Question

Which dynasty was ruling Magadha at the time of Alexander the Great’s invasion?
A. The Nanda dynasty
B. The Maurya dynasty
C. The Sunga dynasty
D. The Kanva dynasty

Answer 1

Hint: 327 to 325 BC is when Alexander of Macedonia came to India. He fought Porus after crossing the river Indus and advancing to Taxila.

Complete answer: A ruler of the Argead dynasty, he lived till the age of 33 and passed away in Babylon. Let us go through the options-
Option A. Their territory spanned India, Bangladesh and Nepal. They ruled during the Iron Age (4th-5th century). They came into power after defeating the Shaishunga dynasty in the Magadha region. Their king’s prowess scared Alexander’s soldiers into not fighting the ruler of Prasii and Gangaridai. So while overlap occurs, this is a wrong option.
Option B. This is the correct answer. It was established in 322 BCE by Chandragupta Maurya. He strengthened his army with the help of Chanakya, a famous political thinker known for writing the Arthashsastra and overthrew the Nandas, option A.
Option C. They ruled from 185 BCE to 75 BCE and was established after the fall of the Mauryan Empire. This is not the right option. Their primary religions were Buddhism and Hinduism and languages were Prakrit and Sanskrit. Pataliputra (adjacent to present-day Patna in Bihar) was the capital.
Option D. Their kingdom stretched over eastern and central India. They overthrew the Shunga dynasty and ruled from 75 BCE to 30 BCE. This, due to an incorrect timeline is not the answer.
Therefore, option B is correct.

Note: Even though the Indians use elephants, something the foreigners did not even know existed, we still lost. So despite Porus’ victory in the fords of the Punjab rivers, he was betrayed as rival kings joined forces with Alexander.