Mahajanapadas- Overview, Brief on The Sixteen Mahajanapadas

An Overview About The Origins Of The Mahajanapadas

The socio-economic advancement in the 6th century BC across the Indo-Gangetic plains led to the formation of several tribal-state organizations. As the population grew, so did their developmental plans. From being Janapadas, they consolidated to become Mahajanapadas. A Mahajanapada (usually a monarchy)might include The king, minister, council of ministers, country, barricaded city, treasury, military and warfare, and allies. The Ithihasas and the Puranas give relevant details on the formation, history, and other Mahajanapadas. 

Prominent Mahajanapadas To Exist In India

Here is a list of all the documented Mahajanapadas to exist in India during the 6th Century BC. The Mahajanapadas represent the tribal units that were later phased out into regions of community and settlements, which came to be known as the Janapadas.

Names Of The 16 Mahajanapadas In India	An Approximate Location Of The Tribes
Anga	Munger and Bhagalpur
Magadha	Gaya and Patna
Kasi	Banaras
Vatsa	Allahabad
Kosala	Eastern Uttar Pradesh
Saurasena	Western Uttar Pradesh
Panchala	Western Uttar Pradesh
Kuru	Meerut and Southeastern Haryana
Matsya	Jaipur
Chedi	Jaipur
Avanti	Malwa and Madhya Pradesh
Gandhara	Rawalpindi
Kamboja	Rajori and Hajra
Ashmaka or Assaka	Bank of Godavari
Vajji	Bihar
Malla	Deoria and Uttar Pradesh

A Brief On The  Sixteen Mahajanapadas

A brief history of the sixteen impressive mahajanapadas will help understand that era’s religious and political stance. 

Names Of The Tribal Kingdoms	A Brief Description About The Tribal Kingdoms And Their Achievements
The Tribal Kingdom of Anga	Renowned for being one of the six leading cities of archaic India, Anga’s capital city of Champa was a thriving center of trade and commerce situated on the banks of the River Ganga. Anga Mahajanapada can be seen in the Atharva Veda and Mahabharatha wherein, they are mentioned alongside the Gandharis, Mujavats and the Magadhas as the abhorred community. Again, in the Jaina Prajnapana, the Angas and the Vangas are graded as the  Indo-Aryans of distinction. Certain records, such as the Vidhura Pandita Jataka, characterize Rajagriha as one of the many cities of Anga, which leads us to believe that the latter had originally been able to conquer the Magadha territory in the past, thereby stretching their influence as far as the Kingdom of Matsya. However, around the mid of 6th-century B.C.E, the Crown Prince of Magadha, Bimbisara (558 B.C.E – 491 B.C.E), had dethroned and executed the last surviving member of the Anga dynasty, Brahmadatta, thereby annexing the capital city of Champa. With the capital city as the center of all operations, Bimbisara made Anga an indispensable part of the prospering Magadha realm.
The Tribal Kingdom of Magadha	Occupied by a  quasi-Brahmanical population, Magadha was based in Bihar, which was relatively adjacent to the kingdom of Anga but separated by the Champa Nadi. Vedic literature regards the people of Magadha with disdain owing to the fact that the latter was not entirely Brahmanised and had origins of Buddhism(with the first Buddhist council to be hosted on the Vaibhara hills) and an effective center for Jainism to flourish among the masses. Viewed as a consecrated land mainly because of the provenance of Sri Gautama Buddha, the kingdom of Magadha also led to the rise of the  Maurya Empire and the Gupta Empire, which were two of the greatest supremacy’s to ever reign in the history of India.
The Tribal Kingdom of Kasi	The fight for dominance among the Khasis. Aryans who inhabited in and around the region of Banaras were called the Kasis. Predominantly being a dynamic kingdom, the Jatakas boast of the supremacy of the Kasis with regards to their accomplishments and affluence. Kosalas, Angas and the Magadhas stretched over for some time, resulting in the integration of the Kasi territory into the Kosala kingdom by King Kansa.
The Tribal Kingdom of Vatsa (Vamsa)	The Vatsa Mahajanapada observed a monarchical system of governance. Kausambi was the city of all socio-economic endeavors, generating several thriving trade and commerce ventures during the 6th Century BC. In his attempt to spread the concept of dharma in India, Sri Gautama Buddha had made stopovers at Kaushambi while Vatsa was under the reign of Udayana. Later on, Buddhism became a state religion of the Kingdom of Vatsa, with King Udayana becoming an Upasaka and sculpting the first-ever figure out of sandalwood.
The Tribal Kingdom of Kosala	Positioned 70 miles distant to Gorakhpur and incorporating the Awadh in Uttar Pradesh, and with Sravasti as their capital city, the territory of the Kosalas was surrounded by the rivers Ganga and Gandhak with the Himalayan range for its northern outer limits. The struggle for the throne between King Prasenjit of Kosala and King Ajatasatru of Magadha was ultimately resolved when the Lichchavi confederation was aligned with Magadha and eventually, Kosala by the 4th Century B.C.E.
The Tribal Kingdom of Saursena	With its capital as Mathura, Saursena was plotted west to the river Yamuna. Being the birthplace of Lord Krishna, the region of Saursena was held sacred by all the people. Buddhism was another faith that was prominent around these parts.
The Tribal Kingdom of Panchala	The kingdom, battlefield skills and initially under the monarchical reign had swapped for the republican syndicate. The kingdom had two capitals, with Kampilaya for the Southern part of Panchala and Ahichchhatra for the Northern part of Panchala in western Uttar Pradesh. The famous Tattiririya and Shaunaka Vedic schools laid their roots here.
The Tribal Kingdom of Kuru	The Jatakas document the capital of Kuru as Indraprastha and the religious practice of Buddhism in the areas around Kurushetra. Like the Panchalas, the mahajanapadas of Kurus moved from under monarchical rule to the republican pattern of governance.
The Tribal Kingdom of Matsya	Located between the Kurus and Panchalas was the mahajanapada Matsya with Viratnagar as its capital city. The mahajanapada was established by a fishing community and was once integrated with the Chedi community.
The Tribal Kingdom of Chedi	Records, especially of Rigveda, talk about various Chedi community settlements across the mountains of Nepal, in Bundelkhand and between the kingdoms of Kurus and Vatsas. The Hathigumpha inscription of Kharvela attests that the kingdom of Kalinga was established by the royal lineage of the Chedi dynasty.
The Tribal Kingdom of Avanti	One among the great monarchies among the Mahajanapadas, the kingdom of Avanti was based at Ujjaini and was also the focal centre of Buddhism. Upon conquest from the Magadha kingdom, the Avanti settlement got integrated with the former mahajanapada.
The Tribal Kingdom of Gandhara	As specified by the Atharva Veda and Rigveda, the capital of the tribal kingdom of Gandhara was Taxila(Taksashila) and was a famed center for global trade and commerce. According to the Taxila University, Gandhara drew scholars and grammarians like Panini (400 B.C.E) and Kautiliya.
The Tribal Kingdom of Kamboja	Located between the coeval Hindukush mountains and Kashmir, the community has origins from Iran, but some might associate with Indians. The Artha Shastras, Mahabharata and even the Edicts of Ashoka imply the government of Kamboja to be a republic, referring to certain Ganahs, making the ruler of the mahajanapada only as a figurehead.
The Tribal Kingdom of Ashmaka (Assaka)	Situated by the banks of the river Godavari, the capital of this particular mahajanapada was Paithan or Potali. As mentioned by the scholar Panini in his works, the kingdom of Ashmaka was divided from the kingdom of Mulakas by only the river Godavari, eventually taking over the Mulaka territory and adjoining the Avanti region.
The Tribal Kingdom of Vajji	The legendary Lichhavis and several other confederated clans like Jnatrikas and Videhas were consolidated under the Vajji mahajanapada, with their capital center being Vaishali. The Vajji mahajanapada stretched from the northern part of the river Ganga towards the Terai region of Nepal. The administrative department of Vajji was quite effective in its working since they had Vajji sanghas, which integrated many janapadas, gramahs and gosthas. Gana Mukhyas were appointed for the smooth functioning of Vajji Gana and played an important role in ministering to the people.
The Tribal Kingdom of Malla	With Kusinara as the capital of the Malla Republic, these powerful eastern clans were based to the north side of the kingdom of Magadha. The Mallas were known for their battlefield skills and strategic defense mechanisms but eventually had to lose out to the Magadha dynasty.

Conclusion

The decline of the mahajanapadas was primarily because of the annexation of the clans by the Magadhan dynasty, completely wiping out their individual history. Not much has been recovered on these neo-Vedic tribes except their accounts in literature, poetics, and even the Brahmin Puranas.

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