Indraprastha

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"Indraprastham" redirects here. For the film, see Indraprastham (film).

Indraprastha (lit. "Plain of

Khandavaprastha or Khandava Forest, the name of a forest region on the banks of Yamuna river which (according to the Mahabharata) had been cleared by Krishna and Arjuna
to build the city.

History

Indraprastha is referenced in the Mahabharata, a

Kauravas
it describes.

Indraprastha within the Maurya Empire

During the Mauryan period, Indraprastha was known as Indapatta in Buddhist literature. The location of Indraprastha is uncertain but Purana Qila in present-day New Delhi is frequently cited[a][4] and has been noted as such in texts as old as the 14th-century CE.[5] The modern form of the name, Inderpat, continued to be applied to the Purana Qila area into the early 20th century;[6] in a study of ancient Indian place-names, Michael Witzel considers this to be one of many places from the Sanskrit Epics whose names have been retained into modern times, such as Kaushambi/Kosam.[7]

Location

Purana Qila is certainly an ancient settlement but archaeological studies performed there since the 1950s[b][c] have failed to reveal structures and artefacts that would confirm the architectural grandeur and rich lives in the period that the Mahabharata describes. The historian Upinder Singh notes that despite the academic debate, "Ultimately, there is no way of conclusively proving or disproving whether the Pandavas or Kauravas ever lived ...".[5] However, it is possible that the main part of the ancient city has not been reached by excavations so far, but rather falls under the unexcavated area extending directly to the south of Purana Qila.[d] Overall, Delhi has been the center of the area where the ancient city has historically been estimated to be. Until 1913, a village called Indrapat existed within the fort walls.[10] As of 2014, the Archaeological Survey of India is continuing excavation in Purana Qila.[11]

Historical significance

Indraprastha is not only known from the Mahabharata. It is also mentioned as "Indapatta" or "Indapattana" in

Hastinapura) and several smaller towns and villages of the Kuru kingdom.[12] Indraprastha may have been known to the Greco-Roman world as well: it is thought to be mentioned in Ptolemy's Geography dating from the 2nd century CE as the city "Indabara", possibly derived from the Prakrit form "Indabatta", and which was probably in the vicinity of Delhi.[14] Upinder Singh (2004) describes this equation of Indabara with Indraprastha as "plausible".[15] Indraprastha is also named as a pratigana (district) of the Delhi region in a Sanskrit inscription dated to 1327 CE, discovered in Raisina area of New Delhi.[16]

Mauryan period, based on analysis of a stone carving found in the Delhi area at Sriniwaspuri which records the reign of the Mauryan emperor Ashoka. Singh has cast doubt on this interpretation because the inscription does not actually refer to Indraprastha and although "... a place of importance must certainly have been located in the vicinity of the rock edict, exactly which one it was and what it was known as, is uncertain." Similarly, remains, such as an iron pillar, that have been associated with Ashoka are not indubitably so: their composition is atypical and the inscriptions are vague.[5]

See also

References

Notes

  1. Hastinapura, of Indraprastha (Delhi's Purana Qila [...]), and of Mathura
  2. ^ Archaeological surveys were carried out in 1954-1955 and between 1969 and 1973.[8]
  3. wattle-and-daub houses, brick drains, wells, figurines of terracotta, a stone carving, a stamp seal impression, and a copper coin.[6]
  4. B. B. Lal's suggestion, "the main part of the city must probably have been to the south – through the Humayun Gate towards Humayun's Tomb [...] where the Zoo and Sundernagar are now."[9]

Citations

  1. ISBN 978-0-674-98128-7
    .
  2. ^ Imperial Gazetteer of India (1911). Imperial Gazetteer of India, v. 11. Oxford Press. p. 236.
  3. ISBN 978-81-7755-297-3
    .
  4. ISBN 978-0-226-84663-7
    .
  5. ^
    ISBN 9788187358299
    .
  6. ^
    ISBN 978-81-215-0089-0
    .
  7. ISBN 978-1-888789-04-1
    .
  8. ISBN 9788187358299
    .
  9. ISBN 978-1-101-12701-8
    .
  10. ISBN 81-900601-2-0
    .
  11. ^ Tankha, Madhur (11 March 2014). "The discovery of Indraprastha". The Hindu. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
  12. ^ a b H.C. Raychaudhuri (1950). Political History of Ancient India: from the accession of Parikshit to the extinction of the Gupta dynasty. University of Calcutta. pp. 41, 133.
  13. ISBN 978-81-7017-055-6
    .
  14. ^ J. W. McCrindle (1885). Ancient India as Described by Ptolemy. Thacker, Spink, & Company. p. 128.
  15. ISBN 978-81-7824-088-6
    .
  16. ^ Singh (ed., 2006), p.186

External links

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