STEPS ADOPTED
As in the case of earlier kings, land revenue remained important for these rulers, and the village remained the basic unit of administration. There were some new developments as well.
Kings adopted a number of steps to win the support of men who were powerful, either economically, or socially, or because of their political and military strength. For instance:
* Some important administrative posts were now hereditary. This means that sons succeeded fathers to these posts. For example, the poet Harishena was a maha-danda-nayaka, or chief judicial officer, like his father.
* Sometimes, one person held many offices. For instance, besides being a maha-danda-nayaka, Harishena was a kumar-amatya, meaning an important minister, and a sandhi-vigrahika, meaning a minister of war and peace.
* Besides, important men probably had a say in local administration. These included the nagara- shreshthi or chief banker or merchant of the city, the sarthavaha or leader of the merchant caravans, the prathama-kulika, or the chief craftsman, and the head of the kayasthas or scribes.
These policies were reasonably effective, but sooner or later, some of these powerful men grew strong enough to set up independent kingdoms.
Activity:
What do you think may have been the advantages and disadvantages of having hereditary officers?
Source: This topic is taken from NCERT TEXTBOOK
A NEW KIND OF ARMY
Like earlier rulers, some of these kings maintained a well-organised army, with elephants, chariots, cavalry and foot soldiers. Besides, there were military leaders who provided the king with troops whenever he needed them. They were not paid regular salaries. Instead, some of them received grants of land. They collected revenue from the land and used this to maintain soldiers and horses, and provide equipment for warfare. These men were known as samantas. Whenever the ruler was weak, samantas tried to become independent.
Source: This topic is taken from NCERT TEXTBOOK
ASSEMBLIES
The inscriptions of the Pallavas mention a number of local assemblies. These included the sabha, which was an assembly of brahmin landowners. This assembly functioned through subcommittees, which looked after irrigation, agricultural operations, making roads, local temples, etc.
The ur was a village assembly found in areas where the landowners were not brahmins. And the nagaram was an organisation of merchants. It is likely that these assemblies were controlled by rich and powerful landowners and merchants. Many of these local assemblies continued to function for centuries.
Source: This topic is taken from NCERT TEXTBOOK
ORDINARY PEOPLE
We can catch an occasional glimpse of the lives of ordinary people from plays, and other accounts. Let us look at some of these.
1. Kalidasa is known for his plays depicting life in the king’s court. An interesting feature about these plays is that the king and most brahmins are shown as speaking Sanskrit, while women and men other than the king and brahmins use Prakrit. His most famous play, Abhijnana Shakuntalam, is the story of the love between a king named Dushyanta and a young woman named Shakuntala. We find an interesting description of the plight of a poor fisherman in this play.
A fisherman finds a ring
A fisherman found a precious ring, which the king had given to Shakuntala, but which had been accidentally swallowed by a fish. When he went to the palace with it, the gatemen accused him of theft, and the chief police officer was rather rude. However, the king was happy when he saw the ring and sent a reward for the fisherman. Then, the police officer and the gatemen decided to take a share of the reward and went along with the fisherman to have a drink.
2. The Chinese pilgrim Fa Xian noticed the plight of those who were treated as untouchables by the high and mighty. They were expected to live on the outskirts of the city.
He writes:
“If such a man enters a town or a marketplace, he strikes a piece of wood, in order to keep himself separate; people, hearing this sound, know what it means and avoid touching him or brushing against him.”
Activity:
1. Do you think that if a poor man finds something and reports this to the police he would be treated like this today?
2. Name a famous man who taught in Prakrit and a king who issued inscriptions in Prakrit (hint: see Chapters 6(NEW QUESTIONS AND IDEAS) and 7(ASHOKA, THE EMPEROR WHO GAVE UP WAR))
3. How do you think wars affect the lives of ordinary people today?
Source: This topic is taken from NCERT TEXTBOOK
THE KING’S ARMY
Banabhatta provides us with a vivid picture of the king’s army on the move:
The king travelled with an enormous amount of equipment. Apart from weapons, there were things of daily use such as pots, pans, furniture, golden footstools, food, including animals such as goat, deer, rabbits, vegetables, spices, carried on carts or loaded on to pack animals such as camels and elephants. This huge army was accompanied by musicians beating drums, and others playing horns and trumpets.
Villagers had to provide hospitality along the way. They came with gifts of curds, gur and flowers, and provided fodder for the animals. They also tried to meet the king, and place their complaints and petitions before him.
The army left a trail of destruction behind. Elephants often trampled down the huts of villagers, and the oxen yoked to the caravans of merchants ran away, scared by the tumult.
As Banabhatta says: “The whole world was swallowed up in dust.”
Activity:
1. Make a list of all the things that were carried with the army.
2. What did the villagers bring for the king?
Source: This topic is taken from NCERT TEXTBOOK