The central region is now known as Bihar was called Magadha in ancient days. Its capital Patna, then called Pataliputra, was the capital of the Mauryan Empire which ruled over much of the Indian Subcontinent and extended as far as Iran and Afghanistan to the West. Just north of Magadha across the river Ganges is the Vaishali region. To the north east of vaishali is Mithila, the kingdom of the legendary king Janak. Sitamarhi in Mithila is said to be the birth place of King Ram’s Queen Sita. Bihar is important as the centre of Indian culture and education outlived its importance as the center of Power by another five hundred years. Out of the three ancient universities of India, tow Nalanda and Vikramshila Universities were located in Bihar.
Buddha
Bihar is also the birthplace of many religions including Buddhism and Jainism.The word “Bihar“, its origin in the Sanskrit word “Vihara”, meaning Buddhist Monasteries. The Buddha started Enlightenment at Bodh Gaya, now a town located in the modern district of Gaya. Buddha started spreading his teaching after attaining the Enlightenment at Bodh Gaya.
Muhammad Bin Bakhtiar Khilji, a General of Muhammad Ghori captured Bihar in 12 century and destroyed the ancient seats of learning of this region. During the medieval period, Bihar saw a brief period of glory for about six years during the rule of Sher Shah Suri, who hailed from Sasaram.
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