Assaka / Ashmaka (Mahajanapada)

Early Buddhist lists name Assaka among the great kingdoms. The texts also tell stories about its kings. Magadha’s Nandas are said to have ended its royal house.

1.1 Where was Assaka?

The Buddhist text Anguttara Nikaya names Asmaka, also spelt Assaka, among its sixteen Mahajanapadas. INFLIBNET describes it as a South Indian kingdom on the banks of the river Godavari. Its capital was Potali, also called Potana or Podana. Scholars identify it with Bodhan.

1.2 Who lived next door?

The Godavari flowed between Asmaka and its neighbour Mulaka. Mulaka had Paithan as its capital. Asmaka lay immediately to its south. Both kingdoms belonged to the Ikshvaku family. The royal sage Asmaka is said to have founded the city of Podana.

1.3 Is the name spelt one way?

Sanskrit authors write both Asmaka and Asvaka. The Dictionary of Pali Proper Names says we cannot tell if these are two tribes or two spellings of one name. So a name in a text may not always mean this Godavari kingdom.

1.4 Who lived in its hills and forests?

The hermitage of Bavari was in Assaka territory. It stood close to Alaka, also called Mulaka, the district round Paithan. This detail comes from the Sutta Nipata.

2.1 Did Assaka go to war?

In the Culla Kalinga Jataka, the king of Assaka accepted a challenge from King Kalinga of Dantapura. He defeated Kalinga. Later he married Kalinga’s daughter, and the two countries stayed on friendly terms.

2.2 Which king is in the Assaka Jataka?

The Assaka Jataka tells of King Assaka of Potali, in the kingdom of Kasi. Grief for his dead queen made him lie starving on her coffin. The Bodhisatta, an ascetic, helped him let her go. This king’s realm lay in Kasi. So he may not belong to the Godavari kingdom.

2.3 Which king lived soon after the Buddha?

Another source names a king of Assaka who ruled Potanagara soon after the Buddha’s death. He was the father of Sujata and had two wives. He left his kingdom to the son of the younger wife.

2.4 Did anyone from outside attack Assaka?

The Hathigumpha inscription of Kharavela says he sent a large army west, to strike terror into Assaka. The inscription calls the place Asika nagara. One scholar thinks it is the same as this Assaka. The Dictionary of Pali Proper Names does not treat this as settled.

3.1 Was it always in the south?

In the Anguttara list, Assaka sits between Surasena and Avanti. The Dictionary of Pali Proper Names reads this as a hint. Assaka may once have lain north-west of Avanti. The Godavari settlement may then be a later colony. This is only a suggestion.

3.2 What ended the Mahajanapadas?

About the middle of the fourth century BCE, Mahapadma Nanda founded the Nanda line. INFLIBNET credits him with the final overthrow of the royal houses of the time. The list includes the Asmakas, Kurus, Surasenas and Kalingas. So Assaka’s story ends inside Magadha’s rise.

3.3 How far did Magadha reach?

INFLIBNET says several parts of the Deccan also formed part of the Magadhan empire. The Nandas also held parts of Kalinga, as the Hathigumpha inscription shows. The Nanda kings built the first great empire of North India.

3.4 What should you remember?

• Assaka (Asmaka) is a Mahajanapada of the Anguttara list, placed on the Godavari.
• Capital: Potali, identified with Bodhan. Neighbour: Mulaka, with Paithan.
• Stories about King Assaka may belong to different places.
• Nanda times: Mahapadma Nanda is credited with ending the Asmaka royal house.