Prehistory of India

Basis for Periodization

The earliest traces of human existence go back to the period between 3,00,000 and 2,00,000 BC. A large number of primitive stone tools found in the Soan valley and south India suggests this. The modern human being first appeared around 36000 BC. Primitive man in the Palaeolithic age which lasted till 8000 BC used tools and implements of rough stone. Initially man was a food gatherer and depended on nature for food. He learnt to control fire which helped him to improve his way of living. From 8000 BC the Mesolithic age began and continued up to 4000 BC in India. During this time sharp and pointed tools were used for killing fast-moving animals. Chota Nagpur plateau, Central India and south of the river Krishna are some of the sites.

Neolithic settlements are not older than 4000 BC. Man began to domesticate animals and cultivate plants settling down in villages to form farming communities. The wheel was an important discovery. Towards the end of the Neolithic period metals like copper and bronze were used. This was the Chalcolithic phase.

  

Periodization of Indian Prehistory

Palaeolithic Age:

To begin with the Palaeolithic Age was also called the old stone age covered the long period from the time the first ancestors of modern human beings started living in the Indian subcontinent from roughly 3 lakh B.C to 8000 or eighth millennium B.C.Archeologists divide it into three phases -the Lower or Early, the middle and the upper Palaeolithic age-according to the nature of the stone tools used by the people.

Mesolithic Age:

Then came the Mesolithic age also known as the late Stone Age which broadly covered the period from the eighth to fourth millennium BC.It is the intermediate or transitional stage between the Palaeolithic and Neolithic age. The tools of this age are called microliths. Neolithic Age: Third is the Neolithic age or the new Stone Age that covered the period roughly from 4000 to 1800 BC and was marked by the use of polished stone tools. Chalcolithic Age: Stone-copper age covered the period from 1800 to 1200 BC

Sources of Prehistory

Unlike the more advanced stages for which various types of sources are available the study of the initial stages of human history is based entirely on the material remains left by early man. The period is referred when man was primarily a food gatherer or had just begun a settled life and for which no written records are available. The material remains of early man is available mostly in the form of stone tools and sometimes with the remains of animals that he hunted do not speak comprehensively about his life.

The basic information provided by the tools of the early man, his habitat and observed facts about communities still in the initial stages of societal development have led to certain conclusions about variations even in the earliest cultures and the cultural zones.

Food Gathering Communities

Early Stone Age tools have been found in different areas of the subcontinent the most notable among which are the Potwar plain in north-western Punjab; the Beas and Banganga valleys; Nevasa in the valley of Pravara, a tributary of the Godavary; Gudalur in Gundlakamma basin in Andhra Pradesh; Nagarjunakonda in the Krishna valley, a string of sites (Vadamadurai, Attirampakkam etc) in the coastal plain near Chennai and the districts along the north bank of the Mahanadi in Orissa. Primitive man used tools and implements of rough stone. Flint was commonly used as it is hard but flakes easily. Tools serve a variety of purposes such as skinning of dead animals, cutting their flesh and splitting bones etc. Man during this period was essentially a food gatherer. He was totally dependent on nature for his food supply; requirement of game animals and edible plants. In course of time he learnt to control fire which helped improve the pattern of living in many ways.

He used the skins of animals, barks of trees and large leaves as clothes. Men were organized in small wandering groups consisting of few men, women and children. It was towards the end of the Palaeolithic period that the modern human being (Homo Sapien) first appeared around 36,000 BC. The middle stone age cultures were around the date 33,000 BC to about 16,500 BC. 

There are indications that in some regions like western Rajasthan and MP the flake making technique was of a more improved variety than in others. These regional variations in dates and the total cultural assemblage became more prominent in the Late Stone age heralded by the use of smaller tools the microliths. In MP, Gujarat, Rajasthan and several other areas a long time span of 8500 BC-1700 BC has been suggested for these cultures.

Microliths being compound tools suggest a substantial technological change being hafted in bone, wood or bamboo. Atleast in few areas along with the microliths the technique of pot making a technique of great significance in human history as it came to be closely associated with food production and settled life. Langhnaj in Gujarat and Adamgarh in MP suggest presence of domesticated animals and exchange of commodities between different areas and communities.

Food Producing Men

Settled life based on food production first began in the northwest. Here man progressed from incipient food production to the foundation of Neolithic -Chalcolithic village cultures. In Ahar (Banas valley of Rajasthan), Maheshwar-Navdatoli in the Narmada valley, Nagda in the Chambal valley, Daimabad, Chandoli and various other sites of the northern Deccan early farmers were living in open villages and cultivating crops which included wheat, several kinds of legumes or rice as at Chirand in south Bihar.

In the south, in central and eastern Deccan the economy was predominantly pastoral and the Neolithic -Chalcolithic influence can be seen at Piklihal and Tekkalakota in Karnataka or Utnur and Nagarjunakonda in AP. This period continued from about 2000 BC to about the middle of the first millennium BC although in certain areas the advent of a new metallic technology seems to have taken place earlier.

Neolithic or the New Stone Age

The main period of the Neolithic Age in the Indian subcontinent was 4000-1800 BC. This was the food producing age when man completely changed his way of life. Traces of Neolithic communities have survived mostly in the north-western region and the Deccan. Neolithic settlements in Baluchistan seem to be oldest around 3500 BC. In the new way of life man began to domesticate animals and cultivate plants. The dog, sheep and goat were probably the first to be domesticated.

Among plants, wheat and barley were the earliest cereals grown. As a result man began to settle down in certain selected areas. This led to the growth of villages and farming communities. The tools he needed also changed. All these developments took place first in north western India and culminated in the rise and growth of great Indus Civilization while the rest of the Indian subcontinent was late in undergoing the transition from Mesolithic to the Neolithic and then to the Chalcolithic periods.

Iron Age

The early history of Iron in India can be examined in terms of different regional contexts through the study of the various iron-using areas of the subcontinent. The chronology of iron differs from one area to another but between the period 1000BC and 500 BC its use said to spread to all major areas-

The upper Ganges valley and its peripheries

Malwa plateau and Tapti valley

South and Central Indian megalithic areas

Baluchistan plains

Middle and Lower Ganges valleys

North west mainly Peshawar region

Impact of Iron

Iron brought in a change of economy, the characteristic feature of advanced type of agriculture. In the Ganges Valley and in the Malwa region iron led to the rise of urban areas. Both Brahmanical and Buddhist texts are full with reference to cities during the middle of the first millennium BC and at sites like Ahichhatra, Varanasi, Kausambi, Sravasti and Ujjayini the evidences of Iron age urbanization is available.

By the middle of the 6th century BC some of these settlements had reached the proportions of urban centres. This suggests that for the first time since the decline of the Harappan civilization a substantial agricultural surplus which could sustain such urban centres had emerged. The use of silver and copper coins in large numbers during this period implies considerable trade and commerce. Some of the urban centres were also seats of political power as suggested by defence arrangements in some of them. Thus a political system with definable territorial units as its bases had developed by this time.

In the Upper Ganges valley and the Indo Gangetic divide iron is first found associated around 800 BC with a culture known as Painted Greyware. Its use was sparse in the beginning but by the middle of the 6th century BC it had become fairly common and was associated with the new Northern Black Polished Ware culture. During this period its horizon expanded to include the central and lower Ganges valley where it marked a significant break from the earlier cultures. In the Malwa region and Tapti valley too it sites such as Nagda, Eran and Prakash, iron brought in an element of change in the earlier Chalcolithic cultures and it is possible that the use of iron was slightly earlier in this region (1000 BC) than in the Ganges Valley. At Hallur in north Karnataka iron appears to overlap the Neolithic implements of 900 BC

Ancient India -Life, Arts, Language & Literature

India can boast of a glorious past and the study of the history of Ancient India is a subject in itself. India has a civilisation as ancient as most ancient civilizations across the world. We have added new articles on all the following Ancient India topics. 

Everyday life in Ancient India

The achievements of the Aryans in the realms of philosophy and metaphysics have been the subject matter of research by very many scholars and valuable light has been shed on these as a result of their labours. But as regards the social and economic conditions in which they lived there is not much authentic information and whatever is known had to be gleaned from such books as Mahabharata and Kautilya's Arthasastra. The latter book gives us valuable information about the political, social, economic and military organization of Mauryas. The Jataka tales a collection of tales belonging to the pre-Buddhist period give us a revealing glimpse into a period when the fusion between the Aryan and the Dravidian races had been almost completed. It gives us the periods of rule and genealogies of dynasties of kings. Originally the institution of kingship was elective but in the course of time the office became hereditary. The chief source of revenue for the government was from land. The political and economic structure was built up from the village communities. India was famous for her textile goods. There was a thriving metallurgical industry making implements of war.

Trade guilds controlled different trades. The merchant -guilds or associations were so powerful that the king himself could not take away any of their privileges. Another peculiar feature was that those who belonged to particular craft say carpentry were all concentrated in a single village. There was a flourishing trade not only within the country but also with other countries of the world. In the treatment of iron India had made remarkable progress even in ancient times. The iron pillar in Delhi stated to have been erected in the fourth to seventh century AD is a standing monument to this superior knowledge of metallurgy. The pillar has successfully withstood the ravages of time all these years. Panini the great grammarian wrote his learned grammar of Sanskrit in the 7th century BC. Panini's book is one of the splendid productions of the human mind. The ancient Indians were well versed in astronomy, medicine and surgery. They were mindful of the animals and had hospitals for them. In the field of mathematics their contribution was outstanding. They invented the zero and decimal place-value system. They could divide time into the minutest part. The ancient Indians had vast conception of time and space. There were centres of higher learning corresponding to the modern universities in places like Taxila. It is stated that the eminent grammarian Panini studied in that university. The position of women was honourable at home and in society.




The Arts in Ancient India


Indian art is very intimately associated with Indian religion and philosophy. There is always an irresistible urge to find an expression for spiritual longings. Beauty to Indian artist was something subjective. E.B Havell an eminent critic art is all praise for the ideals of Indian art and the underlying spirit behind it. He says that great art brings out national character and thought in a revealing manner and such art can only be appreciated if the ideals animating it are sympathetically understood. Indian art was not meant to cater to the aesthetic taste of a small elitist society. It was meant to propagate religious ideals and reach as large as audience as possible who for the most past were not literate. The masses of India though not considered to be well educated have reacted through the ages in the most enthusiastic manner to art and revealed their essential culture.


Practically the entire remnants of art of ancient India which have survived the ravages of time are of a religious nature or with some religious motif. Secular art also existed as for example in the wall paintings and sculptures in the palaces of kings proclaiming the transitoriness of human splendour. There are also few critics who hold the view that Indian art did not emphasize spiritual and religious ideas to the exclusion of everything else but also was an expression of the vitality of life of the people and their sense of pure joy in life. In Indian art the temple towers though tall are firmly based on earth. The figures represented are beautiful and a smile on the face is quite common. It is also worthy of note that female forms are depicted with decorative often voluptuous motif and often are made to appear strikingly beautiful. While religious literature in ancient India was the work of learned Brahmans and ascetics religious art was the work of expert craftsmen who were secular in their outlook and who enjoyed thoroughly their life without any thought of asceticism. It is their view of life that is prominently depicted in art and literature.





Ancient Language in India

The earliest form of Sanskrit is found in the Rig Veda. After the Rig Veda was composed, Sanskrit language developed rapidly. The grammar became considerably simplified though still remaining complex. When the need was felt for proper pronunciation and understanding of the meaning of the older Vedic texts particularly at a time when many new words were introduced from non-Aryan sources, India developed the science of phonetics and grammar. There was also a belief that unless the Vedic texts were recited very accurately, it would bring misfortune to the reader.


Panini's great grammar the Ashtadhyayi was most probably composed towards the 4th century BC. It may be stated that with Panini the language attained its highest state of development and thereafter there was improvement only in its vocabulary. Side by side the sounds of Sanskrit were analysed with remarkable accuracy. The vowels and the consonants were all classified in a very scientific manner according to their mode of production. Panini's grammar may be justly described as one of the grandest achievements of any civilization. Panini had formulated some 4000 grammatical rules. Later Indian grammar texts could only be commentaries on the matchless work of Panini. Sanskrit spread to other parts of the country including countries like Cambodia and Srilanka.


When Buddhism emerged as a new religion people started speaking languages much simpler than Sanskrit. These were known as the Prakrit. In the pre-Gupta period the inscriptions especially the series of Ashoka's edicts are in Prakrit. Prakrits were simpler than Sanskrit in respect of both sound and grammar. One of the early Prakrit of considerable importance was Pali which became the language of one sect of the Buddhists.


Tamil is the oldest of Dravidian languages with a literature dating back to the earliest centauries after the beginning of the Christian era. These languages form an independent group with a distinctive character. From the very early times Tamil was affected by Sanskrit. Early Tamil literature contains relatively few words from Sanskrit and they were adapted to the Tamil phonetic system.

Literature in Ancient India

The earliest known work of the Aryans in India was the Rig Veda which is a collection of 1028 hymns in Vedic Sanskrit. Most of the hymns are in praise of different Vedic deities and were intended for recitation at the Yajnas or sacrifices. Many of them are beautiful descriptions of nature. Some of the most enchanting are addressed to Ushas the goddess of dawn. The Rig-Veda was followed by three more Vedas-yajur Veda which gives directions for the performance of the Yajna, the Sama Veda which prescribes the tunes for the recitation of the hymns of the Rig Veda and the Asmara Veda which prescribes rites and rituals. After the four Vedas a number of works called the Brahmanas grew which contained detailed explanation of Vedic literature and instructions. The Aranyakas which are an appendix to the Brahmanas prescribed certain rites and also laid the basis of a body of more philosophical literature. It was the Upanishadic literature which dealt with questions like the origin of the universe, birth and death, the material and spiritual world, nature of knowledge and many other questions. The early Upanishads are Brihad -Aranyaka and Chanddogya. They are in the form of dialogues and expresses the highest thoughts in simple and beautiful imagery.

Another body of literature to grow was Vedangas which were concerned with astronomy, grammar and phonetics. One of the most outstanding works of this period was a classic on Sanskrit grammar, the Ashtdhyayi by Panini.

The two great epics the Mahabharata and Ramayana were developed over a period of centauries and were perhaps put to writing in their present form in the second century AD. The Mahabharata contains 1,00,000 verses and is the longest single poem in the world. The Bhagvad Gita a later addition to the Mahabharata enshrines a philosophical doctrine and in it are described the three paths to salvation: karma, gyan and bhakti. The Ramayana the story of Rama is shorter than the Mahabharata and is full of interesting adventures and episodes. This period abounds in both religious and secular literature in Sanskrit. The Puranas is important as they were the main influence in the development from early Vedic religion to Hinduism. There were many other Shastras and smritis. The Shastras contained works of science and philopsohy.

The Arthsashtra by Kautilya was a treatise on the science of governance. There were shastras on art, mathematics and other sciences. The smritis dealt with the performance of duties, customs and laws prescribed according to Dharma. The most famous of these is the Manusmriti. The early Buddhist literature was in Pali and consists of two sections. The Sutta pitaka consists mainly of dialogues between the Buddha and his followers. The Vinayapitaka is concerned mainly with the rules of the organization of the monasteries. The Milinda Panha is another great Buddhist work consisting of dialogues between the Indo-Greek King Menander and the Buddhist philosopher Nagasena. Another great Buddhist work consists of hundreds of jataka stories which became the subjects of Buddhist sculpture and are popular all over the world for their wisdom. Later many Buddhist works were written in Sanskrit. Of these the most famous is the Buddhacharita or life of Buddha by Ashvaghosha. The period before the reign of the Guptas ushered in the glorious period of Sanskrit literature.

This was the greatest period for the growth of poetry and drama. The great writers of this period are well known Kalidasa, Bhavabhuti, Bharavi, Bhartrihari, Bana, Magha and many others. Of these Kalidasa is known all over the world. His works the Kumarasambhava, the Raghuvamsa, the Meghaduta, the Abhijnanashakuntalam and others are unrivalled for their poetry and style. Bana wrote the Harshacharita, a biography of King Harsha and Kadambari. Among the famous works of the period are Bhavabhuti's Utter -Ramacharita, Bharavi's Kirtarjuniya, Vishakhadatta's Mudra Rakhshasa, Shudraka's Mricchakatika. The subjects of these and other works were political events, romances, allegories, comedies and philosophical questions.

The four Dravidian languages- Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam developed their own distinct scripts and literature. According to tradition three literary gatherings or Sangams were held at which many sages and poets recited their compositions. This body of literature consists of many themes like politics, war and love. The famous works of this body of literature include the Ettutogai (Eight Anthologies), the Tolkappiyam (a work of Tamil grammar) and the Pattuppattu (the ten songs). Thiruvalluvar wrote the famous Kural which in verse deals with many aspects of life and religion. The Silappadikaram and the Manimekalai are some of the other most famous works of early Tamil literature.


Books and Authors in Ancient India

Book [Author]
Mudrarakshasa [Visakdatta]
Rajtarangini [Kalhana]
Kathasaritsagar [Somdeva]
Kamasutra [Vatsayana]
Prashnottarmalika [Amoghavarsha]
Swapanvasdattam [Bhasa]
Buddha charita [Asvaghosa]
Natyashastra [Bharata]
Abhigyan Shakuntala [Kalidasa]
Vikramorvashi [Kalidasa]
Raghuvansan [Kalidasa]
Amarkosa [Amarshmha]
Panc hsidhantika and Brihat Samhita [Varharmihara]
Surya Sidhanta and Aryabhatta [Aryabhatta]
Panch tantra [Vishnu Sharma]
Nitisara [Kamandaka]
Aihole Prasasti [Ravi Kriti]
Indica [Megasthanese]
Arthasastra [Kautilya]
Charaka Samhita [Charaka]
Lilawati [Bhaskara II]
Harshacharita and Kadambari [Harsha vardhan]
Ratnavali [Harsha vardhan]
Gathasaptashati [Hala]
Nitisara [Kamandaka]
Astadhyayi [Panini]
Mahabhasya [Patanjli]
Nagananda [Harshavardhana]
Naishadhacharitra [Sri Harsha]
Mrichhakatika [Sudraka]
Gitagovinda [Jayadev]
Navratna [Virsena]



Poets in the Courts of the Kings Ancient India

Poet [King]
Ashvaghosa Nagarjuna,
Vasumitra [Kanishka]
Harisena [Samudragupta II]
Amarsimha [Chandra gupta II]
kalidasa [Chandragupta II]
Banabhatta [Harshavardhana]
Ravikirti [Pulkesin II]
Bhavabhuti [Yasovarman]
Mahaviracharya [Amoghavarsha]
Jinsena [Amoghavarsha]
Dandin [Narsimhavarman]
Rajashekhar [Mahindrapala]
Bilhana [Vikramaditya VI]
Viknaneshvara [Vikramaditya VI]
Kamban [Chola]

Check Point I
1.In the fourth century BC the empire of Magadh was greatly expanded under which powerful dynasty?
Ans: Nandas

2.Through which accounts we come to know that Nandas conquered all rival monarchs and became all powerful rulers of North India?
Ans: Puranas

3.Hathigumpha inscription is associated with which monarch?
Ans: Kharavela

4.Kharavela ruled over Kalinga in which century?
Ans: IInd century BC

5.Where Emperor Chandragupta is said to have lived for many years as a Jain ascetic?
Ans: Sravana Belgola

6.A period of 12 years of dire famine the whole of Jain sangha migrated from the north to south under whose leadership?
Ans: Bhadrabahu

7.Which literary source gives some information of value about the trade between the north and the south in the age of the early Maurayan Empire?
Ans: Arthasashtra

8.Who has given the account of the rule of the Pandyan kingdom by Pandala a daughter of Herakles ?
Ans: Megasthenes

9.In which rock edicts of Ashoka the kingdom of south India together with Ceylon are mentioned?
Ans: Second Rock edicts and thirteenth rock edicts.
10.Which rock-edicts include the names of Chola, Pandya, Satiyaputra, Keralaputa and Tambapanni?
Ans: IInd Rock edict

11.When Kalinga did was conquered by Ashoka?
Ans: 260 BC

12.Which edicts of Ashoka prove the inclusion within the Mauryan Empire of the north-west as well as the north-east of the Deccan?
Ans: Sopara

13.Which source mentions that the mission had been send after the third Buddhist council at Pataliputra for the propagation of the Dhamma in different countries?
Ans: Mahavamsa

14.From which places in farther south Ashokan inscription have been found?
Ans: Raichur,Chitaldurg and Kurnool

15.Which of the following ancient place is now known as Kanakgiri?
Ans: Suvarnagiri

16.Antamahamatras were incharge of what work?
Ans: Defence and missionary work among people

17.Which inscription mentions a league of Tamil states that was 113 years old at the date of the inscription and had been for some time a source of danger to the Kalinga kingdom?
Ans: Hathigumpha

18.Which poet mentions that the Kosar started operations against their foes and gained success against many of them?
Ans: Mamulanar

19.The most important records which have a dedication to Jain ascetics by a Chera prince come from which place?
Ans: Arnattarmalai

20.Which language is employed in the script of Damili records?
Ans: Tamil

21.The language employed in the script of Damili records was Tamil but at which place it is in Prakrit?
Ans: Arikkamedu

22.A Pallava inscription of the 9th century AD mentions which earliest ruler of Kanchipuram ?
Ans: Ashokavarman

23.Which dynasty is identical with the Andhras of Andhrabhrityas in the Puranic lists of the Kings?
Ans: Kushan dynasty

24.Who mentions that the Andhra territory in the eastern Deccan as including thirty walled towns, besides numerous villages and as maintaining an army of 100,000 infantry,2000 cavalry and 1000 elephants?
Ans: Pliny

25.How many kings have been mentioned in the dynasty of Satvahanas according to Puranas?
Ans: 30

26.The names of the earliest kings in the Puranic list figure also on inscriptions and on coins are found at which places in Deccan?
Ans: Nasik,Karle and Naneghat

27.About which Satvahana king Kharavela of Kalinga states clearly that the territory of that Satvahana king lay to the west of his kingdom?
Ans: Satakarni

28.Who was the first king of Satvahanas?
Ans: Simuk

29.Nasik inscription was associated with which Satvahana king?
Ans: Kanha

30.Which accounts states that Simuka grew wicked and dethroned and killed?
Ans: Jaina

31.Whose figure was sculptured in rilievo at Naneghat along with the figures of his father Simuka,Queen Naganika a maharathi and three princess?
Ans: Sri Satakarni I

32.Which source mentions victory of the Sungas over the Andhras?
Ans: Malavikagnimitra

33.Who is described in the inscription of his queen as the lord of Dakshinapatha?
Ans: Satakarni I

34.Which king of Satvahana enjoyed the longest reign 56 years and wrested Malwa from the Sungas?
Ans: Satakarni III

35.Who was the famous Satvahana king whom Kharavela of Kalinga defied in the second year of his reign by sending a large army of horse, elephant, foot soldiers and chariots to the west?
Ans: Satakarni II

36.Which king has compiled the famous literature Sattasai?
Ans: Hala

37.In which language the Saptasati has been written?
Ans: Prakrit

38.Which Gupta ruler destroyed the Saka power in the west?
Ans: Chandragupta II

39.Bhumaka and Nahapana were famous rulers of which satrap?
Ans: Western satrap

40.Which was the capital of Natrapana?
Ans: Minnagara

41.Which Satvahana ruler described as the destroyer of the Shakas Pahlavas and Yavasas?
Ans: Gautamiputra Satakarni

42.Which ruler of Satvahanas overthrew Nahapana and minted his silver coins again?
Ans: Gautamiputra Satkarni

43.Coins of Pulumayi II are found in which districts?
Ans: Godavari,Guntur and Cuddalore

44.Which Shaka king defeated the Satvahana ruler twice and took Aparanta and Anupa from him?
Ans: Rudradaman

45.Which Satvahana ruler coin bears the figure of a ship stating that his power was not confined to the land?
Ans: Yajnasri

46.Which writer names several ports in Maisolia the regions between the deltas of Godavari and Krishna?
Ans: Ptolemy

47.In western Deccan which one was the most important port?
Ans: Barygaza

48.What was the religion of most of the Satvahana rulers?
Ans: Brahmanism

49.Hala’s saptasati opens with invocation of which god?
Ans: Shiva

50.Which Satvahana ruler was a great supporter of the Brahmins and tried to emulate the epic heroes Rama,Krishna and Arjuna?
Ans: Gautamiputra Satakarni

51.In which text temples to Gauri and also the vrata of fire and water are mentioned?
Ans: Saptasati

52.Who founded the Abhiras dynasty?
Ans: Isvarasena

53.When Kalachuri or Chedi era started?
Ans: 248-49 AD

54.Which Indo-Greek king offered an elephant scalp to Nandivarman II on the occasion of his being chosen for the throne?
Ans: Demetrius

55.Which dynasty declared its devotion to Kadamba tree?
Ans: Kadamba

56.Which Pallava king belonged to Bharadvaja gotra and also performed the agnistoma,vajpeya and asvamedha sacrifices and bore the title of Supreme king of kings devoted to dharma?
Ans: Skandavarman

To Remain Ignorant of Things that Happened Before You Were Born is to Remain a Child

H I S T O R Y                          

                                         O F           I N D I A

W H Y   S T U D Y   H I S T O R Y ? 

Those who cannot remember the past

are condemned to repeat it

- George Santayana         

W H A T   I S   H I S T O R Y ?

History [from Greek ἱστορία - historia, meaning - inquiry, knowledge acquired by investigation] is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians. It is a field of research which uses a narrative to examine and analyse the sequence of events, and it sometimes attempts to investigate objectively the patterns of cause and effect that determine events. Historians debate the nature of history and its usefulness. This includes discussing the study of the discipline as an end in itself and as a way of providing "perspective" on the problems of the present. The stories common to a particular culture, but not supported by external sources [such as the legends surrounding King Arthur] are usually classified as cultural heritage rather than the "disinterested investigation" needed by the discipline of history. Events of the past prior to written record are considered prehistory.

Amongst scholars, the 5th-century BC Greek historian Herodotus is considered to be the "father of history", and, along with his contemporary Thucydides, forms the foundations for the modern study of history. Their influence, along with other historical traditions in other parts of their world, has spawned many different interpretations of the nature of history which has evolved over the centuries and are continuing to change. The modern study of history has many different fields including those that focus on certain regions and those which focus on certain topical or thematical elements of historical investigation. Often history is taught as part of primary and secondary education, and the academic study of history is a major discipline in University studies.





 

I N D I A N    H E R I T A G E

The history of India begins with evidence of human activity of Homo sapiens as long as 75,000 years ago, or with earlier hominids including Homo erectus from about 500,000 years ago. The Indus Valley Civilization, which spread and flourished in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent from c. 3300 to 1300 BCE in present-day Pakistan and northwest India, was the first major civilization in South Asia. A sophisticated and technologically advanced urban culture developed in the Mature Harappan period, from 2600 to 1900 BCE. This Bronze Age civilization collapsed before the end of the second millennium BCE and was followed by the Iron Age Vedic Civilization, which extended over much of the Indo-Gangetic plain and which witnessed the rise of major polities known as the Mahajanapadas. In one of these kingdoms, Magadha, Mahavira and Gautama Buddha were born in the 6th or 5th century BCE and propagated their śramanic philosophies.


Most of the subcontinent was conquered by the Maurya Empire during the 4th and 3rd centuries BCE. It became fragmented, with various parts ruled by numerous Middle kingdoms for the next 1,500 years. This is known as the classical period of Indian history, during which time India has sometimes been estimated to have had the largest economy of the ancient and medieval world, with its huge population generating between one fourth and one third of the world's income up to the 18th century.


Much of northern and central India was united in the 4th century CE, and remained so for two centuries, under the Gupta Empire. This period, witnessing a Hindu religious and intellectual resurgence, is known among its admirers as the "Golden Age of India". From this time, and for several centuries afterwards, southern India, under the rule of the Chalukyas, Cholas, Pallavas, and Pandyas, experienced its own golden age. During this period, aspects of Indian civilization, administration, culture, and religion (Hinduism and Buddhism) spread to much of Asia.


Kingdoms in southern India had maritime business links with the Roman Empire from around 77 CE. Muslim rule in the subcontinent began in 8th century CE when the Arab general Muhammad bin Qasim conquered Sindh and Multan in southern Punjab in modern day Pakistan, setting the stage for several successive invasions from Central Asia between the 10th and 15th centuries CE, leading to the formation of Muslim empires in the Indian subcontinent such as the Delhi Sultanate and the Mughal Empire.


Mughal rule came from Central Asia to cover most of the northern parts of the subcontinent. Mughal rulers introduced Central Asian art and architecture to India. In addition to the Mughals and various Rajput kingdoms, several independent Hindu states, such as the Vijayanagara Empire, the Maratha Empire, Eastern Ganga Empire and the Ahom Kingdom, flourished contemporaneously in southern, western,eastern and northeastern India respectively. The Mughal Empire suffered a gradual decline in the early 18th century, which provided opportunities for the Afghans, Balochis, Sikhs, and Marathas to exercise control over large areas in the northwest of the subcontinent until the British East India Company gained ascendancy over South Asia.


Beginning in the mid-18th century and over the next century, large areas of India were annexed by the British East India Company. Dissatisfaction with Company rule led to the Indian Rebellion of 1857, after which the British provinces of India were directly administered by the British Crown and witnessed a period of both rapid development of infrastructure and economic decline. During the first half of the 20th century, a nationwide struggle for independence was launched by the Indian National Congress and later joined by the Muslim League. The subcontinent gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1947, after the British provinces were partitioned into the dominions of India and Pakistan and the princely states all acceded to one of the new states.