What causes a civilization to become powerful

Stable food supply, Social structure,

System of government, Advances in technology and etc.

an abundance and stable supply of the 6 technologies that make a civilization government, religion, social structure, writing, art, and technology

on top of that you would need to rule with enough fear, but not too much, powerful military, rich natural resource, trade network and connections, and a stable supply of food and water

as you can see you need a lot of things to be a great and powerful civilization which only a few are, and none of the ancient civilizations still exist mainly because of this.