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       Samudragupta, ruler of the Gupta Empire and successor to Chandragupta I, is considered to be one of the greatest military geniuses in Indian history. It is said that he fought in over a hundred battles which left scars all over his body.

       Samudragupta defeated four kings of northern India, twelve kings of the Deccan, battled against the Sakas, and received tribute from many rulers, including the ruler of today’s Sri Lanka. Samudragupta performed the Ashvamedha sacrifice to mark his sovereignty over lands that stretched from Assam in the east, to Punjab in the west. Is it any wonder then, that he was called the Napoleon of India?

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       The name Vikramaditya means ‘Heroic Sun’. Chandragupta II took this name because of his many conquests, which brought the whole of western India under Gupta rule, and established an empire that stretched from the Arabian Sea in the west, to the Bay of Bengal in the east.

      There are many stories and legends about Vikramaditya. He was an ideal king, who was as wise as he was brave and strong. He was a great patron of arts, and nine great figures of ancient literature known as the navaratnas (nine gems), graced his court. Matchless in war, matchless in forgiveness, and an excellent ruler, he won the hearts of his people. His reign saw an era of peace and prosperity.

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       The Gupta Empire was one of the largest political and military empires in the ancient world. It was ruled by members of the Gupta dynasty from around AD 320 to 600.

       The Gupta dynasty, which followed the Kushana dynasty, ruled an empire that covered most of northern India, the region presently in Pakistan, and what is now western India and Bangladesh. The dynasty was established by Sri Gupta. However, very little is known about the first two rulers, Sri Gupta and Ghatotkacha. The most famous Gupta rulers were Chandragupta I, Samudragupta, and Chandragupta II or Vikramaditya.

       Chandragupta I conquered much of Magadha, Prayaga and Saketa. His empire stretched from the river Ganges to Allahabad. He was the first of the Guptas to be referred to as ‘Maharajadhiraja’ or ‘King of Kings’, which was indeed a high and mighty title. Samudragupta expanded the empire until it extended from the Himalayas to the river Narmada and from the Brahmaputra to the Yamuna.

        Samudragupta was not only a great warrior, but also a great patron of art and literature. He was a poet and musician himself. He was a firm believer in Hinduism, but was considerate of other religions, and allowed Sri Lanka’s Buddhist king to build a monastery at Bodh Gaya.

       Chandragupta II called himself Vikramaditya. He extended his empire from coast-to-coast, and established a second trading capital at Ujjain. His reign is remembered for its very influential style of Hindu art, literature, culture and science. The last two Gupta rulers were Kumaragupta and Skandagupta.

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       The Chola Empire stretched over all South India and the neighbouring islands. The period of the Chola Dynasty was described as the golden age of the Tamil culture.

       The rulers of this great empire built magnificent temples that bear testimony to their ideology and the grandeur of their architecture and civilization.

       The great temple of Thanjavur was built in a few years, from 1003 to 1010, during the reign of the great king Rajaraja, the true founder of the Chola Empire. The major temples are the Brihadiswara Temple at Thanjavur, the temple of Gangaikon-dacholisvaram and the Airavatesvara Temple at Darasuram. The whole combined site is known as the Great Living Chola Temples.

       The imperial rulers of the Chola Empire had developed the Dravidian style of temple architecture almost to perfection. A special feature of the Chola architecture is the purity of artistic tradition. The Brihadiswara Temple was declared by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in the year 1987.

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          Thirukural is an important work of Tamil literature by the poet Thiruvalluvar. It is written in a poetic form called Kural, which means rhyming couplet. It is considered the first work to focus on ethics and expounds various aspects of life.

          Thiruvalluvar was a sage and philosopher who is believed to have written Thirukural about 2000 years ago. It has an orderly arrangement of 1330 Tamil couplets, which are divided into 133 chapters. Each chapter has a specific subject ranging from ‘ploughing a piece of land’ to ‘ruling a country’. Themes such as virtue, love and morals, happiness and prosperity are written in verses that are simple and short. Thirukural is considered an all-time Tamil classic, which has been translated into most Indian languages and some European languages as well.

          The popularity of Thirukural lies in the fact that it has something noble for the ordinary man, the administrator, the king and the ascetic. It is global in perspective, and it is as relevant today as when it was written hundreds of years ago.

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         Tamil was the oldest literary language of south India. The first period of Tamil literature is associated with the Sangam Era.

         Tamil tradition refers to three literary academic meetings called by the Pandyan kings, where poets and scholars assembled, along with kings and princes. These assemblies were called Sangams and they met at Madurai between 500 BC and AD 500. The first was believed to be attended by legendary sages, but its entire works have perished. Of the second Sangam, only one work survives-Tolkappiyam. It is a work on Tamil grammar, literature, tradition and sociology. The poets of the third Sangam wrote Ettutogai or eight anthologies. These anthologies contain well over 2,000 poems ascribed to more than 200 authors. The Sangams are of great importance to us not only for their literary value, but because they are one of the main sources used for documenting the early history of the ancient Tamil country.

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            Did you know that the word ‘dakshinapatha’ is derived from the roots of two Sanskrit words dakshina for south, and paths for road? The ancient texts use the expression Dakshinapatha as a name for both the southern high road and for that part of India that lies south of the Vindhya Mountains and the Narmada River. The first reference to Dakshinapatha occurs in the Rig Veda where it refers to the region of exile. In the opinion of several scholars, this means the areas in the south beyond the limits of the Rig Vedic culture. Both the Mahabharata and Ramayana also refer to Dakshinapatha. Today, we call this region, the Deccan.

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          There is some confusion among scholars as to which is the oldest Dravidian language. It is generally accepted that Kannada is the oldest spoken language, for it is at least 2000 years old, while Telugu is the most widely spoken. At the same time, Tamil has the oldest literary works, and Tamil literature goes back several centuries before the birth of Christ. According to legend, Tamil was a gift from the sage Agastya to mankind, and he was also the first grammarian in Tamil. Malayalam, the language of Kerala, is believed to have evolved from Tamil much later.

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          The three main kingdoms in South India between 400 BC and AD 300 were the Pandyans, the Cheras and the Cholas. The Pandyan kingdom was an ancient Tamil state in South India.

          The Pandyans ruled from Madurai, and occupied the southernmost parts of the Indian peninsula and parts of the southeast too. The Pandyans excelled in both trade and literature. They controlled the pearl fisheries along the south Indian coast, between Sri Lanka and India, which produced some of the finest pearls known in the ancient world. The Chola Dynasty was a Tamil dynasty that originated in the fertile valley of the Cauveri River. Karikala Chola was the most famous among the early Chola kings, while Rajaraja Chola, Rajendra Chola and Kulothunga Chola I were notable emperors of the medieval Cholas.

          The Chola capital was at Uraiyur. They were great patrons of Tamil literature and their zeal in building temples have resulted in some great works of architecture.

          The Chola kings were avid builders, and envisioned the temples in their kingdoms not only as places of worship, but also as centres of economic activity. Kerala, and some parts of southern Tamil Nadu, formed the erstwhile Chera kingdom. They rivaled the neighbouring dynasties of the Cholas and Pandyans in prosperity.

          The Cheras had strong overseas trade links with the Romans in natural produce such as spices, ivory and sandal. In all these kingdoms, the land was fertile and, rice, sugarcane, fruits and pepper were grown in abundance. Their palaces were well decorated, and filled with beautiful objects. Therefore, on the whole, it was a time of prosperity.

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          Do you know that all forms of Indian classical dance are based on a book called the Natyashastra? It was written by a great sage called Bharatha around the fourth century BC. It is the source of not only all forms of Indian classical dance, but also music and drama. In fact, it is regarded as the fifth Veda.

          According to the Natyashastra, all dance forms revolve around the nine rasas or emotions. They are happiness, sorrow, anger, compassion, disgust, wonder, fear, courage and serenity. Hand movements or mudras, are used to express the emotions clearly to the audience. The Natyashastra is the world’s first book on stagecraft. Bharata’s ideas are the key to an understanding of Indian arts, music and sculpture.

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          Sushruta, who lived in the 6th century BC in ancient India, was the first surgeon in the world. He lived on the banks of the Ganga in what is Varanasi today. Sushruta is the author of the book Sushruta Samhita, in which he describes over 120 surgical instruments, 300 surgical procedures and 8 types of surgeries.

          He was the pioneer in plastic surgery and cosmetic surgery, and the technique that he perfected for repairing the nose, is practiced almost unchanged to this day. His book contains the first known description of several operations. Sushruta was also the first surgeon to advocate the practice of operations on inanimate objects such as watermelons and reeds, thus laying the foundation for the modern practice of surgical workshops. He suggested that patients should be kept under sedation with wine, so that they are relaxed during an operation.

          His emphasis on personal cleanliness and sterilization of instruments are followed by surgeons till today. His numerous contributions to the science and art of surgery have given him the title ‘Father of Surgery.’

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          Ayurveda is an ancient system of medicine, and the Charaka Samhita is one of the oldest and most important ancient texts on Ayurveda. It is written in Sanskrit, in the form of poetry, as poems are easier to remember than prose.

          The Charaka Samhita has 8 sections and 150 chapters. It describes over 600 drugs that can be obtained from animals, plants and minerals. It also had a code of conduct for doctors. It says, “A doctor must not betray his patients even at the cost of his own life.” Some people believe the Charaka Samhita was written by a group of scholars. Others say that a famous physician called Charaka who lived during the reign of Kanishka, and was one of the founders of Ayurveda, wrote it.

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          Kanishka was the greatest Kushana ruler. He ruled from his capital, Purushapura between AD 78 and 120. He also constructed a city called Kanishkapuram. Kanishka conquered Kashmir. He also defeated the Chinese and the Saka rulers of Malwa and Gujarat. Kanishka was a great patron of medicine. A new school of art called Gandhara art developed during his time. This was inspired by Buddhism, though it has some Greek influence too. Kanishka is thought to have started the Shaka Era, which was later used as the official calendar of India.

          Kanishka worshipped many gods before he embraced Buddhism. Ashvaghosha, the Buddhist scholar, probably influenced Kanishka to become a Buddhist. Like Ashoka, Kanishka also worked for the spread of Buddhism. He took steps to repair many old monasteries. New ones were also built. During his time, Buddhism spread to China, Japan, Central Asia and Tibet. Kanishka is considered as the second Ashoka because of all these activities.

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          The Kushanas ruled over north India from AD 50 to 300. They belonged to the Yueh-chi tribe of China, which moved towards the west. Kujula Kadphises, a Yuch-Chi chief, who established himself in Kabul and Kashmir founded Kushana dynasty. It was one of the remarkable dynasties of ancient India, both culturally and territorially.

          The Kushanas had their capital at Purushapura (Peshawar) and expanded their empire on both sides of Hind Kush, Turkistan in the north and modern Afghanistan. The Kushanas opened the Silk Road, a major trade path for caravans carrying silk and other prominent goods from China to India and the Middle East. They enriched the cultural ethos of India, by linking Central Asian, Chinese, Indian and Persian cultures.

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          The fall of the Mauryan Empire gave birth to a new dynasty in the south called Satavahanas. It was Simukha, who founded this dynasty. It extended from the mouth of the Krishna River to the whole of the Deccan plateau. The Deccan, during their reign, was a hub of inland and maritime trade. The region between the river of Krishna and Godavari was full of ports, and it was throbbing with activity.

          Currency was in vogue to facilitate trade, and this was an era of great industrial and maritime activity. Buddhism flourished throughout the period, and the Satavahana kings constructed several Buddhist Stupas, Chaityas and Viharas. The Stupa at Amravati is known for its architectural beauty. The Satavahana kings ruled for nearly four hundred years. By the end of the 2nd century AD, their rule came to an end.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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