Geographical extent and History of Northern India

As regards the geographical extent of Madhyadeśa, D.C. Sircar identifies it with the central part of North India. He further adds that what was initially being called Āryāvarta,^[1] was later named Madhyadeśa.^[2] The geographical limits of proper northern India and Madhyadeśa never include whole of undivided Bengal or Odisha region. However, studying the inscriptions around northern India helps us with our main task for sure.

The history of the social, religious, and political life of northern India in early and early medieval period may be reconstructed more or less faithfully from the North Indian Sanskrit inscriptions. It is true that some scholars of great repute have partially dealt with some of the aspects of social and religious life with the help of materials collected from the inscriptions of Bengal, Deccan and neighbourhood, far south and south India. In the present dissertation we have undertaken the task of presenting a modest survey of the data supplied by the early and early-medieval Sanskrit inscriptions found in northern India. Necessary information has also been gleaned from some relevant inscriptions of Bengal, Odisha and other regions of India and even from the inscriptions of some southern dynasties viz. Rāṣṭrakūṭa, Cālukya during the period under discussion. The present work has profusely referred to inscriptions issued by rulers of south (and also eastern) Indian dynasties. The inscriptions, though in a strict sense should not be designated north Indian, are consulted for comparative study of the prevalence of vedic practice in different regions of India.

Culture is expressed in good taste, refined manners, and the way of living, as understood through buildings, religious institutions, monuments, gardens, paintings, and other fields of representations. But it is usually referred in a general way and abstract sense when it is stated that one of the differences between eastern and western culture is spirituality, and eastern culture is more spiritual than western. Although interrelated to each other, the meaning of culture becomes clearer when separated from two allied concepts -civilization and religion. Internal experience, which reveals the true meaning and purpose of life, is just one aspect of religion, although it is the soul of a culture. Religion often clashes with cultural life but civilization and culture are sometimes used as synonyms. Civilization, which represents a higher material life, is just a stage of human cultural development. It becomes an obstacle to cultural progress when such a life is in conflict with valuable moral values. The meaning of culture becomes clearer by summarizing the definitions of culture given in a book Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions: Culture is sense of ultimate values possessed by a particular society which it has expressed in its collective institutions, which its individual members express in their dispositions, feelings, attitudes and manners as well as in significant which they give to material objects.^[3]

‘Vedic’ means what is related to the Vedas, thus ‘vedic culture’ stands for the practice as enunciated in the Vedas which was laid primarily on the characteristic religion of the vedic society comprising Karmakāṇḍa (sacrificial rites and rituals) and Jñānakāṇḍa (philosophical speculations). It may also connote the varṇa- based patriarchal society, the village-based agrarian economy and the monarchy-based polity, that is, the other facts of vedic culture. In a strong presence of various cults like Brahmanism, Buddhism, Jainism, and others, the spread of vedic culture in Northern India presents a fascinating chapter of India's cultural history.

History says that vedic culture was revived much later in Bengal which was devoid of vedic brāhmaṇas. The rulers of that period had to invite them from other states to perform religious ceremonies and rituals for their family. A few inscriptions suggest that the brāhmaṇas came especially from Middle India as well as from other places of the country. The brāhmaṇas began to reside permanently in Bengal after receiving donations of large pieces of land and other essential materials from the rulers as fees for rendering their religious and other social services. In this regard Bāṅālīra Itihāsa, authored by Nihar Ranjan Roy is an essential sourcebook. Epigraphic evidence of vedic culture in Bengal dates back to the 5th century CE. Damodarpur copper plate inscriptions of Kumāragupta record the sale of land to brāhmaṇas for performing agnihotra and pañcamahāyajña (five great daily sacrifices). Land grants from the early period record in details the gotra-caraṇa-pravara of the brāhmaṇa donees and other information related to them which bear great socio-historical value.

Again, sacrifices like Aśvamedha , Rājasūya, and Vājapeya etc. were performed mainly by the kings as a declaration of their political powers. It is not sure whether they had really performed so many sacrifices as claimed in their inscriptions. But, they or their successors were not tired of making such proclamations, clearly to pronounce their sovereign position. However, it may be noted that vedic culture and tradition were revived during the Gupta rule in northern India and the rulers actually performed vedic sacrifices which is evidenced by their coins. For example, the famous Allahabad Pillar Inscription of Samudragupta is totally silent about the Aśvamedha sacrifice performed by him (understandably as the inscription was composed before the sacrifice), but the Aśvamedha type of coins issued by him, as well as the reference to him as the performer of this long discarded (cirotsanna) sacrifice in the records of his successors bear strong testimony to the performance of this sacrifice by him.

Though the rulers should ideally belong to the kṣatriya caste as per the Dharmaśāstra law, we may presume that sometimes brāhmaṇas and persons of other castes also became kings, as they were given thousands of horses as a gift. Emergence of sāmantas ('feudals') can be traced through those inscriptions as well. We find few instances where śūdras occupy the throne. Again, it can be seen that some non-brāhmaṇa rulers claim purāṇic and vedic descent or gotras of their kulapurohita (family-priest) to acquire a stronger pedigree or to be more acceptable among people.

Creation of purāṇic literature was inspired by an urge to communicate vedic knowledge to the common people who were otherwise deprived of the right to study the Vedas, but who as firm supporting pillars of the trade, commerce and economy of the state could not be ignored either. Gradually purāṇic culture grew much stronger and popular than the vedic at the period concerned and a combination of both beliefs expressed by royalty appears in many inscriptions. It is a common scenario that the famous kings were performing vedic sacrifices and worshipping popular purāṇic gods like Viṣṇu (a vedic sun-god, but not so much significant a deity like Indra and Agni in the Vedas) or Śiva. There are some inscriptional evidences in northern India where the kings donate land and wealth to vedic scholars and also to other sects and institutions, though royal dynasties favouring only vedic brāhmaṇas are also easy to find.

Worship of the gods and goddesses forms an important ritual in Brahmanical fold. The gods belong to different groups and are supposed to live in different worlds, but they all belong to one large family. The Vedas contain numerous references to deities. Due to such diversity in beliefs and practices Brahmanism has a distinctive place in the history in the world. Traditions like Śaivism and Vaiṣṇavism evolved over time within Brahmanism and added colours and vibrations to it.

The most popular gods in the vedic pantheon are Indra and Agni. The highest number of hymns in the four Vedas has been dedicated to them. People mainly worshipped the vedic deities and they performed sacrifices to propitiate the gods and made offerings to them. In later times the principal vedic gods lost their stronghold to purāṇic gods in popular faith. The Purāṇas depict them as gods dependent upon the triad of Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Maheśvara. A similar fate like the vedic deities awaited Brahmā who was excluded from domestic worship. The status of other vedic gods declined even more. They were worshipped mainly as part of an elaborate vedic ritual or sacrifice. They were remembered during the recitation of propitiatory mantras and introductory hymns on auspicious occasions and during ritualistic worship in households. Thus, vedic gods somehow were denied their earlier exalted position and became secondary in the religious domain.

The growing influence of purāṇic culture, the emergence of purāṇic gods in the contemporary society and the influence of vedic culture, mingling of the vedic and purāṇic cultures and such other aspects of contemporary socio-religious state of affairs may be studied with reference to several sources like literature, scriptures, inscriptions and coins. There are many instances of vedic rituals performed by the kings of northern India during the period under discussion. Kings of great repute worshipped purāṇic gods and performed vedic sacrifices as well. There are plenty of references where the kings assumed purāṇic epithets as titles, like Parama- vaiṣṇava, Parama- māheśvara, Paramabhāgavata etc., but at the same time they also claim to have performed several vedic sacrifices in order to gain political and social status, and other religious merits. In many Sanskrit inscriptions of northern India we find a considerable number of instances of the mingling of both cultures.

Due to the impact of purāṇic mythology and religion there were the developments of the various cults in northern India and peripheral regions. Among those can be categorized two major cults associated with Viṣṇu and Śiva. Impact of Śiva and practice of Śaivism got the premiere place between the two. However, from the inscriptional records we may assume that vedic culture was there along with the rising importance of the Brahmanical purāṇic culture, Buddhism, Jainism etc. For example, Pāṇḍuvaṃśin kings generally followed Brahmanical traditions, although they were also tolerant towards Buddhism, the Bhaumakara kings were tolerant towards Buddhism as well as Śaivism. In the inscriptions of the Cālukyas in later period we find references to Buddhism. Again, the rulers of early Gurjara dynasty have patronized Jainism. The Rāṣṭrakūṭa rule was tolerant to multiple popular religions like Jainism, Vaiṣṇavism and Śaivism. During their reign Jainism developed in the Deccan. Many Cālukya kings granted villages to well known Jain scholars. The Hansot inscription of Cāhamāna dynasty describes that the family was devoted to Maheśvara. His father Siṃharāja (c. 944-971 CE) was a devout Śaivite, and commissioned a large temple dedicated to Śiva at Puṣkara. Cāmuṇdārāja (c. 1040-1065 CE) commissioned a Viṣṇu temple at Narapura^[4] . And later period they patronized Jainism. Pṛthvirāja I (c. 1090-1110 CE) donated golden kalaśas for the Jain temples at Ranthambore. In such a situation if we study their inscriptions we may observe that vedic culture was prevalent during the rule of almost every dynasty in different parts of India and Vedas were studied with attention at that time.

Vedic education and vedic sacrifices are two important pillars of vedic culture. Yajña or sacrifice has been a vedic tradition, described in a layer of vedic literature called Brāhmaṇa, as well as Yajurveda. There are plenty of inscriptional evidences where the kings from Āryāvarta (northern India) granted acres of landed properties to the brāhmaṇas of Yajurvedīya śākhās viz. Vājasaneyī Mādhyandina, Vājasaneyī Kāṇva, Maitrāyaṇi and others to perform vedic sacrifices and to increase religious merits of their own or their parents. And where there were no such brāhmaṇas available, they called them up from different parts of the country and settled them to perform vedic rites and rituals.

In a situation of emerging brahmanism where the vedic gods were replaced by the purāṇic gods the Sanskrit inscriptions of northern India bear a considerable number of land grants made to vedic brāhmaṇas for religious merits and to perform vedic sacrifices. Gifts of various kinds and donors have been highly eulogized in the Ṛgveda. There are some such sūktas and mantras called Dānastuti as the mantras praise charity. These are the sūktas praising the kings who offered various things. According to P.V Kane,^[5] "Manu (I. 86) and others state that in the four y ugas (ages) viz, Kṛta, Tretā, Dvāpara and Kali, the Principal aspects of religious life were respectively tapas, metaphysical knowledge, sacrifices, and gifts." Dāna (making gifts) by householders is an important duty of the gārhasthya-āśrama. These land grant charters issued by the kings in northern India indicate the revival of that vedic religion and the high impact and popularity of vedic culture in the society where other sects as mentioned earlier were emerging in contemporary society.

In the operative portion of several charters it is said that the purpose of the grants was to "Maintain the sacrificial rites of the bali, caru, vaiśvadeva, agnihotra and atithi." It indicates that vedic tradition had a continuous flow and the donors followed the tradition of their ancestors. They were dependent on vedic rituals as it is recorded in the documents that they granted the land or villages to obtain religious merits and fame for their family and their own.

These eight centuries of early and early mediaeval period witnessed growth of several political powers in different regions, growth of divergent religious beliefs, development of commerce, science and technology, literature and art in the subcontinent. Purāṇic faith was popularized through temple building, Bhakti Movement, reading of holy texts and teachings of great philosophers, saints and sages.

However, in spite of these socio-religious expansions, the vedic culture did not lose its stand in the society. The kings and the rulers of respective provinces gifted acres of land to the vedic brāhmaṇas to perform their religious activities as Brahmadeya that literally means what is worthy to be given to a brāhmaṇa. It symbolized the attitude of the society towards them and socio-economic structure during this period. As in the vedic age, grant of land to brāhmaṇas was considered a religious duty of the kings in this period too. Inscriptions issued during the early and early mediaeval period show that vedic culture was revived with an earnest zeal by the Indian rulers and vedic texts were studied with utmost attention. The vedic sacrificial rituals played a major role in reviving the vedic culture in society. During this period a wide popularity of vedic culture is experienced all over the country.

Some chronological tables have been produced in different contexts in this dissertation, documenting migrations of vedic brāhmaṇas, gift of land to them to perform vedic rituals and other religious activities. They show the impact of vedic culture and tradition in Āryāvarta notwithstanding the royal patronage being extended to variety of other religious sects in different regions and realms.

The kings of northern India granted lands for performance of vedic rituals, and sometimes huge area of lands was donated especially to the caturvedins (well versed in four Vedas) belonging to the Ṛgveda, for the study of all the four Vedas. These charters also carry the evidence of the graceful presence of vedic culture in Northern India as well. For example, Navalākhī Plates of Śīlāditya (c. 605 CE)^[6] of the Maitrakas of Valabhī records a land grant for the austerities and vedic education. Bhavnagar Plates of Dhruvasena IV (645-46 CE)^[7] issued from the same dynasty records a land grant to some vedic brāhmaṇas as dharmadeya. Banskhera Plate of Harṣavardhana (628-29 CE)^[8] of Puṣyabhūti dynasty records a land grant to two vedic brāhmaṇas, one of whom was an adherent of Bṛhavṛcha-śākhā (Ṛgveda) and another of Chandoga or the Sāmaveda. Again, Kaira Plates of Dadda II (629 CE)^[9] of Early Gurjara dynasty records a grant of a village to several brāhmaṇas including the brāhmaṇa Bhaṭṭi who was an adhyāpaka (teacher) and adherent of Āśvalāyana School of the Ṛgveda.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

According to D.C. Sircar (D.C. Sircar, Studies in the Geography of Ancient and Mediaeval India, p. 213.) what was originally called Aryāvarta, was later named Madhyadeśa. The early texts like the Mahābhaṣya define Āryāvarta as the land to the east of Ādarśa, which according to K.K. Dasgupta (J.F. Fleet, The Topographical List of the Bṛhatsaṃhitā, ed. K.K. Dasgupta., p. 13.) is probably the same as Adarśana or Vinaśana in Sirhind in Patiala in the Punjab, where the river Sarasvati is said to have disappeared into the ground, and to the west of Kālakavana near Allahabad. It was bounded on the north by the Himalayas and on the south by Pāriyātra or the western part of the Vindhyas along with the Aravalli range. Most of the texts give the same geographical limits for Madhyadeśa. But, there is some controversy about its eastern boundaries.

The Kāvyamīmāṃsā of Rajaśekhara extends the eastern boundary as far as Vārāṇasi in U.P., while the Buddhist texts, the Mahāvagga and Divyāvadāna extend Majjhimadeśa, further to the east, one to include Kajangala or Kankjole near the Rajmahal hills in Bihar and the other to include Pundravardhana or North Bengal. Varāhamihira includes in Madhyadeśa, the rivers Sarasvati and Yamunā, as well as Sāketa and Prayāga and makes Allahabad, the eastern boundary of Madhyadeśa. Hence as Dasgupta concludes, the upper and middle Gangetic basin and the Yamuna-Chambal catchment area represented the heart of Madhyadeśa.

[2]:

D.C. Sircar, Studies in the Geography of Ancient and Mediaeval India, p. 213.

[3]:

A.L. Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn, Culture. A Critical Review of Concepts and definitions, pp. 43-72.

[4]:

R.B. Singh, History of the Chāhamānas, pp. 124, 128.

[5]:

P.V. Kane, History of Dharmaśāstra, vol. II, part II, p. 837.

[6]:

USVAE, vol. IV, part I, pp. 159-166.

[7]:

Ibid., pp. 560-568.

[8]:

Ibid., pp. 345-347.

[9]:

Ibid., pp. 355-366.