Age of the Nandas and Mauryas c8.6

c8.6

The work of the historian, unlike that of the novelist, is limited by the nature of his sources. Little or no evidence worth the name is forthcoming on many matters of interest in our period, and several questions that naturally rise in the mind as we recall its main events have to remain unanswered. Did Chandragupta deliver his attack on the Nanda empire at its heart and effect a revolution in the capital to start with, or did he begin by building up his power in the North-West at the expense of the Greeks and then proceed against the Nandas? What exactly was the role of Kauṭilya in the events that led up to the *abhisheka* of Chandragupta? How long did Chandragupta take to build up his empire, and who were the enemies, if any, who gave him fight? Did he turn Jain and abdicate towards the close of his reign as Jaina legends allege? What happened in the Mauryan empire during close upon three decades of Bindusāra's rule? We hear little of that monarch besides his love of Greek wine and figs, and his futile effort to buy a Greek philosopher. Yet this king could not have lacked ability as soldier and statesman, for he successfully guarded the vast empire, perhaps even extended it into the Deccan, and handed it over intact to his successor. Was Aśoka's succession to the throne disputed? Did he rule as emperor to the end of his life, or did he abdicate and live as a monk in his last years? And why did not the empire, reared by three generations of exceptionally talented rulers, hold together for many years after Aśoka's time?