Chapter 5: State and Society up to 1000 CE

Before 1000 BCE, we depend mostly on archaeology to understand the past. But from around the second millennium BCE, we also get literary sources, the earliest being the Rig Veda. These texts, combined with archaeology, give us a much richer picture of the social, political and moral life of ancient India.

1. What is Society and What is a State?

2. Timeline of Early India

3. The Vedas: Earliest Indian Literature

The Vedas are the earliest known Indian literature. They existed in oral form for centuries before being written down. The Rig Veda is the oldest Veda, composed in the north-western Sapta-Sindhu region (Indus and its tributaries plus the Sarasvati river).

Four parts of each Veda:

• Samhita – hymns used for invoking deities and offerings in yajna
• Brahmana – prose explanations for ritual performance
• Aranyaka – philosophical ideas of sages living in forests
• Upanishad – deep questions on the Self (Atman) and the Universal Being (Brahman)

4. Political Institutions in the Vedic Period

Early Vedic society was organised into janas (clans) bound by kinship. The Rig Veda mentions about 30 janas; five of them together were called the panchajana. The name 'Bharata' first appears in the Rig Veda, referring to people ruled by the Bharata clan.

The rajan (chief) mainly led the clan in war and protected its members. Three assemblies played important roles in governance:

5. From Janapadas to Mahajanapadas

Over time, kin-based janas evolved into territory-based janapadas (roughly 1000–600 BCE). Between 600 BCE and 300 CE, bigger political units called mahajanapadas emerged. Archaeology shows growing use of iron tools, richer pottery (NBPW) and expanding agriculture in the Ganga region, which supported this political growth.

Historical sources mention sixteen mahajanapadas:

Schematic chart — approximate regional grouping of the sixteen mahajanapadas and Sangam kingdoms (not to scale)

Kingdoms of the Deccan and South India

In the Deccan, the Mauryas were followed by the Satavahana Empire (2nd century BCE – 3rd century CE). Further south were the Cholas (Kaveri valley), Pandyas (Tamraparni-Vaigai valleys), Keralaputras (Cheras) and Satiyaputras. These are known largely through Sangam literature (300 BCE–300 CE). Together, the Chera, Chola and Pandya rulers were called the "Vendar of Tamilakam" (three crowned kings). Note: these early kingdoms are different from the later, more powerful imperial Cholas, Cheras and Pandyas.

6. Duties and Ideals of the King

From the 6th century BCE, rulers were called raja, maharaja or samrat. The Arthashastra and the Shanti Parva of the Mahabharata describe the king's duties: protecting subjects from external threats and internal disorder, and giving fair justice. Punishments for serious crimes could be very severe, including capital punishment. Kingship was usually hereditary, but there are references to kings being elected or even expelled — showing royal power was not always absolute.

Pan-Indian Political Ideas

Early Indian rulers thought beyond their kingdom's borders. Terms like Jambudvipa, Bharatavarsha, Prithivi and chakravarti kshetra expressed the idea of one ruler controlling the whole subcontinent. Rituals like the Ashvamedha yajna and Rajasuya yajna expressed this ideal.

• Ashoka's edicts speak of his moral efforts spreading across Jambudvipa
• Chera king Nedunjeral Adan claimed conquests up to the Himalayas
• Chola ruler Rajendra I (11th century CE) took the title Gangaikonda after conquering regions along the Ganga

7. Council of Ministers: Kautilya's Saptanga

Kautilya's Arthashastra describes the state as an organic whole made of seven constituents (Saptanga). The state functions well only when all seven work together.

The council of ministers (mantri-parishad) included the treasurer, chief tax collector, chief legal advisor and commander-in-chief. An Ashokan inscription shows this council could take decisions even in the emperor's absence.

8. How Were Empires Administered?

Kingdoms were divided into provinces, districts and villages. In the Satavahana Empire, provinces were called aharas and villages were led by a headman called gramika. Between 300–800 CE, administration became more decentralised:

The Guptas retained much of Kautilya's system with mantri, sandhivigrahika and kumaramatyas. The Pallavas gave tax-free Brahmadeya villages; the Chalukyas gave agraharams (e.g., Aihole, Badami). The Gurjara-Pratiharas, Palas and Rashtrakutas fought the famous "tri-partite struggle" to control Kannauj.

Schematic chart — major kingdoms and empires of the 3rd to 10th century CE grouped by region (not to scale)

9. Ethics: The Foundation of Law and Life

• Samatva — the principle of sameness; all beings share one underlying consciousness
• Rita — the cosmic order in the Rig Veda keeping harmony and balance in nature and society
• Dharma — not religion, but duty, righteousness and moral conduct suited to one's role in life. As the Mahabharata says, dharma "upholds all beings"

Ashoka's edicts promoted dhamma (the Pali word for dharma) — stressing non-violence, compassion and respect within the family.

10. Social Structures: Varna and Jati

The earliest reference to the four varnas appears in the Purushasukta hymn (Rig Veda, Book 10).

Early Vedic society did not fix social status strictly by birth. A Rig Vedic verse (9.112.3) describes one family with different occupations — a poet, whose father is a physician and mother is a grinder of corn — showing occupations were once flexible. A new structure called jati emerged due to intermarriage among varnas, migrating groups becoming endogamous, and regional differences. Unlike the fixed four varnas, there was no limit to the number of jatis.

Social Mobility

• Rulers came from diverse backgrounds — Nandas, Mauryas, Shungas, Satavahanas, Guptas, Pushyabhutis
• The Mandsaur Stone Inscription (473 CE) mentions a guild of silk weavers skilled in archery and astronomy too
• Karitalai copper-plate inscriptions record brahmanas working as land managers
• Sangam literature (Tolkappiyam) mentions groups based on occupation: Arasar (kings), Vanigar (traders), Velar (farmers), Antanar (brahmanas)

11. Family and Society

The kula (family) was the smallest social unit, connected upward to grama (village) → visha → jana, with the rajan as protector. Gotra was a patrilineal clan lineage traced to a common ancestor, important in regulating marriage.

The Four Ashramas (stages of life)

The Four Purusharthas (goals of life)

All stages of life were marked by rituals called the shodasha samskaras — the "sixteen rites of passage," from birth to death.

12. Role of Women

In the Vedic period, women held a fairly respectful position — they took part in scholarly learning, attended the sabha and chariot races. Several Rig Vedic hymns are attributed to women sages such as Apala, Vishvavara, Ghosha and Lopamudra. The Manu-smriti states: "Where women are honoured, there gods rejoice."

• Prabhavati Gupta (daughter of Chandragupta II) ruled as regent of the Vakataka kingdom and issued land grants herself
• Sangam literature mentions poetesses like Avvaiyar and Vennikuyattiyar
• Chola queen Sembiyan Mahadevi supported temple building

13. Religious Life and the Emergence of Bhakti

The Vedic pantheon had no fixed hierarchy — different gods were praised as supreme in different hymns, worshipped through yajnas linked to nature. Around the middle of the first millennium BCE, a trend of renunciants emerged — called parivrajaka, bhikshu or shramana — leading to influential thinkers like Gautama Buddha and Mahavira.

Later, worship centred on personal deities (Vishnu, Shiva, Shakti) evolved into Bhakti — a path open to all regardless of class or gender. This tradition became strong from the 6th century CE in Tamil regions through the Alvars (12 Vaishnava saint-poets) and Nayanmars (63 Shaiva saint-poets).

14. The Quest for Knowledge: Education

Education in early India was holistic — cultivating truth, patience, humility and self-control along with grammar, logic, mathematics, medicine, astronomy, music, dance and archery. The guru-shishya parampara was sacred. Students lived in the teacher's home (gurukula) following a disciplined life.

Schematic chart of prominent ancient universities and centres of learning in early India

15. Economy: Agriculture and Land Revenue

The Mauryan state classified land carefully and charged a basic land tax of about one-sixth of produce. Crops included rice, pulses, wheat, sugarcane and vegetables. In the Deccan, black soil supported cotton cultivation; Sangam texts describe the Chera region as rich in jackfruit, pepper, turmeric, ragi and sugarcane.

Irrigation

Agriculture depended heavily on irrigation. The Sudarshana Lake near Girnar was built by governor Pushyagupta (under Chandragupta Maurya) and later repaired by Rudradaman I and Skandagupta. The Cholas built the Grand Anicut (Kallanai) under King Karikala — a dam still in use today after centuries of repair.

Trade Routes and Ports

Two major land routes emerged by the 6th century BCE: Dakshinapatha (southern route) and Uttarapatha (northern route). Important ports included Muziris, Kaveripattinam, Arikamedu and Masulipatnam. By the early centuries CE, India's trade with Rome expanded significantly through sea and overland routes.

Schematic chart — major trade routes and key ports / cities of early historical India

Guilds (Shrenis)

Guilds were associations of traders, artisans and merchants in the same profession. The Jataka literature mentions 18 types of guilds. Guilds regulated the quality of goods, fixed prices, ran their own guild courts for discipline, and even functioned like banks.

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