The Lost River On the trail of Saraswati

["{3} New Light on an Ancient River * By \u2018defunct river\u2019, the authors do not mean the Hakra but one of the palaeochannels visible in Fig. 3.5, which correspond to course no. 2 in the preceding study by ISRO scientists (Figs 3.6 and 3.7). \u2020 Wilhelmy prefers this palaeochannel of the Sutlej (which corresponds to the Central Naiwal) to that identified by Yash Pal, et al. (see Fig. 3.5), which meets the Ghaggar upstream, near Shatrana. Of course, both channels are valid (and so are several more), and could have been in use at different times, or even simultaneously.","{4} A Great Leap Backward * Alternative spellings include Mohenjodaro, Mohenjo Daro and Moenjo- daro. \u2018Daro\u2019 means \u2018mound\u2019 in Sindhi. \u2020 Which explains that the term \u2018Harappans\u2019 does not mean inhabitants of Harappa, but the inhabitants of any site of the civilization. \u2021 We will come to it in Chapter 6, and will see that geographically distinct sites (that is, those appearing as separate dots on a map) probably number 2000 to 2500. \u00a7 Chalcolithic, meaning copper (\u2018chalco\u2019) with stone (\u2018lithic\u2019), refers to the prehistoric period that saw the introduction of copper metallurgy in a Neolithic background. \u00b6 I will not trouble the reader with the complex debates among archaeologists on questions of terminology. For them, terms such as \u2018civilization\u2019, \u2018culture\u2019, \u2018tradition\u2019, \u2018city\u2019, \u2018era\u2019, \u2018phase\u2019, \u2018age\u2019, etc., have specialized meanings, though unanimity on their usage is rare. I use those terms in accordance with their common acceptance, which is enough for our limited purpose. ** Also spelt \u2018peepal\u2019 or \u2018peepul\u2019. It is Ficus religiosa, India\u2019s sacred fig tree, commonly found in temples or near shrines. \u2020\u2020 See p. 96 for Kenoyer\u2019s initial date for the Early Harappan phase","{6} From the Indus to the Sarasvat\u012b * Tessitori made it a habit to Sanskritize the spellings of the places he visited; Kalibangan, for instance, would become \u201aKala Vangu\u2019. \u2020 Theri or ther is the local word for \u2018mound\u2019. \u2021 Formerly spelt \u2018Sinkiang\u2019 and earlier known as \u2018Chinese Turkestan\u2019. \u00a7 See extracts from the Nad\u012bstuti S\u016bkta in Chapter 2, pp. 37-38. \u00b6 Those western parts include, from north to south, the Swat Valley, the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP), Waziristan, Zhob, Baluchistan and the Makran coast. \u00b6 \u2018Early Post-urban\u2019 is the beginning of what most archaeologists have called the Late Harappan phase.","{8} When Rivers Go Haywire * Palynology is the study of pollen, often (as here) of fossilized pollen, a good marker of ancient climate and environment. \u2020 Ka = kilo-annum, or 1000 years. \u2021 Avulsion occurs when a meandering river cuts through the base of a loop, resulting in a straighter course and leaving behind a lake in the place of the old meander.","{9} The Tangible Heritage * This ochre-coloured pottery (OCW or OCP) is now often regarded as a degenerate form of Late Harappan pottery. \u2020 Dholavira\u2019s dimensions are 771 x 617 m, while Kampilya\u2019s are 780 x 660 m (respectively 1 per cent and 7 per cent greater). \u2021 The symbols on punch-marked coins do not constitute a writing system based on a language; I am only looking here at the survival of Indus symbols in themselves, irrespective of whether or not something of their meaning was preserved.","{10} The Intangible Heritage * I was intrigued by the frequent depiction of two antelopes under the throne of the Buddha (at Ajanta, for instance), just as in the \u2018Pashupati\u2019 seal (often two lions take the place of the antelopes). But the art historians I consulted were sceptical of a possible Harappan connection. \u2020 It is plain that the concept of a \u2018lord of cattle\u2019 is to be understood at a symbolic level: pashu also means the \u2018soul\u2019, and Pashupati, therefore, means \u2018lord of the souls\u2019. This is the same symbolism as the later image of Krishna with the cows. \u2021 Here, as in a few of the above cases, the Sanskrit word shringa appears in the singular. \u00a7 Such passages use words like yuga, yukta and yoga, derived from the Sanskrit root yuj, which expresses the idea of joining or uniting (it is cognate with the English \u2018yoke\u2019 or the French \u2018joug\u2019).","{11} The Sarasvat\u012b\u2019s Testimony * Avestan is the ancient Iranian language of the Avesta, the sacred book of Zoroastrianism. \u2020 Not to be confused with the city of Sirsa cited earlier (and again in later paragraphs). \u2021 Nadt = \u2018river\u2019 in Sanskrit.","","THE BEGINNING Let the conversation begin... 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Ltd, 7th Floor, Infinity Tower C, DLF Cyber City, Gurgaon - 122 002, Haryana, India Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England Penguin Ireland, 25 St Stephen\u2019s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd) Penguin Group (Australia), 707 Collins Street, Melbourne, Victoria 3008, Australia Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, Auckland 0632, New Zealand Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd, Block D, Rosebank Office Park, 181 Jan Smuts Avenue, Parktown North, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England First published by Penguin Books India 2010 www.penguinbooksindia.com Copyright \u00a9 Michel Danino 2010 The Copyright Acknowledgements page is an extension of the copyright page The views and opinions expressed in this book are the author\u2019s own and the facts are as reported by him which have been verified to the extent possible, and the publishers are not in any way liable for the same. 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