Long Questions: From a Kingdom to an Empire | NCERT Summary: UPSC PDF Download

Q1: What was Ashoka’s Dhamma? What did he do in this field?
Ans: Ashoka’s Dhamma:

• Dhamma is the Prakrit word for Sanskrit term Dharma. Ashoka’s dhamma did not involve worship of a god, or performance of a sacrifice.
• Ashoka felt that like a father, he had a duty to instruct his subject. He was greatly inspired by the teachings of the Buddha.
• There were numerous problems that troubled emperor Ashoka. People in the empire followed different religions and this sometimes led to conflict. Animals were sacrificed. Slaves and servants were ill-treated. Besides, there were quarrels in families and amongst neighbours. Ashoka felt it was his duty to solve these problems, so, he appointed officials, known as the Dhamma Mahamatta who went from place to place teaching people about dhamma. Besides Ashoka got his messages inscribed on rocks and pillars, instructing his officials to read the message to those who could not read it themselves.
• He asked his people to give up useless rituals. He advised his subjects to be gentle with slaves and servants. He asked them to respect their elders.
• Ashoka asked his people to treat all creatures with compassion. They should give gifts to brahmins and monks.
• Ashoka asked that it was wrong to praise one’s own religion or criticize another’s. Each one should respect the other’s religion. According to Ashoka if one praises one’s own religion while criticising another’s, one was actually doing greater harm to one’s own religion. Therefore, one should try to understand the main ideas of another’s religion and respect it.
• Ashoka sent messengers to spread ideas about dhamma to other lands, such as Syria, Egypt, Greece and Sri Lanka.
• Ashoka built roads, planted trees along these roads, dug wells and built rest houses. Besides he arranged for medical treatment for both the human beings and the animals.

Q2: Discuss Ashoka’s war in Kalinga.
Or
Discuss main events of Ashoka’s war in Kalinga. What were effects of this war on him?
Ans:

• Ashoka’s War in Kalinga: Kalinga is the ancient name of coastal Orissa. Ashoka fought a war to conquer Kalinga. About a lakh and a half people were captured and more than a lakh of people were killed. He conquered Kalinga after eight years. In this way, he became the emperor of almost whole of India.
• Impact of Ashoka’s War in Kalinga:
  • Ashoka was very horrified when he saw the result of violence and bloodshed. He decided not to fight any more wars.
  • Ashoka was very sad and decided to observe dhamma, and to teach others about it as well.
  • He believed after this victory in war that winning people over through dhamma was much better than conquering them through force (or threat).
  • He inscribed his message of peace and love for the future, so that his son and grandson after him should not think about war. Instead, they should try to think about how to spread dhamma.

Q3: Describe in your own words what Megasthenese had written about the Mauryan Emperor and about the Capital City of the Mauryan Empire?
Ans: Here is a part of Megasthenese’s description about the Mauryan Emperor and the Capital City: (Pataliputra or modem Patna)
1. The Emperor:

• The occasions on which the emperor appears in public are celebrated with grand royal processions. He is carried in a golden palanquin (Palankeen).
• Emperor’s guards rode elephants decorated with gold and silver. Some of the guards carried trees on which live birds, including a flock of trained parrots circled about the head of the emperor.
• The king (or the emperor) was normally surrounded by armed women. He was afraid that someone might try to kill him.
• The emperor had special servants to taste the food before he ate. He never slept in the same bedroom for two nights.

2. The Capital City or Pataliputra (or modern Patna):

• The Capital City of the Mauryan empire was Pataliputra (modern Patna). It was a large and beautiful city. It was surrounded by a massive wall. It had 570 towers and 64 gates.
• The houses (of capital city), of two and three storeys were built from wood and mud bricks.
• The emperor’s palace was made of wood and decorated with stone carvings. It was surrounded with gardens and enclosures for keeping birds.

Q4: How were Muryans emperor administrating?
Ans: The Mauryan Empire was huge, and different areas of it were governed over. The empire was divided into provinces, with Pataliputra as the sovereign capital. The emperor had direct influence over the land around Pataliputra. Other territories or provinces, such as Taxila and Ujjain, were ruled from the provincial capitals.
The following procedures were implemented to provide effective administrative control over provinces: 

• The royal princes administered the provinces as the king's delegates.
• Officials were selected to increase the people's tax burden.
• The Mauryan Empire had a strong army and a vast spy network.

With the support of members of the royal family and key ministers, the Emperor was able to maintain control over the whole administration.

Q5: Highlight the life of Chandragupta Maurya.
Ans: Chandragupta: The Mauryan Empire was founded by Maurya. Dhananda, the final ruler of the Nanda Dynasty, was defeated by him. Wise men like Kautilya and diplomats like Megasthenes adorned his court. The Artha Shastra is a book that contains many of Chanakya's concepts. Megasthenes was dispatched to Chandragupta's court by Seleucus Nicator, the Greek monarch of West Asia. He jotted down a lot of information on the King and Pataliputra's capital city.

Q6: How Ashoka spread Dhamma?
Ans: Ashoka utilised the following methods to propagate the dhamma message:

• Dhamma mahamattas were appointed as officials.Their mission was to travel from place to place and teach the people about the Dhamma.
• For the people to learn, Ashoka wrote his messages on pillars and rocks. He instructed the officials to assist those who could not read by reading the messages for them.
• He communicated in Prakrit, a local language, so that ordinary people could comprehend what he was saying.
• Ashoka sent people or messengers to Egypt, Greece, Sri Lanka, and Syria to disseminate the concept of dhamma.

Q7: What problems Ashoka felt while introducing Dhamma?
Ans: Dhamma was introduced by Ashoka to solve many of the empire's difficulties. People in his empire practised a variety of religions. As a result, numerous confrontations arose. He was determined to find a solution. It was fairly usual for people to make animal sacrifices. Their masters did not treat their servants and slaves with respect. There were numerous confrontations within the family as well as with the neighbours. Because Ashoka believed it was his obligation to remedy all of these issues, he introduced dhamma.

Q8: List the occupations of the Mauryan People.
Ans: Empires were the name given to large kingdoms. The Muryan Empire was a powerful and huge empire at the time. Mauryan people were the inhabitants of the Muryan Empire. The individuals who lived in the Mauryan Empire had a wide range of jobs. Craftspeople, farmers, and herders were among the population. Some of the people were traders and merchants. Some of the individuals were hunters and gatherers. Some people were also active in carpentry, and a large number of them were employed in stone cutting.