The State in Ancient India: A Study in the Structure and Practical Working of Political Institutions in North India in Ancient Times c13.3

c13.3

The later Mauryas. The traditional genealogies of the dynastic successors of Aśoka show such divergence that a division of the empire after Samprati has been suggested as a working hypothesis.¹ In the absence of further evidence it is impossible to be sure of it. It is, however, clear that the Mauryas continued to rule at Pāṭaliputra until about 184 B.C. According to the Jaina tradition, Samprati was converted to Jainism and did all he could to further the interests of that faith. So, the tradition of the missionary state continued though the objective of the mission partly changed. Samprati also seems to have continued the tradition of large-hearted religious toleration. Similarly, another of the later Mauryas, Daśaratha, probably a grandson of Aśoka, extended his favours to sects other than his own. He allotted some caves to Ājīvakas.¹