Both are based on a now-lost Prakrit-language Brihatkatha-Sarit-Sagara. Kashmiri version Brihatkatha-Manjari by Kshemendra and Kathasaritsagara by Somadeva are two 11th-century Kashmiri Sanskrit collections of legends. Thomas Trautmann believes that the Jain version is older and more consistent than the Buddhist version of the legend. These legends are contained in the commentaries ( churnis and tikas) on canonical texts such as Uttaradhyayana and Avashyaka Niryukti. Hemachandra's account is based on the Prakrit kathanaka literature (legends and anecdotes) composed between the late first century CE and mid-8th century CE. The most well-known version of the Jain legend is contained in the Sthaviravali-Charita or Parishishta-Parvan, written by the 12th-century writer Hemachandra. Jain version The Chandragupta-Chanakya legend is mentioned in several commentaries of the Shvetambara canon. Some other texts provide additional details about the legend for example, the Maha-Bodhi-Vamsa and the Atthakatha give the names of the nine Nanda kings said to have preceded Chandragupta. Its author is unknown, and it is dated variously from sixth century CE to 13th century CE. Vamsatthappakasini (also known as Mahvamsa Tika), a commentary on Mahavamsa, provides some more details about the legend. The earliest Buddhist source to mention the legend is Mahavamsa, which is generally dated between fifth and sixth centuries CE. It is not mentioned in Dipavamsa, the oldest of these chronicles. After dethroning the Nanda, he installs Chandragupta as the new king.īuddhist version The legend of Chanakya and Chandragupta is detailed in the Pali-language Buddhist chronicles of Sri Lanka.
In all the four versions, Chanakya feels insulted by the Nanda king, and vows to destroy him. Mudrarakshasa, a Sanskrit play by Vishakhadatta Kathasaritsagara by Somadeva, Brihat-Katha-Manjari by Ksemendra Mahavamsa and its commentary Vamsatthappakasini (Pali language) Thomas Trautmann identifies four distinct accounts of the ancient Chanakya-Chandragupta katha (legend): Version of the legend
The city of Sirsukh with irregular rectangle of walls with rounded bastions reflect the early influence of Central Asian architectural.There is little documented historical information about Chanakya: most of what is known about him comes from semi-legendary accounts. Sirkap was a fortified city founded during the mid-2nd century BC includes many stupas, and temples laid out on grid pattern. Bihr is also associated with Alexander the Great’s entry into Taxila in 326 BC. Its stone walls and winding streets represent the earliest forms of urbanization. The Bhir mound was founded in the 6th century BC by the Achaemenians. Taxila is a vast serial site that includes a Mesolithic cave and the archaeological remains of four early settlement sites including Saraikala, Bhir, Sirkap, and Sirsukh reflecting evolution of urban settlement. Gandhara (means “Land of the Lakes”) was a region comprised of Peshawar, Mardan, Malakand, Swat, Dir, Bajaur & Taxila in Pakistan & up to Jalalabad in Afghanistan. Situated strategically on a branch of the Silk Road that linked China to the West, Taxila reached its apogee between the 1st and 5th centuries. 3000 years old archaeological sites, stupas & artifacts have been discovered in this region. The Gandhara Civilization was dominant here & Buddhism was its official religion. Pakistan contains treasures of ancient history, one of the prominent of these being the ancient metropolis of Taxila.