History of Bihar

Bihar, one of India's oldest states, owns its rich cultural heritage and traditions that may seem astonishing to outsiders. Lying to the east side of India and bordering Nepal, Bihar also plays an essential role in maintaining a healthy relationship with Nepal. But, besides the present scenario, when we look into the history of Bihar's book too, we can find a land of rich culture and a birthplace to many notable and brave persons ranging from Ajathashatru and Bimbisara of the ancient past to those continuing in the modern age too. 

Patna being the capital of Bihar is one of the oldest and most famous cities of India. Earlier, called Pataliputra, it is a place where people of different religions, including Buddhists, Hindus, Jains, and Sikhs, live in harmony. Patna's speciality is that the Buddhist, Hindu, and Jain pilgrimage centres such as Vaishali, Rajgir, Nalanda, Bodhgaya, and Pawpuri, a sacred city of Sikhs, are all a part of the capital of Bihar- Patna. Patna being the Bihar capital name with a population of 2.35 million, is now the 19th largest city in India. 

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Introduction of Bihar History 

Earlier in ancient Bihar history, it was divided into three distinct regions named Magadha, Mithila, and Bhojpur, with their specific history and culture. Areas of Bihar are mentioned in various religious texts, and epics of ancient India suggest that Bihar was a part of India in the ancient period itself. Mithila, a region belonging to Bihar, was the epicentre of Indian power in the later Vedic period itself suggests the importance of Bihar in the ancient history of India.

The capital of Bihar, now named Patna, has also undergone several changes in its name during the past. The old name of Patna was Pataliputra, and Pataliputra was the capital of the Magadha Empire through Haryana, Nanda, Mauryan, Shunga, Gupta, and Pala dynasties. Patna also had various other names, such as Pataligram, Kusumpur, Azimabad, etc., during different periods. 

We often wonder what is the old name of Bihar. The word 'Bihar' originated from the old name 'Viharas.' Viharas means resting house, and in the context of Bihar, Viharas means the resting house of Buddhist monks. But, in the 12th century, with the reign of Muslim rulers, they changed the name of 'Viharas' and called 'Bihar' as known today. Similarly, the ancient name Pataliputra which is now called Patna, was also derived from other sources. The mythology behind the name Pataliputra is that the place was named after the queen 'Patali' for whom her husband and king 'Putraka' created the land by a magic stroke. Let us look at the ancient history of Bihar briefly. Books on the history of Bihar will help us to know more in detail.

If we move to ancient history, the rise of the Mahajanpada was significant in Bihar from the sixth to 4th century BCE. During this era, important cities got established near the Indus valley. Buddhism and Jainism were more prominent in Bihar. Patna, the Bihar capital name we are familiar with today, was previously Pataliputra. Pataliputra has a significant role in the history of Bihar as Emperor Ashok had an attachment with this place. 

The Advent of Aryans in Bihar

During the expansion of Aryans, they spread throughout midwestern Uttarpradesh and the northwestern regions of Bihar. The advent of Aryans in Bihar marked the beginning of the advent of Aryans in Bihar. The Satapatha Brahmana, a commentary on Yajur Veda written by Father of Indian philosophy saint Yajnavalkya, mentioned the arrival and spread of Aryans in areas including Bihar. As per Yajur Veda, the evidence for the advent of Aryans in Bihar is shown clearly in the scriptures. Also, Varah Puran, a religious, literary text of Vaishnavism, mentions Gaya, Punpun, and Rajgir as inauspicious places. These places are part of present-day Bihar, and thus Varah Puran also mentions the existence of such places and thereby the presence of Bihar in the ancient past.

The Mahajanapadas

As we know, there were only a few pieces of evidence based on which the picture of ancient history could be drawn, and one of the most important is literary evidence. The reign of Mahajanapadas in Bihar is also evident through various literary pieces of evidence. According to the Buddhist and Jaina scripts, during the 6th century, India was ruled as small kingdoms or states. Magadha was one of the dominant states as Emperor Ashoka ruled over the place. It was during 500 BC those sixteen Monarchies and republics popularly known as the Mahajanapada emerged. Let us have a small outlook on these 16 divisions and areas coming under them.

• Anga- Regions of Anga include parts of two present-day states- Bihar and Jharkhand. It includes Bhagalpur and Munger areas of Bihar and parts of Sahibgunj and Godda areas of Jharkhand. Anga was a great centre of trade and commerce. Reference on Angas is found in Atharva Veda.

• Assaka/ Ashmaka- These include areas between the rivers Narmada and Godavari. It was located in southern India and included areas under present-day Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Maharashtra. The capital of Assakas was located at Potana, also called Potala.

• Avanti- The country of Avanti includes modern-day Malwa, Nimar, and some parts of Madhya Pradesh. It later became a part of the Magadha Empire.

• Chedi- It includes areas of modern Bundelkhand. Its capital was located at Shuktimati.

• Gandhara- The country of Gandhara covers modern parts of Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan. Their capital was located at Taxila and Pushkalavati.

• Kamboja- Kamboja is now identified with the modern Hazara district of Pakistan. They were well-known republican people since ancient times. Kautilya's Arthashastra also mentions that Kamboja followed a republic constitution.

• Kashi- It covers present-day areas of the famous religious centre Banaras and its capital was located at Varanasi. Kashi was the most powerful of the sixteen Mahajanapadas before the advent of Buddha.

• Kosala- Ancient Kosala covers modern-day areas under Faizabad, Gonda, and Bahraich. Their capital was located at Shravasti. Kosala is also mentioned in various Puranas such as Mahabharat and Ramayan.

• Kuru- Parts of modern Haryana and Delhi are the areas coming under the ancient country of Kuru. Its capital was located at Indraprastha. Although Kurus were monarchial people in the ancient past, they switched to a republican constitution between the 6th and 5th centuries BCE. Kautilya's Arthashastra has literary evidence that Kurus had followed a republican type of constitution.

• Magadha- Magadha covers present day areas of Patna and Gaya. They had their capital at Rajagriha or Girivraj.

• Matsya- Matsya covers present-day areas of Alwar, Bharatpur, and Jaipur areas that belong to Rajasthan.

• Panchala- Panchala covers areas under western Uttar Pradesh, with its capital at Ahichhatra.

• Surasena- Surasena covers the areas coming under Braj- Mandal, and their capital was at Mathura.

• Vajji- It was situated on the northern side of river Ganga in Bihar. Vajji had its capital at Vaishali.

• Vatsa or Vamsa- It covers areas under modern Allahabad and Mirzapur. Vatsa had its capital at Kaushambi.

• Malla- Malla includes present-day Deoria, Basti, Gorakhpur, and Siddharth Nagar of eastern Uttar Pradesh. They had two capitals- Kusinara and Pawa. 

Buddhism in Bihar

Bihar is the birthplace of Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism. It was the great place at which Buddha got enlightenment and thus leads to great ideologies of Buddhism. Therefore, Bihar is the birthplace of Buddhism. The ideologies of Buddhism are focussed on four noble truths that are as follows:

1. Sarvam Dukkham- It means life is full of problems.

2. Dukha Samundra- Desire for anything is the cause of miseries in life.

3. Dukkha Nirodha- Misery and rebirth can be conquered by controlling our desires.

4. Gamini Pratipad- Salvation should be attained, and thus men will become free from birth and death by following Buddhist ideologies of Eightfold path or Astangika Marg.

Doctrine of Jainism

Jainism came into Bihar after the arrival of Vardhaman Mahavira, who was the 24th Tirthankara of Jains. The doctrine of Jainism focuses on five concepts: Satya, Ahimsa, Aparigraha, Asteya, and Brahmacharya. They advocated that salvation should be achieved by purification of the soul through severe penance and Triratna. Also, the Nayavada approach of Jainism suggests that relative knowledge is not absolute. Patliputra's ancient name indicates the importance of the rich culture and history of Bihar.