Assaka

Assaka (Pali) or Asmaka (IAST: Aśmaka), was a Mahajanapada according to Buddhist texts or Janapada according to Puranas of ancient India which existed between 700 BC and 425 or 345 BC.

This article is about the historical region of Aśmaka. For the kingdom in Indian Epic Literature, see Asmaka Kingdom.

Assaka Mahajanapada

c. 700 BCE–c. 425 BC or 345 BCE
Assaka and other Mahajanapadas in the Post Vedic period.
CapitalPotali or Podana - (Present day Bodhan), Asikanagara
Common languagesSanskrit
Religion
Hinduism
Buddhism
Jainism
GovernmentMonarchy
Maharaja 
Historical eraBronze Age, Iron Age
• Established
c. 700 BCE
• Disestablished
c. 425 BC or 345 BCE
Today part ofIndia

History

Assaka was located around and between the river Godavari.[1] It included areas in present-day Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Maharashtra.[2] It was one of the shodasa (sixteen) mahajanapadas in the 6th century BCE, mentioned in the Buddhist text Anguttara Nikaya.[3] Puranas mention Asmaka as one of the conquerd territories of the Nandas in the 5th or 4th century BC.

The capital is variously called Potali or Podana, which is identified as present-day Bodhan in Telangana.[4] The Buddhist text Mahagovinda Suttanta mentions about a ruler of Assaka, Brahmadatta who ruled from Potali.[5] The Matsya Purana (ch.272) lists twenty-five rulers of Aśmaka, contemporary to the Shishunaga rulers of Magadha. Panini in his 'Aṣṭādhyāyī' mentions Asmaka Kingdom in connection with Dakshinatya and Kalinga[6]

Asmaka is also identified as Assaka and Aśvakas in Buddhist literature and Gatha Saptashati of king Hāla.

The Hathigumpha inscription of Kharavela (2nd century BC) mentions Kharavela's threat to a city variously interpreted as "Masika" (Masikanagara), "Musika" (Musikanagara) or "Asika" (Asikanagara). N. K. Sahu identifies Asika as the capital of Assaka.[7]:127 According to Ajay Mitra Shastri, "Asika-nagara" was located in the present-day village of Adam in Nagpur district (on the Wainganga River). A terracotta seal excavated in the village mentions the Assaka janapada.[8][9] Assaka also included Mulaka area around Paithan known in ancient times as Pratishthana.[10] According to Sutta Nipata Saketa or Ayodhya was first halting place on the southward road (Dakshinapatha) from Shravasti to Pratishthana.[11]


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See also

References
  1. Gupta, Parmanand (1989). Geography from Ancient Indian Coins & Seals. Concept Publishing Company. ISBN 9788170222484.
  2. Tiwari, Anshuman; Sengupta, Anindya (10 August 2018). Laxminama: Monks, Merchants, Money and Mantra. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 307. ISBN 9789387146808.
  3. Law, Bimala Churn (1973). Tribes in Ancient India. Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute. p. 180.
  4. Sen, Sailendra Nath (1999). Ancient Indian History and Civilization. New Age International. p. 109. ISBN 9788122411980.
  5. Raychaudhuri, Hemchandra (1972) Political History of Ancient India, University of Calcutta, mumbai, p.80
  6. Gupta, Kalyan Kumar Das (1972). "The Aśvakas: an Early Indian Tribe". East and West. 22 (1/2): 33–40. ISSN 0012-8376. JSTOR 29755742.
  7. N. K. Sahu; Kharavela (King of Kalinga) (1984). Khâravela. Orissa State Museum.
  8. Ajay Mitra Shastri (1998). The Sātavāhanas and the Western Kshatrapas: a historical framework. Dattsons. p. 56. ISBN 978-81-7192-031-0.
  9. Inguva Karthikeya Sarma; J. Vara Prasada Rao (1 January 1993). Early Brāhmī Inscriptions from Sannati. Harman Publishing House. p. 68. ISBN 978-81-85151-68-7.
  10. Indian History. Allied Publishers. 1988. ISBN 978-81-8424-568-4.
  11. Bakker, Ayodhya, Part 1 1984, p. 5.


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