Current Events of india

Jainism - Tirthankaras, Vardhaman Mahavira & Triratna Origin of Jainism Jainism is a very ancient religion. As per some traditions, it is as old as the Vedic religion. The Jain tradition has a succession of great teachers or Tirthankaras. There were 24 Tirthankaras the last of which was Vardhaman Mahavira. The first Tirthankara is believed to be Rishabhanath or Rishabhadev. The 23rd Tirthankara was Parshvanatha who was born in Varanasi. He may have lived in the 8th or 7th century BC. All the Tirthankaras were Kshatriyas by birth. Founder of Jainism – Vardhaman Mahavira (539- 467 B.C.) Considered the last Tirthankara. He was born at Kundagrama near Vaisali. His parents were Kshatriyas. Father – Siddhartha (Head of Jnatrika Clan); Mother – Trishala (Sister of Lichchhavi chief Chetaka). (Chetaka’s daughter married Haryanka King Bimbisara). He was married to Yasoda and had a daughter Anojja or Priyadarsana. At the age of 30, Vardhaman renounced his home and became a wandering ascetic. ...

Gautam Buddha - Life & Teachings Gautam Buddha Buddhism was founded by Gautama Buddha. Buddha was born as Prince Siddhartha at Lumbini near Kapilavastu (in present Nepal) in 566 BC. He was the son of Suddhodhana and Mahamaya. Suddhodhana was the chief of the Sakya clan. Due to this, Buddha was also known as ‘Sakyamuni’. His mother died either giving birth to him or after seven days. Siddhartha was brought up by his maternal aunt, Prajapati Gautami. This gave him the name ‘Gautama’. He was married to Yashodhara and had a son, Rahula. He left his home at the age of 29 to become an ascetic. This event is called Mahabhishkramana. The idea of renunciation occurred to the Buddha after he saw four different states of man – sick man, old man, corpse and ascetic. Buddha wandered for seven years and at the age of 35 attained enlightenment at Uruvela while meditating under a Peepal tree (Fig Tree/ Ficus Religiosa) on the banks of the river Niranjana. This tree came to be known as ‘Bodhi t...

Satavahana Dynasty The Sunga dynasty came to an end in around 73 BC when their ruler Devabhuti was killed by Vasudeva Kanva. The Kanva dynasty then ruled over Magadha for about 45 years. Around this time, another powerful dynasty, the Satavahanas came to power in the Deccan area. The term “Satvahana” originated from the Prakrit which means ” driven by seven” which is an implication of the Sun God’s chariot that is driven by seven horses as per the Hindu mythology. Origin & Development of Satavahana dynasty The first king of the Satavahana dynasty was Simuka. Before the emergence of the Satavahana dynasty, a brief history of the other dynasties are mentioned below: Kanvas (73 BC – 30 BC) As per the Puranas, there were four kings of the Kanva dynasty namely, Vasudeva, Bhumimitra, Narayana and Susarman. The Kanvas were Brahmins. The Magadha Empire had diminished by this time considerably. Northwest region was under the Greeks and parts of the Gangetic plains were under different ruler...

 Sunga Dynasty  After the death of Ashoka, the Mauryan Empire steadily disintegrated as his successors were not able to keep the vast empire from fracturing away. Independent kingdoms arose out of the provinces. Foreign invasions were occurring in the northwest. Kalinga declared its independence. In the South, the Satavahanas rose to power and in the Gangetic plains, Sunga or Shunga dynasty replaced the Mauryas. Pushyamitra Sunga Pushyamitra Sunga was Brahmin army chief of Brihadratha, the last king of the Mauryas. During a military parade, he killed Brihadratha and established himself on the throne in 185 or 186 BC. According to some historians, this was an internal revolt against the last Mauryan king. Some say it was a Brahminical reaction to the Mauryan overwhelming patronage of Buddhism. Pushyamitra Sunga’s capital was at Pataliputra. He successfully countered attacks from two Greek kings namely, Menander and Demetrius. He also thwarted an attack from the Kalinga king Kha...

Saka Era (The Shakas) Sakas belonged to Scythian Ethnic stock. The movement of Sakas into north-western India came to heels of their displacement from the plains of Syr Darya (Jaxartes) by the Great Yueh Chi tribe (Chinese Tribe) in the 2nd century BCE. Aspirants should know that the term, ‘Sakas’ is interrelatedly used with ‘Shakas’ and ‘Indo-Scythians;’ meaning of all is the same. Introduction to Shakas After the decline of the Mauryan Empire, northwest India was constantly under attack from various invaders from Central and West Asia. The Indo-Greek rule lasted from about 180 BC till about 55 BC. The Sakas (also written Shakas), alternatively known as Indo-Scythians, invaded northwest India in the first century BC onwards. Saka Era Origin The beginning of the Saka Era can be related to the ascent of the king Chashtana. The period of the Saka Era falls between 11 years and 52 years. This information was retrieved from the inscriptions of the king Chashtana. Scythians (referred to...

Persian invasion is traced back to 500 BC when Cyrus invaded the North-Western front of India. Greek Invasion is tracked back to 327 BC when Alexandar invaded North-West India.  Persian Invasion of India A few important points about the Persian Invasion of India: Cyrus, the founder of the Achaemenid Empire in ancient Iran invaded the North-Western front of India in 550 BC. At that time, there were many small provinces like Gandhara, Kamboja, and Madra who were constantly fighting one another. At that time, Bimbisara of the Haryanka dynasty was ruling over Magadha. Cyrus succeeded in bringing under Persian control all the Indian tribes west of the Indus like Gandhara. Punjab and Sindh were annexed by Darius I, Cyrus’s grandson. Son of Darius, Xerxes, could not move ahead with the further conquest of India because of war with the Greeks. He had employed Indian cavalry and infantry. What were the effects of the Persian Invasion? The effects of the Persian Invasion in India: Trade betw...

Indo-Greek Rule The Bactrian Greeks moved into the south of the Hindu Kush area by the early 2nd century BCE. Indo-Greeks are these groups of these Bactrian Greeks that ruled over north-western India between the 2nd century BCE and early 1st century CE.  Indo-Greek Rule After the decline of the Mauryas, northern India was split into several kingdoms. In the Magadha region, the Sungas came to power in about 185 BC. After that, the Kanvas came to power who were defeated by the Satavahanas originally from the Deccan. Northwest India was constantly under attack from powers in Central Asia and northwest. The Indo-Greek or the Graeco-Indian Kingdom has established around 180 BC when the Graeco-Bactrian king Demetrius invaded the Indian subcontinent. Indo-Greeks – Initial presence of Greeks in India After Alexander invaded the northwest part of the subcontinent, one of his generals, Seleucus Nicator, founded the Seleucid Empire. In Seleucus’s conflict with the mighty Chandragupta Maurya, ...

Kushan Empire - Origin, Achievements & Kanishka's Rule Kushans or Kuei-Shang were one of the five Great Yueh-chi (tribes) principalities. In the 1st century CE, Kujula Kadphises (Kadphises I) brought together these five principalities and founded the Kushan Empire. The Kushans movement in India can be traced back to the first century CE during Kadphises I time. Kushan Empire Origin Kushanas are considered to be one of the five branches of the Yuezhi tribe who lived in the Chinese frontier or central Asia. They are known as Guishuang in Chinese sources. They eventually acquired dominance over the other Yuezhi tribes. They moved eastward towards India defeating the Parthians and the Sakas in the 1st century AD. Kushan Empire – Ruler Kujula Kadphises or Kadphises I [AD 30-AD 80) Kujula Kadphises was the first Yuezhi chief to lay the foundation of the Kushana Empire in India. He established his supremacy over Kabul, Kandahar and Afghanistan. He was succeeded by his son Vima Taktu o...

Mauryan Empire: Reasons For Decline Late stages of the Mauryan Empire After the death of Emperor Ashoka, the Mauryan Empire collapsed within five decades. There are many reasons given by historians for this disintegration of a once-mighty empire. At its zenith, the Mauryan Empire stretched from Afghanistan in the west to Bangladesh in the east. It covered almost the whole Indian subcontinent except modern-day Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and Sri Lanka. A few years after Ashoka’s death, the weakening of the empire started. The various reasons for the fall of the Mauryan Empire are highlighted below: The partition of the Empire After the death of Ashoka, the Mauryan Empire split into two halves – western and eastern parts. This weakened the empire. Kalhana, author of the work Rajatarangini which is an account of Kashmir’s history says that after Ashoka’s death, his son Jalauka ruled over Kashmir as an independent ruler. This partition resulted in invasions from the northwest. Highly centra...