The Mauryan Empire — Part 5: Art, Architecture & Decline

7. Art and Architecture

7.1 Pillars and Capitals (Lion Capital, Sarnath)

The Mauryas are renowned for their highly polished stone pillars—a signature achievement of Mauryan craftsmanship. These monolithic columns, often 40–50 feet tall, were erected at significant sites across the empire. The mirror-like polish of their surface, achieved without modern tools, remains a subject of technical wonder.

The most celebrated is the Lion Capital of Sarnath, which topped a pillar erected by Ashoka at Sarnath near Varanasi—the site of the Buddha's first teaching (Dhammachakkapavattana: the setting in motion of the Wheel of the Law). The capital consists of four back-to-back lions representing royal power, mounted on a circular abacus. On the abacus are four powerful animals—an elephant, a bull, a horse, and one more lion—separated by dharmachakras (wheels of dharma), symbolising the Buddha's teachings and the four directions. Below the abacus is a lotus bell.

This capital was adopted as India's national emblem after independence (with the motto Satyameva Jayate—'truth alone triumphs'—added from the Mundaka Upanishad). The 24-spoked dharmachakra is reproduced at the centre of the Indian national flag. Together these Mauryan symbols form the core of India's national iconography.

7.2 Stupas and Caves

Ashoka is traditionally credited with constructing 84,000 stupas to enshrine the relics of the Buddha. The Great Stupa at Sanchi (Madhya Pradesh) is among the finest surviving examples. Originally built of bricks during Ashoka's reign, it was later enlarged using stone by the Shungas and Satavahanas. The hemispherical structure (anda) at its core represents the universe and houses sacred relics. Devotees perform pradakshina (circumambulation) around it as a form of worship. Ashoka also constructed chaityas and viharas for worship, study, and meditation across his realm.

The Barabar Hill rock-cut caves (Bihar) are among the earliest surviving rock-cut caves in India, donated by Ashoka to the Ajivikas, an ascetic sect. They feature highly polished interior walls, another hallmark of Mauryan craftsmanship.

The rock sculpture of a life-size elephant at Dhauli (Odisha, near Bhubaneswar)—symbolising the Buddha as intelligent, powerful, patient, and calm—is another celebrated Mauryan sculptural monument; a nearby rock carries one of Ashoka's edicts.

Terracotta art from the Mauryan period is also abundant: figurines of dancing girls with elaborate headdresses and jewellery, female deities, yakshis holding fly whisks, and Saptamatrikas (seven mother goddesses) reflect a rich folk artistic tradition alongside Buddhist patronage.

8. Decline of the Mauryan Empire: Causes

The Mauryan Empire lasted approximately 150 years—from 322 BCE to 185 BCE. Its decline resulted from multiple intersecting factors:

1. Weak successors after Ashoka: Ashoka's successors were unable to hold the sprawling empire together. The empire began fragmenting, with smaller kingdoms breaking off and becoming independent within half a century of Ashoka's death.

2. Administrative overextension: The empire was too large and diverse in terrain, language, and culture for uniform control. Maintaining consistent authority at such distances required resources and political will that weaker successors lacked.

3. Economic strain: Large military campaigns and an extensive welfare infrastructure required enormous resources. Maintaining an army of 600,000 soldiers, caring for 9,000 elephants, building and sustaining roads, rest houses, and granaries across a vast empire placed heavy demands on state finances.

4. Decentralisation impulse: The empire's own administrative model—allowing provincial and local rulers considerable autonomy—meant that breakaway was structurally possible. If a powerful emperor was followed by one perceived as weak, local kings or chieftains might simply stop paying tribute.

5. Brahmanical resentment (debated view): Some historians argue that Ashoka's patronage of Buddhism and welfare-oriented policies reduced state revenue and created friction with Brahmanical interests. This remains contested among scholars.

6. External pressures: The northwest continued to face external pressures. After 185 BCE, the Bactrian Greeks (Indo-Greeks) pushed into northwestern India, accelerating the disintegration of Mauryan control in those regions.

7. Economic disruptions: Natural calamities such as prolonged droughts or floods could shake an empire's structure, creating opportunities for regional rulers to assert independence.

Around 185 BCE, the last Mauryan ruler was assassinated by his own commander-in-chief, Pushyamitra Shunga, who founded the Shunga dynasty, ending Mauryan rule. This began another phase of Indian history, with regional powers reasserting themselves across the subcontinent.