GEC ASSIGNMENT
Ques- Discuss the historicity of Mahabharata in light of the available
architectural evidence.
Submitted by: Vanshika kundu
Roll no.: 21/POL/141
Submitted to: Ms. Avantika Sharma
INTRODUCTION: -
Mahabharata is an extremely voluminous text, presently, containing 100,000 verses.
According to the traditions it was composed by Krishna Dvaipayan Vyas. However, it is
meant that such a voluminous work can’t be done by a single person. As Mahabharata
includes many ages, its composition can be placed between c. 500 BC-500AD. Nevertheless,
some historians believe that the Mahabharata epic may be based on historical events that
happened somewhat around1000 BC. Thus, we can state that the date of Mahabharata is
controversial. In order to get a glimpse of Mahabharata we will examine the stories included
in the books of Mahabharata. Secondly, to check the historicity of Mahabharata we will
examine the excavations done in the Purana Qila and find out a link between the Purana Qila
and Indraprastha, a famous city in Mahabharata. Lastly, we will examine the written accounts
and traditions during the medieval period and PGW sites which verifies the existence of
Mahabharata.
STORIES IN MAHABHARATA:-
The first book of Mahabharata, Adi Parva, in its end, tells that Pandavas uncle’s sons
popularly known as Kauravas tried to burn Pandavas in the lac house but Pandavas
successfully managed to get alive from the lac house. Then, they appeared in their uncle’s
(Dhirtrashtra) court and demanded a share in his kingdom. Their uncle granted them land to
avoid conflict between the two- Kauravas and Pandavas. Subsequently, Kauravas continued
to rule from Hastinapur on the banks of river Ganga and Pandavas established themselves in
the Khandava region, which included the present Delhi region. Conventionally, in the
Khandava tract, Pandavas found a beautiful city Indraprastha where they established a fort by
performing appropriate rites. It was mentioned that the fort had large walls, double-hung
gates with grand towers, covered with spears and javelins. The city was described as very
well-managed since there were well- planned cities, magnificent white buildings, ponds,
lakes, and tanks. Yudhishthira as the king of Indraprastha city spread dharma (righteous path
of living life), Artha (material well-being), and Kama (a satisfaction of sensual pleasure).
Interestingly, at the end of Adi Parva there is an express mention about the Khandava
forested tract and brought under habitation. According to Adi Parva, the Khandava forest
inhabited by many birds and animals was burned. Agni in form of a sage asked Arjun, one of
the Pandavas and Krishna to help him to burn the forest. Then, Arjun and Krishna behaving
uncharacteristically along with Agni ruthlessly blazed the forest. However, the incident of
burning the forest was allegorically interpreted by historians as a connection between fire and
ritual consecration of the tract. In the end, only six creatures were survived which involved
Ashvasena (son of the serpent king Takshahka), Maya (a demon), and four Sharangaka birds.
This violent incident ended up with Krishna, Maya and, Arjuna sitting on the banks of river
Yamuna.
Also, at the beginning of the Sabha Parva, the second book of the Mahabharata epic describes
that Maya was not an ordinary demon but a skillful architect. Then, Krishna suggested Maya
to build an alluring assembly hall that everyone would be astounded and speechless after
seeing it. Maya built a beautiful golden-pillared hall, studded with precious stones. There was
a clear lotus pond, filled with lotuses, turtles and aquatic fowl and fishes inside the assembly
hall.
To sum up, Indraprastha was an important part of the Mahabharata epic. The appreciation of
city is just exaggerated in order to catch the attention of the readers and does not have any
accurate information about the history of Mahabharata. Since the composition of the epic has
spanned a thousand years or so, therefore, the mention of well-planned settlements and
palaces are superimposed in the epic because the archaeological evidences show that the city
of Indraprastha did not exist in India around 1000 BC.
EXCAVATIONS IN PURANA QILA: -
Through these archaeological excavations we will examine the discoveries at the Purana Qila,
built by Humayun and Sher Shah Suri. Furthermore, how can these discoveries can be
compared with the city of Indraprastha mentioned in the Mahabharata?
The first and foremost trial excavation in Purana Qila was carried out under the direction of
B.B. Lal in 1945-5. The excavation is aimed to find out that how old this site is and whether
it could be compared with Indraprastha city of Mahabharat legend. The archaeologists in their
first excavation discovered the sherds of Painted Grey Ware (PGW). It is a fine grey pottery,
thin in fabric which suggested that the settlement was as old as 1000 BC. Apart from the
discovery of PGW, the excavation exhumed artefacts, mostly made of copper, such as sickles
and nail-parers which indicated that the site continued to be occupied until centuries AD.
From the perusal of the first trial excavation, we can state that the discovery of fragments of
PGW describes the antiquity of the settlement that goes back, possibly around 1000 BC.
Since the excavation was not completed therefore the cultural sequence of the site couldn’t
emerged.
In 1969-70 a second excavation took place at the Purana Qila by the team of archaeologists
led by B.B. Lal, B.K. Thapar and M.C. Joshi. This excavation tried to lay uncovered
fragments of the site and also gave information about the cultural sequence of the site (shown
in table 2.1).
Period VIII - Mughal period (16th-19th century)
Period VII - Sultanate Period (13th -15th century)
Period VI- Rajput Period (10th -12th century)
Period V- Post-Gupta Period (7th-9th century)
Period IV- Gupta Period (4th- 6th century)
Period III- Shaka-Kushana Period (1st- 3rd century AD)
Period II- Shunga Period (2nd- 1st century BC)
Period I- Northern Black Polished Black Ware (4th- 3rd century
BC)
PGW sherds were found but the level of PGW couldn’t be
identified.
Table 2.1: Cultural sequence at the Purana Qila
Hence, in this excavation cultural sequence of the site was developed from NBPW (4th- 3rd
century BC) to Mughal period (16th- 19th century).
At last, the third excavation aimed to expose the pre-Mauryan (pre 4th century BC) strata
including the PGW levels, and to lay larger bare areas. This time also the archaeologists were
unable to identify the PGW level.
To sum up, the excavations carried out in the Purana Qila and other sites connected with
story of Mahabharata- such as Hastinapur, Baghpat, Kurukshetra, Panipat etc. where the
PGW has been found but not levelled, admittedly, neither prove nor disapprove the historicity
of Mahabharata. Indeed, the discovery of PGW sherds suggest that the level for PGW can be
identified somewhere nearby and describes the antiquity of settlement. Moreover, these
excavations do not reveal about the palaces, fortifications and the spectacular of work Maya.
LOCAL TRADITIONS AND WRITTEN ACCOUNTS: -
From the above-mentioned excavations, surely, we are unable to find any link between the
Purana Qila and Indraprastha city of Mahabharat. Then, how can we confirm the historicity
of Mahabharata legend? The answers to this question lie in the local tradition, and the early
written accounts written during the medieval period.
In the 16th century, Abul Fazl gave an abridgment of Mahabharata events. He stated that
earlier, Delhi was called Indrapat. And, said that the palace of Indrapat was restored by
Humayun and re-named it as Dinnahpah. So, the statement of Abul Fazl indicated a robust
connection between Purana Qila and the city of Indraprastha. Secondly, in the 14th century,
Shams Siraj Afif in his book, ‘TARIKH-I-FIRUZ SHAHI’ stated that Indraprastha was the
headquarter of Pargana district. Thirdly, a 14th century stone inscription found at the Naraina
Village in west Delhi talked about the Nadayana village situated in the west of Indraprastha.
Indeed, until the 19th century there was a village called Indrapat located with the walls of
Purana Qila.
Furthermore, locals and legends claim a few more pieces of evidence that connects the epic
with Delhi. One of these states that a place Nigambodh, situated on the banks of river
Yamuna - is a place, where Yudhishthira, the king of Indraprastha, poured contribution into
the sacrificial fire after performing Ashvamedha Yagya to establish his political
paramountcy. According to local traditions, at Nilichhatri – a place near Nigambodh,
Yudhishthira built a temple. The present structure is of a late date, but there is a possibility
that it marks the site of the old shrine. Moreover, Vishnu Parva tells us about the shift of the
capital from Hastinapur to Kaushambi in the reign of king Nichhakshu, the 5th king after
Parikshit. It also suggests the shifting of capital from Indraprastha to Hastinapur. Also, the
Buddhist jataka tales take account of Indraprastha as the capital of the kings belonging to
‘YUDHITTHILA GOTRA’ (Yudhishthira’s clan).
SOME PGW (PAINTED GREY WARE) SITES –
There are some places where PGWs were found which includes Tilpat, Sihi and Bisrakh.
Apart from the discovery of PGWs these villages are connected to the historical events from
Mahabharata and Ramayana.
TILPAT
A village, Tilpat is located in the Faridabad district of Delhi NCR. This village has a mound
(shown in fig.3.1) of 30m and covers 4-5 hectares of the area. According to some literary
traditions this mound has a story that suggests the historicity of this mound. Furthermore,
there is clear mention of this village in Mahabharata epic as Tilaprastha as this was one of the
five villages demanded by Pandavas. Also, a small excavation had took place in this village
and PGW and NBPW levels were found here. The excavation took place in the supervision of
B.B. Lal in 1950s. The discovery of PGW and NBPW confirmed the antiquity if the site. So,
this village suggested a relation of Mahabharata’s legend to this place.
Fig.3.1: A Mound
SIHI
Sihi village lies in the centre of residential Faridabad. At the periphery of this village there is
a mound of approximately 10 meters in height and at the top of it there is a Government Boys
Public School. Here, also PGW were found and suggested the antiquity of the site. Apart
from the discovery of PGWs it has a dramatic record. As per the local traditions this place
holds to be a place where the king Janamejaya performed the great snake sacrifice.
Janamejaya held snake sacrifice to avenge the death of his father, Parikshit, who was died
due to the snake bite. The whole incident of snake sacrifice is described in the Adi Parva.
Nonetheless, some historians interpreted the incident as a metaphor of the conflict between
the Brahmanical culture and Non-Aryans (Nagas).
However, as per the Mahabharata the incident took place at Taxila but the locals of the
Faridabad district will tell you that the incident took place in their village, Sihi. The 10 meters
high mound has large quantities of old iron slag. Interestingly, according to the local
traditions these fragments of the iron slags are the remains of the bones of the snakes that
were drawn into the sacrificial fire. One of the fascinating aspects of this slag is that the
traditional medicine practitioners believed that this slag have miraculous healing powers,
particularly act as an antidote for poison.
BISRAKH
Bisrakh is situated in the Ghaziabad district of U.P. Here also PGW were found but this
village do not establish any relation with Mahabharata epic but a traditions connection with
the epic of Ramayana.
To sum up, the villages where PGWs were found, Tilpat, a modern village, establishes a
relation with Mahabharata. Furthermore, the Sihi and Bisrakh were blithely connected with
the stories of local traditions to Mahabharata and Ramayana respectively. However, the
potteries found here belonged to the 1000 BC.
OTHER PGW SITES: -
On top of the above-mentioned villages, there are other PGW sites such as Bhorgarh and
Mandoli. These two places are associated with Late Harappan potteries. In period II at
Bhorgarh excavation suggested that people used to live in roundish huts supported by
wooden posts. Also, in the II period of Mandoli remains of houses in form of rammed mud
floors and post-holes were found. There were other PGW sites around Delhi such as
Kharkahri Nahar, Manju-ka-Tila, Salimgarh, Banker, Bhupani etc. Of these Manju-ka-Tila
and Salimgarh are close to the banks of river Yamuna.
CONCLUSION: -
To sum up, the settlements found in the PGW sites belong to 1000-500 BC and the PGW
level is not identified. In general, PGW phase was a phase where people of upper and middle
Ganga valley were stepping towards urbanization.
