyas.
• In no other period of ancient Indian history were foreigners assimilated into Indian society on such a large scale as they were in the post Maurya times.
   

Religious Developments

• Some of the foreign rulers were converted to Vaishnavism (worship of Vishnu).
• The Greek ambassador called Heliodorus set up a pillar in honour of Vasudeva near Vidisa in Madhya Pradesh around the middle of the second century B.C.
• The famous Greek ruler Menander became a Buddhist.
• The Kushan rulers worshipped both Shiva and the Buddha, and the images of these two gods appeared on the Kushan coins. Several Kushan rulers were worshippers of Vishnu.
   

The Origin of Mahayana Buddhism

• Indian religions underwent changes in post-Maurya times partly due to a big leap in trade and artisanal activity and partly due to the large influx of people from Central Asia.
• Buddhism was especially affected. The monks and nuns could not afford to lose the cash donations from the growing body of traders and artisans concentrated in towns.
• The Buddhists welcomed foreigners who were non-vegetarians. All this meant laxity in the day-to-day living of the nuns and monks who led a sparse life.
• They now accepted gold and silver, took to non-vegetarian food and wore elaborate robes. Discipline became so slack that some renunciates even deserted the religious order or the Sangha and resumed the householder's life.
• This new form of Buddhism came to be called the Mahayana or the Great Wheel.
• In the old puritan Buddhism certain things associated with the Buddha were worshipped as his symbols.
• Images worship in Buddhism seems to have led to this practice in brahmanism on a large scale. With the rise of the Mahayana the old puritan school of Buddhism came to be known as the Hinayana or the Lesser Wheel.
• Fortunately for the Mahayana, Kanishka became its great patron. He convened a council in Kashmir. The members of the council composed 3,00,000 words, which thoroughly explained the three pitakas or collections of Buddhist literature.
• Kanishka set up many other stups to perpetuate the memory of the Buddha.
   

Gandhara and Mathura Schools of Art

• The Kushan Empire brought together mansons and other artisans trained in different schools and countries. This gave rise to several schools of art: Central Asian, Gandhara and Mathura.
• This gave rise to a new kind of art in which images of the Buddha were made in the Greeco-Roman style. The hair of the Buddha was fashioned in the Greece- Roman Style. The influence of the Gandhara art also spread to Mathura.
• Mathura produced beautiful images of the Buddha, but it is also famous for the headless erect status of Kanishka whose name is inscribed on its lower part.
• It also produced several stone images of Vardhamana Mahavira.
• The Mathura School of art flourished in the early centuries of the Christian era and its products made of red sandstone are found even outside Mathura.
• Beautiful Buddhist caves were constructed out of rocks in Maharashtra.
• In Andhra Pradesh, Nagarjunakonda and Amaravati became great centres of Buddhis art, and the stories connected with the Buddha came to be portrayed in numerous panels.
• The earliest panels dealing with Buddhism are found at Gaya, Sanchi and Bharhut and belong to the second century B.C.

Literature and Learning

• The earliest specimen of Kavya style is found in the Junagadh inscription of Rudradaman in Kathiawar in about A.D. 150.
• Ashvaghosha enjoyed the patronage of the Kushans. He wrote the Buddhacharita
• He also composed the Saundarananda, which is a fine example of Sanskrit kavyg
• The progress of Mahayana Buddhism led to the composition of numerous avadana;
• One objective was to preach the teachings of Mahayana Buddhism to the peoph
• Some of the important books of this genre were the Mahavastu and the Divyavadan.
• The Greek contributed to the development of the Indian theatre by introducing the use of the curtain. Since the curtain was borrowed from the Greeks it came to be known as yavanika.
• Yavanika was derived from the term Yavana, which was a Sanskritized form of Ionian, a branch of the Greeks known to the ancient Indians.
• The best example of secular literature appears in the Kamasutra of Vatsyayana.
• Attributed to the third century A.D., it is the earliest work on erotics dealing with sex and love-making. It gives us a picture of the life of a city-bred person or nagarat who lived in a period of thriving urbanism.
   

Science and Technology

• In post-Maurya times Indian astronomy and astrology profited from contact with the Greeks. Indian astrology came to be influenced by Greek ideas and from the Greek term horoscope was derived the term Horashastra used for astrology in Sanskrit
• The charakasamhita contains names of numerous plants and herbs from which drugs are to be prepared for the use of patients.
• Kanishka is represented as wearing trousers and long boots. Possibly the practice making leather shoes began in India during this period.
• Working in glass during this period was especially influenced by foreign ideals and practices. In no other period in ancient India did glass-making make such progress as it did during this period.

Satavahanas

The Satavahana rule is believed to have started around the third century BC and lasted until 225 AD.
Some experts believe their rule started in the first century BC only.
They are referred to as Andhras in the Puranas.
The Satavahana kingdom chiefly comprised of modern-day Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Maharashtra. At times, their rule also included parts of Karnataka, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
Their capital cities varied at different times. Pratishthana (Paithan) and Amaravati were its capitals.
Simuka founded the dynasty.
They were the first native Indian rulers to issue their own coins with the portraits of the rulers. This practice was started by Gautamiputra Satakarni who derived the practice from the Western Satraps after defeating them.
The coin legends were in Prakrit language. Some reverse coin legends are in Telugu, Tamil and Kannada.
They patronised Prakrit more than Sanskrit.
They supported both Buddhism and Brahminism although they were Hindus and claimed Brahminical status.
They successfully defended their territories against foreign invaders and had many on-going battles with the Sakas (Western Satraps).Satvahana Empire - Pictorial Representation

Important Rulers of the Satavahana dynasty
Satakarni I (70- 60 BC)

• Satakarni I was the third Satavahana king.
• Satakarni I was the first Satavahana king to expand his empire by military conquests.
• He conquered Kalinga after the death of Kharavela.
• He also pushed back the Sungas in Pataliputra.
• He also ruled over Madhya Pradesh.
• After annexing the Godavari Valley, he assumed the title of ‘Lord of Dakshinapatha’.
• His queen was Nayanika who wrote the Naneghat inscription which describes the king as Dakshinapathapati.
• He performed Ashvamedha and revived Vedic Brahmanism in the Deccan.

Hala

• King Hala compiled the Gatha Saptashati. Called Gaha Sattasai in Prakrit, it is a collection of poems with mostly love as the theme. Around forty of the poems are attributed to Hala himself.
• Hala’s minister Gunadhya composed Brihatkatha.

Gautamiputra Satakarni (106 – 130 AD or 86 – 110 AD)

• He is considered the greatest king of the Satavahana dynasty.
• He defeated the Greeks, Pahlavas (Indo-Parthians) and the Sakas.
• His kingdom ran from Krishna in the south to Malwa and Saurashtra in the north and from Berar in the east to the Konkan in the west.
• He defeated Nahapana, an important king of the Western Satraps.
• He is also called Ekabrahmana.
• His mother was Gautami Balasri and hence his name Gautamiputra (son of Gautami).
• He was succeeded by his son Vasisthiputra Sri Pulamavi or Pulamavi II.

Administration of the Satavahana dynasty
The administration of the Satavahana dynasty was entirely based on the Shastras which has the following structure:

• Rajan or the king who is the ruler.
• Princes or Rajas who had their names inscribed on coins.
• Maharathis, who had the power of granting villages and also had the privilege of maintaining marital relations with the ruling family.
• Mahasenapati
• Mahatalavara
• The inscription of the ruler Guatamiputra Satakrni threw some light on the bureaucratic structure of administration. However, clarity on the detailed structure is still awaited by historians.

Economy

• Agriculture was the backbone of the economy during the rule of Satavahana kings. They also relied on trade and production of various commodities within and outside India.

Religion & Language

• The Satavahanas belonged to Hindu religion and Brahmanical caste. But, the interesting fact is their generosity towards other caste and religion which is evident from the donations made by them towards the Buddhist monasteries. Many Buddhist monasteries were constructed during the rule of the Satavahana dynasty.
• The Language used during that period was “Prakrit” which is a modern version of the Indo-Aryan Language. Political inscriptions also threw some light on the rare use of Sanskrit Literature.

The decline of the Satavahanas

• Pulamavi IV is considered the last king of the main Satavahana line.
• He ruled until 225 AD. After his death, the empire fragmented into five smaller kingdoms.