Origins & Early Life

Bindusara (r. c. 297 – c. 273 BCE) was the second Mauryan emperor of Magadha in ancient India.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

The ancient Greco-Roman writers called him Amitrochates, a name likely derived from his Sanskrit title Amitraghāta ("slayer of enemies"). Bindusara was the son of the dynasty's founder Chandragupta and the father of its most famous ruler Ashoka. His life is not documented as well as the lives of these two emperors. Much of the information about him comes from legendary accounts written several hundred years after his death. Bindusara consolidated the empire created by his father.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

The 16th century Tibetan Buddhist author Taranatha credits his administration with extensive territorial conquests in southern India, but some historians doubt the historical authenticity of this claim. Ancient and medieval sources have not documented Bindusara's life in detail. Much of the information about him comes from Jain legends focused on Chandragupta and the Buddhist legends focused on Ashoka. The Jain legends, such as Hemachandra's Parishishta-Parvan were written more than a thousand years after his death. Most of the Buddhist legends about Ashoka's early life also appear to have been composed...

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

• Menaechmus — Contemporary (Died in -320) (-320): Ancient Greek mathematician credited with discovering conic sections and solving the problem of doubling the cube.
• Aristotle — Contemporary figure (Died in -322) (-322): Founding father of the Peripatetic school, whose works spanned science and philosophy.
• Demosthenes — Contemporary figure (Died in -322) (-322): Master orator of ancient Athens, whose speeches shaped 4th-century Greek politics.
• Pyrrhus of Epirus — Contemporary figure (Born in -318) (-318): Hellenistic King of Epirus, famed general who fought Rome and coined the term 'Pyrrhic victory'.
• Yang Zhu — Contemporary figure (Died in -318) (-318): Founder of Yangist philosophy, an early ethical egoist during China's Warring States period.
• Alexander the Great — Contemporary figure (Died in -323) (-323): Founder of one of history's largest empires, military genius of Macedon.
• Diogenes — Contemporary figure (Died in -323) (-323): Founder of Cynicism, Diogenes advocated a radical return to nature and self-sufficiency.
• Eumenes — Contemporary figure (Died in -316) (-316): A prominent Greek general and loyalist to the Argead dynasty after Alexander's death.
• Olympias — Contemporary figure (Died in -316) (-316): Influential ancient Greek princess, mother of Alexander the Great and de facto leader of Macedon.
• Gongsun Long — Contemporary figure (Born in -325) (-325): A pivotal Logician of the Warring States period, known for profound paradoxes.
• -320 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from -320
• -273 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from -273