India's God Krishna Was the King of Jerusalem!

By Gene D. Matlock
What a strange world in which we live! The Catholic Church has always known that
Christianity did not begin with Jesus Christ, but yet it tries to make us think it did.
St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430 AD) wrote: "This, in our day, is the Christian
religion, not as having been unknown in former times, but as having recently
received that name."
Eusebius of Caesarea (circa 283-371 AD) said: "The religion of Jesus Christ is
neither new nor strange."
In Anacalypsis, The 17th century British orientalist and iconoclast, Godfrey Higgins,
insisted that Christianity was already firmly in place in both the West and the East,
many centuries before Jesus Christ was born. He said, The Crestians or Christians
of the West probably descended directly from the Buddhists, rather than from the
Brahmins. (Vol. 2, pp 438, 439.)
The existence of the Christians both in Europe and India, (existed) long anterior to
the Christian era... (Vol 2, p. 202.) I think the most blind and credulous of devotees
must allow that we have the existence of the Cristna of the Brahmins in Thrace,
many hundred years before the Christian era-the birth of Jesus Christ. (Book X, p.
593.)
"Melito (a Christian bishop of Sardis) in the year 170, claims the patronage of the
emperor, for the now so-called Christian religion, which he calls "our philosophy,"
on account of its high antiquity, has having been imported from countries lying
beyond the limits of the Roman empire, in the region of his ancestor Augustus, who
found the importation ominous of good fortune to his government." This is an
absolute demonstration that Christianity did not originate in Judea, which was a
Roman province, but really was an exotic oriental fable, imported from India, and
that Paul was doing as he claimed, viz: preaching a God manifest in the flesh who
had been "believed in the world" centuries before his time, and a doctrine which
had already been preached "unto every creature under heaven." (Bible Myths and
Their Parallels in Other Religions; T. W. Doane, p. 409.)
Religious historians have for hundreds of years struggled to find out how and why
the stories about Jesus and Krishna, who were born 2,000 years apart, are so
nearly identical.
Both Christ and Krishna descended from Noah.
The future births of both messiahs were predicted ahead of time.
Christ was descended from Abraham
Krishna was the father of Abraham (Brahma).
Christ was at once a Koresh, a Hebrew, and a Yehudi.
Krishna was at once a Kurus, an Abhira, and a Yadava.
Christ was an incarnation of Yah-Veh.
Krishna was at once an incarnation of Vishnu and Shiva.
Christ's first name, Jesus, was Yeshua.
A title of Krishna, meaning "love; devotion," was Yesu. Even today, many
Hindu parents name their sons, Yesu Krishna.
Both men were born of virgins and in a stable.
Krishna's mother was named Devaki.
Jesus mother was called Mary.
Krishna did not have an earthly father as such, but a protector, named
Vasudeva.
Jesus did not have an earthly father as such, but a mortal protector named
Joseph.
An evil king tried to kill Christ and Krishna when they were both infants.
To protect the infant Jesus, Joseph and Mary took him to Maturai, Egypt.
To protect the infant Krishna, his parents, Vasudeva and Devaki, took him to
Mathura, India.
It was predicted that both men would die to atone for the sins of their
people.
As you have probably noticed, they took refuge in places having almost
identical names.
Both men preached to their people.
Christ was crucified and then resurrected. Krishna was killed by a hunter's
arrow and impaled on a tree. Later, he returned to life.
Christ was crucified in Jerusalem.
Some Hindu scholars think that Krishna died in Jerusalem, having gone there
when his coastal city of Dwarka sank under the sea. Others say he went to
Iraq.
Christ appeared after his "death." Krishna appeared after his "death."
Both of them have a major holiday dedicated to them on December 25th.
Christ had a female admirer named Mary Magdalene. Krishna had a female
admirer named Marya Maghadalena.
Fanatically sectarian Christians and Hindus alike militantly reject the idea that the
stories of these two deities are related. The Christians accuse the Hindus of blurring
their identities on purpose. Some even claim that the Devil himself is the
culprit.The Hindus reciprocate accordingly. Unfortunately, neither side can prove or
disprove anything. In this article, I will attempt to clear up this mystery once and
for all.
The Hindu Equivalent of our Old Testament Story of Abraham.
The story begins with our Abraham or Brahma as the Hindus called him. His father
was Lord Krishna; his brother was Mahesh a.k.a Maheshvara who would be our
Moses (Heb: Moshe).
The Hindu triad consists of the Gods Brahma, the equivalent of our God, and Gods
Shiva and Vishnu. Actually Shiva and Vishnu are one and the same deities.
Together, they are Brahma (God). Today, in India, there are only two temples
dedicated to God Brahma because the Hindus say mankind is not yet ready to
worship such a lofty concept.
Hindu Proof That Jesus Is the Son of God!
The Bible tells us that Jesus was both Shiva and Vishnu, for Jesus' biblical names
are Isa/Isha(Shiva), Yeshua (Skt. Yishvara, pronounced in Sanskrit as Yeshwara),
Kristos, and Yesu, another name of Krishna . Even in India, Lord Krishna was and
still is called Yesu Krishna and Kristna. These names prove to us that Jesus was
both Shiva and Vishnu, thus making Jesus the begotten son of the Unbegotten-
Brahma.

Picture of Christ.
The preceding information shows us that the Hindus are as Christian as the
Christians are. Morever, the Hindus can prove that Jesus was the son of God, but
we have to accept this as a matter of faith only. Even so, there is no lack of
Christian sects wanting the Hindus to "convert" to their way of thinking although we
must credit the Hindus with the honor of proving to us that Jesus is the son of God.
But the Hindus don't need to convert to the spiritual knowledge they bequeathed to
us. They were "converted" thousands of years before our Jesus was born. I say,
leave them be.
Since Krishna was not born of man, he was not actually the earthly father of
Brahma and Mahesh. Therefore, he himself was the protector (Tara) of Brahma. In
Sanskrit, Tara means "savior; protector." It is a term generally used with the gods
Rudra, Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma. Even our Old Testament says that the father
(protector) of Abraham was Terah(Genesis 11:26.) The Bible tells us that Abraham
and Sarah were half-siblings. (Genesis12:19-20.). The Hindu holy books also tell us
that a blood relationship existed between them. The Puranas relate Sarasvati to
Brahma and Vishnu. Most frequently, she is associated with Brahma. Her
connection with him dates earlier than to any other God. She is portrayed mostly as
his wife and occasionally as his daughter. When Vishnu's popularity in India
increased, myths relating Saraswati to him appeared. (Ref: Sarasvati and the Gods;
www.vishvarupa.com.) Therefore, Brahma or Vishnu would also have been the Tara
(Terah) of Sarasvati because of her divine origins.

Brahm (Abraham)

Sarasvati (Sarah)
Abraham or Brahma's home was the land of Haran (Genesis 1:4.) Haran was the
coastal principality governed by Krishna. It was even named after him because
Hara (Sun God) is another name of Krishna. Brahma/Abraham was 75 years old
when he left Haran.
Just as Christ was crucified on a cross and then returned to life, Krishna, also
known as Haran, was crucified on a tree and then returned to life. This fact appears
to cause some confusion in The Bible. (Read Genesis 11:26-31).
There is also another "Haran" in India-today's state of Haryana. It is the region
where Abraham decided to stop making idols and worship only one God.
Brahmavarta, a region in Northeastern Haryana, is said to be the place where
mankind was first created. (Varta=Dwelling.) Brahmavarta was the site of the
Kuruksetra War between the Kurus and Pandavas, in which Lord Krishna
distinguished himself. An ancient and holy river, now dried up, the Sarasvati, once
flowed through Brahmavarta. The Hakra (the biblical Haggar) was a tributary of the
Sarasvati. The relationships of these three geographical entities make sense. If
Brahma provided the channel or bed for the Sarasvati river, Brahmavarta could
easily have been the symbolical father or brother of Sarasvati. Hakra (Haggar),
being a tributary of Sarasvati, depended on Sarasvati . So what were Abraham,
Sarah, and Haggar? People, things, or places?

Map of India, showing Haryana

Map showing Brahmavarta
I have stated that the Bible mentions Haran and Haryana. The Hindu holy books
also say that Brahma/Abrahan lived in Ur of the Chaldees. Ur was a Sumerian name
for "town; city." Chaldee (pronounced Kaldee) derives from the Sanskrit Kaul, a
Brahman caste, and Deva (demi-god). The North Indian Kauldevas worshiped idols
representing their ancestors. According to the Hindus, Brahma married Sarasvati in
Chaldea, the part that is now Afghanistan.
Northern Afghanistan was called Uttara Kuru and was a great center of learning. An
Indian woman went there to study and received the title of Vak i.e. Saraisvati (Lady
Sarah). It is believed that Brahm, her teacher, was so impressed by her beauty,
education, and powerful intellect, that he married her. (The Hindu History, by
Ashkoy Kumar Mazumdar; p. 48, in passim.) Lord Krishna, the divine father
(Terah/Tra) of Brahma/Abraham, was the king of Haran, with the seaport of
Dwarka as its capital.
In about 1900 BC, hundreds of thousands of native Indians emptied Northern and
Central India and fled to the Middle East after Krishna's Dwarka sank under the
water.

Krishna gathered his family together and fled either to the Middle East or to what is
now Iraq. Only some gigantic natural disasters, such as earthquakes and floods
could have caused such an exodus. It was at this time that the Saraisvati and the
Indus changed their proper beds. The Saraisvati dried up.

Map showing the path of the Sarasvati before it dried up.
The drying up of the Saraisvati... led to a major relocation of the population
centered around the Sindhu and the Sarasvati valleys... caused a migration
westward from India. It is soon after this time that the Indic element begins to
appear all over West Asia, Egypt, and Greece. (Indic Ideas in the Graeco-Roman
World, by Subhash Kak, taken from IndiaStar online literary magazine; p. 14.)
And Joshua said unto all the people, Your fathers dwelt... in old time, even Terah,
the father of Abraham, and the father of Nachor, and they served other gods.
Many people don't understand what is meant by Joshua's remark about "the other
side of the flood."
And Joshua said unto all the people, Your fathers dwelt... in old time, even Terah,
the father of Abraham, and the father of Nachor, and they served other gods.
And I took your father Abraham from the other side of the flood, and led him
throughout all the land of Canaan... (Joshua 24:2-3.)
Many people don't understand what is meant by Joshua's remark about "the other
side of the flood." They think he was referring to the Noachide flood. He was
referring to the time when God Krishna's Dwarka and Haran province, in today's
Gujarat, sank under water in about 1900 BC. Abraham, Sarah, and their followers
escaped southward, to the coastal ports of Kalyan and Sopara (Sophir or Sauvira),
in Maharashthra. From there, they sailed northward to the Middle East. Sarah
(Sarsvati) embarked from the port of Kalyan. At one time, Kalyan was located
closer to the coast, but is now located more than 50 miles inland. Sarasvati is the
patron saint of Kalyan. The patron saint of Sophir or Sauvira was Parasu Rama
(possibly a name of our biblical Abraham/Brahma).
And I took your father Abraham from the other side of the flood, and led him
throughout all the land of Canaan... (Joshua 24:2-3.)
Indian Author Paramesh Choudhury, author of The India We Have Lost, claims that
Krishna and his family probably fled to Iraq. But I'm certain that they went to
Jerusalem. The word Jerusalem is derived from Sanskrit: Yadu-Ishalayam, meaning
"The Holy Rock of the Yadu Tribe." Lord Krishna was a Yadu. The Moslems still
revere this huge rock under the Dome of the Rock on Jerusalem Temple Mount.


Temple [top] Mount and Dome of the Rock. [bottom] Abraham's tomb.
Until now, I have been wondering why Krishna's name did not appear in Jerusalem
after his arrival there. Yet, the name of the king of Jerusalem, Melchizedek, the
mentor of Abraham, did. I once thought that Melchizedek was the name of a certain
person. I made this mistake by thinking that a prince and a son of a Kassite
king, Melik-Sadaksina, was a supernaturally endowed prince, magician and spiritual
giant. I thought he had accompanied Krishna, Abraham, and Sarah to the Middle
East. Later on, I came to realize that the Sanskrit wordSadhaka applies to anyone
who is an adept, a magician, one possessed of supernatural powers gained by
worshipping a deity or by uttering magical chants.
I have additionally shown in this article that the New Testament words for Jesus all
refer to Lord Krishna and his holy names. The early Christians were convinced that
Melchizedek was just a prior incarnation of Jesus Christ, The remains of the Nag
Hammadi manuscript entitledMelchizedek seem to confirm this. Melchizedek, king
of Jerusalem and mentor of his son Abraham, was none other than ancient India's
God Krishna. The early Christians thought that Jesus was a reincarnation of
Krishna, for who else had the name Yesu Kristna, Isa, Krishna, etc.?
St. Paul states in the New Testament book of Hebrews:
Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made a high priest forever
after the order of Melchisedec. (6:20.) For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of
the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings,
and blessed him...(7:1); For he was yet in the loins of his father when Melchisedec
met him. (7:;10);...what further need was there that another priest should arise
after the order of Melchisedec...(7:11); Thou art a priest forever after the order of
Melchisedec (7:17);.

Melchisedek (Krishna)
In closing this article, I want to mention the dissatisfaction I have always had with
fanatical religious sectarians who yell that only they are right and that everybody
else is wrong. They often insult, deprecate, mock, and reject those with whom they
disagree, hoping to shut the formers' mouths. In many cases, these religious
squabbles over suspected "differences" cause widespread bloodshed and misery in
the world. I am a Roman Catholic and proud of it. But it grieves me when I hear
priests, nuns and laity preach that anyone who isn't a Catholic is hell-bound.
The word "Catholic" itself derives from the Sanskrit Ketu-Loka, meaning "Universal
Leader." But how can a religion be "universal" if it is exclusive, locking out nations
like India who not only gave Catholics their own bible, but even the Christ they
worship? I have shown how nearly parallel our bible and the Hindu holy books
concur in almost every way-linguistically, culturally, spiritually, etc. Even the
incestuous relationship between Brahma and Sarasvati squares with that of
Abraham and Sarah. India more than qualifies to be the real holy land of all
mankind. The main differences between Christians and Hindus arise from the fact
that the Hindu form of Christianity stayed behind in India, and that the western
Christianity we know was exported abroad. Naturally, geographical separation has
caused some variations in the two similar teachings, as well as culturally.
Additionally, we have to keep in mind that for many hundreds of years, these
stories were passed down orally, from father to son. Changes, embellishments, and
varying opinions crept through the woodwork.
It is a strange anomaly that our Christian sects want to convert the Hindus to the
same religious teachings the latter gave to the world and still practice!
I have amply demonstrated that all of us, no matter what our respective religions
and nationalities, are grandchildren of India, Will this knowledge help keep us from
tearing ourselves and the world apart?
Addendum:
If, until now, you are still unconvinced that Melchizedek was Lord Krishna, and that
Jesus was an incarnation of Krishna (Melchizedek) as Paul himself explained, I have
no other recourse but to give you solid proof directly from the mouths of the Hindus
themselves! This should put an end to the question. It is a verifiable fact that one
of the names of Krishna was Sadhaka. Being a king, Krishna would have been
addressed as Malika (King) Sadhaka). If you are still doubtful, go to the web and
type in Krishna Sadhaka. You'll instantly get all the proof you'll; ever need. Note:
This article is a chapter from Gene's upcoming book, now in preparation: Searching
for God -- Now a Valid Science! It will be released in autumn, 2007.
Krishna and Christ; Who Came First? Which of Them is the Copycat Myth?
The similarities between Krishna and Christ have captured the attention of scholars for
years. The initial reaction by scholars like Weber and Hopkins was to suggest that the Krishna
legends copied earlier Christian stories; and for good reason, because the Krishna legends most
similar to Christ were developed after Christ. Raychaudhuri in his book Materials for the
Study of the Early History of the Vaishnava Sect states on page 3, I have then tried to show that
this Bhakti religion is not a plagiarism from Christianty, but owes its origin
to Vasudeva. Raychaudhuri successfully does this in his book, but in the process, inadvertently
destroys any hope an anti-Christian copycat theorist might have at proving Christianity to be a
plagiarism from Vaishnavism. He quotes Weber on page 86, saying, Weber adds that in the
train of the birth-day festival we must suppose that other legendary matters came to India which
are found in the accounts of the Harivamsa, of the Jaimini Bharata, and in some interpolated
passages of the Mahabharata, in the Puranas, especially in the Bhagavata Purana and its
offshoots which describe and embellish the birth and childhood of Krishna with notices which
remind us irresistibly of Christian legends. Take, for example, the statement of the Vishnu
Purana that Nanda, the foster-father of Krishna, at the time of the latters birth, went with his
pregnant wife Yasoda to Mathura to pay taxes (paralleled in Luke 2:4-5) or the pictorial
representation of the birth of Krishna in the cowstall or shepherds hut, that corresponds to the
manger, and of the shepherds, shepherdesses, the ox and the ass that stand round the woman as
she sleeps peacefully on her couch without fear of danger. Then the stories of the persecutions
of Kamsa, of the massacre of the innocents (babies), of the passage across the river
(Christophoros), of the wonderful deeds of the child, of the healing-virtue of the water in which
he was washed, etc., etc. Whether the accounts given in theJaimini Bharata of the raising to life
by Krishna of the dead son of Duhsala, of the cure of Kubja, of her pouring a vessel of ointment
over him, of the power of his look to take away sin, and other subjects of the kind came to India
in the same connection with the birth-day festival may remain an open question.

Dating the Krishna Related Writings
To solve the question, it is necessary to date the legends. In order to do this it is
necessary to realize the historical situation in India. The religion of the Bhagavadas, a
devotional creed to Vasudeva, probably emerged before the 400s BC (Raychaudhuri, 13, 18) In
the 330s BC, Greek influence spread as Alexander swept across Persia. The middle half of the
200s BC was the reign of Asoka, in which Buddhism became the state religion. The Buddhist
antagonism towards the Brahman priesthood and the caste system caused religious tension
between Buddhists and Hindus. This tension continued for centuries. Differing sects such as the
Jains, Saivists, and Buddhists challenged the old Vedic Hinduism. Finally, towards the
beginning of the Gupta dynasty in the 300s AD, a new form of Hinduism triumphed and
the Vaishnava faith became standardized from a plethora of various religious groups. It is
generally agreed by most scholars that the Hindu texts dealing with Krishnas legend did not
reach their final form until halfway through the Gupta dynasty sometime around 350 500
AD. Most of them were not even written until this time. We will investigate the works that
contain the Krishna legend as follows:
Vishnu Purana: This work contains the geneology of the Gupta kings, and therefore
could not have been finalized before 320 AD. Hazra is positive the date of this purana is
between 275 325 AD, while Winternitz agrees it is not later than the 400s. (Jaiswal,
17) Others agree it was probably written between 300 400
AD. (sdmart.com) Raychaudhuri agrees that it was probably written between 320 355
AD, and goes further by saying that the puranas that relate the Krishna story cannot be
placed much before the Gupta kings, since the geneology of those kings is included.
(Raychaudhuri, 91, 42)
Bhagavata Purana: Hazra points out that the Vishnu Purana is a source for
the Bhagavata Purana and believes its date to be between 500 550 AD, despite many
who believe the date should be even later. It embellishes the Vishnu Purana and is the
most complete biography of Krishna. Another generally accepted date for it is 800
1000 AD. (sdmart.org) It includes myths about all ten of Vishnus avatars.
Harivamsa: The work was revised and changed numerous times and adopted its current
form sometime around 400 AD. (Jaiswal, 16) It was added to the Mahabharata between
300-400 AD. It tells the story of Krishna as a youth. (sdmart.com)

The Bhagavad Gita: The Only pre-Christian Writing about Krishna
Mahabharata and Bhagavad Gita: The Mahabharata was an evolving work that
probably started sometime in the 200s BC and ended in the 400s AD. The work was
constantly being added to, and it was corrupted so badly that we cannot be sure words
were not interpolated hundreds of years later. The Bhagavad Gita is part of
the Mahabharata and is thought by many to be written sometime around 200 - 300
BC. The familiarity with the Greeks as famous fighters places the Mahabharata after
Alexander, and its alarm at the Buddhist edukas replacing Hindu temples makes a date
around the time of Asoka likely. The Romans are mentioned only in passing in a list of
possible peoples, thus placing the epic probably before the time of Romes
greatness. (Raychaudhuri, 41, 42, 32) Nevertheless, many still consider a post-Christian
date for theMahabharata and the Bhagavad Gita possible in the range of 200 BC 200
AD. (Banerjee, 45) Pisani puts forward a strong argument that the Mahabharata was
written between 100 - 300 AD, because it mentions Sakas (Scythians) who invaded
around then, Parthians (Pahlavas) who had gained their independence from the Greeks,
Huns (Hunas), and Romans (Romakas) who they had not established contact with before
the time of Augustus. However, Moti Chandra states that the Hunas were really the
Hiungnu, not the Huns, and that India could have heard legends about all these groups
previous to contact. Furthermore, he points out that theMahabharata mentions
Antiochus, who ruled the Seleucids Empire in the 100s BC. Moti Chandra dates it in the
100s BC. The growing consensus for the Bhagavad Gita seems to be it was written in
the 100s BC, although some scholars place it earlier than that. In any case,
the Mahabharata was badly corrupted after its initial writing. (Jaiswal, 12,13) The pre-
Christian date of the Bhagavad Gita is only a small victory for christmythers. Although
the Bhagavad Gita contains general metaphorical similarities to Christs discourses
(especially as it relates to Johns gospel), there are no strong parallels with Christian
legend that would indicate two legends evolved from the same story. Stronger parallels
occur in the much later works mentioned above. In fact, all of the parallels mentioned
below by the christmyth theorists come from post-Bhagavad Gita and post-Christian
sources, with the exception of Krishna calling himself the light and the beginning,
middle, and the end, a claim Krishna put forward in the Bhagavad Gita.

The Origins of Krishna Worship

The Hindu holy books have been mixed up, changed, interpolated, abridged, and some even
lost. (Banerjee, 22) The date of final redaction of the Mahabharata, Ramayana, and the
other Puranas extends from 500 AD 1600 AD, according to Banerjee. (Banerjee,
56) Vaishnava and the worship of Krishna did not really solidify into a standardized religion
until the 300s AD. However, the legend pre-dated the religion, and many ancient people did not
care if they polluted the legend with additions and changes. To them they were not holy books
yet only novels for amusement and spiritual anecdotes that could freely be embellished. Later
they became revered as holy books. At the earliest days of the Mahabharata, Krishna-Vasudeva
was a superhero man-god who was, at best, loosely connected with Vishnu. This was before
Vishnu became the God of gods. Krishna worship was antagonistic to the Brahman priesthood
and to their chief Vedic god Indra. The Brahmans later stole or agreed to borrow the myth and
corrupted it to suit their own purposes. In the face of the Buddhist and Jain competition which
was undermining their power, and possibly with interference from the Bhagavata sect, the
conservative religious leaders associated with Vedic Brahmanism took the myth originally
created by theBhagavatas and retold it to suit their own agenda. Around five hundred years
later, Vishnu became the God of gods and Rama and Krishna became his most beloved
incarnations. (Gonda, 154-167) Banerjee says, It (theMahabharata) has gone through various
recensions, many of which are the result of Brahmanical accretions. (Banerjee, 44) The best
way to fight a competing sect was to steal their mythology and rewrite it. There is no telling how
many different conflicting stories of Krishna were competing between 400 BC and 400 AD.

The Case for Christian Influence Upon Krishna Legends
Christian influence in India during the time of Krishnas evolution is well known. 2% of
Indias population today are Christians who trace their roots to the 1st century AD when the
apostle Thomas allegedly evangelized in India. Lorinser believed Christian communities and an
Indian New Testament to exist in India in the 200s AD. (Raychaudhuri, 92) The Brahman
priests could have absorbed Christian legend and re-wrote it the same way they did to
the Bhagavatas. Even if Christianity never penetrated India so early, Christian legends could
have been absorbed other ways. The Hindus have a long history of absorbing foreign
mythology. Krishna was killed by an arrow in the foot because his foot was the only vulnerable
spot on his body. This sounds like the much older Achilles myth of Homers Iliad. One of
Krishnas 180,000 children was Pradyumna, who was swallowed by a large fish in the ocean and
was later removed when a fishermans wife cut open the fish. This sounds faintly like the story
of Jonah at the time of Assyrian Nineveh (700-400 BC), which pre-dates all the Krishna
legends. The story of Matsya, the first incarnation of Vishnu, is too much like the Gilgamesh
and Noah flood legends to ignore. Gilgamesh and Genesis date at least 1400 years or so before
Vishnu was even considered a great god, let alone the 500+ years after that when the Bhagavata
Purana finalized the ten avatars of Vishnu. (Gupta, 32-35) Some Indians honored Herakles
(Hercules?) as a god in the 300s BC. Despite his quest to prove Krishna worship is relatively
free from outside tales, Raychaudhuri tells us that the rank growth of legend has obscured the
historical Krishna, Buddha, and Asoka. (Raychaudhuri, 23-24) In the true Hindu spirit of
inclusive religion, the Indians absorbed ancient myths bouncing around the ancient world and
synthesized them into their own religion.

Similarities Between Christ and Krishna
We now move to specific similarities as defined by the christmyth theorists.
Keep in mind, the Bhagavad Gitais the only scripture related to Krishna worship that
likely predates Jesus Christs life on earth.
Krishna was born of the virgin Devaki (Divine One) This is just plain false. Krishna
was the eighth child of Devaki and her husband, the first six being killed by Kamsa
because Devaki and her husband were making babies together in jail at the time of her
pregnancies. The seventh child was magically transported to somebody elses womb, and
it was also an incarnation of Vishnu. (Gupta, 28) The name Divine One is not similar
to Christianity, since Mary was never called Divine One in the New Testament. The
story is not mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita and therefore is probably post-Christian in
origin.
Krishnas father was a carpenter. This fact is not mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita.
Krishnas birth was attended by angels, wise men and shepherds, and he was presented
with gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Again, we must assume a post-Christian time of
origin for this myth since it is nowhere mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita.
Krishna was persecuted by a tyrant who ordered the slaughter of thousands of infants. It
is not uncommon for kings to kill off all potential competitors. History is filled with such
atrocities. Furthermore, a similar legend can be found in the story of Moses which
happened about 1000 1200 years before the legend of Krishna started to take form. The
tyrant pharaoh killed all Hebrew male children. (Exodus 1:22) During his escape from
Kamsa, baby Krishna touches the water of the flooded Yamuna River and parts the
waters, much like Moses parted the Red Sea. (Exodus 14:16-22) Vasudeva then carried
baby Krishna across the river in a basket, reminiscent of the way Moses mother put him
into a basket before placing the basket in the Nile River. (Exodus 2:3)(Gupta, 28) In any
case, Kamsas motivation for killing Krishna was not at all like pharaohs and Herods
attempts to kill Moses and Jesus. A sage had predicted Kamsas death at the hands of
Devakis son. It was for this reason that he imprisoned Devaki and her husband, killed
their first six children, and continued to murder other children after Krishnas
escape. The Krishna story has the tyrant Kamsa being Krishnas uncle, and the slaughter
is ongoing. (Gupta, 28-29) The story itself is very likely post-Christian given the late
standardization of all texts that tell the story of Krishna and the fact that it is nowhere
mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita, but even if it could be proven that the story was written
earlier, there is much reason to believe it was borrowed from Exodus or simply evolved
independently.
Krishna was of royal descent. A lot of legendary heroes are from royal descent. This
similarity is too general. Actually, many believe that the historical Krishna might have
been a kshatriya warlord/prince. The kshatriyas are the warrior caste in Hindu society.
Krishna was baptized in the River Ganges. Again, this is post-Christian in origin because
it is not mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita.
Krishna worked miracles and wonders. The similarity is too general. A lot of heroes did
this.
Krishna raised the dead and healed lepers, the deaf, and the blind. The Jaimini
Bharata mentions the raising to life of the dead son of Duhsala, but the Jaimini
Bharata dates well into the Christian era, so the direction of the borrowing could very
well go the other way.
Krishna used parables to teach the people about charity and love. Again, this is too
general.
Krishna was transfigured in front of his disciples. The gods often take various forms that
could be called transfiguration. This is too general.
Scholars reject the notion that Krishna was a vegetation deity who periodically died and
rose with the seasons. (Gonda, 158)
In some traditions, Krishna died on a tree or was crucified between two thieves. The real
story is that Krishna was killed in a hunting accident - by an arrow in the foot, and that he
was, coincidentally, resting under a tree when it happened. (Gupta, 32) The Bhagavad
Gita does not mention the death of Krishna, his rising, or ascension.
Krishna rose from the dead and ascended to heaven. Krishna did not ascend into heaven
in bodily form the way Acts 1 records the ascension of Jesus. As to the resurrection of
Krishna, the full story goes like this: After his death, Krishnas bones were dug up and
given to a woodworker who made an idol of Krishna. The idol was half completed
before the woodworker abandoned it, but Brahma gave it a soul anyway. Its name is
Jagannatha and is always in the company of his brother and sister/concubine. (Gupta,
38) Notice the dissimilarity to the Jesus story. Unlike Krishna, whose bones are found,
Jesus body is never found. (Luke 24:2-3) Unlike Krishna whos body becomes the
inspiration for an idol, Jesus and his followers hated idolatry. (1 John 5:21, 1 Corinthians
10:14) Unlike Jagannatha who is not really the same person or soul as Krishna, Jesus
was the same person in bodily form after his resurrection. The myth is completely
dissimilar, and again, it is not found in the Bhagavad Gita.
Krishna is called the Shepherd God and Lord of lords and was considered the
Redeemer, Firstborn, Sin Bearer, Liberator, Universal Word, as well as Beginning,
Middle and the End. These titles are no different from what any religion would claim
for their God. Krishna was not a shepherd, he was a cowherd. Furthermore, Jesus was
neither a shepherd nor a cowherd. Jesus Christ is sometimes called Good Shepherd
because of the messianic prophecies such as Zechariah 13:7 which pre-date the Bhagavad
Gita. Krishna was not the firstborn, as already discussed above, he had six siblings
before him. It is a generally accepted fact that John purposefully chose the term Word
or Logos because the pagans were familiar with it, as it was used by them to describe
Gods message. The matter here is not one of copycats, but an issue of speaking to
someone in a language they could understand. The phraseology might be similar, but
language used to describe God is expected to be similar anyway.
Krishna is the second person of the trinity. First of all, Vishnu is the second person of the
Hindu trinity, and Krishna was only one of ten avatars of Vishnu. Secondly, the Hindu
trinity (or trimurti as it is more properly called) evolved after the New Testament was
written. The Hindu trimurti is modalistic in that each member works independently of
the other and towards different and conflicting goals. Brahma is creator, Vishnu is
sustainer, and Shiva is destroyer. Jesus consistently told everyone his Father was greater
than he, but Hindus, especially Vaishnavists, regard Vishnu as greater and more loveable
than the other two. Other Hindus, called Saivists, worship Shiva as the God of
gods. Shivas iconography typically includes the penis. Unfortunately for Brahma - the
first member of the Hindu trinity - not much devotion is paid to him. Beyond these
three is a Supreme Being called by various names such as Satchhidananda, Vasudeva,
Universal Soul, Atman = Brahma, etc, etc, and this Supreme Being bears more
resemblance to the Christian notion of the Father than do any of the other three. The
Hindu trimurti is definitely three people with personalities and conflicting interests, while
the Christian trinity is comprised of three personae, which should not be translated
individual persons but should rather be translated as masks, manifestations, or
hypostasis of God. They work together, not separately on different tasks.
The trimurti solidified after the time of Christ, and with it, Vishnus place as the second
member of the Hindu trimurti. In the Rig Veda, Vishnu is called the doorkeeper of the gods,
which means he was devoted to some higher god. (Gonda, 93) He is ordered around by Indra.
(Raychaudhuri, 8) Hindus consider the Vedas scripture, but the Mahabharata, Bhagavad Gita,
the Puranas, and other epics and codes are regarded as holy books with less authority. (Banerjee,
20) Hence, the worship of Vishnu as the God of gods seems contrary to their own scriptures. In
the Vedas, Indra, Agni, and Soma are far greater than Brahma and Shiva. Although Jesus does
have a similarity with Vishnu in that they both are the primary source of Gods incarnation(s),
the concept of avatar was still evolving well into the Christian era. The Ramayana was written
in the 200s BC when Indra was still the chief god, but Rama was not identified with Vishnu
until a later chapter was added to the Ramayana around 150 200 AD. (Jaiswal, 8,9) The trinity
of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva is generally considered to be a very late arrival to
the Mahabharata because it is a product of syncretism. (Jaiswal, 21) Krishna and Vishnu were
long in fusing because the Bhagavad Gita emphasizes Krishnas identity with Vasudeva-
Narayana more than that with Vishnu. (Gonda, 158-159) The trimurti is post-Vedic and
associated with the Puranas. (Banerjee, 67) The Bhagavad Gita is the only source for the
Krishna legend that could possibly be dated before the time of Christ. In it, Krishna says, I am
Vishnu, but also says in the same place, I am Indra, I am the god of destruction (Shiva?)
and I am the moon, I am the mind, I am the light. (Bhagavad Gita 10:21) He also frequently
calls himself the creator (Brahman?) It is obvious that Krishna can be associated with all three
of the trimurti members, along with other gods and everything in general. After all, God is
everything in pantheism. Vaishnavismand the notion that Krishna was an avatar of Vishnu in
particular does not appear until after the Christian era. Altogether, the Hindu trinity is nothing
like the Christian trinity, and the Hindu trinity was still evolving centuries after Christ.
Krishna is to return to do battle with the Prince of Evil, who will desolate the
earth. Again, the statement confuses Krishna with Vishnu. The tenth and final avatar of
Vishnu is Kalki, who rides on a white horse and wields a blazing sword. He will kill his
enemies and then establish a golden age from the ruins of the earth. (Gupta, 39) The
obvious comparison is to Revelation 19:11-16, but similar ideas come from the prophetic
books of the Old Testament which obviously predate the Hindu legends. See Zechariah
9:9-10, Daniel 7:13. Furthermore, Kalki is one of the last avatars to be ascribed to
Vishnu. (Raychaudhuri, 105) He is found in the Harivamsa, which dates to about 400
AD, and also in the Vayu Purana which dates from 200 500 AD. (Jaiswal, 129, 16,
17) Kalki first appears in Mahabharata 3,190,94 where he is called Kalkin-
Visnuyasas. The fact that he rides on a horse is probably due to the fact that Vishnu is
often associated with horses. (Gonda, 147-149) In any case, the legend of Kalki cannot
be proven to have existed before Christ.

Christ and Krishna: The Differences
Krishna is not that similar to Christ outside of a few borrowed stories. In fact, the totality of
Krishna's story is quite different from that of Christ. The following exploits of Krishna are taken
from Shakti Guptas Book, Vishnu and His Incarnations, p. 28-38.
Krishna is known for pranks such as petty theft and vandalism.
He encouraged women to leave their husbands and children for him.
Unlike Jesus who never married or had kids, Krishna displayed his voracious sexual
appetite by having 16,000 wives and 180,000 sons - not to mention the daughters.
As a child, Krishna sucked a womans breast so hard that he killed her. She had tried to
poison him.
Krishna stole worship away from the chief Vedic deity Indra, who was Vishnus superior
in Vedic times. He thus displayed a thirst for power and a competition with other gods.
He cursed his wives to be abducted by bandits because they lusted for his grandson.
He fought his trinity partner Shiva in combat.
Krishnas poor behavior is justified by the notion that everything, both good and evil, is
God, and Krishna is God. Indeed, this is consistent with pantheism.
Krishna stole the bride of a man who had three eyes and four arms.
When the man fought Krishna for his bride, Krishna forgave the man 100 times before
killing him.
The man went to heaven because he was always thinking about God (Krishna) - even
though in hatred.
Such is Krishna's story, a mixture of pantheistic metaphysical speculation with outrageous
stories that amuse our base instincts, founded in the name of a legendary warrior-cowboy
unknown to verifiable history.
The earliest source for Krishna comes from the Bhagavad Gita. Its teachings are not much
similiar to Christianity. The language of the Bhagavad Gita is in some ways similiar to John's
Gospel, but there are no borrowed myths between them and they differ widely on belief. Krishna
teaches reincarnation, but John indicates that Jesus rejected the notion of karma and
reincarnation, saying that people are not punished in their next life for sins in a previous life
(Bhagavad Gita 2:12-13, 4:5 vs. John 9:1-3). Krishna acknowledges that faith and love are more
important than works and wisdom, but he says that a soul must be reincarnated a few more times
to reach perfection even after the soul has faith unlike Jesus who taught salvation occurred at
the point of faith. (Bhagavad Gita 6:37-47 vs. Luke 23:39-43) Krishna identifies himself with
other gods and tolerates the worship of other gods as one of many legitimate methods of
worship, although not the best method. This differs widely from John's teachings on idolatry and
indeed from all the Bible, which is pervasively intolerant towards the worship of other gods
besides our covenant God. (Bhagavad Gita 9:23-25, 10:21 vs. 1 John 5:21) Unlike
the Bhagavad Gita, the Christian scriptures never assert that all gods come from a single
Godhead. For Krishna, time is circular and the end of the age is unclear. For Jesus, history has a
purpose with a definite end. (Bhagavad Gita 9:7-8 vs. Matthew 24:3-35) Jesus recognizes a
transcendent God greater than his own personal avatar and recognizes an authority higher than
himself. Krishna seems to make no distinction between his own personal avatar and the
transcendent Godhead. (John 14:28-31) Although the Bhagavad Gita is similiar to John's Gospel
in terms of metaphors and discourse, it is only a similiarity of style, not of belief. The other
Gospels and the rest of the Bible are neither similiar in style nor belief to the Bhagavad Gita.
Was Lord Ram Really Born?
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Geeta Mandir


We Indians are the products of one of the oldest civilisations. We need to be really proud of our
ancient history and cultural heritage. However, during the British Rule, we developed an inferiority
complex, which adversely affected our quest to unearth facts relating to our glorious past. But our
young and educated men and women, born and brought up in independent India, are capable of
unearthing the true facts and are confident enough to evaluate these objectively.

Shri Ram being most basic to Indian "ethos", it is necessary to know who is Shri Ram? Was he really
born? If yes, when and where? As is believed by crores of people did he really put his feet on the Indian
territory from North to South, reducing the sufferings of mankind and ensuring victory of good over
evil? Let us take a look at historical facts:

The story of Shri Ram's life was first narrated by Maharishi Valmiki in the Ramayana, which was written
after Shri Ram was crowned as the king of Ayodhya. Maharishi Valmiki was a great astronomer as he has
made sequential astronomical references on important dates related to the life of Shri Ram indicating
the location of planets vis-a-vis zodiac constellations and the other stars (nakshatras). Needless to add
that similar position of planets and nakshatras is not repeated in thousands of years. By entering the
precise details of the planetary configuration of the important events in the life of Shri Ram as given in
the Valmiki Ramayan in the software named "Planetarium" corresponding exact dates of these events
according to the English calendar can be known.

Mr Pushkar Bhatnagar of the Indian Revenue Service had acquired this software from the US. It is used
to predict the solar/lunar eclipses and distance and location of other planets from earth. He entered
the relevant details about the planetary positions narrated by Maharishi Valmiki and obtained very
interesting and convincing results, which almost determine the important dates starting from the birth
of Shri Ram to the date of his coming back to Ayodhya after 14 years of exile.

Maharishi Valmiki has recorded in Bal Kaand sarga 19 and shloka eight and nine (1/18/8,9) that Shri
Ram was born on ninth tithi of Chaitra month when the position of different planets vis-a-vis zodiac
constellations and nakshatras (visible stars) were: i) Sun in Aries; ii) Saturn in Libra; iii) Jupiter in
Cancer; iv) Venus in Pisces; v) Mars in Capricorn; vi) Lunar month of Chaitra; vii) Ninth day after no
moon; viii) Lagna as Cancer (cancer was rising in the east); ix) Moon on the Punarvasu (Gemini
constellation & Pllux star); x) Day time (around noon).

This data was fed into the software. The results indicated that this was exactly the location of
planets/stars in the noon of January 10, 5114 BC. Thus Shri Ram was born on January 10, 5114 BC (7121
years back). As per the Indian calendar it was the ninth day of Shukla Paksha in Chaitra month and the
time was around 12 to 1 noontime. This is exactly the time and date when Ram Navmi is celebrated all
over India.

Shri Ram was born in Ayodhya. This fact can be ascertained from several books written by Indian and
foreign authors before and after the birth of Christ - Valmiki Ramayan, Tulsi Ramayan, Kalidasa's
Raghuvansam, Baudh and Jain literature, etc. These books have narrated in great detail the location,
rich architecture and beauty of Ayodhya which had many palaces and temples built all over the
kingdom. Ayodhya was located on the banks of the Saryu river with Ganga and Panchal Pradesh on one
side and Mithila on the other side. Normally 7,000 years is a very long period during which earthquakes,
storms, floods and foreign invasions change the course of rivers, destroy the towns/buildings and alter
the territories. Therefore, the task of unearthing the facts is monumental. The present Ayodhya has
shrunk in size and the rivers have changed their course about 40 km north/south.

Shri Ram went out of Ayodhya in his childhood (13th year as per Valmiki Ramayan) with Rishi
Vishwamitra who lived in Tapovan (Sidhhashram). From there he went to Mithila, King Janaka's
kingdom. Here he married Sita after breaking Shiv Dhanusha. Researchers have gone along the route
adopted by Shri Ram as narrated in the Valmiki Ramayan and found 23 places which have memorials
that commemorate the events related to the life of Shri Ram. These include Shringi Ashram, Ramghat,
Tadka Van, Sidhhashram, Gautamashram, Janakpur (now in Nepal), Sita Kund, etc. Memorials are built
for great men and not for fictitious characters.

Date of exile of Shri Ram: It is mentioned in Valmiki Ramayan's Ayodhya Kand (2/4/18) that Dashratha
wanted to make Shri Ram the king because Sun, Mars and Rahu had surrounded his nakshatra and
normally under such planetary configuration the king dies or becomes a victim of conspiracies.
Dashratha's zodiac sign was Pisces and his nakshatra was Rewati. This planetary configuration was
prevailing on the January 5, 5089 BC, and it was on this day that Shri Ram left Ayodhya for 14 years of
exile. Thus, he was 25 years old at that time (5114-5089). There are several shlokas in Valmiki
Ramayan which indicate that Shri Ram was 25-years-old when he left Ayodhya for exile.

Valmiki Ramayan refers to the solar eclipse at the time of war with Khardushan in later half of 13th
year of Shri Ram's exile. It is also mentioned it was amavasya day and Mars was in the middle. When
this data was entered, the software indicated that there was a solar eclipse on October 7, 5077 BC,
(amavasya day) which could be seen from Panchvati. The planetary configuration was also the same -
Mars was in the middle, on one side were Venus and Mercury and on the other side were Sun and
Saturn. On the basis of planetary configurations described in various other chapters, the date on which
Ravana was killed works out to be December 4, 5076 BC, and Shri Ram completed 14 years of exile on
January 2, 5075 BC, and that day was also Navami of Shukla Paksha in Chaitra month. Thus Shri Ram
had come back to Ayodhya at the age of 39 (5114-5075).

A colleague, Dr Ram Avtar, researched on places visited by Shri Ram during his exile, and sequentially
moved to the places stated as visited by Shri Ram in the Valmiki Ramayan, starting from Ayodhya he
went right upto Rameshwaram. He found 195 places which still have the memorials connected to the
events narrated in the Ramayana relating to the life of Shri Ram and Sita. These include Tamsa Tal
(Mandah), Shringverpur (Singraur), Bhardwaj Ashram (situated near Allahabad), Atri Ashram,
Markandaya Ashram (Markundi), Chitrakoot, Pamakuti (on banks of Godavari), Panchvati, Sita Sarovar,
Ram Kund in Triambakeshwar near Nasik, Shabari Ashram, Kishkindha (village Annagorai), Dhanushkoti
and Rameshwar temple.

In Valmiki Ramayan it is mentioned that Shri Ram's army constructed a bridge over the sea between
Rameshwaram and Lanka. After crossing this bridge, Shri Ram's army had defeated Ravana. Recently,
NASA put pictures on the Internet of a man-made bridge, the ruins of which are lying submerged in Palk
Strait between Rameshwaram and Sri Lanka. Recently the Sri Lankan Government had expressed the
desire to develop Sita Vatika as a tourist spot. Sri Lankans believe this was Ashok Vatika where Ravana
had kept Sita as a prisoner (in 5076 BC).

Indian history has recorded that Shri Ram belonged to the Suryavansh and he was the 64th ruler of this
dynasty. The names and other relevant particulars of previous 63 kings are listed in Ayodhya Ka Itihas
written about 80 years ago by Rai Bahadur Sita Ram. Professor Subhash Kak of LousianaUniversity, in his
book, The Astronomical Code of the Rig Veda, has also listed 63 ancestors of Shri Ram who ruled over
Ayodhya. Sri Ram's ancestors have been traced out as: Shri Ram, King Dashratha, King Aja, King Raghu,
King Dilip and so on. From Kashmir to Kanyakumari and from Bengal to Gujarat, everywhere people
believe in the reality of Shri Ram's existence, particularly in the tribal areas of Himachal, Rajasthan,
Madhya Pradesh and the North-East. Most of the festivals celebrated in these areas revolve around the
events in the life of Shri Ram and Shri Krishna.

The events and places related to the life of Shri Ram and Sita are true cultural and social heritage of
every Indian irrespective of caste and creed. Therefore, it is common heritage. After all, Shri Ram
belonged to the period when Prophet Mohammed or Jesus Christ were not born and Muslim or Christian
faiths were unknown to the world. The words Hindu (resident of Hindustan) and Indian (resident
of India) were synonymous. India was also known as Bharat (land of knowledge) and Aryavarta (where
Aryans live) and Hindustan (land of "Hindus" - derived from word Indus).

During Ram Rajya, the evils of caste system based on birth were non-existent. In fact, Maharishi
Valmiki is stated to be of shudra class (scheduled caste), still Sita lived with him as his adopted
daughter after she was banished from Ayodhya. Luv and Kush grew in his ashram as his disciples. We
need to be proud of the fact that Valmiki was perhaps the first great astronomer and that his study of
planetary configurations has stood the test of times. Even the latest computer softwares have
corroborated his astronomical calculations, which proves that he did not commit any error.

Shabari is stated to be belonging to the Bheel tribe. Shri Ram's army, which succeeded in defeating
Ravana, was formed by various tribals from Central and South India. The facts, events and all other
details relating to the life of Shri Ram are the common heritage of all the Indians including scheduled
castes, scheduled tribes, Muslims, Christians, etc.

Prophet Mohammad was born 1,400 years ago. Jesus Christ was born 2,000 years back. Gautam Buddha
was born 2,600 years back, whereas Ram was born 7,000 years back. Hence, discovering the details
relating to Shri Ram's life would be lot more difficult as destruction caused by floods, earthquakes and
invasions etc., would be far greater. But, should that stop our quest for learning more about our
cultural heritage?

As Indians, let us all take pride in the fact that the Indian civilisation is the most ancient civilisation
today. It is certainly more than 10,000 years old. Therefore, let us reject the story of Aryan invasion
in India in 1,500 BC as motivated implantation. In fact Max Mueller, who was the creator of this theory
had himself rejected it. Let us admit that during the British Rule, we were educated in the schools
based on Macaulay school of thinking which believed that everything Indian was inferior and that entire
"Indian literature was not worth even one book rack in England". If there were similarities in certain
features of Indian people and people from Central Europe, then automatic inference drawn was that
the Aryans coming from Europe invaded Indiaand settled here. No one dared of thinking in any other
way. Therefore, there is urgency for the historians and all other intellectuals to stop reducing Indian
history to myth. There is need to gather, dig out, search, unearth and analyse all the evidences, which
would throw more light on ancient Indian civilisation and culture.

There is need for the print and the electronic media to take note of these facts and create atmosphere
which would motivate our young and educated youth to carry out research and unearth true facts
about the ancient Indian civilisation and wisdom and would also encourage them to put across the
results of their research before the people fearlessly and with a sense of pride!
by Saroj Bala, The Pioneer
The author Saroj Bala is in IRS, Commisioner of Income Tax posted at Delhi.
There is no need of great austerities or penances to worship Lord Ramacandra, for He accepts even a
small service offered by His devotee. Thus He is satisfied and as soon as He is satisfied, the devotee is
successful. Indeed, Lord Sri Ramacandra brought all the devotees of Ayodhya back home, back to
Godhead. (Spoken by Hanuman in Srimad bhagvatam)




Hindu History

History with its flickering lamp,
Stumbles along the trail of the past;
Trying to reconstruct its scenes, to revive its echoes,
And re-kindle with pale gleams the passion of former days.

Nowhere is this observation more true than in the case of Hindu History. In tracing the
roots of this ancient religion, we find ourselves floundering in the mists of time as there
are few archeological evidences remaining that can corroborate the legends described in our
ancientPuraans.

Ancient Map of India




The many facets of Indian history mirror the Geographical, Racial, Linguistic and Cultural
complexities of the vast Indian sub-continent and as such are not very easy to decipher.
However, it is abundantly clear that the chain of events extends way back into the pre-
historic times..

That the Early Man, was present and thriving in the Indian heartland, is evident from the
Cave-paintings of Bhimbetka in Madhya Pradesh. These paintings date from 40,000 BCE
(earlier known as BC) and show the antiquity of human existence in this part of the world.

Pre-historic paintings from Bhimbetka Caves





A large amount of information is available through literary evidence of the
Hindu Vedas, Persian Avesta, regional literature and assorted accounts of travelers from
both East and West throwing ample light on different aspects of early Hindu civilization.

Through the analysis of these literary masterpieces and corroborating them with the
evidence unearthed in recent excavations from Rajasthan and Gujarat in India and the
North-western region of Pakistan have pushed back origins of ancient Indian civilization by
at least three millenia more!

Earliest sites of Civilization in the Indian sub-continent




While the proto-cities excavated in Mehrgarh have been dated to around 6500 BCE,
discoveries in the Gulf of Cambay, off the coast of Gujarat (where the fabled city
ofDwarka was located), have revealed dates corresponding to 7500 BCE which is older
than ANY other civilization in the World!

The 'Discovery' of Saraswati, the most glorified river in the Vedas, has given a huge boost
to the efforts of finding a common ground between Hindu History and Mythology. The oft
mentioned and much extolled river of ancient Hindu texts, was ironically not to be seen at
all in modern India, and this had placed a great burden on scholars who endeavored
to analyze the sacred texts from a historical view-point.

The Original course of Saraswati




However, recent research carried out by international archaeologists has shed a great deal of
light on the origin, course and final disappearance of the mighty river referred to as the
'Mother of all rivers' in the Rigveda and can even help date the scriptures to a large extent!

In the article titled {The Riddle of India's Ancient Past}, the French proto-
historianMichel Danino believes there are strong links between the Veda and the
Harappan culture.

'We find statues and seals depicting yogis and yogic postures, we find a Shiva-like deity,
worship of a mother-goddess, fire altars, all of which are suggestive of Vedic culture.
Harappan symbols include the Trishul, the Swastika, the Conch shell, the Peepal tree,
all of which are central to later Indian culture. The Rig-Veda itself is full of references to
fortified cities and towns, to oceans, sailing, trade and industry, all of which are found in
the Harappan civilization.'

Ruins of Mohenjodaro



Vedic altars found in these sites re-affirm that the culture followed in these sites extending
from Pakistan-Iran border in the West to Uttar Pradesh in the East; and Kashmir in the
North to Godavari in the South was a part of Vedic culture.

Similarly, thoughts are echoed by David Frawley, the director of the American Institute of
Vedic Studies, in the article {The Myth of Aryan Invasion},

'The term 'Destroyers of cities' was used to disregard the Vedic as a primitive non-
urban culture that destroys cities and urban civilization. However, there are also many
verses in the 'Rig Veda' that speak of the Aryans as having having cities of their own and
being protected by cities upto a hundred in number.

Destruction of cities also happens in modern wars; this does not make those who do this
nomads. The idea of Vedic culture as destroying but not building the cities is based upon
ignoring what the Vedas actually say about their own cities.'

With the new insights available, even the nomenclature of the Indus Valley Civilization is no
more apt as a majority of sites in later excavations fit perfectly along the banks of the newly
discovered course of Saraswati. Some scholars have therefore started referring to it as
theIndus-Saraswati Civilization.


Indus Valley Seals



About this continuity of Indian civilzation, Jean Michel Varenne, a French Orientalist
wrote in his book,{Yoga and the Hindu Tradition},

'The only remaining testimony to the prestigious civilization of ancient Egypt lay buried in
archaeological remains; which meant that inhabitants of the Nile Valley had to wait for
Champollion to decipher their hieroglyphics before they could know anything of the beliefs
of their ancestors!!

Yet during all this time, Hindu families continued, and still continue today, to venerate the
same Vishnu, who is celebrated in the hymns of the Rig Veda!'


Scholarly endeavors like Indian historian and freedom fighter Bal Gangadhar Tilak's
phenomenal work, The Arctic Home in the Vedas; French historian Michel Danino's
outstanding research, The Lost River: On the trail of Saraswati and American
Indologist David Frawley's, The Eternal Tradition-Sanatan Dharma throw new light
on ancient Hindu history.

Other scholars have tried to interpret the Astrological references in ancient literature and
have come up with pretty conclusive dates. Verse 3.1.15 of the Taitreya
Brahman describes Jupiter crossing the Pushya constellation thereby suggesting a date
close to 4650 BCE.

Similarly, the Aitreya Brahman gives the date of 6000 BCE while the Rig Veda has
references which throw up time-frames close to 10,000 BCE! One of the Medieval Islamic
scholars, Al-biruni, lists many ancient Indian Astronomers who were well versed with the
knowledge of both Space-science as well as Mathematics:

Brahmagupta (The first man to use Zero),
Aryabhata (The first man to calculate the value of Pie),
Bhaskar acharya (The first man to write numbers in decimal system) and
Varahamihira (The first astronomer to collate Hindu, Greek and Roman astronomy).

Other visitors like Hiun-Tsang, Fa-Hien and Megasthenes also left extensive accounts
of life and its various nuances in ancient India.

Indian Empires were biggest in the world at one point of time



The actual dates of origin of the Indian civilization may yet be shrouded in the mists of time,
but help has come from a totally unexpected branch of Science - Genetics.

According to the research findings such as MtDNA Haplogroup Study in Indian
Peninsula and the Indian Genome Variation project, Indian sub-continent saw the
first wave of migration of humanity out of Africa, directly into India about 50,000 years ago!
It was from here that waves of people migrated to other parts of Asia as well as the
continents of Europe and America!

The results also indicate that there has never been an Aryan Invasion NOR Migration
INTO India. Our present genetic diversity evolved as waves of initial settlers in the central
regions moved towards both north as well as south of the country, all the time intermixing
and migrating to other countries.

I have covered these topics from our History in detail through posts like-

{Finding River Saraswati},
{Genetics of the Wandering Indian},
{Rama - The Historical Perspective},
{Krishna - The Historical Enigma},
{Quest for Dwarka} and
{India and Bharat},

The new picture that emerges from this mounting data of evidence is of a continuous stream
of Civilizational History:
Beginning in the Pre-glacial periods around 40,000 BCE when Humans settled in
India;
Developing into a well-established culture before the onset of the last Ice Agearound
20,000 BCE;
Continuing the legacy of the bygone Yuga into post-glacial epoch around 10,000
BCE;
Flowing onwards to develop into the Indus-Saraswati and Persian civilizations
around 8,000 BCE;
Experiencing the Golden Age of Ramayan around 7,000 BCE;
Witnessing the possibly Nuclear War of Mahabharat around 5,000 BCE;
Making the transition from Dvapar to Kaliyug around 3,100 BCE;
Finally witnessing the transition of power from Saraswati to Gangetic basin with
the latter becoming the new seat of Hindu thought and learning.

The above dates are approximations based on the current dating of scriptures and
archeological finds and may yet be revised if new evidence comes to light. It is time we as
Human-beings realize and accept our ancient History so that we can be ready to Embrace
our Destiny; Let us together Begin at the Beginning.

AUM - In the beginning was the Word.



In Hindu belief, creation started with the Divine Syllable - Om. Knowledge was one of the
first creations to take place. It is supposed to have radiated from the Mind of Lord
Vishnu to that of Lord Brahma and ultimately emanate from his mouth in the form
of Vedas.

The tree of knowledge that we call Hinduism is so dense that an uninitiated reader may get
lost in its complexities and detail. Hindu texts abound with highly intellectual philosophies
with conceptions of impressive range and depth. In one of the most beautiful examples of
Vedic thought process, I'm presenting a verse from the Mandukya Upanishad:

Om
The Supreme Brahman is Infinite,
Infinite is the Brahman of a Soul,
The Infinite comes from Infinite,
And on reducing Infinite from the Infinite,
The Infinite still stands Alone!
How beautiful the imagery and how profund is the purport of this simple verse! Yet, the
Path of Wisdom is a narrow one and the Rishis of yore sought to simplify the language as
well as the essence of the ancient words to make it palatable for the common man. Let us try
and understand the basic classification of the ancient Hindu Texts and examine them one by
one:




Hinduism has never been based on just one set of principles, rather it has thrived and
survived the millenia because of its acceptance of varying and sometimes even contradictory
schools of thought! The most intellectual of these, the Vedanta emphasizes the Supreme
Brahman as a non-personal metaphysical concept free from any mythological moorings.

Another school of thought is the Yoga which seeks the union of God (Parmatma) and
Soul (Atma) by means of meditation and various physical as well as mental disciplines. In
the following passages, I would try to give the gist of what each of these religious texts
convey.


~*~*~ Vedas ~*~*~

The Vedas (root Vid meaning Knowledge) are called Amnaya or Apaurushya implying
that they are non-human in origin and have been recieved through revelation from God.
They are the foundation stones of Hinduism and were revealed to the Mantra-
Drashtas or Rishisthrough Divine sources as they progressed on the path of Spirituality.

Vedas, the oldest texts in the World




Unlike other world religions, Vedas do not owe authority to ONE single messenger of God.
Rather, they are the authority themselves for they are the knowledge of the Lord. For ages,
the Vedas were passed on from one generation to another by word of mouth.

They were never written down as the ancient Indians relied more on their intellect and
memory than the written word. Hence, the Vedas are also known as Shruti - 'That which is
Heard' while everything else is Smriti. Shruti is considered to be of divine origin, and
hence, is preserved as a whole instead of some verses.

In the beginning, the four Vedas were one and consisted of a Hundred thousand verses. But
to cope with man's diminishing abilities of comprehension as time progressed, Rishi Ved-
Vyasdivided them into four parts and entrusted four of his brightest disciples with the task
of attaining mastery over the four Vedas.

Thus, Rishi Pail mastered the Rigveda, Vaishampayan mastered Yajurveda, Jaimini took
charge of Samaveda and Sumantu perfected himself in the Atharvaveda. Each of these
learned seers divided their text further as time progressed so that more and more people
could attain benefit from their teachings. Accordingly, today we have a total of 1180
divisions comprising of 21 sections of Rigveda, 109 of Yajurveda, 1000 of Samveda and 50 of
the Atharva-veda.

Each different section in the Vedas has a concluding portion somewhat like the Summary
which are collectively known as the Upanishads. These texts are widely considered the
zenith of Indian thought process and belong to the highest class of philosophical entreaties
in the world.

Besides, there are Aranyaks that connect Vedas to the Upanishads and the commentaries
on Vedas are known as Brahmanas. Further, to simplify the study of Vedas, ancient rishis
developed Vedangs which are in the form of Shiksha, Kalpa, Vyakran, Nirukta,
Chhanda, and Jyotish.

Rest of the texts fall in the category of Smriti and include all the knowledge that has been
derived and inculcated 'after' Shruti had already been received by the great Rishis. If ever
there is a conflict between the two, it is advised that Shruti will always overrule Smriti.


~*~*~ Upavedas ~*~*~

The Upavedas are considered ancilliary texts that talk about the application of knowledge
derived from the Vedas. Thus, they cover subjects ranging from music to medicine and
consist of:

Ayurveda - The Knowledge of Medicine and Healthy Life
Dhanurveda - The Knowledge of Archery and Warfare
Gandharveda - The Knowledge of all Arts,
Sthapatyaveda - The Knowledge of Engineering and Architecture,
Arthashastra - The Knowledge of Governance, Economics and Polity.

All these are discussed not just in a technical fashion but as a means to attain salvation
through the rigorous following of each individual form. This is in sync with the Hindu belief
that you need not only pray (Bhakti yoga) or do good deeds (Karma yoga) to attain
Moksha, but you can also attain Salvation through the attainment of Knowledge (Gyaan
yoga).



~*~*~ Dharma Shastras ~*~*~

Dharmashastras are the ancient law-codes dealing with the Varnashram Dharma. These
law books lay down the foundations of Hindu Sanskar which are the guiding principles for
the behavior of individuals as well as communities within themselves as well as while
interacting with each other.

Dharma-shastras lay down the Samskar



There are 18 main Dharma Shastras, most important ones belongin to Manu, Yajnavalkya,
Sankha and Parashar Munis. The laws of Manu are intended for the Satyuga, those of
Yajnavalkya for Tretayuga, Sankha and Likhit for Dvapar and those of Parashar
forKaliyuga.

Each law book is based on the particular time and clime hence understandably differs in its
approach. It is expressly stated that the Laws should change with the evolution of Society in
order to ensure the continued progress of the human race.



~*~*~ Darshan Shastras ~*~*~
These are the different Schools of Philosophy based on the Vedas. While the Itihasa,
Puraans and Agams are meant for the masses, these texts are more preferred by the
Intellectuals in the Society. The six different schools of thought are:

Yoga,
Nyaya,
Samkhya,
Vaisheshika,
Purv Mimamsa, and
Vedanta or Uttar Mimamsa

Some of these philosophies like the Vaisheshika are extremely scientific with the entire
creation being considered to be built up of atoms (!!) while others like Vedanta are more
focused on Mysticism.


~*~*~ Itihaas ~*~*~
Itihaas means History (Iti-This; Has-Happened) and this category includes four religious
texts: Ramayan, Mahabharat, Yogavashishtha and the Harivansh with the former
two being the most commonly referred ones.

It is difficult for the common man to understand the complex philosophies of
the Upanishadsand Brahma Sutras, hence the rishis have explained the Universal
truths by means of historical examples, so that the common man can get inspiration to
follow their path and strive to attain liberation.
Manuscipt of the Adi Kavya, Ramayan



These epics are immensely human stories that acknowledge the weaknesses and failures of
its heroes as often as it promotes their strengths and victories. The good guys are
sometimes even forced to cheat and break rules to win turning these histories into very
modern stories of realpolitik and the clash of ideals with the harsh realities of Life.

For example, in the Mahabharat, even Duryodhana is a complex, ultimately sympathetic
figure, while a character like Karna is quite simply heart-breaking in his inability to achieve
the greatness of which he knows hes capable.
A manuscript rendition of the Mahabharat


The most revered book of Hinduism, the Bhagvad Geeta is an accompaniment to the
Mahabharat epic and is considerd the Refined summary of Entire Hindu thought. In a
simile, it is compared to the milk obtained from the Upanishadic cows and hence a complete
reference guide for Hindu thought and beliefs.

Bhagvad Geeta is an accompaniment of the Mahabharat



~*~*~ Puraans ~*~*~
The Puraans were composed by sages to popularize the religion of the Vedas by generating
devotion in the minds of all and one by means of examples from the lives of different
Emperors, Kings, Sages and Saints from the millenia long Hindu history.

There are 18 main Puraans, six each devoted to Lords Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, and an
equal number of subsidiary or Upa-Puraans. These are:

Shiva Puraan, Vishnu Puraan, Brahma Puraan, Bhagvat Puraan, Naradeya Puraan,
Matsya Puraan, Kurma Puraan, Varah Puraan, Vaman Puraan, Kalki Puraan, Garud
Puraan, Padma Puraan, Brahmand Puraan, Brahma Vaivarta Puraan, Markandeya
Puraan, Agni Puraan, Vayu Puraan, Skand Puraan, Ling Puraan and finally
the Bhavishya Puraan.

The most popular of these is the Shrimad Bhagavat Puraan that teaches devotion
towards Shri Krishna and Shri Hari Vishnu.


~*~*~ Agams ~*~*~
The Agams are practical manuals of divine worship comprised of :

Mantras or the group of words capable of creating Spiritual transformation;
Yantras or the Geometrical representations of God's various forms; and
Tantras or the religious practices centered on harnessing Shakti or the Divine Energy

These are again divided into three sections
viz. Vaishnav, Shaiva and Shakta Agams each centered on the worship of God as Lord
Vishnu, Lord Shiva and Goddess Shakti respectively.

All the above mentioned scriptures constitute the major body of Sacred Sanskrit literature.
While Shruti is considered the root; Smriti, Itihasas and Puraans form the
trunk; Agamsand Darshans are the branches and the secular literature of Subhashitas,
Kavyas, Nataks and Alankars form the fragrant flowers of Indian literature.

The ultimate purpose of each and everyone of these is to remind man of the necessity to
follow Dharma, help the fellow-being, live a moral life and ultimately attain salvation and
reach the Supreme abode of Almighty God. If we fail to utilize this human form to
achieve Nirvana,we have to again Begin at the Beginning.

.
Aum Shanti: Shanti: Shanti:


Kalchakra

As each grain of Time is destroyed,
The next comes along and brings with it either Creation or Destruction.
This is the Dance of Shiva.

The eternal cycle of Life and Death; Birth and Re-birth; Formation and Dissolution is called
the Kaal-chakra or the 'Wheel of Time'.

Puraanic genealogies take us back into the mists of time when Human-beings were first
trying to settle down on Earth and make it their Home. The Age of Kali (Kaliyug) is
astrologically believed to have commenced on 20th February 3102 BCE and consequently,
we are currently in the 5114th year of this Era.

The Kaliyuga Zodiac



How did the ancients really perceive their world? Were they also as bewildered by
these mind-boggling numbers as we are today? Or did they accept it nonchalantly and went
back to their daily chores with a shrug.


The Indian calendar is ingeniously based on BOTH the Sun and Moon; it uses a solar year but
divides it into 12 lunar months! In this calendar, seasons follow the Sun; months follow
the Moon; and days follow both. To help the lunar months coincide with the solar year, the
practice of inserting an extra month, called the Adhik Maas, arose which is inserted every 30
months since 60 months = 62 months.

Lunar days in the Indian calendar are called Tithis. They are calculated using the difference of
the longitudinal angle between the position of the sun and moon. Because of this, the tithi may or
may not have changed by the time the day has changed and this is why sometimes
a tithi is omitted, and at others, two consecutive days share the same.


Tithis or Days in a Lunar Calendar




Astrologically, one of the oldest Calendars followed in Hinduism, is the Saptarishi calendar
which begins from 6676 BCE (earlier referred to as BC). This version was in use in northern
India from at least the 4
th
century BCE, as witnessed by the statements of Greek and Roman
writers.

Another Indian calendar is known as the Vikram Era, or the Vikram Samvat, which began in 57
BCE. This calendar derives its name from the original king Vikramaditya of Ujjain and
the date is supposed to mark the victory of the king over the Shakas, who had invaded
Ujjain. Another calenad which is the Official Indian calendar now is known as the Saka
Calendar and starts in 78 CE.


Measurement of Time in Hinduism

The authenticity and veracity of these dates will be dealt with subsequently, but for now let
us try to understand the basic units of measurement used in ancient India. These units are
based on the method of calculation known as Kaal-ganana.

According to the principles of Indian time measurement, the smallest unit of measurement
of Time is the involuntary time taken to drop one's eyelid or the Blink of an Eye. It is
remarkable that the ancients chose such a mode of measurement because this time is
Constant for all living individuals hence does not depend on any Variables!
This unit is known as a 'Nimish'
Three Units (03) of Nimish combine to form a 'Kshan'
Five Units (05) of Kshan combine to form a 'Kashtha'
Thirty Units (30) of Kashtha combine to form a 'Kaal'
Thirty Units (30) of Kaal combine to form a 'Muhurat'
Thirty Units (30) of Muhurat then combine to form a 24 hour period known as
the'Divas-ratri'
This 24 hour period is also divided into an overlapping division called
the 'Praher' or 'Paher'.Each 12 hour period has 4 Prahers each, thereby dividing one
rotation of Earth into 8 equal parts.

Fifteen Units (15) of Divas-Ratri form a fortnight or a 'Paksh'. The bright waxing
Moon fortnight is called the Shukla Paksh and the dark waning Moon fortnight is known
as the Krishna Paksh.

Kalchakra Mandala


In one of the higher planets called Pitralok, one fortnight of humans corresponds to one
day and a similar time period counts as their night. Therefore, the Bright fortnight forms the
Day of the Pitras and the Dark one forms the Night.

Two Units (2) of Pakshs combine to form a month or a 'Masa'
Six Units (6) of Maas jointly are referred to as an 'Ayan'

The six months when Sun is in the Northern Hemisphere are called the Uttarayan and the
corresponding six in the lower hemisphere form the Dakshinayan. This bright northern
jurney of Sun forms One day of the Devas and the six human month Southern journey
forms their Night. Thus, for the demigods, One human year is equivalent to One Day-Night
period.



Calculation of Yugas

Lord Brahma's day and night are each known as a Kalpa and Brahma lives for a Hundred
such Years. One day in the life of Brahma thus comes to be close to4.32 Billion
human years!

Like our 12 hour division, each day of Brahma is divided into fourteen (14) divisions
known as the Manvantars. Each Manvantar is ruled over by a leader of mankind known as
the Manu.
Each Manvantar is further divided into 71 Mahayugas just as each hour of our day
is divided into 60 minutes.
Each Mahayuga is further sub-divided into 4 Yugas each which are -
Satyuga,Tretayuga, Dvaparyuga and Kaliyuga.

In the continuum called Mahayuga, each successive Yuga is lesser in duration than its
predecessor by 25%. Also, at the beginning and end of each Yuga, there exists
a Sandhyawhich forms 10% of the duration of that Yuga. These are the durations of the
respective Yugas:

Kritayug Yuga 4000
Sandhya 400
Sandhyansh 400
4800

Tretayug Yuga 3000
Sandhya 300
Sandhyansh 300
3600

Dwaparyug Yuga 2000
Sandhya 200
Sandhyansh 200
2400

Kaliyug Yuga 1000
Sandhya 100
Sandhyansh 100
1200

Total

12000

In Deva Years, they correspond to the durations of 4800, 3600, 2400 and 1200
respectively and since One Deva Year is equal to 360 human years, these figures become
1728000, 1296000, 864000 and 432000 respectively.





Once a Chaturyuga cycle gets over, there is a deluge which drowns the entire Earth after
which life begins anew with the next Chaturyuga/Mahayuga cycle.

When these cycles of time have repeated themselves for a 100 years of Brahma, it is time for
the creator-god to leave his mortal body as well. At the end of this Time, there is dissolution
of the entire Creation and all living as well as non-living matter is absorbed unto itself to
once again Begin at the Beginning.
.
Aum Shanti: Shanti: Shanti:




Antiquity and Continuity of Indian History
(From Swayambhuva Manu to Gupta Dynasty)

Index
Preface
1. Introduction
2. Background
3. The Myth Of The Aryan Invasion
4. RgVedic Era
5. Swayambhuva Manu
6. Vedic Homeland
7. Dasharadnya War
8. Vedics World-wide
9. The Saraswati-Sindhu Culture
10. Mahabharata Era
11. Ramayanic Era
12. Chandragupta, the Sandrocottus
13. Ashoka Priyadarshi
14. Gautam Buddha
15. Mahaveer Jain
16. Aadi Shankara
17. Chronology
18. Summary
19. Bibliography


The Vedic culture has been pervading the Indian subcontinent for a few thousand
years back from today. The antiquity and continuity of this culture has been faithfully
recorded in the oldest and grandest annals of mankind: the Rg Veda. Evidence has
come forth entirely contradicting the present held "aryan invasion" of India.
Archaeological excavations and other findings confirm the inception of the Indus
Valley civilization as Vedic. The Mahabharata and Ramayanic civilizations
flourished in the ancient past. The history of India entered the medieval ages almost
5000 years ago, and even before the advent of Christ, the quintessence of philosophy
thought and civilizational aspects of India had already been accomplished. Evidence
testifies that The Buddha and Aadi Shankara lived in 1800 B.C. and 500 B.C
respectively. The "golden age" in India was ushered in with the rise of the Gupta
dynasty. It was Chandragupta of the Guptas who reigned over the Indian empire
around 325 B.C., a time when Macedonian Alexander had invaded India.
In this article, it is attempted to derive the datelines of ancient Indian (alias Vedic)
events and heroes, starting from Swayambhuva Manu to the kings of the Gupta
dynasty. An outline of the antiquity and continuity of Vedic history is estimated,
substantiating the events with a variety of evidence, including literary and
archaeological.
1. Introduction.
The study of history forms an important part in providing an understanding and in
giving a clearer perspective of the present mental setup and cultural state of a nation
of peoples. The antiquity of a culture's history and the achievements of its peoples
provide the nation with an identity and a sense of self-esteem. The study of history
tells us the story of how a particular society behaved and reacted in the wake of
varying and trying circumstances. And history without chronology is like a person
without a backbone. Without this backbone, the person feels helpless and hopeless.
This construction and arrangement of historical facts and figures is therefore
necessary to effectively hold together and guide forward a particular society.
The chronological establishment of Indian history has been a matter of academic
contention for the past two centuries. The most difficult part of this study, until now,
was to construct an agreeable framework of chronology. It is to the credit of Sir
William Jones that a systematic study and examination of this problem was first
initiated in the late 18th century. Western scholars have done commendable and
untiring work in the field of oriental studies. The researches well-recorded by them
are of utmost importance even today.
However, within decades, the political situation in India changed and this sincere
study of history then became, in a way, a weapon to subjugate and win the people of
India. The effects of European religio-political thought also creeped into this
investigation. Inspite of the honest and genuine commencement of its study, it is quite
unfortunate that the western indologists misinterpreted the historical data available,
intentionally or by accident, and put forth theories based merely on speculation and
pre-conceived beliefs. The result was that the antiquity of many events were highly
underestimated and its continuity and greatness undermined. Nevertheless, it is quite
futile to harp over the numerous shortcomings of early historical research, the
mistakes of an era bygone.
Modern researches, methods and evidence that have become newly available however
have provided numerous definite and conclusive statements that have compelled
historians, archaeologists and academicians to ponder judiciously over the antiquity,
continuity and spread of Indian history and culture. In this article, an attempt is made
to present briefly a chronology of events based on newly available archaeological
data. Compelling observations from a variety of sources and opinions of different
scholars have been used in the course of the attempted construction. The listing and
review of evidences presented here are by no means exhaustive and the problem of
this historical compilation is definitely more complicated that it might appear.
However, the dating of some
important events and personalities is presented here and it is hoped that the readership
gets a clearer and beneficial perspective on the matter.
2. Background
The currently established chronology of India initiates with the invasion of the so-
called aryan race in 1500 B.C., which ruthlessly and forcefully subdued the original
inhabitants of the land, imposing upon them a alien language and culture. The
invading hordes settled down on the banks of river Sindhu (Indus), and within few
centuries (1200 B.C.), complied the Vedas. Subsequently, the Brahmanas, Samhitas,
Puranas and numerous other scriptures were composed. Where does the Ramayana
and Mahabharata fit in? Some say that the Ramayana follows Mahabharata and some
opine otherwise. In all this anarchy of Indian histography, the probable date of
Mahabharata ranges between 1000 B.C.to 300 B.C.
The identification of Sandrocottus (325 B.C.) of the Greeks with Chandragupta
Maurya by Sir Jones was considered to be the "sheet anchor" and based on this
assumption, a chronology of Indian history was constructed. The date when Gautam
Buddha prospered was calculated from this sheet-anchor to be around 500 B.C., and
the dateline of Aadi Shankara was put in 800 A.D. The Gupta Dynasty, whose reign
ushered a Golden Age in India, were placed in the 4th century A.D.
Examination of the Rg Veda, Puraan and other texts provide dates of events that took
Indian history, at times, back to thousands of years. However, since these dates
contradicted the prevalent views of European historians, the Sanskrit texts were
academically attacked in an attempt to disprove the authenticity of the contents. For
example, the European Indologist Max Muller, tried the interpret the astronomical
evidences to prove that the observations recorded in the Hindu scriptures are
imaginary, "pious frauds" created by the cunning Brahmanas. Numerous references
which were anachronous to the particular time-frames were considered as unauthentic
and unreliable. No attempt was made to re-check and re-evaluate the presumptions
and a basis on which the present chronological structure was built.
It is now seen that the history of India and its sub-continent can be continuously
traced back to thousands of years, as will be presented in the paragraphs to follow.
This article examines the evidence leading to the dating to many events that occurred
at different times: right from the Rg Vedaic age to the pre-christian golden-age of the
Hindus, a period when the Gupta dynasty ruled over India. One of the main erred
events,( which apparently is the genesis of Indian history, that is, the invasion of the
aryans from outside) is described briefly in the following section.
3. The Myth of the Aryan Invasion
The theory of the aryan invasion of India has been a matter of debate, and at times,
incisive arguments have been presented for and against it. According to this theory,
the light-skinned aryan people wandered into India in the 2nd millennium B.C. from
Central Asia. The barbaric aryan race then destroyed an already existing and advanced
Harappan civilization, conquered it and laid the foundations of a foreign imposition of
language and culture on India. This supposedly marked the beginning of the
development of a Vedic culture, or what is called Hinduism today.
The hypothesis of an aryan invasion is apparently based on the conflicts between
light-skinned aryans and dark race of dasyus described in Vedic literature. This
aspect is said to have been strengthened by the skeletal findings in the excavated sites
in the Indus Valley. When the Rg Veda (2:20:10.) refers to "Indra, the slayer of Vritra,
destroying the Krishna Yoni Dasyus", it is held as a proof that the "invading arryans"
exterminating the "dar aboriginals". However, other references in the Rg Veda
(10:1:11., 8:85:3., 2:3:9.) suggest that the Indians were a mixed race and also, no
stigma was attached to any non-white complexion. Therefore to imagine the invading
aryans to be a white race is suspicious. According to Saayana, the word dasyu derives
from the word "das", i.e., "one who harms". The Rg Veda (6:22:10.) prays to Indra to
give glory by which the dasyus can become arya's, that is, changing the dasyus to
ideal and cultured human beings.
Many a scholar and historian have acknowledged the discrepancies, raised objections
and rejected the theory of aryan invasion since its inception in the early 19th century.
According to historian Wheeler (in his "Civilization of Indus Valley and Beyond"),
"..the [Aryan Invasion] cannot be proved and may be quite incorrect".
Also, Murrow in his book "The Sanskrit Language" comments," For the Indo-Aryan
invasion of India no direct evidence is available... In the text of the Rg Veda itself,
although historical allusions are not uncommon, there is no reference anywhere to the
fact of the migration, nor any definite indication that it was still remembered." Indian
Vedic scholars like Dayanand Saraswati, B.G. Tilak and Sri Arvind had already
rejected the aryan invasion theory based mostly on literary analysis. In spite of having
no evidence to support this doctrine, it is amusing to know how academics held on to
this dogma.
The unobservant reading of the Rg Veda and its subsequent misinterpretation led to
the doctrines of "class" and "colour" struggles among the ancient Indians; an
appropriate tool to justify marxist ideals and european racial theories. This doctrine of
aryan invasion has been used as a perfect tool to divide the Hindu society and the
Indian state. The north-indian aryans were then pit against the south-indian
dravidians, high-castes against low-castes, mainstream Hindus against the tribals,
Vedic orthodoxy against the "native" heterodox sects and later, to neutralize Hindu
criticism of forced Islamic occupation as "Hindus themselves have entered the same
way as Muslims have". Till today, the Marxist and "secularist" forces continue to
promote this theory and extract propagandist capital out of it.
Recent advances in archaeological, linguistic and astronomical research have also
compelled the abandoning of the current view of the aryan invasion and the falsely
speculated antiquity of the Vedic civilization. The excavated ruins of the submerged
city of Dwaraka by Dr. S.R.Rao and his team in 1985 (Marine Archaeological Unit),
along the coast of Gujarat, provides authenticity for the existence of the Mahabharata
civilization (3000 B.C.). Satellite data combined with field archaeological studies
have discovered now disappeared river Saraswati, which appears extensively in the
Vedic literature. The study also showed that the river flow discontinued much earlier
than 3000 B.C. The deciphering of the Indus script by S.R.Rao shows a amazing
affinity with the Sanskrit family and analysis of the seals have put forth numerous
words and names from the Vedic age. It indeed becomes evident that the harappan
culture was a part and parcel and continuation of an earlier Vedic age: an age that
existed much prior to 3000 B.C.
As opposed to any racial connotation, the word "arya" is a honorific title and was used
for people who were cultivated in mind and character, a person whose way of life
aims at elevating the individual soul through a disciplined life to godhood(Mukhti).
Sri Arvind in his celebrated book "The Supramental Manifestation and Other
Writings" explains : "..the word Arya expressed a particular ethical and social ideal,
an ideal of well-governed life, candour, courtesy, nobility, straight dealing, courage,
gentleness, purity, humanity,compassion, protection of the weak, liberality,
observance of social duty, eagerness of knowledge, respect for the wise and learned,
the social accomplishments. It was the combined ideal of the Brahmana and the
Kshatriya. Everything that departed from this ideal, everything that tended towards
the ignoble, mean, obscure, rude, cruel or false, was termed un-aryan or anarya
(colloq. anari). There is no word in human speech that has a nobler history.."
Rama and Krishna have been addressed as arya, as are many other people in the Rg
Vedic era, the antiquity of which is considered in the next section.
4. Rg Vedic Era
The Rg Veda is not a work of the original and the descendants of the aryan nomads,
but exhibits a great degree of philosophical thought and advanced knowledge about
astronomy. The Rg Veda, Samhitas and other related Vedic literature have
documented the seasons and related changes occurring over a certain epoch in time.
Astronomical configurations are also chronicled. The evaluation of these annals
enable the determination of the periods when the particular configurations occured.
Examinations of the recent archaeological findings also appear to support these
datelines.
The analysis of astronomical references in the Taiteriya Brahman (3:1:15), where
Brushaspati (Jupiter) crossed the Pushya constellation, gives a date of 4650 B.C. The
Aiteriya Brahmana points to dates to the order of 6000 B.C. From the calculation of
the vernal equinox cycle, the Taiteriya Samhita provides dates that reach as far as
22000 B.C (Ref: Vartak, Tilak).
In his book "Are the Gathas pre-vedic" H.S.Spencer quotes another scholar stating
that "Dhanista was the first of the naskshatras in the Rg Vedic times and this takes us
back to 21788 B.C., at least, to the origin of the Rg Veda."
According to Dr. B.M. Sidhartha, director of the Birla Science Center, "Rg Veda ..
was a product of a well-settled civilization going back to 8000 B.C. and beyond on the
basis of astronomical dating .. and supported by archaeological excavations in south
eastern Turkey... the more antique date of 10,000 B.C. proposed for Rg Veda or Vedic
culture seemed more plausible in view of the epi-paleolithic agricultural and proto-
agricultural civilizations going back to the same period ..." (TOI, August 2, 1993).
These datelines were already proposed by Tilak when he says, " The Vedic hymns
were sung in post-glacial times (8000 B.C.) by poets who had inherited their
knowledge or contents thereof from their antediluvian forefathers". B.G. Tilak has
done some extraordinary work of deciphering the concealed astronomical allusions in
the ancient Vedic texts.
The geological discovery of the mighty Vedic river Saraswati,
which originally flowed somewhat parallel to Indus, dried up around 2000 B.C. Now
the Rg Veda speaks of a mighty Saraswati and it is in much later literature that we
hear of the disappearance of the river. It is definitely known that the Vedas are much
older than the Mahabharata period (3100 B.C.) This establishes that the Rg Veda itself
could not be later than the 4th millennium B.C. A paper presenting technical evidence
concerning a newly discovered bronze idol states, " The life sized head has a hair style
which the Vedas describe as being unique to Vasishtha, one of the Rishis who
composed parts of Rg Veda ... Carbon 14 tests indicate that it was cast around 3700
B.C., with an error in either direction of upto 800 years .. an age also confirmed by
independent metallurgical tests" (J. of Indo-European Studies, v.18, 1990, p.425-46).
More and more archaeological findings are coming forth that place the Vedic age to
remote antiquity.
An assessment of the Vedic literature thus provides a chronology of events in steps of
2000 years, starting from the early period of the Rg Veda (23,000 B.C.) upto the
occurance of the Mahabharata War, a period when Vedvyas compiled the scattered
Vedic knowledge into four parts. It is also worthy to note that the Indian history can
be traced continuously from 29,000 B.C., when the great law-giver Swayambhuva
Manu, flourished.
5. Swayambhuva Manu
A majority of events available in the chronicles provide ages from the beginning of
the Kali yuga, and as such, fixing this date becomes necessary. The precise moment
for advent of the Kali Yuga (3102 B.C) has been reckoned based from references in
the Mahabharata as well as from the literature provided by Varahamihira, Kalhana,
Arya Bhatta, Vruddha Garga and also the Puranic annals. Count Bijornstierna in his
"The Theogony of Hindus", has aptly summarized on the calculation of Kali Yuga
Thus, "According to the astronomical calculations of the Hindus, the present period of
the world, Kali Yugaa, commenced 3102 years before the birth of Christ, on 20th
February, at 2 hours, 27 minutes and 30 seconds ..." However, for the sake of
convenience in calculations, only 3102 B.C is assumed.
The current Varaaha Kalpa (one period of time) begins with the reign of
Swayambhuva Manu, or the self-born Man, who revived and established the Veda. In
this particular Kalpa, 14 Manu's will appear. The period of one chatur-yuga cycle,
which begins with a Manu, comprises of 12000 human years. However, to denote the
endlessness of Lord's creation, the Puraan have multiplied the above period by 360, to
get 4320000 "divine" years. And further multiplying these by 71, the Manavantara
period is calculated.
Therefore, going backwards from 3102 B.C., the beginning for this chaturyuga period
(2400 for Dwaapar, 3600 for Treta and 4800 for Kruta = 10,800) would be 10,800
years before Kali, i.e., at 13902 B.C. approximately, a time when Vaivasvata Manu
(leader of the present chatur-yuga) flourished. The Brahmanda Puraan (1:2:9) states
that Swayambhuva Manu, the king for the current Kalpa, lived 71 (divya) yuga before
(Kali yuga). One divya-yuga is 360 human years, and therefore Swayambhuva Manu's
date is calculated to be about 31000 years before present (360*71 + 3102 + 1996).
These datelines for Vaivasvata and Swayambhuva Manu are corroborated from the
Matsya Puraan (129-76, 77) as well. B.G.Tilak in his "Orion" has calculated 29101
B.C., using astronomical data, as the time when Swayambhuva Manu existed, which
tallies remarkably with the date suggested by the Puraan.
According to the Puraan's, 52 generations had elapsed between Swayambhuva and
Vaivasvata, i.e, over a period of 15200 years. Each generation must therefore be 290
years long. Chakshusha Manu, the sixth descendent of Swayambhuva, is said to be 12
generations elder to Vaivasvata and therefore going backwards, his date can be
calculated to be about (14000 + 12290) 17500 B.C. One very famous king Pruthu,
from whom this earth "Pruthvi" derives its name, is known to be 5th in line from
Chakshushu. His date therefore comes to roughly 16050 B.C.
The institution of Manu was to revive, re-establish and promote ethical and moral
principles amongst humanity. They were the pace-setters of the time, a stature with
which they even influenced the rulers of the time. The Puraan however do not record
any Manu's appearing after Vaivasvata Manu. Their geographical locations are a
matter of further research, however, the following section on "Vedic Homeland" may
provide some clues in that regard.
6. Vedic Homeland
The exact location and expanse of the Vedic culture is still a matter of speculation and
discussion. As of today's theory, the span of ancient Vedic culture has primarily been
limited to Punjab, the five-river region of northwest India. It is beyond any doubt that
the Vedic culture existed in the land of Punjab, however, this fact does not exclude its
existence elsewhere.
B.G.Tilak is his "The Arctic Home in the Vedas" has provided an incredible
understanding and presentation of the Rg Vedic geography and argues for a polar
home for the Vedic aryans before the advent of glaciation. Tilak notes, "in the early
geological ages, when the Alps were low and the Himalayas not yet upheaved ... from
geological evidence of fossil and fauna, we find that an equable climate and uniform
climate prevailed over the whole surface of the globe .. it is now conclusively proved
that before the advent of a glacial and inter-glacial periods a luxuriant forest
vegetation ... flourished in the high latitude of the polar regions where the Sun goes
below the horizon from November till march, thus showing that a warm climate
prevailed in the Arctic regions in those days". Tilak quotes many passages from the
Vedic as well as Avestan literature which show acquaintance with these polar
characteristics. According to geological evidence the post-glacial epoch commenced
in about 8000 B.C. The freshness of Siberian fossils also testify to this event.
When the original land near the arctic regions was found unsuitable for human
habitation, the survivors of the glacial tragedy appear to have moved down to the
south of their earlier home. The Vendidad contains a picturesque description of
different regions to which these people seem to have moved. The Lord of the Avesta,
Ahur Mazdeo (Asur Mahadeo) is said to have created sixteen such regions. The
original population appears to have split into different groups which moved in
different directions. Scholars concur that the verses in the Avesta are full of aryan
glory, and are composed in the same meters as the Rg Veda. So the ancient
Brahmanas and Parsis were two tribes of one nation, called the Aryas, both in the
Vedaand Avesta. Of the sixteen lands, the "best region" created by the Lord was the
Sapta-Sindhu region: a vast region stretching to the east and west of the river Sindhu
(Indus, hence Arya-Varta).
The river Saraswati, Harahwati of Avesta, is regarded as the most central and is
intimately mentioned in the Rg Veda, and even a cursory examination of the text
suggests that the Vedics lived on the banks of the "great goddess stream". According
to David Frawley (G, S & K, pp.73), it has now be found that Saraswati changed its
course at least four times and originally flowed into the sea through what is now
known as Rajasthan. The river Saraswati is also identified as the modern river Syr-
Darya joining the Aral Sea to the North. For the river to change course four times
must have taken at least a few thousands of years, until the river reduced to a
insignificant tributary at the time of Mahabharata (3138 B.C.).
This takes the Vedic age to remote antiquity, at least to a few thousand years.
Most of the sites of the Indus-Valley Culture fall to the east of river Sindhu and
appear to be found on the banks of the Saraswati, when the course of this river was
already on its decline. It is stated in the Rg Veda (10:75:6) that river Kubha (Kabul)
joins river Saraswati along with other rivers. It is therefore apparent that the Saraswati
in the pre-Indus era must be flowing west from present-day Afghanistan-Iran area
towards the west. Therefore based on the internal evidence appearing in the Rg Veda
and Avesta, the central-land of the Vedic aryans can now be located in Afghanistan,
Iran and other regions to their north and east. According to the Rg Veda (8:24:27), the
land where the Vedics had their hey-day is a Sapta-Sindhu Pradesh or the Hapta-
Hindu Pradesh of the Avesta.
There are references of people migrating to the east of Sindhu and not the other way
around. Thus the land watered by the rivers Saraswati, Sindhu, Sharayu, Rasa, Oxus,
Helmand and one more river to the west of Sindhu, territory covering regions to the
west of Sindhu, was perhaps the home of the Vedic people for a long time.
The Vedics appear to have migrated on the banks of Sindhu after the mighty
Saraswati began to desiccate. After having established their stronghold along the
Sindhu region, they moved further to the east to the Ganga-Yamuna region and later
to the South. Rishi Agastya, brother of Sage Vasistha, is reputed to be the first
colonizer of the South. Also, the names and customs of Mittani and Hittite (Iraq,
Turkey region) peoples to the west of river Sindhu show a close affinity to the Vedics.
A clay tablet found near Ankara invokes gods like Indra, Varun, etc. The landmarks
occurring in the Vedic lore, customs and language extend in the east from Ganga-
Yamuna to Oxus river which joins the Aral sea in the west, which forms a
considerable part of the globe. It should be realized that the Vedas are a heritage of
mankind which record and preserve the human development for at least a few
thousand years.
After the migration from the north, the Vedics settled in the Sapta-Sindhu region,
which also included the present-day Iran. The incidents depicted in the Rg Veda, and
even the language, thought and expression, shows a remarkable similarity with the
Persian Avesta. It is of no dispute that the Zarathustran people of Iran (and also the
Greeks) are closely linked or lived together with the Vedics in the past. However,
another major event, as recorded in the Rg Veda, appears to have caused a further
separation between the Vedics living in the Sapta-Sindhu region.
7. Dasharadnya War
The Dasharadnya war (War of ten kings) took place between Chayamana, king of
Abhivarta - identified in south-eastern Iran - and King Sudas, son of Divodasa, who
presided over a kingdom to the east of Sindhu. As far as the Vedic evidence goes,
after his victory over Chayamana, Sudas founded an empire on the banks of the
Ganga along with Vashistha, Vishwamitra and others, whose impact later spread
eastwards and southwards. The influence of these triumphant Bharatas (Sudas) over
the Iranian (Chayamana) counterparts subsequently weakened in course of time.
Thereafter, the Iranians appear to have developed a particular way of life under the
advise of Sage Zarathustra, improving on the Vedic sacrificial religion and yet
retaining fire worship. The Vedics in Afghanistan however maintained their relations
with those to their east, until a recent past, till the advent of Islam in these regions.
The Dasyus were then the residents of some mountainous regions in Iran, a very
respectable people, who appear to have become Zarathustra's followers, since the
latter is referred to as Dakhyuma (the temporal Lord) and Dakhyuma Suro (in Avesta,
Fr.Yashta.90). It is notable that he is called Suro (Sur) - the learned - as opposed to
Asur.
These 'Asur'ians however were in turn the residents of Mesopotamia (Assyria)
situated on the banks of river Euphrates. According to the Rg Veda, the Dasyus were
believing in false gods and were inhuman (7:59:11) and it is that Zarathustra, the
pious and learned one, was trying to bring these people into the aryan way of life.
Spencer gives details from Malcom's "History of Ancient Persia" and states that for
2598 years some four dynasties ruled over Persia from Yama Vivanghao (Yama
Vaivaswat in Sanskrit) in whose time the Deluge commenced, i.e., in 9844 B.C. The
rule of these four dynasties ended therefore in approximately 7200 B.C. By this time,
Kai Vishtaspa became ruler of Persia. Sage Kaksivan (RV 1-122-13) speaks of one
Istasva who is identified with Vishtaspa by E.S.Bharuca (quoted by Hodivala). This
king is supposed to have ruled for 120 years, and so his period can be fixed to about
7100 B.C. Iranian Zarathustra was a contemporary of king Vishtaspa, and therefore
his date can be worked out to be around 7100 B.C. On the basis of astronomy,
Spencer determines Zarathustra's date to be in between 7388 to 7052 B.C., coinciding
with the dates determined above. This apparently is also the approximate date for the
occurrence of the Dasharadnya War. This War also appears to have set the Vedics
living in the Sapta-Sindhu homeland towards the North, South, East and West
directions.
Therefore, based on the internal evidence from the Rg Veda and Avesta, the
boundaries of Chayamana's kingdom were: on the west, the Caspian Sea and the river
Oxus - one of the sapta-sindhu rivers now named as Amu-darya (as the Greeks
Herodotus and Strabo lay down, that this sea and the nearby mountain Caucasus got
their names from Sage Kaspios, obviously a reference to Sage Kashyapa of the Rg
Veda) and on the North the mountain ranges Pamir; on the east spreading over an area
a little beyond Hindukush and the eastern most tributary of the Sindhu - the Shatudri
(Sutlej) and the Ganga and on the south, the Arabian sea.
8. Vedics World-Wide
From the foregoing discussion, it is now realized that the Vedics, after leaving their
original habitat in the North, spread downwards settling down in various parts of the
earth. Right from Turkey and Egypt, the Vedics covered the region between the
Caucasian mountains and Caspian Sea down to Syria, Palestine and the ancient
Persian kingdoms of Babylon, Sumer, Ur, Kassite and towards Afghanistan,
Azerbaizan and then crossing the Hindukush mountains towards east into the present
day India.
An impetus to the spread and severance between the sapta-sindhu homeland of
Vedics then came about after the Dasharadnya War - the spread towards Greece and
northwards. Renfrew allows a date as early as 6000 B.C. for the migration of Vedic
aryans into Europe ("The Origins of Indo- European Languages, Sc.Amer, Oct, 1989).
That the Vedics had migrated to Egypt is also suggested from the geographical
references in the Puraan. S.M.Ali in his "Geography of the Puranas" writes that "they
(Vedics) had knowledge of the geography of the then known world. It is clear from
the reference to Nile in the Vayu Purana".
Also, Prof. Brugsch Bey writes aboutthe Egyptian civilization in "History of Egypt"
(quoted by
K.Venkatachalam in "Age of Buddha", p.76) that "We have a right to more than
suspect that India, eight thousand years ago, sent a colony of emigrants who carried
their arts and high civilization into what is now known to us as Egypt. The Egyptians
came, according to their records, from a mysterious land (now known to lie on the
shores of the Indian ocean) ... led by Amen, Hor, Hathor (Brahma, Hari, Rudra)..."
These statements justify the "Aryam Krunwanto Vishwam" (We will spread the Arya
culture through out the world) slogan of the Vedic people.
Tilak in "Orion" mentions that the Greeks, who were worshippers of the Sun (Mitra),
separated from their Vedic brethren about 3500 B.C. These perhaps were the people
who moved westwards from the Caspian sea (as the Greeks Herodotus and Strabo lay
down, that this sea and the nearby mountain Caucasus got their names from Sage
Kaspios, obviously a reference to Sage Kashyapa of the Rg Veda). Pococke writes in
"India in Greece" (quoted in Age of Buddha, by K.Venkatachalam, p.75), "The early
civilization, the early arts, the indubitably early literature of India are equally the
civilization of, the arts, and literature of Egypt and of Greece; for geographical
references conjoined to historical facts and religious practices, now prove beyond all
dispute than the latter countries are the colonies of the former". The Greeks (and
Egyptians) derived their cosmogony from the Hindus is apparent from their respective
literature (Deshpandey, "Bharat: As seen and known by foreigners").
An assessment of the spread of the Vedic culture in conjunction with the study of the
ancient literature, history, arts, philosophy, cosmogony, etc. of peoples worldwide
inculcates sufficient doubt, and perhaps an cogent argument, to the pervasive
influence of the Vedic aryan thought. Count Bjornstierna in his book "The Theogony
of the Hindus" (p.168) rightly judges and summarizes, "No nation on earth can vie
with the Hindus in respect of the antiquity of their religion. It is there (i.e. Aryavarta)
we must seek the cradle for the brahmin religion but for the cradle of high civilization
of the Hindus, which gradually extended itself in the west to Ethiopia, to Egypt, to
Phoenicia, in the east to Siam, to China and to Japan, in the south to Ceylon, to Java
and to Sumatra, and in the north to Persia, to Chaldia and to Colchis, whence it came
to Greece and to Rome and at length to the remote abode of the Hyperboreans".
Charles Vallency quotes Sir William Jones as saying "It has been proved by clear
evidence and plain reasoning that a powerful monarchy was established in Iran, long
before the Assyrian or Pishdadi government; that it was in truth a Hindu monarchy ...
that is subsisted many centuries.." (Collectania De Rebus Hibernicus, p.465). Pococke
observes, "that a system of Hinduism pervaded the whole Babylonian and Assyrian
empires" (India in Greece, p.178). It is obvious that west asia, as was observed earlier,
was very much a part of the massive Vedic empire.
There are a number of references and admittances to the antiquity of the Vedic
culture, that the Hindus were the parent of the literature and theogony of the world
(W.D.Brown quoted in Bharat: As seen and known by foreigners", p.13), that the
world thought was influenced by Hindu philosophy, and finally, according to Max
Muller (in "History of Ancient Sanskrit Literature") the Vedas are the oldest books in
existence ... and it carries us back to times of which we have no records anywhere".
The expanse and pervasiveness of the Vedic thought is simply amazing and
remarkable. P.N.Oak in his celebrated book "World Vedic Heritage" provides an
exhaustive account of the vedics worldwide.
The Vedics seem to have settled in northern (and even in the South) India long before
the Dasharadnya War (7000 B.C.). Divodasa, father of Sudas, had an empire in the
regions of Punjab. The mountains of Himalayas and the land of Kashmir are praised
in the Rg Veda. The Vedic settlements on the fertile banks of the Saraswati-Sindhu
rivers, and their influence has reached to the far-east and south of India as well.
9. The Saraswati-Sindhu Culture (SSC)
A flourishing civilization along the banks of Indus (Sindhu) river, called the Indus-
valley civilization, has been an enigma after its excavation in the early 20th century.
In spite of the intensive research conducted, many questions about this civilization yet
remain to be answered. However, it has been maintained that this advanced culture
had a non-aryan identity, destroyed by the invading aryans. However, an examination
of the artifacts located at the unearthed sites present an different opinion.
The ethnic identity of the SSC folks, whether they were aryans or non-aryans has been
addressed. It is assumed that these cities succumbed to the invasions of the so-called
aryans and that the Vedic god Indra carried out all the destruction. Archaeologist
Dales points that there is no destruction level covering the latest period of
Mohenjodaro, no sign of extensive burning, no armour-clad warriors and no weapons
are conspicuously absent. He states, "Enemy of the Harappans was nature and abetted
by Harappans themselves, who accelerated the spoliation of the landscape - Thus
ended one of the three civilizations of antiquity. Indra and the barbarian hordes are
exonerated" (quoted by Possehl in "Ancient Cities of the Indus", 1979). The invasion
theory does not stand an anthropological scrutiny, since studies of the SSC population
prove the genetic and somatic homogeneity of all. The Vedic literature even though
details many other things, does not speak of any "formidable civilization" presenting
an extensive fortified front to the aryan invaders. There was no aryan invasion and
therefore no massacre of the population at Mohenjodaro.
In Mohenjodaro, a tablet dated 2600 B.C. is found which depicts Lord Krishna in his
childhood days (Agrawal, V.S., "India in the days of Panini", 1953). This shows that
Lord Krishna was popular at least prior to this date, and also that the Indus Valley
culture was not destroyed by any outsiders. This culture was in continuity with the
Vedic culture prevalent on the banks of river Saraswati and Sindhu from ancient
times. The disappearance of these settlements seems to have caused by natural
calamities, by earthquakes, flooding and perhaps, change in course of rivers.
The picture of the SSC that emerges is of huge dimensions, a superb religious-cultural
and trade empire spanning area of continental sizes. Small settlements and a few city-
centers of enormous size are also seen. These sites have been marked by a presence
of planned township, typical pottery and other artifacts. At Mehrgrah, charred remains
of wheat, barley and oats have been found along with milling stones. Among floral
remains, the finding of cotton seeds forming part of cultivated crops is notable.
The motifs like Pipal leaf, which attained deification in the later stages of the Veda,
and Swastika which are supposed to be religious are found in some pre-SS sites,
suggesting a continuity of from the Vedic culture. Sacrificial fire-alters and geometric
designs are found in most sites suggesting a Vedic religio-ritualistic lifestyle of the
people. A full set of terracotta figures in Yogic and greeting postures in the Indian
posture are found at Mohenjo-daro and Harapppa. One famous seal found at the sites
is that of Pashupati, a human figure with headgear of horns in seated in a
contemplative yogic posture and surrounded by animals. He has been identified as
Rudra, the later Mahadeva. An Atharvavedic hymn (2:34), attributed to Pashupati
himself, exactly describes this seal. Due to mutual cultural and trade contacts, these
SSC seals, weights and beads have been found in Ur, Kish and some parts of Sumeria.
The most enigmatic and baffling aspect of the Saraswati-Sindhu culture has been their
script. Due to a belief in aryans overriding the "dravida" culture, attempts have been
made to decipher SS symbols into some form of a dravidian script. Recently, Dr.Rao
has convincingly deciphered the script and it is a form of Sanskrit beyond any doubt,
perhaps, a form of Brahmi from which the current devanagari script has evolved. This
view is being accepted by many scholars. The conclusion appears to fit in the logic
since the Harappa culture is only in continuance with the earlier Vedic culture.
However, since there was continuous contact between the Vedic folks and Sumerians,
Phoenicians, etc. is possible that the SS script contains alphabetics from the semitic
scripts. The migration of indo-europeans along with the Indians from their common
habitat explains the close relationship between different scripts.
The SSC culture was anything but a part and parcel of the earlier Vedic civilization,
and also, an antecedent to the Hindu culture that followed. The Saraswati-Sindhu
phase represents a stage of development, gathered from C-14 dating techniques of
various objects at different sites, during the period between 3000 B.C. to about 2100
B.C. (Possehl, Ed., Ancient Cities of the Indus, 1979), a little later than the
Mahabharata civilization.
The datelines for the Mahabharata age have been well researched by numerous
scholars. For events prior to Mahabharat, only estimated dates are available and those
like Ramayana , at least for now, can only be estimated from the Mahabharata epoch.
It is with this consideration that the time for the Mahabharata era is established, even
though Ramayanic era is known to have occurred prior to Mahabharat.
10. Mahabharata Era
The Mahabharata has exercised a continuous and pervasive influence on the Indian
mind for millennia. The Mahabharat, originally written by Sage Ved Vyas in
Sanskrut, has been translated and adapted into numerous languages and a variety of
expressions and interpretations have been derived from it. Dating back to "remote
antiquity", it is still a living force in the life of the Indian masses. European scholars
have maintained that the events described in the ancient Sanskrut texts are imaginary
and subsequently, the Mahabharata derives to be a fictitious tale of a war fought
between two rivalries.
The dating of the Mahabharata has been a topic of research for the past several years.
Various dates have been estimated referring to astronomical recordings, lineagial
references, archaeological findings and other evidences. Encoding of the astronomical
recordings in the text, the only way to provide time precision upto a day, or even less,
have been performed by numerous mathematicians in the past. From the Vishnu
Puraan (4:24:108,113) it is known that the Kali Age started with the death of Shree
Krishna of the Mahabharata Age, the time for which is precisely known to be
2:27':30", February 20, 3102 B.C.
From internal evidences from the Mahabharata text, the coronation of Yudhisthira can
be determined to be 36 years before Kali Yuga, i.e., 3138 B.C. There are other
pointers in the epic text itself that lead to the same date (Udyog Parva: 142-18). One
scholar, Dr. Shriram Sathe, has evaluated the opinions of numerous experts on the
dating of the Mahabharat, a majority of whom appear to concur with the 3100 B.C.
dateline and therefore this time frame can be safely accepted. Among others, one
scholar Dr. Patnaik has done commendable work in this regard. He has calculated the
date of the starting of the Mahabharata War to be October 16, 3138 B.C. from textual
references available in the epic text. However, many others have calculated dates
many years before 3100 B.C. Dr. P.V. Vartak from Pune, Bharat (India) has shown, in
his book "Swayambhu" that the Great War to have initiated on 16th October 5561
B.C.
Greek records, like the ancestral links of Megasthenes to Shree Krishna, also provide
some corroborating evidence to the 3100 B.C. date. Archaeologists have been
successful in excavating Dwaraka, an important city during the Mahabharata era and
Krishna's abode, which is said to have submerged into the sea around 2500 B.C.
Mahabharat therefore precedes this date, and 3100 B.C. seems quite correct.
The remote antiquity of the Great War leads to a paucity or unavailability of
archaeological records. However, archaeological evidence (Dwaraka, River
Saraswati), inscriptions found at various places (Aihole, Belgaum, Nidhanpur), Greek
records (Megasthenes), etc. provide interesting clues to the dateline of the
Mahabharat. On one of the excavations obtained from the Egyptian Pyramid, dated to
3000 B.C, is found engraved a verse from the Bhagavad Geeta "vasanvsi jeernani
yatha vihaya, navani ghrunnati naro parani" (Nava Bharat Times, 18-4-67). A tablet
found in the Mohenjodaro sites depicts Lord Krishna and is dated to be 2600 B.C
(Mackay's report, Part 1).
This finding confirms two things: Mahabharata must have definitely occurred before
that date, and that the people of the Saraswati-Sindhu culture knew of Lord Krishna.
Also, according to B.B. Lal, horse bones, vestiges of the Ashwamedh, have been
discovered at Hastinapur. There is further stratigraphical evidence at Hastinapur
showing the flood level at the times of Nichakshu, sixth in line from Parikshit which
has been mentioned in the Puranas. Thus calculating backwards, the date of
Yudhisthira/Mahabharata can be determined.
The dating of the Mahabharata is also significant in fixing the dates of the Vedantic
(Upanishadic) texts, the famous Bhagavad Geeta and the Brahma Sutras. It is known
that the end of the Vedic school of thought was marked by the composition of the
Vedanta by Sage Ved Vyas, the illustrious author of the Mahabharata text
(Rajgopalachari, "Indian Philosophy"). The basis of yogic school of thought, the
Sankhya Yoga, has been mentioned by Lord Krishna in the famous Bhagavad Geeta
discourse. This philosophy of Sankhya and other five schools of thought, definitely
preceded the Upanishadic alias Vedantic expositions. All these schools known to have
been inspired by the Vedic teachings, and were extant much prior to 3100 B.C.
The Brahma Sutras, which propound the essence of the Vedantic thought, were also
composed by the illustrious Ved Vyas during the Mahabharata Era. Some Samhitas
(eg.Taitiriya) and Brahmanas (eg. Taitiriya) also fall into the same period of ancient
history (Vartak, "Swayambhu"). Many other Brahmanas (eg. Shatpath), Samhitas
(eg.Sushrut), Shreemad Bhagwat etc. were 'composed' after the Mahabharata War.
The chronological span of Indian history finishes its ancient epoch with the
Mahabharata War and 5000 years have elapsed subsequently into the "new" age.
Since the age of the Mahabharata War is now quite correctly known, it may very well
serve as a convincing benchmark to relate and date other and related events in Indian
history.
11. Ramayanic Era
Ramayana precedes the Mahabharata by simple reason that the genealogies of the
personalities in the Mahabharata can be traced back to those in the Ramayanic Era
(Ikshwaku, Kuru) and not otherwise. Detailed genealogical connections of the
characters in the Ramayanic Era to those in the Mahabharata Era are also known.
Also, the Ramayana is known to have occurred in the Treta Yug(a), which antecedes
Dwaapar period when the Mahabharata took place. However, the exact dating of the
Rama's accomplishments has been unattempted and undecided as of today. However,
it is suggested that it may have occurred 2 millennia before the Mahabharata (from
available lineages) and 5100 B.C therefore becomes the approximate dateline.
The Mahabharata contains list of kings and family histories of the heroes of that era
(eg. Pandav), which when traced back can provide an estimate of Shree Rama's era. It
is unfortunate that not much work has been done of the dating of Ramayanic events.
The conservative date of that era falls to about 4500 B.C, about 1500 years beyond the
Mahabharata age, which is altogether not impossible a date. Dr. Vartak, using
astronomical recordings in the Ramayana, has reckoned Rama's birth date to be 4th
December 7323 B.C., approximately 1800 years prior to the Mahabharata dateline
which he calculates (5561 B.C.). Assuming his lineage determinations are a correct
estimate, and knowing that Mahabharata occurred in 3100 B.C., an approximate age
when the Ramayana flourished can be reckoned to be around 5000 B.C. Dr.Vartak's
calculations have been presented in his celebrated book "Vastav Ramayana ". Tilak
summarizes (in "Orion") other researches stating that the Ramayana , from
astronomical calculations, might have occured between 5000-6000 B.C.
Some clues from Sumerian clay tablets, Isin and Kish chronicles which approximate
the date of the first king (Ukhu == Iksh-vaku) of the first dynasty of Sumeria to be
8350 B.C. Waddell states that the names of kings in the above records remarkably
tally to those of Indian Solar and Lunar dynasties. This suggests the antiquity of the
Solar dynasty, and the genealogies can be followed to determine Shree Rama's Era. It
is known from Shrimad Bhagvat that Shree Rama was (approx.) 75th in Ikshwaku
lineage and that 60 generations passed between Shree Rama and Shree Krishna.
Assuming 40 years for each generation (people lived longer at that time), and
assuming the first Ikshwaku king at 8350 B.C, we see that Ramayana falls at about
5350 B.C and Mahabharata at 3000 B.C., the latter which is known. Ramayanic date
therefore falls at about 5300 B.C.
The deities in the Ramayanic era (eg: Varun, Rudra, Marutgan, Indra) are similar to
those (mentioned) in the Vedas. These deities are altogether different from those
during the Mahabharata time. Ramayana therefore must have occurred when the Rg
Veda (one of its stages) was being composed. Tilak, Ketkar, etc. have calculated the
last phases of Rg Veda to be between 6000-4000 B.C. Ramayana could have occurred
during this time, or even earlier.
Tradition informs that Mahabharata occurred at the end of Dwaapar Yuga and
Ramayana at the end of Treta Yuga. However, if the Kali Era itself spans 432,000
years and Dwaapar two times that, how can then Ramayana occur in 5500 B.C ? One
theory by Swami Yukteshwar (derived from Hindu texts) gives 4800 years for the
Satya Yuga, 3600 for Treta, 2400 for Dwappar and 1200 years for Kali (cycle of
12000*2 years=24000 years). Dwapaar has 2000 years, with 200 years of "sandhee"
period on either sides. Now, assuming Kali Yuga began in 3102 B.C, the beginning of
Dwapaar concludes to be around 5300 B.C. Subtracting the "sandhee" between
Dwaapar and Treta, the end of Treta comes to around 5500 B.C., which is closer to
Shree Ram's date estimated above.
Incidently, the Ramayana has been conveniently linked with the premise of the aryan
invasion of India, apparently, a story of the aryan conquests of south India; Rama
being the ugly aryan engaged in subjugating Ravana's dravidasthan. In that case,
Rama must have been an Iranian invading Lanka, i.e., Mohenjodaro and Kishkinda
(the above of the Vaanara community) therefore may be placed somewhere in
Pakistan. This construction of geography puts us in endless trouble. On the other
hand, due to their dark hue, Rama and Krishna are classified as dravidians and
strangely, dravid Ravana is known to the Ramayana to be a very intelligent
Brahamana, an aryan. Indeed, the situation becomes unnecessarily complicated and
tortuous.
Shri Rama of the Ramayanic age and Krishna from the Mahabharata age are
considered to the incarnations (avataar) of the Supreme Godhead. They strove for the
upliftment of humanity with a prime objective of establishing righteousness and
morality through the globe. Like wise, Sage Buddha is also considered as yet another
avataar, and the time he prospered is determined below. However, to determine the
age when Buddha flourished requires finding dates of some other events in the course
of history. The datelines of Maurya Chandragupta and his grandson, Maurya Ashoka,
are considered in the following two sections.
12. Chandragupta, the Sandrocottus
Modern history tends to put Buddha around 500 B.C. This date apparently comes
from the assumption that Chandragupta Maurya, Sandrocottus of the Greek records,
was the contemporary of Alexander, who is known to invade India in 325 B.C.
However, the Greek chronicles are strangely silent on the names of Chanakya
(Chandragupta's Guru) who managed to install the Maurya on the Magadha throne,
Bindusar (his son) and even Ashoka (his grandson) whose empire extended far wider
than that of Chandragupta. The empire of Chandragupta, also known as the Magadha
empire, was very powerful and had a long history but is nowhere mentioned by the
Greeks. Even Buddha bhikkus and the flourishing religion of the Buddha are not
mentioned in their literature. This imbroglio has been challenged by various scholars
and is precisely summarized by K. Rajaram (in "A Peep into the Past History,
Seminar Papers", Madras, 1982), "There are difficulties in calculating the date of the
coronation of Asoka .. In the first instance, the very identification of Sandrokotus with
Chandragupta Maurya is questioned. In the second one, the date of the death of the
Buddha has not been fixed accurately and therefore, the date of Asoka based on it
cannot be accurate." Indeed, the Sandrocottus of the Greeks was not a Maurya.
The Greek records mention Xandramas and Sandrocyptus as the kings immediately
before and after Sandrocottus. These names in any way are not phonetically similar to
Mahapadma Nanda and Bindusar, who were the predecessor and successor of
Chandragupta Maurya, respectively. However, if Sandrocottus refers to Chandragupta
"Gupta", the Xandramas reckons to be his predecessor Chandrashree alias
Chandramas and Sandrocyptus to be Samudragupta. The phonetic similarity becomes
quite apparent and also, with the assistance of other evidence, confirms the identity of
Sandrocottus to Chandragupta Gupta.
In the Puranic and other literature, there is no allusion anywhere to an invasion or
inroad into India by foreign peoples upto the time of Andhra kings; and the only
person who bore the name similar to Sandrocottus of the Greeks, and who flourished
at the time of Alexander, was Chandragupta of the Gupta dynasty, who established a
mighty empire on the ruins of the already decayed Andhra dynasty and existing 2811
years after the Mahabharata War, i.e., corresponding to 328 B.C. His date is currently
placed in the fourth century A.D., which obviously does not stand. It is also
interesting to note that the accounts in the life of Sandrokotus of the Greeks, and the
political and social conditions in India at that time, match to those of in the era
Chandragupta Gupta. With this observation, it is therefore that the Greek and Puranic
accounts unanimously agree on the issue of the identity Chandragupta Gupta and
Sandrocotus.
The ten kings of Shishunaga dynasty ruled for 360 years, beginning from 1994 B.C.
and ending with 1634 B.C. At this time, an illegitimate son, Mahapadma-Nanda, of
the last Shishunaga emperor, Mahanandi, came to the throne of Magadha. The total
regal period of this Nanda dynasty was 100 years. After this, with the assistance of
Arya Chaanakya, Chandragupta Maurya ascended the throne of Magadha, and that is
in year 1534 B.C. This date can be arrived and confirmed using many independent
accounts.
13. Ashoka Priyadarshi
This misplaced identification of this Sandrocottus with Chandragupta Maurya, which
also is considered to be the "sheet anchor" of Indian chronology, has led to further
chronological fallacies in the dating of Ashoka Maurya, the grandson of Maurya-
Chandragupta. This Ashoka supposedly became a Buddhist as is confirmed from a
variety of inscriptions and rock edicts found. It is interesting to note that these edicts
are summoned in the name of one "Devanam Priyadarshi Raja" and the name Maurya
Ashoka is nowhere mentioned. This identification of "priyadarshin" with Maurya
Ashoka was entirely based upon Ceylonese Buddhist chronicles. However, as
admitted by Wheeler and V.A. Smith, undeserved credit is given to ceylonese records
which have been nothing but a hinderance of ancient Indian history. Also, the
Buddhist histories recorded centuries later create a good deal of confusion in the
genealogies and family of Ashoka. It is therefore very difficult to get a confirmed
statement from these annals.
The names of kings found on Ashokan inscriptions namely, Amtiyoka, Tulamaya, etc.
are ascribed to distant lands (Syria, Egypt, etc.). It is known that the kings mentioned
bordered Ashoka's own lands. These alien kings are definitely not what they are
construed to be. According to Agarwal, "In the Piyadassi inscriptions, the five names
which are believed to the of the Greek kings are of the Jana-rajyas of the very country
beyond the Indus." (Age of Bharata War, Delhi, 1979). Amtiyoka was a Bharatiya
prince ruling Afghanistan around 1475 B.C., which then appears to be the
approximate date of Priyadarshi Ashoka: the grandson of Maurya Chandragupta. It
should also be noted that there is also no evidence of the time when these edicts were
inscribed.
Maurya Ashoka is known be respectful and supportive of Brahmana and Shramana,
equally alike and favoured none, as known from the Girnar rock edicts. Also, he is not
recorded to have become a follower of Buddha, and nowhere it appears that he erected
great stupas and vihar. Then the question of the Ashoka who had embraced Buddha's
path arises. Kalhan's Rajatarangini (1.101-102) provides details of one Ashoka of the
Kashmiri Gonanda dynasty who is said to have freed himself from sins by embracing
the faith of Gautam Buddha and by constructing numerous Vihar and Stupa and by
building the town Shrinagari with its 96 lakhs of houses resplendent with wealth. He
was a peaceful ruler who had lost all his land and wealth because of his innate
pacifism. This description of Gonandiya Ashoka matches with one of the inscriptional
Ashoka.
However, according to Hultzsuch opinion, the major rock and pillar edicts differ in
tone and message from those of the 8 minor rock inscriptions. Strangely enough, all
26 inscriptions appear to be carved out during the same period. If studied and
analyzed carefully, a compelling inference needs to be drawn. The edicts with the
proclamations in morality belong to Maurya Ashoka (1482-1446 B.C.) and those on
the conversion of Buddhism are those of Gonanada Ashoka (1448-1400 B.C.).
Now that the correct identifications of Sandrocottus of the Greeks and Ashoka of the
inscriptions are determined, it is therefore possible to bring about the datelines of Lord
Buddha's life.
14. Gautam Buddha
Modern history tends to inform readers that Sri Gautam Siddharta was born around
550 B.C. and died after about 80 years. Kota Venkatachalam, writes in his book "The
Age of Buddha, Milinda and King Amtiyoka and Yuga Purana" that, "Due to his
wrong identification of Maurya Chandragupta as the contemporary of Alexander, the
history of Bharat has been shifted by 12 centuries (and) it is the Chandragupta of the
Gupta dynasty who belongs to 327-320 B.C." Thus, due to the confusion in
pinpointing properly the "sheet anchor" of Indian history, Lord Buddha's antiquity has
been underestimated by about 1200 years. Now that Chandragupta Maurya reigned in
1550 B.C. (instead of 325 B.C.), the time when the latter flourished can be calculation
to be around 1850 B.C. (instead of 550 B.C.).
All the Puranas and another historical compilation titled Kali Yuga-rajavruttanta,
profess to describe the Magadha royal dynasties starting from the Bruhadratha to the
Andhra lineages, after which the Magadha empire disintegrated. It is known from the
Bhagavad Puraan that Gautam Siddharta was 23rd in the Ikshwaku lineage. However,
the list of Ikshwaku kings are not available. In order to determine the date of
Siddharta, it is necessary to find the contemporary kings in the Magadha genealogy.
According to different accounts, the Buddha was a contemporary of Kshemajita,
Bindusar and Ajatashatru, the 31st-33rd kings of the Shishunaga dynasty. The Buddha
was 72 years old when the coronation of Ajatashatru tookplace, that is in 1814 B.C.
Going backwards, the date of Buddha's birth becomes 1887 B.C. Since he lived for 80
years, the Buddha must have left the body in 1807 B.C.
This date can also be confirmed by purely referring to astronomical calculations, and
what is correctly and exactly obtained as the date for Gautam Siddharta's nirvana is
27-3-1807 (Sathe, Age of Buddha). This date also explains the possibility of the
existence of Buddhism in the second millennium B.C., as was rejected earlier. The
astronomical computations of the indologist-astronomer Swami Sakhyananda
suggests that Gautam Siddharta belonged to the Kruttika period, i.e., in between 2621-
1661 B.C. In his book "Chronology of Ancient Bharat" (Part 4.Chap 2), Prof.
K.Srinivasaraghavan states the approximate time of Gautam Siddharta to be 2259
years after the Bharata War (3138 B.C.). which turns out to be 1880 B.C.
Thyagaraja Aiyer in his book "Indian Architecture" observes," Here lies Indian
Sramanacharya from Bodh Gaya, a Shakya monk taken to Greece by his Greek pupils
and the tomb marks his death about 1000 B.C." If the Buddhist monk went to Greece
in 1000 B.C., then Gautam Siddharta must have lived at least a few centuries earlier.
Somayajulu places Chandragupta Maurya in the 14th century B.C (ref: Dates in
Ancient History of India). This puts the Buddha three centuries earlier, i.e., in the 17th
century B.C. A brief chronology of the events in Buddha's life:Born in 1887 B.C.,
Renunciation in 1858 B.C., Penance during 1858-52 B.C and Death in 1807 B.C.
There are various other calculations and evidences which point to the 1800 B.C. date.
However, it is believed that, at least for this article, the presentation made above
suffices to convince and ascertain the date of Gautam Siddharta. After determining
these dates, the time location of yet another savant of ancient India, Mahaveer,
becomes easy.
15. Mahaveer Jain
The chronological frame of the last theerthankar of the Jainas is a matter of debate
among scholars since only a few arbitrary references are available. The Jaina tradition
holds that Mahaveer left this world 15 years after the death of Bhagawan Buddha
(1807 B.C.), i.e., in 1792 B.C., and since Mahaveer lived for a span of 72 years, he
must have been born in 1864 B.C. The Pauranic and other traditions also give dates
that are somewhat nearer to the above date. The Buddha and Jaina Mahaveer were,
perhaps, the last of the teerthankaar's of their respective sects. Indeed, there is much
confusion among their traditional accounts on the dating of all these earlier prophets
and any convincing datelines could not be asserted.
Incidently, the Buddha and Jaina, the great Kashtriyas, have been all along considered
to be separate religions contradicting in thought and character from the main body of
Vedic or Hindu philosophies. This has led to an historical analysis proposing a
confrontation, in words as well as on the battle-field, between the relevant sects and
Vedic peoples. However, this is totally incorrect. Buddha never found any new
religion nor his teachings, in the form of arya-ashtangamarga or the eight-fold path,
were in antithesis to the Hindu thought. What Buddha or Mahaveer preached was
existent for ages before their time. They attempted to stop the killing of animals being
wantonly sacrificed in rituals. Buddha was born a Hindu, lived as a Hindu and left the
mortal coil as a Hindu. The extent of the Vedic culture is broad enough to accept,
maintain and cultivate on itself different thought and modes of worship.
Buddhism had reached a very decadent stage in the next 1000 years, that is, during the
time when Aadi Shankara was born. Shankara refers to the Buddhist thought in his
commentaries of the Brahma Sootra only to refute them by elaborate arguments. The
date of Shankara, as per the current chronology, is maintained to be 788-820 A.D.
However, since the "sheet-anchor" is displaced backwards by about 12 centuries, it is
apparent that the date of Shankara would be recalculated to be around 600 B.C.
16. Aadi Shankara
The current date of Shankara, i.e, 788-820 A.D. was first derived from a manuscript
found at Belgaum. This date also was agreed with the internal evidence evinced from
the works of Shankara himself. However, as years rolled on, a variety of dates were
calculated. The verse found in the manuscript of Belgaum also appears in the treatise
Shankara Digvijaya Sara (SDS), a summary of Brihat Shakara Vijaya (BSV), written
by Sadananda. Although, BSV gives a date of 509 B.C., SDS mentions a date of 788
A.D. It is therefore clear that Sadananda gives Shankara's date relying on some other
source. Since the verse in both the Belgaum manuscript and SDS appears to come
from the same source, which itself could be unreliable. Also, the date of 788 A.D. is
in conflict with traditional dates, that is, those held by the Mathas found by Shankara
himself. However, the 788 A.D. dateline was accepted, since all traditional accounts
of Indian history, including the Puraan, were conveniently considered to be worthless
of any historical content, and were ignored.
Numerous compositions with the title "Shankara Vijaya" describing the exploits of
Shri Shankara are available, five of which confirm one date, four do not mention any
date at all and only one gives the date of 788 A.D.(Antarkar's thesis, BORI). One
written by Chitsukhacharya, a childhood companion of Shankara from the age of 5,
can be considered to be authorative. M.R.Bodas in his "Shankaracharya aani tyancha
sampradaaya" published in 1923 gives the date of Chitsukhacharya as 514-416 B.C.
As he was 5 years elderto Shankara, the latter's date comes to be (514 - 5) 509 B.C.
Chitsukhacharya's "Brihat Shankara Vijaya" states that Shankara was born Vaishakha
Shukla Panchami in the constellation and lagna of Dhanu, in the year Nandana of
2593 Kali, i.e, (3102 - 2593) in 509 B.C. This date was also calculated by Prof.
Upadhya in his book "Sri Shankaracharya". This tallies with the dates assigned and
maintained in the lists of Aacharyas maintained in the establishments at Dwaraka (490
B.C.) , Jyotirmath (485 B.C.), Puri (484 B.C.) and Sringeri (483 B.C).
On the basis of "Shankara Satpatha", the late Narayana Shastri of Madras wrote a
book titled "Acharya Kaala" in which the date 509 B.C. has been derived to be
Shankara's date of birth. The Keraliya Shankara Vijaya also provides a verse with
astronomical details of Shankara's birth. This verse also verifies the unmistakable 509
B.C. dateline. A chronogram relating to Aadi Shankara and appearing in Prachina
Shankara Vijaya is quoted by Atma Bodha gives the 509 B.C. date. This chronogram
is supported and corroborated by Jina Vijaya, a Jain scripture, even though it is
outspokenly hostile to Shankara. Jina Vijaya gives the date of Kumarila Bhatta (557
B.C.), who was senior contemporary to Shankara by 48 years.
It is stated in the Nepal Rajavamshavali that "Aadi Shankara came from the South and
destroyed the Buddha faith" and this occurred during the reign of Vrishadeva Varma
(Kali 2615 to 2654), i.e., during 487 B.C. to 448 B.C. (Chronology of Nepal History,
K.Venkatachalam). The date of Vrishadeva is again confirmed relating Harsha Shaka
(457 B.C.) from Alberuni's accounts. In his "Short History of Kashmir", Pt. Gavshalal
writes, "The 70th ruler in the list of Kashmir Kings, Gopaditya (417-357 B.C.)
founded agraharas and built temples of Jyeteshwara and Shankaracharya". That
Shankara must have visited Kashmir before 417 B.C. then becomes quite obvious.
The observations and references stated above sufficiently and unmistakably prove that
Aadi Shankara was born in 509 B.C. His life-span of 32 years was that of a
superhuman in which he travelled to all parts of Bharatvarsha, spreading the thought
and philosophies of Vedic wisdom and strength. He removed the confrontations
existing between the followers of different modes of worship presenting a message of
unity among all - finally departing from his earthly abode in 477 B.C.
17. Chronology
Here under is provided a chronological table of events from the beginning of this
"Kalpa" right upto the rule of the Gupta dynasty, i.e., when Greek Alexander invaded
the western borders of India. The Vedic culture continues to flourish in India, the
cradle of human civilization, even today. However, only the events before the advent
of Common Era are listed in the following table. It is noted that dates prior to the
Mahabharata (3138 B.C.) are approximate, until further investigation puts forth any
convincing evidence.
Event/Person/Text Datelines
Swayambhuva Manu 29,000 B.C.
Veda (early stages) 23,720 B.C.
Samhita (Taitiriya) 22,000 B.C.
Manu Chakshushu 17,500 B.C.
King Pruthu 16,050 B.C.
Manu Vaivasvata 14,000 B.C.
Indra-Skanda dialogue (Mahabharat) 13,000 B.C.
Glaciation period 8,000 B.C.
Dasharadnya War 7,000 B.C.
Ramayana 5,500 B.C.
Orion period 4,000 B.C.
Greeks separate 4,000 B.C.
Rajatarangini begins 3,450 B.C.
Gonanda-I of Kashmir 3,238 B.C.
Mahabharata 3,138 B.C.
Veda (last stages) 3,100 B.C.
Saptarsi era begins 3,076 B.C.
Saraswati-Sindhu Culture 3,000 B.C.
Gautam Siddharta born 1,887 B.C.
Gautam Siddharta Nirvana 1,807 B.C.
Mahaveer Jain born 1,862 B.C.
Chandragupta Maurya 1,534 B.C.
Ashoka Maurya 1,482 B.C.
Ashoka Gonanda 1,448 B.C.
Kanishka 1,294 B.C.
Kumarila Bhatta 557 B.C.
Vruddha Garga 550 B.C.
Aadi Shankaracharya born 509 B.C.
Harsha Vikramaditya 457 B.C.
Shatkarani Gautamiputra 433 B.C.
Chandragupta Gupta 327 B.C.
Shakari Vikramaditya 57 B.C.
Shalivahan 78 A.D.
Huen-Tsang 625 A.D.
Kalhana (Kashmiri historian) 1,148 A.D
The continuity of Vedic culture from the distant past until today is preserved in the Rg
Veda. This world's most ancient text records the happenings of many peoples;
sincerely and faithfully preserved by the ancient Hindus and passed on to their
subsequent generations. The Puranas also hold many geographical and historical
annals of great kings and heroes who assisted in ushering principles of truth and
righteousness around the globe. It is only the Hindus who have preserved
authentically the records of the bygone era, a matter that they have a right to be proud
about.
It is hoped that the above exercise is sufficiently convincing to indicate the necessity
to study, understand and decipher the language and expression in the ancient texts
which may further deliver the secrets and accomplishments of the bygone
civilizations. The mystery of the common traits in the cultures and literatures of the
world may also be solved by recognizing the genesis and unity in the thought of all
peoples; the Rg Veda belongs to all humanity, irrespective of class, colour or creed. It
also renders an idea of the required magnitude of research, sincere and apolitical,
imperative to evaluate the older version of Indian history and rewrite it, recognizing
the latest developments in archaeological and literary findings.
Summary
The word "arya" was used for people who cultivated the mind and character. The
"aryans" were the inhabitants of India for at leasta few thousand years in the past, who
spoke Sanskrit and practised the Vedic culture along the banks of the rivers Saraswati
and Sindhu. There was no invasion of the aryan-race in India, causing the destruction
of property and massacre of the aboriginals and of the so-called Dravidian people.
Hindus have maintained the oldestand most authentic records of the ancient world, in
the Vedas and Puraan, and accordingly, the Dravidians were the early offshoots of the
Vedic people through Sage Agastya. After separating from their original homeland in
the arctic regions, and later, from the regions of Caspian Sea, the Vedics appear to
have migrated across the globe. This explains the commonality and affinity of the
most ancient languages with Sanskrit. The customs, expressions and traditions of the
Greek, Iranians, Egyptians with that of the Vedics is also apparent from the evidence
presented in the preceding article.
The annals of astronomical configurations in the Rg Veda and Samhitas indicate a
date of 23000 B.C. when the early stages of the these texts were composed. The
literary works on ancient India provide long lists of kings, their genealogies and
ancestries. From these and other records, the date when Swayambhuva Manu, the first
king of this Kalpa, flourished is calculated to be roughly 29000 B.C. It was in 5500
B.C roughly that the great Ramayanic civilization appears to have flourished and the
great Mahabharata War was fought, as calculated from literary, archaeological and
astronomical examinations, in 3138 B.C. The Sage Buddha attained Nirvana in 1807
B.C., after living a saintly life of 80 years propagating the Vedic tenets.
Chandragupta Maurya, the grandfather of Maurya Ashoka, with the assistance of Arya
Chanakya captured power and was coronated as the emperor of India in 1534 B.C.
The foremost of all philosophers and the greatest proponents of the Advaita school of
thought, Aadi Shankaracharya, was born in 509 B.C. The end of the Andhra dynasty,
and the rise of the Gupta dynasty began in 328 B.C. It was an era when Gupta
Chandragupta, Sandrocottus of the Greeks, ruled India. The rule of the Guptas is
recorded as the "Golden Age" in the history of India, when all the facets of
civilization, art and architecture, polity and politics, wealth and wisdom flourished
side by side.
Thus, even before the advent of Christ, the civilization and thought in India, the Vedic
culture had reached a state of supreme high idealism which the arya people wanted to
propagate and share with rest of the world. It may be matter of a few decades until
fresh literary, archaeological and experimental evidence is brought out that may
provide further insight into the culture of the ancients, seeking answers to the common
history of humanity. It is hoped that this article will benefit the readership in
providing abetter understanding of the history of ancient nations and cultures.