The development of cities in any civilisation is a symbol of progress and advancement. When new kingdoms sprung up in ancient India, the capital cities of the states became the centre of political, social and cultural activities.

Some important and socially active cities in ancient India were Patliputra, Taxila, Peshawar and Mathura. When Harshavardhana became the king, he made Kannauj the capital, which assumed more importance compared to other cities. However, rise and fall is a regular phenomenon in history and so cities that were important at one stage, lost their prominence with the passage of time and other cities took their place.

As cities were inhabited by a large population, special care was taken to administer them. Rulers and nobles built their palaces for residence and temples to worship and also patronised artisans to work for them. However, there were

underprivileged people in every city who lived in poverty and misery. They had separate residential areas and were treated badly by the ruling class.

Forest life

Ban Bhatt, a Brahman scholar, wrote about the forests of ancient India, where tribes survived by hunting animals and collecting fruits, herbs, roots of plants, honey and other forest food. Ban Bhatt also painted a picture, depicting a tribal leader having hair like a bush, holding a sword whose handle was made of the horn of some animal.

Peasants

Majority of the population in ancient India consisted of peasants who lived in villages. A Chinese traveller who observed their life reported that the peasants cultivated wheat and vegetables. Milk and butter were important parts of their food. They used to hunt deer whose meat was their favourite dish. Fish was also eaten by them as it was easily available.

The land for cultivation was owned by the king and nobles; and peasants worked as their servants. Peasants lived a miserable life as the major part of the crops was taken away by the landlords.

Common people and war

It is an irony that wars take place between rulers but it is the common men who always have to face the destructive consequences afterwards. Similarly in the ancient Indian civilisation, when an army moved from one place to another, elephants, horses, chariots and foot soldiers ruined the crops and plundered poor peasants by taking away their cattle.

Ban Bhatt wrote in detail about the misery of poor peasants and their sufferings whenever a war took place or an army passed through their villages.

According to Ban Bhatt, the army was like an unorganised crowd. It carried goats, chickens, deer and rabbits and lots of vegetables for consumption. Musicians and singers were also there to entertain the soldiers. It was the responsibility of villagers to provide the soldiers with whatever they needed. Villagers brought milk, yoghurt and sugar for soldiers and also provided fodder to the war animals. Peasants used to lose everything after a war and they had to rebuilt their lives again as whatever they had earned before the war, was looted by the army.