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Chola ruler Rajendra I’s navy was highly advanced.

Chandragupta Maurya’s son, Bindusara, ascended the throne of Maurya empire in 298 BCE. He was named ‘Amitrochedras’ by Greek scholars. Bindusara’s Fleet was called ‘Amitraghata’ or destroyer of enemies. Strabo called him Alitrochadus.

Bindusara strengthened and consolidated the territories annexed by his father. ‘Divyavaadan’ describes the two revolts which occurred in Taxila during Bindusara’s reign. Bindusara sent his son Ashoka and then Susheem to supress the uprising.

According to strabo, Greek ruler Antiocus I sent his ambassdor ‘Dimachus’ to Bindusara’s court. Bindusara requested Antiocus I to send him wine, dried figs and a philosopher. During his reign, Egyptian king Philadelphus (Ptolemy II) sent an ambassador named Dionyrus to Patliputra.

In Gupta period, land revenue was the main source of state income. The following taxes have been mentioned in the literature of that period. Bhaga – 1 / 6th part of crop production that went to the king. Bhoga – Tax given to the king in the form of fruits – flowers.

Uparikar and Udranga – These were forms of land taxes. In Gupta period, land tax could be paid both in cash (Hiranya) and food grains (Meya) and land, gems, mines and salt etc. were important sources of state revenue. Land revenue varied from 1/4th to 1/6th of the total crop production.

Chandragupta I was the first Gupta ruler to issue coins.

Harihara and Bukka established the Vijayanagar empire with saint Vidyaranya’s blessing.

Vijaynagar Empire was founded by two brothers named Harihar and Bukka in 1336 CE, A revolt began in kampili province in 1334 CE, during the reign of Muhammadbin – Tughlaq. To supress the revolt, Harihara and Bukka were sent along with an army to south India.

Upon reaching there, they established an independent state and re – embraced Hinduism. Later, under favourable conditions, both brothers took the blessings of saint Vidyaranya, and founded Vijaynagar empire. Vidyaranya was the saint who initiated Harihara and Bukka into the Hindu faith and motivated them to create an independent Hindu state.

The two brothers named Harihar and Bukka founded Vijayanagar empire in 1336

Sri Gupta founded Gupta Dynasty in 240 CE.

Pushyamitra Shunga founded the Shunga dynasty in 184 BCE.

Samudragupta defeated twelve kings of Dakshinapath.

Chadragupta I founded the Samvat Era in 319 CE.

Krishnadeva Rai was the greatest king of Tuluv Dynasty. He reigned from 1509 CE to 1529 CE. In his rule, Vijayanagar was at the peak of its power and grandeur. At this time the condition of the kingdom was not satisfactory. However, within ten years of his constant efforts, Krishnadeva Rai resolved all the problems. He was usually successful in his military compaigns.

He defeated the ruler of Bidar and Bijapur, Sultan Mahmud Shah and Yusuf Adil Shah. He freed the Bahmani ruler Sultan Mahmud Shah from Barid and put him on the throne, and assumed the title of Yavan Raj Sthapanacharya’. By 1520 CE, Krishnadeva Rai defeated all his enemies and proved his valour.

He established his supremacy in South India. He established friendly relations with the Portuguese. In his time, many Portuguese merchants and travellers came to Vijayanagar. He permitted the Portuguese to build a fort in Bhatkal.

Krishnadeva Rai was a great scholar of Telugu. Eight best scholars of Telugu lived in his court. In architecture, he founded a new city named Nagalpur and built temples named Hazara and Vitthalswami.

The zenith of India’s architecture, sculpture, painting etc. is observed in the Gupta period. The art of Gupta period is notable for its Indianisation, expression of beauty, expression of feelings and spirituality. Architecture – Gupta period temples show examples of ‘Nagar’ style.

Its general features were – Adhar Pitheeka’, ‘Garbhagriha’, ‘Sabha Mandap’, ‘Shikhar’, ‘Antaral’, ‘Pradakshina’ and sculptures of Ganga-Yamuna at the gates.

Sculpture – Mathura, Sarnath, and Patliputra were major centres of sculpture. Statues were made of metal, stone and clay. Sculpting was done in accordance with the classical laws. Buddha of Sultanganj, Mahavir of Mathura, Vishnu of Mathura and Deogarh, Varah sculptures of Aran and Udaigiri are fine examples of sculpture.

Painting – The best examples of Gupta paintings have been found in Ajanta and Bagh caves of Gwalior. Natural beauty, Buddha and Bodhisattva and descriptive scenes of Jatak tales are found in Ajanta paintings. Beautiful imagination, brillance of colours, beauty of lines, diversity of subject, richness of expression and skillful conveyance of thoughts make the paintings of Ajanta incomparable.

Literature – Literature made astounding progress in the Gupta period. Sanskrit language and complex ornamental style was developed. The Prashastis of Mehrauli and Prayag were created. Bhasha wrote, ‘Swapna – Vasavadutta’, Vishakhadutta wrote, “Mudra Rakshsas. kalidas wrote, “Abhijnana shakuntalam,’ and ‘Raghuvansham.’ Prakrit tomes were written in this period. Worldly literature was prolific in this period.

Ashoka got victory over Kalinga in about 261 BCE.

The policy of Dhamma could not bear absolute results after Ashoka’s death. 

The reasons for this were:

1. Weak rulers, political uncertainty and insecurity of the borders after Ashoka’s death. 

2. The later rulers could not grasp Ashoka’s visionary acumen. 

3. The Dhamma ‘Mahamatrats’ misused their unrestricted powers to interfere in the routine life of people in an unwarranted manner. 

4. Societal standoff continued, giving rise to communal conflicts, since the problem lay in the roots of the system.

Ashoka was formally coronated around 269 BCE, though he ascended the throne in of Magadha in 273 BCE. He has been named ‘Devanampriya’, ‘Devarnapriyadarshi’ and king in scriptures. The name Ashoka is seen in the Maski inscriptions.

Ghanananda was the last ruler of Nanda dynasty.

Ashoka founded Srinagar at Vitasta river in Kashmir and Lalitpattan in Nepal.

Among all the kings of Gupta dynasty, Chandragupta II was considered to be the greatest king due to his supreme valour. 

His main achievements can be described as follows:

1. He consolidated his position using marital relations. He himself married Kuber Naga of Naga dynasty and princess of Kadamaba dynasty. He married his daughter, 42 Prabhavati to the Vakataka ruler Rudrasena II. This way, he received the friendship and protection of influential rulers. 

2. By making Ujjain his second capital, he increased the sea trade of the empire and the resources of Gujarat region. 

3. His court boasted of scholars like Kalidas and Amar Singh. 

4. He minted special coins of silver to commemorate his victory over the Shakas. 

5. Chinese traveller Fa – hien came to India during his reign.

1. Chandragupta II extended the Gupta empire upto the Arabian sea and conquered the Saurashtra peninsula. 

2. By making Ujjain his second capital, he increased the sea trade of the empire and the resources of Gujarat region.

In the battle of Kalinga, 1 lakh people were killed and 1.5 lakh taken captive. This terrible bloodshed tormented Ashoka. He made a proclamation, giving up the policy of war. He now abandoned the warcry to take up Dhamma cry. After getting victory over Kalinga, Ashoka’s heart was completely changed.

After that, he dedicated all his life to religious activities and to the welfare of his subjects. He embraced the public welfare ideal of Kautilya. He was the only such ruler who laid emphasis on the spiritual and moral upliftment of his subjects alongwith production capacities. He integrated India with one religion, one language and usually one script.

Kautilya is the author of Arthshastra.

Two great emperors of Gupta period were – Samudragupta and Chandragupta Vikramaditya.

The provisions of the treaty were

1. Seleucus married his daughter to Chandragupta. 

2. Seleucus gifted Aairia,, Arakosia, Jedrosia and Peripamisdai to Chandragupta as dowry. 

3. Chandragupta gifted 500 elephants to Seleucus. 

4. Seleucus sent Megasthenes as his ambassador to Chandragupta Maurya’s court. Megasthenese later wrote ‘INDICA’.

Krishnadeva Rai belonged to Tuluv Dynasty.

Veerupaksha II was the last ruler of Sangam dynasty.

The main principles of Ashoka’s ‘Dhamma’ were: 

1. Tolerance – Tolerance among common people, among various ideologies, religious faith etc. 

2. Non – Violence – Propounding the principle of non – violence towards all creatures. 

3. Exhibiting hyporitical rituals/traditions-Religious rituals and offering sacrifices was called meaningless. 

4. Public Welfareb – Tree plantation, wells and inns were built. 

5. High, pure morals-Emphasis was laid on high morals, pure conduct, good behaviour, and truthfulness.

For its implementation, Ashoka not only gave up the policy of war but also understood the problems, sorrows and needs of common people. He sent Dhamma commissions to various places. He appointed Dhamma ‘Mahamatras’ and fixed their duties. He propagated Dhamma in foreign lands also.

The conduct code which Ashoka presented to unite various communities, castes, and cultures in a single entity was called ‘Dhamma’.

The conduct code which Ashoka presented to unite various communities, castes, and cultures in a single entity, was called, ‘Dhamma’. The principles of Dhamma were acceptable to people related to all religious communities. The Main Principles of Dhamma

1. Tolerance – Tolerance among common people, various idologies, religions and faiths. 

2. Non – violence – Propounding the principle of non – violence towards all creatures. 

3. Exhibiting hypocritical rituals / traditions – Religious rituals and offering sacrifices was called meaningless. 

4. Public welfare – Tree – plantation, wells and inns were built. 

5. High, pure morals – Emphasis was laid on high morals, pure conduct, good behaviour, and truthfulness.

Implementation of the policy of Dhamma – Ashoka took practical measures to propagate Dhamma.

For this, Ashoka not only gave up the policy of war but also understood and felt the problems, sorrows and needs of common people. He constrained bureaucrats to render instant justice and perform public works. He worked for public welfare and constructed roads, irrigation facilities, wells, inns etc. The objective of these public welfare works was to make Dhamma acceptable.

Evaluation of the policy of Dhamma – The basic principles of Dhamma were tolerance, non-violence, and moral conduct, which had been the basic elements of Indian culture since the very beginning, and their relevance remains even today. Ashoka’s successors on the throne accepted these principles, nevertheless, this policy could not bear absolute results after Ashoka’s death.

Chandragupta Maurya defeated the last Nanda ruler, Ghanananda in 322 BCE and laid the foundation of Maurya dynasty. He conquered whole of India with an army of 6 lakh. He freed north west India from the successors of Alaxander, destroyed the Nanda dynasty, defeated seleucus and forced him to sign a treaty and established an empire.

Its touched Iran in the north-west, present day north Karnataka in the south and from Magadha in the East to Saurashtra in the west.

Brihadratha was the last ruler of the Maurya Empire.

Heiun – Tsang called Kumargupta by the name of Shakraditya.

Kalhan composed Rajatarangini between 1147 CE to 1149 CE during the reign of last Lohar dynasty ruler, Jaisingh. Kalhad’s Rajatarangini is considered to be the first authentic treatise of the history of India. Kalhad composed Rajatarangini to fulfill various objectives which can be mentioned as follows:

1. Kalhan wanted to provide information about ancient royal dynasties. 

2. Entertainment of the readers and learning from the past. 

3. He wanted to describe the entire geneology of the dynasties which ruled ever Kashmir. 

4. The uncertainity and chaos which prevailed in those times, motivated Kalhad to compose this. 

5. He intended to reveal the mortality of wordly life and physical luxury. 

6. He wanted people to learn from the mistakes of the past.

The literal meaning of Rajatarangini is – the river of kings – which implies, the history or passage of time of the kings.

Chandragupta Maurya founded the Maurya Dynasty in 322 CE.

The Maurya Empire was divided into four regions. These were – Uttarapath, Dakshinapath, Avantipath, and Madhyaprant.

Ashoka has been named as ‘Devanampriya’, ‘Devanapriyadarshi’ and king in scriptures.

Correct Answer is: (b) Second

Among the literary creations of Vijaynagar, treatises related to religion, history, biographics, and poetry are available. Under the guidance of Sayana, a council of scholars wrote Bhashyas (commentaries) on all four Vedas, many Brahminical tomes and Aranyakas.

Under the patronage of Krishnadeva Rai, Ishwar Dixit wrote two commentaries on epic named ‘Hemkoot’. Agatsya composed many poems and poetic works, of these, on some, Krishnadeva’s minister Salua Timmar wrote commentaries. The greatest ruler of Vijaynagar, Krishnadeva Rai was a poet of superior calibre and fine writer, who had a scholarly knowledge of Sanskrit and Telugu languages.

Krishnadeva Rai also wrote a Sanskrit play ‘Jambavati Kalyanam’. Eight excellent Telugu poets lived in the court of Krishnadeva Rai. Also many poets received patronage in his court. Rajnath’s Saaluvabhiyuday’ and ‘Bhagwat Champu’ are especially notable in literature.

Ashoka the Great propounded the principle of Dhamma.

The dynasty founded by Harihar and Bukka was named Sangam dynasty. 

The main rulers of Sangam dynasty were:

1. Harihara I – Harihara I was the first ruler of Sangam dynasty. He ruled from 1336 CE to 1356 CE. He shifted his capital from Anagonadi to a new city, Vijaynagar. 

2. Bukka I – He was the brother of Harihara I. He ruled from 1356 CE to 1377 CE. He assumed the title of Vedmarg Pratishthapak’. 

3. Harihara II – He was the son of Bukka. He ruled from 1379 CE to 1406 CE. He assumed the titles of Maharajadhiraja’ and ‘Rajaparmeshwara’. 

4. Devarai I – He ruled from 1406 CE to 1422 CE. He arranged irrigation facilities by constructing dam on Tungabhadra river and taking out canals from it. 

5. Devarai II – He was among the greatest rulers of this dynasty. He ruled from 1426 CE to 1446 CE. He was also called ‘Emadidevarai. 

6. Veerupaksha II – He ruled from 1465 CE to 1485 CE. In his reign, the Vijayanagar empire came to the brink of disintegration. After his death Saluv Narsingh ascended Vijaynagar’s throne.

Chandragupta I initiated the Gupta Samvat in 319 CE – 320 CE.

Chandragupta II, son of Samudragupta made Ujjain his second capital.

Harsha organised Prayag Assembly in 643 CE is Prayag, which was also called “Moksha Council.

The main sources of history of the Maurya empire are – Kautilya’s Arthashastra, Vishakhadutta’s Mudrarakshas, Somdeva’s Kathasaritsagar, Kshemendra’s Brihatkathamanjari, Deepvansh, Mahavansh Teeka, Bhadrabahu’s Kalpasutra, accounts of the Greek travellers i.e., Strabo, Justin, Plutarch etc. and of Chinese travellers i.e., Fa – hien, Hieun – Tsang, It – sing.

The Junagarh rock inscriptions of Rudraman, and Ashoka’s rock inscriptions, which have been found in archaeological excavations are also such sources.

Kautilya (Chanakya) wrote ‘Arthashastra’.

Correct Answer is: (a) Chanakya

Kalhad composed Rajatarangini during the reign of last Lohar dynasty ruler, Jaisingh between 1147 CE to 1149 CE. The literal meaning of Rajatarangini is – the rule of kings – which implies, the history or passage of time of the kings. This is composed in poetic form.

It contains eight tarangas and a total of 7826 Sanskrit verses. This treatise traces the history of Kashmir from the Mahabharata period to the contemporary times. Rajatarangini is considered to be the first authentic treatise of the history of India. This is an unbiased and fearless historical treatise. Kalhad composed it to fulfill the following objectives –

1. Kalhad wanted to provide information about ancient royal dynasties. 

2. Entertainment of the readers and learning from the past. 

3. He wanted to describe the entire geneology of the dynasties which ruled over Kashmir. 

4. The uncertainity and choas which prevailed in those times, motivated Kalhan to compose it. 

5. He intended to reveal the mortality of wordly life and physical luxury. 

6. He wanted people to learn from the mistakes of the past.

Rajatarangini is a description of a great warrior’s activities and also of the contemporary society in which Kalhad lived. His family was close to the political rule, therefore he obtained the history of this region in that particular age directly and authentically.

Ashoka is called Ashoka the great because of his great deeds and policies. He gave a new direction to the Maurayan empire through his policies. He was a visionary who tried to analyse contemporary problems and resolve them. Some of his policies are as relevant today as they were in those times. His following works made him the great.

1. As a Fatherly figure – Ashoka gave the principle of welfare state and made public welfare the most important objective of his rule. He had deep concern for his people. He embraced the public welfare ideal of Kautilya.

Tree plantation, agriculture, irrigation, construction of wells, and inns etc. were done and employment opportunities were provided by him. He called his subjects his children.

2. Policy of Dhamma – To unite various communities, castes, cultures in a single entity; he initiated the policy of Dhamma. Its objective was spiritual and moral upliftment of the public.

3. Direct Contacts with the Subjects – Ashoka was the only ruler in history who had direct contacts with the subjects of his state. He prepared a contract for the king, people and bureaucracy by propounding Dhamma. He worked for public welfare.

4. Emphasis on economic development – Ashoka encouraged social, political, economic and unity and development which strengthened internal relations.

He improved economic and infrastructural framework vastly and strengthened the state economically and socially which is relevant even today. His objetive was to build a strong and well administered nation.

5. National Integration – Ashoka integrated India with one religion, one language, and usually one script. He taught the lesson of religious tolerence to the entire world.

6. A Uniform Civil Code – Ashoka implemented a uniform civil code and criminal code and established the rule of social justice and law. Ashoka lent dynamism to the weaker sections of society for the propagation of physical, cultural and peaceful co – existence; expanded agricutural land and employed war prisoners in forest, and mines. He made rural development his objective and paid more attention to it.

He made foreign policy very relevant. Due to his activities, the purchasing power of common people increased. Hence, Ashoka’s concern towards his public, towards his nation, made him a great ruler.

Re – construction of the Sudarshan Lake was done by the son of Saurashtra’s governor Parnadutta, and administrator of Girnar Chakrapalit.