Republican Kambojas

There are several ancient literary and inscriptional references which testify that The Ancient Kambojas were a republican people. References in Sanskrit and Pali literature attest terms like e Gana, Samgha, Shreni and other similar bodies labeled as Puga, Vrata, Goshata etc. The Gana, Samgha and the Shrenis were the most important of these terms, originally meant multitude but in later times, they applied to republican type of polity.

Term Gana in Vedic texts

The Gana as corporate body had originated in Vedic times. Dr V. M. Apte refers to occurrence of Gana, Ganapati etc in Vedic literature which in later period were distinctly republican terms. In Rigveda, the leader of a Gana has The Title of Rajan. Gana of Vedic literature probably refer to oligarchy where power was vested in a council of elders, each member of which was entitled to call him a Rajan and had a right to elect chief of the State who was also called Raja. The members of Gana were treated as rulers and all carried a title of Raja. Dr R. S. Sharma opines that the Vedic Ganas were self acting armed organisations, every member of which bore arms and were the fore-runners of Ayudhajivi Samghas of Panini and Varta.shastr.opajivi Samghas of Kautiliya. The Vedic Gana was primarily a tribal republic.

Term Gana in Brahmanical literature

The Gana of Mahabharata refers to whole body politic or entire Political Community (i.e. the Parliament). The governing body was a distinct body inside the Gana.

Term Gana means Republic or Democracy

The classical terms for republic are Gana and Samgha. The older scholars like William Monier translated the word Gana as a tribe which was accepted by earlier scholars like Dr Fleet and Dr R. G. Bhandarkar who consequently called the Ganas of Malavas, Ksudrakas and Yaudheyas as 'tribal states'. But this translation has since then fallen into disuse. The later community of scholars has translated the Ganas in the meaning of 'republics' or 'democracies' .

Term Samgha of Grammarians, Arthashastra and Budhist texts

Panini refers to Samgha and applies it in the same sense as Gana.

Katyayana in his Vartika takes Samgha as a form of government where sovereignty vested in many as distinct from Ekaraja (monarchy) where it vested in one.

Kasika also uses the term Samgha in the sense of republic. Kautiliya applies term Samgha and Shreni to republican people.

Buddhist texts refer to religious Samghas as a perfect copy of political model, but more than the political Samgha, equality and universal brotherhood was the cornerstone of religious Samghas. On the other hand, in the political Samghas, the political power rested in the hands of the founder Kshatriya clans only. There were other castes in the political Samgha, but they did not share any political power, though they owed allegiance to the Janapada and its ruling Kshatriyas.

Terms Gana and Samgha: Synonymous with Republic

In ancient literature Gana and Samgha have been used as synonymous terms for republic.

Panini Evidence

Panini in his Ashtadhyayi, speaks of the political Samgha technically known as Gana but Yaudheyas in their coins refer to themselves as Gana .

Kasika Evidence

Kasika terms Ayudhajivi tribes like Kshudrakas, Malavas as Samgha. but their own coins and several inscriptions address them as a Gana

Malava.Gana.sya (of Malava Gana)
(Catalogue of coins in the Indian Museum pp 170-174).

Shri Malava-Gana.nate parshaste Krta.sangyake
(Epigraphia Indica, Vol IX, p 320).

. The above illustrations prove that ancient terms Gana and Samgha were identical in meaning and stood for a republic.

Kambojas as Republican People in Ancient Sources

Mahabharata evidence about Kamboja Ganas and Shrenis

Mahabharata refers to numerous Ganas (i.e. Samghas) of the Kambojas (Kambojana.n cha ye Ganah) fighting on the side of Kauravas.

narayanashcha gopalah Kambojana.n cha ye Ganah. ||39||
Karnena vijitah purva.n sangrame shura sammatah. ||
(MBH 7.91.39-40).
e.g: "..and numerousGanasof the Kambojas who are regarded as very brave and accomplished warriors in the battle-field (sangrame shura sammatah), and whom Karna had fought with and vanquished in former times...". (MBH 7.91.39-40).

.

Mahabharata also knows of "Shrenis" (or Corporations i.e. lesser Samghas). The Shreni also possessed political significance like the Gana as is shown by the expression Kshatriya-Shrenis i.e. Corporations of warriors found in Arthashastra for a class of Varta-shastr.opajivin Samghas of the Kamboja and Surashtra etc.. Like the Kamboja Ganas, the Mahabharata also refers to numerous Shrenis fighting on the side of Duryodhana.

Shrenayo bahusahasrah samshaptaka ganash cha ye ||
(MBH 8/5/40).

. Obviously, the Shrenis here, refer to the Kshatriya Shrenis of the Kambojas among others, fighting on Kauravas' behalf. These Gana and Shrenis at the time of Mahabharata Appear to have been fully evolved political corporate bodies or democratic republican institutions.

Characteristics of Epic Ganas

The Shantiparva section of the Mahabharata gives a detailed lecture on Ganas or republics and lists the essentials for Ganas to succeed politically and militarily. Time and again, the stress is on unity, confederacy, equality, descipline, mutual cooperation, mutual subordination, mutual-respect and high sense of justice. These characteristics are stated to be a vital ingredients of success for the Ganas, where as greed and jealousy are the main provoking causes leading to waste, decay and mutual destruction of them.

There are numerous verses in the Shantiparva section of Mahabharata which are notable for their heavy stress on UNITY or CONFEDERACY.

tatra danena bhidyante ganah sanghatavrittayah. ||12||
tasmatsanghatayogeshu prayateranganah sada. ||14||
artha hyevadhigamyante sanghatabalapaurushat. || 15||
tasmatsanghatamevahurganana.n sharanam mahat.||32||
(MBH 12/107/12, 14, 15, 32).

.

Epic Ganas are known to have formed confederations.. The success of the Ganas lied in their ''confederacy, since the confederated Ganas were invincible by prowess or cleverness or by temptations or by beauty.

na tu shauryena buddhya va rupadravyena va punah |
bhedachchaiva pramadachcha namyante ripubhirganah ||31||
(MBH 12.107.31).

. The confederated ganas can only be overturned by the enemy through the policy of division and subsidy. The successful Ganas have been noted as very wealthy, heroic, well-versed in the shastras (learning) and accomplished in the art of weaponry.

dravyavantashcha shurashcha shastragyah shastraparagah ||
(MBH 12.107.21).

.

When we examine the Kamboja Ganas in the light of above characteristics of successful Ganas, so heavily stressed upon in the Mahabharata, we find that all these salient characteristics of the successful Ganas, are beautifully reflected in the Kamboja Ganas also.

ye tvete rathino rajandrishyante ka~nchanadhvajah ||
ete durvarana nama Kamboja yadi te shrutah. || 43 ||
shurashcha kritavidyashcha dhanurvede cha nishthitah. ||
sa.nhatashcha bhrisha.n hyete anyonyasya hitaishinah || 44 ||
akshauhinyashcha sa.nrabdha dhartarashtrasya bharata.||
(MBH 7.112.43-44).

.

e.g: Drona Parva of Mahabharata thus speaks of the Kambojas: "Those other car-warriors with golden standards, O king, whom you see, and who, like the wild elephants are difficult of being resisted, they are called the Kambojas. They are 'brave', a 'learned people' and are 'firmly Devoted to the science of weapons'. 'Desiring one another's welfare', they are all 'highly united' and 'mutually cooperative'. They constitute a full Akshauhini of 'wrathful warriors' .

The above characteristics of the martial Ganas of the Kambojas plentifully establish the fact that the Kambojas of Mahabharata were a very well known republican people.

Besides Kambojan Ganas, Mahabharata also refer to the Ganas of Daserkas and the league of the Kukuras-Andhakas-Vrishinis.

Aitareya Brahamana evidence on Viraja (kingless) Kambojas

Aitareya Brahmana describes vairajya as a national constitution prevailing among the Udichyas or the nations of the north. Here, whole Janapada took the consecration of rulership which means it was a real democratic constitution. The geographical location is stated to be lying in the trans-Himalaya region

Etayan ca tuchenaitayan ta yajushaitabhischa vyahayitibir.vairajyaya etasyam Udichyam disi ye ke cha parena Himavantam Janapada Uttara-Kurrava Uttara-Madra iti Vairajyayaiva te bhishichyante Virat-ityenan-abhishiktan achakshata eta meva Devanam vihitimanu
(Aitareya Brahamana, VIII.14).
e.g: " Thereafter, the god Indra took consecration (abhisheka) from vishvadevas for vairajya type rulership in the northern quarter. Therefore, the Janapadas located in the north beyond the Himalaya, like the Uttara Kuru, Uttara Madra etc take the consecration for rulership and are therefore, known as viraja (kingless) (Aitareya Brahamana, VIII.14).

. The Uttara Kuru and Uttara Madra Janapadas from the north quarter are cited as an illustrative example of the Janapadas which observe the vairajya constitution . Since the Kambojas (especially the Parama Kambojas) were close neighbors to the Uttara Kurus as well as the Uttara Madras in the north division in trans-Himalayan territory, it can therefore, be fairly assumed that the same form of national constitution also prevailed amongst the northern trans-Himalayan Kamboja i.e. Parama Kamboja country.

Sumerian mythology and republican Kambojas

The Sumerian myth of Enmerker and the Lord of Aratta contains an old reference to Aratta people/country of the late Vedit period. The region is stated to be located beyond Zagros, towards eastern Iran and is stated to be the source of lapis lazuli. The Aratta people are first mentioned in Baudhayana Shrautasutra and Bhaudhayana Dharamasutra. They belong to north-west since they are bracketed with the Gandharas. Hence they are close neighbors of Gandharas. They are stated to be despised people. Scholars say that Aratta is a popular (prakrit) form of Vedic "A-rashtra" -- which means without government. This compares to Avestic "A-sara" -- also meaningwithout head/government--thus the Vedic Aratta probably alludes to A-rashtra i.e. kingless or republican people/territory. Geographically, this Vedic Aratta is located at the source of river Rasa in Pamir. The above text is based on Early Eastern Iran and the Atharvaveda..

The Sumerian Aratta refers to eastern Iran , more plausibly, northern parts of Afghanistan (Badakshan) which, since remote antiquity, has been the only known source of lapis lazuli. Investigators like Dr. Koenraad Elst, Col Cunningham, Dr R. K. Mookerji, Dr Buddha Parkash etc also regard Aratta as Prakritic form of VedicA-rashtraorArashtrakameaning kingless or stateless.. Badakshan, according to most noted scholarship, formed western parts of ancient Kamboja 1. It lied intrans-Himalaya(trans-Hindukush) region, which in Aitareya Brahmana is stated to be the land of the republican people like Uttara Kurus, Uttara Madras and Kambojas etc. Based on above scenario, the Sumerian/VedicArattacan fairly be taken to be a popular (prakrit) form ofVedic A-rashtraand therefore, it probably alludes to the kingless/republican Kambojas of the trans-Himalayan (parena himvantan'') region.

Puranic evidence on Kamboja Ganas

The reference to military Ganas or Corporations of the Kambojas and other tribes from the north-west also appears in numerous Puranic literature

HaihayaisTalajanghaishcha shakaih sardha.n dvijottamah || 03 ||
Yavanah Paradashchaiva Kambojah Pahlavastatha |
ete hyapi ganah.pancha haihayarthe parakraman.|| 04 ||
(Harivamsa 14.03-04).

. These five hordes (ganah-panca or panca-ganah) comprsing the Sakas, Kambojas, Yavanas, Pahlavas and Paradas etc were in fact, the Ayudhajivi corporations of these warlike tribes, organised into military bodies, like the "Ganas", "Shrenis", "Pugas" or "Vratas", and were apparently living by warfare or the profession of arms. These military hordes did not represent the entire mass of their tribes, but were only some military corporations coming from these borderland nations into India Either as invading hordes or else to offer their military services as Ayudhajivis to the Indo-Aryans who solicited them (Dr P. E. Pargiter).

Paninian Kambojas: a Republican people?

Panini includes the Kambojas among the fifteen most powerful Kshatriya monarchies flourishing during his times. But it appears that governing constitution of the Kambojas was republican (king consul) during Paninian era. Panini gives a rule for the derivative to denote the king of the Kambojas. The rule for Kambojas is different from the rest of fourteen Kshatriya monarchies in the list (sutra IV.1.168-75). On the surface, this would indicate that Panini is referring to a monarchy, but the special rule and exceptional form the derivation raises doubt as to whether the raja of the Kambojas was a king or a consul.. The Paninian Kambojas probably formed raja.shabd.opajivin type Samghas, a constitutional term which appears in Kautiliya's Arthashastra later in fourth century BCE. The applellation 'Raja' in case of Paninian Kambojas, to all probability, was used for the army Chiefs/Generals of the Confederation of the Kambojas. Moreover, the Ashvayana and the Asvhakayana sections of the Kambojas are also often considered as martial republics by the scholars. Therefore, it is fair to conclude that the Paninian Kambojas had probably followed the raja.shad.opajivin (king consul) republican constitution which later transmutated into Varta-Shastr-opajivinah (nation-in-arms) republics.

Kamboja Samghas/Shrenis in Kautiliya's Arthashastra

Panini's raja-shad.opajivinah Kambojas switched to varta-shastr.opajivinah type constitution before the times of Kautiliya, at which time it certainly did not admit of even a titular king. Book XI of Kautiliya's Arthashastra attests the Samghas of the Kambojas, Surashtras, Lichchavis, Vrijis, Kurus, Madras, Panchalas etc. It attests the Kambojas and Surashtras as varta.shastra.upajivinah and states that, besides warfare, the Kambojas and Surashtras also practiced agriculture, trade and cattle-culture

Kamboja.surastra.kshatriya.shreny.adayo varta.shastra.upajivinah ||
Licchivika. Vrjika. Mallaka. Madraka. Kukura. Kuru. Panchala.adayo raja.shabda.upajivinah ||
(Arthashasra 11.1.04-05).
e.g: ''"The Corporations of warriors (Kshattriya. Sreni of) Kambhoja and Surashtra, and other countries live by agriculture, trade and wielding weapons".
"The Corporations of Lichchhivika, Vrijika, Mallaka, Mudraka, Kukura, Kuru, Panchala and others live by the title of a Raja"(Kautiliya's Arthashastra, 1956, Dr R. Shamashastriy, p 407, book XI, Chap 1).

Interprettation:

Expression Shastr.opajivinah of Kautiliya implies living by 'wielding weapons or by warfare'.
Expression Varta.opajivin implies living by 'agriculture, trade and industry'. Thus the composite expression varta.shastr.opajivinah used by Kautiliya for the Kambojas and Surashtras signifies that, besides living by warfare (as Shastr.opajivis), the Kamboja and Surashtra republics were also living by agriculture, trade and industry (Varta.opajivis).

. The Raja.shabd.opajivini Samghas of the Arthashastra on the other hand, bore the title of raja or king. Since Kautiliya contrasts the Varta.shastr.opajivinah Samghas with the Raja.shabd.opajivinah Samghas, this implies that the former had no provision even for title of raja, and did not allow it. In other words, the Raja.shabd.opajivin Samghas observed a king-consul constitution and conversely, the Vata-shastr.opajivins Samghas did not have a king consul...i.e they were kingless or truly democratic nations. It is also notable that Kautiliya's Arthashastra attests the term Shreni or 'Kshatriya-Shrenis' i.e. 'Corporations of Kshatriyas/warriors' and applies this republican term to the Kamboja and Surashtra Samghas only. And Kautiliya further states that the Shrenis of the 'shastr-opajivis' (i.e the Kambojas and Surashtras etc) were the most heroic (shreni.pravira.purusanam) and best suited for military recruitment.

tesam alabhe bandhu.mitra.kulebhyah samaarjanam || 26 ||
utsaaha.hiinah shreni.praviira.purusanam
cora.gana.atavika.mleccha.jatinam para.apakarinam
gudha.purusanam ca yathaa.labbham upacayam kurvita || 27 ||
para.mishra.apratikaaram abaliyasam vaa paresu prayujita || 28 ||
(Arthashastra 7.14.26-28).

. Scholars have designated Varta-shastr.opajivin Samghas of Kautailiya by the terms like Martial nations or Nations-in-arms.. And the martial republics of Kautiliya's Arthashastra were headed by the Kambojas' .

Nation-in-Arms or Martial Republics: Characteristics

Military training was mendatory in these varta-shastr.opajivin or Nations-in-arms States, but after the training was over, the individual was free to adopt the profession of his choice. At the time of emergency, any numbers of army, depending upon situation could be summoned in a moment's notice. The whole citizenry was its army and thus was immeasurably superior to the hired levies of monarchies, or of the king-consul (Raja-shabd.opajivin) States of Kautiliya. Bravery was a point of ambition and honor amongst the citizens. And when these nations formed offensive or defensive league, they were regarded as virtually invincible. Each State was a nation-in-arms... martial and industrial, in the same breadth. The hand which wielded sword successfully was also accustomed to use scythe with equal facility. According to Buddhist documents and Arthashastra, they were agricultural and industrial. Hence, they were found rich and strong .

Confederated Ganas/Samghas: Virtually invincible

Mahabharata says it is almost impossible for an enemy to crush the confedrated Ganas or republics.. Alliance with the Ganas was always eagerly courted by the outsiders and they (Ganas) took special delight in reducing their foes and saw to it their own prosperity.. Buddha himself gave his opinion to Chancelleor of Magadha that confederated Vajjis (a republican people) could not be conquered by Magadha king.Kautiliya's Arthashastra emphatically states that the confederated Samghas are virtually invincible.

samgha.laabho danda.mitra.laabhaanaam uttamah || 1 ||
samghaa hi samhatatvaad adhrsyaah paresaam || 2 ||
taan anugunaan bhujjiita saama.daanaabhyaam, vigunaan bheda.dandaabhyaam || 3 ||
(Arthashastra 11.1.01-03).
e.g: "The acquisition (conquest) of a Samgha is more desirable than an alliance of good will or military aid. Those (Samghas) which are united (in league) should be treated with the policy of subsidy and peace, for they are invincible. Those which are not united should be conquered by army and disunion(See: Hindu Polity, 1978, p 115, Dr K. P. Jayswal).

Araja. Vishaya (Kingless) Kambojas of the Maurya Empire

The democratic constitution of the Kambojas is further attested from Rock Edicts V and XIII of king Ashoka. The Kambojas find a prominent mention as a political unit in his Rock Edict XIII. This Rock Edict reveals that Kambojas had enjoyed autonomy under the Mauryas. The republics mentioned in Rock Edict V are Yonas, Kambojas, Gandharas, Nabhakas and the Nabhapamkitas. They are designated as araja.visaya in king Ashoka's edicts

Hidh.araja.visyavasi Yonekambojesu eti.....Rock Edict XIII.

i.e. here in the kingless territories among the Yonas, Kambojas..... . The term araja-vishaya stands for kingless or non-monarchical nations.. This shows that Kambojas of Ashoka's Rock Edicts had constituted self-governing nation within Maurya Empire .

Sinhala evidence on Kamboja republicanism

The Puga (Samgha) and Goshthe (Corporations) of the Kabojhiya (Sanskrit Kambojas) are referred to in ancient cave inscriptions of Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka which attest expression like Gota-Kabojhiyana (Sanskrit: goshthe) and Kabojhiya-mahapugiyana (Sanskrit: maha-pugiyanam i.e. grand Samgha) of the Kambojas. The inscriptions also make mention of their republican titles such as Gamika (Sanskrit: Gamini, Gramaneya), and Pramaka (Sanskrit: Parmuka) etc. The Samghas of Sinhalese Kambojas appear to have been organised on the pattern of their political Samghas in the north-west, where the Sinhalese Kambojas had migrated from. This evidence again supports the democratic character of the ancient Kamboja society.

Modern Kamboj: still theoretically democratic

There have traditionally been democratic entities in each Kamboj village. They were the assemblies of elders or wisemen unanimously accepted as a sort of parliament to resolve all intra-communal matters and disputes rather than letting them go to police stations or law courts. The system traditionally obtained among the Kamboj community till the partitioning of the Indian sub-continent into India and Pakistan in 1947. Thereafter, the old traditional assemblies of elders gave way to the Panchayats which are Democratically elected by the adult voting every five years. These Panchayats now usually take care of most of the community issues and matters. The Kamboj rarely let the intra-community disputes go out of community. It is often taken as disgrace. This is the heritage the Kambojs have inherited from their republican ancestors. All Kamboj adults enthusiatically participate in Panchayat elections which are always considered more important among the Kamboj people than the state or national elections.

See also

  • Kambojas
  • Uttara Kurus
  • Uttara Madras
  • Parama Kambojas

Books and Articles

  • Mahabharata, Tans: Kisari Mohan Ganguli
  • Kautiliya's Arthashasta, Trans: Dr Sham Shastri
  • India as Known to Panini, Dr V. S. Aggarwala
  • Hindu Polity, A Constitutional History of India in Hindu Times, 1978, Dr K. P. Jayswal
  • Ancient Kamboja, People and Country, 1981 Dr J. L. Kamboj
  • Indian Historical Quarterly, XIV,-2, 1938, Dr H. K. Deb
  • Janapadas States in Ancient India, 1973, S. Misra
  • Ancient India, 2000, Dr V. D. Mahajan
  • State and Government in Ancient India, 1977, Dr A. S. Altekar
  • Aspects of Political IDeaS & Institutuiions in Ancient India, R. S. Sharma
  • Corporate life in Ancient India, 1922, Dr R. C. Majumdar
  • Sovereignty in Ancient Indian Polity, H. N. Sinha
  • Republics, Kingdoms, Towns and Cities in Ancient India,2003, G.P. Singh
  • ECIT Democracy in Ancient India:2