Pataliputra

Pataliputra ( Sanskrit: पाटलिपुत्र, Pataliputra; Pātaliputta Pali, Greek Palimbothra ) was located on the south bank of the River Ganges Indian city, today's Patna in Bihar. In ancient times it was the capital of the Indian kingdom of Magadha and later of the Mauryan Empire.

History

Pataliputra was originally the village Pataligrama ( Pali: Pātaligāma ) at the mouth of the Son in the Ganges. After the Mahaparinirvana Sutra, is the legendary Ajatasattu, the king of Magadha, they have expanded into a city and secured near Rajagrha. His son Udayabhadra (or Udayin ) made ​​Pataliputra the capital of the empire. Pataliputra was the capital under the following Maurya dynasty. Around 300 BC, the Seleucid king Seleucus I Nicator was trying to conquer the Mauryareich to this but had to admit defeat and leave the king Chandragupta two eastern provinces of his empire. He sent the historian Megasthenes as ambassador to Pataliputra, to whom we owe a fairly detailed description of the city.

Megasthenes estimated the size to 80x15 Pataliputras stages ( 15x3 km ). Around the city pulled a 40-kilometer long palisade wall, which was later supplemented by a brick wall. The pebble -paved streets were arranged at right angles to each other. Pataliputra consisted of sixteen districts that all domiciled another craft guild. Some of them had little overgrown with trees areas where people came together to the market. To go downtown, where was the royal palace, lived many officials and nobles in their magnificent, some multi-storey houses. These often had small gardens and ponds, where people could relax. Directly at the palace, however, there were only the homes of the musicians and courtesans of the king and all public buildings. These were separated by channels from the palace, which tempered the heat of the city. In places, the temple had been built for various deities, perhaps for the resident in the city Greek merchants. As a foreigner, they were regarded as untouchables, but were under the protection of the king and therefore enjoyed a certain reputation with the locals.

In the year 253 BC, the third Buddhist Council was held in Pataliputra. The city was an important center of early Buddhism.

It is not known exactly when and why the ancient city went down. The Chinese Faxian, who visited Pataliputra in the 5th century as a pilgrim, describes it as " prosperous city "; However, reported another Chinese traveler, Xuanzang, two hundred years later only of ruins. Probably Pataliputra was either abandoned in favor of another capital or destroyed by the Hephtaliten. Even an earthquake can be considered.