How Jains described Chanakya and Chandragupta Maurya

 Abhishek Singh.          Visit know...

Jai shree Ram,

Synopsis

Buddhists claimed Ashoka. Jains claimed Ashoka's grandfather Chandragupta, and his grandson, Samprati. Hindus claimed the Brahmin who was the 'real' power behind the Mauryan dynasty. While Buddhist versions focussed on Chanakya's cruelty and manipulative nature, Jain versions focussed on how solace for both king and counsellor could only be obtained from the Jaith (Jain) path

As per popular lore, Chanakya was a Brahmin from Taxila who enabled the rise of Chandragupta, the founder of the Mauryan Dynasty, 2300 years ago, at the time of the Greek invasion of India. He is credited with composing the Arthashastra, a book of political economy, as well as Chanakyaniti, a collection of aphorisms which have a rather pragmatic view of how to grab

Chandragupta Maurya[a] (350-295 BCE) was the first emperor of the Mauryan Empire in Ancient India who expanded a geographically extensive kingdom based in Magadha and founded the Maurya dynasty.[7] He reigned from 320 BCE to 298 BCE.[8] The Maurya kingdom expanded to become an empire that reached its peak under the reign of his grandson, Ashoka, from 268 BCE to 231 BCE.[9] The nature of the political formation that existed in Chandragupta's time is not certain.[10] The Mauryan empire was a loose-knit empire.[11]

Chandragupta Maurya

Chakravartin

Carving of Chandragupta Maurya

Medieval stone relief at Digambara pilgrimage site Shravanabelagola, Karnataka. It has been interpreted as Bhadrabahu and Chandragupta Maurya,[1] but some disagree.[2]

1st Mauryan Emperor

Reign

c. 324 or 321 – c. 297 BCE[3][4]

Coronation

c. 324 or 321 BCE

Predecessor

Dhana Nanda

Successor

Emperor Bindusara Maurya (son)[5]

Amatya

Chanakya

Rakshas

Spouses

Empress Consort Durdhara

Seleucid princess

Issue

Bindusara

Dynasty

Maurya

Father

Sarvarthasiddhi

Mother

Mura

Religion

Hinduism[6]

Jainism[6]

Chandragupta Maurya was an important figure in the history of India, laying the foundations of the first state to unite most of India. Chandragupta, under the tutelage of Chanakya, created a new empire based on the principles of statecraft, built a large army, and continued expanding the boundaries of his empire until ultimately renouncing it for an ascetic life in his final years.

Prior to his consolidation of power, Alexander the Great had invaded the North-West Indian subcontinent before abandoning his campaign in 324 BCE due to a mutiny caused by the prospect of facing another large empire, presumably the Nanda Empire. Chandragupta defeated and conquered both the Nanda Empire and the Greek satraps that were appointed or formed from Alexander's Empire in South Asia. He set out to conquer the Nanda Empire centered in Pataliputra, Magadha. Afterwards, Chandragupta expanded and secured his western border, where he was confronted by Seleucus I Nicator in the Seleucid–Mauryan war. After two years of war, Chandragupta was considered to have gained the upper hand in the conflict and annexed satrapies up to the Hindu Kush. Instead of prolonging the war, both parties settled on a marriage treaty between Chandragupta and Seleucus I Nicator's daughter Helena.

Chandragupta's empire extended throughout most of the Indian subcontinent, spanning from modern day Bengal to Afghanistan across North India as well as making inroads into Central and South India. Contemporary Greek evidence states that Chandragupta did not give up performing the rites of sacrificing animals associated with Vedic Brahminism, an ancient form of Hinduism; he delighted in hunting and otherwise leading a life remote from the Jain practice of Ahimsa or nonviolence towards living beings.^[6][12] Chandragupta's reign, and the Maurya Empire, set an era of economic prosperity, reforms, infrastructure expansions, and tolerance. Many religions thrived within his realms and his descendants' empire. Buddhism, Jainism and Ājīvika gained prominence alongside Vedic and Brahmanistic traditions, and minority religions such as Zoroastrianism and the Greek pantheon were respected. A memorial for Chandragupta Maurya exists on the Chandragiri hill along with a seventh-century hagiographic inscription.