Inspiration for the Imps storyline

http://theconversation.com/robots-guarded-buddhas-relics-in-a-legend-of-ancient-india-110078

The ancient world had a pretty good understanding of automatons and how they would work. Their robots were mechanically powered and operated, but still there wasn't a limit on imagination on what they might be able to do. It's said that Vishwakarma made a few, and was interested in reverse-engineering a couple etcetera.

Here's a few questions for consideration while writing:

Why would they have machines when people were so cheap and disposable? Kings could surely afford guards for all eternity, or thought they could. They must have realized the temporariness of human life and human empires, and conjured up automata as something that far transcendent human lifetimes and civilization. A guardian guaranteed until eternity.

In an era and region where the humanity of all humans was/is not fully acknowledged, what could have been the attitude towards their subservience and sentience? Were there ever thoughts around a robo-llion? This is not as ridiculous as it may appear since slave rebellions must surely have been not uncommon. Perhaps the point of those machines was to get something that was beyond complaining and rebelling. Something similar to what our modern corporations are attempting with automation.

The builders/thinkers must have realized those with good robots would have great power and influence. And that taking care of them would require much manpower and resource. How did they plan to deal with that? They realised both, and their solution was to keep such knowledge safe and secure so power could be reserved. Any operator or maintainer would be less of an engineer and more of a mechanic, with very compartmentalized knowledge. The intention was to avoid democratising technology and as a result power. The story in the link is an example of a rebellion against such attitude, a Prometheus against the gods narrative where the protagonist steals automaton technology from the Greeks at the cost of his life.

How should my story handle that? In the exact opposite way. With imps trying to disseminate the arcane knowledge but failing to teach it to anyone for various reasons.