Ashmaka (
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
: ) or Assaka (
Pali
Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or ''Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of ''Theravāda'' Buddhism ...
: ) was a
Mahajanapada in
ancient India
According to consensus in modern genetics, anatomically modern humans first arrived on the Indian subcontinent from Africa between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. Quote: "Y-Chromosome and Mt-DNA data support the colonization of South Asia by m ...
which existed between 700 BCE and 425 or 345 BCE according to the Buddhist texts ''
Anguttara Nikaya'' and ''
Puranas
Purana (; sa, , '; literally meaning "ancient, old"Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995 Edition), Article on Puranas, , page 915) is a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly about legends an ...
''. It was located around and between the
Godavari
The Godavari ( IAST: ''Godāvarī'' od̪aːʋəɾiː is India's second longest river after the Ganga river and drains into the third largest basin in India, covering about 10% of India's total geographical area. Its source is in Trimbakesh ...
river in present-day
Telangana
Telangana (; , ) is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated on the south-central stretch of the Indian subcontinent, Indian peninsula on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India b ...
and
Maharashtra
Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...
. Its capital is variously called Potali or Podana, and is identified as present-day
Bodhan in Telangana.
Location
Aśmaka was located on the
Godāvarī river, between
Mūlaka and
Kaliṅga.
The capital of Aśmaka was the city variously named Podana, Potali, and Potana, which corresponds to modern-day
Bodhan.
History
The Aśmaka kingdom already existed at the time of the
s, when its king Brahmadatta was mentioned in the as a contemporary of Reṇu of
Videha
Videha ( Prākrit: ; Pāli: ; Sanskrit: ) was an ancient Indo-Aryan tribe of north-eastern South Asia whose existence is attested during the Iron Age. The population of Videha, the Vaidehas, were initially organised into a monarchy but later ...
and Dhataraṭṭha or Dhṛtarāṣṭra of
Kāsī.
Aśmaka annexed the small kingdom of
Mūlaka located to its west during the
Mahajanapada period, after which it became the southern neighbour of the kingdom of
Avanti.
The
Hathigumpha inscription of
Kharavela (2nd century BCE) 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 Asmaka.
According to
Ajay Mitra Shastri
Ajay Mitra Shastri (5 March 1934 – 11 January 2002) was an Indian academic, historian and numismatist associated with the Nagpur University.
Early life and education
A. M. Shastri was born on 5 March 1934 at Guna in Central India Agency, ...
, "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 Asmaka
janapada
The Janapadas () (c. 1500–600 BCE) were the realms, republics (ganapada) and kingdoms (saamarajya) of the Vedic period on the Indian subcontinent. The Vedic period reaches from the late Bronze Age into the Iron Age: from about 1500 BCE to th ...
. Asmaka also included Mulaka area around
Paithan known in ancient times as
Pratishthana.
According to ''
Sutta Nipata'' Saketa or
Ayodhya
Ayodhya (; ) is a city situated on the banks of holy river Saryu in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.
Ayodhya, also known as Sāketa, Saketa, is an ancient city of India, the birthplace of Rama and ...
was first halting place on the southward road (
Dakshinapatha __NOTOC__
Dakshinapatha is an important historical region which is an ancient equivalent of present day South India or Deccan plateau and which may mean;
*the "Ancient South of the Indian subcontinent" below Uttarapatha. The term can encompass ...
) from
Shravasti
Shravasti ( sa, श्रावस्ती, translit=Śrāvastī; pi, 𑀲𑀸𑀯𑀢𑁆𑀣𑀻, translit=Sāvatthī) is a city and district headquarter of Shravasti district in Indian State of Uttar Pradesh. It was the capital of the an ...
to Pratishthana.
See also
*
Kingdoms of Ancient India
*
Mahajanapada
*
History of India
According to consensus in modern genetics, anatomically modern humans first arrived on the Indian subcontinent from Africa between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. Quote: "Y-Chromosome and Mt-DNA data support the colonization of South Asia by m ...
*
History of Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state in the western region of India. It is India's second-most populous state and third-largest state by area. The region that comprises the state has a long history dating back to ca. 1300–700 BCE, although the present-day s ...
*
Janapada
The Janapadas () (c. 1500–600 BCE) were the realms, republics (ganapada) and kingdoms (saamarajya) of the Vedic period on the Indian subcontinent. The Vedic period reaches from the late Bronze Age into the Iron Age: from about 1500 BCE to th ...
References
Sources
*
*
External links
Mahajanapadas
{{India-hist-stub