Impact on administration – there are many similarities between the Persian administration and the administration of the Indian states.
a. Both Indians and Aryans belonged to the same race and
this racial affinity could well have produced certain similarities.
b. There were trade relations even before the political
contacts; and the commercial contact could have resulted in borrowing some of
the features of the Persian administration by the Indian.
c. The similarities might be due to sheer coincidence.
Nevertheless it is quite probable that at least some of the similarities were
the result of Persian Invasion of India.
In Persia the Emperor was all powerful, but this was in
theory. In practice he consulted his nobles in administrative matters and his
judges in legal matters. The same was the case with the great emperors of
India. In theory their word was law. In practice they consulted their nobles
and the brahmins.
The Persians established a mighty empire. We find that in
India also there arose the concept of ‘Universal’ sovereignty. This Universal
monarchy seems to gain ground after the Persian Invasions, and it gains further
ground after Alexander’s invasion.
The Persian Empire embraced numerous civilizations and
cultures and religions. The Persians not only tolerated these but encouraged
them. We find the same tendency in India when large Empires arose. There was
seldom any religious intolerance in ancient India. Hindu emperors like Guptas
encouraged Buddhists. Buddhist emperors like Ashoka patronized Brahmins. Moreover,
the Indian emperors seldom tried to force their own laws, customs, manners,
etc., on the conquered people. They realized that what was good in the land of
the conqueror might not be suitable in the land of the conquered.
The Persians realized that previous empires had decayed
because the race that built up the empire lost its vigor and took to vice,
luxury and corruption. To prevent this, they inculcated in their youth a love
for certain virtues like honesty, fairness, respect for women, etc. They also
taught their youth to lead hardy lives, and encouraged them to ride hard, to
hunt, etc. We find that in India, the education of princes was also undertaken
on similar lines.
The backbone of the Persian empire was the Persian
aristocracy, trained from youth to man the military and civil services, so that
the emperors did not have to depend on mercenaries. In India also the Brahmin
and Kshatriya aristocracy supplied the Emperor with his requirements of civil
and military officials.
There were many features in the administration in India
which were probably copied from Persia: the system of espionage, the system of
communication by building trunk roads, etc.
The Indian term ‘Kshatrappaa’ meaning ‘governor’ or ‘vassal
prince’ is derived from the Persian term ‘Satrap’.
Until long after the Persian invasions, the Indians used
Persian officials. Chandragupta Maurya engaged Persians in his excellent system
of administration. The Girnar Rock inscription refers to Tushaspa, a Persian,
as being governor of Kathiawar. Probably these officials introduced the Persian
court ceremonies in Indian courts. The tradition of engaging Persian officials
was continued until Mughal times.
Impact on script: The official language of the Persian
Empire as Aramaic. It became the language of commercial intercourse. It became
the ‘Lingua franca’ of a large part of the civilized world. Long after the fall
of the Persian Empire, Aramaic continued to be used. This form of writing came
to India and thus was developed the Kharoshti Script, written from left to
right. Tablets on which this script have been inscribed have been found in India.
Kharosti was one of the principal scripts of Bactria, Afghanistan, Punjab and Sind
for several centuries. The Bactrian coins often have legends in Greek on the
obverse and in Kharosti on the reverse. These are the coins of the Bactrian
Greek invaders of India, who came to India after the fall of the Mauryan
Empire.
Impact on Art: It is generally accepted that Persian Art
influenced Mauryan Art. The Ashokan Pillars were to some extent inspired and
influenced by the Persian pillars, although the Ashokan pillar is not a carbon
copy of the Persian pillar. The capital of the Ashokan pillar has an inverted
lotus, which resembles the Persian bell-shaped capital. The capitals of both
Persian and Ashokan Pillars generally have animal sculptures which show a
remarkable degree of artistic excellence.
Thus we see that the Persian contact did influence Indian
culture.
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