Pāṭaliputra
From Hindupedia, the Hindu Encyclopedia
By Swami Harshananda
Pāṭaliputra was a city of great historical significance. It has a varied history associated with it which can be noted under the following:
- Pāṭaliputra is also known as Pātaligrāma, Pupplapura[1] and Kusumapura.
- It was an ancient city of great fame.
- Gautama Buddha seems to have visited it, which was a small village at that time, during Ajātaśatru’s reign and predicted a great future for it.
- According to Kautilya’s Arthaśāstra[2] it was the greatest city in the East even by the 4th century B. C. It was the capital of the Mauryas and the Śuṅgas.
- Megasthanies[3] has mentioned that it extended on the bank of the Gañgā, defended by a wooden palisade flanked by 570 bastions and surrounded by a deep wide moat. It had 64 gates in total. It was also the capital of the kingdom of Magadha.
- Hiuen Tsang[4] has described how the king Kālāśoka made it his metropolis. It has been identified with the modern Patna city.[5]
References[edit]
- The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore