Prof. Gopal Krishna Dash
Abstract
Though a lot of effort has been done to decipher and interpret the archeological findings of the Indus valley
civilization, no effort has been done to determine who the rulers of the great civilization were. It is because of the
erroneous assumption about the mythical Aryan invasion and wrong dating of the battle of Kurukshetra of
Mahabharata
According to Puranas the battle took place 36 years before the start of the Kaliyug. According to the Ponchang or
Ponjika still in use in all parts of India, the financial year 2008 – 2009 AD is the year 5110 in Kaliyuga. Thus the
battle took place in the year 3138 BC
It means that during the upper Indus valley period, the descendants of King Parikshit ruled over the area.
This paper tries to correlate the period with the ruling dynasties of the period after the battle of Kurukshetra.
A critical examination of the decline of the Indus valley civilization with the drying of river Saraswati, shows how
the influence of the rulers declined and came to an end with the conquest from the east (Magadh rulers).
Introduction
Though archaeological excavations have discovered numerous Harappan settlements right from Gujarat in India,
up to and beyond the northern border of Afghanistan and a lot of research has been done to interpret these
archeological findings, no serious effort has been done to determine the names of the rulers of this civilization. It
has been wrongly assumed that the Indus valley civilization belonged to a period long before the periods of
Ramayana and Mahabharata.
This erroneous interpretation is due to the incomplete and incorrect understanding of the ancient Sanskrith
literature and ignorance of the traditions followed by the authors of the epics. However a critical examination of
the ancient Sanskrith literature clearly shows that the ruling dynasties described in the great epic Mahabharatha
were the rulers of this great civilization.
It has been stated in the great epic and the other Puranic accounts that King Yudhisthir abdicated in favour of King
Parikshit, 36 years after the battle of Kurukshetra. Kaliyug started from the date of coronation of King Parikshit.
The tradition of counting the dates (day, month and year) according to Kaliyug has continued unbroken till today in
almost all parts of India and the financial year 2008 – 2009 AD is same as the year 5110 in Kaliyug. Thus the battle
of Kurukshetra took place in the year 3138 BC.
Astronomical verification using Planetarium soft ware shows the date to be around (not exact) 3070 BC. The
difference can be attributed to the subsequent corrections of the Indian calendar by Borahmihir, Aryabhatta etc.
and corrections of the Julian and Gregorian calendars. For simplicity in this paper the date is taken as 3138 BC.
The upper Indus valley civilization extends over the period from about 3000 BC to about 1800 BC. This is the period
following the battle of Kurukshetra during which the descendants of King Parikshit were the emperors of the entire
region, where Harappan remnants are found.
The Lunar dynasties
According to the ancient Sanskrit literature, there were two main ruling dynasties, the solar dynasty with its capital
at Ayodhya and the lunar dynasty with its capital at Hastinapur.
The Indus valley was the abode of the various dynasties of the lunar clan. King Yayati, sixth in descent from
Vaivaswatha Manu, is stated to be the ancestor of the five most important of these lunar dynasties. King Yayati
had two wives, Devayani and Sharmishtha, both of Asura origin. They had given birth to five princes Yadu,
Turvasu, Druhyu, Anudruhyu and Puru. The first two were the sons of Devayani and the other three were the sons
of Sharmishtha. The five main lunar dynasties, known as Panchajanyas, originated from these five princes. Some
preliminary observations on them are as follows.
“The lunar dynasties had retained much of the traditions of the Asuras inherited from Devayani and Sharmishtha.
One of their important gods was Lord Shiva, known as Asura Mahadeva. The name Asura Mahadeva is believed to
have changed into Ahura Mazda in Iran. During the invasions from the east by king Mandhata and king Sagara of
Ayodhya many of the people of the lunar clan had fled towards the west and had settled in the areas around Iran,
Mesopotamia, etc. The name Sumerian is believed to have originated from the word Soma‐arya, i.e. the civilized
people of the lunar clan. The original tradition of worship of the Mother Goddess (Basanti Durga Puja during the
spring), not the worship instituted by Lord Rama (Sharadiya Durga Puja in Ashwin), is also believed to have been
inherited from the Asuras.”
However more detailed and critical study of the ancient Sanskrit literature is necessary to confirm, discard or
elaborate these comments.
Dionysus and Heracles
Dionysus is one of the important characters of Greek mythology. The classical Greek and Roman writers believed
that before Alexander he was the only conqueror to invade India. There is no mention of Dionysus in any ancient
Indian literature. The mount Meru and city Nysa at its foot, where Dionysus lived, are around the mountain peak
Kohi‐Mor in the Hindukush range in Afghanistan.
Thus it is clear that the classical European writers referring to India meant thereby only the area which now falls in
Afghanistan and Iran. However, correct identification of Dionysus, with the corresponding character if Iranian or
Afghan mythology could facilitate the reconstruction of the prehistoric chronology. Arrian gives the following
dates about Dionysus.
“From the time of Dionysus to Sandrocottus the Indians counted 153 kings and a period of 6042 years, but among
these a republic was thrice established and another to 300 years, and another to 120 years. The Indians also tell us
that Dionysus was earlier than Heracles by fifteen generations, and that except him no one made a hostile invasion
of India, not even Cyrus, the son of Cambys.”
The time of coronation of Sandrocottus according to the Greek accounts was 327 years BC. Thus the time of
Dionysus was 6369 years BC and the time of Heracles between 5800 years B.C. and 5700 years BC. These dates
belong to the middle Indus valley period and are beyond the scope of this paper.
The Descendants of King Pandu
The Indus valley civilization steadily declined during the millennium of uninterrupted peace following the holocaust
of Mahabharata war. The important causes of the decline were
Diversion of river Satadru (present Satlej) which was a tributary of river Saraswathi, towards river Indus,
of which it became a tributary.
Diversion of river Yamuna which was a tributary of river Saraswathi, towards river Ganga, of which it
became a tributary.
Progressive drying of river Saraswathi which resulted in the abandonment of the Harappan settlements
along its banks
The most important ruling dynasty of the area during the time was the dynasty of King Yudhisthira.
Subsequent to the war the capital was shifted from Hastinapur to Koshambi. Immediately after the war
the kings of this dynasty were the suzerain (if not sovereign) rulers of the whole of India including present
day Afghanistan and much of Iran. But in course of time their influence progressively declined till the time
of the end of the dynasty, when their influence was limited only to the small area around their capital
Koshambi.
The last kings of the dynasty after the Mahabharata war were as follows:
1. Yudhisthira
2. Parikshita
3. Janmejaya
4. Shatanika
5. Aswamedha Datta
6. Adhisimha Krishna
7. Nickaknu
8. Ushna
9. Chitraradha
10. Suchiradha
01. Vrishnimanta
02. Sushena
03. Suneedha
04. Nrupegakshu
05. Sukhibala
06. Pariplava
07. Sunaya
08. Medhavi
09. Ripunjaya
10. Urva
11. Thigma
12. Brihadradha
13. Kasudana
14. Shataneeka II
15. Udayana
16. Kihinara
17. Dandapani
18. Niramitra
19. Kshemaka
King Kshemaka lost his life in war with Mahapadmananda. According to Bhagavath Puran, Vayu Puran and Matsya
Puran, King Mahapadmananda was crowned 1504 years after the birth of Parikshit.
Observation
It is important to note that the different Puranas are unanimous that the coronation of King Mahapadmananda
after about 1500 years from the birth of King Parikshit, i.e. the time of the battle of Kurukshetra. Thus the year of
his coronation was 1634 BC. Thus the final destruction of the Harappan civilization was due to the attack by
Mahapadmananda.
With the conquest of Mahapadmananda, Magadh, with its capital at Girivraja became the most important area for
the later Purankars who have described the ruling dynasties of Magadh, right from the time of the ancestors of
King Jarasandha, the arch enemy of Lord Krishna. However descriptions of the ruling dynasties of Indus valley (with
their capital at Hastinapur later shifted to Koshambi) are still available.
The names and regnal periods of the contemporary kings of Kashmir (from Kalhan’s Raj Tarangini), Nepal and some
other areas are also available in the ancient Sanskrit literature.
Conclusion
It is high time that the historians discard the grossly erroneous assumption that Mahabharata is post
Harappan. In fact the descriptions in the epic and other classical Sanskrit literature clearly indicate that it describes
the dynasties which ruled over the great civilization. The genealogies of the ancestors of King Shantanu give the
lists of the rulers of the early phase up to the battle of Kurukshetra, where as the descendants of King Pandu ruled
over the area after the battle till the time of Mahapadmanand of Magadh.
Bibliography
The contents of this paper are based on the following.
1. Bhagavata Purana, Vishnu Purana, Vayu Purana, Matsya Purana and Bhavishya Purana published by Gita
Press, Gorakhpur and Sanskriti Sansthan, Bareilly.
2. Books written and published by Pandit Kota Venkatachelam, Gandhinagar, Vijayawada‐2.f
i) Chronology of Ancient Hindu History, in two volumes, 1957
ii) Chronology of Nepal History Reconstructed, 1953
iii) Chronology of Kashmir History Reconstructed, 1955
iv) The Plot in Indian Chronology, 1953
v) Age of Buddha, Milinda & Amtiyoka and Yuga Purana, 1956
3. “Bharat ka Naya Itihasa” in Hindi written for private circulation by Dr. D.S.Triveda giving the summary of
his publications till 1980 in
i) Annals of Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Pune
ii) Hinduism, Bharat Sevashram Sangha, London
iii) Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Mumbai and some other journals.
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