Mauryan Administration & Art (322 BC - 155 BC)

Mauryan Administration & Art (322 BC - 155 BC)

I. Central Administration

The King

The Mauryan government was a centralised bureaucracy of which the nucleus was the king. 

According to Kautilya/Chanakya, there are 7 elements of states (Saptanga theory) — 

1. Raja (the king)

2. Amatya (the secretary)

3. Janapada (territory)

4. Durg (Fort)

5. Kosha (the treasure)

6. Sena (Army)

7. Mitra (Friend)

The king was regarded as the soul among all the seven elements of the state.

The Mantri Parishad

The king was assisted by Mantri Parishad, whose members included—

1. The Yuvaraja (the crown prince)

2. The Purohita (the chief priest)

3. The Senapati (the commander-in-chief)

4. A few other ministers

Important officials

Note: According to the Junagadh Rock Edict of Rudradaman, Saurashtra was governed by Pushyagupta, the vaishya, at the time of Chandragupta Maurya andby the Yavan king Tushaspa at the time of Ashoka.

II. Municipal Administration

Kautilya devotes a full chapter to the rules of the Nagarak, i.e. city superintendent. His chief duty was the maintenance of law and order.

Megasthenes' Account of the System

6 committees of five members each, and their functions:

• 1st - Industrial Arts

• 2nd – Entertainment of Foreigners

• 3rd - Registration of Births and Deaths

• 4th - Trade and Commerce

• 5th - Public sale of manufactured goods

• 6th - Collection of taxes on the articles sold (1/10th of the purchase price)

III. Army

The most striking feature of the Mauryan administration was the maintenance of a huge army. They also maintained a Navy.

Megasthenes’ Account of Military Administration

According to Megasthenese, the administration of the Army was carried out by a board of 30 officers divided into 6 committees, each committee consisting of 5 members.

They are:

1. Infantry

2. Cavalry

3. Elephants

4. Chariots

5. Navy

6. Transport

Gudhapurushas (Detectives)

In the Mauryan period, there were two types of Gudhapumshas (detectives) –

• Sansthan (Stationery)

• Sanchari (Wandering)

Economy

The state controlled almost all economic activities.

• Tax collected from peasants varied from 1/4 to 1/6 of the produce.

• The state also provided irrigation facilities (Setubandha) and charged a water tax.

• Tolls were also levied on commodities brought to town for sale, and they were collected at the gate.

• The state enjoyed a monopoly in mining, forest, salt, the sale of liquor, the manufacture of arms, etc. 

The Sohgaura (Gorakhpur district, U.P.) copper plate inscription and the Mahasthana (Bogara district, Bangladesh) inscription deal with the relief measures to be adopted during a famine.

Important Ports:

• Bharukachch/Bharoch and Supara (Western coast)

• Tamralipti in Bengal (Eastern coast)

Currency: During the Mauryan period, the punch-marked coins (mostly of silver) were the common units of transactions.

Society

Kautilya/Chanakya/Vishnugupta is not as rigid on the Varna system as the earlier Smriti writers.

• Kautilya's 'Arthashastra' looked upon the Shudras as an Aryan community, which is distinguished from the Malechha or non-Aryan community.

• Reduction of the gap between the Vaishyas (most of whom were now concentrating on trade, though others continued cultivation) and the Shudras (quite a few of whom were now agriculturists, and others were artisans).

Megasthenese on Indian Society

Megasthenes states that Indian society was divided into 7 classes:

1. Philosophers

2. Farmers

3. Soldiers

4. Herdsmen

5. Artisans

6. Magistrates

7. Councillors

The 'classes' mentioned above appear to have been economic rather than social.

Slavery

• Though Megasthenese stated that there was no slavery in India, yet, according to Indian sources, slavery was a recognised institution during the Mauryan reign.

• It appears that Megasthenese was thinking of slavery in the full legal sense as it existed in the West.

Women in Mauryan Society

Women occupied a high position and enjoyed freedom in the Mauryan society.

• According to Kautilya, women were permitted to have a divorce or remarry.

• Women were employed as personal bodyguards of the king, spies, and in other diverse jobs.

Mauryan Art

Anand Coomaraswamy classified Mauryan Art into two groups:

1. Royal/Court Art

   • The Royal Palace of Chandragupta Maurya (Kumharar, Patna) and the City of Patliputra

   • Ashokan Pillars, Caves, Stupas, etc.

2. Folk/Popular Art

3. Figure Sculpture of Yaksha - Yakshini, etc, e.g.

   • Yaksha of Parkham (Mathura)

   • Yakshini of Besanagar/Vidisha (M.P)

   • Chanwar-bearer Yakshini of Didarganj (Patna)

4. Terracotta objects

5. Inscribed stone portrait of Emperor Ashok/Broken relief sculpture of Emperor Ashok (Kanaganhalli, Karnataka)

Stone Masonry:

• The Mauryas introduced stone masonry on a large scale during Ashoka.

Architectural Discoveries:

• Fragments of stone pillars and wooden floor, and ceiling indicating the existence of an 80-pillared hall have been discovered at Kumhrar on the outskirts of Patna.

• Seeing this, Fahien remarks:

"These palaces are so beautiful and excellent that they appear to be the creation of God rather than of men."

Ashokan Pillars

• Each pillar is made of a single piece of sandstone; only their capitals are joined on top with the pillar.

• Capitals include sculptures of lions or bulls.

Examples:

• The four lion capitals at Sarnath and the lion capital of Sarnath were adopted as the 'National Emblem' of India on 26 January, 1950

• Single lion capital at Rampurva and Lauriya Nandangarh

• Single bull capital at Rampurva

• A carved elephant at Dhauli and an engraved elephant at Kalsi

Rock-Cut Architecture

Mauryan artisans hewed out caves from rocks for monks to live in

Earliest examples:

• Barabar caves (Sudama, World Hut Chaupada of Kama, Rishi Lomesh) in Jehanabad (Ashokan)

• Nagarjuni caves in Gaya (Dasharath)

Stupas

• Built throughout the empire to enshrine the relics of Buddha

• Most famous:

  • Sanchi

  • Bharhuta

“At all times, whether I am eating, or am in the women's apartments, or in my inner apartments, or at the cattleshed, or in my carriage, or in my gardens—wherever I may be—my Mahamattar should keep me in touch with public business.”
— Rock Edict VI

“All men are my children.”
— Kalinga Rock Edict (Dhauli)

Later Mauryas: 232 BC–185 BC

• The Mauryan dynasty lasted 137 years.

• Ashoka's death was followed by the division of the Mauryan Empire into two parts—Western and Eastern.

• The Western part came to be ruled by Kunal (son of Ashoka)

• The Eastern part came to be ruled by Dasaratha

• The last Mauryan ruler, Brihadratha, was assassinated in 185 BC by his commander-in-chief, Pushyamitra Sunga, who established his own Sunga dynasty.

Causes for the Mauryas’ Decline

1. Highly centralised administration (Romila Thapar)

2. Pacific policy of Ashoka (H.C. Raychaudhuri)

3. Brahmanical reaction (H.P. Sastri)

4. The partition of the Mauryan Empire

5. Weak later-Mauryan Rulers

6. Pressure on the Mauryan economy (D.D. Kosambi)

7. Neglect of the North-West Frontier

Final Thoughts

The Mauryan Empire was marked by a highly centralised and efficient administration, guided by Kautilya’s Arthashastra and supported by a structured bureaucracy.

Its artistic legacy, especially under Ashoka, included grand stone pillars, stupas, and rock-cut caves, reflecting both royal power and public devotion.

The empire’s economy and governance extended to all aspects of life, from agriculture to trade. However, after Ashoka’s death, internal divisions, weak successors, and economic strain led to its decline.

Despite its fall, the Mauryan model of administration and art left a lasting impact on Indian history.