Age of the Nandas and Mauryas c11.s2.1

c11.s2.1

For the study of the political and administrative system of the Mauryan empire we are fortunately in possession of an abundance of authentic contemporary evidence such as we do not get for any other period of India's history until we reach the period of Mughal rule. Megasthenes, Kauṭilya and the Aśokan inscriptions, when correctly interpreted, supplement one another to a remarkable degree, and literary sources like Divyāvadāna and Mudrārākshasa, though they belong to much later times, appear to preserve a correct tradition in some parts and have their own contribution to make ; likewise the Girnār inscription of Rudradāman (A.D. 150) provides a welcome peep into the provincial administration of Gujarat under the Mauryas.