Sources of Ancient Indian History

 

                                 Sources of Ancient Indian History

·         The purpose of knowing history is to throw light on the past which can be done through discovery and study of historical sources.

·         The sources of history are divided into two main categories like Archaeological and Literary.

·         The Archaeological Sources again can be divided into three groups, namely, Archaeological Remains and Monuments, Inscriptions and Coins.

·         The Literary Sources can be classified into three groups, namely, Religious Literature, Secular Literature and Account of Foreigners.

   

v  Sources of History in Tabular Form

v  Archaeological Remains and Monuments:

·         The remains of major part of Stone temples in South India and the brick monasteries in eastern India  lies buried in mounds which left innumerable material remains on the earth’s surface.

·         Excavations of some mounds have revealed the cities established around 2500BC in north-western India. Also revealed the  layout of the settlements, types of pottery used by the people.

·         The form of houses, kinds of cereals consumed, pottery, types of tools and weapons etc. used by the people throws light on their conditions of living.

·         Through an examination of plant residues, it is revealed that agriculture was practiced in Rajasthan and Kashmir around 7000-6000BC.

·         The obtained artecrafts obtained help us to know the stages of development of metal technology.

·         The remains of animal bones show whether the animals were domesticated or not.

v  Inscriptions:

·         Inscriptions supply more valuable historical facts. Inscriptions are writings carved on seals, stone pillars, rocks, copper plates, slabs, walls of temples and buildings, bricks or images.

·         The study of inscriptions is called ‘epigraphy’ and the study of the writings on ancient inscriptions and records is called ‘palaeography’.

·         India’s earliest inscriptions are seen on the seals of Harappa of the Indus Valley Civilization, which, however, remain undeciphered.

·         The most famous oldest inscriptions deciphered in India are the Prakrit inscriptions, in Brahmi and in Kharosthi, of Ashoka in 3^rd century BC.

·         The Hatigumpha inscription of Kharavela, the Allahbad Pillar Inscription of Samudragupta and many other rock and Pillar inscriptions contain most most valuable historical account.

·         Many inscriptions pertaining to the history from the Maurya to Gupta times have been published in a series of collections called ‘Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum’.

·         Copper plates or Tamrapatra were more widely used for writing inscriptions during the days of Buddha.  Many copper plates contained land-grants. These are also used to carry administrative orders.

v  Coins:

·         Numismatics or the study of coins was used for historiography as far back as the 12^th century by Kanhana, the author of 'Rajatarangini’.

·         Numerous coins have been found while digging the mounds. The earlier coins discovered in India are of copper and silver. However, ancient coins of gold, lead etc. also been found.

·         The earliest coins of India contain a few symbols, but the later coins mention the names of kings and Gods or dates which gives an idea of the art and religion of that time.

·         Ancient people stored money in earthernware or brass vessels. Many such hoards, containing both indigenous coins and those minted abroad such as in the Roman empire have been discovered in different parts of India.

·         About 31 Indo-Greek kings and queens are known mainly from coins alone. The coins of Kushan, Pahlavas, Sakas of Ujjain and the Gupta period gives interesting accounts of those days. The coins throw light on religious, political, economic and commercial conditions of those days.

v  Literary Sources: (Religious Literature)

·         The literature of a period reflects like a mirror of that time. The Religious Literature of India includes the Vedas, Upanishads, the great Epics like the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, and the Puranas of the Hindus. These literatures give information about the religious beliefs, social systems, peoples institutions and conditions of culture.

·         The Jatakas and the Angas are the religious writings of Buddhists and Jainas. Apart from religious subjects, the writings are also  based on historical persons and political events. Contemporary economic and social conditions are vividly known from these sources.

v  Secular Literature:

·         The law –books of ancient India known as Dharmasutras and Smritis belong to secular or non-religious literature which contains the code of duties for kings, administrators and common people. These  books also contains rules regarding property and prescribes punishments for murder, theft and other crimes.

·         Kautilya’s Arthashastra not only speaks of the state and polity, but also of socio-economic systems.

·         The dramas of Kalidasa, Vishakhadatta and Bhasa gives information about the people and society.

·         Banabhatta wrote Harshacharita or the life of Harshavardhana, Bilhana wrote about Vikramaditya, Kalhana wrote Rajatarangini, which presents the career of the kings of Kashmir in chronological order. Chand Bardai wrote Prithviraj Charita. Apart from these there are many biographical works and chronicles which gives historical information of India.

v  Foreign Accounts:

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