Shishunaga Dynasty

Pradyota assent throne Avanti ending Brhadratha dynasty and starting Pradyota dynasty of Magadha. The Mahavamsa states that Ajatasattu Sun Udayabhadra succeeded Ajatasattu and ruled for the next sixteen years. He moved his capital to the bank of the Ganges, which was known as Pataliputra. The legacy was followed by Udayabhadra Sun Anuruddha Munda and his son in the same family tradition by killing his father. Munda Sun Nagadasaka killed his father and continued through the reigning dynasty parricides'. The citizens angry over rule Haryankas, rebelled against Nagadasaka and Shishunaga anointed as king.

The political process in India began with the semi-nomadic tribal units called Janas which coalesced in janapadas. The first Vedic kingdom mentioned in the Vedas is Videha, but its existence mostly fall under the category of the religious-legendary. During the 6th century BC, had janapadas formed larger political entities, possibly through a process, not unlike the Greek synoecism the smaller settlements to the city combined with their hinterlands (mahajanapadas). Among the mahajanapadas five cities have taken on particular importance: Rajagriha or Rajgir in Magadha (modern Bihar), Varanasi (formerly Benares) in Kasi, Kausambi in Vatsa, Sravasti in Kosala, and Champa in Anga. All these states were in the Gangetic Plain in northern India. Other major centers were in Avanti Ujjain and Taxila in Gandhara (now part of Pakistan).

Magadha was featured in both the Ramayana and Mahabharata. The four strongest states - Kasi, Kosala, Magadha and Vrjji - was all along the Ganges River. Of these four, Magadha had several advantages that would help it to victory in the battle for supremacy. It has risen to power in the reign Bimbisara (544 to 491 BC) and his son Ajatashatru (491 to 460 BC). Bimbisara if the city Rajagriha (modern Rajgir, near Gaya, Bihar) controlled in the vicinity of the iron mines. Bimbisara established dynastic links through intermarriage with the nobility of the neighboring countries Kosala and Vrijji, and easily dominated the field Vanga southeast. However, he was murdered by his son Ajatashatru in 493 BC, established a fort at Pataliputra (Patna) as Ganga and near her confluence with Gandaki, Sona, and Ganghara Rivers. Ajatashatru also was assassinated (461 BC), his impatient heir, and hence the next five generations.

Magadha expanded to include most of Bihar and much of Bengal with the conquest of Anga, and then expanded up the Ganges valley annexing Kosala and Kashi. Magadha formed one of the sixteen known Mahajanapadas. The Magadha empire included the republican community like Rajakumara. Villages had their own assemblies under their local leaders called Gramakas. Their administrations were divided into executive, judicial and military functions. Bimbisara was friendly to both Jihad and Buddhism and suspended tolls at the river ferries for all ascetics after the Buddha was once stopped at the Ganges River for lack of money.

Magadha was fighting with all its neighbors, and used its superior arms (such terrible Rathamushala, an armored car with solid iron blades for mowing down opposing forces) to great effect. After the death of Udayan fell kingdom Magadh quickly and was replaced by the Shishunaga dynasty that took over in 413 BC. However revealed Shishunaga dynasty not last more than 50 years, and Nanda dynasty took over.