The list of sixteen mahajanapadas of the sixth century BCE is found in which of the following texts?
- A.Arthashastra
- B.Anguttara Nikaya
- C.Mahabhashya
- D.Ashtadhyayi
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is B, Anguttara Nikaya. It is a text of the Sutta Pitaka of the Buddhist canon and it names the sixteen great states of the age of the Buddha, from Magadha and Kosala in the east to Gandhara and Kamboja in the north-west. This is the list every standard textbook reproduces, and the Jain Bhagavati Sutra gives a rival list in which several names are replaced.
Option A, the Arthashastra, is Kautilya's manual of statecraft from the Mauryan age or later; it discusses how a state should be run but does not list the sixteen mahajanapadas. Option C, the Mahabhashya, is Patanjali's commentary on Sanskrit grammar of about the second century BCE and is used as a source for the Sunga period, not for this list. Option D, the Ashtadhyayi, is Panini's grammar and again a source for place names rather than the canonical list. Tie the number sixteen to the Anguttara Nikaya while revising.
Read the full article: Mahajanapadas and Rise of Magadha: Capitals and Dynasties
Practice Questions
View allWhich one of the following mahajanapadas was situated south of the Vindhyas?
- A.Assaka
- B.Chedi
- C.Matsya
- D.Surasena
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Of the sixteen mahajanapadas only Assaka lay in the Deccan, on the banks of the Godavari, with its capital at Potana, also written Potali.
Read the full explanation →Ujjain was the capital of which mahajanapada?
- A.Vatsa
- B.Kosala
- C.Avanti
- D.Panchala
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Avanti covered the Malwa region and had two capitals: Ujjain in its northern half and Mahishmati on the Narmada in its southern half.
Read the full explanation →Bimbisara, a contemporary of the Buddha, belonged to which dynasty?
- A.Shishunaga dynasty
- B.Nanda dynasty
- C.Maurya dynasty
- D.Haryanka dynasty
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Bimbisara was the first great ruler of the Haryanka line of Magadha, traditionally dated from about 544 BCE, with his capital at Girivraja, also called Rajgriha.
Read the full explanation →The First Buddhist Council was held at Rajgriha under the patronage of which ruler?
- A.Ajatashatru
- B.Kalashoka
- C.Ashoka
- D.Kanishka
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The First Buddhist Council met at Rajgriha soon after the death of the Buddha, with Ajatashatru of the Haryanka dynasty as its patron and Mahakassapa presiding, and it settled the Vinaya Pitaka and the Sutta Pitaka as recited by Upali and Ananda.
Read the full explanation →Which mahajanapada was a gana-sangha with its centre at Vaishali?
- A.Anga
- B.Vajji
- C.Kasi
- D.Kuru
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The Vajji confederacy had its centre at Vaishali in north Bihar and was the best known gana-sangha, a state governed not by a single king but by an assembly of the heads of ruling families.
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