View source for Magadha

{{short description|Region and Mahajanapada in ancient eastern India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2025}}
{{Use Indian English|date=November 2025}}
{{Infobox country
| native_name            = 
| conventional_long_name = Kingdom of Magadha
| common_name            = Kingdom of Magadha
| era                    = [[Iron Age in India|Iron Age]]
| life_span              = Unknown (by 1200 BCE) – 625 CE
| government_type        = <!-- [[Absolute monarchy]]{{efn|as described in the ''[[Arthashastra]]''}} -->
| p1                     = Kikata kingdom
| s1                     = Satavahana Empire
| s2                     = Mahameghavahana dynasty{{!}}Kalinga (Mahameghavanas)
| s3                     = Vidarbha kingdom (Mauryan era){{!}}Vidarbha kingdom
| image_coat             = 
| image_map              = Mahajanapadas (c. 500 BCE).png
| image_map_caption      = Kingdom of Magadha and other Mahajanapadas during the second urbanisation
| image_map2             = {{Switcher|[[File:Magadha Expansion 1.gif|upright=1.15|frameless]]|Expansion and decline of Magadha-based rule <br/>between 6th and 2nd century BCE|[[File:Magadha Expansion (6th-4th centuries BCE).png|upright=1.15|frameless]]|Magadha-based rule under Haryanka and{{space|6}}<br/>Shaisunga dynasties|[[File:Nanda Empire, c.325 BCE.png|upright=1.15|frameless]]|Magadha-based rule under Nanda dynasty {{space|4}}|[[File:Maurya Empire, c.250 BCE 2.png|upright=1.15|frameless]]|Magadha-based rule under Maurya dynasty{{space|3}}|[[File:Map of the Shungas.png|upright=1.15|frameless]]|Magadha-based rule under Shunga dynasty{{space|3}}|[[File:India in 50 bc.jpg|upright=1.15|frameless]]|Magadha-based rule under Kanva dynasty{{space|5}}|default=1}}
| image_map2_caption     = Territorial expansion of Magadha-based rulers 6th century BCE onwards
| capital                = [[Rajgir|Rajagriha]] (Girivraj)<br/>Later, [[Pataliputra]] (modern-day [[Patna]])
| common_languages       = [[Sanskrit]]<ref name="JainCardona2007-script1">{{cite book|last=Jain|first=Dhanesh |editor=George Cardona |editor2=Dhanesh Jain |title=The Indo-Aryan Languages|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OtCPAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA51|year=2007|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-135-79711-9|pages=47–66, 51|chapter=Sociolinguistics of the Indo-Aryan languages}}</ref><br/>[[Magadhi Prakrit]]<br/> [[Ardhamagadhi Prakrit]]
| religion               = [[Brahmanism]]<br/>[[Buddhism]]<br/>[[Jainism]]
| demonym                = [[Māgadhī]]
| currency               = [[Coinage of India|Panas]]
| title_leader           = Magadha-based dynasties and empires
| leader1                = [[Haryanka dynasty]]
| year_leader1           = {{Circa|544|413 BCE}}
| leader2                = [[Shaishunaga dynasty]]
| year_leader2           = {{Circa|413|345 BCE}}
| leader3                = [[Nanda dynasty]]
| year_leader3           = {{Circa|345|321 BCE}}
| leader4                = [[Maurya Empire]]
| year_leader4           = {{Circa|321|185 BCE}}
| leader5                = [[Shunga Empire]]
| year_leader5           = {{Circa|185|73 BCE}}
| leader6                = [[Kanva dynasty]]
| year_leader6           = {{Circa|73|28 BCE}}
| leader7                = Extraneous rule by [[Mitra dynasty (Kosambi)]]
| year_leader7           = {{Circa|1st cent. BCE|2nd cent. BCE}}
| leader8                = Extraneous rule by [[Kushan Empire]] and [[Mahameghavahana dynasty]]
| year_leader8           = {{Circa|2nd|3rd CE?}}
| leader9                = [[Gupta Empire]]
| year_leader9           = {{Circa|240|579 CE}}
| leader10               = [[Later Guptas]]
| year_leader10          = {{Circa|6th|8th cent. CE}}
| leader11               = 
| year_leader11          = 
| leader12               = 
| year_leader12          = 
| leader13               = 
| year_leader13          = 
| leader14               = 
| year_leader14          = 
| today                  = {{plainlist| * [[India]]
* [[Nepal]]
* [[Pakistan]]
* [[Bhutan]]
* [[Afghanistan]]
* [[Bangladesh]]
}}}}
{{History of Bihar}}
'''Magadha''' ({{ipa|bho|məɡəd̪ʰaː|ipa}}) was a region and kingdom in ancient India, based in the [[Indo-Gangetic Plain|eastern Ganges Plain]]. It was one of the sixteen [[Mahajanapadas]] during the [[Second Urbanization]] period. The region was ruled by several dynasties, which overshadowed, conquered, and incorporated the other Mahajanapadas. Magadha played an important role in the development of [[Jainism]] and [[Buddhism]]<ref name="Keown2004">{{cite book|author=Damien Keown|title=A Dictionary of Buddhism|url= https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780198605607.001.0001/acref-9780198605607-e-1054?rskey=6R59Bf&result=1 |date=26 August 2004|publisher=OUP Oxford|isbn=978-0-19-157917-2|page=163}}</ref> and formed the core of the [[Maurya Empire]] (c. 320–185 BCE).

==Geography==
The territory of the Magadha kingdom proper before its expansion was bounded to the north, west, and east respectively by the [[Ganges|Gaṅgā]], [[Son River|Son]], and [[Chandan River|Campā]] rivers, and the eastern spurs of the [[Vindhya Range|Vindhya mountains]] formed its southern border. The territory of the initial Magadha kingdom thus corresponded to the modern-day [[Patna district|Patna]] and [[Gaya district|Gaya]] districts of the Indian state of [[Bihar]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Raychaudhuri |first=Hemchandra |author-link=Hem Chandra Raychaudhuri |date=1953 |title=Political History of Ancient India: From the Accession of Parikshit to the Extinction of Gupta Dynasty |pages=110–118 |publisher=[[University of Calcutta]] }}</ref>

The region of [[Greater Magadha]] also included neighbouring regions in the eastern Gangetic plains, and had a distinct culture and belief.

==History==

===Vedic period (semi-legendary) (ca. 1700 BCE-6th cent. BCE)===
{{Main|Vedic period}}

In the ''[[Atharvaveda]]'' (5.22) (ca. 1200-900 BCE) the Magadhas are listed along with the [[Anga]]s, [[Gandhara|Gandharis]] and Mujavats as non-Vedic tribes located outside of the [[Kuru kingdom|Kuru]]-[[Panchala]] cultural sphere.<ref>Michael Witzel (1987), "On the localisation of Vedic texts and schools (Materials on Vedic Śākhās, 7)" in G. Pollet (ed.), ''India and the Ancient world. History, Trade and Culture before A.D. 650''</ref><ref name="Majumdar_1977"/>

====Kikata kingdom====
{{Main|Kikata kingdom}}

Some scholars have identified the Kīkaṭa tribe—mentioned in the [[Rigveda]] (3.53.14) with their ruler Pramaganda—as the forefathers of Magadhas because Kikata is used as synonym for Magadha in the later texts.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t6TVLlPvuMAC&pg=PA159|title=Vedic Index of Names and Subjects|last1=Macdonell|first1=Arthur Anthony|last2=Keith|first2=Arthur Berriedale|date=1995|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass Publishers|isbn=9788120813328|language=en}}</ref> Like the Magadhas in the Atharvaveda, the Rigveda speaks of the Kikatas as a hostile tribe, living on the borders of Brahmanical India, who did not perform Vedic rituals, but Witzel argues that it is "misplaced" to locate the Kikatas within Magadha, as in the Rigveda "their [Kikata] territory is clearly described as being to the south of Kurukshetra, in eastern Rajasthan or western Madhya Pradesh, and Magadha is beyond the geographical horizon of the Rigveda".<ref name="Witzel1995">M. Witzel. "[https://books.google.com/books?id=OZ0gAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA333 Rigvedic history: poets, chieftains, and polities]," in ''The Indo-Aryans of Ancient South Asia: Language, Material Culture and Ethnicity.'' ed. G. Erdosy (Walter de Gruyer, 1995), p. 333</ref>

====Brihadratha dynasty====
{{Main|Brihadratha dynasty}}

According to the [[Puranas]], the legendary<ref>{{cite book | last=Chakrabarty | first=D.K. | title=The Geopolitical Orbits of Ancient India: The Geographical Frames of the Ancient Indian Dynasties | publisher=OUP India | year=2010 | isbn=978-0-19-908832-4 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EIAyDwAAQBAJ&dq=legendary&pg=PT24}}</ref> Brihadratha dynasty was the first ruling dynasty of Magadha.

===Mahajanapada (6th-4th cent. BCE)===
[[File:Cyclopian wall, Rajgir. (5457385482) (cropped).jpg |thumb|right| [[Cyclopean Wall of Rajgir]] which encircled the former capital of Magadha, Rajgir. Among the oldest pieces of cyclopean masonry in the world]]

====Second urbanisation====
Much of the [[Second Urbanisation]] took place in Greater Magadha from {{Circa|500 BCE}} onwards, and it was here that [[Jainism]] and Buddhism arose.{{sfn|Bronkhorst|2007|loc=p.4: Bronkhorst ''"It is also in this area that a number of religious and spiritual movements arose, most famous among them Buddhism and Jainism."''}}

==== Haryanka dynasty (544 BCE–413 BCE) ====
{{main|Haryanka dynasty}}

There is little certain information available on the early rulers of Magadha. The most important sources are the Buddhist ''[[Pāli Canon]]'', the ''[[Jain Agamas]]'' and the Hindu ''[[Puranas]]''. The ancient kingdom of Magadha is also mentioned in the ''[[Ramayana]]'', the ''[[Mahabharata]]''. Based on Jain and Buddhist sources, it appears that Magadha was ruled by the [[Haryanka dynasty]] for some 130 years, c. 543 to 413 BCE,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Chandra |first1=Jnan |title=Some Unknown Facts About Bimbisāra |journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress |date=1958 |volume=21 |pages=215–217 |jstor=44145194}}</ref> although dates are uncertain, and could be significantly later.<ref name="Bechert"/>

Two notable Haryanka dynasty rulers of Magadha were [[Bimbisara]] (also known as ''Shrenika'') and his son [[Ajatashatru]] (also known as ''Kunika''), who are mentioned in Buddhist and Jain literature as contemporaries of the Buddha and Mahavira. Later, the throne of Magadha was usurped by [[Mahapadma Nanda]], the founder of the [[Nanda Dynasty]] ({{Circa|345|322 BCE}}), which conquered much of north India. The Nanda dynasty was overthrown by [[Chandragupta Maurya]], the founder of the [[Maurya Empire]] ({{Circa|322}}–185 BCE).

There is much uncertainty about the succession of kings and the precise chronology of Magadha prior to [[Mahapadma Nanda]]; the accounts of various ancient texts (all of which were written many centuries later than the era in question) contradict each other on many points. Furthermore, there is a "Long Chronology" and a contrasting "Short Chronology" preferred by some scholars, an issue that is inextricably linked to the uncertain [[Gautama Buddha#Historical Siddhārtha Gautama|chronology of the Buddha]] and [[Mahavira]].<ref name="Bechert">{{cite book|last=Bechert|first=Heinz|author-link=Heinz Bechert|title=When Did the Buddha Live?: The Controversy on the Dating of the Historical Buddha|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ImnYAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA129|year=1995|publisher=Sri Satguru Publications|isbn=978-81-7030-469-2|page=129}}</ref>
According to historian [[K. T. S. Sarao]], a proponent of the Short Chronology wherein the Buddha's lifespan was c.477–397 BCE, it can be estimated that Bimbisara was reigning c.457–405 BCE, and Ajatashatru was reigning c.405–373 BCE.<ref>{{citation |last=Sarao |first=K. T. S. |title= The Ācariyaparamparā and Date of the Buddha. |journal=Indian Historical Review |volume=30 |issue=1–2 |year=2003 |pages=1–12 |doi=10.1177/037698360303000201 |s2cid=141897826 |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/037698360303000201|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
According to historian [[John Keay]], a proponent of the "Long Chronology," Bimbisara must have been reigning in the late 5th century BCE,<ref>{{cite book|last=Keay|first=John|title=India: A History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0IquM4BrJ4YC&pg=PT141|year=2011|publisher=Open Road + Grove/Atlantic|isbn=978-0-8021-9550-0|page=141}}</ref> and Ajatashatru in the early 4th century BCE.<ref name="Keay 2010, p.149">{{cite book|last=Keay|first=John|title=India: A History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0IquM4BrJ4YC&pg=PT149|year=2011|publisher=Open Road + Grove/Atlantic|isbn=978-0-8021-9550-0|page=149}}</ref> Keay states that there is great uncertainty about the royal succession after Ajatashatru's death, probably because there was a period of "court intrigues and murders," during which "evidently the throne changed hands frequently, perhaps with more than one incumbent claiming to occupy it at the same time" until Mahapadma Nanda was able to secure the throne.<ref name="Keay 2010, p.149"/>

The core of the kingdom was the area of Bihar south of the [[Ganges]]; its first capital was Rajagriha (modern [[Rajgir|day Rajgir]]), then [[Pataliputra]] (modern [[Patna]]).<ref name="Majumdar_1977">Ramesh Chandra Majumdar (1977). ''Ancient India''. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. {{ISBN|81-208-0436-8}}.</ref> Rajagriha was initially known as 'Girivrijja' and later came to be known as so during the reign of [[Ajatashatru]]. Magadha expanded to include most of Bihar and [[Bengal]] with the conquest of [[Vajjika League]] and [[Anga]], respectively.<ref name="Majumdar_1977"/>

=== Expansion ===

====Shaishunaga dynasty (413 BCE–345 BCE)====
[[File:Magadha Expansion (6th-4th centuries BCE).png|thumb|right|The approximate extent of the Haryanka dynasty and the Shaisunaga dynasty between the 6th and 5th century BCE.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Schwartzberg |first1=Joseph E. |title=A Historical Atlas of South Asia |date=1978 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |location=Chicago |page=145, map XIV.1 (a)|isbn=0226742210 |url=https://dsal.uchicago.edu/reference/schwartzberg/pager.html?object=182}}</ref>]]
{{Main|Shaishunaga dynasty}}

====Nanda dynasty (c. 345 BCE–c. 322 BCE)====
{{Main|Nanda dynasty}}

====Maurya Empire (322 BCE – 185 BCE)====
{{Main|Maurya Empire}}

====Shunga Empire (185 BCE–73 BCE)====
{{Main|Shunga Empire}}

====Kanva dynasty (73 BCE–28 BCE)====
{{Main|Kanva dynasty}}

===Extraneous rule (28 BCE-c.240 CE)===

====Mitra dynasty (Kosambi) ( 1st cent. BCE - 2nd cent. CE)====
{{Main|Mitra dynasty (Kosambi)}}

====Kushan Empire and Mahameghavahana dynasty (2nd-3rd cent. CE)====
{{Main|Kushan Empire|Mahameghavahana dynasty}}

===Guptas===

====Gupta Empire (c. 240–c. 579)====
{{Main|Gupta Empire}}

===Post-Gupta===
====Later Guptas (c. 6th century CE–c. 8th century CE)====
{{Main|Later Guptas}}

[[File:Archer type coinage of King Mahasenagupta of the Later Gupta dynasty.png|thumb|Archer type coinage of King [[Mahasenagupta]] of the Later Gupta dynasty, c. 6th century CE]]
The Later Gupta dynasty, also known as the Later Guptas of Magadha, were the rulers of the [[Magadha (Mahajanapada)|Magadha]] region and partly of [[Malwa]] from the 6th and 8th centuries CE. The Later Guptas emerged after the disintegration of the [[Gupta Empire|Imperial Guptas]] as the rulers of Magadha and Malwa however, there is no evidence to connect the two dynasties and the Later Guptas may have adopted the -gupta suffix to link themselves the Imperial Guptas.<ref name=Ghosh2021>{{cite book |last1=Ghosh |first1=Suchandra |chapter=Later Guptas |title=The Encyclopedia of Ancient History: Asia and Africa |date=2022 |pages=1–2 |doi=10.1002/9781119399919.eahaa00571 |isbn=978-1-119-39991-9 |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/9781119399919.eahaa00571|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

====Maukharis (c. 510 CE–c. 606 CE)====
{{Main|Maukharis of Kannauj|Maukharis of Gaya}}

[[File:Map of the Maukharis.png|thumb|Map of the [[Maukharis of Kannauj]]]]
The initial branch of the Maukharis ruled from [[Gaya, India|Gaya]] in Magadha before later moving to [[Kannauj]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ghosh |first1=Suchandra |chapter=Maukharīs |title=The Encyclopedia of Ancient History: Asia and Africa |date=2023 |pages=1–4 |doi=10.1002/9781119399919.eahaa00569 |isbn=978-1-119-39991-9 |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/9781119399919.eahaa00569}}</ref> The Maukharis have been associated with the Magadha region since the [[Maurya Empire|Mauryan period]]. The earliest inscription of the Maukhari dynasty has been found in [[Gaya, India|Gaya]] dating back to the third-century BCE on a clay seal and the Maukharis continued to have a recorded presence in Gaya until the 6th century CE.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ghosh |first1=Suchandra |chapter=Maukhari Empire |title=The Encyclopedia of Empire |date=2016 |pages=1–3 |doi=10.1002/9781118455074.wbeoe271 |isbn=978-1-118-44064-3 |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/9781118455074.wbeoe271}}</ref>

Due to the events leading to the collapse of the Gupta Empire, [[Harivarman]], the first Maukhari of Kannauj likely migrated westwards to carve out his own kingdom.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Tripathi |first1=Rama Shankar |title=History of Kanauj: To the Moslem Conquest |date=1989 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=9788120804043 |pages=28–34 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2Tnh2QjGhMQC&dq=maukharis+of+gaya&pg=PA32}}</ref>

===Late Medieval===
{{Main|Pithipatis of Magadha}}

From the 11th century until the late 13th century, a group of Buddhist kings known as the [[Pithipatis of Bodh Gaya|Pithipatis]] ruled parts of the Magadha region. These kings referred to themselves as ''Magadhādipati'' which translates to "Lords of Magadha".<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Sircar |first1=D. C. |title=Bodhgayā Inscription of Pithipati Ācārya Buddhasena |journal=Senarat Paranavitana Commemoration Volume |date=1978 |pages=255–256 |doi=10.1163/9789004646476_033 |isbn=978-90-04-64647-6 |url=https://brill.com/edcollchap/book/9789004646476/B9789004646476_s033.xml|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

==Buddhism and Jainism==
[[Gautama Buddha]], the founder of [[Buddhism]], lived much of his life in the kingdom of Magadha. He attained [[Enlightenment in Buddhism|enlightenment]] in [[Bodh Gaya]], gave his first sermon in [[Sarnath]] and the [[Buddhist councils|first Buddhist council]] was held in [[Rajgriha]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lumbinitrust.org/articles/view/214 |title=Lumbini Development Trust: Restoring the Lumbini Garden |access-date=6 January 2017 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140306041858/http://www.lumbinitrust.org/articles/view/214 |archive-date=6 March 2014 }}</ref>

Several [[Śramaṇa|Śramaṇic movements]] had existed before the 6th century BCE, and these influenced both the [[āstika and nāstika]] traditions of Indian philosophy.<ref name=reginaldray247>{{cite book |first=Reginald |last=Ray |year=1999 |title=Buddhist Saints in India |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0195134834 |pages=237–240, 247–249 }}</ref> The [[Śramaṇa|Śramaṇa movement]] gave rise to diverse range of heterodox beliefs, ranging from accepting or denying the concept of soul, atomism, antinomian ethics, materialism, atheism, agnosticism, fatalism to free will, idealisation of extreme asceticism to that of family life, strict [[ahimsa]] (non-violence) and vegetarianism to the permissibility of violence and meat-eating.<ref>{{cite book |first=Padmanabh S. |last=Jaini |year=2001 |title=Collected papers on Buddhist Studies |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-8120817760 |pages=57–77 }}</ref> Magadha kingdom was the nerve centre of this revolution.

[[Jainism]] was revived and re-established after [[Mahavira]], the last and the 24th ''[[Tirthankara]]'', who synthesised and revived the philosophies and promulgations of the ancient Śramaṇic traditions laid down by the first Jain tirthankara [[Rishabhanatha]] millions of years ago.<ref>{{cite book|last=Patel|first=Haresh|title=Thoughts from the Cosmic Field in the Life of a Thinking Insect &#91;A Latter-Day Saint&#93;|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SXgEfiNY46sC&pg=PA271|year=2009|publisher=Strategic Book Publishing|isbn=978-1-60693-846-1|page=271}}</ref> [[Buddha]] founded [[Buddhism]] which received royal patronage in the kingdom.

[[File:Magadha kingdom Circa 430-320s BC AR Karshapana.jpg|thumb|Magadha kingdom coin, {{Circa|430}}–320 BCE, Karshapana]]
[[File:Magadha kingdom coin Circa 350 BC AR Karshapana.jpg|thumb|Magadha kingdom coin, {{Circa|350 BCE}}, Karshapana]]
[[File:Mauryan Empire. Circa late 4th-2nd century BC.jpg|thumb|Chandragupta Maurya period [[Karshapana|Karshapana coin]], circa 315-310 B.C.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cngcoins.com/Coin.aspx?CoinID=335378|title=Auction 396. INDIA, Mauryan Empire, Karshapana (14mm, 3.32 g). circa 315-310 BC|website=www.cngcoins.com|access-date=24 April 2024}}</ref>]]
According to Indologist [[Johannes Bronkhorst]], the culture of Magadha was in fundamental ways different from the Vedic kingdoms of the [[Indo-Aryans]]. According to Bronkhorst, the [[Śramaṇa|śramana]] culture arose in "[[Greater Magadha]]," which was Indo-Aryan, but not [[Historical Vedic religion|Vedic]]. In this culture, [[Kshatriya]]s were placed higher than [[Brahmin]]s, and it rejected [[Vedas|Vedic]] authority and rituals.{{sfn|Bronkhorst|2007|p={{page needed|date=April 2022}}}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=Long |first=Jeffery D. |title=Jainism : an introduction |date=2009 |publisher=I.B. Tauris |isbn=978-1-4416-3839-7 |location=London |oclc=608555139}}</ref> He argues for a cultural area termed "[[Greater Magadha]]", defined as roughly the geographical area in which the [[Buddha]] and [[Mahavira]] lived and taught.{{sfn|Bronkhorst|2007|p={{page needed|date=April 2022}}}} <ref name=Witzel>{{cite journal |last=Witzel |first=Michael |title=Macrocosm, Mesocosm, and Microcosm: The Persistent Nature of 'Hindu' Beliefs and Symbolic Forms |journal=International Journal of Hindu Studies |volume=1 |issue=3 |year=1997 |pages=501–539 |doi=10.1007/s11407-997-0021-x |jstor=20106493 |s2cid=144673508 }}</ref>

With regard to the Buddha, this area stretched by and large from [[Śrāvastī]], the capital of [[Kosala]], in the north-west to [[Rajgir|Rājagṛha]], the capital of Magadha, in the south-east".{{sfn|Bronkhorst|2007 |pp=xi, 4}} According to Bronkhorst, "there was indeed a culture of Greater Magadha which remained recognizably distinct from Vedic culture until the time of the grammarian Patañjali (ca. 150 BCE) and beyond".{{sfn|Bronkhorst|2007|p=265}}  The Buddhologist Alexander Wynne writes that there is an "overwhelming amount of evidence" to suggest that this rival culture to the Vedic Aryans dominated the eastern [[Gangetic plain]] during the early Buddhist period. Orthodox Vedic Brahmins were, therefore, a minority in Magadha during this early period.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=31537|title=Review of Bronkhorst, Johannes, Greater Magadha: Studies in the Culture of Early India|last=Wynne|first=Alexander|date=2011|website=H-Buddhism|access-date=25 August 2019}}</ref>

The Magadhan religions are termed the [[sramana]] traditions and include [[Jainism]], [[Buddhism]] and [[Ājīvika]]. Buddhism and Jainism were the religions promoted by the early Magadhan kings, such as Srenika, [[Bimbisara]] and [[Ajatashatru]], and the [[Nanda Dynasty]] (345–321 BCE) that followed was mostly Jain. These Sramana religions did not worship the [[Rigvedic deities|Vedic deities]], instead of practising some form of [[asceticism]] and [[meditation]] ([[jhana]]) and tending to construct round burial mounds (called [[stupas]] in Buddhism).{{sfn|Bronkhorst|2007|p=265}} These religions also sought some type of liberation from the cyclic rounds of rebirth and karmic retribution through spiritual knowledge.

===Religious sites in Magadha===
[[File:Bodh gaya before restoration.jpg|thumb|upright|right|The ancient [[Mahabodhi Temple]] at Bodh Gaya prior to its restoration]]
Among the Buddhist sites currently found in the Magadha region include two UNESCO [[World Heritage Site]]s such as the [[Mahabodhi Temple]] at [[Bodh Gaya]]<ref name="Sarao2020">{{cite book|author=K.T.S. Sarao|title=The History of Mahabodhi Temple at Bodh Gaya|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H5n9DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA66|date=16 September 2020|publisher=Springer Nature|isbn=9789811580673|pages=66–}}</ref> and the [[Nalanda]] monastery.<ref name="Kumar2018">{{cite book|author=Pintu Kumar|title=Buddhist Learning in South Asia: Education, Religion, and Culture at the Ancient Sri Nalanda Mahavihara|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wlZWDwAAQBAJ|date=7 May 2018|publisher=Lexington Books|isbn=978-1-4985-5493-0}}</ref> The Mahabodhi Temple is one of the most important places of pilgrimage in the Buddhist world and is said to mark the site where the Buddha attained enlightenment.<ref name="GearySayers2012">{{cite book|author1=David Geary|author2=Matthew R. Sayers|author3=Abhishek Singh Amar|title=Cross-disciplinary Perspectives on a Contested Buddhist Site: Bodh Gaya Jataka|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=izcenGMBfsoC|year=2012|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-415-68452-1|pages=18–21}}</ref>

==Language==
{{Main|Magadhi Prakrit}}

{{See also|Ardhamagadhi Prakrit}}

Beginning in the Theravada commentaries, the [[Pali language]] has been identified with [[Magadhi Prakrit|Magadhi]], the language of the kingdom of Magadha, and this was taken to also be the language that the Buddha used during his life. In the 19th century, the British [[Oriental studies|Orientalist]] [[Robert Caesar Childers]] argued that the true or geographical name of the Pali language was [[Magadhi Prakrit]], and that because ''pāḷi'' means "line, row, series", the early Buddhists extended the meaning of the term to mean "a series of books", so ''pāḷibhāsā'' means "language of the texts".<ref>''A Dictionary of the Pali Language'' By Robert Cæsar Childers</ref> Nonetheless, Pali does retain some eastern features that have been referred to as ''Māgadhisms''.<ref name="Gethin2008">{{cite book|author=Rupert Gethin|title=Sayings of the Buddha: New Translations from the Pali Nikayas|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AvogpRk9-5wC|date=9 October 2008|publisher=OUP Oxford|isbn=978-0-19-283925-1|pages=xxiv }}</ref>

Magadhi Prakrit was one of the three dramatic prakrits to emerge following the decline of Sanskrit. It was spoken in Magadha and neighbouring regions and later evolved into modern eastern [[Indo-Aryan languages]] like [[Magahi language|Magahi]], [[Maithili language|Maithili]] and [[Bhojpuri language|Bhojpuri]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Beames|first=John|url=http://ebooks.cambridge.org/ref/id/CBO9781139208871|title=Comparative Grammar of the Modern Aryan Languages of India: To Wit, Hindi, Panjabi, Sindhi, Gujarati, Marathi, Oriya, and Bangali|date=2012|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-139-20887-1|location=Cambridge|doi=10.1017/cbo9781139208871.003}}</ref>

==Historical figures from Magadha==
[[File:Mahavir.jpg|thumb|upright|The 24th Tirthankara of Jainism, [[Mahavira]], who was born in the [[Nāya]] republic near Magadha to a royal family ]]

Important people from the region of Magadha include:

*'''[[Mahākāśyapa]]''' - one of [[the Buddha]]'s principle disciples born in the 5th century BCE in Mahātittha village in Magadha<ref name=Princeton>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Lopez |first=Donald |date=2014 |title=Mahākāśyapa |url= https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780190681159.001.0001/acref-9780190681159-e-2507|encyclopedia= Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism|location= |publisher= Princeton University Press |access-date=}}</ref>
* '''[[Gautama Swami|Indrabhūti Gautama]]''' - a [[Brahmin]] born to Vasubhūti and in Gorbara village in Magadha. He is considered to be [[Mahavira]]'s chief disciple, a [[ganadhara]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Vidyabhusana |first=Satis Chandra |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0lG85RD9YZoC&q=%22gorbara%22&pg=PA159 |title=A History of Indian Logic: Ancient, Mediaeval and Modern Schools |date=1 January 1988 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass Publishing House |isbn=978-81-208-0565-1 |language=en}}</ref> His brothers, Agnibhūti and Vāyubhūti, were also ganadharas of Mahavira.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Goldstücker |first=Theodor |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bvQqdjiHUPwC&dq=agnibhuti+vayubhuti&pg=PA106 |title=Literary Remains of the Late Professor Theodore Goldstücker: In Two Volumes |date=1879 |publisher=W.H. Allen |language=en}}</ref>
* '''[[Śāriputra]]''' – born to a wealthy ''[[Brahmin]]'' in a village located near [[Rājagaha]] in Magadha. He is considered the first of the Buddha's two chief male disciples, together with [[Maudgalyāyana]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Prasad |first1=Chandra Shekhar |title=Nalanda vis-à-vis the Birthplace of Śāriputra |journal=East and West |year=1988 |volume=38 |issue=1/4 |pages=175–188 |jstor=29756860 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/29756860}}</ref>
* '''[[Maudgalyāyana]]''' – born in the village of Kolita in Magadha. He was one of the Buddha's two main disciples. In his youth, he was a spiritual wanderer before meeting the Buddha.<ref name="Malalasekera2007">{{cite book|author=Gunapala Piyasena Malalasekera|title=Dictionary of Pāli Proper Names|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8Au_lIP1ZnQC&pg=PA403|year=2007|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass Publishers|isbn=978-81-208-3022-6|pages=403–404}}</ref>
* '''[[Mahavira]]''' – the 24th [[Tirthankara]] of [[Jainism]]. Born into a royal [[kshatriya]] family in what is now [[Vaishali district]] of [[Bihar]]. He abandoned all worldly possessions at the age of 30 and became an ascetic. He is considered to be the successor of [[Pārśvanātha]] and a slightly older contemporary of the Buddha.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dundas |first=Paul |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jdjNkZoGFCgC&pg=PA30 |title=The Jains |date=2002 |publisher=Psychology Press |isbn=978-0-415-26605-5 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Dutt2013">{{cite book|author=Romesh Chunder Dutt|title=A History of Civilisation in Ancient India: Based on Sanscrit Literature: Volume I|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=udv7AQAAQBAJ&pg=PA382|date=5 November 2013|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-38189-8|pages=382–383}}</ref>
* '''[[Maitripada]]''' – an 11th-century Indian Buddhist [[Mahasiddha]] associated with the [[Mahāmudrā]] transmission. Born in the village of Jhatakarani in Magadha. Also associated with the monasteries of [[Nalanda University|Nalanda]] and [[Vikramashila]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Tatz |first1=Mark |title=The Life of the Siddha-Philosopher Maitrīgupta |journal=Journal of the American Oriental Society |year=1987 |volume=107 |issue=4 |pages=695–711 |doi=10.2307/603308 |jstor=603308}}</ref>
* '''[[Dhyānabhadra]]''' - 13th/14th century monk of [[Nalanda]] born to a minor chief in Magadha and later  travelled across South and East Asia.<ref name=Buswell2014>{{cite book |last1=Buswell |first1=Robert |last2=Lopez |first2=Donald |title=The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism |date=2014 |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=9780691157863 |pages=1056 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EGmYDwAAQBAJ}}</ref>
*'''[[Subhūticandra]]''' - 11/12th-century Indian Buddhist monk associated with [[Nalanda]] and [[Vikramashila]] who belonged to Magadha.<ref name=Deokar2012>{{cite journal |last1=Deokar |first1=Lata |title=Subhūticandra: A Forgotten Scholar of Magadha |journal=Journal of the Centre for Buddhist Studies, Sri Lanka |date=2012 |volume=10 |pages=137–154 |url=https://www.academia.edu/7228101}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Greater Magadha]]
* [[History of India]]
* [[Magadha–Vajji war]]
* [[Magadha–Anga war]]
* [[Avanti–Magadhan War]]
* [[List of Indian monarchs]]
* [[Timeline of Indian history]]
* [[Magahi culture]]
* [[Magahi language]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

===Sources===
{{refbegin}}
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 | first= H.C.
 | date= 1972
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|location=Calcutta
 | publisher = University of Calcutta
}}
* {{cite book
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|first=Bimala Churn 
|title=Ancient Indian Tribes 
|chapter-url=https://archive.org/stream/ancientindiantri032697mbp#page/n111/mode/2up
|year=1926
|location=Lahore
|chapter=4. The Magadhas
|publisher=Motilal Banarsidas}}
* {{cite book |last=Bronkhorst |first=Johannes |title=Greater Magadha: studies in the culture of early India |publisher=Brill |location=Leiden; Boston |year=2007 |isbn=978-90-04-15719-4 |oclc=608455986 |url= http://www.ahandfulofleaves.org/documents/Greater%20Magadha%20Studies%20in%20the%20Culture%20of%20Early%20India_Bronkhorst.pdf |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150911082421/http://www.ahandfulofleaves.org/documents/Greater%20Magadha%20Studies%20in%20the%20Culture%20of%20Early%20India_Bronkhorst.pdf |url-status= dead |archive-date= 11 September 2015 |series=Handbook of oriental studies. Section two, India |volume=19 |issn=0169-9377}}
* {{citation |last=Singh |first=Upinder |author-link=Upinder Singh |title=A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Pq2iCwAAQBAJ |publisher=[[Pearson PLC|Pearson]] |year=2016 |isbn=978-81-317-1677-9 |ref={{sfnref|Upinder Singh|2016}} }}
{{refend}}

{{Tribes and kingdoms of the Mahabharata}}
{{Empires}}
{{Mahajanapada}}
{{Middle kingdoms of India}}
{{Magadh Division topics}}
{{coord missing|Bihar}}
{{Authority control}}

{{Historical regions of North India|state=expanded}}

[[Category:Magadha| ]]
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[[Category:Iron Age cultures of South Asia]]
[[Category:Jain empires and kingdoms]]
[[Category:Kingdoms in the Mahabharata]]
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[[Category:Magahi language]]
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