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History of Kanauj to the Moslem Conquest c12.s4: CIVIL administration

History of Kanauj to the Moslem Conquest c12.s4

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English

Contents

CIVIL administration

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Our authorities on Harṣa unfortunately yield us very meagre data for the then existing system of government. Probably Harṣa was assisted in the task of administration by an advisory council as favoured and advocated by ancient Indian political thinkers.¹ According to Yuan Chwang, Harṣa was invited to accept the crown of Kanauj by the statesmen and ministers of that kingdom, led by Poni; and it does not seem unreasonable to believe that they may have continued to wield some sort of control even during the palmy days of Harṣa’s power. The pilgrim even goes so far as to assert that “a commission of officers held the land.”²

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¹ See e.g., Kauṭilya’s *Arthaśāstra*, Bk. I, ch. VII, p. 13 : “Sovereignty is possible only with assistance. A single wheel can never move. Hence, he shall employ ministers and hear their opinion.”

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² Beal, I, p. 210.

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Further, owing to the large extent of territory and the scanty and slow means of communication, it was necessary to establish strong centres of government in order to keep the loosely-knit parts of the empire together. The outlying provinces were, therefore, put in charge of governors, as we are informed by the following passage in the *Harṣacarita*: “Atra lokanāthena diśāṃ mukheṣu parikalpitāḥ lokapālāḥ,” i.e., “he, the protector of all people, appointed protectors in the several directions.”³ They were sometimes also known as Sāmantas and Mahāsāmantas. They maintained law and order in the distant parts of the empire, and must have been invested with considerable power. Probably Mādhavagupta was one such governor or local ruler. This assumption seems irresistible if the testimonies of the *Harṣacarita* and the Aphsad inscription are considered in conjunction. The former mentions Mādhavagupta, Prince of Malwa, as a youthful companion of Harṣa at the Thanesvar court; whereas from the latter it is evident that he was ruling over the Magadha region, and is further credited "with the desire to associate himself with the glorious Harṣadeva."¹ This political arrangement was perhaps made by Harṣa either to reward his services rendered during the initial crisis, or to make him a bulwark against the aggressions of Śaśāṅka, who was in power at least till 619 A.D. Or, it may be that by the appointment of a strong lieutenant in Magadha, Harṣa was only manœuvring to further his designs against Śaśāṅka’s territories in Bengal and the coastal regions. Mādhavagupta’s family, however, declared the independence of Magadha in the confusion following Harṣa’s death, as we shall see later on.

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³ *Harṣacarita* (Cal. ed.), p. 211. Compare also the Juna-gaḍh rock inscription of Skandagupta, which speaks of similar appointments : “Sarveṣu deśeṣu vidhāya goptṝn,” i.e., “having appointed protectors in all countries.” (*C. I. I.*, III, No. 14, pp. 59, 62). It may, however, be remarked that the above passage in the *Harṣacarita* does not admit of an unambiguous interpretation. There is evidently a play on words, and Bāṇa also compares Harṣa with a great god, who appoints regents of the several quarters.

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¹ C. I. I., III, No. 42, pp. 204, 207. Cf. "Śri-Harṣadeva nija-saṃgama-vāñcchayā."

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"Since administration means many functions and not one, which are moreover not restricted to a single place," success in government must largely depend upon the efficient organisation of a Bureaucracy. We may, therefore, indicate some of the state-functionaries, civil and military, that are mentioned in the *Harṣacarita* and the inscriptions :—

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I. *Mahāsandhivigrahādhikrita*, or the "supreme minister of peace and war," who also probably accompanied the king to the battlefield. Bāṇa mentions Avanti as the incumbent of this office.

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II. *Mahābalādhikrita*, or officer in supreme command of the army.

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III. *Balādhikrita*, or commander.

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IV. *Senāpati*, literally “lord or chief of the army,” i.e., a general.¹ The *Harṣacarita* gives his name as Simhanāda.

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¹ *C. I. I.*, III, p. 167.

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V. *Brihadaśvarāra*, or the head-cavalry officer. He is called Kuntala in the *Harṣacarita*.

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VI. *Kaṭuka*, or commandant of the elephant force. Bāṇa names him Skandagupta. Mr. Y. R. Gupte, on the other hand, says that *Kaṭukas* “apparently mean any persons (officers, members of a religious assembly not generally held in respect at the time, etc.) who are disagreeable to the public.”²

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² *Ep. Ind.*, XIII, p. 117, Note 9.

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VII. *Pāti* (*Pāṭhī*)-*pati*, or “superintendents of soldiers’ barracks.”

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VIII. *Cāṭa-bhaṭa*, or irregular and regular soldiers.³ Vogel, however, thinks that *Cāṭa* is equivalent to modern *Cār* or “head of a pargana responsible for the internal management of a district for the collection of revenue and the apprehension of criminals.” According to the same scholar *bhaṭa*, which is usually compounded with *Cāṭa*, should be taken to mean “an official subordinate to the head of a pargana.”⁴

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³ Bühler, *Ind. Ant.*, (V), 1876, p. 115 Note; Fleet, *C. I. I.*, III, p. 98, Note 2.

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⁴ *Antiquities of the Camba State*, Part I, pp. 131-32. Indraji translates the term as “Cāṭān prati bhaṭaḥ,” i.e., soldiers against robbers (*Ind. Ant.*, IX, p. 175, Note 41).

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IX. *Yāma-ceṭis* or *Yāmakinyaḥ* or “women-watchers of the night.”

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X. *Dūta*, i.e., Envoy or Ambassador. His duty was to promote and foster friendly relations between different states. For instance, we learn from the Harṣacarita that the king of Assam sent one Haṁsavega to conclude an “imperishable alliance” with Harṣa.

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XI. Rājasthānīya, literally it denotes an officer who had to deal with other Rājasthānas or kingdoms, i.e., Foreign Secretary¹. A better meaning would be a Viceroy or Governor, since in the Mandasor inscription (Fleet, C. I. I., No. 35) the term “Rājasthāna” is used in the sense of a province. The explanation of the word in the Lokaprakāśa (iv), as given by Bühler, is : “Prajā pālanārtham-udvahati rakṣayati ca sa rājasthānīyaḥ,” i.e., “He, who carries out the object of protecting subjects and shelters them, is called a Rājasthānīya.”² From this description it is clear that this office must have been an important one and invested with considerable authority. It is, however, curious that in the Maliya grant of Dharasena II (Fleet’s No. 38) and in the Deo-Baranārk inscription (No. 42) the Rājasthānīya is mentioned rather low down in the list of officials.

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¹ Indraji, Bom. Gaz., Vol. I, pt. I, p. 82.

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² Ind. Ant., V, p. 207. According to Dr. Stein, this officer was equivalent to a modern chief justice (Rājat., Trans. Bk. VII, p. 316, Note).

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XII. Kumārāmātya, literally a counsellor of the prince.³ But it may also be explained as “Kaumārād ārabhya amātyaḥ,” or “one who was in the service of the king from the time when he was a boy.”⁴ This office frequently occurs in Gupta records, and so some scholars interpret it as referring to the princes of the blood royal “who formed a council of the nobles, and who were consulted by the ruling chiefs on points of imperial importance.”⁵

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³ C. I. I., III, p. 16, Note 7.

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⁴ Bloch, Ep. Ind., X, p. 50, Note 2.

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⁵ Ibid., XI, p. 176. Bühler translated it as “princes and ministers” (Ind. Ant., IV, p. 175).

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XIII. Uparika. This, along with Mahārāja, was an official title of the Governor of a province;¹ hence its holder may be considered equivalent to a provincial governor. Probably the Emperor himself appointed this exalted functionary. At any rate, such was the case in the Gupta times, as is clear from the expression “tatpāda-parigrahita.”

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¹ Ep. Ind., XV, pp. 114, 127, etc.

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XIV. Viṣayapati, i.e., the head of a Viṣaya corresponding roughly to a modern district. We do not know who appointed them during the reign of Harṣa, but some light with regard to their position may be thrown on the basis of the Gupta records. It appears from the Damodarapur copper plates that the Viṣayapatis were known as “tanniyuktakas,” and were directly responsible to the provincial governors. They had their headquarters in Adhiṣṭhānas (towns), where their offices (adhikaraṇas) were located. These grants also reveal to us another interesting fact that these District officers were assisted in their administration (saṁvyavahāra) by a Board of four Advisers representing the principal local interests of those times, viz.,

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(a) Nagara-Sreṣṭhin, who probably represented the upper ten of the urban population.

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(b) Sārthavāha—the chief merchant, perhaps representing the trade-guilds.

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(c) Prathama-Kulika—the chief artisan, who was the spokesman of the artisan classes.

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(d) Prathama-Kāyastha—the chief scribe, probably a representative of the scribes as a class.

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XV. Mahattara, literally meaning one high in rank, from which it presumably came to connote those who were the recognised headmen of the village.² They were prominent by either ability, age, experience, or wealth.

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² Ep. Ind., XV, p. 136; Ind. Ant., 1910, p. 213. The Life informs us that Ta-kwan or official guides also bore the designation Mo-ho-ta-lo, (see p. 189).

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XVI. *Pramātri*, literally “a person fit to perceive or judge” from root *mā*; hence it may mean an officer entrusted with justice. Some scholars think it denoted an officer whose work was to make a survey of the land. Bühler, on the other hand, translates it as “spiritual councillor.”¹

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¹ *Ep. Ind.*, I, p. 118, Note 36.

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XVII. *Dauṣsādhanika*, literally one who undertook difficult tasks. If, however, this term is identical with “Dauṣsādhika” or “Dauḥsādhasādhanika,” we may with Dr. R. G. Basak render it as “porter or superintendent of villages.”²

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² *Ibid.*, XII, pp. 43, 141.

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XVIII. *Bhogika* or *Bhogapati*, i.e., one responsible for the collection of the *bhoga* or the state share of the land produce taken in kind, as a rule one-sixth. Fleet, however, was of opinion that “in the inscriptions it is a technical official title, possibly connected with the territorial terms Bhoga and Bhukti.”³ Another scholar, Dr. R. G. Basak, explains the word by “groom.”⁴

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³ *C. I. I.*, III, p. 100, Note 2.

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⁴ *Ep. Ind.* XII, p. 43; see also Monier-Williams’ *Sanskrit Dictionary*.

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XIX. *Aynktaka*, literally meaning appointed. This term was probably applied to minor officials of the government. The word “āyukta” or “āyuktaka” occurs in Pāṇini’s *Aṣṭādhyāyī* (II, 3, 40) where it denotes a person appointed to some small work of a special character. Dr. Thomas has also pointed out that in the *Arthaśāstra* “yukta” or “yuktaka” occurs in the sense of a minor official.⁵ It may further be held that the Āyuktakas were identical with the “Āyuktapuruṣas” mentioned in the Allahabad pillar inscription of Samudragupta (line 26).

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⁵ *J. R. A. S.*, 1909, p. 467.

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XX. *Mahāpratīhāra*, i.e., Chief warder or Usher. This officer invariably finds mention in records, which shows that he must have been an important figure in the states of ancient India. According to the *Harṣacarita*, Pāriyātra was Harṣa’s “chief of the doorkeepers.”

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XXI. *Pratīhāra* or Chamberlain.

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XXII. *Mīmāṃsakas*, or justices. Or, were they interpreters of *Mīmāṃsā* or sacred philosophy?¹

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¹ *Ep. Ind.*, XIV, p. 325.

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XXIII. *Dīrghādhvaga*, i.e., express couriers,² who “continually went and returned.”³ They used to deliver messages pretty quickly, as for instance, we learn from the *Life* that a messenger sent by Kumārarāja of Kāmarūpa (Assam) was able to present a letter to Śilabhadra at Nalanda after two days only.⁴

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² *Hc.*, ed. by Führer (Bombay, 1909), p. 223; *Hc. C. T.*, p. 145.

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³ Beal, I, p. 215.

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⁴ *Life*, p. 169.

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XXIV. *Lekhahāraka*, or letter-carrier. This term is also found in the *Harṣacarita*,⁵ but we do not know with certainty whether it was synonymous with *Dīrghādhvaga* or denoted a separate class of couriers.

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⁵ *Hc.*, (Calcutta edition), p. 600; *Hc. C. T.*, p. 223.

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XXV. *Sarvagataḥ*,⁶ literally denoting going everywhere. They were probably officers of the secret service.

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⁶ *Hc.*, (Bombay, 1909), p. 57; *Hc. C. T.*, p. 27.

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XXVI. *Grāmākṣapaṭalika*, or the village notary. It may be noted that it was the village notary who presented to Harṣa “a new-made golden seal with a bull for its emblem” on the occasion of his first haṣt.⁷

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⁷ *Hc.*, p. 274; *Hc. C. T.*, p. 198.

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XXVII. *Akṣapaṭalika*, or keeper of records. Yuan Chwang also mentions that there are separate custodians for the archives and records. “The official annals and state papers are called collectively *Ni-lo-pi-tu* (or *ca*); in these good and bad are recorded, and instances of public calamity and good fortune are set forth in detail."¹

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¹ Watters, I, p. 154.

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XXVIII. *Mahākṣapaṭalādhikaraṇādhikrita*, i.e., office of "one appointed to the post of notary-in-chief. This expression occurs in the Banskhera and Madhuban copper plates, which respectively name this officer Mahāsāmanta Mahārāja Bhānu and Sāmanta Mahārāja Īśvaragupta.

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XXIX. *Pustakakrit* or *Pustakrit*.² In the Damodarpur copper plates the term "Pustapāla" occurs. According to Dr. R. G. Basak they were "those who were made aware of the title to all lands. The Govt. sanctioned land-sales only after these record-keepers had, on receipt of application from purchasers, determined the title to the land under proposal of transfer and sent in their report to the government." (*Ep. Ind.*, XV, p. 128).

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² *Hc.*, ed. by Führer (Bombay, 1909), p. 67; *Hc. C. T.*, p. 33.

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XXX. *Lekhaka*, or writer.³

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³ *Ibid.*

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XXXI. *Karaṇi* or *Karaṇika*, i.e., clerk.⁴ He was probably responsible for drafting documents (*Karaṇa*). It is worth noticing that certain Candrāsenīya Kāyastha Prabhus of the Deccan, who are supposed to have migrated from Oudh in the United Provinces, still bear the surname Karṇika or Karaṇika.⁵

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⁴ *Hc.*, p. 274; *Hc. C. T.*, p. 198.

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⁵ *Ep. Ind.*, XVIII, p. 224, Note 1.

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XXXII. *Dūtaka*. This was the designation of an officer employed in connection with formal grants. His duty, as remarked by Fleet, "was to carry, not the actual charter itself, for delivery into the hand of the grantee but the king's sanction and order to the local officials, whose duty it then was to have the charter drawn up and delivered.”¹ The *Dūtaka* of the Banskhera copper plate was Mahāpramātā Mahāsāmanta-Srī-Skandagupta. It was signed by Harṣa himself, as is clear from the expression “Svahasto mama Mahārājādhirāja Śrī-Harṣasya” i.e., “given under my own hand and seal.”

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¹ *C. I. I.*, III, p. 100, Note 3.

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XXXIII. Bāṇa also mentions the *Adhyakṣas*, which shows that probably the subordinate officials were under their departmental superintendents.

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XXXIV. *Sevaka*. This term occurs in the Banskhera and Madhuban charters, and perhaps denotes any menial servant in state employ.

Territorial divisions

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According to the inscriptions of Harṣa the country was divided for administrative purposes into the following divisions :—

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(a) *Bhukti*, i.e., province or division, as for instance the Śrāvasti *Bhukti*, or the Ahicchatra *Bhukti* mentioned in the Madhuban and Banskhera grants respectively.

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(b) The *Bhukti* was further subdivided into *Viṣayas* corresponding to modern districts. The Madhuban record gives us the name of Kuṇḍadhāni *Viṣaya*, whereas the Banskhera copper plate mentions the Angadīya *Viṣaya*

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(c) *Pathaka*.² This was a still smaller territorial term perhaps of the size of the present day Tahsil or Talukā.

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² See the Banskhera inscription.

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(d) *Grāma* or village. This was the lowest unit of administration in ancient times, as it is even now. We have for example the Soma-Kuṇḍa-kā-grāma in the Madhuban charter.

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Regarding the general features of the government, it appears that it was founded on benign principles. Yuan Chwang was impressed favourably, and he observes: “As the Government is generous official requirements are few. Families are not registered, and individuals are not subject to forced labour contributions . . . . . Taxation being light, and forced service being sparingly used, every one keeps to his hereditary occupation and attends to his patrimony”¹ The people were thus left to grow in their own surroundings free and unfettered by the shackles of over-government. Harṣa being “just in his administration, and punctilious in the discharge of his duties,”² society was not choked by a grinding bureaucracy, or overburdened by a heavy system of taxation. The main source of revenue was the traditional one-sixth of the produce,³ and “light duties at ferries and barrier stations,”⁴ paid by tradesmen, who went to and fro bartering their merchandise. The Madhuban and Banskhera grants tell us of other dues, viz., the *Tulya-meya* (taxes depending on the weight and measure of the commodities); *Bhāgabhogakarahiraṇyādi* (share of the enjoyment or produce, payments in cash, and other kinds of income.⁵

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¹ Watters, I, p. 176. Yuan Chwang does not mention these conditions in relation to any particular kingdom, but probably he had Kanauj—the leading state of that time—in view.

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² *Ibid.*, p. 343.

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³ *Ibid.*, p. 176; cf. *Manusmriti*, VII, 130-31; VIII, 308.

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⁴ Watters, I, p. 176.

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⁵ *Ep. Ind.*, I, pp. 73, 75; *Ibid.*, IV, p. 211. See also *Infra*.

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The enlightened nature of Harṣa’s government may further be judged by its expenditure. It is indeed remarkable that besides other items, liberal provision was made for charity to various religious communities. “Of the royal land,” says Yuan Chwang, “there is a four-fold division. One part is for the expenses of government and state-worship, one for endowment of great public servants, one to reward high intellectual eminence, and one for acquiring religious merit by gifts to various sects”¹ With regard to payment of officials we are told that “ministers of state and common officials all have their portion of land, and are maintained by the cities assigned to them,” but “those who are employed in the government service are paid according to their work.”²

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¹ Watters, I, p. 176.

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² Ibid., pp. 176-77.

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