State And Government In Ancient India

The present work by a well-known authority on Ancient India deals in a comprehensive manner with the ancient Hindu political ideas, theories and ideals and describes the different features and aspects of the ancient Indian administration in its numerous branches. It is based not merely on a study of the different Smrti books and Arthasastra works in Sanskrit, which give us the theoretical picture, but it also utilizes fully all the data bearing on the subject available in Vedic and classical literature, Buddhist and Jain works, ancient books on history and accounts of foreign travellers and historians. Rich material supplied by inscriptions has been fully tapped and the discerning critic will not be unwilling to concede that no previous work on the subject attempts to give such a comprehensive synthesis of the divergent data supplied by theoretical and literary works on the one hand and by inscriptions and purely historical records on the other. The material has been arranged chronologically and also province-wise, whenever it was possible to do so. In each chapter, attempt has been made to trace the development of political theories and institution from age to age, though the material in some cases was not quite sufficient to do so.

The civilizations of ancient India had their own different governments. In the Indus Valley Civilization, priest kings were at the head of government. The Maurya Empire boasted a stable, centralized government that allowed the flourishing of trade and culture. That government had weakened by the time of the Gupta Empire, opening the gates to foreign invaders and civil wars. This informative volume charts the changes in leadership in ancient India and ends with a comparison to India’s government today. With engaging text, rich and colorful illustrations, and an enhanced e-book option, this title is a valuable resource for student reports.

This book explores the political organization and foreign relations of ancient India. It delves into the evolution of India's government system, its administrative divisions, and its diplomatic relations with its neighbors. Readers will gain a comprehensive understanding of the complexities of ancient Indian society and its place in the wider world. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.