The anthologies of Tamil poetry contain among other things descriptive narrations of events, both actual and imagined, in the context of early tribal society in south India. Conflicts among the kingdoms were perpetual, because each had two objectives-to control the fertile deltas, the only regions where agriculture was possible on a large scale, and to have access to the important trading stations along the coasts which were lucrative sources of revenue, since many of them traded with the Yavanas, the peoples of western Asia.
The fragmentation of the subcontinent which took place during this period may have been politically emasculating, but it was at this time that a new and vital interest came to be introduced into economic development. It was the age when India discovered the potential wealth inherent in trade.
Despite the many political frontiers, internal trade increased very considerably. The woollen blankets of Gandhara and the linen of Bengal were familiar to all parts of the country, as were the precious stones from south India.
But even more relevant to the economic prosperity of India was the overseas trade. Indian traders ventured out in all directions: to Central Asia and China, to western Asia, and in South-East Asia as far as the kingdom of Funan in modern Vietnam.
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Indian merchants became the middlemen in the commerce between South-East Asia and the Mediterranean-. They were the entrepreneurs in the trade supplying the needs and luxuries- of the Graeco-Roman world, a topic which is dealt with elsewhere in this book.
This increase in trade resulted quite naturally in the greater prosperity of the guilds. Guilds became not only the basis for the production and distribution of merchandise but also the financial centres of trade. The Satavahana rulers, for instance, often gave to religious charities donations which came from money invested with guilds.
The intensification of the guild system influenced sub-caste relations within caste society, for each guild tended to become a sub-caste drawing on its own resources for manpower. Thus even in urban areas the economic basis of the organization of caste society became firmer.
With the accumulation of wealth in the hands of guilds and merchants, patronage of learning and the arts was no longer limited to royalty. Not surprisingly, some of the most magnificent Buddhist monuments are of this period and many of them owe their existence to the donations of wealthy guilds and merchants. The stupas at SanchI, Bharhut, and AmaravatI stand witness to this.