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Kings, Farmers And Towns
“The Mahabharata is a story of kinship, marriages and patriliny.” Examine the statement.
(i) The Mahabharata is a story about kinship describing a feud over land and power between the Kauravas and the Pandavas.
(ii) Pandavas became victorious due to their virtues.
(iii) Kinsmen claimed the throne, and, in very exceptional circumstances, women such as Prabhavati Gupta exercised power.
(iv) Under patriliny, sons could claim the authority of their fathers .
(v) Men acquired wealth through means led by the Manusmriti like inheritance, work, etc.
(vi) Women acquired wealth through Stridhan( by father, brother, husband).
(vii) While sons were important for the continuity of the patriliny, daughters had no claims to the resources of the household.
(viii) Various systems followed for the marriage were endogamy, exogamy, polygamy and polyandry.
(ix) Members of the same gotra could not marry.
(x) One of the most challenging episode in the Mahabharata is Draupadi’s marriage with the Pandavas an instance of Polyandry
(xi) Bhima marrying Hidimba –an example of exogamy.
(xii) Dharamshastras and Dharamasutras recognized as many as eight forms of marriages.
(xiii) Kanyadana or the gift of a daughter in marriage was an important religious duty of the father.
(xiv) Yudhishthira losing his wife in the game of dice is an example of women being treated as a part of property, putting up a big question on the status of women.
(xv) Family shaped the attitude and thinking of the people and geared them towards patriarchy.
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To what extent were agricultural practices transformed in the period under consideration?
Compare Maps 1 and 2, and list the Mahajanapadas that may have been included in the Mauryan Empire. Are any Asokan inscriptions found in these areas?
Collect newspapers for one month. Cut and paste all the statements made by government officials about public works. Note what the reports say about the resources required for such projects, how the resources are mobilised and the objective of the project. Who issues these statements, and how and why are they communicated? Compare and contrast these with the evidence from inscriptions discussed in this chapter. What are the similarities and differences that you notice.
Collect five different kinds of currency notes and coins in circulation today. For each one of these, describe what you see on the observe and the reverse (the front and the back). Prepare a report on the common features as well as the differences in terms of pictures, scripts and languages, size, shape and any other element that you find significant. Compare these with the coins shown in this chapter, discussing the materials used, the techniques of minting, the visual symbols and their significance and the possible functions that coins may have had.
What is meant by Janapada?
What were the Mahajanapadas? Name a few important Mahajanapadas.
Which Mahajanapada emerged as the strongest one? Name any three of its important rulers.
What was the early capital of Magadha? Tell its one feature. In the 4th century BCE, which city was made the capital of Magadha?
Who was Chandragupta Maurya? Upto where he extended his control of the empire?
Who was Asoka? Which famous state he annexed into Mauryan empire?
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