Itihasa
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Itihasa (
Etymology
The Sanskrit term itihāsa (इतिहास) was derived from the phrase iti ha āsa इति ह आस, which means "so indeed it was".
Hindu tradition
Cosmogony
According to the
The traditions relate that the present Kalpa is called
The Satya Yuga
The Great Flood at the end of Chakshusa
which later becomes the generic name for the kings of Videha.The lunar line is established at about the same time, at
The lunar line again splits into two after the reign of Ayus, the eldest son of Pururavas.
Nahusa's son and successor
Immediately after Yadu, the Yadava dynasty is bifurcated – the main line continued by Krosti and the independent line of
Soon thereafter, the Druhyu king Gandhara retires to the northwest (modern
The Haihaya king Krtavirya had the
In the solar line, Trayyaruna, a near contemporary of Gadhi and Krtavirya, ruled the kingdom of Ayodhya at this time. On the counsel of his priest
The rivalry of Visvamitra and Vasistha continues even during the reign of
In the Haihaya line, Krtavirya was succeeded by his son Arjuna Kartavirya, who was a mighty king. After a long reign he has dissension with Jamadagni. As a result,
After Kartavirya, the Haihayas divided into five collateral tribes – the Talajanghas, the Vitihotras, the Avantyas, Tudikeras and Jatas. They attack Ayodhya and drive king Bahu from the throne.
Sagara had sixty thousand sons who insult Kapila rsi and are, in turn, reduced to ashes by him. Therefore, Sagara is succeeded by his grandson Amsuman on the throne of Ayodhya.[30] With the reign of Sagara, the Satya Yuga comes to an end.
The Treta Yuga
After a long eclipse (corresponding to the ascendency of the solar dynasty under Mandhata), the Paurava line is revived by
Soon after Hastin, the Bharata dynasty is divided into four separate lines – the most well-known being the main Paurava line and the Pancala line. The Pancala king
The solar line once again ascends under the benevolent kingship of
With Rama's disappearance, the Treta Yuga comes to a close and the Dvapara Yuga commences. After Rama the solar dynasty goes into permanent decline.
The Dvapara Yuga
The Yadava line is once again split into two separate lines after the reign of Bhima, the son of Satvat by his sons
The Pancala Bharata dynasty under its king Srnjaya now rises to prominence. His son Cyavana-Pijavana was a great warrior and the latter's son, Sudas, annexed several kingdoms. A confederacy of the kings of the Pauravas, the Yadavas, the Sivis, the Druhyus, the Matsyas, the Turvasus and others, is formed against Sudas, who defeats them in a great battle near the river Parusni. This is called the Battle of the Ten Kings.[38] The bulk of hymns (Book II-IX) represents only 5 to 6 generations of kings (and of contemporary poets) of this dynasty.[39]
The Paurava line continues through Ajamidha, the son of Hasti. In his line, king
The next famous king in the Kaurava line is Pratipa. His son,
Santanu's grandsons were
Subsequently, the Yadavas are themselves engulfed in civil war, and Krishna withdraws to the life of an ascetic in the forest. Here he is accidentally shot and killed by a hunter.
The Kali Yuga
Nicaksu, sixth in line from Pariksita, transfers his capital from Hastinapura to
In Magadha, the descendants of Brhadratha and Jarasandha retain the throne till they are replaced by the Sisunaga dynasty, which among others include the famous kings
According to the Mahabharata, the Kali Yuga will close with the coming of Kalki, at which point the Satya Yuga will recommence.[51]
Conclusion
This lengthy history of kings and sages is rounded off by the bards with a hint of cynicism regarding the ephemeral nature of fame:[52]
The valiant Prthu traversed the universe, every where triumphant over his foes; yet he was blown away, like the light down of the Simal tree, before the blast of time. He who was Kartavirya subdued innumerable enemies, and conquered the seven zones of the earth; but now he is only the topic of a theme, a subject for affirmation and contradiction. Fie upon the empire of the sons of Raghu, who triumphed over Dasanana (Ravana), and extended their sway to the ends of the earth; for was it not consumed in an instant by the frown of the destroyer? Mandhatr, the emperor of the universe, is embodied only in a legend; and what pious man who hears it will ever be so unwise as to cherish the desire of possession in his soul? Bhagiratha, Sagara, Kakutstha, Dasanana, Rama, Lakshmana, Yudhishthira, and others, have been. Is it so? Have they ever really existed? Where are they now? we know not! The powerful kings who now are, or who will be, as I have related them to you, or any others who are unspecified, are all subject to the same fate, and the present and the future will perish and be forgotten, like their predecessors. Aware of this truth, a wise man will never be influenced by the principle of individual appropriation; and regarding them as only transient and temporal possessions, he will not consider children and posterity, lands and property, or whatever else is personal, to be his own.
Jain tradition
Tirthankara | Chakravartin
|
Baladeva/Vasudeva/Prati-Vasudeva |
---|---|---|
Rsabha (Adi)
|
Bharata
|
|
Ajita
|
Sagara
|
|
Sambhava
|
||
Abhinandana
|
||
Sumati
|
||
Padmaprabha | ||
Suparsva
|
||
Candraprabha | ||
Suvidhi/Puspadanta | ||
Sitala
|
Vijaya/Triprstha/Asvagriva | |
Sreyamsa
|
Acala/Dviprstha/Taraka | |
Vasupujya | Dharma/Svayambhu/Madhu | |
Vimala
|
Suprabha/Purusottama/Madhusudana | |
Ananta
|
||
Dharma
|
||
Maghavan | Sudarsana/Purusasimha/Madhukrida | |
Sanatkumara | ||
Santi
|
Santi
|
|
Kunthu
|
Kunthu
|
|
Ara
|
Ara
|
|
Nandisena/Pundarika/Nisumbha | ||
Subhauma | ||
Nandimitra/Datta/Bali | ||
Malli
|
||
Rama (Padma)/Laksmana/Ravana | ||
Munisuvrata | Padma | |
Nami
|
Harisena | |
Jayasena | ||
Nemi
|
Balabhadra/Krsna/Jarasandha | |
Brahmadatta | ||
Parsva
|
||
Mahavira |
The Jainas have their own version of traditional history, brought into line with their legends of the 24 Jinas who from time to time have refounded their religion on earth.
Buddhist tradition
The Buddhists preserve another different version of the traditional history. According to them, in the beginning of the cosmic cycle mankind lived on an immaterial plane where there was no need of food and clothing and no private property, family, government or laws. Then gradually the process of cosmic decay sets in and mankind becomes earthbound and feel the need of food and shelter. As men lose their primeval glory distinctions of class (varna) arise and they enter into agreements with one another, accepting the institutions of private property and the family. With this theft, murder, adultery and other crime begin. So, the people meet together and decide to appoint one man among them to maintain order in return for a share of the produce of their fields and herds. This, then, was the first king called
In this line was born a king called Karnika who had two sons
The four sons and four daughters of Iksvaku are exiled to the foothills of the Himalayas due to the machinations of their stepmother. They intermarry amongst themselves to maintain the purity of their blood and later establish the towns of Kapilavastu and Koli. Their descendants were called
Influence on classical Indian poetry
The rules of classical Indian poetics prescribe that the themes of the
See also
- Hindu mythology
- Buddhist mythology
- Jain cosmology
- History of India
- Hindu epics
- Ramayana
- Mahabharata
- Puranas
- Historicity of the Mahabharata
References
Notes
- ^ "Itihasa is not fantasy". Devdutt. 3 June 2017. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
- ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
- ^ Pargiter, F. E. (Frederick Eden) (1922). Ancient Indian historical tradition. Cornell University Library. London : Oxford University Press, H. Milford.
- S2CID 165668247.
- ^ Satapatha Brahmana, I.8.1
- ^ Mahabharata, III.185
- ^ Bhagavata Purana, VIII.24
- ^ Visnu Purana, IV.5
- ^ Visnu Purana, IV.6
- ^ a b c Visnu Purana, IV.7
- ^ Mahabharata, V.9-18
- ^ Mahabharata, I.76-93
- ^ Visnu Purana, IV.10
- ^ Mahabharata, III.126
- ^ Visnu Purana, IV.2
- ^ a b Visnu Purana, IV.18
- ^ Mahabharata, I.178
- ^ Mahabharata, III.115
- ^ Vayu Purana, 88.78-116
- ^ Ramayana, I.51-56
- ^ Ramayana, I.57-60
- ^ Aitareya Brahmana, VII.15-18
- ^ Ramayana, I.61-62
- ^ Mahabharata, XIII.3
- ^ Aitareya Brahmana, VII.18
- ^ Ramayana, I.65
- ^ Mahabharata, III.115-117
- ^ a b Visnu Purana, IV.3
- ^ Mahabharata, XIII.30
- ^ Ramayana, I.38-41
- ^ Ramayana, I.42-44
- ^ Mahabharata, III.50-78
- ^ Mahabharata, I.62-69
- ^ Vishnu Purana, IV.19
- ^ Rigveda, I.112.14; I.116.18
- ^ Ramayana, I.48
- ^ Raghuvaṃśa of Kālidāsa - Edited with extracts & Notes etc by Narayan Ram Acharya Kavyatirtha, Chaukhambha Publishers, Varanasi, 2nd ed (2002)
- ^ Rigveda, VII.18;VII.83
- ^ Witzel, Michael. The Development of the Vedic Canon and its Schools: The Social and Political Milieu. Inside the Texts, Beyond the Texts. Harvard Oriental Series (1997)
- ^ Mahabharata, I.173-175
- ^ Visnu Purana, V
- ^ Brihaddevata, vii,155-7, viii.1-9
- ^ Mahabharata, XIX
- ^ Mahabharata, I.40-43
- ^ Mahabharata, I.49-53
- ^ Mahabharata, I.13-39
- ^ Mahabharata, I.54-58
- ^ Mahabharata, I.60
- ^ Visnu Purana, IV.21
- ^ Visnu Purana, IV.23-24
- ^ Vyasa, Krishna-Dwaipayana. "SECTION CLXXXIX". The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa. Translated by Mohan Ganguli, Kisari. pp. 390–391.
And when those terrible times will be over, the creation will begin anew. … the Krita age will begin again. … And commissioned by Time, a Brahmana of the name of Kalki will take his birth. And he will glorify Vishnu and possess great energy, great intelligence, and great prowess. … And he will restore order and peace in this world crowded with creatures and contradictory in its course. … And he will be the Destroyer of all, and will inaugurate a new Yuga.
- ^ Visnu Purana, IV.24
- ^ Collins, Steve. Aggañña sutta. Sahitya Akademi, 2001.
- ^ Mahavastu, I.
- ^ Rhys Davids, T.W. Ambattha Sutta, The Sacred Books of the Buddhists Vol II, 1899.
- ^ Dandin, Kavyadarsha, I.15
- ^ Visvanatha Kaviraja, Sahityadarpana, VI.318
- ^ Bharata, Natyasastra, XVIII.10
Primary Sources (Sanskrit, Pali, Prakrit and Tamil)
- Vyasa, Mahabharata. See translation at www.sacred-texts.com
- Valmiki, Ramayana. See translation at www.sacred-texts.com
- Rigveda
- Atharvaveda
- Satapatha Brahmana
- Puranas
- Manu Smriti
- Tripitaka
- Mahavastu
- Lalitavistara
- Bhagavati Sutra
- Hemacandra, Trisastisalakapurusacaritra
- Kalidasa
- Abhijnanasakuntalam
- Raghuvamsa
- Vikramorvasiyam
- Bhasa
- Svapnavasavadatta
- Pratijnayaugandharayana
- Balacarita
- Karnabhara
- Dutavakya
- Urubhanga
- Madhyamavyayoga
- Pancaratra
- Dutaghatotkacha
- Pratimanataka
- Abhishekanataka
- Sarvasena, Harivijaya
- Panini, Jambavativijaya
- Ksemendra, Sasivamsa
- Mentha, Hayagiva vadha
- Bhavabhuti
- Mahaviracarita
- Uttararamacarita
- Bhattanarayana, Venisamhara
- Jayadeva, Gitagovinda
- Venkatanatha Vedanta Desika, Yadavabhyudaya
- Murari, Anargha Raghava
- Pratapa Rudra Deva, Yayati Caritra
- Rajasekhara, Pracanda Pandava
- Damodar Misra, Hanumananataka
- Asvaghosa
- Buddhacarita
- Saudarananda
- Vimala Suri, Pauma cariya
- Pravarasena, Setubandha
- Silacharya, Caupanna mahapurisa cariya
- Jinasena, Harivamsa purana
Further reading
- Pargiter, F.E.
- Ancient Indian Historical Tradition. Delhi. 1972.
- The Purana Text of the Dynasties of the Kali Age. Oxford. 1913.
- Winternitz, M. History of Indian Literature. Vol. I-II. Delhi. 1987.
- Rapson, E.J. The Cambridge History of India. Vol. I Cambridge. 1922.
- Warder, A.K. Indian Kavya Literature, Vol. I-VII. Delhi. 2004.
- Smith, R. Morton Dates and dynasties in earliest India: translation and justification of a critical text of the Purana dynasties, Shastri, J. L. (ed.). Delhi. Motilal Banarasidass. 1973.
- Smith, Mary Carroll The core of India's great Epic. Harvard University. 1972.
- Thapar, Romila
- "Puranic Lineages and archaeological cultures" in Ancient Indian Social History: some interpretations. New Delhi. Orient Longmans. 1978.
- "Origin Myths and the early Indian historical tradition" in Ancient Indian Social History: some interpretations. New Delhi. Orient Longmans. 1978.
- "Genealogy as a source of social history" in Ancient Indian Social History: some interpretations. New Delhi. Orient Longmans. 1978.