Republics, Kingdoms, and Social Hierarchy: India at the Time of the Buddha

State and Varna Society in the Age of the Buddha

The picture of material life in north India, especially in eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, can be drawn on the basis of the Pali texts and the Sanskrit Sutra literature in combination with archaeological evidence. Archaeologically the sixth century BC marks the beginning of the NBP (Northern Black Polished Ware) phase - the key material marker of the second urbanisation of India.

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What is NBP?

• Northern Black Polished Ware (NBP): A very glossy, shining type of pottery - made of very fine fabric; apparently served as the table-ware of richer people.
• In association with this pottery are found iron implements especially meant for crafts and agriculture.
• This phase also saw the beginning of metallic money.
• The use of burnt bricks and ringwells appeared in the middle of the NBP phase - i.e., in the third century BC.

Second Urbanisation

• The Harappan towns finally disappeared in about 1500 BC.
• After that for about 1,000 years we do not find any towns in India.
• With the appearance of towns in the middle Gangetic basin in the sixth century BC, a second urbanisation began.
• Many towns mentioned in the Pali and Sanskrit texts - Kausambi, Sravasti, Ayodhya, Kapilavastu, Varanasi, Vaisali, Rajgir, Pataliputra, Champa - have been excavated, and in each case signs of habitation and mud structures belonging to the advent of the NBP phase or its middle have been found.
• Wooden palisades have been found in Patna - possibly belonging to Maurya or pre-Maurya times.
• Houses were mostly made of mud-brick and wood - naturally have perished in the moist climate of the middle Gangetic basin.
• Although seven-storied palaces are mentioned in the Pali texts, they have not been discovered anywhere.

Towns as Markets and Craft Centres

• Many towns were seats of government, but whatever be the causes of their origin, they eventually turned out to be markets - inhabited by artisans and merchants.
• At some places there was concentration of artisans - Saddalaputta at Vaisali had 500 potters' shops.
• Both artisans and merchants were organised into guilds under their respective headmen (setthis).
• We hear of 18 guilds of artisans - but only the guilds of smiths, carpenters, leather workers, and painters are specified.
• Both artisans and merchants lived in fixed localities in towns.
• We hear of vessa's or merchants' street in Varanasi and the street of ivory-workers.
• Specialisation in crafts developed on account of the guild system as well as localisation - generally crafts were hereditary, and the son learned his family trade from the father.
• Products of crafts were carried over long distances by merchants - repeatedly hear of 500 cartloads of goods (fine textile goods, ivory objects, pots, etc.).
• All important cities were situated on river banks and trade routes, connected with one another.

Trade, Money, and Writing

• Trade was facilitated by the use of money.
• The terms nishka and satamana in the Vedic texts taken to be names of coins - but coins actually found are not earlier than the sixth century BC.
• In Vedic times exchange was carried on through barter; sometimes cattle served the purpose of currency.
• Coins made of metal appear first in the age of Gautama Buddha - earliest are largely of silver (a few coppers also appear).
• Called punch-marked coins - pieces of these metals were punched with certain marks such as hill, trees, fish, bull, elephant, crescent, etc.
• Earliest hoards of these coins found in eastern Uttar Pradesh and Magadha, although some early coins also found in Taxila.
• Pali texts indicate plentiful use of money - wages and prices were paid in it; even the price of a dead mouse was estimated in it.
• It is likely that writing started a couple of centuries before Asoka and contributed to trade. The earliest records were probably not written on stone and metal and have therefore perished.
• Writing led to the compilation of not only laws and rituals but also bookkeeping - essential to trade, tax-collection, and maintaining a large professional army.
• The period produced texts dealing with sophisticated measurement (Sulvasutras) - presuppose writing and may have helped the demarcation of fields and houses.

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Iron and Agriculture

• Iron played a crucial role in opening the rain-fed, forested, hard-soil area of the middle Ganga basin to clearance, cultivation, and settlement.
• The smiths knew how to harden iron tools.
• Some tools from Rajghat (Varanasi) show that they were made out of iron ores obtained from Singhbhum and Mayurbhanj - people became acquainted with the richest iron mines in the country -> bound to increase the supply of tools for crafts and agriculture.

Crops and Village Economy

• Rice was the staple cereal produced in eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
• Various types of paddy described in the Pali texts.
• Large-scale paddy transplantation began in the age of the Buddha - wet paddy production enormously added to the yield.
• Peasants also produced barley, pulses, millets, cotton, and sugarcane.
• Agriculture made great advance because of the use of the iron ploughshare and immense fertility of the alluvium soil in the area between Allahabad and Rajmahal.

Village Structure

• The Pali texts speak of three types of villages:
  1. First category: The typical village inhabited by various castes and communities - largest in number; headed by a village headman called bhojaka.
  2. Second category: Suburban villages in the nature of craft villages - for instance, a carpenters' village lay in the vicinity of Varanasi; served as markets for other villages and linked the towns with the countryside.
  3. Third category: Border villages situated on the limits of the countryside which merged into forests - people were mainly fowlers and hunters led a backward life.
• Village lands were divided into cultivable plots and allotted family-wise.
• Every family cultivated its plots with the help of its members supplemented by agricultural labourers.
• Fields were fenced and irrigation channels dug collectively by the peasant families under the supervision of the village headman.
• Peasants had to pay one-sixth of their produce as tax.
• Taxes were collected directly by royal agents - generally no intermediate landlords between the peasants on the one hand and the state on the other.
• Some villages were granted to brahmanas and big merchants for their enjoyment.
• Large plots of land worked with the help of slaves and agricultural labourers - Rich peasants were called grihapatis, who were almost the same as vaisyas.
• The advent of writing may have helped the assessment and collection of taxes.

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Monarchy

• Although we hear of many states in this period, only Kosala and Magadha emerged as powerful - both ruled by hereditary monarchs belonging to the kshatriya varna.
• The Jatakas tell us that oppressive kings and their chief priests were expelled by the people and new kings installed - but occasions of expulsion were as rare as elections.
• The king enjoyed the highest official status and special protection of his person and property.
• He yielded ground only to great religious leaders of the stature of the Buddha.
• The king was primarily a warlord who led his kingdom from victory to victory - well illustrated by the careers of Bimbisara and Ajatasatru.

Officials

• The kings ruled with the help of officials, both high and low.
• Higher officials called mahamatras - performed various functions: minister (mantrin), commander (senanayaka), judge, chief accountant, and head of the royal harem.
• A class of officers called ayuktas also performed similar functions in some states.
• Effective and influential ministers:
  • Varsakara of Magadha: Succeeded in sowing seeds of dissension in the ranks of the Lichchhavis and enabled Ajatasatru to conquer the republic.
  • Dirghacharayana of Kosala: Rendered help to the king of Kosala.
• High officers and ministers were largely recruited from the priestly class of the brahmanas - generally they did not seem to have belonged to the clan of the king.
• In both Kosala and Magadha, despite the use of punch-marked coins made of silver, influential brahmanas and setthis were paid by the grant of the revenue of villages - in doing so, the king did not have to obtain the consent of the clan (as was the case in later Vedic times), but the beneficiaries were granted only revenue, they were not given any administrative authority.

Rural Administration

• Rural administration was in the hands of the village headman.
• In the beginning, the headmen functioned as leaders of the tribal regiments - called gramini (meaning the leader of the grama or a tribal military unit).
• As life became sedentary, tribal contingents settled down to agriculture - the gramini therefore was transformed into a village headman in pre-Maurya times.
• Village headmen known by different titles: gramabhojaka, gramini, or gramika.
• 86 thousand gramikas are said to have been summoned by Bimbisara - number may be conventional but shows the village headmen enjoyed considerable importance and had direct links with the kings.
• The village headmen assessed and collected the taxes from the villagers; also maintained law and order in their locality.
• Sometimes oppressive headmen were taken to task by the villagers.

Army and Taxation

• The real increase in state power is indicated by the formation of a large professional army.
• At the time of Alexander's invasion, the Nanda ruler of Magadha kept:
  • 20,000 cavalry
  • 200,000 infantry
  • 2000 horse-chariots
  • About 4000 elephants
• Chariots were losing their importance - not only in north-east India but also in north-west India where they had been introduced by the Aryans.
• Elephants gave the Magadhan princes an edge over their rivals.
• The large long-service army had to be fed by the state exchequer.
• Nandas possessed enormous wealth - must have enabled them to support the army, but we have no clear idea of the measures by which they raised taxes from the people.
• Fiscal system: established on a firm basis.
• Warriors and priests (kshatriyas and brahmanas) were exempted from payment of taxes - burden fell on the peasants (mainly vaisyas or grihapatis).
• Bali: a voluntary payment made by tribesmen to their chiefs in Vedic times - became a compulsory payment to be made by the peasants in the age of the Buddha.
• Officers called balisadhakas were appointed to collect it.
• One-sixth of the produce was collected as tax by the king from the peasants.
• Taxes assessed and collected by royal agents with the help of .

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Decline of Popular Assemblies in Monarchies

• The kings of the period no longer summoned the sabha and samiti.
• Popular assemblies had practically disappeared in post-Vedic times - since they were essentially tribal institutions they decayed and disappeared as tribes disintegrated into varnas and lost their identity.
• Their place was taken by varna and caste groups - caste laws and customs were given due weight by the writers of law-books.
• Popular assemblies could succeed only in small kingdoms where members of the tribe could easily be summoned.
• With the emergence of large states (Kosala and Magadha), it was not possible to hold big assemblies attended by people belonging to different social classes and different parts of the empire.
• Instead, in this period we hear of a small body called parishad consisting exclusively of the brahmanas.

Republican Government

• The republican system of government existed either in the Indus basin or in the foothills of the Himalayas in eastern UP and Bihar.
• The republics in the Indus basin may have been remnants of the Vedic tribes - although some monarchies may have been followed by republics.
• In the republics real power lay in the hands of tribal oligarchies.
• In the republics of Sakyas and Lichchhavis, the ruling class belonged to the same clan and the same varna.
• In the case of the Lichchhavis of Vaisali, 7707 rajas sat on the assembly held in the motehall - brahmanas were NOT included in this group.
• In post-Maurya times, in the republics of the Malavas and the Kshudrakas, the kshatriyas and brahmanas were given citizenship but slaves and hired labourers were excluded.
• In a state situated on the Beas river in Punjab, membership was restricted to those who could supply at least one elephant to the state - a typical oligarchy in the Indus basin.
• Administrative machinery of the Sakyas and Lichchhavis was simple - consisted of raja (chief), uparaja (vice-king), senapati (commander), and bhandagarika (treasurer).
• We hear of as many as seven courts for trying the same case one after another in the Lichchhavi republic - though this seems to be too good to be true.

Origin of Kingship

• The Digha Nikaya (one of the earliest Buddhist Pali texts) points out that in the earliest stage human beings lived happily without private property.
• They gradually came to have private property and set up house with wives -> began to quarrel over property and women.
• In order to put an end to this quarrel they elected a chief who would maintain law and order and protect people.
• In return for protection, the people promised to give to the chief a part of their paddy - this chief came to be called the king (raja) and this is how kingship or the state originated.

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Varna System

• The Indian legal and judicial system originated in this period.
• Formerly people were governed by the tribal law which did not recognise any class distinction.
• But by now the tribal community had been clearly divided into four classes - brahmanas, kshatriyas, vaisyas, and sudras.
• The Dharmasutras laid down the duties of each of the four varnas, and the civil and criminal law came to be based on the varna division.
• The higher the varna the purer it was, and the higher was the order of moral conduct expected by civil and criminal law.
• All kinds of disabilities were imposed on the sudras:
  • Deprived of religious and legal rights.
  • Relegated to the lowest position in society.
  • Could not be invested with upanayana.
  • Crimes committed by them against brahmanas and others were punished severely.
  • Crimes committed against the sudras were punished lightly.
  • Lawgivers emphasised the fiction that the sudras were born from the feet of the Creator.
  • Members of higher varnas shunned the company of the sudra, avoided the food touched by him, refused to enter into marriage relations with him.
  • He could not be appointed to high posts.
  • Specifically asked to serve the twice-born as slave, artisan, and agricultural labourer.
• Even Jainism and Buddhism did not make any substantial change in the position of the sudras.
• Gautama Buddha visited the assemblies of the brahmanas, the kshatriyas, and the grihapatis or householders, but the assembly of the sudras is not mentioned in this connection.

Sudras and Untouchables

• In post-Vedic times, sudras appeared as domestic slaves, agricultural slaves, craftsmen, and hired labourers.
• They were called cruel, greedy, and thieving in habits - some were treated as untouchables.

Administration of Law

• Civil and criminal law was administered by royal agents who inflicted rough and ready punishments: scourging, beheading, tearing out of the tongue, etc.
• Criminal offences were governed by the idea of revenge - tooth for tooth and eye for eye.
• Although brahmanical law-books took into account the social status of different varnas in framing their laws, they did NOT ignore the customs of those non-Vedic tribal groups who were gradually absorbed into the brahmanical social order.
• Some of these indigenous tribes were given fictitious social origins and, what is further important, they were allowed to be governed by their own customs.

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• The age of the Buddha is important because ancient Indian polity, economy, and society really took shape in this period.
• Agriculture based on the use of iron tools in alluvial areas gave rise to an advanced food-producing economy - particularly in eastern UP and Bihar.
• It was possible to collect taxes from the peasants - on the basis of regular taxes and tributes, large states could be founded.
• In order to continue this system, the varna order was devised and the functions of each varna were clearly laid down:
  • Rulers and fighters = kshatriyas
  • Priests and teachers = brahmanas
  • Peasants and taxpayers = vaisyas
  • Those who served all three classes as labourers = sudras

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• GS Paper I - Ancient India: The NBP phase and second urbanisation are the material basis for understanding the Mahajanapada and Mauryan political economy.
• Technology and Society: Iron tools -> agricultural surplus -> taxation -> professional army -> territorial states - a complete causal chain from technology to state formation.
• Varna and Inequality: The codification of varna in the Dharmasutras, with sudras bearing maximum disabilities, is the historical foundation of the caste system - relevant to continuity and change in Indian social history.
• Republican Tradition: The Lichchhavi and Sakya republics are the earliest examples of representative government in India - frequently referenced in discussions of India's democratic heritage.
• Origin of Kingship: The Buddhist theory of kingship (from the Digha Nikaya) is one of the earliest social contract theories in world history - relevant to political thought questions.
• Interlink: NBP phase <-> Mahajanapadas <-> Second urbanisation <-> Mauryan Empire; Varna system <-> Jainism/Buddhism (reaction against) <-> Dharmasutras (codification).

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1. NBP = Northern Black Polished Ware, NOT Northern Brown Painted Ware: Students confuse NBP with PGW (Painted Grey Ware). PGW is associated with the Later Vedic phase (c. 1000 BC); NBP marks the second urbanisation (sixth century BC onwards).

2. Burnt bricks and ringwells appeared in the MIDDLE of the NBP phase (third century BC), NOT at its beginning: Students assume these features existed from the beginning of the NBP phase.

3. The Harappan towns disappeared at about 1500 BC - after which there were NO towns for about 1000 years: This gap is frequently overlooked. The second urbanisation (sixth century BC) is explicitly described as coming approximately 1000 years after the Harappan urban decline.

4. Punch-marked coins are NOT a result of Iranian contact: RS Sharma explicitly states it is WRONG to think punch-marked coins continued in India as a result of contact with Iran. They were an indigenous development from the sixth century BC.

5. Bali became COMPULSORY in the age of the Buddha - it was voluntary in Vedic times: Students often treat bali as always compulsory. RS Sharma explicitly traces the transition from voluntary to compulsory payment.

6. Tax rate was ONE-SIXTH of the produce: Students often guess or confuse with one-fourth or one-third.

7. The 7707 Lichchhavi rajas sat on the assembly - brahmanas were NOT included: In the Lichchhavi republic, the ruling class belonged to the same clan and varna; brahmanas had no place in this assembly. This distinguishes the republican oligarchy from the brahmanical monarchy.

8. Gramini was originally a TRIBAL MILITARY LEADER, NOT a village headman: The gramini was the leader of a tribal military unit () - it was only as life became sedentary that the transformed into a village headman.

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• NBP = Northern Black Polished Ware; begins sixth century BC; very glossy, shining, fine fabric; table-ware of richer people
• Burnt bricks and ringwells appeared in the middle of NBP phase = third century BC
• Harappan towns disappeared ~1500 BC; no towns for ~1000 years; second urbanisation begins sixth century BC
• 18 guilds of artisans mentioned; only guilds of smiths, carpenters, leather workers, painters specified
• Saddalaputta at Vaisali: 500 potters' shops
• Punch-marked coins: earliest silver; marked with hill, trees, fish, bull, elephant, crescent; earliest hoards in eastern UP and Magadha
• Tax rate: one-sixth of the produce
• Officers to collect bali: balisadhakas; customs collectors: saulkika/sulkadhyaksha
• Village headman: gramabhojaka, gramini, gramika
• 86,000 gramikas summoned by Bimbisara (conventional number)
• Higher officials: mahamatras; included minister (mantrin), commander (senanayaka), judge, chief accountant
• Nanda army at time of Alexander: 20,000 cavalry, 200,000 infantry, 2000 horse-chariots, 4000 elephants
• Bali: voluntary in Vedic times -> in age of Buddha