Talk:Chandragupta Maurya (ruled from 322–298 BCE) & Guru Cāṇakya:Rājendra Chola I (1014–1044 CE)
By Vishal Agarwal
After Raja Raja Chola I, his son Rajendra Chola I created the most powerful Hindu empire of his times. He is regarded as one of the greatest Hindu emperors. He built a powerful navy that defeated and occupied the entire island country of Sri Lanka and also parts of present-day Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia. His armies moved along the eastern coast of India and defeated the Buddhist king of West Bengal (India) and Bangladesh. He brought pitchers of the sacred water of the Ganga from the Pala kingdom and poured them into a temple tank in his kingdom.
Practically all the territory in various countries around the Bay of Bengal was either conquered by him or accepted him as their king. Therefore, it is sometimes said that the Bay of Bengal became the ‘Chola Lake’ under the rule of Rajendra Chola I.
Due to Chola domination, Tamil Hindu merchants came to dominate the ocean trade in that region. Rajendra Chola I constructed a new capital city and also repaired and constructed several new temples. He got many ponds and lakes dug for the benefit of farmers. One of these lakes was 16 miles long and 3 miles wide.
The Chola government ruled the country very efficiently. Villages could take their own decisions and their chiefs were elected. In other words, the government at the level of villages followed democracy. Detailed records on copper plates were kept, and several hundred thousands of these copper plates exist even today. Historians read these plates, and with their help, we have been able to understand a lot about the Chola Empire.