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Age of the Nandas and Mauryas c11.s33: Administration

Age of the Nandas and Mauryas c11.s33

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Administration

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From other geographical references in the inscriptions we may form some idea of the scheme of Aśoka's administration of the empire. Pāṭaliputra (Patna) was the capital, as in the days of Aśoka's grandfather Chandragupta³. Kośāmbi (Kosam on the Jamna about 28 miles above Allahabad), Ujjeni, Takshaśilā (Taxila), Suvarṇagiri (perhaps modern Zonnagiri in the neighbourhood of Yerraguḍi⁴). with Isila (Siddhāpura) as a subordinate division, and Tosali (Dhauli) and Sāmapā (near Jaugaḍa) in the Kalinga country are important centres of provincial administration that are expressly mentioned. There might have been others. Thus in an inscription of A.D. 150 the Yavanarāja Tushaspa is said to have represented Aśoka's authority in Kathiawad. The Viceroys of Tosali and Ujjeni are called Kumāra in the Kalinga edicts; and Ayaputa (Āryaputra) is the term by which the viceroy of Suvarṇagiri is described in the Mysore (Brahmagiri-Siddhāpura) edicts, and they were obviously princes of the imperial royal family. The more generic term for provincial officers is Mahāmātra. The two Kumāras were probably sons of the king. Rock-Edict V (M) mentions the harems of the king's brothers, of his sisters and other relatives both in the capital and in all the outlying towns, a clear indication that the king availed himself freely of the assistance of his relatives in carrying on the administration of the empire.

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³ Hultzsch p. xxx.

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⁴ NIA i pp 596-7. Contra Hultzsch who suggests Kanakagiri in the Nizam's dominions.

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Officers of different grades are mentioned, and the highest rank seems to have been held by the Rājūkas and Mahāmātras. The word Rājūka is held by some to be connected with rājā; but the better view seems to be that of Bühler who considers it an abbreviation of Rajjugrāhaka (rope-holder) of the Jātakas. This class of officer "originally 'held the rope' in order to measure the fields of the ryots and to assess the land-tax", and revenue administration must have been among their chief duties. Aśoka says that he appointed the Rājūkas for the welfare and happiness of the country people (janapadasa hitasukhāye PE IV, I). The Arthaśāstra knows, however, rajjū and chora-rajjū as sources of revenue in the rāṣṭra (janapada), and chora-rajjuka as a rural officer; and Megasthenes has described a class of highly-placed rural officers, agronomoi, whose duties are very similar to those of the rājūkas of the inscriptions. We must assume therefore that Aśoka did not create a new office, but reorganised and improved the existing arrangements for rural administration. The Rājūkas each held sway over 'many hundred thousands of men', and 'either rewards or punishments were left to their discretion' in order that they should perform their duties confidently and fearlessly. Aśoka desires that the care of these officers for the people should resemble that of an intelligent nurse for the child in her charge. The Rājūkas had the power of life and death; but to secure that no mistakes should occur and opportunity may be found by Rājūkas either on their own initiative or as a result of persuasion by the relatives of the condemned man to revise the order, and in order to enable the prisoner to prepare adequately by fasts, prayer and gifts, to meet his end, a respite of three days was required to be granted in all cases of capital punishment. And they were particularly enjoined to be impartial in the investigation of disputes and the award of punishments. This was not all. The Rājūkas were kept in constant touch with the king by his agents, purushas.

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(pulisā) who knew the king's mind and were constantly on the move. (PE. IV). They were also to take a hand in the propagation of Dhamma among the people (PE. VII, N). and direct the Jānapadas and rāṭhikas employed under them to be active in this work (MRE, Yerraguḍi).

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The term Mahāmātra indicated a certain definite high rank in the hierarchy of officials ; the duties that devolved on each were implied by more specific titles. Thus there were the Dhamma-mahāmātras whose offices were newly created by Aśoka thirteen years after his abhiṣeka as he states in Rock-Edict V which sets forth their duties in some detail. They were to establish and promote dhamma among all the sects in the land and promote the happiness of people devoted to dhamma among the Yonas, Kambhojas and Gāndhāras and other tribes on the western border. They were to help in all difficulties experienced by servants and masters, by Brahmins and Vaiśyas, and by the destitute and the aged ; they reviewed all sentences awarded by courts and mitigated or remitted them after taking into account the particular circumstances of each case such as motive, the presence of children, instigation, and advanced age¹ ; in Pāṭaliputra and in all outlying towns, they had duties in harems and households of the king's relatives, brothers and sisters, and generally they regulated morality and charity throughout the empire. The Seventh Pillar-Edict throws further light on their work ; after a general statement that their activity was fraught with benefit for ascetics and householders of all sects, Aśoka makes the following declaration : ‘Some were ordered by me to busy themselves with the affairs of the Saṅgha ; likewise others were ordered by me to busy themselves also with the Brāhmaṇas and Ājīvakas ; others were ordered by me to busy themselves also with the Nirgranthas ; others were ordered by me to busy themselves also with various other sects²’.

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¹ I have followed Jayaswal and Smith in the interpretation of this difficult section as Hultzsch's translation seems to me wholly inadequate.

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² PE. VII, X-AA I treat as one section dealing with Dhamma-mahāmātras Cf. Smith, Aśoka 3 p. 210 vi ; contra Hultzsch p. 136, n. 5.

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Then there were the mahāmātras who were nagara-vyavahārakas at Tosali and Sāmapā in Kalinga, and perhaps in other large cities elsewhere. They were obviously the same as the Pauravyavahārikas of Kauṭilya. They administered justice in the cities¹, as the rājūkas did in the rural areas, and were, like the rājūkas, required to be strictly impartial in the discharge of their duties², and strive to overcome defects of personal character that might hamper them in attaining this end³. There were the amta-mahāmātras, officers of the borders, who were engaged in civilizing and preaching dhamma among the wild tribes on the borders and elsewhere ; these tribes were not full members of the empire and retained something of their primitive independence, and the king's policy towards them was one of benevolent paternalism.⁴ Lastly there were the strī-adhyaksha-mahāmātras, whose name indicates that they had control of women, but of whose exact duties no details are forthcoming; they may be taken to correspond to the Gaṇikādhyaksha, ‘the overseer of courtesans’ of the Arthaśāstra⁵.

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¹ Hultzsch p. 95, n. 2.

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² Cf. Sep. Ed. I, J-L and PE. IV, K-N.

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³ Sep. Ed. I M-Q.

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⁴ Sep. Ed. II F-M (Dhauli) and PE. I.F.

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⁵ RE. xii M. Hultzsch p. 22 n 4.

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