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Not really. The rival Indic traditions were quick to note slip-ups and wrongdoings by their rivals. For example, the rivalry between the Vaishnavite & Shaivite
by valarauko 6y ago
Not really. The rival Indic traditions were quick to note slip-ups and wrongdoings by their rivals. For example, the rivalry between the Vaishnavite & Shaivite traditions in South India is well documented. Rival temples and structures would be repurposed frequently, but you do not see the type of desecration mentioned in the earlier comment. Yet you also do have records of the expulsion and genocide of 5000 Jains from the city of Madurai by the Shaivites. The targetting of Buddhist structures and the Bo Tree by Shashanka is well documented by multiple sources. The targeting & execution of the Ajivikas by the young Ashoka is also suggested by multiple sources.
At the same time, these sort of atrocities were very much the exception, not the rule in the long history of Ancient India. I can only speculate that the eclectic nature of the population at large prevented any one group from gaining the upper hand for very long, tempering the ability to target vulnerable groups. Even most dynasties had the preferred religious tradition shifting across generations.