In ancient India, republics were those states in which no dynasty was a traditional king. In these states, the entire power of the state was vested in the hands of the people. Kautilya has written in the Arthashastra that, in the republics, every person considered himself a king. Not all were equal. Eligible representatives and persons were elected to run the government and government. According to Buddhist literature, in the 6th century BC, the following were the republics of the then India.
1. Shakya Republic of Kapilvastu
This kingdom was in the foothills of the Himalayas on the border of Nepal. The Shakya people here were Ikshvanku or Suryavanshi Kshatriya. Their capital was Kapilvastu. There were 80,000 families of Shakyas in this republic. This republic was very progressive.
Mahatma Buddha was born in this republic. The life of the Sakyas was very pious and virtuous. He had a special interest in learning and art. He had great respect for women. To maintain the purity of his lineage and blood, he used to marry only in the caste family. Therefore he married one of his Shakya daughters to Kaushal King Prasenjit. To manage the administration of the Shakyas, there was a consultative council whose number of members was 500.
2. Kolia Republic of Ramgram
This state was in the east of the Shakya kingdom. The Rohini salt river flowed between the Koliya and Shakya republics. Its waters were used by both the states for irrigation.
3. Malla Republic of Kushinara
The Malla republic was in the Gorakhpur district of modern Uttar Pradesh. The Mallas were famous for their learning, art and war-loving. The Mallas had made special progress in philosophy. Ukhelkapp, a town in their kingdom, was famous for their philosophical discussions. Buddha He died in Kushinara.
4. Malla Republic of Pav
In the south part of Gorakhpur district was Pavapuri. Here the second branch of the Mallas had established their republic. Vardhamana Mahavir had died in Pava.
5. Kalam Republic of Keshapatta
It was a small ancient republic. It is mentioned in the Shathapatha Brahmana texts and Jataka texts. Alar Kalam, the famous guru of Gautam Buddha, belonged to this republic.
6. Bhagga Republic of Sumsugiri
This state was in eastern Uttar Pradesh. It included Mirzapur and its surrounding area. This was also an ancient state and it is mentioned in the Aitareya Brahmin text.
7. Videha Republic of Mithila
This state was in Bihar. Its capital was the city of Mithila, which was a famous center of trade and culture.
8. Moriya Republic of Pippalivan
This republic was a branch of the Shakya republic. Some of the Shakyas moved to the mountainous region of the Himalayas and there they established a city named Pippalivan. This city was dominated by peacocks, hence they came to be called Mauryas or Mauryas. Chandragupta Maurya belonged to Pippalivan. was.
9. Licchavi Republic of Vaishali
It was in northern Bihar. Lichchhavis were Kshatriyas of the Ikshvaku dynasty. He was famous for his simple, simple and pious life. His republic was wide and powerful. Vaishali, which was a big famous, great, sprawling city, was the capital of the Lichchhavis.
According to Valmiki's Ramayana, the city of Vaishali was established by Vishal, the son of Ikshvaku. The town of Basad in present-day Muzaffarpur district, which is situated on the banks of river Gandak, is the remains of ancient Vaishali.
This huge city was famous for royal palaces, public buildings, Chetyas, Vihars, huge Nagarkotas, lion gates etc.
At that time, great warriors, religious leaders, ascetics, giants, scholars lived in Vaishali, in which great men like Mahali, Mahanaam, Singh Senapati, Bhaddekar and Sachak were there.
The Buddha would come and stay in a two-storeyed "Kotagar" school in an ashram named Shalvan in Vaishali. The Lichchavi people were war-loving and brave fighters. Their rule was democratic. There was a Rajya Sabha of their representatives which used to run the government.
The Lichchhavis had the qualities of nationalism, unity, tolerance, harmony, respect etc. His republic was famous for its prosperity, prosperity, opulence, strong power and strength.
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