 |  |
| Chandragupta | 322–297 BCE |
| Bindusara | 297–273 BCE |
| Ashoka the Great | 273/268–232 BCE |
Chandragupta Maurya[d] (reigned c. 320 BCE[e] – c. 298 BCE)[f] was the founder and the first emperor of the Maurya Empire, based in Magadha (present-day Bihar) in the Indian subcontinent.
Chandragupta's reign, and the Maurya Empire, which reached its peak under his grandson Ashoka the Great,[n] began an era of economic prosperity, reforms, infrastructure expansions. Buddhism, Jainism and Ājīvika prevailed over the non-Maghadian Vedic and Brahmanistic traditions,[16] initiating, under Ashoka, the expansion of Buddhism, and the synthesis of Brahmanic and non-Brahmanic religious traditions which converged in Hinduism. His legend still inspires visions of an undivided Indian nation.
Brahmanical narratives include legends in Vishakhadatta's Mudrarakshasa (4th–8th cent), Somadeva's Kathasaritsagara (11th cent.) and Kshemendra's Brihatkathamanjari (11th ). Mookerji includes the Arthasastra as a source, a text now dated to the 1st–3rd century CE, and attributed to Chanakya during Gupta-times