This is a Test

addons/takeoffs inputs please email to: oyash@msn.com
Reference:http://www.himalayanacademy.com/books/timeline/HinduHistory.html
http://shikshanic.nic.in/cd50years/u/45/3Z/453Z0703.htm other research bodies survey
http://shikshanic.nic.in/cd50years/u/45/3Z/Toc.htm sanskrit related
http://www.bharatvani.org/books/ online books
http://www.bharatvani.org/michel_danino/ links
http://www.amiahindu.com/
http://www.adherants.com statistics related
http://www.mantra.com/holocaust/
http://www.swordoftruth.com/swordoftruth/archives/byauthor/aghosh/articles.html
http://i.webring.com/webring?ring=hinduring;list url list
http://www.urday.com scriptures etc
http://www.iskcon.org/main/twohk/philo/roots/systems.htm 6 schools of philosophy
1 existence (sat) 2 consciousness (chit/sri) 3 joy (anand/akaal) 4 being 5 becoming: (1,2,3/1,3,2/2,3,1/2,1,3/3,2,1/3,1,2) (???)
911 => 9 are the doors to the body, 11 are the senses ( 1 Mind, 5 Action, 5 Perception = MAP) wondering/wandering….
200 B.C.E: Patanjali – YogaSutra 1.1: “ Yogasch Chit Vriti Nirodh.. “ (Yoga is Control over Movements of the Mind ..)
Reference:
http://hrih.hypermart.net/patanjali/download/
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/6709/page6.html

"Yoga Philosophy of Patanjali"

- by Samkhya-Yogacharya Swami Hariharananda Aranya -
Published by Calcutta University Press

APPENDIX F
COLLECTION OF YOGA APHORISMS

BOOK I

ON CONCENTRATION

1. Now then Yoga is being explained.
2. Yoga is the suppression of the modifications of the mind.
3 Then the Seer abides in Itself.
4. At other times the Seer appears to assume the form of the modification of the mind.
5. They (modifications) fall into five varieties, of which some are 'Klista' and the rest 'Aklista'.
6. (They are) Pram®na, Viparyaya, Vikalpa, (dreamless) sleep and recollection.
7. (Of these) Perception, inference and testimony (verbal communication) constitute the Pramanas.
8. Viparyaya or illusion is false knowledge formed of a thing as other than what it is.
9. The modification called 'Vikalpa' is based on verbal cognition in regard to a thingwhich does not exist. (It is a kind of useful knowledge arising out of the meaning of a word but having no corresponding reality. )
10. Dreamless sleep is the mental modification produced by the condition of inertia as the state of vacuity or negation (of waking and dreaming).
11. Recollection is mental modification caused by reproduction of the previous impression of an object without adding anything from other sources.
12. By practice and detachment these can be stopped.
13. Exertion to acquire Sthiti or a tranquil state of mind devoid of fluctuations is called practice.
14. That practice when continued for a long time without break and with devotion becomes firm in foundation.
15. When the mind loses all desire for objects seen or described in the scriptures it acquires a state of utter desirelessness which is called detachment.
16. Indifference to the Gunas or the constituent principles, achieved through a knowledge of the nature of Purusha, is called Paravairagya (supreme detachment).
17. When concentration is reached with the help of Vitarka, Vichara, Ananda and Asmita, it is called Samprajnata-sam®dhi.
18. Asamprajnata-Samadhi is the other kind of Samadhi which arises through constant practice of Paravairagya which brings about the disappearance of all fluctuations of the mind, wherein only the latent impressions remain.
19. While in the case of the Videhas or the discarnates and of the Prakrtilayas or those subsisting in their elemental constituents, it is caused by nescience which results in objective existence.
20. Others (who follow the path of the prescribed effort) adopt the means of reverential faith, energy, repeated recollection, concentration and real knowledge (and thus attain Asamprajnata-samadhi).
21. Yogins with intense ardour achieve concentration and the result thereof quickly.
22. On account of the methods being slow, medium and speedy, even among those Yogins who have intense ardour, there are differences.
23. From special devotion to isvara also (concentration becomes imminent).
24. Isvara is a particular Purusha unaffected by affliction, deed, result of action or the latent impressions thereof.
25. In Him the seed of omniscience has reached its utmost development which cannot be exceeded.
26. (He is) The teacher of former teachers because with Him there is no limitation by time (to His omnipotence). '
27. The sacred word designating Him is Pranava or the mystic syllable OM.
28. (Yogins) Repeat it and contemplate upon its meaning.
29. From that comes realisation of the individual self and the obstacles are resolved.
30. Sickness, incompetence, doubt, delusion, sloth, non-abstention, erroneous conception, non-attainment of any Yogic stage, and instability to stay in a Yogic state-these distractions of the mind are the impediments.
31. Sorrow, dejection, restlessness of body, inhalation and exhalation arise from (previous) distractions.
32. For their stoppage (i.e. of distractions) practice (of concentration) on a single principle should be made.
33. The mind becomes purified by the cultivation of feelings of amity, compassion, goodwill and indifference respectively towards happy, miserable, virtuous and sinful creatures.
34. By exhaling and restraining the breath also (the mind is calmed).
35. The development of higher objective perceptions called Visayavati also brings about tranquillity of mind.
36. Or by perception which is free from sorrow and is radiant (stability of mind can also be produced).
37. Or (contemplating) on a mind which is free from desires (the devotee's mind gets stabilised).
38. Or by taking as the object of meditation the images of dreams or the state of dreamless sleep (the mind of the Yogin gets stabilised).
39. Or by contemplating on whatsoever thing one may like (the mind becomes stable ).
40. When the mind develops the power of stabilising on the smallest size as well as on the greatest one, then the mind comes under control.
41. When the fluctuations of the mind are weakened, the mind appears to take on the features of the object of meditation-whether it be the cogniser (Grahita), the instrument of cognition (Grahana) or the object cognised (Grahya)-as does a transparent jewel, and this identification is called Samapatti or engrossment.
42. The engrossment, in which there is the mixture of word, its meaning(i.e. the object) and its knowledge, is known as Savitarka Samapatti. .
43. When the memory is purified, the mind appears to be devoid of its own nature (i.e. of reflective consciousness) and only the object (on which it is contemplating) remains illuminated. This kind of engrossment is called Nirvitarka Samapatti.
44. By this (foregoing) the Savichara and Nirvichara engrossments, whose objects are subtle, are also explained.
45. Subtlety pertaining to objects culminates in A-linga or the unmanifest.
46. These are the only kinds of objective concentrations. .
47. On gaining proficiency in Nirvichara, purity in the inner instruments of cognition is developed. .
48. The knowledge that is gained in that state is called Rtambhara (filled with truth).
49. (That knowledge) Is different from that derived from testimony or through inference, because it relates to particulars (of objects).
50. The latent impression born of such knowledge is opposed to the formation of other latent impressions.
51. By the stoppage of that too (on account of the elimination of the latent impressions of Samprajnana) objectless concentration takes place through suppression of all modifications.



BOOK II

ON PRACTICE


1. Tapas (austerity or sturdy self-discipline -mental, moral and physical), Svadhyaya (repetition of sacred Mantras or study of sacred literature) and Isvara-pranidhana (complete surrender to God) are Kriya-yoga (Yoga in the form of action).
2. That Kriya-yoga (should be practised) for bringing about Samadhi and minimising the Klesas.
3. Avidya (misapprehension about the real nature of things), Asmita (egoism), Raga (attachment), Dvesa (aversion) and Abhinivesa (fear of death) are the five Klesas (afflictions).
4. Avidya is the breeding ground for the others whether they be dormant, attenuated, interrupted or active.
5. Avidya consists in regarding a transient object as everlasting, an impure object as pure, misery as happiness and the non-self as self.
6. Asmita is tantamount to the identification of Purusha or pure Consciousness with Buddhi.
7. Attachment is that (modification) which follows remembrance of pleasure.
8. Aversion is that (modification) which results from misery.
9. As in the ignorant so in the learned, the firmly established inborn fear of annihilation is the affliction called Abhinivesa.
10. The subtle Klesas are forsaken (i.e. destroyed) by the cessation of productivity (i.e. disappearance) of the mind.
11. Their means of subsistence or their gross states are avoidable by meditation.
12. Karmasaya or latent impression of action based on afflictions, becomes active in this life or in a life to come.
13. As long as Klesa remains at the root, Karmsaya produces three consequences in the form of birth, span of life and experience.
14. Because of virtue and vice these (birth, span and experience) produce pleasurable and painful experiences.
15. The discriminating persons apprehend (by analysis and anticipation) all worldly objects as sorrowful because they cause suffering in consequence, in their afflictive experiences and in their latencies and also because of the contrary nature of the Gunas (which produces changes all the time).
16. (That is why) Pain which is yet to come is to be discarded.
17. Uniting the Seer or the subject with the seen or the object, is the cause of that which has to be avoided.
18. The object or knowable is by nature sentient, mutable and inert. It exists in the form of the elements and the organs, and serves the purpose of experience and emancipation.
19. Diversified (Visesa), undiversified (Avisesa), indicator-only (Lingamatra), and that which is without any indicator (Alinga) are the states of the' Gunas.
20. The Seer is absolute Knower. Although pure, modifications (of Buddhi) are witnessed by Him as an onlooker.
21. To serve as objective field to Purusha, is the essence or nature of the knowable.
22. Although ceasing to exist in relation to him whose purpose is fulfilled, the knowable does not cease to exist on account of being of use to others.
23. Alliance is the means of realising the true nature of the object of the Knower and of the owner, the Knower (i.e. the sort of alliance which contributes to the realisation of the Seer and the seen is this relationship).
24. (The alliance has) Avidya or nescience as its cause.
25. The absence of alliance that arises from lack of it (Avidya) is the freedom and that is the state of liberation of the Seer.
26. Clear and distinct (unimpaired) discriminative knowledge is the means of liberation.
27. Seven kinds of ultimate insight come to him (the Yogin who has acquired discriminative enlightenment).
28. Through the practice of the different accessories to Yoga, when impurities are destroyed, there arises enlightenment culminating in discriminative enlightenment.
29. Yama (restraint), Niyama (observance), Asana (posture), Pranayama (regulation of breath), Pratyahara (withholding of senses), Dharana (fixity), Dhyana (meditation) and Samidha (perfect concentration) are the eight means of attaining Yoga.
30. Ahimsa (non-injury), Satya (truth), Asteya (abstention from stealing), Brahmacharya (continence) and Aparigraha (abstinence from avariciousness) are the five Yamas (forms of restraint).
31. These (the restraints), however, become a great vow when they become universal, being unrestricted by any consideration of class, place, time or concept of duty.
32. Cleanliness, contentment, austerity (mental and physical discipline), Svadhyaya (study of scriptures and chanting of Mantras) and devotion to God are the Niyamas (observances).
33. When these restraints and observances are inhibited by perverse thoughts, the opposites should be thought of.
34. Actions arising out of perverse thoughts like injury etc. are either performed by oneself, got done by another or approved ; performed either through anger, greed or delusion; and can be mild, moderate or intense. That they are the causes of infinite misery and unending ignorance is the contrary thought.
35. As the Yogin becomes established in non-injury, all beings coming near him (the Yogin) cease to be hostile.
36. When truthfulness is achieved, the words (of the Yogin) acquire the power of making them fruitful.
37. When non-stealing is established, all jewels present themselves (to the Yogin).
38. When continence is established, Virya is acquired.
39. On attaining perfection in non-acceptance, knowledge of past and future existences arises.
40. From the practice of purification, aversion towards one's own body is developed and thus aversion extends to contact with other bodies.
41. Purification of the mind, pleasantness of feeling, one-pointedness, subjugation of the senses and ability for self-realisation are acquired.
42. From contentment unsurpassed happiness is gained.
43. Through destruction of impurities, practice of austerities brings about perfection of the body and the organs.
44. From study and repetition of the Mantras, communion with the desired deity is established.
45. From devotion to God, Samadhi is attained.
46. Motionless and agreeable form (of staying) is Asana (Yogic posture).
47. By relaxation of effort and meditation on the infinite (,sanas are perfected).
48. From that arises immunity from Dvandvas or opposite conditions.
49. That (Asana) having been perfected, regulation of the flow of inhalation and exhalation is Pranayama (breath control).
50. That (Pranayama) has external operation (Vahya-vrtti), internal operation (Abhyantara-vrtti) and suppression (Stambha-vrtti). These, again, when observed according to space, time and number become long and subtle.
51. The fourth Pranayama transcends external and internal operations.
52. By that the veil over manifestation (of knowledge) is thinned.
53. (Moreover) The mind acquires fitness for Dharana.
54. When separated from their corresponding objects, the organs follow, as it were, the nature of the mind, that is called Pratyahara (restraining of the organs).
55. That brings supreme control of the organs.



BOOK III

SUPERNORMAL POWERS


1. Dharana is the mind's (Chitta's) fixation on a particular point in space.
2. In that (Dharana) the continuous flow of similar mental modifications is called Dhyana or meditation. .
3. When the object of meditation only shines forth in the mind, as though devoid of the thought of even the self (who is meditating), then that state is called Samadha or concentration.
4. The three together on the same object is called Samyama.
5. By mastering that (Samyama), the light of knowledge (Prajna) dawns.
6. It (Samyama) is to be applied to the stages (of practice).
7. These three are more intimate practices than the previously mentioned ones.
8. That also is (to be regarded as) external in respect of Nirvija or seedless concentration.
9. Suppression of the latencies of fluctuation and appearance of the latencies of arrested state, taking place at every moment of blankness of the arrested state in the same mind, is the mutation of the arrested state of the mind.
10. Continuity of the tranquil mind (in an arrested state) is ensured by its latent impressions.
11. Diminution of attention to all and sundry and development of onepointedness is called Samadhi-parinama or mutation of the concentrative mind.
12. There (in Samadhi) again (in the state of concentration) the past and the present modifications being similar, it is Ekagrata-parinama, or mutation of the stabilised state of the mind.
13. By these are explained the three changes, viz, of essential attributes or characteristics, of temporal characters, and of states of the Bhutas and the Indriyas (i.e. all the knowable phenomena).
14. That which continues its existence all through the varying characteristics, namely, the quiescent, i e. past, the uprisen, i.e. present, or unmanifest (but remaining as potent force), i.e. future, is the substratum (or object chracterised).
15. Change of sequence (of characteristics) is the cause of mutative differences.
16. Knowledge of the past and the future can be derived through Samyama on the three Parinamas (changes).
17. Word, object implied, and the idea thereof overlapping, produce one unified impression. If Samyama is practised on each separately, knowledge of the meaning of the sounds produced by all beings can be acquired.
18. By the realisation of latent impressions, knowledge of previous birth is acquired.
19. (By practising Samyama) On notions, knowledge of other minds is developed.
20. The prop (or basis) of the notion does not get known because that is not the object
of (the Yogin's) observation.
21. When perceptibility of the body is suppressed by practising Samyama on its visual character, disappearance of the body is effected through its getting beyond the sphere of perception of the eye.
22. Karma is either fast or slow in fructifying. By practising Samyama on Karma or on portents, fore-knowledge of death can be acquired.
23. Through Samyama on friendliness (amity) and other similar virtues, strength is obtained therein.
24. (By practising Samyama) On (physical) strength, the strength of elephants etc, can be acquired.
25. By applying the effulgent light of the higher sense-perception (Jyotismati), knowledge of subtle objects, or things obstructed from view, or placed at a great distance, can be acquired.
26. (By practising Samyama) On the sun (the point in the body known as the solar entrance) the knowledge of the cosmic regions is acquired.
27. (By practising Samyama) On the moon (the lunar entrance) knowledge of the arrangements of stars is acquired.
28. (By practising Samyama) On the pole-star, motion of the stars is known.
29. (By practising Samyama) On the navel plexus, knowledge ofthe composition of the body is derived.
30. (By practising Samyama) On the trachea, hunger and thirst can be subdued.
31. Calmness is attained by Samyama on the bronchial tube.
32. (By practising Samyama) On the coronal light, Siddhas can be seen.
33. From knowledge known as Pratibha (intuition), everything becomes known.
34. (By practising Samyama) On the heart, knowledge of the mind is acquired.
35. Experience (of pleasure or pain) arises from a conception which does not distinguish between the two extremely different entities, viz. Buddhisattva and Purusha. Such experience exists for another (i.e. Purusha). That is why through Samyama on Purusha (who oversees all experiences and also their complete cessation), a knowledge regarding Purusha is acquired.
36. Thence (from the knowledge of Purusha) arise Pratibha (prescience), Sravana (supernormal power of hearing), Vedana (supernormal power of touch), Adarsa (supernormal power of sight), Asvada (supernormal poker of taste) and Varta (supernormal power of smell).
37. They (these powers) are impediments to Samadhi, but are (regarded as) acquisitions in a normal fluctuating state of the mind.
38. When the cause of bondage gets weakened and the movements of the mind are known, the mind can get into another body.
39. By conquering the vital force (of life) called Udana, the chance of immersion in water or mud, or entanglement in the thorns, is avoided and exit from the body at will is assured.
40. By conquering the vital force called Samana, effulgence is acquired.
41. By Samyama on the relationship between akasa and the power of hearing, divine sense of hearing is gained.
42. By practising Samyama on the relationship between the body and akasa and by concentrating on the lightness of cotton wool, passage through the sky can be secured.
43. When the unimagined conception can be held outside, i.e. unconnected with the body, it is called Mahavideha or the great discarnate. By Samyama on that, the veil over illumination (of Buddhisattva) is removed.
44. By Samyama on the grossness, the essential character, the subtlety, the inherence and the objectiveness, which are the five forms of. the Bhotas or elements, mastery over Bhutas is obtained.
45. Thence develop the power of minification and other bodily acquisitions. There is also no resistance by its characteristics.
46. Perfection of body consists in beauty, grace, strength and adamantine hardness.
47. By Samyama on the receptivity, essential character, I-sense, inherent quality and objectiveness of the five organs, mastery over them can be acquired.
48. Thence come powers of rapid movement as of the mind, action of organs independent of the body and mastery over Pradhana, the primordial cause.
49. To one established in the discernment between Buddhi and Purusha come supremacy over all beings and omniscience.
50. By renunciation of that (Visoka attainment) even, comes liberation on account of the destruction of the seeds of evil.
51. When invited by the celestial beings, that invitation should not be accepted nor should it cause vanity because it involves possibility of undesirable consequences.
52. Differentiating knowledge of the self and the non-self comes from practising Samyama on moment and its sequence.
53. When species, temporal character and position of two different things being indiscernible they look alike, they can be differentiated thereby (by this knowledge).
54. Knowledge of discernment is Taraka or intuitional, is comprehensive of all things and of all times, and has no sequence.
55. (Whether secondary discriminative discernment is acquired or not) When equality is established between Buddhisattva and Purusha in their purity, liberation takes place.



BOOK IV

ON THE SELF-IN-ITSELF OR LIBERATION


1. Supernormal powers come with birth or are attained through herbs, incantations, austerities or concentration.
2. (The mutation of body and organs into those of one born in a different species) Takes place through the filling in of their innate nature.
3. Causes do not put the nature into motion, only the removal of obstacles takes place through them. This is like a farmer breaking down the barrier to let the water flow. (The hindrances being removed by the causes, the nature impenetrates by itself).
4. All created minds are constructed from pure I-sense.
5. One (principal) mind directs the many created minds in the variety of their activities.
6. Of these (minds with supernormal powers) those obtained through meditation are without any subliminal imprints.
7. The actions of Yogins are neither white nor black, whereas the actions of others are of three kinds.
8. Thence (from the other three varieties of Karma) are manifested the subconscious impressions appropriate to their consequences.
9. On account of similarity between memory and corresponding latent impressions, the subconscious impressions of feelings appear simultaneously even when they are separated by birth, space and time.
10. Desire for self-welfare being everlasting, it follows that the subconscious impression from which it arises must be beginningless.
11. On account of being held together by cause, result, refuge and supporting object, Vasana disappears when they are absent.
12. The past and the future are in reality present in their fundamental forms, there being only difference in the characteristics of the forms taken at different times.
13. Characteristics, which are present at all times, are manifest and subtle, and are composed of the three Gunas.
14. On account of the co-ordinated mutation ofthe three Gunas, an object appears as a unit.
15. In spite of sameness of objects, on account of there being separate minds they (the object and its knowledge) follow different paths, that is why they are entirely different.
16. Object is not dependent on one mind, because if it were so, then what will happen when it is not cognised by that mind ?
17. External objects are known or unknown to the mind according as they colour the mind.
18. On account of the immutability of Purusha who is master of the mind, the modifications of the mind are always known or manifest.
19. It (the mind) is not self-illuminating being an object (knowable).
20. Besides, both (the mind and its objects) cannot be cognised simul taneously.
21. If the mind were to be illumined by another mind then there will be repetition ad infinitum of illumining minds and intermixture of memory.
22. (Though) Untransmissible, the metempiric Consciousness getting the likeness of Buddhi becomes the cause of the consciousness of Buddhi.
23.The mind-stuff being affected by the Seer and the seen, is all-comprehensive.
24. That (the mind) though variegated by innumerable subconscious impressions, exists for another, since it acts conjointly.
25. For one who has realised the distinctive entity, I-e. Purusha, inquiries about the nature of his self cease.
26. (Then) The mind inclines towards discriminative knowledge and naturally gravitates towards the state of liberation.
27. Through its breaches (i.e. breaks in discriminative knowledge) arise other fluctuations of the mind due to (residual) latent impressions.
28. It has been said that their removal (i.e. of fluctuations) follows the same process as the removal of afflictions.
29. When one becomes disinterested even in omniscience one attains perpetual discriminative enlightenment from which ensues the concentration known as Dharmamegha (virtue-pouring cloud).
30. From that, afflictions and actions cease.
31.Then on account of the infinitude of knowledge, freed from the cover of all impurities, the knowables appear as few.
32. After the emergence of that (virtue-pouring cloud) the Gunas having fulfilled their purpose, the sequence of their mutation ceases.
33. What belongs to the moments and is indicated by the completion of a particular mutation is sequence.
34. The state of the Self-in-Itself or liberation is realised when the Gunas (having provided for the experience and liberation of Purusha) are without any purpose to fulfil and disappear into their causal substance. In other words, it is absolute Consciousness established in Its own Self.
Reference: http://www.theosociety.org/pasadena/patanjal/patanyog.htm
The Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali interpreted by William Q. Judge
Theosophical University Press Edition

The Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali
Book 1: Concentration
Book 2: Means of Concentration
Book 3
Book 4: The Essential Nature of Isolation

BOOK 1. -- CONCENTRATION
1. Assuredly, the exposition of Yoga, or Concentration, is now to be made.
The Sanskrit particle atha, which is translated "assuredly," intimates to the disciple that a distinct topic is to be expounded, demands his attention, and also serves as a benediction. Monier Williams says it is "an auspicious and inceptive participle often not easily expressed in English."
2. Concentration, or Yoga, is the hindering of the modifications of the thinking principle.
In other words, the want of concentration of thought is due to the fact that the mind -- here called "the thinking principle" -- is subject to constant modifications by reason of its being diffused over a multiplicity of subjects. So "concentration" is equivalent to the correction of a tendency top, diffuseness, and to the obtaining of what the Hindus call "one-pointedness," or the power to apply the mind, at any moment, to the consideration of a single point of thought, to the exclusion of all else.
Upon this Aphorism the method of the system hinges. The reason for the absence of concentration at any time is, that the mind is modified by every subject and object that comes before it; it is, as it were, transformed into that subject or object. The mind, therefore, is not the supreme or highest power; it is only a function, an instrument with which the soul works, feels sublunary things, and experiences. The brain, however, must not be confounded with the mind, for the brain is in its turn but an instrument for the mind. It therefore follows that the mind has a plane of its own, distinct from the soul and the brain, and what is to be learned is, to use the will, which is also a distinct power from the mind and brain, in such a way that instead of permitting the mind to turn from one subject or object to another just as they may move it, we shall apply it as a servant at any time and for as long a period as we wish, to the consideration of whatever we have decided upon.
3. At the time of concentration the soul abides in the state of a spectator without a spectacle.
This has reference to the perfection of concentration, and is that condition in which, by the hindering of the modifications referred to in Aphorism 2, the soul is brought to a state of being wholly devoid of taint of, or impression by, any subject. The "soul" here referred to is not Atma, which is spirit.
4. At other times than that of concentration, the soul is in the same form as the modification of the mind.
This has reference to the condition of the soul in ordinary life, when concentration is not practised, and means that, when the internal organ, the mind, is through the senses affected or modified by the form of some object, the soul also -- viewing the object through its organ, the mind -- is, as it were, altered into that form; as a marble statue of snowy whiteness, if seen under a crimson light will seem to the beholder crimson and so is, to the visual organs, so long as that colored light shines upon it.
5. The modifications of the mind are of five kinds, and they are either painful or not painful;
6. They are, Correct Cognition, Misconception, Fancy, Sleep, and Memory.
7. Correct Cognition results from Perception, Inference, and Testimony.
8. Misconception is Erroneous Notion arising from lack of Correct Cognition.
9. Fancy is a notion devoid of any real basis and following upon knowledge conveyed by words.
For instance, the terms "a hare's horns" and "the head of Rahu," neither of which has anything in nature corresponding to the notion. A person hearing the expression "the head of Rahu" naturally fancies that there is a Rahu who owns the head, whereas Rahu -- a mythical monster who is said to cause eclipses by swallowing the sun -- is all head and has no body; and, although the expression "a hare's horns" is frequently used, it is well known that there is no such thing in nature. Much in the same way people continue to speak of the sun's "rising" and "setting," although they hold to the opposite theory.
10. Sleep is that modification of the mind which ensues upon the quitting of all objects by the mind, by reason of all the waking senses and faculties sinking into abeyance.
11. Memory is the not letting go of an object that one has been aware of.
12. The hindering of the modifications of the mind already referred to, is to be effected by means of Exercise and Dispassion.
13. Exercise is the uninterrupted, or repeated, effort that the mind shall remain in its unmoved state.
This is to say that in order to acquire concentration we must, again and again, make efforts to obtain such control over the mind that we can, at any time when it seems necessary, so reduce it to an unmoved condition or apply it to any one point to the exclusion of all others.
14. This exercise is a firm position observed out of regard for the end in view, and perseveringly adhered to for a long time without intermission.
The student must not conclude from this that he can never acquire concentration unless he devotes every moment of his life to it, for the words "without intermission" apply but to the length of time that has been set apart for the practice.
15. Dispassion is the having overcome one's desires.
That is -- the attainment of a state of being in which the consciousness is unaffected by passions, desires, and ambitions, which aid in causing modifications of the mind.
16. Dispassion, carried to the utmost, is indifference regarding all else than soul, and this indifference arises from a knowledge of soul as distinguished from all else.
17. There is a meditation of the kind called "that in which there is distinct cognition," and which is of a four-fold character because of Argumentation, Deliberation, Beatitude, Egoism.
The sort of meditation referred to is a pondering wherein the nature of that which is to be pondered upon is well known, without doubt or error, and it is a distinct cognition which excludes every other modification of the mind than that which is to be pondered upon.
1. The Argumentative division of this meditation is a pondering upon a subject with argument as to its nature in comparison with something else; as, for instance, the question whether mind is the product of matter or precedes matter.
2. The Deliberative division is a pondering in regard to whence have come, and where is the field of action, of the subtler senses and the mind.
3. The Beatific condition is that in which the higher powers of the mind, together with truth in the abstract, are pondered upon.
4. The Egoistic division is one in which the meditation has proceeded to such a height that all lower subjects and objects are lost sight of, and nothing remains but the cognition of the self, which then becomes a stepping-stone to higher degrees of meditation.
The result of reaching the fourth degree, called Egoism, is that a distinct recognition of the object or subject with which the meditation began is lost, and self-consciousness alone results; but this self-consciousness does not include the consciousness of the Absolute or Supreme Soul.
18. The meditation just described is preceded by the exercise of thought without argumentation. Another sort of meditation is in the shape of the self-reproduction of thought after the departure of all objects from the field of the mind.
19. The meditative state attained by those whose discrimination does not extend to pure spirit, depends upon the phenomenal world.
20. In the practice of those who are, or may be, able to discriminate as to pure spirit, their meditation is preceded by Faith, Energy, Intentness (upon a single point), and Discernment, or thorough discrimination of that which is to be known.
It is remarked here by the commentator, that "in him who has Faith there arises Energy, or perseverance in meditation, and, thus persevering, the memory of past subjects springs up, and his mind becomes absorbed in Intentness, in consequence of the recollection of the subject, and he whose mind is absorbed in meditation arrives at a thorough discernment of the matter pondered upon."
21. The attainment of the state of abstract meditation is speedy, in the case of the hotly impetuous.
22. Because of the mild, the medium, and the transcendent nature of the methods adopted, there is a distinction to be made among those who practise Yoga.
23. The state of abstract meditation may be attained by profound devotedness toward the Supreme Spirit considered in its comprehensible manifestation as I's'wara.
It is said that this profound devotedness is a preeminent means of attaining abstract meditation and its fruits. "I's'wara" is the Spirit in the body.
24. I's'wara is a spirit, untouched by troubles, works, fruits of works, or desires.
25. In I's'wara becomes infinite that omniscience which in man exists but as a germ.
26. I's'wara is the preceptor of all, even of the earliest of created beings, for He is not limited by time.
27. His name is OM.
28. The repetition of this name should be made with reflection upon its signification.
The utterance of OM involves three sounds, those of long au, short u, and the "stoppage" or labial consonant m. To this tripartiteness is attached deep mystical symbolic meaning. It denotes, as distinct yet in union, Brahma, Vishnu, and S'iva, or Creation, Preservation, and Destruction. As a whole, it implies "the Universe." In its application to man, au refers to the spark of Divine Spirit that is in humanity; u, to the body through which the Spirit manifests itself; and m, to the death of the body, or its resolvement to its material elements. With regard to the cycles affecting any planetary system, it implies the Spirit, represented by au as the basis of the manifested worlds; the body or manifested matter, represented by u, through which the spirit works; and represented by m, "the stoppage or return of sound to its source," the Pralaya or Dissolution of the worlds. In practical occultism, through this word reference is made to Sound, or Vibration, in all its properties and effects, this being one of the greatest powers of nature. In the use of this word as a practice, by means of the lungs and throat, a distinct effect is produced upon the human body. In Aphorism 28 the name is used in its highest sense, which will necessarily include all the lower. All utterance of the word OM, as a practice, has a potential reference to the conscious separation of the soul from the body.
29. From this repetition and reflection on its significance, there come a knowledge of the Spirit and the absence of obstacles to the attainment of the end in view.
30. The obstacles in the way of him who desires to attain concentration are Sickness, Languor, Doubt, Carelessness, Laziness, Addiction to objects of sense, Erroneous Perception, Failure to attain any stage of abstraction, and Instability in any stage when attained.
31. These obstacles are accompanied by grief, distress, trembling, and sighing.
32. For the prevention of these, one truth should be dwelt upon.
Any accepted truth which one approves is here meant.
33. Through the practising of Benevolence, Tenderness, Complacency, and Disregard for objects of happiness, grief, virtue, and vice, the mind becomes purified.
The chief occasions for distraction of the mind are Covetousness and Aversion, and what the aphorism means is, not that virtue and vice should be viewed with indifference by the student, but that he should not fix his mind with pleasure upon happiness or virtue, nor with aversion upon grief or vice, in others, but should regard all with an equal mind; and the practice of Benevolence, Tenderness, and Complacency brings about cheerfulness of the mind, which tends to strength and steadiness.
34. Distractions may be combated by a regulated control or management of the breath in inspiration, retention, and exhalation.
35. A means of procurement of steadiness of the mind may be found in an immediate sensuous cognition;
36. Or, an immediate cognition of a spiritual subject being produced, this may also serve to the same end;
37. Or, the thought taking as its object some one devoid of passion -- as, for instance, an ideally pure character -- may find what will serve as a means;
38. Or, by dwelling on knowledge that presents itself in a dream, steadiness of mind may be procured;
39. Or, it may be effected by pondering upon anything that one approves.
40. The student whose mind is thus steadied obtains a mastery which extends from the Atomic to the Infinite.
41. The mind that has been so trained that the ordinary modifications of its action are not present, but only those which occur upon the conscious taking up of an object for contemplation, is changed into the likeness of that which is pondered upon, and enters into full comprehension of the being thereof.
42. This change of the mind into the likeness of what is pondered upon, is technically called the Argumentative condition, when there is any mixing-up of the title of the thing, the significance and application of that title, and the abstract knowledge of the qualities and elements of the thing per se.
43. On the disappearance, from the plane of contemplation, of the title and significance of the object selected for meditation; when the abstract thing itself, free from distinction by designation, is presented to the mind only as an entity, that is what is called the Non-Argumentative condition of meditation.
These two aphorisms (42-43) describe the first and second stages of meditation, in the mind properly intent upon objects of a gross or material nature. The next aphorism has reference to the state when subtile, or higher, objects are selected for contemplative meditation.
44. The Argumentative and Non-Argumentative conditions of the mind, described in the preceding two aphorisms, also obtain when the object selected for meditation is subtile, or of a higher nature than sensuous objects.
45. That meditation which has a subtile object in view ends with the indissoluble element called primordial matter.
46. The mental changes described in the foregoing, constitute "meditation with its seed."
"Meditation with its seed" is that kind of meditation in which there is still present before the mind a distinct object to be meditated upon.
47. When Wisdom has been reached, through acquirement of the non-deliberative mental state, there is spiritual clearness.
48. In that case, then, there is that Knowledge which is absolutely free from Error.
49. This kind of knowledge differs from the knowledge due to testimony and inference; because, in the pursuit of knowledge based upon those, the mind has to consider many particulars and is not engaged with the general field of knowledge itself.
50. The train of self-reproductive thought resulting from this puts a stop to all other trains of thought.
It is held that there are two main trains of thought; (a) that which depends upon suggestion made either by the words of another, or by impression upon the senses or mind, or upon association; (b) that which depends altogether upon itself, and reproduces from itself the same thought as before. And when the second sort is attained, its effect is to act as an obstacle to all other trains of thought, for it is of such a nature that it repels or expels from the mind any other kind of thought. As shown in Aphorism 48, the mental state called "non-argumentative" is absolutely free from error, since it has nothing to do with testimony or inference, but is knowledge itself, and therefore from its inherent nature it puts a stop to all other trains of thought.
51. This train of thought itself, with but one object, may also be stopped, in which case "meditation without a seed" is attained.
"Meditation without a seed" is that in which the brooding of the mind has been pushed to such a point that the object selected for meditation has disappeared from the mental plane, and there is no longer any recognition of it, but consequent progressive thought upon a higher plane.
END OF THE FIRST BOOK.

BOOK 2. -- MEANS OF CONCENTRATION
1. The practical part of Concentration is, Mortification, Muttering, and Resignation to the Supreme Soul.
What is here meant by "mortification" is the practice laid down in other books, such as the Dharma S'astra, which includes penances and fastings; "muttering" is the semi-audible repetition of formulae also laid down, preceded by the mystic name of the Supreme Being given in Aphorism 27, Book I; "resignation to the Supreme Soul," is the consigning to the Divine, or the Supreme Soul, all one's works, without interest in their results.
2. This practical part of concentration is for the purpose of establishing meditation and eliminating afflictions.
3. The afflictions which arise in the disciple are Ignorance, Egoism, Desire, Aversion, and a tenacious wish for existence upon the earth.
4. Ignorance is the field of origin of the others named, whether they be dormant, extenuated, intercepted, or simple.
5. Ignorance is the notion that the non-eternal, the impure, the evil, and that which is not soul are, severally, eternal, pure, good, and soul.
6. Egoism is the identifying of the power that sees with the power of seeing.
I.e. it is the confounding of the soul, which really sees, with the tool it uses to enable it to see, viz. the mind, or -- to a still greater degree of error -- with those organs of sense which are in turn the tools of the mind; as, for instance, when an uncultured person thinks that it is his eye which sees, when in fact it is his mind that uses the eye as a tool for seeing.
7. Desire is the dwelling upon pleasure.
8. Aversion is the dwelling upon pain.
9. The tenacious wish for existence upon earth is inherent in all sentient beings, and continues through all incarnations, because it has self-reproductive power. It is felt as well by the wise as the unwise.
There is in the spirit a natural tendency, throughout a Manvantara, to manifestation on the material plane, on and through which only, the spiritual monads can attain their development; and this tendency, acting through the physical basis common to all sentient beings, is extremely powerful and continues through all incarnations, helping to cause them, in fact, and re-producing itself in each incarnation.
10. The foregoing five afflictions, when subtile, are to be evaded by the production of an antagonistic mental state.
11. When these afflictions modify the mind by pressing themselves upon the attention, they are to be got rid of by meditation.
12. Such afflictions are the root of, and produce, results in both physical and mental actions or works, and they, being our merits or demerits, have their fruitage either in the visible state or in that which is unseen.
13. While that root of merit and demerit exists, there is a fructification during each succeeding life upon earth in rank, years, pleasure, or pain.
14. Happiness or suffering results, as the fruit of merit and demerit, accordingly as the cause is virtue or vice.
15. But to that man who has attained to the perfection of spiritual cultivation, all mundane things are alike vexatious, since the modifications of the mind due to the natural qualities are adverse to the attainment of the highest condition; because, until that is reached, the occupation of any form of body is a hindrance, and anxiety and impressions of various kinds ceaselessly continue.
16. That which is to be shunned by the disciple is pain not yet come.
The past cannot be changed or amended; that which belongs to the experiences of the present cannot, and should not, be shunned; but alike to be shunned are disturbing anticipations or fears of the future, and every act or impulse that may cause present or future pain to ourselves or others.
17. From the fact that the soul is conjoined in the body with the organ of thought, and thus with the whole of nature, lack of discrimination follows, producing misconceptions of duties and responsibilities. This misconception leads to wrongful acts, which will inevitably bring about pain in the future.
A. The Universe, including the visible and the invisible, the essential nature of which is compounded of purity, action, and rest, and which consists of the elements and the organs of action, exists for the sake of the soul's experience and emancipation.
19. The divisions of the qualities are the diverse, the non-diverse, those which may be resolved once but no farther, and the irresolvable.
The "diverse " are such as the gross elements and the organs of sense; the "non-diverse," the subtile elements and the mind; the "once resolvable," the intellect, which can be resolved into undifferentiated matter but no farther; and the "irresolvable," indiscrete matter.
20. The soul is the Perceiver; is assuredly vision itself pure and simple; unmodified; and looks directly upon ideas.
21. For the sake of the soul alone, the Universe exists.
The commentator adds: "Nature in energizing does not do so with a view to any purpose of her own, but with the design, as it were, expressed in the words 'let me bring about the soul's experience.'"
22. Although the Universe in its objective state has ceased to be, in respect to that man who has attained to the perfection of spiritual cultivation, it has not ceased in respect to all others, because it is common to others besides him.
23. The conjuncture of the soul with the organ of thought, and thus with nature, is the cause of its apprehension of the actual condition of the nature of the Universe and of the soul itself.
24. The cause of this conjuncture is what is to be quitted, and that cause is ignorance.
25. The quitting consists in the ceasing of the conjuncture, upon which ignorance disappears, and this is the Isolation of the soul.
That which is meant in this and in the preceding two aphorisms is that the conjuncture of soul and body, through repeated reincarnations, is due to its absence of discriminative knowledge of the nature of the soul and its environment, and when this discriminative knowledge has been attained, the conjuncture, which was due to the absence of discrimination, ceases of its own accord.
26. The means of quitting the state of bondage to matter is perfect discriminative knowledge, continuously maintained.
The import of this -- among other things -- is that the man who has attained to the perfection of spiritual cultivation maintains his consciousness, alike while in the body, at the moment of quitting it, and when he has passed into higher spheres; and likewise when returning continues it unbroken while quitting higher spheres, when re-entering his body, and in resuming action on the material plane.
27. This perfect discriminative knowledge possessed by the man who has attained to the perfection of spiritual cultivation, is of seven kinds, up to the limit of meditation.
28. Until this perfect discriminative knowledge is attained, there results from those practices which are conducive to concentration, an illumination more or less brilliant which is effective for the removal of impurity.
29. The practices which are conducive to concentration are eight in number: Forbearance, Religious Observances, Postures, Suppression of the breath, Restraint, Attention, Contemplation, and Meditation.
30. Forbearance consists in not killing, veracity, not stealing, continence, and not coveting.
31. These, without respect to rank, place, time, or compact, are the universal great duties.
32. Religious Observances are purification of both mind and body, contentment, austerity, inaudible mutterings, and persevering devotion to the Supreme Soul.
33. In order to exclude from the mind questionable things, the mental calling up of those things that are opposite is efficacious for their removal.
34. Questionable things, whether done, caused to be done, or approved of; whether resulting from covetousness, anger, or delusion; whether slight, or of intermediate character, or beyond measure; are productive of very many fruits in the shape of pain and ignorance; hence, the "calling up of those things that are opposite" is in every way advisable.
35. When harmlessness and kindness are fully developed in the Yogi [he who has attained to cultivated enlightenment of the soul], there is a complete absence of enmity, both in men and animals, among all that are near to him.
36. When veracity is complete, the Yogi becomes the focus for the Karma resulting from all works good or bad.
37. When abstinence from theft, in mind and act, is complete in the Yogi, he has the power to obtain all material wealth.
38. When continence is complete, there is a gain of strength, in body and mind.
It is not meant here that a student practising continence solely, and neglecting the other practices enjoined, will gain strength. All parts of the system must be pursued concurrently, on the mental, moral, and physical planes.
39. When covetousness is eliminated, there comes to the Yogi a knowledge of everything relating to, or which has taken place in, former states of existence.
"Covetousness" here applies not only to coveting any object, but also to the desire for enjoyable conditions of mundane existence, or even for mundane existence itself.
40. From purification of the mind and body there arises in the Yogi a thorough discernment of the cause and nature of the body, whereupon he loses that regard which others have for the bodily form; and he also ceases to feel the desire of, or necessity for, association with his fellow-beings that is common among other men.
41. From purification of the mind and body also ensure to the Yogi a complete predominance of the quality of goodness, complacency, intentness, subjugation of the senses, and fitness for contemplation and comprehension of the soul as distinct from nature.
42. From contentment in its perfection the Yogi acquires superlative felicity.
43. When austerity is thoroughly practised by the Yogi, the result thereof is a perfecting and heightening of the bodily senses by the removal of impurity.
44. Through inaudible muttering there is a meeting with one's favorite Deity.
By properly uttered invocations -- here referred to in the significant phrase "inaudible mutterings," the higher powers in nature, ordinarily unseen by man, are caused to reveal themselves to the sight of the Yogi; and inasmuch as all the powers in nature cannot be evoked at once, the mind must be directed to some particular force, or power in nature -- hence the use of the term "with one's favorite Deity."
45. Perfection in meditation comes from persevering devotion to the Supreme Soul.
46. A posture assumed by a Yogi must be steady and pleasant.
For the clearing up of the mind of the student it is to be observed that the "postures" laid down in various systems of "Yoga" are not absolutely essential to the successful pursuit of the practice of concentration and attainment of its ultimate fruits. All such "postures," as prescribed by Hindu writers, are based upon an accurate knowledge of the physiological effects produced by them, but at the present day they are only possible for Hindus, who from their earliest years are accustomed to assuming them.
47. When command over the postures has been thoroughly attained, the effort to assume them is easy; and when the mind has become thoroughly identified with the boundlessness of space, the posture becomes steady and pleasant.
48. When this condition has been attained, the Yogi feels no assaults from the pairs of opposites.
By "pairs of opposites" reference is made to the conjoined classification, all through the Hindu philosophical and metaphysical systems, of the opposed qualities, conditions, and states of being, which are eternal sources of pleasure or pain in mundane existence, such as cold and heat, hunger and satiety, day and night, poverty and riches, liberty and despotism.
49. Also, when this condition has been attained, there should succeed regulation of the breath, in exhalation, inhalation, and retention.
50. This regulation of the breath, which is in exhalation, inhalation, and retention, is further restricted by conditions of time, place, and number, each of which may be long or short.
51. There is a special variety of breath regulation which has reference to both that described in the last preceding aphorism and the inner sphere of breathing.
Aphorisms 49, 50, 51 allude to regulation of the breath as a portion of the physical exercises referred to in the note upon Aphorism 46, acquaintance with the rules and prescriptions for which, on the part of the student, is inferred by Patanjali. Aphorism 50 refers merely to the regulation of the several periods, degrees of force; and number of alternating recurrences of the three divisions of breathing -- exhalation, inhalation, and retention of the breath. But Aphorism 51 alludes to another regulation of the breath, which is its governance by the mind so as to control its direction to and consequent influence upon certain centers of nerve perception within the human body for the production of physiological, followed by psychic effects.
52. By means of this regulation of the breath, the obscuration of the mind resulting from the influence of the body is removed.
53. And thus the mind becomes prepared for acts of attention.
54. Restraint is the accommodation of the senses to the nature of the mind, with an absence on the part of the senses of their sensibility to direct impression from objects.
55. Therefrom results a complete subjugation of the senses.
END OF THE SECOND BOOK.

BOOK 3
1. Fixing the mind on a place, object, or subject is attention.
This is called Dharana.
2. The continuance of this attention is contemplation.
This is called Dhyana.
3. This contemplation, when it is practised only in respect to a material subject or object of sense, is meditation.
This is called Samadhi.
4. When this fixedness of attention, contemplation, and meditation are practised with respect to one object, they together constitute what is called Sanyama.
We have no word in English corresponding to Sanyama. The translators have used the word restraint, but this is inadequate and misleading, although it is a correct translation. When a Hindu says that an ascetic is practising restraint according to this system in respect to any object, he means that he is performing Sanyama, while in English it may indicate that he is restraining himself from some particular thing or act, and this is not the meaning of Sanyama. We have used the language of the text, but the idea may perhaps be better conveyed by "perfect concentration."
5. By rendering Sanyama -- or the operation of fixed attention, contemplation, and meditation -- natural and easy, an accurate discerning power is developed.
This "discerning power" is a distinct faculty which this practice alone develops, and is not possessed by ordinary persons who have not pursued concentration.
6. Sanyama is to be used in proceeding step by step in overcoming all modifications of the mind, from the more apparent to those the most subtle.
[See note to Aphorism 2, Book I.] The student is to know that after he has overcome the afflictions and obstructions described in the preceding books, there are other modifications of a recondite character suffered by the mind, which are to be got rid of by means of Sanyama. When he has reached that stage the difficulties will reveal themselves to him.
7. The three practices -- attention, contemplation, and meditation -- are more efficacious for the attainment of that kind of meditation called, "that in which there is distinct cognition," than the first five means heretofore described as "not killing, veracity, not stealing, continence, and not coveting."
See Aphorism 17, Book I.
8. Attention, contemplation, and meditation are anterior to and not immediately productive of that kind of meditation in which the distinct cognition of the object is lost, which is called meditation without a seed.
9. There are two trains of self-reproductive thought, the first of which results from the mind being modified and shifted by the object or subject contemplated; the second, when it is passing from that modification and is becoming engaged only with the truth itself; at the moment when the first is subdued and the mind is just becoming intent, it. is concerned in both of those two trains of self-reproductive thought, and this state is technically called Nirodha.
10. In that state of meditation which has been called Nirodha, the mind has an uniform flow.
11. When the mind has overcome and fully controlled its natural inclination to consider diverse objects, and begins to become intent upon a single one, meditation is said to be reached.
12. When the mind, after becoming fixed upon a single object, has ceased to be concerned in any thought about the condition, qualities, or relations of the thing thought of, but is absolutely fastened upon the object itself, it is then said to be intent upon a single point -- a state technically called Ekagrata.
13. The three major classes of perception regarding the characteristic property, distinctive mark or use, and possible changes of use or relation, of any object or organ of the body contemplated by the mind, have been sufficiently explained by the foregoing exposition of the manner in which the mind is modified.
It is very difficult to put this aphorism into English. The three words translated as "characteristic property, distinctive mark or use, and possible change of use" are Dharma, Lakshana, and Avastha, and may be thus illustrated: Dharma, as, say, the clay of which a jar is composed, Lakshana, the idea of a jar thus constituted, and Avastha, the consideration that the jar alters every moment, in that it becomes old, or is otherwise affected.
14. The properties of an object presented to the mind are: first, those which have been considered and dismissed from view; second, those under consideration; and third, that which is incapable of denomination because it is not special, but common to all matter.
The third class above spoken of has reference to a tenet of the philosophy which holds that all objects may and will be finally "resolved into nature" or one basic substance; hence gold may be considered as mere matter, and therefore not different -- not to be separately denominated in final analysis -- from earth.
15. The alterations in the order of the three-fold mental modifications before described, indicate to the ascetic the variety of changes which a characteristic property is to undergo when contemplated.
16. A knowledge of past and future events comes to an ascetic from his performing Sanyama in respect to the three-fold mental modifications just explained.
See Aphorism 4, where "Sanyama" is explained as the use or operation of attention, contemplation, and meditation in respect to a single object.
I7. In the minds of those who have not attained to concentration, there is a confusion as to uttered sounds, terms, and knowledge, which results from comprehending these three indiscriminately; but when an ascetic views these separately, by performing "Sanyama" respecting them, he attains the power of understanding the meaning of any sound uttered by any sentient being.
18. A knowledge of the occurrences experienced in former incarnations arises in the ascetic from holding before his mind the trains of self-reproductive thought and concentrating himself upon them.
19. The nature of the mind of another person becomes known to the ascetic when he concentrates his own mind upon that other person.
20. Such concentration will not, however, reveal to the ascetic the fundamental basis of the other person's mind, because he does not "perform Sanyama" with that object before him.
21. By performing concentration in regard to the properties and essential nature of form, especially that of the human body, the ascetic acquires the power of causing the disappearance of his corporeal frame from the sight of others, because thereby its property of being apprehended by the eye is checked, and that property of Sattwa which exhibits itself as luminousness is disconnected from the spectator's organ of sight.
Another great difference between this philosophy and modern science is here indicated. The schools of today lay down the rule that if there is a healthy eye in line with the rays of light reflected from an object -- such as a human body -- the latter will be seen, and that no action of the mind of the person looked at can inhibit the functions of the optic nerves and retina of the onlooker. But the ancient Hindus held that all things are seen by reason of that differentiation of Sattwa -- one of the three great qualities composing all things -- which is manifested as luminousness, operating in conjunction with the eye, which is also a manifestation of Sattwa in another aspect. The two must conjoin; the absence of luminousness or its being disconnected from the seer's eye will cause a disappearance. And as the quality of luminousness is completely under the control of the ascetic, he can, by the process laid down, check it, and thus cut off from the eye of the other an essential element in the seeing of any object.
22. In the same manner, by performing Sanyama in regard to any particular organ of sense -- such as that of hearing, or of feeling, or of tasting, or of smelling -- the ascetic acquires the power to cause cessation of the functions of any of the organs of another or of himself, at will.
The ancient commentator differs from others with regard to this aphorism, in that he asserts that it is a portion of the original text, while they affirm that it is not, but an interpolation.
23. Action is of two kinds; first, that accompanied by anticipation of consequences; second, that which is without any anticipation of consequences. By performing concentration with regard to these kinds of action, a knowledge arises in the ascetic as to the time of his death.
Karma, resultant from actions of both kinds in present and in previous incarnations, produces and affects our present bodies, in which we are performing similar actions. The ascetic, by steadfastly contemplating all his actions in this and in previous incarnations (see Aphorism 18), is able to know absolutely the consequences resultant from actions he has performed, and hence has the power to calculate correctly the exact length of his life.
24. By performing concentration in regard to benevolence, tenderness, complacency, and disinterestedness, the ascetic is able to acquire the friendship of whomsoever he may desire.
25. By performing concentration with regard to the powers of the elements, or of the animal kingdom, the ascetic is able to manifest those in himself.
26. By concentrating his mind upon minute, concealed or distant objects, in every department of nature, the ascetic acquires thorough knowledge concerning them.
27. By concentrating his mind upon the sun, a knowledge arises in the ascetic concerning all spheres between the earth and the sun.
28. By concentrating his mind upon the moon, there arises in the ascetic a knowledge of the fixed stars.
29. By concentrating his mind upon the polar star, the ascetic is able to know the fixed time and motion of every star in the Brahmanda of which this earth is a part.
"Brahmanda" here means the great system, called by some "universe," in which this world is.
30. By concentrating his mind upon the solar plexus, the ascetic acquires a knowledge of the structure of the material body.
31. By concentrating his mind upon the nerve center in the pit of the throat, the ascetic is able to overcome hunger and thirst.
32. By concentrating his mind upon the nerve center below the pit of the throat, the ascetic is able to prevent his body being moved, without any resistant exertion of his muscles.
33. By concentrating his mind upon the light in the head the ascetic acquires the power of seeing divine beings.
There are two inferences here which have nothing to correspond to them in modern thought. One is, that there is a light in the head; and the other, that there are divine beings who may be seen by those who thus concentrate upon the "light in the head." It is held that a certain nerve, or psychic current, called Brahmarandhra-nadi, passes out through the brain near the top of the head. In this there collects more of the luminous principle in nature than elsewhere in the body and it is called jyotis -- the light in the head. And, as every result is to be brought about by the use of appropriate means, the seeing of divine beings can be accomplished by concentration upon that part of the body more nearly connected with them. This point -- the end of Brahmarandhra-nadi -- is also the place where the connexion is made between man and the solar forces.
34. The ascetic can, after long practice, disregard the various aids to concentration hereinbefore recommended for the easier acquirement of knowledge, and will be able to possess any knowledge simply through the desire therefor.
35. By concentrating his mind upon the Hridaya, the ascetic acquires penetration and knowledge of the mental conditions, purposes, and thoughts of others, as well as an accurate comprehension of his own.
Hridaya is the heart. There is some disagreement among mystics as to whether the muscular heart is meant, or some nervous center to which it leads, as in the case of a similar direction for concentrating on the umbilicus, when, in fact, the field of nerves called the solar plexus is intended.
36. By concentrating his mind upon the true nature of the soul as being entirely distinct from any experiences, and disconnected from all material things, and dissociated from the understanding, a knowledge of the true nature of the soul itself arises in the ascetic.
37. From the particular kind of concentration last described, there arises in the ascetic, and remains with him at all times, a knowledge concerning all things, whether they be those apprehended through the organs of the body or otherwise presented to his contemplation.
38. The powers hereinbefore described are liable to become obstacles in the way of perfect concentration, because of the possibility of wonder and pleasure flowing from their exercise, but are not obstacles for the ascetic who is perfect in the practice enjoined.
"Practice enjoined," see Aphorisms 36, 37.
39. The inner self of the ascetic may be transferred to any other body and there have complete control, because he has ceased to be mentally attached to objects of sense, and through his acquisition of the knowledge of the manner in and means by which the mind and body are connected.
As this philosophy holds that the mind, not being the result of brain, enters the body by a certain road and is connected with it in a particular manner, this aphorism declares that, when the ascetic acquires a knowledge of the exact process of connecting mind and body, he can connect his mind with any other body, and thus transfer the power to use the organs of the occupied frame in experiencing effects from the operations of the senses.
40. By concentrating his mind upon, and becoming master of, that vital energy called Udana, the ascetic acquires the power of arising from beneath water, earth, or other superincumbent matter.
Udana is the name given to one of the so-called "vital airs." These, in fact, are certain nervous functions for which our physiology has no name, and each one of which has its own office. It may be said that by knowing them, and how to govern them, one can alter his bodily polarity at will. The same remarks apply to the next aphorism.
41. By concentrating his mind upon the vital energy called Samana, the ascetic acquires the power to appear as if blazing with light.
[This effect has been seen by the interpreter on several occasions when in company with one who had acquired the power. The effect was as if the person had a luminousness under the skin. -- W. Q. J.]
42. By concentrating his mind upon the relations between the ear and A'kas'a, the ascetic acquires the power of hearing all sounds, whether upon the earth or in the aether, and whether far or near.
The word A'kas'a has been translated both as "aether" and "astral light." In this aphorism it is employed in the former sense. Sound, it will remembered, is the distinctive property of this element.
43. By concentrating his mind upon the human body, in its relations to air and space, the ascetic is able to change at will the polarity of his body, and consequently acquires the power of freeing it from the control of the laws of gravitation.
44. When the ascetic has completely mastered all the influences which the body has upon the inner man, and has laid aside all concern in regard to it, and in no respect is affected by it, the consequence is a removal of all obscurations of the intellect.
45. The ascetic acquires complete control over the elements by concentrating his mind upon the five classes of properties in the manifested universe; as, first, those of gross or phenomenal character; second, those of form; third, those of subtle quality; fourth, those susceptible of distinction as to light, action, and inertia; fifth, those having influence in their various degrees for the production of fruits through their effects upon the mind.
46. From the acquirement of such power over the elements there results to the ascetic various perfections, to wit, the power to project his inner-self into the smallest atom, to expand his inner-self to the size of the largest body, to render his material body light or heavy at will, to give indefinite extension to his astral body or its separate members, to exercise an irresistible will upon the minds of others, to obtain the highest excellence of the material body, and the ability to preserve such excellence when obtained.
47. Excellence of the material body consists in color, loveliness of form, strength, and density.
48. The ascetic acquires complete control over the organs of sense from having performed Sanyama (concentration) in regard to perception, the nature of the organs, egoism, the quality of the organs as being in action or at rest, and their power to produce merit or demerit from the connexion of the mind with them.
49. Therefrom spring up in the ascetic the powers; to move his body from one place to another with the quickness of thought, to extend the operations of his senses beyond the trammels of place or the obstructions of matter, and to alter any natural object from one form to another.
50. In the ascetic who has acquired the accurate discriminative knowledge of the truth and of the nature of the soul, there arises a knowledge of all existences in their essential natures and a mastery over them.
51. In the ascetic who acquires an indifference even to the last mentioned perfection, through having destroyed the last germs of desire, there comes a state of the soul that is called Isolation.
[See note on Isolation in Book IV.]
52. The ascetic ought not to form association with celestial beings who may appear before him, nor exhibit wonderment at their appearance, since the result would be a renewal of afflictions of the mind.
53. A great and most subtile knowledge springs from the discrimination that follows upon concentration of the mind performed with regard to the relation between moments and their order.
In this Patanjali speaks of ultimate divisions of time which cannot be further divided, and of the order in which they precede and succeed each other. It is asserted that a perception of these minute periods can be acquired, and the result will be that he who discriminates thus goes on to greater and wider perception of principles in nature which are so recondite that modern philosophy does not even know of their existence. We know that we can all distinguish such periods as days or hours, and there are many persons, born mathematicians, who are able to perceive the succession of minutes and can tell exactly without a watch how many have elapsed between any two given points in time. The minutes, so perceived by these mathematical wonders, are, however, not the ultimate divisions of time referred to in the Aphorism, but are themselves composed of such ultimates. No rules can be given for such concentration as this, as it is so far on the road of progress that the ascetic finds the rules himself, after having mastered all the anterior processes.
54. Therefrom results in the ascetic a power to discern subtile differences impossible to be known by other means.
55. The knowledge that springs from this perfection of discriminative power is called "knowledge that saves from rebirth." It has all things and the nature of all things for its objects, and perceives all that hath been and that is, without limitations of time, place, or circumstance, as if all were in the present and the presence of the contemplator.
Such an ascetic as is referred to in this and the next aphorism, is a Jivanmukta and is not subject to reincarnation. He, however, may live yet upon earth but is not in any way subject to his body, the soul being perfectly free at every moment. And such is held to be the state of those beings called, in theosophical literature, Adepts, Mahatmas, Masters.
56. When the mind no longer conceives itself to be the knower, or experiencer, and has become one with the soul -- the real knower and experiencer -- Isolation takes place and the soul is emancipated.
END OF THE THIRD BOOK.

BOOK 4. -- THE ESSENTIAL NATURE OF ISOLATION
1. Perfections of body, or superhuman powers are produced by birth, or by powerful herbs, or by incantations, penances, or meditations.
The sole cause of permanent perfections is meditation performed in incarnations prior to that in which the perfection appears, for perfection by birth, such as the power of birds to fly, is impermanent, as also are those following upon incantations, elixirs and the like. But as meditation reaches within, it affects each incarnation. It must also follow that evil meditation will have the result of begetting perfection in evil.
2. The change of a man into another class of being -- such as that of a celestial being -- is effected by the transfusion of natures.
This alludes to the possibility -- admitted by the Hindus -- of a man's being altered into one of the Devas, or celestial beings, through the force of penances and meditation.
3. Certain merits, works, and practices are called "occasional" because they do not produce essential modification of nature; but they are effective for the removal of obstructions in the way of former merit, as in the case of the husbandman who removes impediments in the course of the irrigating stream, which then flows forward.
This is intended to further explain Aphorism 2 by showing, that in any incarnation certain practices [e.g. those previously laid down] will clear away the obscurations of a man's past Karma, upon which that Karma will manifest itself; whereas, if the practices were not pursued, the result of past meditation might be delayed until yet another life.
4. The minds acting in the various bodies which the ascetic voluntarily assumes are the production of his egoism alone.
5. And for the different activities of those various minds, the ascetic's mind is the moving cause.
6. Among the minds differently constituted by reason of birth, herbs, incantations, penances, and meditation, that one alone which is due to meditation is destitute of the basis of mental deposits from works.
The aphorism applies to all classes of men, and not to bodies assumed by the ascetic; and there must always be kept in view the doctrine of the philosophy that each life leaves in the Ego mental deposits which form the basis upon which subsequent vicissitudes follow in other lives.
7. The work of the ascetic is neither pure nor dark, but is peculiar to itself, while that of others is of three kinds.
The three kinds of work alluded to are (1) pure in action and motive; (2) dark, such as that of infernal beings; (3) that of the general run of men, pure-dark. The 4th is that of the ascetic.
8. From these works there results, in every incarnation, a manifestation of only those mental deposits which can come to fructification in the environment provided.
9. Although. the manifestation of mental deposits may be intercepted by unsuitable environments, differing as to class, place, and time, there is an immediate relation between them, because the memory and the train of self-reproductive thought are identical.
This is to remove a doubt caused by Aphorism 8, and is intended to show that memory is not due to mere brain matter, but is possessed by the incarnating ego, which holds all the mental deposits in a latent state, each one becoming manifest whenever the suitable bodily constitution and environment are provided for it.
10. The mental deposits are eternal because of the force of the desire which produced them.
In the Indian edition this reads that the deposits remain because of the "benediction." And as that word is used in a special sense, we do not give it here. All mental deposits result from a desire for enjoyment, whether it be from a wish to avoid in the next life certain pain suffered in this, or from the positive feeling expressed in the desire, "may such and such pleasure always be mine." This is called a "benediction." And the word "eternal" has also a special signification, meaning only that period embraced by a "day of Brahma," which lasts for a thousand ages.
11. As they are collected by cause, effect, substratum, and support, when those are removed, the result is that there is a non-existence of the mental deposits.
This aphorism supplements the preceding one, and intends to show that, although the deposits will remain during "eternity" if left to themselves -- being always added to by new experiences and similar desires -- yet they may be removed by removing producing causes.
12. That which is past and that which is to come, are not reduced to non-existence, for the relations of the properties differ one from the other.
13. Objects, whether subtile or not, are made up of the three qualities.
The "three qualities" are Sattwa, Rajas, Tamas, or Truth, Activity, and Darkness: Truth corresponding to light and joy; Activity to passion; and Darkness to evil, rest, indifference, sloth, death. All manifested objects are compounded of these three.
14. Unity of things results from unity of modification.
15. Cognition is distinct from the object, for there is diversity of thoughts among observers of one object.
16. An object is cognized or not cognized by the mind accordingly as the mind is or is not tinted or affected by the object.
17. The modifications of the mind are always known to the presiding spirit, because it is not subject to modification.
Hence, through all the changes to which the mind and soul are subject, the spiritual soul, I's'wara, remains unmoved, "the witness and spectator."
18. The mind is not self-illuminative, because it is an instrument of the soul, is colored and modified by experiences and objects, and is cognized by the soul.
19. Concentrated attention to two objects cannot take place simultaneously.
20. If one perception be cognizable by another, then there would be the further necessity for cognition of cognition, and from that a confusion of recollection would take place.
21. When the understanding and the soul are united, then self-knowledge results.
The self-knowledge spoken of here is that interior illumination desired by all mystics, and is not merely a knowledge of self in the ordinary sense.
22. The mind, when united with the soul and fully conversant with knowledge, embraces
universally all objects.
23. The mind, though assuming various forms by reason of innumerable mental deposits, exists for the purpose of the soul's emancipation and operates in co-operation therewith.
24. In him who knows the difference between the nature of soul and mind, the false notion regarding the soul comes to an end.
The mind is merely a tool, instrument, or means, by which the soul acquires experiences and knowledge. In each incarnation the mind is, as it were, new. It is a portion of the apparatus furnished to the soul through innumerable lives for obtaining experience and reaping the fruit of works performed. The notion that the mind is either knower or experiencer is a false one, which is to be removed before emancipation can be reached by soul. It was therefore said that the mind operates or exists for the carrying out of the soul's salvation, and not the soul for the mind's sake. When this is fully understood, the permanency of soul is seen, and all the evils flowing from false ideas begin to disappear.
25. Then the mind becomes deflected toward discrimination and bowed down before Isolation.
26. But in the intervals of meditation other thoughts arise, in consequence of the continuance of old impressions not yet expunged.
27. The means to be adopted for the avoidance and elimination of these are the same as before given for obviating the afflictions.
28. If the ascetic is not desirous of the fruits, even when perfect knowledge has been attained, and is not inactive, the meditation technically called Dharma Megha -- cloud of virtue -- takes place from his absolutely perfect discriminative knowledge.
The commentator explains that, when the ascetic has reached the point described in Aphorism 25, if he bends his concentration toward the prevention of all other thoughts, and is not desirous of attaining the powers resulting just at his wish, a further state of meditation is reached which is called "cloud of virtue," because it is such as will, as it were, furnish the spiritual rain for the bringing about of the chief end of the soul -- entire emancipation. And it contains a warning that, until that chief end is obtained, the desire for fruits is an obstacle.
29. Therefrom results the removal of the afflictions and all works.
30. Then, from infinity of knowledge absolutely free from obscuration and impurity, that which is knowable appears small and easy to grasp.
31. Thereupon, the alternation in the modifications of the qualities, having accomplished the soul's aim -- experience and emancipation -- comes to an end.
32. It is then perceived that the moments and their order of precedence and succession are the same.
This is a step further than Aphorism 53, Book III, where it is stated that from discrimination of ultimates of time a perception of the very subtle and recondite principles of the universe results. Here, having arrived at Isolation, the ascetic sees beyond even the ultimates, and they, although capable of affecting the man who has not reached this stage, are for the ascetic identical, because he is a master of them. It is extremely difficult to interpret this aphorism; and in the original it reads that "the order is counterpart of the moment." To express it in another way, it may be said that in the species of meditation adverted to in Aphorism 53, Book III, a calculative cognition goes forward in the mind, during which, the contemplator not yet being thoroughly master of these divisions of time, is compelled to observe them as they pass before him.
33. The reabsorption of the qualities which have consummated the aim of the soul or the abiding of the soul united with understanding in its own nature, is Isolation.
This is a general statement of the nature of Isolation, sometimes called Emancipation. The qualities before spoken of, found in all objects and which had hitherto affected and delayed the soul, have ceased to be mistaken by it for realities, and the consequence is that the soul abides in its own nature unaffected by the great "pairs of opposites" -- pleasure and pain, good and evil, cold and heat, and so forth.
Yet it must not be deduced that the philosophy results in a negation, or in a coldness, such as our English word "Isolation" would seem to imply. The contrary is the case. Until this state is reached, the soul, continually affected and deflected by objects, senses, suffering, and pleasure, is unable to consciously partake universally of the great life of the universe. To do so, it must stand firmly "in its own nature"; and then it proceeds further -- as is admitted by the philosophy -- to bring about the aim of all other souls still struggling on the road. But manifestly further aphorisms upon that would be out of place, as well as being such as could not be understood, to say nothing of the uselessness of giving them.
END OF THE FOURTH BOOK
May I's'wara be near and help those who read this book.
OM

How to Read the Timeline
-2.5m to -1000
The thick line represents the flow of time from the date on the top to dates on the bottom. The thinner lines to the left indicate the duration of major ruling dynasties. Not all are included, for at times India was divided into dozens of small independent kingdoms. Approximate dates are preceded by the letter "ca," an abbreviation of the word "circa," which denotes "about," "around" or "in approximately." all dates prior to Buddha (624 bce) are considered estimates.
bce: Abbreviation for "before common era," referring to dating prior to the year zero in the Western, or Gregorian calendar, system.
ce: Abbreviation for "common era." Equivalent to the abbreviation ad. Following a date, it indicates that the year in question comes after the year zero in the Western, or Gregorian calendar, system.
http://pubs.usgs.gov/publications/text/himalaya.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/everest/earth/birth.html
1 -2.5 m: Genus Homo originates in Africa, cradle of humanity. http://www.indiana.edu/~origins/links/evolinks.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/
http://www.asu.edu/clas/iho/
2 2 -2 m: Stone artifacts are made and used by hominids in North India, an area rich in animal species, including the elephant.
3 -500,000: Stone hand axes and other tools are used in N. India.
4 -470,000: India's hominids are active in Tamil Nadu and Punjab.
5 -400,000: Soan culture in India is using primitive chopping tools.
6 -360,000: Fire is first controlled by homo erectus in China.
7 -300,000: Homo sapiens roams the earth, from Africa to Asia.
8 -100,000: Homo sapiens sapiens (humans) with 20th-century man's brain size (1,450 cc) live in East Africa. Populations separate. Migrations proceed to Asia via the Isthmus of Suez.
9 -75,000: Last ice age begins. Human population is 1.7 million. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/ice/chill.html
10 -45,000: After mastery of marine navigation, migrations from Southeast Asia settle Australia and the Pacific islands.
11 -40,000: Groups of hunter-gatherers in Central India are living in painted rock shelters. Similar groups in Northern Punjab work at open sites protected by windbreaks.
12 -35,000: Migrations of separated Asian populations settle Europe.
13 -30,000: American Indians spread throughout the Americas.
14 -10,000: Last ice age ends after 65,000 years; earliest signs of agriculture. World population 4 million; India is 100,000.
15 -10,000: Taittiriya Brahmana 3.1.2 refers to Purvabhadrapada nakshatra's rising due east, a phenomenon occurring at this date (Dr. B.G. Siddharth of Birla Science Institute), indicating the earliest known dating of the sacred Veda.
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Olympus/3588/hinduism.htm
http://www1.shore.net/~india/ejvs/ejvs0501/ejvs0501d.txt
http://www1.shore.net/~india/ejvs/ electronic jnl of vedic studies
http://www1.shore.net/~india/
16 -10,000: Vedic culture, the essence of humanity's eternal wisdom, Sanatana Dharma, lives in the Himalayas at end of Ice Age.
Reference: http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/op/2003/01/21/stories/2003012100110200.htm

An ecological view of ancient India
We need to look at the civilisation of India according to geographical and ecological imperatives that are far more certain than historical speculation conditioned by simplistic ideas of ethnicity, linguistics or migrations.
Ecology is beginning to define how we look at the world and how we look at ourselves. Each geographical region in the world constitutes a special ecosystem — an interrelated habitat for plants and animals shaped by climate and terrain. These ecological factors have a strong effect upon culture as well.
As part of nature ourselves, society arises out of an ecological basis that we cannot ignore. Most civilisations, both in their advance and decline, reflect how people manage the ecosystems in which they live along with their natural resources. Human culture derives largely from its first culture, which is agriculture, our ability to work the land. This depends largely on water, particularly fresh water that is found in rivers, and flat land that can be easily irrigated.
However, so far we have looked at history mainly in a non-ecological way, mainly trying to define it according to political, economic or racial concerns. Our account of ancient history — particularly that of India — has not given adequate regard to ecological factors. It has put too much weight on migration, as if culture came from the outside, rather than on the characteristics and necessities of the ecosystems in which people live and must rely upon for developing a sustainable way of life.
The Aryan invasion theory is such a product of the pre-ecological age of historical theory that emphasised the movements of peoples over the natural development of culture within well-defined geographical regions. Nineteenth century thought — the product of a colonial age — found it easy to see culture as something brought in by intruders, rather than as something developed by the inhabitants of a region who had to develop suitable methods to harness their natural resources as shaped by the ecology around them.
River systems
It is a well known fact that the main civilisations of the ancient world of Egypt, Mesopotamia, India (Indus Valley), and China were possible only because of the great river systems around which they grew up. The rivers made these civilisations possible, not simply human invention or any special ethnic type that migrated there. If we examine these four great river centres of early civilisation it is clear that the largest and most ideal river region in the world for developing civilisation is India. Egypt grew up around one great river, the Nile that flowed through what was otherwise a dry, rainless desert. Mesopotamia had two rivers but only of moderate size, the Tigris and the Euphrates, flowing through a large desert as well. Both Egypt and Mesopotamia were located in subtropical regions that provided abundant warmth and sunshine for crops, but otherwise suffered from the limited size of their river banks that were their sole steady water supply. China had a large but unpredictable river system, the Yellow River, which frequently overflowed its banks in various floods. It also received abundant rain. But it was centred in a cold northern region, with a limited growing season.
Ancient India, on the other hand, had a massive nexus of numerous great rivers from the Indus in the west to the swamplands of the Gangetic delta in the east. It had both a warm subtropical climate and seasonal abundant rains. This river region included relatively dry regions of the west to the very wet regions of eastern India affording an abundance of crops both in type and quantity. The Indian river system was much larger in size and in arable land, and better in climate than perhaps all the other three river regions put together. No other ecosystem in the world could so easily serve to create an agricultural diversity or the cultural richness that would go with it. Ecologically speaking, north India was the ideal place in the world for the development of a riverine civilisation via agriculture. Bounded by the Himalayas in the north, and lower mountains on the west, east and south, this north Indian river plain is a specific geographical region and ecosystem, whose natural boundaries could easily serve to create and hold together a great civilisation. It was also ideal for producing large populations that depend upon agriculture for their sustenance.
This same network of rivers was ideal for communication and trade. Not surprisingly, the Rigveda, the oldest book of the region, is full of praise for the numerous great rivers of the region, the foremost of which in early ancient times was the Sarasvati, which flowed east of the Yamuna into the Rann of Kachchh, creating an unbroken set of fertile rivers from Punjab to Bengal. This Vedic goddess of speech was a river goddess. The Vedic idea of One Truth but many paths (Rigveda I.164.46) probably reflects this experience of life of many rivers linked to the one sea.
The main point of this article is that if we really want to understand the development of civilisation in ancient India we cannot ignore such ecological and geographical factors. Ancient India was the ideal ecological region for the development of civilisation in the ancient world. Therefore, we should look to an indigenous development of civilisation in the region. We need not import its people, animals, plants, culture or civilisation from the outside, particularly from barren and inhospitable Central Asia, for example, which would not have been suitable to India and which is separated from it geographically by very hard to cross mountain and desert barriers.
New approach
It is time to take a new ecological look at the Vedas, which so far have not been examined adequately ecologically but have been approached mainly according to linguistic, Marxist or Freudian concerns that easily miss the obvious geography or ecology of the text. If we do this, we will discover that even the oldest Vedic text, the Rigveda, clearly describes a region of many vast rivers flowing to the sea, the most important of which was the Sarasvati. The climate that it describes of great rains and monsoons, the symbolism of the great God Indra, is also clearly that of India. The flora and fauna mentioned including the Brahma bull, water buffalo and elephant and its sacred trees of the Pipal, Ashvatta and Shamali is also that of India.
The fall of the Indus or Harappan culture, just as was the case for many in the ancient world, was owing to ecological factors, something that Nineteenth and early Twentieth century migrationist views of history completely missed. It occurred not because of the destruction wrought by the proposed Aryan invaders but by ecological changes brought about by the drying up of the Sarasvati River around 1900 BCE. This did not end civilisation in the region but caused its relocation mainly to the more certain waters of the Ganga to the east. Such a movement is reflected in the shift from Vedic literature that is centred on the Sarasvati to the Puranic literature that is centred on the Ganga.
The great north Indian river system from Punjab to Bihar is perhaps the greatest breadbasket or agricultural centre in the world. Any humans in the region would have been aided by the land, the waters and the climate, affording them a great advantage in the development of language and culture as well. The natural resources provided by the riverine ecosystem of north India could uphold great civilisations over the centuries. From it the peoples and literature of the region had adequate support from nature to sustain their cultural traditions.
Southern river regions
The type of civilisation developed on the rivers of north India could easily connect with the cultures developing on the rivers in the south of the country that shared a common climate and geographical ties. The other main great river region for India is the basins of the Krishna and Godavari rivers in the southeast of India, mainly Andhra Pradesh. This provides another important agricultural centre in the ancient world, which has also not been examined properly. Another important river area is the Narmada and Tapti rivers in Gujarat and Maharashtra. As these were nearby the delta of the Sarasvati, they could have been an extension of it (which is perhaps why the Bhrigu Rishis of this region are so important in Vedic literature).
That the civilisation of north India could have had connections with these southern cultures is also ecologically based. For this we must consider the ecological factors that existed when agriculture began to arise in the world around 10,000 BCE. Before the end of the Ice Age north India was much drier and cooler in climate. This means that if there was any pre-Ice Age basis for agriculture in north India it would have more likely come from these more suitable southern river regions which had better rainfall at that time.
We need to look at the civilisation of India according to geographical and ecological imperatives that are far more certain than historical speculation conditioned by simplistic ideas of ethnicity, linguistics or migrations. In this regard the study of the Sarasvati river system by the geologists of India and linking it to the Sarasvati river as lauded in Vedic literature is probably the key. Civilisation is like a plant that owes its existence to the land on which it grows. We cannot ignore this important fact either for our past or for our future. The current Government of India plan to link all the great rivers of the country represents such a responsible ecological approach which, including reconstituting the old Sarasvati river channel, links the great future of the country with its great past.
DAVID FRAWLEY

17 -9000: Old Europe, Anatolia and Minoan Crete display a Goddess-centered culture reflecting a matriarchial order.
18 -8500: Taittiriya Samhita 6.5.3 places Pleiades asterism at winter solstice, suggesting the antiquity of this Veda.
19 -7500: Excavations at Neveli Cori in Turkey reveal advanced civilization with meticulous architecture and planning. Dr. Sri B.G. Siddharth believes this was a Vedic culture.
20 -7000: Proto-Vedic period ends. Early Vedic period begins.
21 -7000: Time of Manu Vaivasvata, "father of mankind," of Sarasvati-Drishadvati area (also said to be a South Indian Maharaja who sailed to the Himalayas during a great flood).
22 -7000: Early evidence of horses in the Ganga region (Frawley).
23 -7000: Indus-Sarasvati area residents of Mehrgarh grow barley, raise sheep and goats. They store grain, entomb their dead and construct buildings of sun-baked mud bricks.
24 -6776: Start of Hindu lists of kings according to ancient Greek references that give Hindus 150 kings and a history of 6,400 years before 300bce; agrees with next entry.
25 -6500: Rig Veda verses (e.g., 1.117.22, 1.116.12, 1.84.13.5) say winter solstice begins in Aries (according to Dr. D. Frawley), indicating the antiquity of this section of the Vedas.
http://www.san.beck.org/EC7-Vedas.html
http://www.san.beck.org/index.html
-6000: Early sites on the Sarasvati River, then India's largest, flowing west of Delhi into the Rann of Kutch; Rajasthan is a fertile region with much grassland, as described in the Rig Veda. The culture, based upon barley (yava), copper (ayas) and cattle, also reflects that of the Rig Veda.
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/~ucgadkw/members/indus.html
-5500: Mehrgarh villagers are making baked pottery and thousands of small, clay of female figurines (interpreted to be earliest signs of Shakti worship), and are involved in long-distance trade in precious stones and sea shells.
-5500: Date of astrological observations associated with ancient events later mentioned in the Puranas (Alain Danielou).
-5000: World population, 5 million, doubles every 1,000 years.
-5000: Beginnings of Indus-Sarasvati civilizations of Harappa and Mohenjo-daro. Date derived by considering archeological sites, reached after excavating 45 feet. Brick fire altars exist in many houses, suggesting Vedic fire rites, yajna. Earliest signs of worship of Lord Siva. This mature culture will last 3,000 years, ending around -1700.
-5000: Rice is harvested in China, with grains found in baked bricks. But its cultivation originated in Eastern India.
-4300: Traditional dating for Lord Rama's time.
-4000: Excavations from this period at Sumerian sites of Kish and Susa reveal existence of Indian trade products.
-4000: India's population is 1 million.
-4000: Date of world's creation (Christian genealogies).
-3928: July 25th, the earliest eclipse mentioned in the Rig Veda (according to Indian researcher Dr. Shri P.C. Sengupta).
-3200: Hindu astronomers called nakshatra darshas record in Vedic texts their observations of full moon and new moon at the winter and summer solstices and spring and fall equinoxes with reference to 27 fixed stars (nakshatras) spaced nearly equally on the moon's ecliptic or apparent path across the sky. The precession of the equinoxes (caused by the wobbling of the Earth's axis of rotation) causes the nakshatras to appear to drift at a constant rate along a predictable course over a 25,000-year cycle. From these observations historians are able to calculate backwards and determine the date when the indicated position of moon, sun and nakshatra occurred.
-3102: Kali Era Hindu calendar starts. Kali Yuga begins.
-3100: Reference to vernal equinox in Rohini (middle of Taurus) from some Brahmanas, as noted by B.G. Tilak, Indian scholar and patriot. Traditional date of the Mahabharata war and lifetime of Lord Krishna.
-3100: Early Vedic period ends, late Vedic period begins.
-3100: India includes Afghanistan and parts of Central Asia.
-3100: Aryan people inhabit Iran, Iraq and Western Indus-Sarasvati Valley frontier. Frawley describes Aryans as "a culture of spiritual knowledge." He and others believe 1) the Land of Seven Rivers (Sapta Sindhu) mentioned in the Rig Veda refers to India only, 2) that the people of Indus-Sarasvati Valleys and those of Rig Veda are the same, and 3) there was no Aryan invasion. This view is now prevailing over the West's historical concept of the Aryans as a separate ethnic or linguistic group. Still others claim the Indus-Sarasvati people were Dravidians who moved out or were displaced by incoming Aryans.
-3000: Weaving in Europe, Near East and Indus-Sarasvati Valley is primarily coiled basketry, either spiraled or sewn.
-3000: Evidence of horses in South India.
-3000: People of Tehuacan, Mexico, are cultivating corn.
-3000: Saiva Agamas are recorded in the time of the earliest Tamil Sangam. (A traditional date.)
-2700: Seals of Indus-Sarasvati Valley indicate Siva worship, in depictions of Siva as Pashupati, Lord of Animals.
-2600: Indus-Sarasvati civilization reaches a height it sustains until 1700 bce. Spreading from Pakistan to Gujarat, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, it is the largest of the world's three oldest civilizations with links to Mesopotamia (possibly Crete), Afghanisthan, Central Asia and Karnataka. Harappa and Mohenjo-daro have populations of 100,000.
-2600: Major portions of the Veda hymns are composed during the reign of Vishvamitra I (Dating by Dr. S.B. Roy).
-2600: Drying up of Drishadvati River of Vedic fame, along with possible shifting of the Yamuna to flow into the Ganga.
-2600: First Egyptian pyramid is under construction.
-2500: Main period of Indus-Sarasvati cities. Culture relies heavily on rice and cotton, as mentioned in Atharva Veda, which were first developed in India. Ninety percent of sites are along the Sarasvati, the region's agricultural bread basket. Mohenjo-daro is a large peripheral trading center. Rakhigari and Ganweriwala (not yet excavated in 1994) on the Sarasvati are as big as Mohenjo-daro. So is Dholarvira in Kutch. Indus-Sarasvati sites have been found as far south as Karnataka's Godavari River and north into Afghanistan on the Amu Darya River.
-2500: Reference to vernal equinox in Krittika (Pleiades or early Taurus) from Yajur and Atharva Veda hymns and Brahmanas. This corresponds to Harappan seals that show seven women (the Krittikas) tending a fire.
-2300: Sargon founds Mesopotamian kingdom of Akkad, trades with Indus-Sarasvati Valley cities.
-2300: Indo-Europeans in Russia's Ural steppelands develop efficient spoked-wheel chariot technology, using 1,000-year-old horse husbandry and freight-cart technology.
-2050: Vedic people are living in Persia and Afghanistan.
-2051: Divodasa reigns to -1961, has contact with Babylon's King Indatu (Babylonian chronology). Dating by S.B. Roy.
ca -2040: Prince Rama is born at Ayodhya, site of future Rama temple. (This and next two datings by S.B. Roy.)
http://www.hanumanchalis.com
-2033: Reign of Dasharatha, father of Lord Rama. King Ravana, villain of the Ramayana, reigns in Sri Lanka.
-2000: Indo-Europeans (Celts, Slavs, Lithuanians, Ukranians) follow cosmology, theology, astronomy, ritual, society and marriage that parallel early Vedic patterns.
-2000: Probable date of first written Saiva Agamas.
-2000: World population: 27 million. India: 5 million or 22%. India has roughly G of human race throughout history.
http://www.bible.ca/maps/maps-near-east-abrahams-journey.htm (2000 bc ?)
http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~wldciv/world_civ_reader/world_civ_reader_1/abraham.html
The Story of Abraham, from the Hebrew Bible

(Genesis 16:1-3, 15-16, 17, 21:1-2)

When the Jews tried to explain that the Land of Israel was theirs by divine right though they acknowledged that their ancestors had not originated there, they pointed to the promise made to Abraham (originally from the Neobabylonian city of Ur). Although the modern Zionist movement was largely non-religious, the idea of the "promised land" has had a powerful influence in creating and maintaining the modern state of Israel. Ironically, this same story also tells of the origin of another people, the offspring of Ishmael, whom Muslims identify as the Arabs. Both religions therefore trace their origins back to Abraham, and both hold the land of Israel sacred, though neither accepts the other's claims. Like Isaac, several major figures in Jewish tradition are younger brothers or outsiders who eventually triumph through virtue, wit, or skill--Jacob, Joseph, and David, for instance. This pattern reflects the self-image of a people who view themselves as survivors who needed the special intervention of God to triumph. Note the emphasis on a high reproduction rate, desirable in most ancient cultures, for only a minority of children survived infancy.
What effect on the story does the extreme age of Sarai and Abram have?
Now Sarai, Abram's wife, bore him no children. She had an Egyptian slave-girl whose name was Hagar, and Sarai said to Abram, "You see that the LORD has prevented me from bearing children; go in to my slave-girl; it may be that I shall obtain children by her. "And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram's wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her slave-girl, and gave her to her husband Abram as a wife. . . .
Hagar bore Abram a son; and Abram named his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael. Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael.
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said to him, "I am God Almighty;" walk before me, and be blameless. And I will make my covenant between me and you, and will make you exceedingly numerous." Then Abram fell on his face; and God said to him, "As for me, this is my covenant with you: You shall be the ancestor of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you the ancestor of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. I will establish my covenant between me and you, and your offspring after you throughout their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you, and to your offspring after you, the land where you are now an alien, all the land of Canaan, for a perpetual holding; and I will be their God."
God said to Abraham, "As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. Throughout your generations every male among you shall be circumcised when he is eight days old, including the slave born in your house and the one bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring. Both the slave born in your house and the one bought with your money must be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant. Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant." (1)
God said to Abraham, "As for Sarah your wife, you shall not call her Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. I will bless her, and moreover I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall give rise to nations; kings of peoples shall come from her." Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said to himself, "Can a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Can Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?" And Abraham said to God, "O that Ishmael might live in your sight!" God said, "No, but your wife Sarah shall bear you a son, and you shall name him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him. As for Ishmael, I have heard you; I will bless him and make him fruitful and exceedingly numerous; he shall be the father of twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation. But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this season next year." And when he had finished talking with him, God went up from Abraham.
Then Abraham took his son Ishmael and all the slaves born in his house or bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham's house, and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very day, as God had said to him. Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. And his son Ishmael was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. That very day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised; and all the men of his house, slaves born in the house and those bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him. . . .
The LORD dealt with Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did for Sarah as he had promised. Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the time of which God had spoken to him. Abraham gave the name Isaac to his son whom Sarah bore him. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. Now Sarah said, "God has brought laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me. " And she said, "Who would ever have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age."
The child grew, and was weaned; and Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned. But Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, playing with her son Isaac. So she said to Abraham, "Cast out this slave woman with her son; for the son of this slave woman shall not inherit along with my son Isaac." The matter was very distressing to Abraham on account of his son. But God said to Abraham, "Do not be distressed because of the boy and because of your slave woman; whatever Sarah says to you, do as she tells you, for it is through Isaac that offspring shall be named for you. As for the son of the slave woman, I will make a nation of him also, because he is your offspring." So Abraham rose early in the morning, and took bread and a skin of water, and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, along with the child, and sent her away. And she departed, and wandered about in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.
When the water in the skin was gone, she cast the child under one of the bushes. Then she went and sat down opposite him a good way off, about the distance of a bowshot; for she said, "Do not let me look on the death of the child." And as she sat opposite him, she lifted up her voice and wept. And God heard the voice of the boy; and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven, and said to her, "What troubles you, Hagar? Do not be afraid; for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is. Come, lift up the boy and hold him fast with your hand for I will make a great nation of him." Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. She went, and filled the skin with water, and gave the boy a drink.
God was with the boy, and he grew up; he lived in the wilderness, and became an expert with the bow. He lived in the wilderness of Paran; and his mother got a wife for him from the land of Egypt. . . .
New Revised Standard Version
(1) Circumcision was widely practiced in the ancient Middle East and in Egypt, but contact with people who did not follow the custom in later times made the Jews highly self-conscious of their distinctiveness. Note that in Jewish tradition the covenant (agreement) is "everlasting," not superseded by a "new covenant" as in Christianity. The whole body of the Jewish law comes to be incorporated into this covenant.

-1915: All Madurai Tamil Sangam is held at Thiruparankundram (according to traditional Tamil chronology).
-1900: Late Vedic period ends, post Vedic period begins.
-1900: Drying up of Sarasvati River, end of Indus-Sarasvati culture, end of the Vedic age. After this, the center of civilization in ancient India relocates from the Sarasvati to the Ganga, along with possible migration of Vedic peoples out of India to the Near East (perhaps giving rise to the Mittani and Kassites, who worship Vedic Gods). The redirection of the Sutlej into the Indus causes the Indus area to flood. Climate changes make the Sarasvati region too dry for habitation. (Thought lost, its river bed is finally photographed from satellite in the 1990s.)
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/~ucgadkw/members/indus.html
-1500: Egyptians bury their royalty in the Valley of the Kings.
-1500: Polynesians migrate throughout Pacific islands.
-1500: Submergence of the stone port city of Dwarka near Gujarat, where early Brahmi script, India's ancient alphabet, is used. Recent excavation by Dr. S.R. Rao. Larger than Mohenjo-daro, many identify it with the Dwarka of Krishna. Possible date of Lord Krishna. Indicates second urbanization phase of India between Indus-Sarasvati sites like Harappa and later cities on the Ganga.
-1500: Indigenous iron technology in Dwarka and Kashmir.
-1500: Cinnamon is exported from Kerala to Middle East.
-1472: Reign of Dhritarashtra, father of the Kauravas. Reign of Yudhisthira, king of the Pandavas. Life of Sage Yajnavalkya. Date based on Mahabharata's citation of winter solstice at Dhanishtha, which occurs around this time.
-1450: End of Rig Veda Samhita narration.
-1450: Early Upanishads are composed during the next few hundred years, also Vedangas and Sutra literature.
-1424: Bharata battle is fought, as related in the Mahabharata. (Professor Subash Kak places the battle at -2449. Other authors give lower dates, up to 9th century bce)
-1424: Birth of Parikshit, grandson of Arjuna, and next king.
-1350: At Boghaz Koi in Turkey, stone inscription of the Mitanni treaty lists as divine witnesses the Vedic Deities Mitra, Varuna, Indra and the Nasatyas (Ashvins).
-1316: Mahabharata epic poem is composed by Sage Vyasa.
-1300: Panini composes Ashtadhyayi, systematizing Sanskrit grammar in 4,000 terse rules. (Date according to Roy.)
-1300: Changes are made in the Mahabharata and Ramayana through 200 bce. Puranas are edited up until 400 ce. Early smriti literature is composed over next 400 years.
-1255: King Shuchi of Magadha writes Jyotisha Vedanga, including astronomical observations which date this scripture-that summer solstice occurs in Ashlesha Nakshatra.
-1250: Moses leads 600,000 Jews out of Egypt.
-1200: Probable time of the legendary Greek Trojan War celebrated in Homer's epic poems, Iliad and Odyssey (ca -750).
-1124: Elamite Dynasty of Nebuchadnezzar (-1124-1103) moves capital to Babylon, world's largest city, covering 10,000 hectares, slightly larger than present-day San Francisco.
-1000: Late Vedic period ends. Post-Vedic period begins.

911 => 9 are the doors to the body, 11 are the senses ( 1 Mind, 5 Action, 5 Perception = MAP)
existence (sat) consciousness (chit/sri) joy (anand/akaal) being becoming:
addons/takeoffs inputs please email to: oyash@msn.com
Hindu Timeline #2 -1000 to 1000
Reference:http://www.himalayanacademy.com/books/timeline/HinduHistory.html
-1000: World population is 50 million, doubling every 500 years.
-975: King Hiram of Phoenicia, for the sake of King Solomon of Israel, trades with the port of Ophir (Sanskrit: Supara) near modern Bombay, showing the trade between Israel and India. Same trade goes back to Harappan era.
-950: Jewish people arrive in India in King Solomon's merchant fleet. Later Jewish colonies find India a tolerant home.
-950: Gradual breakdown of Sanskrit as a spoken language occurs over the next 200 years.
-925: Jewish King David forms an empire in what is present-day Israel and Lebanon.
-900: Iron Age in India. Early use dates to at least -1500.
ca -900: Earliest records of the holy city of Varanasi (one of the world's oldest living cities) on the sacred river Ganga.
-900: Use of iron supplements bronze in Greece.
-850: The Chinese are using the 28-nakshatra zodiac called Shiu, adapted from the Hindu jyotisha system.
ca -800: Later Upanishads are recorded.
-800: Later smriti, secondary Hindu scripture, is composed, elaborated and developed during next 1,000 years.
-776: First Olympic Games are held in Greece.

Third Intermediate Period (1070 B.C.– 747 B.C.)

Reference: http://thebanmappingproject.com/resources/timeline_7.html
The Dynasty 20 pharaohs, with their capital at Pi Ramesses in the Delta, were not able to maintain control over the High Priests of Amen in Thebes. At the end of Dynasty 20, the Viceroy of Kush, Panehsy, began a civil war with Rameses XI, which was put down by his General Herihor. After the war, Herihor took control of Thebes as the High Priest of Amen and depicted himself as a pharaoh and inclosing his name in a cartouche at Karnak [17450]. At the same time, Smendes, the new pharaoh in Lower Egypt, moved the capital to Tanis in t http://thebanmappingproject.com/resources/timeline_7.htmlhe Delta. The new Temple of Amen at Tanis was modeled after the Temple of Amen at Karnak. The dynastic rivalry was subdued when the High Priest of Amen, Pinedjem I, married into the royal family at Tanis.
The local populace had been robbing the royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings since Dynasty 20. This prompted the High Priests of Amen to rebury many of the royal mummies in a hidden location above Dayr al Bahri (TT 320) [13615]. Pharaohs of Dynasty 21 to 24 were buried within the walls of Temple of Amen at Tanis, thus adding a level of security, perhaps due to the tomb robberies of the Valley of the Kings. Likewise, the High Priest of Amen and other local clerics were buried within the enclosure wall of Madinat Habu.
The beginning of Dynasties 22 and 23 witnessed political stability, during which Libyan pharaohs ruled from the Delta, first in Tanis and then Bubastis. The Libyan kings were able to maintain control from the Delta over the High Priests of Amen by placing their children in high positions in the clerical hierarchy. They carried out various building works at Karnak and throughout Egypt [17430].
The reunification of Egypt under Libyan rule did not endure. Centralized authority declined further and further until three dynasties were ruling simultaneously from three cities in the Delta (Tanis, Bubastis and Sais), along with smaller chiefdoms, toward the end of the Third Intermediate Period.


-750: Prakrits, vernacular or "natural" languages, develop among India's common peoples. Already flourishing in 500 bce , Pali and other Prakrits are chiefly known from Buddhist and Jain works composed at this time.
-750: Priestly Sanskrit is gradually refined over next 500 years, taking on its classical form.
-700: Life of Zoroaster of Persia, founder of Zoroastrianism. His holy book, Zend Avesta, contains many verses from the Rig and Atharva Veda. His strong distinctions between good and evil set the dualistic tone of God and devil which distinguishes all later Western religions.
http://www.avesta.org/other/qsanjan.htm
http://www.avesta.org/avesta.html
http://www.avesta.org/
Avesta -- Zoroastrian Archives Contents Prev qsanjan.htm Next Glossary
The Qissa-i Sanjan
Translated by Shahpurshah Hormasji Hodivala, M. A., from Studies in Parsi History (Bombay, 1920, pp. 94-117.)
This text is an account of the emigration of Zoroastrians from Iran to India. It was written in 1600 A.C. The settlement at Sanjan appears to have occurred in 936 A.C. The Muslim sacking of Sanjan probably occurred in 1465 A.C. The sacred fire Iranshah was moved from Navsari to Udwada in the eighteenth century.
Electronic edition prepared by Joseph H. Peterson, copyright 2000. Spelling has been normalized to conform with other texts in this series.


In praise of the unity of the Creator exalted. NOTES:
In the name of the Wise and Most Holy Lord, whose praises I sing with all my soul every moment. Him I thank profusely night and day, for my spirit rejoices only when grateful to Him. In season and out of season, I do nothing but repeat His name, for He is of the Universe Eternal King. He only is puissant and mighty everlastingly and the eyes of His slaves have the gift of vision (lit. are seeing) only through Him. He is in all places our refuge and our protector, the forgiver of our transgressions and the acceptor of our apologies. He has always hearkened to our grievances and it is He who has given us wisdom and shown unto us [the path of] Faith. Cherisher of the stranger and Sovereign of the Universe, pardoner of the sins and overlooker of the backslidings of mankind, He is our Eternal Guide, the companion of our private hours and the resolver of our difficulties. Thou hast, [O Lord], perfect power over creation, Thou only art Ruler Absolute and thy Kingdom only is never-fading. Thou art the Lord of Lords, marvelous, peerless, and without a second. By Thy might, thou fashionest out of clay the figure of a man and then instillest into it the joyous and gladsome soul. Thou conveyest the seed from the spinal column unto the matrix and it is Thou who delineatest upon the [seminal] fluid the picture [of humanity].
It is Thou who hast given body and form to the germ and implanted therein the Macrocosm (lit. the World) itself. Thou hast given unto man not only a tongue for outward [expression], but an inner sense likewise. Two eyes hast Thou bestowed upon him for seeing, two ears for hearing, and a tongue for speech, which may revolve in Thy praise like a wheel. A nose Thou hast endowed him with for appreciate pleasant odours, and feet for standing [erect] in prayer. Thirty-two pearls hast Thou linked together in a row and imparted the sense of taste also to our mouths. So perfectly does Thy Creation coincide with the first design on Thy Tablets-----1 that one would stake (lit. give) life itself on the perfection of Thy art. It is Thou who hast instilled sorrow into the hearts of lovers and the joy and luxury of grief are also Thy gift. Thou hast built up both worlds out of Nothing and it was Thou who madest Man superior to the Angels.-----2 Deity Supreme is befitting without question only to Thee, and of all things Wisdom has borne witness to Thee only. Whenever I give Thee boundless thanks, it is my tongue that is honoured thereby. Love of Thee hath thrown its halter (lit. cord) around my neck and I must perforce run wherever I am dragged in its train (lit. noose). Nor can I help obeying the behests of the Lord who has cast us hither and thither according to His will. Of Everlasting Existence no one is worthy except God, for He only is without His like. The entire Creation has proceeded from Thee to the cosmos hast Thou given this form out of Wisdom. Thou madest Adam out of clay and inscribed [upon his forehead] the name of Thy Vicegerent.-----3 Thou only dost not admit of change; Thou art also He who taketh us by the hand. No one else is like Thee, nor dost Thou resemble any one. All that exists has proceeded out of Thee. Earth and Sky are Thy handiwork, and the children of Adam Thou hast made the Glory (lit. ornament) of creation. 1. The 'doxology' is a stereotyped feature of all lengthy poetical compositions among the Arabs and Persians and Bahman while imitating those models, employs here, as in some other places, phraseology which a Moslem, not Zoroastrian. cf. Quran, Koran. VI. 38. "There is no kind of beast on earth, nor fowl which flieth with its wings, but the same is a people like unto you: we have not omitted anything in the book of our decreed." that is, "the Preserved Table, wherein God's decrees are written and all things which come to pass in the world, as well the most minute as the more momentous are exactly registered." Sale, Koran, 10-1-2 note. 2. cf. "And when we said to the angels, 'Bow down and worship Adam,' then worshipped they all save Iblis." Koran, Sura II. 32. Rodwell, 345. 3. cf. Koran, Sura II. 28. "When Thy Lord said to the angels, 'Verily I am about to place one in my stead on earth,' they said, 'Wilt thou place there one who will do ill therein and shed blood, when we celebrate Thy praise and extol Thy holiness'? God said, 'Verily, I know what you know not.' Rodwell, 340.
Bahman has set his face towards Thy presence-gates; keep Thou his heart enlightened in this world. Replenish it with the Good Religion and release him (lit. his head) from the bonds of sorrow. Keep him ever abounding in faith and render out of Thy bounty his soul full of the light [of the spirit]. Save Thou, I possess no patron and in both worlds my hopes are all in Thee, O Master loving-kind, Thou hast pardoned my faults and my tongue is for ever weighing epithets [in Thy praise]. Thou hast succoured my worthless soul and graciously shown favour unto Thy slave. To whom shall I turn if Thou cast'st me off, to whom shall I flee, for Thou hast no compeer. [Lord], I am ashamed of the imperfection of my words [in Thy praise], for this sort of learning [i.e. poetry] has not fallen to my lot. I have come before Thee apologising [for my shortcomings] for Thine is the Kingdom for ever. O Thou who upholdest the Universe, lift me up [also], for I am thy thrall, humble as the dust of the earth. Never shall I make aught but Thy doorway my Kibla (i.e. address my prayers to anyone but Thee). Tell me only what I shall choose that it may be good in Thy sight (lit. to Thee), and which may bestead (lit. go with) me in the Life [Beyond], for this yokefellow of mine (i.e. the physical body), I know, will not wend with me there. In the end, the rolling spheres will turn me to dust [like everything else]; why then should I have any dread or fear of Death? Give me but to utter with my tongue the Ashem Vohu-----4 at the moment when my soul is about to take its way to Paradise and whenever my Spirit departs from its body, do Thou show unto me an angel and make one of the Holy Guardian Spirits-----5 befriend my soul, so that it may be glorified (lit. receive light). 4. cf. "A time may be when the merit of one Ashem Vohu is as much as the value (qimat) of this world and that other world," and "that [Ashem Vohu] whose nature is as much as this world and the other world is when they recite it at the time of the dissolution or life, for if he be not able to recite it himself, friends and relations give it into his mouth. If he be fit for hell, he becomes fit for the Ever-Stationary, and if he be fit for the Ever-Stationary {hamistagan, i.e. purgatory}, he becomes fit for Heaven and if he be fit for Heaven he becomes fit for the Supreme Heaven". Saddar, 80.5, 10-11. West, Sacred Books of the East, XXIV. 344. See also M. R. Unvala's Lithographed edition of Darab Hormazdyar's Rivayat, I. 18. 5. Farohar (Av. Fravashi). "Embryonic or immaterial existences, the prototypes, spiritual counterparts or guardian angels of the spiritual or material creatures afterwards produced." West, Note on Bundahishn 1.8: Sacred Books of the East. V. 5.
Gracious Lord, forgive for Thy Mercy's sake, any sins that may have been by me committed unwittingly (lit. secretly). Indeed, what excuses can old Bahman urge before Thy tribunal, for [he knows] he has been very remiss in Thy service. Forgive his offences notwithstanding and exonerate his soul from its secret lapses. Accept, O Lord, these utterances and fervent prayers, for I have beheld Thy wondrous works of every sort. Lord, Thou knowest my [most] secret thoughts, why then dost Thou toss me thus about on fruitless errands? [I know that) in this world our salvation can come from Thee only; wherefore then should I look for my redemption from others? My youth hath departed and old age arrived and my straight cypress (i.e. erect stature) is lifting its head heavenwards. Old Bahman is the humblest of the humble; be Thou his friend and take him by the hand on all occasions. Thou only art my Judge in both worlds, Thou only my help in feebleness and old age. Wash off from my eyes the sleep of ignorance, O Lord, and turn Thou my face towards knowledge (lit. wakefulness). Do not, O beneficent Sovereign, take me away in the state [of sin] in which I am. Nothing save transgression can come out of man; lead Thou me towards Thyself along [the path of] Faith. I have been groaning thus piteously at Thy gate only that Thou mayest not reckon my name among the sinners. Wert Thou but to show Thy slave any favour, his head would be exalted in both worlds. I have set my heart (lit. face) on meditation of Thee and repeatedly turned my thoughts towards Thee. I now beseech Thee, who art the Judge of our needs and our prayers that Thy Mercies (lit. wonders) may be made manifest to me. NARRATIVE OF THE COMING OF THE MEN OF THE GOOD FAITH FROM KHORASAN TO INDIA.
Hearken now to a wondrous tale (lit. a wonder among tales) recounted by Mobeds and ancients. Were I to tell it [at length], no description would be adequate, and no paper sufficient for the writing thereof. Therefore will I select but a portion and say but one word out of a hundred. I have heard it from a wise Dastur who was ever renowned for goodness. May the Dastur whose name is Hoshang and whose wisdom had always great excellence live long.-----6 The Zend and the Avesta likewise he had studied and driven away all Evil Spirits from himself. He was manifestly the Dastur (ayyán, evidently, plainly) of the city and from him the Faith had always become full of lustre. In those times, his authority was exercised over all (i.e. his commands were obeyed by all) and he managed many spiritual affairs. Every one who took counsel with him on the mysteries of the Faith acted according to his advice in matters of religion. In the town in which he was the preceptor, the hearts and souls of his disciples were delighted with him.-----7 He repeated to me this tale in the words of the ancients and discovered to me the hidden secrets of the Righteous. He narrated this story to us one day and strung the pearls of history with skill. May the Dastur who told me this tale have virtue everlastingly for his fellow. I repeat the story as he told it and relate the [hitherto] unknown deeds of the People of the Good Faith.-----8 6. This couplet is left out in some copies, but I have found it in at least three old and good Manuscripts and M. Huart of the Bibliotheque National has borne witness to its occurrence in Anquetil du Perron's copy of the KissehLV, Suppl. Persan. 200). There can be no doubt, therefore, of its genuineness. See Mody, A Few Events in the Early History of the Parsis 4 note. Anquetil, Le Zend Avesta, Tome I, Pte. ii. xxxiv. 7. or "he cordially delighted in teaching his pupils." 8. I have discussed the significance of this passage in a foregoing paper, "Jadi Rana and the Kisseh-i Sanjan."
The saintly Zartosht-----9 showed us the true path in Religion in the days when king Vishtasp lived. He had described in the Avesta all the stages (lit. states) through which his Faith would pass and said: "A Tyrant will appear; three times will the Good Creed be shattered and the People of the Faith ruined and worsted. That conqueror will be named Sitamgar-----10 [the Tyrant] and by him will the Religion of Virtue be reduced to despair. Give heed then unto what I now say of the Faith's doings." Everything happened as he had spoken and the People of the Good Faith groaned and made moan. Sikandar (Alexander the Great), came at last upon them and publicly burnt the scriptures of the Creed,-----11 which was despised for three hundred years-----12 and the Faithful were oppressed. Then after a time-----13, a Defender of the Faith appeared and Ardeshir seized the kingdom. Then once more the Good Religion revived and in the world became of good report. He got Arda Viraf sent to the Presence Divine for [securing] a description of the World of Spirits. But after a time, the Evil Spirit again wrecked this [right] road and once more brought disruption into the Faith, of which evil reports arrived from all sides. When after a while-----14 king Shahpur appeared, he once more made it illustrious and Adarbad Mahraspandan the Devout girded up his loins in its service. Seven kinds of metal (lit. brass) were molten together and poured upon his body [without doing him harm]. Thus did he resolve all the doubts of the Faithful and the Creed once more acquired lustre. From the times of Shahpur to those of Yazdagar it continued to receive honour and worship. Then the days [assigned] to Zartosht by Time (Fate) came to an end and not a vestige of the Good Religion remained, [so that] when the Millennium of Zartosht was over, the [happy days of] the Good Creed also reached their limit.-----15 9. The writer here follows pretty closely the Pahlavi Vohuman Yasht, II 15-22. West, Sacred Books of the East V. 198-201. See the Persian translation of the same in M. R. Unvala's lithographed text of Darab Hormazdyar's Rivayat, II. 86-88. 10. Alexander the Great is supposed by some to be referred to in the Pahlavi Vohuman Yasht (II. 19) as Akandgar-i-Kilisiyakih. Darmesteter suggested that "'Skandger' (Av. Skendo-Kara, Pers. Sikandgar) 'causer of destruction' would be an appropriate punning title for Alexander from the Persian point of view." West, on the other band, thinks that Akandgar is probably a miswriting of Alaksandar or Sikandar. Sacred Books of the East, V. 200 note. Others, again, are of opinion that there is no reference whatever to Alexander in the above passage. However that may be, Bahman Kaikobed's "Sitamgar" (oppressor) can be nothing else than "a punning title" for the great Macedonian. 11. See a brilliant note vindicating this statement of the Parsi books in Haug and Hoshangji, Book of Arda Viraf, 142-3. 12. Alexander the Great defeated Darius at Arbela in 331 B.C. and Ardeshir Papak's accession cannot be placed earlier than 226 A.C. There was therefore an interval of 557 years and not 300 between Alexander and the Sasanian. See Alberun's remarks on this confusion in the Persian Chronology in the Athar-al-Bakya, tr. Sachau. 116-121. West, S.B.E. XLVII. Introduction, xxxii 13. Pas az wai Muddati -- Muddat is here employed to signify a period of three hundred years. 14. Here also the phrase is "Pas az Muddat." Ardeshir died in 241 A.C. Shahpuhr III reigned from 309 A.C. to 379 A.C. See, West, S.B.E. XLVII. xxxv. 15. The Millennium of Zartosht and its termination are distinctly mentioned in the Pahlavi Vohuman Yasht, II. 23. West Sacred Books of the East. V. 201.
When the sovereignty departed from Yazdagar, the Unbelievers-----16 came and seized his throne. From that period-----17 Iran was shattered. Alas for the land of the Faith which was rendered desolate. During those days-----18 all were dispersed, all (lit. everyone) whose hearts were attached to the Zand and Pazand. When all the laymen and Dasturs suddenly went into hiding for the sake of the Faith, they left their homes, dwellings, gardens, palaces, and halls and abandoned them all for their Religion. In Kohistan, they abode for a hundred years. When they were in this plight, a virtuous sage once bethought him seriously [of their state] and said to his companions, "It will be difficult [for us] to remain here [much longer] for fear of the Unbelievers." So the Dasturs and laymen incomparable departed for the city of Hormuz.-----19 When fifteen years were spent in that clime, every one of them had endured much trouble from the Miscreants.-----20 The sage Dastur who was with them there was a mighty astrologer. He looked into his ancient Tables [and said,] "The period during which we were [permitted by Fate] to eat and drink [in this land] has come to an end. It will be well if we leave this country. We must go out of this region forthwith, [otherwise] we shall all fall into a snare and prudence will then be useless and our business spoilt. It will be better therefore for us to fly from these fiends and Miscreants to Hindustan, and run away towards Ind for fear of life and religion's sake." Then a ship was made ready for the sea. Instantly they hoisted sail, placed the women and children in the vessel and rowed hard for Hind. When the ship came in sight of land, the anchor fell at Div. There they went down, took up their abode and their feet stuck fast in the soil of that spot. The People of the Good Faith stayed there for nineteen years, at the end of which the Stargazer once more [sought to] divine the future. The aged Dastur having looked into his Tables, said: "O my enlightened friends, hence also must we hie to another spot in which will be our second home." All of them were delighted by his words and they set sail quickly towards Gujarat. When the vessel had made some way into the sea, a disastrous storm approached. All the Dasturs of the Faith were thrown into consternation and their heads turned as in a whirlpool.-----21 They rubbed their faces before the Presence Divine and stood up and made loud laments, [saying], "O Thou Wise One, come to our aid on this occasion (lit. business) and for once deliver us from this distress. [And] Thou, All conquering Warharan, befriend us and bring us out triumphant from this trouble. [If we possess] Thy favour, we shall not care for the tempest and give no place to fear in our hearts. Hearken then to the complaints of the helpless and show Thou the way to us who are lost [in this waste of waters]. If we escape from this dreadful storm, (lit. whirlpool), if disaster does not confront us and if we reach the realm of Hind with cheerful hearts and merry, we shall kindle a great fire to Warharan. Deliver us then from this strait and keep us sound (stong). We are resigned to everything [that comes] from the Lord, for save Him we possess no other [friend]." By the blessing of the Fire of the Glorious Warharan, all of them luckily got over that trouble; their supplications were instantly heard and the Lord came to the rescue. A prosperous gale began to blow, the light of Heaven [to shine) and the contrary wind ceased. When the Captain with (lit. opened his tongue to utter) the Holy name of God upon his lips steered the ship with vigour, and all the Dasturs and laymen also made Kusti,-----22 the vessel drove instantly into the sea. Then Providence so ordered it that all those people arrived near Sanjan. 16. Juddin. lit. People of another faith. The Arabs are meant. 17. Here again the phrase is az-an-muddat, an exceedingly vague expression which seems to be applied to a period of almost any length. 18. Badàngàhi. See the paper on the Traditional Dates of Parsi history, ante 8-9, for my view of the real signification of the whole passage. 19. This is not the famous island of Hormuz, but the old city on the main land. "It was on the northern shore of the Persian Gulf, about 30 miles east of the site of Bunder Abbas or Gombroon. Sir Louis Pelly has traced the extensive ruins of the old city, which stand in the present district of Minao, about 6 or 7 miles from the fort of that name. 'Hormuz', says the Geographer Abul Fela, 'is the port of Kerman, a city rich in palms and very hot. One who has visited it in our days tells me that the ancient Hormuz was devastated by the incursions of the Tartars and that its people transferred their abode to an island in the sea called Zarun, near the Continent and lying west of the old city. At Hormuz no inhabitants remain, but some of the lowest order (in Busching, IV. 261-2).'" Ibn Batuta also discriminates between Hormuz or Moghistan on the main land and New Hormuz on the island of Jerun. Yule, Marco Polo. ed. Cordier, I. 110-111. The name [Moghistan -- the land of the Moghs -- Fire-worshippers -- is most instructive and significant. 20. Darwand, Av. Dregwant; The Darwand, 'wicked', is the infidel who does not keep the Zoroastrian law. Haug and Hoshangji, Book of Ardaviraf, 178, note. 21. Or "they felt giddy in (or were stunned by) that calamity." 22. The "Kusti is tied round the waist in a peculiar manner during the recital of a particular formula in which Ohrmazd is blessed and Ahriman and the demons are cursed." West's Note on Bundahishn, XXX. 30, S.B.E. V. 129.
In that region was a virtuous Raja who had opened his heart (lit. head) to holiness. His name was Jádi Rana; he was liberal, sagacious, and wise. A Dastur renowned for learning and prudence went to him with gifts and invoked blessings upon him and said: "O Raja of Rajas, give us a place in this city: we are strangers seeking protection who have arrived in thy town and place of residence. We have come here only for the sake of our Religion, for we heard that there was in this place a Raja descended from the beneficent Shillahras,-----23 ever renowned throughout Hindustan, who gave people shelter in his town and kingdom and regarded them with the eye of compassion. We were cheered by these tidings (lit. thoughts) and have approached thee under favourable auspices. We have now reached thy city in the hope of escaping from the Miscreants." The hearts of all the followers (lit. men) of the virtuous Raja were gladdened and their souls charmed by these words. But when that prince beheld them-----24, a terror suddenly fell upon his heart. Fears for his crown entered his mind and [he thought] that they might lay waste his kingdom. Frightened by their dress and accoutrements, he questioned the Dastur about their religious mysteries (lit. inner secrets). "O thou devout Dastur", he at last said, "Tell us, first of all, the gist of the matter (lit. the secret of the business). What are the customs of your Creed, which of them are open and which concealed-----25? Let me first of all see what your beliefs are and we will then arrange for your residence here. Secondly, if we give you shelter, you must abandon the language of your country, disuse (lit. cast aside) the tongue of Iran and adopt the speech of the realm of Hind. Thirdly, as to the dress of your women, they should wear garments like those of our females. Fourthly, you must put off all your arms and simitars and cease to wear them anywhere. Fifthly, when your children are wedded, the marriage knot must be tied at evening time. If you first give a solemn promise to observe all this, you will be given places and abodes in my city." When the Dastur heard all this from the Raja, he could not help agreeing to all his demands.-----26 23. I read Shillahràyán, not Sháhràyàn, for the reasons stated in the paper on Jadi Rana and the Kisseh-i-Sanjan. 24. Shan, 'them', but it may also mean "dignity, stature." 25. i.e. outward professions as well as the really secret doctrines. Persecuted sects were often under the necessity of having two sets of opinions, one for home and the other "for foreign consumption." 26. There is evidently something wrong here. The Raja first says that he would not give them permission to reside in his territory, until he was satisfied of the unobjectionable character of their rites and doctrines. But without waiting to hear a word of explanation, he forthwith proceeds to dictate four conditions, the last of which -- that relating to their marriage ceremonies -- discovers an unexpected familiarity with their usages. If they were such utter strangers to him, how could he know such a minor matter as that their marriages were celebrated in the morning and not in the evening as with the Hindus? Can it be that the lines relating to the conditions have by some accident been misplaced and that they should come after the Dastur's harangue? It is perhaps also worthy of note that Bahman Kaikobad repeatedly avers that the first emigrants brought the women of their own race with them.
Then the old Mobed addressed him thus, "O sagacious king, hearken now to what I say of our Creed. Do not be heavy-hearted on our account, for never shall any evil [deed] proceed from us in this land. We shall be the friends of all Hindustan and everywhere scatter the heads of thy foes. Know then for certain that we are the worshippers of Yazdan (One God) and have fled from the Miscreants only for our religion's sake. We have abandoned all we possessed and borne many hardships on the road. Houses and mansions and goods and chattels we have all forsaken, O auspicious prince. We strangers are of the seed of Jamshed and reverence the Sun and the Moon. Three other things also out of Creation-----27, we hold in honour, viz. the Cow, Fire, and Water. Thus we adore the Fire, Water, Cows, and the Sun and the Moon likewise. It is the Lord who has created all those things that are on earth and we pray to them, because He Himself has preferred (lit. chosen) them.-----28 Our sacred girdle (Kusti) is made of seventy-two threads and we repeat (lit. make) when we tie it on, solemn professions of Faith. Our women when in their manner behold not either the sun or the sky or the moon, because they are the sources of light in excelsis; nor do they touch fire or water. They stand strictly aloof from everything, whether during the radiant day or the darksome night and sit apart, until the catamenia have ceased. They look at the fire and the sun only when they have washed from head [to foot]. So also, the female who gives birth to an infant must live apart for forty days. She ought to keep aloof [all the while] just as if she were in her manner and if this rule is not observed, it is vile. [Similarly], when a child is born of a woman before its time (lit. in a few months only) or when the babe is still-born, the mother (lit. she) does not [among us] go or run about hither and thither, nay does not even hold converse with any one. A female in that state also must keep severely aloof for forty-one days." All their other rites and customs also he described one by one to the Raja. When the mysteries of the Good Faith were thus expounded and the pearls of discourse strung in this most elegant manner, and when the Hindu Raja heard the oration, his mind regained perfect ease. 27. I read Káinàtash. All the Mss have Jáinátash or Jàinànash, which is unintelligible to me. 28. or 'We pray to him who is Self-chosen or Self-Existent.'
That good king forthwith commanded that they should reside in his dominions. Then some persons who were intelligent, good-natured and resourceful surveyed the land, discovered a spacious plain and informed the Mobed. A spot in this wilderness was chosen, of which the soil was excellent and there they made their abode. The people also liked the place and a city appeared where there had formerly been a jungle, desolate and uncultivated, but there they all descended, old as well as young. When the Dastur beheld that fine spot, he chose a site for their dwellings. The Dastur gave it the name of Sanjan and it was soon flourishing even as the realm of Iran. From that day the surname Sanjana came into vogue; know that the town is named after them.-----29 There they remained in joy and comfort and every one prospered in the end according to his wish. 29. Strangely inconsistent not only with the statement in the first hemistich of the same couplet but also with fact.
One day,-----30 they happened to have some business with the Raja, and all of them went with cheerful hearts (lit. thoughts) to him. The Dastur then addressed him thus: "O Prince, you have given us a dwelling spot in this land. We now wish to install in the Indian clime the Fire of Bahram [Warharan]. [But] the land must be cleared for three farsangs,-----31 so that the ceremonies [connected with the consecration] of the Nirang-----32 may be duly performed. No alien should be there present, save and except the Wise Men of the Good Faith. No person belonging to another creed might be there. Then only will the Fire be consecrated. If any strange person make a noise there, the religious rites will doubtless, be all of a sudden interrupted." Quoth the Raja then, "I have given you the permission. I am disposed to be very liberal in this matter. I rejoice (lit. prefer, choose) with all my soul that such a Prince (shâh) should be installed in my time. Indeed O sage, than this [act] what can be better? Go then speedily after his business, and gird up thy loins." That very instant, the Prince issued his commands and gave the Dastur a pleasant site. The Hindu Rana Jadi had the land at once cleared on every side. All the Unbelievers within three Farsangs were removed and no one remained there except the People of the Good Faith. No one dwelt around within three Farsangs of it, and no one stayed there save Zoroastrians (lit. men) of knowledge. Round the Aurvisgâh,-----33 on all sides [stood] Dasturs, every one of whom shone, in virtue of his sanctity, like the sun himself. They watched there day and night, for to do so was the command of the Lord. In those days, they were all men full of knowledge and capable in matters relating to the Faith. For several days and months they recited Yazashnes [Yasnas] and Yashts and worked with great energy. The laymen also were preoccupied in the business and provided, out of [their zeal for] the Faith, all various things necessary. The Prince Jádi Rana also sent offerings of every sort. In those days, all the arts and industries (lit. workshops) were in the hands of the People of the Good Faith. Things were everywhere easy for them for they had brought along with them all the tools (or means) from Khorasan. With all those resources derived from Khorasan, they were able to accomplish their task without any trouble. The reason was that several parties of Dasturs and Laymen of holy lives had also arrived at that spot. In their company were several alchemists also and the favor of the Lord thus made things easy for them. They had brought along with them ample resources and they thus consecrated the Fire according to the dictates of religion. The aged Dasturs thus installed the Iranshah-----34 beaming with light, in conformity wit the rites [prescribed] in our creed. In those times, men were [deeply] versed in spiritual matters and were able to observe religious precepts on account of their wisdom. In our own age, the Lord only knows what True Religion is; [men do not], and [all religious] action is, [after all], only a matter of personal satisfaction.-----35 30. Note that there is nothing here which can support Dr. Mody's assumption as to five years having elapsed between the landing and the consecration of the Fire temple. All that Bahman says is that they went to the Raja one day after they were settled in the town. 31. Farsang. A measure of length which varies considerably according to different authorities. It is sometimes said to be equivalent to a league, sometimes to 12000 cubits -- or 18000 feet. For the different estimates, see Alberuni, India, W. Sachau, II. 67-68; Elliot and Dowson, History of India, I. 24, Ain-i-Akbari, tr. Jarrett. II. 415-6 note. Pietro Della Valle says a Cos is half a Ferseng or league of Persia and that a Cos will answer to a little less than two Italian [English] miles. Vorsages, ed. Grey, I. 23. 32. Nirang, "The ceremony relating to the preparation of the gomez, Cow's urine, which is used as the most efficacious means of purification." Haug and Hoshangji, Book of Arda Viraf 147 note. 33. Arvisgah or Aurvisgah. "The consecrated space within which the Yazashna [Yasna] ceremony is performed." West supposes the word to be derived from the Av. Uvesa, goal. Note on Dadestan-i Denig XLVIII. 13. Sacred Books of the East, XVIII. 163. 34. "The Prince or Lord of Iran" [Persia]. The ancient Fire now lodge at Udwada is still known by this name. 35. The whole passage is most significant and throws, when read side by side with the Persian Rivayats, considerable light on the history of the Indian Atash Warharans.
All the laymen and Dasturs then celebrated in that land an extraordinary festival with entertainments. In this way, three hundred years, more or less, passed away and the people in small numbers or large, left the place. They dispersed in the land of Hind in all directions, and selected places to their minds. Some turned their faces toward Bânkâner, others fell off towards Broach, a few went away in the direction of Bariâv. All hastened towards different spots. Some reached the town of Anklesar or walked away proudly to the city of Cambay. Others dragged all their goods and chattels to Navsari, with pleasure and good luck. Wherever anyone felt [himself] comfortable, there he made his home. In this manner were spent two hundred years in joy, prosperity, and quiet. In those times, several Dasturs' houses were left in Sanjan town. One of God's Judgments then came down upon them, but I do not know what became of all those Dasturs, (or where all of them went). There dwelt one virtuous Dastur, young, well-intentioned and fluent of speech. The name of that Dastur was Khushmast and his aspirations were always towards virtue. A son [he had], who bore the name of Khujastah and whose [sole] delight was the performance of the ceremonies of the Baj-----36 and the Barsom.-----37 His perpetual avocation was the celebration of the Yazashne [Yasna], and the Baj and the Barsom were his constant companions. He was so deeply versed in the Yazashne that he has still left his mark in the Aurvisgâh (i.e. he is still remembered there). That saintly person lived in good repute [on earth]; may he possess joy and bliss in Paradise [also].*-----38 In this manner, seven hundred years went by and many of their descendants had lived in that town. When several years passed over, the heavens became untoward, the world suddenly became strait unto them and Time (Destiny) resolved to take their lives. 36. Baj. "This kind of prayer, Av. Vâk, a word or phrase, Pah. Vâj, Pers. Bâz, is a short formula, the beginning of which is to be muttered in a kind of whisper, or (according to the Pahlavi idiom) 'is to be taken' and 'retained' inwardly (as a protection while eating, praying, or performing other necessary acts) by strictly abstaining from all conversation until the completion of the act, when the prayer or Vâj is to be spoken out, that is, the conclusion of the formula is to be uttered aloud, and the person is then free to speak as he likes." West, Note on Shayast-Na Shayast III. 6, Sacred Books of the East, V. 278. 37. The Barsom, "Av. Baresma, or bundle of sacred twigs is an indispensable part of the ceremonial apparatus; it is held in the hand of the officiating priest while reciting many parts of the liturgy and is frequently washed with water and sprinkled with milk. It consists of a number of slender rods varying with the nature of the ceremony, but usually from five to thirty-three. These rods were formerly twigs cut from some particular trees but now thin metal wires are generally used." West's note on Dadestan-i Denig, XLIII, 15. S. B. E. XVIII. 142. 38. Eastwick says with some reason of the lines placed between asterisks, that they are very obscure and appear entirely unconnected. J. B. B. R. A. S. I. 181. But see the paper on the Traditional Dates of Parsi History, 12-14 ante.
SHAH MAHMUD SENDS AN ARMY AGAINST THE RAJA OF SANJAN, WHO HEARS OF THE SAME.
When some years had passed by in the revolution of the spheres, the Shah came to know of the Raja in Sanjan.* Islam reached Chapaner some time after five hundred years had expired in India. A good and fortunate Shah appeared and sat on the throne in that city. They used to call him Sultan Mahmud and his subjects spoke of him as the Shadow of the Glorious Lord. When he was informed some years afterwards, (i.e. after his accession to the throne) that there was in Hindustan a Raja somewhere near (lit. in the direction of) Sanjan, one of the Vazirs spoke thus to Alf Khan;-----39 "The victorious king commands that you should speedily set out with an army for Sanjan and wrest the country from the Raja." At the command of the Sultan Mahmud, Alf Khan rushed forth like smoke, got all his soldiers instantly ready and let his eagle [standard] fly in the air. Then, he led forth his troops and arrived at the prosperous town of Sanjan. When the Hindu Raja heard of his troops, and learnt that he had brought together from all quarters a host of thirty thousand chosen horsemen,-----40 each of whom had two mounts,-----41 and who were all heroes in battle and [cavaliers] of renown, he was terror-stricken by the tidings. But he regained his senses in an hour and immediately summoned all the Mobeds, Ervads and laymen.-----42 The virtuous Raja then said to them, "What do you now propose to do, O my faithful friends? My ancestors have patronised you and always been good to you. Gird up your loins, all of you, then, in my service (lit. business) and take you the lead in the battle. If you acknowledge the obligations you owe to my forbears, do not forget the duty (lit. bring your head out) of gratitude." Then the ancient Mobed made answer, "Do not, O Raja, be heavy-hearted on account of this host. So long as even one of us is alive, the heads of a hundred thousand (of the foes will we scatter. Verily, such is our wont in battle and so long as we are in life, such is our worth. Not a single individual from among us will turn back even were a millstone to whirl upon his head." The Prince on hearing this speech, bestowed upon him a suit of honour of every sort-----43. In those days, there were several warlike (lit. worthy, fit to fight) males of the Good Faith, old as well as young. When they were all reckoned, fourteen hundred were entered on the rolls. Forthwith they saddled their steeds, the drums were beaten and the horsemen stood up. Then all the men of the Good Faith drew themselves up in line with the Raja's forces in the battle field. 39. The name can be read Alaf Khan as well as Ulugh Khan. 40. Eastwick has two thousand in his translation. Journal B. B. R. A. S. I. 182. Anquetil puts the number at Soixante mille. Le Zend Avesta, Tom. I i. 321. Si-hazar (thirty thousand) is so likely to be mistaken in Persian for Sih-hazar (three thousand) that the latter is, as likely as not, to have been what Bahman himself wrote. Bahmanji Patell also understood the words to mean three thousand. Parsi Prakash, 4. 41. 'Duaspah.' "A trooper is called 'Duaspah' if he has two horses and Sihaspah, if three, in order to change horses during elghars or forced marches." Blochmann, Ain-i-Akbari. (Tr.). I. 241. See also Irvine, Army of the Moguls, 23. 42. Dasturs, Mobeds and Hirbads are the three classes of Zoroastrian priests, the first being the highest. 43. I take this to mean a complete suit, i.e. of seven pieces. "There were," says Irvine, "five degrees of khilat", those of three, five, six, or seven pieces. * *A three piece khila't given from the Khila't-khanah consisted of a turban (dastar), a long coat with very full skirts (Jamah) and a scarf for the waist (kamarband). A five piece robe came from the Toshah khanah (storehouse for presents), the extra pieces being a turban ornament (Sarpech) and a band for laying across the turban (Balaband). For the next grade, a tight fitting jacket with short sleeves called a Half-sleeve (Nimah-astin) was added. A European writer, Tavernier, (Ball, I, 163) thus details the seven-piece Khilat; (1) cap, (2) a long gown (Kabah) (3) a close-fitting coat (arkalon) which I take to be alkhaliq, a light coat, (4) two pairs of trousers, (5) two shirts, (6) two girdles. (7) a scarf for the head or neck." Army of the Moguls. 29. See also Yule and Burnell, Hobson Jobson. ed. Crooke, S. V. Killut.
ALF KHAN FIGHTS WITH THE HINDU RAJA AND FLIES BEFORE ARDESHIR.
When the first white [streak of] light emerged (lit. showed) from the sable night and the sheen of the stars descended into the bottom of the abyss (lit. cave), Alf Khan and his horsemen put on their armour and approached the field. Embroidered (lit. jewelled, inlaid) saddles were placed on the chargers and banners on the backs of the elephants. The horses were harnessed for fight and the battle-field was crowded by the elephants.-----44 The captains marshalled their troops in battle array and the fighting gear was everywhere held ready. When that great host was drawn up in the plain, the brazen bugles were at once blown. Thus was arrayed a host on either side, one [belonging to] the Moslems and the other to the Hindu Raja. Day and night were astounded at the sight, and even the horses were exhausted by over-much galloping. The leaders on the two sides were as two water-dragons struggling with each other with the fury of tigers. The earth grew dark as pitch with the clouds from which rained swords and spears and darts. So many were slain of both ranks in that strife that there were everywhere heaps of slain. There was no one to hearken to their moans nor any one to help them, for such was the Eternal Judge's doom against them. Not a man could be seen from among that host; all appeared to have fallen without discrimination in the action. Suddenly, there was a rout in the Hindu ranks, so that no one could recognise another in the encampment. Then a devout Layman of the Good Faith said to his comrades: "I do not behold, either in front or rear, so much as one of our Indian allies. The Hindus have fled from the field. No one save ourselves of the Good Faith remains on the battleground. Now is the hour of combat, O my dear friends, now does it behove us to march in line of battle like lions. If we all rush upon them in a body, we shall surely pour out the blood of the foe with sword and arrow." The Layman who was the first to enter the field was one who bore among them the name of Ardeshir. That very moment, the renowned Ardeshir spurred his swift courser into the field. Springing all of a sudden, he came up to the [Moslem] ranks clutching an iron spear. Then he stood up in the arena, javelin in hand, clad in armour and girding a sword. And first, the arrows rained everywhere, the corslets of the warriors were pierced and the world-illuminating sun was so hidden from view that no one could tell (lit. know) if it was day or night. The eyes of the luminary were blinded (lit. covered) by the dust, and everywhere man fell upon man; you might say that the earth had a coat of pitch out of which the arrow heads glistened like diamonds. At last, of the throwers of spears and wielders of maces, but few remained [alive] out of thousands, and though land and sky grew black and gloomy, the soil was, by the blood of the chiefs, dyed red like the tulip. [Indeed], the blood gushed out of their bodies as from fountains and their bucklers were, by the blades, shivered into fragments. Men's armours then became the calamities of their lives. Every minute, men were becoming the guests of Death (lit. Time)-----45 and the [dead] warriors buried from head to foot in iron [mail] were blazing like the shining sun. Shafts kept flying on both sides and blood was flowing along the black soil. Javelins penetrated (lit. dug into) breasts and bosoms and blood oozed out from coats of mail. But no one turned his face away from the blow of an adversary and every weapon was crying for blood.-----46 The soil itself looked as if [it were made] of iron on account of the horseshoes [with which it was bestrewn]. Men were wading in blood upto their knees (lit. calves of the legs). The struggle lasted in this wise for three days and nights until men's hands and feet were aweary. The sabres flashed like lightning on all sides and heads were scattered by the trenchant blades. The [might of] Islam was at last overthrown and destroyed in that engagement with the Hindu prince. Alf Khan ran away in the darksome night, forgetting his baggage and losing also the (right) road. Before Ardeshir, his entire army fled, now stumbling now picking themselves up. Many of the enemy fell into his grasp and he stood triumphant at the close. All the tents, baggage and furniture [also] came at once into the possession of Ardeshir. 44. Or 'The field seemed too narrow on account of the fighting of the elephants.' 45. This obscure line may also mean 'Time (Death) became the guest of mankind every moment.' 46. Or, 'All the instruments of bloodshed were in requisition.'
ALF KHAN FIGHTS AGAIN WITH ARDASHIR AND IS VICTORIOUS.When the sun rose from above the hills on another day, and the earth became once more resplendent with light, a great shout arose on either side of the two hosts. Once again the land was in commotion and many were the heads which turned stupid on account of the noise of the bells and the Hindi trumpets. Once more Alf Khan was ready for fight and the drums resounded when the famous Ardeshir beheld that host, he strode up swiftly and said forthwith to the well-advised Hindu Prince, "We are only one to their hundred. What do you think it [lit. see] good for us to do, now that a still larger force has arrived. [As for ourselves] we will either give up our own lives or take theirs, and stand [firm] on the battle field with that determination and the Lord will stand our friend, for He has always been the resolver of our difficulties." All of them were cheered by this speech and many hearts were thus delivered from sorrow. That instant, Ardeshir donned his coat of mail and once more came out to do battle with the Khan. Then Ardeshir the renowned rushed like a lion upon the ranks of the foe, with a lasso hanging by his saddle as on a squire errant's, a sabre of Indian [steel] at his girdle [lit. waist] and a javelin in his grasp. Then he proudly shouted aloud, "O lions! why were you so confounded [the other day] in the [hour of] fighting? Who now is your commander, what may be his name and what does he wish to have?" A champion advanced and said, "Here am I who can pour out the blood of [many] men at a [single] blow." Under him was a spirited (lit. bounding) charger and he came up at a gallop (lit. run) to do battle with Ardeshir, with a javelin in his hand and glaring on all sides like a drunken man. He hailed Ardeshir and said, "Now be on thy guard, O thou of stainless birth, for an adversary is before thee. Show then thy own skill or mastery." Ardeshir called out in reply, "Here is thy antagonist quite ready." Then the two fought like lions in the arena and as if they were weary of their own lives. In the end, Ardeshir vanquished him and hurled him down from the back of his steed. Then flinging the lasso and dragging him towards himself, he dismounted and struck off his head. When Alf Khan saw him slain, his heart was filled with woe. That instant, he gave orders that all the Parsis as well as the Raja should be slaughtered and that not one of them should be left alive. Longing for vengeance, he rushed to support his men-at-arms and the din of battle (lit. the cry of "Give, Give") arose. Swords clashed and blood flowed in rivers on land. When the troops on both sides joined battle, blood gushed from their bodies in torrents. It was as if a wave had rushed in from an ocean of gore. Everywhere men were [lying] exhausted. There was not room enough for even an ant to creep in. But what [avails it] if man proposes, unless God disposes [likewise]. Then Ardeshir dashed into the thick [of the fight] and his days came to an end. An arrow pierced his middle and came out on the other side. His body was enfeebled by wounds, for every one of his limbs was a fountain of blood. Then he tumbled down headlong from the saddle and his troops were thrown into disorder and confusion (lit. without feather or wing). Alas for that courageous chief, whom Time at last gave to the winds. When the Fates are angry, the hard stone becomes [soft] like wax. Though he fought and strove [with all his might], of what avail was it since Fortune had turned its face away from the man? On both sides, many warriors were slain, leaders and men of renown and worth. Then also was the Raja killed and a loud wail arose on the battlefield. Alas for that Hindu prince who fell and whose city became on all sides a desert.FLIGHT OF THE MEN OF THE GOOD FAITH TO THE HILL OF BAHROT AND THEIR GOING TO BANSDAH.
The People of the Good Faith also were dispersed. There is in Hindustan a hill named Bahrot. Many crept into it to save their lives. Man has no resource against God's decrees. Twelve years thus passed and they had carried the Iranshah along with them. After a time, by the Lord's command, they forgathered again with their relatives and kindred. Taking the Fire of Warharan also with themselves, all of them arrived at Bânsdâh. When the tidings reached that town, every one came out with loving kindness and three hundred horsemen with several persons of note went forward to escort them. They brought the Fire into the town with a hundred [marks] of reverence. It was as if a sick man had secured a panacea.-----47 Thence forward, Bânsdâh flourished as if it was perpetual spring there. Time passed in this wise and persons of Behdin lineage, old men as well as women, came to adore the Iranshah from every district in which there were [People of] that pure Creed. Just as, in earlier times, men used to go on a pilgrimage extraordinary (lit. unparalleled) to the far-famed Sanjan, so the Parsis now came to Bânsdâh from various places with numerous offerings. Afterward, when fourteen years had elapsed,-----48 the spheres [again] revolved [in a manner] favourable to their affairs. 47. Pazahr Padzahr., protecting from poison, an antidote, in which sense it is used habitually by Avicenna. Bezoars are hard concretions formed in the bodies of animals, to which antidotal virtue, were ascribed, and especially to one obtained from the stomach of a wild goat in the Persian province of Lar. Ibn Baithar says that Bezoars were laid upon the bites of venomous creatures and were believed to extract the poison. Yule and Burnell, Hobson Jobson, ed. Crooke, S. V. Bezoar. 48. These lines have been by some taken to mean that twelve years were spent at Bahrot and fourteen others in Bansdah, making in all twenty-six. Others have understood Bahman to say that the fourteen years last spoken of include the preceding twelve, and that fourteen years express the extreme length of the period which intervened between the Sack of Sanjan and the establishment of the Fire temple at Navsari. See ante, p. 8.
DESCRIPTION OF THE CONVEYANCE OF THE FIRE OF WARHARAN TO NAVSARI BY CHANGASHAH.
A layman then appeared who had not his peer at the time. He came forward in those days to preserve the religion and many notab1e things (lit. signs, marks) proceeded from him. He was the Dahyovad;-----49 his name was Changa, son of Asa and he solaced the hearts of the People of the Good Creed. That good-natured man would not suffer the Faith to fall into neglect in those latter days. He gave money (lit. purse) out of his own wealth to those who had no Sudra and Kusti (the sacred shirt and girdle). Many [excellent] provisions that man made for the creed. No afflicted person [ever] went to him for whom, poor man, he did not provide some relief or whose heart he did not cordially set at ease. In those times, several Behdin people came into the Faith under his auspices (lit. by his good fortune.) Indeed, my tongue cannot fully (lit. plainly) praise this layman who managed the affairs of the creed so well. One Year, that man of stainless birth went to the Fire-temple in pursuance of a vow. It was the time of the Jashan-i Sadeh, and the Fire-temple was then at Bansdah. O brother, the Jashan-i Sadeh fell on Roz Adar, Mah Adar.-----50 That devout and enlightened Dawar-----51 carried along with him several laymen and Dasturs. All of them prostrated themselves at the sight of the Fire and offered it worship. Every one then took once more the road [homewards] from the House of Prayer with pleasure and pride. Starting thence, the men returned to their homes; full of gladness and joy. When two or three months of that year-----52 had elapsed, an idea occurred to (lit. he brought the idea into his heart) that benevolent person and he called a meeting of the whole community (anjoman) and led the discourse on to the Fire-Temple. "I desire, O my well-wishers," he said, "to bring that Prince of Princes here. If we behold the face of that Lord every day, our religious merit will be exceeding great. Moreover, we have to endure great hardships every year on the journey, for there is heavy rain during that month,-----53 [Adar], and it is difficult for us to go there then. What can be better, O friends, than that we should proceed to Bansdah with some men of discernment, and bring here the Fire of the glorious Warharan, so that we can view it every day. Our means of livelihood [are sure] by its blessing to grow much more abundant and the hearts also of the People of the Good Faith will be filled with light." All were delighted by this speech because they would be longer dependent (lit. free from, i.e. rid of the trouble of going to) Bansdah. With a hundred marks of reverence they brought the Fire away and gave it a fine house. It had three attendants of the Good Faith, who accompanied it. Night and day, the worship was celebrated by that one associate [of the three] whose appointed [duty] it was. Of one of them the name was Nàgan Râm,-----54 and his desires were always turned towards the observance of [the precepts] of the Religion. The second Dastur's name was Khurshed and his father was Kiâm-ud-din who was in Eternity. The third Dastur, Chàyyàn the son of Sâer, also was always to be seen in its service. They had their families and kindred also with them and all of them accompanied the Iranshah. They were received with great respect and pomp and were treated honourably, The three Dasturs thus reached Navsari with their relatives after a long journey. In those days, that pious Dawar befriended these priests of the Iranshah. May this slave's homage reach him from this world. May he have a place among the Celestial Spirits. 49. Pahl. Dahyopat, Av. Danghu-paiti, chief ruler. Changa Asa's son Manak also is styled Dahyovad (Desai) in the Rivayat of Shapur Asa or Kama Asa of 896 A.Y., (1527 A.C.) 50. Bahman seems to have thought that the Jashn-i Sadah of the ancient Iranians was identical with what is now called Adar Jashn, but Alberuni declares that the former fell, not on the ninth day of Adar, but on the tenth of Vohuman. Athar-ul-Bakyah, Chronology of Ancient Nations, tr. Sachau. 213 and 424. The Burhan-i-Kataa says the same. S. V. Sadah. 51. The Dawar. "Pahl. Datobar, upholder of Justice or Judge was, like the Dastur, a ratu, head or chief in the old Zoroastrian community. He appears to have held a high rank which was probably hereditary, as it is still claimed by a Parsi family at Surat, though not acknowledged by the majority." Haug and Hoshangji, Book of Arda Viraf. 143 note. Sea also Parsi Prakash, 15, 70. 52. Bahman declares here that the Iranshah was brought to Navsari two or three months after the Adar Jashn, that is, the event must have taken place, making allowance for the days passed in negotiations and the journey from Bansdah, in the month of Frawardin. This will be a hard nut to crack for those who pin their faith in Bahman's chronology and at the same time uphold the reliability of the traditional date, Roz Mahrespand, Mah Shahrewar, Samvat 1475. The truth is that the two are absolutely irreconcilable. 53. It has been urged against Bahman that Adar mah must, in Changa Asa's time have fallen in September, and that September is not at all a rainy month in Gujarat, but both these assertions can be easily proved to be of very doubtful accuracy. 54. Bahman himself was a lineal descendant of this Nagan Ram, the pedigree being Bahman, Kaikobad, Hamjiar, Padam, Kaman, Narsang, Nagan, Ram. See ante. p. 87.
CONCLUSION OF THE NARRATIVE.Thanksgivings infinite and praises boundless, to the Creator of the World and the Cherisher of his slaves, who set my tongue going on this subject and graciously revealed unto me this door out of the Unknown. Lord, make the Dastur who revealed this tale to me happy in both worlds. I am the humble person hight Bahman who has his home and household goods in Navsari. Know further that my father is Kaikobad whose heart is delighted [only] when calling the Iranshah to mind. His sire was the Dastur Hormazdyar. May his place be in the resplendent Abode of the Blest, Know, O friend, that his surname was Sanjana, for by all kinds of wisdom was he fitted (Sanjideh, lit. weighed,) for affairs. This surname of Sanjana was given him on account of the wisdom which he showed [to exist] in our religious practices. They gave him the title of 'Dastur of the Faith' also, and the road of piety was everywhere kept open through him, (i.e. he solved all religious difficulties). He had been settled in Navsari, you may reckon, (i.e. approximately), for two hundred years. A hundred thousand blessings upon him and also upon the souls of all the other Pillars of the Faith.
Thus have I, by the will of the Lord, successfully indited the story of our People, [in the hope] that when a devout person reads it, he may pronounce a blessing on me at the end. Many many thousand blessings from me on that virtuous character and man of those times. May He of the Immortal Soul [Zartosht] send his Spirit to God and secure his pardon from the Supreme. May his Spirit always receive praise and his soul be perpetually at peace (lit. freedom from want). It was in the nine hundred and sixty-ninth year of the Era of Yazdegird that this tale was completed by my pen. On the day Hordad of the month Frawardin, were these verses finished correctly (lit. according to rule). I have written this narrative and brought it to a conclusion, and I expect for it a reward from no one save the Lord, and I desire from my readers nothing but benedictions, for thus will my honour and fame grow. May that soul abide with Him of the Immortal Soul (Zartosht), who reads me with a pleased heart. I have related in this narrative what I have seen and what I have heard from the conversation of the old. My preceptor-----55 has, moreover, corrected it and thus have many flowers sprung up in this pleasance. May the Lord bestow upon him the full period of natural life (i.e. may he live for a hundred years,) and may all the years of that life be like the spring time. In telling this tale, I have ever observed the ways of the truthful. Pronounce then befitting blessings upon me, whenever you peruse (lit. see) this delectable narrative of mine. Laudations infinite and praises countless on the pious Zartosht. May you [reader] have given you the Grace Divine to invoke blessings upon my soul. 55. There is nothing improbable in the supposition that Dastur Hoshang [Asa] from whom Bahman declares he heard the whole story was this teacher as well as the corrector of these verses.


Author: Hodivala, Shahpurshah Hormasji.
Title: Studies in Parsi history. -- Bombay [Shahpurshah Hormasji Hodivala] 1920.
(APW3764UW)
Location: University of Wisconsin, Madison, Memorial Library Stacks
Call Number: DS432 P3 H6
Format: [4], 2, 349 p. fold. facsims.



Avesta -- Zoroastrian Archives Contents Prev qsanjan.htm Next Glossary

-700: Early Smartism emerges from the syncretic Vedic brahminical (priestly caste) tradition. It flourishes today as a liberal sect alongside Saiva, Vaishnava and Shakta sects.


Reference: http://thebanmappingproject.com/resources/timeline_8.html
Late Period (747 B.C.–332 B.C.)
Piankhi, the ruler of a Nubian kingdom centered at Napata in the area of the Fourth Cataract, took advantage of the disunity in Egypt at the beginning of Dynasty 25 to conquer Egypt. He met little resistance. After his victory, Piankhi returned to his capital, leaving his sister, Amenirdis, as the God's Wife of Amen at Thebes, a position that allowed her to maintain control of Egypt in the absence of her brother.
In this way, Nubian pharaohs maintained control over virtually all of Egypt during the dynasty. They carried out many building projects throughout Egypt and Nubia [17446]. They adopted Egyptian customs, beliefs, religion, and kingship in their own culture, and this influence continued long after the end of Dynasty 25. They made Amen the state god of Nubia, were buried under pyramids in Nubia [17425], and adapted the hieroglyphic script for writing their own language.
The Nubians and Assyrians fought several campaigns for control of Egypt. Eventually the Assyrians were successful in ousting the Nubians from power, but soon an Egyptian, Psamtik I, took control of Egypt, beginning Dynasty 26. He arranged for his daughter, Nitocris, to be adopted by the Kushite God's Wife of Amen at Thebes, thus assuring that she would be the next God's Wife of Amen. This position gave Nitocris extraordinary power over the region and significant land endowments throughout Egypt. Psamtik I also allied himself with Mentuemhat [17447], the powerful mayor of Thebes who owned the largest and most complex private tomb in Thebes (TT 34), effectively gaining control over the whole of Egypt.
During this period there was a large influx of foreigners into Egypt. Phoenicians came as traders; Greeks and Carians came as mercenaries. Immigrants from the Near East, Libya, the Aegean, Nubia, and elsewhere settled in Egypt. A new, simplified script, called demotic, was introduced mainly for written documents. On the other hand, monumental architecture, language, and art styles harkened back to the Old Kingdom. These archaizing tendencies also led to the copying of numerous works from the Old Kingdom, most of which are the only surviving copies today.
In 525 B.C., the Persian army under Cambyses conquered Egypt and its kings ruled the country as Dynasty 27 through local representatives based at Memphis. They established juridical guides for Egypt published in both in the demotic Egyptian script and Aramaic, the lingua franca of the age. Like many of their foreign predecessors, the Persian kings built temples in Egypt, and achieved a new technological level by digging a canal linking the Nile to the Red Sea.
During Dynasties 28 to 30, Delta princes gained independence from Persian rule. These dynasties were weak and the Persians eventually reconquered Egypt in 341 B.C., but were able to maintain control for less than a decade.

-623-543: Life of Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha, born in Uttar Pradesh in a princely Shakya Saivite family. (Date by Sri Lankan Buddhists. Indian scholars say -563-483. Mahayanists of China and Japan prefer -566-486 or later.)
http://www.theindiatravel.com/cityguide/state/up/kapil.html 020602yd
Identified today with ancient Kapilvastu, modem Piprahwa lies at a distance of 20 km from Siddharthnagar. Kapilvastu was the ancient capital of the Sakya clan whose ruler was the father of the Buddha, for which reason the Buddha is also referred to as the Sakyamuni. The Sakya domain was one of the sixteen independent principalities of the 6th century BC.

Prince Gautam, as the Buddha was then known, left his palace in Kapilvastu at the age of 29, and revisited it 12 years later, long after he had attained enlightenment.

Today, Kapilvastu Comprises of Several villages, chief among them being Piprahwa and Ganvaria. A large stupa stands at the ancient site which is said to have housed the bone relics of the Buddha. The presence of these relics are testified by an ancient Brahmi inscription discovered at Piprahwa. The ruins of the palace are spread over a large area.
Stupa ComplexThis is the main archaeological site which was discovered during excavations in 1973-74. The seals and inscriptions over the lid of the pot discovered read "Om Deoputra Vihare Kapilvastu Bhikschu Mahasanghasa" and "Om Deoputra Vihare Kapilvastu Bhikschu Sanghasa". The title Deoputra refers to Kanishka, a great patron of Buddhism who built the biggest Vihara at Kapilvastu and renovated the main stupa here.Palace SiteExcavations carried out by Dr. K.M. Srivastava indicated the ruins of the palace of King Shuddhodhan, the father of Prince Gautam (Lord Buddha). It is said to be the place where Lord Buddha spent the first 29 years of his life.
Lumbini86 km., situated across the border in Nepal, Lumbini is the birthplace of Lord Buddha.

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Buddhist Western Calendar Major Events Significant World Events
- 120* 6th Century B.C.E. * Life of Siddhartha Guatama, the historical Buddha: conventional dates: 566-486 B.C.E. (According to more recent research: 490-410 B.C.E.). Zarathustra, 630-553 B.C.E.Birth of Mahavira, 550 B.C.E.Pythagoras, 582-507 B.C.E.
- 20 5th Century B.C.E. • First Buddhist Council at Rajagaha (486 B.C.E.) after the Parinirvana. Socrates, 469-399 B.C.E.Plato, 427-347 B.C.E.
144 4th Century B.C.E. • Second Buddhist Council at Vesali (386 B.C.E.) about 100 year after the Parinirvana.First schism of the Sangha occurs in which the Mahasanghika school parts ways with the traditional Sthaviravadins or the Theravada.Non-canonical Buddhist Council at Pataliputra (367 B.C.E.). Beginning of Buddhist sectarianism. Aristotle, 384-322 B.C.E. Alexander the Great, 356-323 B.C.E.
244 3rd Century B.C.E. Reign of Indian Emperor Asoka (272-231 B.C.E.) who converts and establishes the Buddha's Dharma on a national level for the first time.• Third Buddhist Council at Pataliputra (modern Patna) (250 BCE). under the patronage of Emperor Asoka about 200 years after the Parinirvana. The modern Pali Tipitaka now essentially complete.Asoka's son and missionary Mahinda converts Sri Lanka (247 B.C.E.) Euclid, 300 B.C.E.
344 2nd Century B.C.E. The beginnings of Mahayana Buddhism (20O B.C.E.).Composition of Prajnaparamita literature.Historical record has it that two Buddhist missionaries from India in 68 AD, arrived at the court of Emperor Ming (58-75) of the Han Dynasty They enjoyed imperial favour and stayed on to translate various Buddhist Texts, one of which, The 'Sutra of Forty-two Sections' continues to be popular even today. Han Dynasty in China, 206 BCE - 220 C.E.
444 1st Century B.C.E. The entire scriptural canon of the Theravada School was committed to writing on palm leaves in Pali at the Aloka Cave, near Matale, Sri Lanka (35-32 B.C.E.) Julius Caesar, 100-44 B.C.E.
544 1st Century C.E.* Reign of King Kaniska in India.• Fourth Buddhist Council at Jalandhar or in Kashmir around 100 AD. (This is not recognized by the Theravadins).Composition of Lotus Sutra and other Buddhist texts.Buddhism enters Central Asia and China. Jesus of Nazareth, 0-33 C.E.
644 2nd Century C.E. Age of Indian Buddhist philosopher Nargarjuna, (150 AD) founder of the school of Madhyamika ('the Middle Way'). Roman Empire reaches the height of its power.
744 3rd Century C.E Expansion of Buddhism to Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, and Indonesia. The Emperor Constantine converts to Christianity, 312 C.E.
844 4th Century C.E. Asanga (310-390) founds the Yogacara school of Buddhism.Development of Vajrayana Buddhism in India.Translation of Buddhist texts into Chinese by Kumarajiva (344-413), Hui-yüan (334-416). Buddhism enters Korea in 372. Gupta Empire (India), 320-490 C.E. Augustine, 354-430 C.E.
944 5th Century C.E. Buddhist monastic university founded at Nalanda, India.Buddhaghosa composes the Visuddhimagga (The Path of Purification) in Sri Lanka.Chinese pilgrim Fa-hsien visits India (399-414).Amitabha (Amida) Pure Land sect emerges in China.Sri lankan Theravadin nuns introduce full ordination lineage into China (433 CE). Earliest hospital in Sri Lanka, 437 C.E.Fall of the Western Roman Empire, 476 C.E.
1044 6th Century C.E. Bodhidharma arrives in China from India (520).Sui Dynasty in Chinese History (589-617) beginning of Golden Age of Chinese Buddhism.Development of T'ien-tai, Hua-yen, Pure Land, and Ch'an Schools of Chinese Buddhism.Buddhism enters Japan (538) becomes state religion (594).Buddhism flourishing in Indonesia. Mohammed, 570-632 C.E.The Age of Islamic Expansion, 630-725 C.E.
1144 7th Century C.E. Buddhism established in Tibet (650).Chinese pilgrim Hsuan-tsang (602-664) visits India. Tang Dynasty in Chinese history, 618-906 C.E.
1244 8th Century C.E. Academic schools (Jöjitsu, Kusha, Sanron, Hossö, Ritsu, and Kegon) proliferate in Japan.First Tibetan monastery at Sam-yas.Great debate between Tibetan and Chinese Buddhist schools.Ch'an declared heretical in Tibet.Nyingma School of Tibet Buddhism established. Nara Period in Japanese history, 710-784 C.E.
1344 9th Century C.E. Khmer kings build Angkor Wat, the world's largest religious monument.Tendai School (founded by Saichö 767-822) and Shingon School (founded by Kukai: 774-835) appear in Japan.Great Buddhist persecution in China (845) Heian Period in Japanese history,794-1185 First printed book, 868 C.E.Diamond Sutra, China
1444 10th Century C.E. First complete printing of Chinese Buddhist Canon (983), known as the Szechuan edition. Sung Dynasty in Chinese History, 960-1279
1544 11th Century C.E. Conversion of King Anawrahta of Pagan (1044-77) by Shin Arahan.Atisha (982-1054) arrives in Tibet from India (1042). Marpa (1012-1097) begins Kargyu School of Tibetan Buddhism.Milarepa (1040-1123) becomes greatest poet and most popular saint in Tibetan Buddhism.The bhikkhu and bhikkhuni (monk and nun) communities at Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka, die out following invasions from South India.Sakya School of Tibetan Buddhism established.Revival of Theravada Buddhism in Sri Lanka and Burma.Decline of Buddhism in India. Great Schism between Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches, 1054 C.E.1st Crusades, 1096-1099 C.E.
1644 12th Century CE. Theravada Buddhism established in Burma.Hönen (1133-1212) founded the Pure Land School of Japanese Buddhism.Eisai (1141-1215) founds the Rinzai Zen School of Japanese Buddhism. In 1193 the Moslems attacked and conquered Magadha, the heartland of Buddhism in India, and with the destruction of the Buddhist Monasteries in that area Buddhism was wiped out. Buddhism in Korea flourishes under the Koryo dynasty (1140-1390). Kamakura Period in Japanese history, 1192-1338 C.E.
1744 13th Century C.E. Nalanda Buddhist University destroyed in India (1200).Shinran (1173-1263 ) founds True Pure Land School of Japanese Buddhism.Dogen (1200-1253) founds Soto Zen School of Japanese Buddhism.Nichiren (1222-1282) founds school of Japanese Buddhism named after him.Mongols converted to Vajrayana Buddhism. Theravada Buddhism spreads to Laos. Magna Carta, 1215 C.E. Genghis Khan invades China, 1215 C.E.Thomas Aquinas, 1225-1274 C.E.Clement of Alexandria, ?-1227 C.E.Mongol conquest of China complete, 1279
1844 14th Century C.E. Bu-ston collects and edits Tibetan Buddhist Canon.Rulers of the north (Ching Mai) and northeast (Sukhothai) Thailand adopt Theravada Buddhism (becomes state religion in 1360). Theravada Buddhism adopted in Cambodia and Laos.Tsong-kha-pa (1357-1419) Tibetan Buddhist reformer and founder of Dge-lugs-pa (or Gelug-pa, or 'Yellow Hat') order. China regains its independence from the Mongols under the Ming dynasty. 1368
1944 15th Century C.E. Beginning of Dalai Lama lineage in Tibetan Buddhism.In Cambodia, the Vishnuite temple, Angkor Wat, founded in the 12th century, becomes a Buddhist centre. Development of printing in EuropeLeonardo DaVinci, 1452-1519 Columbus "finds" the new world,1492
2044 16th Century C.E. 1578: Tibet's Gelug-pa leader receives the title of Dalai from Altan Khan. "Great Fifth" Dalai Lama meets Qing Emperor Shunzhi near Beijing. Martin Luther, 1483-1546Protestant ReformationShakespeare, 1564-1616 Galileo, 1564-1642
2144 17th Century C.E. Control of Japanese Buddhism by Tokugawa Shögunate (the ruling feudal government) (I603-1867)Hakuin (1686-1769) Priest, writer and artist who helped revive the Rinzai Zen Sect in Japanese Buddhism. Establishment of Tokugawa Shogunate (Japan) 1603-1867Japan closes the door to foreigners, 1639 Pilgrims reach America, 1620 Galileo recants, 1633
2244 18th Century C.E. Colonial occupation of Sri Lanka, Burma, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam.King Kirti Sri Rajasinha obtains bhikkhus from the Thai court to reinstate the bhikkhu ordination line which has died out in Sri Lanka. American independence, 1776 French revolution, 1789-1802 Burmese destroy Ayudhaya(Thai capital), 1768
2344 19th Century C.E. New sects begin to emerge in Japanese Buddhism.Sri Lankan forest monks go to Burma for reordination (1862).First Western translation of the Dhammapada. (German-1862).• 5th Buddhist Council in Mandalay, Burma (1868-1871) where the text of the Pali Canon was revised and inscribed on 729 marble slabs. Meiji Restoration in Japanese history 1868, marking end of military ruleAmerican Civil War, 1861-1865
2444-2544 20th Century C.E. Buddhist Society of Great Britan Founded (1907).Taishö Shinshü Daizokyö edition of Chinese Buddhist Canon printed in Tokyo (1924-1929).Communist persecution and then control of Tibetan Buddhism (1950-).Founding of World Fellowship of Buddhists (1952).Buddha Jayanti Year, commemorating 2,500 years of Buddhism (1956). • 6th Buddhist Council held at Rangoon, Myanmar (Burma) (1954-1956 CE).Dalai Lama flees Tibet to India (1959)Buddhism spreads to western countries.H.H. Dalai Lama receives Nobel Peace Prize. WW I, 1914-1918 Russian revolution, 1917-1922WW II, 1939-1945Cultural Revolution (China) 1966The Pope, John Paul II, pardons Galileo, 1995. The Fall of the Berlin Wall; The Cold War ends, 1989.
* The Buddhist calendar starts (year 1) from the Buddha's Parinirvana (death and final release) which occured in his eightieth year.* B.C.E. = Before Common Era (Equivalent to B.C.) * C.E. = Common Era (Equivalent to A.D.)

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Year Major Events in Theravada Buddhism
383 B.C.E. The Second Council convenes in Vesali to discuss controversial points of Vinaya. The first schism of the Sangha occurs, in which the Mahasanghika school parts ways with the traditionalist Sthaviravadins. At issue is the Mahasanghika's reluctance to accept the Suttas and the Vinaya as the final authority on the Buddha's teachings. This schism marks the first beginnings of what would later evolve into Mahayana Buddhism.
250 B.C.E. Third Council is convened by King Asoka at Pataliputra (India). Disputes on points of doctrine lead to further schisms, spawning the Sarvastivadin and Vibhajjavadin sects. The Abhidhamma Pitaka is recited at the Council, along with additional sections of the Khuddaka Nikaya. The modern Pali Tipitaka is now essentially completed.
247 B.C.E. King Asoka sends his son, Ven. Mahinda, on a mission to bring Buddhism to Sri Lanka. King Devanampiya Tissa of Sri Lanka is converted.
240 B.C.E. Ven. Mahinda establishes the Mahavihara (Great Monastery) of Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. The Vibhajjavadin community living there becomes known as the Theravadins. Mahinda's sister, Ven. Sanghamitta, arrives in Sri Lanka with a cutting from the original Bodhi tree, and establishes the bhikkhuni-sangha (nuns) in Sri Lanka.
100 C.E. Famine and schisms in Sri Lanka point out the need for a written record of the Tipitaka to preserve the Buddhist religion. King Vattagamani convenes a Fourth Council, in which 500 reciters and scribes from the Mahavihara write down the Pali Tipitaka for the first time, on palm leaves. Theravada Buddhism first appears in Burma and Central Thailand.
200 C.E. Buddhist monastic university at Nalanda, India flourishes; remains a world centre of Buddhist study for over 1,000 years.
425 C.E. Ven. Buddhaghosa collates the various Sinhalese commentaries on the Canon - drawing primarily on the Maha Atthakatha (Great Commentary) preserved at the Mahavihara - and translates his work into Pali. This makes Sinhalese Buddhist scholarship available to the entire Theravadin world. As a cornerstone to his work, Buddhaghosa composes the Visuddhimagga (The Path of Purity) which eventually becomes the classic Sri Lankan textbook on the Buddha's teachings.
Dhammapala composes commentaries on parts of the Canon missed by Buddhaghosa (such as the Udana, Itivuttaka, Theragatha, and Therigatha), along with extensive sub-commentaries on Buddhaghosa's work.
1050 The bhikkhu and bhikkhuni communities at Anuradhapura die out following invasions from South India.
1070 Bhikkhus from Pagan arrive in Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka to reinstate the Theravada ordination line in Sri Lanka.
1164 Polonnaruwa destroyed by foreign invasion. With the guidance of two monks from a forest branch of the Mahavihara sect - Vens. Mahakassapa and Sariputta - King Parakramabahu reunites all bhikkhus in Sri Lanka into the Mahavihara sect.
1236 Bhikkhus from Kañcipuram, India, arrive in Sri Lanka to revive the Theravada ordination line.
1279 Last inscriptional evidence of a Theravada Bhikkhuni nunnery (in Burma).
1287 Pagan (Burma) looted by Mongol invaders; its decline begins.
13th cen. A forest-based Sri Lankan ordination line arrives in Burma and Thailand. Theravada spreads to Laos. Thai Theravada monasteries first appear in Cambodia shortly before the Thais win their independence from the Khmers.
1753 King Kirti Sri Rajasinha obtains bhikkhus from the Thai court to reinstate the bhikkhu ordination line, which had died out in Sri Lanka. This is the origin of the Siam Nikaya.
1777 King Rama I, founder of the current dynasty in Thailand, obtains copies of the Tipitaka from Sri Lanka and sponsors a Council to standardize the Thai version of the Tipitaka, copies of which are then donated to temples throughout the country.
1803 Sri Lankans ordained in the Burmese city of Amarapura found the Amarapura Nikaya in Sri Lanka to supplement the Siam Nikaya, which admitted only brahmins from the Up Country highlands around Kandy.
1828 Thailand's Prince Mongkut (later King Rama IV) founds the Dhammayut Sect.
1862 Forest monks headed by Ven. Paññananda go to Burma for reordination, returning to Sri Lanka the following year to found the Ramañña Nikaya. First translation of the Dhammapada into a Western language (German).
1868 Fifth Council is held at Mandalay, Burma; Pali Canon is inscribed on 729 marble slabs.
1873 Ven. Mohottivatte Gunananda defeats Christian missionaries in a public debate, sparking a nationwide revival of Sri Lankan pride in its Buddhist traditions.
1879 Sir Edwin Arnold publishes his epic narrative poem Light of Asia, stimulating popular Western interest in Buddhism.
1880 Helena Blavatsky and Henry Steel Olcott, founders of the Theosophical Society, arrive in Sri Lanka from the USA, embrace Buddhism, and begin a campaign to restore Buddhism on the island by encouraging the establishment of Buddhist schools.
1881 Pali Text Society is founded in England by T.W. Rhys Davids; most of the Tipitaka is published in roman script and, over the next 100 years, in English translation.
1891 Maha Bodhi Society founded in India by the Sri Lankan lay follower Anagarika Dharmapala, in an effort to reintroduce Buddhism to India.
1899 First Western Theravada monk (Gordon Douglas) ordains, in Burma.
1900 Ven. Ajaan Mun and Ven. Ajaan Sao revive the forest meditation tradition in Thailand.
1902 King Rama V of Thailand institutes a Sangha Act that formally marks the beginnings of the Mahanikaya and Dhammayut sects. Sangha government, which up to that time had been in the hands of a lay official appointed by the king, is handed over to the bhikkhus themselves.
1949 Mahasi Sayadaw becomes head teacher at a government-sponsored meditation center in Rangoon, Burma.
1954 Burmese government sponsors a Sixth Council in Rangoon.
1956 Buddha Jayanti Year, commemorating 2,500 years of Buddhism.
1958 Ven. Nyanaponika Thera establishes the Buddhist Publication Society in Sri Lanka to publish English-language books on Theravada Buddhism. Sarvodaya Shramadana Movement is founded in Sri Lanka to bring Buddhist ideals to bear in solving pressing social problems. Two Germans ordain at the Royal Thai Embassy in London, becoming the first to take full Theravada ordination in the West.
1970's Refugees from war in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos settle in North America, Australia and Europe, establishing many Buddhist communities in the West. Ven. Taungpulu Sayadaw and Dr. Rina Sircar, from Burma, establish the Taungpulu Kaba-Aye Monastery in Northern California, USA. Ven. Ajaan Chah establishes Wat Pah Nanachat, a forest monastery in Thailand for training Western monks. Insight Meditation Society, a lay meditation center, is founded in Massachusetts, USA. Ven. Ajaan Chah travels to England to establish a small community of monks at the Hamsptead Vihara, which later moves to Sussex, England, now known as Chithurst Forest Monastery.
1980's Lay meditation centers grow in popularity in North America, Australia and Europe. First Theravada forest monastery in the USA (Bhavana Society) is established in West Virginia. Amaravati Buddhist Monastery established in England by Ven. Ajaan Sumedho.
1990's Continued western expansion of the Theravada Sangha: monasteries from the Thai forest traditions established in California, USA (Metta Forest Monastery, founded by Ven. Ajaan Suwat; Abhayagiri Monastery, founded by Ven. Ajaans Amaro and Pasanno). Buddhism meets cyberspace: Buddhist computer networks emerge; several editions of the Pali Tipitaka become available online.

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Year Major Events in Tibetan Buddhism
c200 C.E. Buddhism begins to percolate into Tibetan region and teachings affect Bon religion in kingdom of Shang-Shung (South Tibet).
3rd cen. Buddhist scriptures begin to reach early Tibetan Kingdoms (North Tibet) during reign of King Lhatotori Nyentsen
641 King Songtsen Gampo unifies Tibet and marries Chinese princess Wen Cheng and Nepalese Princess Bhrkuti who bring Buddha images
641-650 Construction of Potala Palace, and Jokang and Ramoche temples to house Buddha images
773? King Trisong Detsen (r.755-797) invites Shantarakshita to Tibet.
774 King Trisong Detsen invites Padmasambhava, yogin of Swat, to Tibet, and construction of Samye begins (775).
c785 Samye, Tibet's 1st monastery, built by Trisong Detsen and Padmasambhava. Great Convocation, 3000 monks ordained. Translating begins.
792 Exponents of Indian Buddhism prevail in debate with Chinese at Samye.
840 Persecution of Tibetan Buddhism under King Lang Darma. period of conflict and civil strife begins
877 Destruction of Tibetan Dynasties. Buddhism almost completely wiped out in Tibet.
978 Commencement of second Buddhist period in Tibet
1038 Atisha comes to Tibet and founds the Kadampa school (which later becomes the Gelugpa order)
c1039 Marpa the translator (1012-1099) founder of the Kargyu school, travels to India, studies under Naropa
1040 Birth of Milarepa, 2nd hierarch of Kagyu order and a renowned poet.
1055 Birth of Marchik Labdron (1055-1153) founder of the Chod lineage, the main lineage founded by a woman.
1073 Founding of Sakya, the first monastery of the Sakya monastic order.
1247 Sakya Pandita submits to Godan Khan; beginning of the first priest/patron relationship between a Tibetan Lama and a Mongol Khan.
1261 Tibet is reunited with Sakya Pandita, Grand Lama of Sakya, as king.
1350 King Changchub Gyaltsen defeats Sakya and founds a secular dynasty.
1409 Ganden, 1st Gelug monastery, built by monastic reformer Tsongkhapa.
1435-81 In prolonged warfare, Karmapa supporters gain control of royal court.
1578 Gelug-pa leader gets the title of Dalai ("Ocean") from Altan Khan.
1642 Gushri Khan enthrones the 5th Dalai Lama as temporal ruler of Tibet.
1653 "Great Fifth" Dalai Lama meets Qing Emperor Shunzhi near Beijing.
1682 Fifth Dalai Lama dies; regent conceals death for the next 14 years.
1716-21 Italian Jesuit priest, Ippolito Desideri studies and teaches in Lhasa.
1717 Dzungar Mongols invade Tibet and sack Lhasa; Fifth DL's tomb looted.
1720 Dzungars driven out; Qing (Chinese) forces install Kesang Gyatso as the 7th Dalai Lama.
1721 The position of Amban is created by a 13-point Qing decree on Tibet. 29-point Qing decree prescribes "golden urn" lottery for picking DL and PL, bans visits by non-Chinese, and increases Amban's powers.
1904 British troops under Colonel Younghusband enter Tibet and occupy Lhasa.
1910-12 Chinese troops occupy Tibet, shoot at unarmed crowds on entering Lhasa.
1911 Bogh Haan, the Urga "Living Buddha," proclaims Mongolia independent.
1913 13th Dalai Lama proclaims Tibet a "religious and independent nation".
1924-25 Pressure from monks causes Dalai Lama to dismiss his British-trained officers.
1933 Truce ends China/Tibet fighting; the 13th Dalai Lama dies at age 58.
1934 Reting Rimpoche named regent. China permitted to open Lhasa mission.
1940 The five-year-old Tenzin Gyatso is enthroned as the 14th Dalai Lama.
1941 Unable to keep celibacy vow, Reting is replaced as regent by Taktra.
1945 Newly opened English-language school is closed after monks protest.
1950 Red China invades Tibet; Tibetan army destroyed in battle at Chamdo.
1951 17-point agreement between China and Tibet; Chinese occupy Lhasa.
1956 Tibetans in Kham and Amdo (Qinghai) begin revolt against Chinese ruler. Dalai Lama visits India for 2,500th anniversary of the Buddha's birth.
1959 Dalai Lama flees to India; 87,000 Tibetans die in anti-Chinese revolt.
1960 International Commission of Jurists: "acts of genocide [have] been committed... to destroy the Tibetans as a religious group."
1963 Dalai Lama approves a democratic constitution for the Tibetan exile community.
1964 The Panchen Lama is arrested after calling for Tibetan independence.
1978 Visitors find 8 temples left in TAR, down from 2,700 in 1959.
1979-80 China allows a series of three delegations from Dalai Lama to visit Tibet.
1989 Dalai Lama receives the Nobel Peace Prize.
1995 Dalai Lama recognizes six-year-old Gedhun Choekyi Nyima as 11th Panchen Lama. China denounces the Dalai Lama's choice.
1999 The Karmapa (Urgyen Trinley Dorje) flees Tibet to join the Dalai Lama in exile.

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Year Major Events in Chinese Buddhism
1st century CE Historical record has it that two Buddhist missionaries from India in 68 AD, arrived at the court of Emperor Ming (58-75) of the Han Dynasty (25-220 AD). They enjoyed imperial favour and stayed on to translate various Buddhist Texts, one of which, The 'Sutra of Forty-two Sections' continues to be popular even today.
4th century CE Translation of Buddhist texts into Chinese by Kumarajiva (344-413) and Hui-yüan (344-416).
5th century CE Chinese pilgrim scholar Fa-hsien visits India (399-414).Amitabha (Amida) the Pure Land School (Ching t'u) emerges in China (402).Persecution of Buddhism under Emperor Wu or Shih-tusu (424-451).Restoration under the new Emperor, Wen-ch'eng-ti (454).
6th century CE Bodhidharma, First Patriarch of the Ch'an School arrives in China from India in 520 (variant 526).The T'ang dynasty (618-907) was the Golden Age of Chinese Buddhism.The T'ien-tai School was established by Chih-i (538-597), Hua-yen School establish by Fa-shun (557-640) Dhyana School (Ch'an; Jap.Zen) Schools of Chinese Buddhism.
7th century CE The Southern School of Ch'an or new Ch'an begins in earnest with Hui-neng (638-713) the Sixth Patriarch.The Persecution in 845. During the reign of Emperor Wu-tsung (841-7) an order came to the effect that all Buddhist establishments should be destroyed, initiating a decline in Chinese Buddhism. The invention of block printing by Chinese Buddhists. The oldest extant book printed is the Tun-hung book of 868 it contained excerpts from the Diamond Sutra .
10th century CE In 972, the first emperor of the Sung Dynasty ordered the complete printing of the Chinese Tripitaka. This was achieved in 983, known as the Shu-pen (Szechuan edition). Two classic collections appeared, the 'Blue Cliff Record', (Pi-yen-lu; Jap. Hekiganroku) compiled by Hsueh Tou Ch'ung Hsien (980-1152) and the 'Gateless Gate' (Wu-men-kuan; Jap. Mumonkan) compiled by Wu-men Hui kai (1184-1260).
12th to 15th century CE China during the Yuan Dynasty was under Mongolian rule and the influences of Tibetan Lamaism. It was during the Mogol Dynasty that the Buddhist-Taoist controversy was brought before Mangu Khan in 1255. The acrimonious debate, which had started over a 1000 years before was finally concluded in the Buddhist's favour by an edict of Kublai Khan in 1281.Movement toward unity among the schools developed under the Ming Dynasty (1368-1643)Master Chu-hung, (born 1535) united in his person the two leading trends in Ming Buddhism - harmonization of the different schools (specifically Cha'n, Pureland) and the inauguration of a lay Buddhist movement.
The Modern Era The revolution of 1911 that toppled the Manchu Dynasty and established the Republic of China brought problems for the Buddhist Sangha. To combat these trends arose a remarkable monk, T'ai-hsu (1898-1947) who was able to rally his fellow religionists and to initiate a program of reform. On the national scale he organised a Chinese Buddhist Society in 1929.A revival of the Idealistic School was initiated by the publication in 1901of the Ch'eng-wei-shih-lun (Notes on the Completion of the Idealistic Doctrine) of K'uei-chi, long lost in China but brought back from Japan. The leader of this revival was the layman Ou-yang Chien, and the Institute of Inner Learning, which he organised in Naking (Nanjing) in 1922.Hsu Yun, Ch'an Master (1840-1959) 'Universally regarded as the most outstanding Buddhist of the Chinese Sangha in the modern era' (Richard Hunn). Dharma successor of all five Ch'an schools; main reformer in Chinese Buddhism revival (1900-50). Wong Mou-Lam translated the The Platform Sutra into English and founded the journal Chinese Buddhism (1930).(1898-1978) Upasaka Lu K'uan Yu (Charles Luk) Translator and Writer on Ch'an. Born in Canton. Lived in exile in Hong Kong.The official formation of the Chinese Buddhist Association by the government of the People's Republic of China on May 30th, 1953.The Cultural Revolution (1965-75) Buddhist temples and monasteries were sacked and the already weakened Sangha was further depleted. The excesses of this time have since been regretted, however, and a more liberal policy introduced.

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Year Major Events in Japanese Buddhism
538 or 552 Buddhism introduced into Japan.
594 C.E. Imperial Decree Encouraging Buddhism promulgated.
607 Horyu-ji Temple built, completed in 615 C.E.
621 or 622 "Commentaries on the Three Scriptures", by Prince Shotoku.
752 The Huge Statue of the Vairocana Buddha of the Todai-ji Temple of Nara completed.
770 One Million Miniature Stupas (Pagodas) built in 794 C.E. Capital moved from Nara to Kyoto.
805 Saicho (767-822) established Tendai Buddhism.
806 Kukai (774-835) established Shingon Buddhism.
822 The Establishment of the Mahayana Disiplines.
972 Kuya (903-972), an advocator of the Pure Land Faith, died.
985 Genshin (944-1017) wrote the 0-jo-yo-shu (Collection of Essential Documents to Attain the Birth in the Pure Land)
1124 Ryonin (1072-1132) founded the Yuzu- gatari) written Nembutsu Sect.
1175 Honen (1133-1212) founded the Jodo Sect.
1191 Eisai (1141-1215) founded the Rinzai Sect of Zen Buddhism.
1224 Shinran (1173-1262) founded the Jodo-Shin Sect.
1227 Dogen (1200-1253) founded the Soto Zen Sect.
1252 The Huge Image of Amida Buddha at Kamakura cast.
1253 Nichiren (1222-1282) founded the Nichiren Sect of Buddhism.
1275 Ippen (1239-1289) founded the Ji Sect.
1339 The Moss-garden of the Saiho-ji Temple in Kyoto built.
1397 The Kinkaku-ji Temple or the Golden Pavilion in Kyoto built.
1499 The Rock-garden of the Ryoan-ji Temple in Kyoto built. Rennyo (1415-1499), restorer of the Jodo-Shin Sect, died.
1602 The Jodo-Shin Sect Split into the Higashi (East) and the Nishi (West) Hongan-ji Schools.
1613 The Danka System or the Family-temple system formed.
1654 Ingen or Yin-yuan (1592-1673) introduced the Obaku Sect of Zen Buddhism.
1681 Buddhist Scriptures in Chinese Version published by Tetsugen.
1868 Buddhism suppressed by the Shintoists. The Meiji Restoration.
1872 Celibacy and vegetarianism allowed by governmental permission. Ban on Christianity cancelled. Women admitted to Buddhist temple.
1873 Religions in Japan put under government control.
1934 Taisho Edition of the Buddhist Scriptures in Chinese Version completed in 100 volumes.
1951 The Religious Juridical Persons Law Japan's Peace Treaty enforced signed.
1952 The Second World Buddhists Conference held in Tokyo.
1959 Buddha Jayanti, commemorating 2,500 years of Buddhism is held in Japan.
1968 International Buddhist Exchange Centre incorporated.

http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/history/sri_timeline.htm 020320yd
Year Major Events in Sri Lankan Buddhism
247 B.C.E. King Asoka sends his son, Ven. Mahinda, on a mission to bring Buddhism to Sri Lanka. King Devanampiya Tissa of Sri Lanka is converted.
240 B.C.E. Ven. Mahinda establishes the Mahavihara (Great Monastery) of Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. The Vibhajjavadin community living there becomes known as the Theravadins. Mahinda's sister, Ven. Sanghamitta, arrives in Sri Lanka with a cutting from the original Bodhi tree, and establishes the bhikkhuni-sangha (nuns) in Sri Lanka.
100 C.E. Famine and schisms in Sri Lanka point out the need for a written record of the Tipitaka to preserve the Buddhist religion. King Vattagamani convenes a Fourth Council, in which 500 reciters and scribes from the Mahavihara write down the Pali Tipitaka for the first time, on palm leaves. Theravada Buddhism first appears in Burma and Central Thailand.
425 C.E. Ven. Buddhaghosa collates the various Sinhalese commentaries on the Canon - drawing primarily on the Maha Atthakatha (Great Commentary) preserved at the Mahavihara - and translates his work into Pali. This makes Sinhalese Buddhist scholarship available to the entire Theravadin world. As a cornerstone to his work, Buddhaghosa composes the Visuddhimagga (The Path of Purification) which eventually becomes the classic Sri Lankan textbook on the Buddha's teachings.
Dhammapala composes commentaries on parts of the Canon missed by Buddhaghosa (such as the Udana, Itivuttaka, Theragatha, and Therigatha), along with extensive sub-commentaries on Buddhaghosa's work.
1050 The bhikkhu and bhikkhuni communities at Anuradhapura die out following invasions from South India.
1070 Bhikkhus from Pagan arrive in Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka to reinstate the Theravada ordination line in Sri Lanka.
1164 Polonnaruwa destroyed by foreign invasion. With the guidance of two monks from a forest branch of the Mahavihara sect - Vens. Mahakassapa and Sariputta - King Parakramabahu reunites all bhikkhus in Sri Lanka into the Mahavihara sect.
1236 Bhikkhus from Kañcipuram, India, arrive in Sri Lanka to revive the Theravada ordination line.
1279 Last inscriptional evidence of a Theravada Bhikkhuni nunnery (in Burma).
13th century A forest-based Sri Lankan ordination line arrives in Burma and Thailand. Theravada spreads to Laos. Thai Theravada monasteries first appear in Cambodia shortly before the Thais win their independence from the Khmers.
1753 King Kirti Sri Rajasinha obtains bhikkhus from the Thai court to reinstate the bhikkhu ordination line, which had died out in Sri Lanka. This is the origin of the Siam Nikaya of Buddhist monks.
1803 Sri Lankans ordained in the Burmese city of Amarapura found the Amarapura Nikaya in Sri Lanka to supplement the Siam Nikaya, which admitted only brahmins from the Up Country highlands around Kandy.
1862 Forest monks headed by Ven. Paññananda go to Burma for reordination, returning to Sri Lanka the following year to found the Ramañña Nikaya. First translation of the Dhammapada into a Western language (German).
1873 The revival of Buddhism got fully under way in Sri Lanka when Ven. Sri Sumangala and Ven Dharmanada established two Buddhist monastic colleges, the Vidyodaya and the Vidyolanka Pirivenas (monastic colleges), in 1873 and 1875 respectively. At about the same time a brilliant young monk, Ven. Mohottivatte Gunananda defeats Christian missionaries in a public debate, sparking a nationwide revival of Sri Lankan pride in its Buddhist traditions.
1880 Helena Blavatsky and Henry Steel Olcott, founders of the Theosophical Society, arrive in Sri Lanka from the USA, embrace Buddhism, and begin a campaign to restore Buddhism on the island by encouraging the establishment of Buddhist schools.
1891 Maha Bodhi Society founded in India by the Sri Lankan lay follower Anagarika Dharmapala, in an effort to reintroduce Buddhism to India.
1958 Ven. Nyanaponika Thera establishes the Buddhist Publication Society in Sri Lanka to publish English-language books on Theravada Buddhism. Sarvodaya Shramadana Movement is founded in Sri Lanka to bring Buddhist ideals to bear in solving pressing social problems. Two Germans ordain at the Royal Thai Embassy in London, becoming the first to take full Theravada ordination in the West.




ca -600: Life of Sushruta, of Varanasi, the father of surgery. His ayurvedic treatises cover pulse diagnosis, hernia, cataract, cosmetic surgery, medical ethics, 121 surgical implements, antiseptics, use of drugs to control bleeding, toxicology, psychiatry, classification of burns, midwifery, surgical anesthesia and therapeutics of garlic.
ca -600: The Ajivika sect, an ascetic, atheistic group of naked sadhus reputated for fierce curses, is at its height, continuing in Mysore until the 14th century. Adversaries of both Buddha and Mahavira, their philosophy is deterministic, holding that everything is inevitable.
ca -600: Lifetime of Lao-tzu, founder of Taoism in China, author of Tao-te Ching. Its esoteric teachings of simplicity and selflessness shape Chinese life for 2,000 years and permeate the religions of Vietnam, Japan and Korea.
-599-527: Lifetime of Mahavira Vardhamana, 24th Tirthankara and revered renaissance Jain master. His teachings stress strict codes of vegetarianism, asceticism and nonviolence. (Some date his life 40 years later. )
-560: In Greece, Pythagoras teaches math, music, vegetarianism and yoga-drawing from India's wisdom ways.
-551-478: Lifetime of Confucius, founder of Confucianist faith. His teachings on social ethics are the basis of Chinese education, ruling-class ideology and religion.
-518: Darius I of Persia (present Iran) invades Indus Valley. This Zoroastrian king shows tolerance for local religions.
ca -500: Lifetime of Kapila, founder of Sankhya Darshana, one of six classical systems of Hindu philosophy.
“ What is Truth ?” “What’s the path to it ? “

1 500 bce Sankhya - Kapila - analyse/understand (chit) existence/nature (sat) in term of 25 tattvas/elements: purush, prakriti, guna, sattva, rajas, tamas, bhog, dharma, artha, kaam, moksh, 4 purushartha;
526 sutras in 6 chapters (164, 47, 84, 32, 129, 70)
2 200 bce Yoga - Patanjali - control movements (sat) of consciousness (chit)
195 verses in 4 chapters (1: samadhi 55;2: sadhna 51;3:vibhuti 55 ;4:kaivalya 34)
3 400 bce Vedanta - Badarayana – understand (chit) what’s in Upanishads and Aranyakas at “end”, anta, of the Vedas rather than the hymns and ritual portions of the Vedas
555 verses in 4 chapters (1.1 31,1.2 32,1.3 43,1.4 29;2.1 37,2.2 45,2.3 53,2.4 22;
3.1 27,3.2 41,3.3 66,3.4 52;4.1 19,4.2 21,4.3 15,4.4 22)
4 300 bce Nyaya - Gautama - use logic and reasoning (chit) correctly
5 300 bce Vaiseshika – Kanada – analyse/understand (chit) existence/nature (sat) in term of 9 parts/elements (dravyas) earth, water, light, air, ether, time, space, soul and mind
393 verses in 10 chapters (1.1 31,1.2 17;2.1 31,2.2 37;3.1 20,3.2 21;4.1 13,4.2 12;
5.1 18,5.2 26,6.1 16,6.2 17;7.1 25,7.2 27;8.1 11,8.2 6;9.1 15,9.2 13;10.1 7,10.2 10)
6 200 bce Mimasa - Jaimini - perform rites in the Vedas correctly
in 12 chapters (1.1 32, 1.2 53, 1.3 35, 1.4 30; 2.1 49, 2.2 29, 2.3 29,2.4 32; 3.1 27, 3.2 43, 3.3 46, 3.4 51,3.5 53, 3.6 47, 3.7 51, 3.8 44; 4.1 48, 4.2 20, 4.3 41 4.4 11 4.5 41; 5.1 35,
5.2 23, 5.3 44,5.4 26;6.1 52, 6.2 32,6.3 41,6.4 47,6.5 56,6.6 39

ca -500: Dams to store water are constructed in India.
-500: World population is 100 million. India population is 25 million (15 million of whom live in the Ganga basin).
ca -500: Over the next 300 years (according to the later dating of Muller) numerous secondary Hindu scriptures (smriti) are composed: Shrauta Sutras, Grihya Sutras, Dharma Sutras, Mahabharata, Ramayana and Puranas, etc.
ca -500: Tamil Sangam age (500 bce-500 ce) begins. Sage Agastya writes Agattiyam, first known Tamil grammar. Tolkappiyar writes Tolkappiyam Purananuru, also on grammar, stating that he is recording thoughts on poetry, rhetoric, etc., of earlier grammarians, pointing to high development of Tamil language prior to his day. He gives rules for absorbing Sanskrit words into Tamil. Other famous works from the Sangam age are the poetical collections Paripadal, Pattuppattu, Ettuthokai Purananuru, Akananuru, Aingurunuru, Padinenkilkanakku. Some refer to worship of Vishnu, Indra, Murugan and Supreme Siva.
ca -486: Ajatashatru (reign -486-458) ascends Magadha throne.
-480: Ajita, a nastika (atheist) who teaches a purely material explanation of life and that death is final, dies.
-478: Prince Vijaya, exiled by his father, King Sinhabahu, sails from Gujarat with 700 followers. Founds Singhalese kingdom in Sri Lanka. (Mahavamsa chronicle, ca 500.)
-450: Athenian philosopher Socrates flourishes (ca -470-400).
-428-348: Lifetime of Plato, Athenian disciple of Socrates. This great philosopher founds Athens Academy in -387.
ca -400: Panini composes his Sanskrit grammar, the Ashtadhyayi. (Date accepted among most Western scholars.)
ca -400: Lifetime of Hippocrates, Greek physician and "father of medicine," formulates Hippocratic oath, code of medical ethics still pledged by present-day Western doctors.
ca -350: Rainfall is measured by Indian scientists.
-326: Alexander the Great of Greece invades, but fails to conquer, Northern India. His soldiers mutiny. He leaves India the same year. Greeks who remain in India intermarry with Indians. Interchanges of philosophy influence both civilizations. Greek sculpture impacts Hindu styles. Bactria kingdoms later enhance Greek influence.
Reference: http://thebanmappingproject.com/resources/timeline_9.html
\Alexander the Great conquered Egypt in 332 B.C., thus ending unwanted Persian rule. The Egyptians willfully accepted him as pharaoh because he adopted the Egyptian kingship and religion. Among other building projects, Alexander laid the foundations of a new city called Alexandria on the Mediterranean Coast, which became the new capital of Egypt. Upon Alexander's death, control of Egypt fell to one of his generals, Ptolemy I Soter, who began a line of monarchs who ruled Egypt for the next 275 years.
Greek became the official language of the government. Demotic, however, was still used by the majority of the Egyptians and used in lesser administrative offices. Likewise, high officials were Greek, while local administration remained in Egyptian hands. Throughout most of Ptolemaic rule, the Egyptians were unsettled with Greek rule and often revolted.
Religiously, the Ptolemies combined Egyptian and Greek religion. They established the national cults of Serapis, of Arsinoe II, and of the Ptolemies themselves. They continued to build many traditional temples all over Egypt, including Philae, Dandarah, and Idfu, as did their successors, the Roman emperors [10250]. The Greeks blended the traditional Egyptian styles with contemporary Hellenistic styles in these edifices, and in other artwork.
The well-known Cleopatra VII was the last of the Ptolemaic rulers and the only Ptolemy to know how to speak Egyptian. After her lover Mark Antony lost the battle of Actium to Octavian, Cleopatra committed suicide and Egypt became simply another province of the Roman Empire.
While Romans filled the upper levels of the administration in Egypt, most power fell into the hands of the Egyptians. City councils were in charge of local administration. The use of the demotic script dwindled, as Coptic began to replace it. But more importantly, Greek continued to be used for administrative purposes; Latin was hardly used at all.
The Ptolemies had exploited the Fayyum for food, heavily increasing its yield and establishing many towns in that region. The Romans took advantage of this, turning Egypt into the breadbasket of the Roman Empire, by exacting heavy taxes from the people mainly in the form of grain. Meanwhile, Egypt was at the center of a vast network of international trade that stretched from the Atlantic Ocean to India.
Egyptian temples continued to be decorated in the traditional Egyptian style throughout the Roman period [10246]. There was, however, a steady decline of Egyptian cults as more and more Egyptians accepted Christianity.
indica by Arrian:____________
http://www.und.ac.za/und/classics/india/arrian.htm
Reference: http://www.pothos.co.uk/alexander.asp?ParaID=7
359 BC
Death of Perdiccas III, King of Macedonia: Perdiccas leaves infant heir Amyntas; Philip II elected King of Macedonia
358 BC
Philip subdues Paeonians and Agrians
357 BC
Marriage of Philip II and Olympias, mother of Alexander
Philip captures the cities of Amphipolis and Pydna
356 BC
July 20 - Birth of Alexander III at Pella, Macedon
August - Philip captures city of Potidaea
355 BC
Birth of Cassander, son of Antipater, ruler of Macedonia after Alexander
354 BC
Philip captures city of Methone: Philip loses one eye
353 BC
Philip defeats Greek state of Phokis
352 BC
Persian noble Artabazus receives asylum at Philip's court
348 BC
Philip captures city of Olynthus (Chalcidice peninsula)
343 BC
Aristotle appointed as tutor of Alexander
342 BC
Philip's conquests in Thrace
Alexander gets Bucephalas, his personal horse
340 BC
Alexander regent in Macedonia during campaign of Philip against Byzantium; Alexander defeats Thracian tribe
Persia aids city of Perinthus against Philip
Probable end of the tutorship of Aristotle
338 BC
August 2 - Battle of Chaeronea: King Philip defeats Greeks, Alexander commands cavalry
Autumn - Establishment and first meeting of the Corinthian League: Philip confirmed as hegemon of Greece
337 BC
Spring - Second meeting of the Corinthian League: Philip reveals plans for invasion of Persia
Marriage of Philip and Cleopatra; Alexander and Olympias leave for exile
Autumn - Alexander returns from his exile in Illyria
336 BC
Spring - Officers Parmenion and Attalus take advance force into Persia
October [June] - Murder of King Philip; Alexander ascends throne of Macedonia
Autumn - Execution of Amyntas, son of Perdiccas III and heir to the throne; Execution of Cleopatra, widow of Philip, and her newborn son; Third meeting of Corinthian League at Corinth: Alexander confirmed as hegemon of Greece; Possible legendary meeting with philosopher Diogenes
Other events - King Darius III ascends the throne of Persia; Marriage of Alexander of Epirus and Cleopatra, sister of Alexander
335 BC
Spring - Campaign to the Danube; Battle of the Lyginus: Alexander defeats Triballians
May - Alexander crosses river Danube: establishment of northern frontiers
Summer - Attack on Pelium: Alexander defeats Illyrians
September - Alexander ends revolt at Thebes
Other events - Persian commander Memnon stops advance force of Parmenion and Attalus
334 BC
May - Alexander crosses Hellespont into Persia
May/June - Battle of the Granicus: Alexander defeats Persian defense force
Summer - Alexander captures Milete
Autumn - Alexander captures Halicarnassus, Persian stronghold; Alexander grants winter leave to newly wedded soldiers
Other events - Antigonus the One-Eyed appointed as satrap of Phrygia; Queen Ada re-instated as ruler of Caria
333 BC
Winter - Alleged conspiracy: arrest of Alexander of Lyncestis; Legendary miraculous passing of Mount Climax; Campaign against Pisidians
March - Alexander solves riddle of the 'Gordian Knot', Gordium
May - Alexander of Epirus invades Italy (defeated and killed around 331 BC)
May [July] - Alexander leaves Gordium
June/July [Spring] - Memnon dies of illness
Summer - King Darius III and Persian army leave Babylon
September [July] - Alexander falls ill at river Cydnus
September - Alexander arrives at Tarsus, Cilicia
September/October - King Darius III and Persian army arrive at Sochi, base camp near Mediterranean
November - Battle of Issus: Alexander defeats Persian King Darius III; Alexander captures Persian Royal family
Autumn - Parmenion captures Damascus: capture of Barsine, widow of Memnon and future mistress of Alexander and possibly mother of his first child, Heracles
Other events - Idarnes (or Hydarnes) re-captures Milete; Balacrus defeats Idarnes in 332 BC
332 BC
January-July [August] - Siege of Tyre
Spring [Summer 331 BC] - Statira, wife of Darius III, dies in childbirth
Summer - First peace offer of King Darius
July 29 [August] - Fall of Tyre
September-October - Siege of Gaza
November 14 - Alexander crowned Pharaoh in Memphis, Egypt
331 BC
Winter - Oracle of Siwa allegedly confirms divinity of Alexander
April 7 [Winter] - Foundation of Alexandria, Egypt
Spring - Return to Phoenicia
Summer - Second peace offer of King Darius
September 20 - Army witnesses total eclipse of the moon in northern Mesopotamia: single 100% sure dating of the Alexander period
October 1 - Battle of Gaugamela (Arbela): final defeat of Persian King Darius III
October 21 - Alexander enters Babylon
November 25 - Alexander leaves Babylon
December 15 - Alexander enters Susa
December - Campaign against the Uxians
330 BC
January - Alexander forces his way through Persian Gates: defeat of last Persian defence troops
Winter/Spring - Five months stay in Persepolis, ceremonial Persian capital
April - Campaign against the Mardians
May [Summer/Autumn 331 BC] - Battle of Megalopolis: Alexander's Macedonian regent Antipater defeats King Agis III of Sparta
May - Alexander burns Persepolis
July - Persian King Darius III murdered by his kinsmen
Summer - Alexander dismisses allied troops
Autumn [Summer 329 BC] - Alleged but unlikely legendary meeting with the Queen of the Amazons
Autumn - Revolt of Satibarzanes, satrap of Aria; Satibarzanes killed by officer Erigiyus
October - Alleged conspiracy: execution of officers Philotas and his father Parmenion; Craterus becomes second in command; execution of Alexander of Lyncestis
329 BC
Spring - Alexander crosses Hindu Kush into Central Asia
May - Arrest of Bessus, usurper of Persian throne
Summer - Alleged massacre of the Branchidae; Founding of Alexandria-the-Furthest; Battle of the Iaxartes: Alexander defeats Scythians; Rebel leader Spitamenes annihilates Macedonian forces at Maracanda
328 BC
Spring - Submission of Pharasmenes, ruler of the Chorasmians
Spring/Summer/Autumn - Army split in five divisions against rebellions in Central Asia
Autumn - Defeat of rebel leader Spitamenes; Alexander kills officer Cleitus the Black during brawl
327 BC
Winter - Attempt to introduce 'proskynesis'; Alleged conspiracy: execution of court historian Callisthenes
Spring - Alexander captures 'Sogdian Rock', rebel stronghold; Surrender of rebel Chorienes; Defeat of rebels Catanes and Austanes
Spring [August] - Marriage to Roxane, daughter of Bactrian noble Oxyartes
Summer - Invasion of India
326 BC
Winter - Siege of Massaga: Massaga's Queen Cleophis allegedly concieves a son of Alexander (named Alexander)
April - Alexander captures 'Rock of Aornus', Indian stronghold
May [July] - Battle of the Hydaspes: Alexander defeats King Porus; Death of Bucephalas
September - Army refuses further advance at river Hyphasis; Alexander orders retreat
Autumn - Death of officer Coenus; Roxane's first child dies at birth at the river Acesines
November - Start of voyage down the Indus
December - Campaign against the Mallians: Alexander's lung pierced by an arrow
325 BC
June - Craterus leads part of the army through Arachosia towards Carmania
July - Alexander reaches Indian Ocean
August - Alexander starts march through Gedrosian desert
September 20/21 - Fleet under command of Nearchos sets sail for Persian Gulf
October/November - Alexander reaches Pura, capital of Gedrosia
December - Reunion of Alexander and Craterus in Carmania
Other events - Mercenary revolts in Bactria; Desertion of Harpalus
324 BC
Winter [December 325 BC]- First reunion between Alexander and Nearchos near Salmus, Carmania
Winter/Spring - 'Reign of Fear': Alexander punishes and executes Persian satraps who abused power in his absence
January - Restoration of tomb of Cyrus the Great
February - Alexander orders mass wedding at Susa, Persia: marriage to Statira, daughter of Darius III, and to Parysatis, daughter of Artaxerxes III
Spring - Second reunion between Alexander and Nearchos near mouth of the Tigris
April/May - Alexander founds last Alexandria (Charax) at the mouth of river Tigris
July - Mutiny (or strike) of the army at Opis, Mesopotamia
August 4 [September 3] - Alexander issues Exiles' Decree
Summer - Craterus leaves with veterans for Macedonia
October - Death of Hephaestion, Alexander's lifelong friend and lover, in Ecbatana
323 BC
Winter - Campaign against Cossaeans
April - Alexander returns in Babylon
May - Funeral of Hephaestion
June 10 - Alexander dies after ten days of illness
321 BC
Ptolemy hi-jacks Alexander's sarcophagus and brings Alexander's body to Egypt
Winter - December-February; Spring - March-May; Summer - June-August; Autumn - September-November; [ ] - alternative dating
Timeline compiled according to accounts of Arrian, Curtius Rufus, Plutarch, Diodorus Siculus, Justin and especially the footnotes and comments of their translators and editors. All dates mentioned are subject to debate. For corrections or suggestions please e-mail me: dhulqarnain@hotmail.com

305: Chandragupta Maurya, founder of first pan-Indian empire (-324-184), defeats Greek garrisons of Seleucus, founder of Seleucan Empire in Persia and Syria. At its height under Emperor Ashoka (reign -273-232), the Mauryan Empire includes all India except the far South.
--
reference: http://www.apnapunjab.com/history/index.htm

History Of Punjab Ancient Times Aryan Migrations Alexander's invasion Muslim Invasions Rise Of Sikh Power Punjab Before Partition Archeologists have traced the signs of human habitation to times long before that of Mughals arrival . The upper basin of Indus and Baluchistan plateau hosted one of the earliest human civilizations known as the Indus Valley civilization . The earliest signs of life human activity date as far back as 7000 BC . The Indus Valley civilization grew from small settlements to highly refined urban life . At its height , around 3000 BC , it boasted the splendid of Harrapa ( Near present day Sahiwal in West Punjab ) and Mohen- jo –daro in the lower Indus Valley . The story of the decline , whose reasons are still not completely explained , of civilizations is also told through the remains of the these cities . Aryan MigrationsAmong other reasons like the change in the weather patterns , urbanization without any rural agricultural production base one factor is reported to be the series of raids or small scale migrations by the Aryans from the north – west ( 1500-100 BC ) . The next thousand year history of Punjab ( or Arya – Varta , the land of Aryans ,a s Aryas called it ) is dominated by the Aryans and their interactions with the natives of the Indus basin . Easternmost Satrapy of the PersiansPunjab lied at the outskirts of the great Persian empires and came under their control from time to time . The Persian King Darius the great is reported to have attacked Punjab and occupied some parts . But for the first time the occupation of Punjab was completed by the Persian King Gustasp in 516 BC . Punjab became the wealthiest Satrapy i.e., the province in the Persian kingdom .Greeks , the rival empire of the Persians , also had some knowledge of the area . The great Persian Emperor Darius 1( 521- 486 BC ) appointed Skylax the Greek to explore the area around Indus river for commercial expeditions who provided an account of his voyage in his book “periplus” . Alexander’s expeditions were documented in the works of Strabo , Ptolemy , Pliny , Arrian and others . They described a region that had plenty of mighty rivers and was divided into four kingdoms .In Greek maps we find the mention of the mightiest of river of all the world called the Indos ( Indus ) and its tributaries of Hydaspes ( Jhelum ) , Akesines ( Chenab ) , Hydroatis (Ravi), Hyphasis( Satluj) and Hesidros(Beas). Alexander’s InvasionIn 321 BC Alexander the great after breaking the might of the Persians entered their final Satrapy of Punjab . He invited all the cheiftans of this satrapy to come to him and submit to his authority , which is exactly what the ruler of the northwest most ( west of Hydases kingdom of Gandhara with its capital at Taxila . But the ruler of the Kingdom Beteen refused to submit to Alexander’s authority and the two armies fought the historical battle on the bank of Akesines outside the town of Nikia ( somewhere around modern city of Jhelum).Porus put up a tough fight but his army was no match for Alexander's army .Alexander as with his other occupied areas established two cities in the area of Punjab , where he settled people from his multi – national armies which included a majority of Greeks and Macedonians . These cities along with the rule of the Indo – Greek thrived long after Alexander’s departure .Alexander’s eastern empire ( from Syria to Punjab ) was inherited by Selecus Nicator , the founder of the Seleucid dynasty . However the Greek empire in the east was disrupted by the ascendcy of the Bacterians . The Bacterian King Demetrius I added Punjab to his Kingdom in the second century BC . The best known of the Indo – Greek kings was meander who established his independent Kingdom centered at Taxila in 170 BC . He later moved his capital to Sagala ( the modern Ssialkot ) . Meander soon captured territories east of his kingdom and grew to rival the power of Bacterians .Meander’s successors maintained their rule on Punjab till 55 BC when the whole area was disrupted by the events happening in greater Euro- Asia . In the middle of the second century BC . YuI Chi tribe of modern China to move westward which caused in turn to Sakas or Scythians to move . Northern Sakas successfully wrestled the power of the areas from the Indo – Greeks . Another Central Asiatic people to make Punjab their home were the white Huns who made continuous campaigns towards this part of the world . Finally establishing their rule in the later 3rd century AD. Muslim InvasionsFollowing the birth of Islam in Arabia in 6th century AD , Arabs rose to power and replaced the Persians as the major power in the area . In 711- 13 AD , Arabs advanced to the land of five rivers , occupying Multan . Further north the area that survived the Arab attack was divided into small kingdoms .Meanwhile in Ghazni after the death of Subuktgin ,, the Turk , his son Mahmud assumed power in 997 AD . He was to expand his fathers kingdom far to the west and east of Ghazni through his military conquest . he was to attack Punjab 17 times during his reign . The Ghaznavids were uprooted by the Ghauris who extended their rule as far as Delhi . Shahabuddin Ghauri annexed Lahore to his kingdom in 1186 . After Ghauris death his governor Outubdin Aibak became an independent ruler of Punjab and funded the Mamluk sultanate . Khiljis replaced the Mamluks in 1290 . The rule of Khiljis was briefly disrupted by the two successful raids by the Mongols who marched their way to Delhi twice during Allaudin Khilji rule . Tuglaks succeeded Khiljis in 1320 AD . Tuglak rule was replaced by the Sayyids in 1414 AD . Lodhis gained control of Delhi in 1479 AD . The Rise of Sikh powerPunjab presented a picture of chaos and confusion when Ranjit Singh took reins of Sukerchikas misal . The edifice of Ahmad Shah Abdalis empire in India and crumbled . Afganistan was dismembered . Peshawar and Kashmir though under the Suzerainty of Afganistan had attained de facto independence .Barakzais were the masters of these places . Attock was ruled by Wazirkels and Jhang lay at the feet of Sials . Pathans were ruling kasur . Multan had thrown yoke and Nawab Muzaffar Khan had taken its charge . Both Punjab and Sind were under Afghan rule since 1757 after Ahmed Shah Abdali was granted suzerainty over these two provinces . They were confronted with the rising power of Sikhism in Punjab . Taimur Khan , a local governor was able to turn away Sikhs from Amritsar . He razed to the ground the fort of Ram Rauni . But this state of affairs did not last long and the Sikh misl joined hands and defeated Taimur Shah and his Chief Minister Jalal Khan . The Afghans were forced to retreat and Lahore was occupied by the Sikhs in 1758 , Jassa Singh Ahluwalia proclaimed Sikhs sovereignty and became its head . He struck coins to commemorate his victory .When Ahmad Shah Abdali was engaged in his campaign against the Marathas at Panipat in 1761 . Jassa Singh fled to Kangra hills after Sikhs forces were totally routed after the departure of Ahmad Shah abdali , Jassa Singh Ahluwalia attacked Sirhind , it was razed to ground and the Afghan Governor Zen Khan was killed . This was a great victory to Sikhs who were rulers of all area around the Sirhind . Jassa Singh hastitily paid visitto Hari Mandir at Amritsar , and he made amends and restored it to original shape as it was defiled by Ahmad Shah slaughtering cows in its precincts .Ahmad Shah died in June 1773 . After his death power of Afghans declined in Punjab . taimur shah ascended the throne at Kabul . By then misls had established themselves in Punjab . They had under their control the area as far as Saharnpur in east , Atock in west , kangra , Jammu in North and Multan in south . Efforts were made by Afghan rulers to dislodge Sikhs from the citadels . Taimur Shah attacked Multan and defeated the Bhangis . The Bhangi Sardar , Lehna Singh , and , Sobha Singh were driven out of Lahore in 1767 by the Abdali but soon reoccupied it . They remained in power in Lahore till 1793 – the year when Shah Zaman succeeded to the throne of Kabul .The first attempt by Shah Zaman was made in 17093 . He came upto Hassan Abdal rom where he sent an army of 7000 strong cavalry under Ahmad Shah Shahnachi but the Sikhs totally routed them . It was a great set back to Shah Zaman but again in 1795 he reorganized forces and attacked Hassan Abdal , snatched Rohtas from Sukerchikas , whom leader was Ranjit Singh who suffered at Shah zaman hands but did not lose courage . however , shah had to be back in Kabul as an invasion was apprehended on his own country from the west . after he went back , Ranjit dislodged the afghans from Rohtas .Shah Zaman could not sit idle. In 1796 he moved , crossed Indus for the third time and dreamt of capturing Delhi.Shah Zaman could not sit idle . In 1796 he moved , crossed Indus for the third time and dreamt of capturing delhi . His ambition knew no bounds . By now he had collected 3000 strong afghan army . he was confident a large number of Indians will join with him. Nawab of Kasur had already assured him help. Sahib singh of Patiala betrayed his countrymen and declared his intentions of helping Shah Zaman was also assured help by the Rohillas , Wazir of Oudh , and Tipu sultan of Mysore . The news of Shah Zaman invasion spread like wild fire , people started fleeing to hills for safety . Heads of Misls , though bound to give protection to the people as they were collecting Rakhi tax from them were the first to leave the people in lurch . By December Shah occupied territory upto Jhelum . when he reached Gujrat sahib Singh Bhangi panicked and left the place .Next was the territory of Ranjit Singh . He was alert and raised an army of 5000 horsemen . But they were inadequately armed with only spears and muskets . The afghans were equipped with heavy artillery . Ranjit Singh thought of a stiff united fight against the invaders . He came to Amritsar . A congregation of Sarbat Khalsa was called and many Sikh Sardars answered the call . An almost unanimous opinion prevailed that Shah Zaman ‘s army should be allowed to enter the Punjab , and they all should retire to hills .Forces were reorganized under the command of Ranjit Singh and they marched towards Lahore . They were able to give Afghans a crushing defeat in several villages and ultimately surrounded the city of Lahore . Sorties were made in night in which they would kill a few Afghan soldiers and then leave the city in the thick of darkness. Following this tactic they were able to dislodge Afghans at several places .In 1797 , Shah Zaman , suddenly left for Afghanistan as his brother Mahmud had revolted . Shahanchi Khan with considerable force was left at Lahore . The Sikhs however followed Shah upto jhelum and snatched many goods from him . The Sikhs returned and in the way were attached by the army of Shahnanchi Khan near Ram Nagar . The Sikhs routed his army . It was the first major achievement of Ranjit Singh . He became the hero of the land of five rivers and his reputation spread far and wide .Again in 1798 , Shah Zaman ,suddenly left for Afghanistan as his brother Mahmud had revolted . Shahanchi Khan with considerable force was left at Lahore . The Sikhs however Shah upto Jhelum and snatched many goods from him . The Sikhs returned and in the way were attached by the army of Shahnachi Khan near Ram Nagar . The Sikhs routed his army . It was the first major achievement of Ranjit Singh . He became the hero of the land of Five rivers and his reputation spread far and wide .The Afghans struggled hard to dislodge Sikhs but in vain .Sikh cordon was so strong that they made impossible for the Afghans to break it and proceed towards Delhi . Ranjit Singh became terror to them . The moment Zaman Shah left , Ranjit Singh pursued his forces and caught them unawares near Gujranwala . They were chased further up to Jhelum . many Afghan were put to death and their war equipment was taken into possession and they were made to run their lives . Shah Zaman was overthrown by his brother and was blinded . he became a helpless creature and 12 years later came to Punjab to seek refuge in Ranjit Singh’s darbar , who was now the ruler of land . Destiny wished it like that .Ranjit Singh combined with Sahib Singh of Gujrat ( Punjab ) and Milkha Singh of Pindiwala and a large Sikh force , fell upon the Afghan garrison while Shah Zaman was still in the vicinity of Khyber Pass . The Afghan forces fled towards north after having been routed by the Sikhs leaving behind at Gujrat their dead including the Afghan deputy .By this time the people of the country had become aware of the rising strength of Ranjit Singh , the rising star on the horizon . He was the most popular leader of the Punjab and was already yearning to enter Lahore . The people of Lahore being extremely oppressed raised their voices of wailing to the skies and were looking towards their liberator . Muslims joined Hindus and Sikhs residents of Lahore in making an appeal to Ranjit Singh to free them from the tyrannical rule .A petition was written and was signed by Mian Ashak Mohammed , Mian Mukkam Din , Mohd. Tahir , Mohd. Bakar , Hakim Rai , and Bhai Gurbaksh Singh . It was addressed to Ranjit Singh to free them from Bhangi sardars . Ranjit Singh was invited to liberate Lahore as early as possible . He mobilized a 25000 Army and marched Lahore on July 6 , 1799.It was a last day of Muharram when a big procession was to be taken out in the town in the memory of the two grandsons of Prophet Mohammad who were martyred in the battlefield without having a drop of water . It was expected that Bhangi sardars will also participate in procession and mourn with their Shia brethren . By the time procession was over Ranjit Singh reached outskirts of city .Early morning on July 7 , 1799, Ranjit Singh’s men had taken their positions. Guns glistened and the bugles were sounded . Rani Sada Kaur stood outside Delhi gate and Ranjit singh proceeded towards Anarkali . Ranjit Singh rode along the walls of the city and got the wall mined . A breach was blown . It was created panic and confusion . Mukkam Din , who was one of the signatories to the petition made a proclamation with the beat of drum that town had been taken over by him and he was now head . He ordered all the city gates to be opened . Ranjit Singh entered the city with his troops through the Lahore gate. Sada Kaur with a detachment of cavalry entered through Delhi Gate . Before Bhangi Sardars had any inkling of it , a part of the citadel was occupied without any resistance . Sahib Singh and Mohar Singh left the city and sought shelter at some safer place . Chet Singh was left either to fight ,defend the town or flee as he like . He shut himself in Hazuri bagh and Chet Singh surrendered and he was given permission to leave the city along with his family .Ranjit Singh was well entrenched in the town now . Immediately after taking possession of the city , he paid visit to Badashahi mosque . This gesture increased his prestige and his status was in the eyes of people . He won the hearts of the subjects , Hindus , Muslims and Sikhs alike . It was July 7 , 1799 when victorious Ranjit Singh entered Lahore .
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ca -302: Kautilya (Chanakya), minister to Chandragupta Maurya, writes Arthashastra, a compendium of laws, administrative procedures and political advice for running a kingdom.
-302: In Indica, Megasthenes, envoy to King Seleucus, reveals to Europe in colorful detail the wonders of Mauryan India: an opulent society with abundant agriculture, engineered irrigation and 7 castes: philosophers, farmers, soldiers, herdsmen, artisans, magistrates and counselors.
http://www1.fhw.gr/chronos/06/en/politics/left.html post Alexander
ca -300: Chinese discover cast iron, known in Europe by 1300 ce.
ca -300: Pancharatra Vaishnava sect is prominent. All later Vaishnava sects are based on the Pancharatra beliefs (formalized by Shandilya around 100 ce).
ca -300: Pandya kingdom (-300-1700 ce) of S. India is founded, constructs magnificent Minakshi temple at its capital, Madurai. Builds temples of Shrirangam and Rameshvaram, with its thousand-pillared hall (ca 1600 ce).
-297: Emperor Chandragupta abdicates to become a Jain monk.
-273: Ashoka (-273-232 reign), greatest Mauryan Emperor, grandson of Chandragupta, is coronated. Repudiating conquest through violence after his brutal invasion of Kalinga, 260 bce, he converts to Buddhism. Excels at public works and sends diplomatic peace missions to Persia, Syria, Egypt, North Africa and Crete, and Buddhist missions to Sri Lanka, China and other Southeast Asian countries. Under his influence, Buddhism becomes a world power. His work and teachings are preserved in Rock and Pillar Edicts (e.g., lion capital of the pillar at Sarnath, present-day India's national emblem).
-251: Emperor Ashoka sends his son Mahendra (-270-204) to spread Buddhism in Sri Lanka, where he is to this day revered as the national faith's founding missionary.
ca -250: Lifetime of Maharishi Nandinatha, first known satguru in the Kailasa Parampara of the Nandinatha Sampradaya. His eight disciples are Sanatkumar, Shanakar, Sanadanar, Sananthanar, Sivayogamuni, Patanjali, Vyaghrapada and Tirumular (Sundaranatha).
ca -221: Great Wall of China is built, ultimately 2,600 miles long, the only man-made object visible from the moon.
ca -200: Lifetime of Rishi Tirumular, shishya of Maharishi Nandinatha and author of the 3,047-verse Tirumantiram, a summation of Saiva Agamas and Vedas, and concise articulation of the Nandinatha Sampradaya teachings, founding South India's monistic Saiva Siddhanta school.
ca -200: Lifetime of Patanjali, shishya of Nandinatha and gurubhai (brother monk) of Rishi Tirumular. He writes the Yoga Sutras at Chidambaram, in South India.
ca -200: Lifetime of Bhogar Rishi, one of eighteen Tamil siddhas. This mystic shapes from nine poisons the Palaniswami murti enshrined in present-day Palani Hills temple in South India. Bhogar is either from China or visits there.
ca -200: Lifetime of Saint Tiruvalluvar, poet-weaver who lived near present-day Madras, author of Tirukural, "Holy Couplets," the classic Tamil work on ethics and statecraft (sworn on in today's South Indian law courts).
ca -200: Jaimini writes the Mimamsa Sutras.
ca -150: Ajanta Buddhist Caves are begun near present-day Hyderabad. Construction of the 29 monasteries and galleries continues until approximately 650 ce. The famous murals are painted between 600 bce and 650 ce.
-145: Chola Empire (-145-1300 ce) of Tamil Nadu is founded, rising from modest beginnings to a height of government organization and artistic accomplishment, including the development of enormous irrigation works.
-140: Emperor Wu begins three-year reign of China; worship of the Mother Goddess, Earth, attains importance.
-130: Reign ends of Menander (Milinda), Indo-Greek king who converts to Buddhism.
Reference: http://www.miami.edu/phi/bio/Buddha/Milinda.htm 020320yd
As a consequence of the conquest of the Persian empire, the Greeks gained control of Bactria, modern Afghanistan, together with northern India. The local Greek rulers managed to establish their independence from the Seleucid empire which first held control over the area. Greek rule of Bactria continued until about 165 BC when the Shakas destroyed the Bactrian kingdom. Greeks continued to rule, however, in southern Afghanistan and northwestern India for another 150 years. The most important of these kings was Menander, known as Milinda in Buddhist sources, who ruled about 115-90 BC. Buddhism had reached the area as a consequence of the missionaries which the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka had sent more than a century earlier.
Reference: http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/dharmadata/fdd65.htm 020320yd


Dharma Data: Milinda, King
Alexander the Great invaded India in 326 BC and after his death the territories he had conquered in what today is Afghanistan, Pakistan and north-west India were ruled by his heirs. The greatest of the Greek Indian Kings was Milinda, known in Greek sources as Menander, who ruled from about 163 to 150 BC. Menander was both an effective statesman and fine soldier and he greatly extended his empire into India. he also converted to Buddhism. Greeks living in India had probably adopted Buddhism before Milinda but he is the first western Buddhist about which we have definite information. See Milindapanha
Reference: http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/dharmadata/fdd66.htm 020320yd
Dharma Data: Milindapanha
A work composed in Pali that proports to be the record of a dialogue between the Buddhist monk Nagasena and the Greek King Milinda. Milinda asks a series of questions highlighting what seem to be anomalies and contradictions in Buddhist doctrine, to each of which Nagasena gives clear, even ingenious answers. The effectiveness of these answers is enhanced by the numerous similes and analogies that are included within them. Although there is no doubt that the two protagonists of the Milindapanha really existed and that they held discussions with each other, it is not a verbatim record of the discussions as such but a work of literature. Despite this, it may well have captured something of the personalities of the two men. Nagasena comes across as dignified but accessible, confident of his abilities to convince, intellectually alert, learned and witty. Milinda on the other hand, appears to be appears to be interested in Buddhism but by no means prepared to accept its tenets without good reasons. The Milindapanha is the most important book of Theravada Buddhist doctrine outside the Pali Tipitaka and is still widely studied. A translation of it is also included in the Chinese Tipitaka.
-58: Vikrama Samvat Era Hindu calendar begins.
-50: Kushana Empire begins (-50-220 ce). This Mongolian Buddhist dynasty rules most of the Indian subcontinent, Afghanistan and parts of Central Asia.
ca -10: Ilangovadikal, son of King Cheralathan of the Tamil Sangam age, writes the outstanding epic Silappathikaram, classical Tamil treatise on music and dance.
Western Calendar Begins. C.E. - Common Era
-4: Jesus of Nazareth (-4-30 ce), founder of Christianity, is born in Bethlehem (current Biblical scholarship).
10: World population is 170 million. India population is 35 million: 20.5% of world.
ca 50: South Indians occupy Funan, Indochina. Kaundinya, an Indian brahmin, is first king. Shaivism is the state religion.
53: Legend records Saint Thomas' death in Madras, one of the twelve Apostles of Christ and founder of the Church of the Syrian Malabar Christians (Syrian Rite) in Goa.
ca 60: Buddhism is introduced in China by Emperor Ming Di (reign: 58-76) after he converts to the faith. Brings two monks from India who erect temple at modern Honan.
ca 75: A Gujarat prince named Ajishaka invades Java.
78: Shaka Hindu calendar begins.
ca 80: Jains divide, on points of rules for monks, into the Shvetambara, "white-clad," and the Digambara, "sky-clad."
ca 80-180: Lifetime of Charaka. Court physician of the Kushan king, he formulates a code of conduct for doctors of ayurveda and writes Charaka Samhita, a manual of medicine.
ca 100: Lifetime of Shandilya, first systematic promulgator of the ancient Pancharatra doctrines, whose Bhakti Sutras, devotional aphorisms on Vishnu, inspire a Vaishnava renaissance. The Samhita of Shandilya and his followers, the Pancharatra Agama, embody the chief doctrines of present-day Vaishnavas. By the 10th century the popular sect leaves permanent mark on many Hindu schools.
100: Zhang Qian of China establishes trade routes to India and as far west as Rome, later known as the "Silk Roads."
105: Paper is invented in China.
117: The Roman Empire reaches its greatest extent.
125: Shatakarni (ca 106-130 reign) of Andhra's Satavahana
(-70-225) dynasty destroys Shaka kingdom of Gujarat.
ca 175: Greek astronomer Ptolemy, known as Asura Maya in India, explains solar astronomy, Surya Siddhanta, to Indian students of the science of the stars.
180: Mexican city of Teotihuacan has 100,000 population and covers 11 square miles. Grows to 250,000 by 500 ce.
ca 200: Lifetime of Lakulisha, famed guru who leads a reformist movement within Pashupata Saivism.
ca 200: Hindu kingdoms established in Cambodia and Malaysia.
205-270: Lifetime of Plotinus, Egyptian-born monistic Greek philosopher and religious genius who transforms a revival of Platonism in the Roman Empire into what present-day scholars call Neoplatonism, which greatly influences Islamic and European thought. He teaches ahimsa, vegetarianism, karma, reincarnation and belief in a Supreme Being, both immanent and transcendent.
ca 250: Pallava dynasty (ca 250-885) is established in Tamil Nadu, responsible for building Kailasa Kamakshi Temple complex at their capital of Kanchi and the great 7th-century stone monuments at Mahabalipuram.
ca 275: Buddhist monastery Mahavihara is founded in Anuradhapura, capital of Sri Lanka.
337 – Helena mother of Constantine travels to Jerusalem. Inspires building of Holy Cross Church at Jerusalem after demolishing a temple dedicated to Venus there because in a dream she saw that as the place of Jesus’s crucufixion. (ref : voi-srg-jc p 18).
350: Imperial Gupta dynasty (320-540) flourishes. During this "Classical Age" norms of literature, art, architecture and philosophy are established. This North Indian empire promotes Vaishnavism and Saivism and, at its height, rules or receives tribute from nearly all India. Buddhism also thrives under tolerant Gupta rule.
ca 350: Lifetime of Kalidasa, the great Sanskrit poet and dramatist, author of Shakuntala and Meghaduta. (The traditional date, offered by Prof. Subash Kak, is 50 bce.)
ca 350: Licchavi dynasty (ca 350-900) establishes Hindu rule in Nepal. Small kingdom becomes the major intellectual and commercial center between South and Central Asia.
358: Huns, excellent archers and horsemen possibly of Turkish origin, invade Europe from the East.
375: Maharaja Chandragupta II Vikramaditya, greatest Hindu monarch, reigns to 413, expanding the prosperous Gupta empire northward beyond the Indus River.
391: Roman Emperor Theodosius destroys Greek Hellenistic temples in favor of Christianity.
392: Christianity was made the state religion, and pagan temples were closed in Egypt. Ref: http://www.ewtn.com/new_evangelization/africa/history/countries1.htm#Egypt
ca 400: Laws of Manu (Manu Dharma Shastras) written. Its 2,685 verses codify cosmogony, four ashramas, government, domestic affairs, caste and morality (others date at -600).
ca 400: Polynesians sailing in open outrigger canoes reach as far as Hawaii and Easter Island.
ca 400: Shaturanga, Indian forerunner of chess, has evolved from Ashtapada, a board-based race game, into a four-handed war game played with a die. Later, in deference to the Laws of Manu, which forbid gambling, players discard the die and create Shatranj, a two-sided strategy game.
ca 400: Vatsyayana writes Kamasutra, famous text on erotics.
416: St Cyril is bishop in Alexandria, Egypt (now Coptic Church) when Christians kill non-Christian (pagan) mathematician Hypatia.
Reference: http://www.polyamory.org/~howard/Hypatia/Mangasarian.html
The Martyrdom of Hypatia (or The Death of the Classical World)
by Mangasar Magurditch Mangasarian
A speech given before the Independent Religious Society at the Majestic Theater in Chicago

Our subject this morning takes us to the city of Alexandria, one of the greatest intellectual centers in the days when Athens and Rome still ruled the world. The capital of Egypt received its name from the man who conceived and executed its design -- Alexander the Great. Under the Ptolemies, a line of Greek kings, Alexandria soon sprang into eminence, and, accumulating culture and wealth, became the most powerful metropolis of the Orient. Serving as the port of Europe, it attracted the lucrative trade of India and Arabia. Its markets were enriched with the gorgeous silks and fabrics from the bazaars of the Orient. Wealth brought leisure, and it, in turn, the arts. It became, in time, the home of a wonderful library and schools of philosophy, representing all the phases and the most delicate shades of thought. At one time it was the general belief that the mantle of Athens had fallen upon the shoulders of Alexandria.
But there was a stubborn and superstitious Oriental constituency in the city which would not blend with the foreign element -- namely, the Greeks and the Romans. This antagonism between the Egyptian born and the children of Hellas and Rome, who were Alexandrians only by adoption, was frequently the occasion of street riots, feuds, massacres, and civil wars.
In or about the year 400 A.D., Alexandria, which is today a third-rate Mohammedan town, enjoyed a population of 600,000 inhabitants. The city proper comprehended a circumference of fifteen miles. It enjoyed the distinction of being quite free from the curse of poverty. No beggars could be seen loitering in its streets. No one was idle, and work brought good wages. Such was the demand for labor that even the lame and the blind found suitable occupation. The Alexandrians understood the manufacture of papyrus, a kind of vegetable paper used extensively by the authors, and they knew how to blow glass and weave linen.
After its magnificent library, whose shelves supported a freight more precious than beaten gold, perhaps the most stupendous edifice in the town was the temple of Serapis. It is said that the builders of the famous temple of Eddessa boasted that they had succeeded in creating something which future generations would compare with the temple of Serapis in Alexandria. This ought to suggest an idea of the vastness and beauty of the Alexandrian Serapis, and the high esteem in which it was held. Historians and connoisseurs claim it was one of the grandest monuments of Pagan civilization, second only to the temple of Jupiter in Rome, and the inimitable Parthenon in Athens, which latter is certainly the best gem earth ever wore upon her zone.
The Serapis temple was built upon an artificial hill, the ascent to which was by a hundred steps. It was not one building, but a vast body of buildings, all grouped about a central one of vaster dimensions, rising on pillars of huge magnitude and graceful proportions. Some critics have advanced the idea that the builders of this masterpiece intended to make it a composite structure, combining the diverse elements of Egyptian and Greek art into a harmonious whole. The Serapion was regarded by the ancients as marking the reconciliation between the architects of the pyramids and the creators of the Athenian Acropolis. It represented to their minds the blending of the massive in Egyptian art with the grace and the loveliness of the Hellenic.
But the greatest attraction of this temple was the god Serapis himself, within the vaulted building. It is difficult for us to form an idea of his enormous proportions. He filled the house with his presence. He stretched his arms and took hold of the two walls, the one on his right and the other on his left. The artist had conceived, also, the idea of making the body of the god as all-embracing as his arms. He fused together all the then known metals -- gold, silver, copper, iron, tin, lead -- to create a substance fit to represent a god. He inlaid this multifarious composition with the rarest gems -- the most costly stones which the markets of the world offered. He polished them all until the colossal statue shone like a huge sapphire. Its exquisite tints and shades are said to have provoked the jealousy of the azure skies. For a crown, the god wore on his head a bushel, symbol of plentiful harvests. At his side, in silence, stood a three-headed animal with the forepart of a lion, a wolf, and a dog. The lion was meant to represent the present; the rapacious wolf symbolized the past -- the devoured past; while the dog, the faithful, friendly animal, stood for the future. Wound around the body of the god was a mammoth serpent, which, after its many turns and twists, returned to rest his head on the hand of the god. The sinuous serpent was meant to personate Time, whose mysterious birthplace, or birthday, has yet to be discovered.
Serapis, whose statue adorned the temple, was once the most popular god in the Orient. He was believed to be the source of the Nile, whose breasts he swelled until they poured their wealth upon the surrounding soil. As long as his eye remained open, the sun would shine, and the land would produce, and women would give birth. But if he should close his eye, life would became as a sere and sapless leaf. But Serapis was a stranger in Egypt. He was not an African by birth, but was imported from Sinope, on the Euxine. When he first made his appearance in the land of the Nile, the people -- the Alexandrians, especially -- rose up en masse and protested vehemently against the introduction of a foreign deity. Did they not have Osiris, the great god of their ancestors, and Isis, his consort -- the divine woman with her infant, Horus, sitting upon her knees? Why, then should a strange god be admitted to the throne or to the bed of Osiris and Isis? Did they not have their holy trinity, Osiris, Isis, and Horus -- father, mother, and child -- the best trinity ever conceived? But Ptolemy was king, and his will prevailed. He told them that Osiris had, in a dream, commanded him to accept Serapis as a new and well-beloved god, and he did not wish to do anything contrary to his dream.
In all this do we not see a similarity to the story about Jesus, and how his friends compelled solitary Jehovah to accept him as his son, and share with him the honors of divinity? We know how the people objected at first to Jesus, precisely as the Alexandrians did to Serapis, and how, finally, through dreams and miracles, Jesus, the new God, grew to be even more popular than the old one.
When Christianity gained the upper hand in Alexandria, it set its mind from the start upon destroying two of the principal monuments of its powerful rival, Paganism -- the library and the temple of Serapis. Let me at this juncture remind you that Alexandria, at a very early period, became one of the foremost strongholds of the Christian religion. Of the five capitols of the new faith -- Jerusalem, Constantinople, Carthage, Alexandria, Rome -- Alexandria at one time led Constantinople, and was not second even to Rome. What was said about Christianity being essentially an Asiatic philosophy is confirmed, it seems to me, by this additional fact; that out of five of its greatest centres four were in the Orient. It felt more at home in Asia and Africa than in Europe. A still stronger confirmation of the affinity between Asia and Christianity is the fact that as soon as the Roman Empire became Christian it shifted its capital from Europe to Asia, from Rome to Constantinople. The first Christian emperor, Constantine, impelled, as it were, by the logic of his new religion, left Rome to take up his residence on the Bosphorus, which washed the shores of the continent that had cradled Christianity. For a ruler who coveted absolute power, who feared democracy, who hated liberty and who preferred stagnation of thought to the movement of ideas, who desired slaves for subjects, Asia was the more suitable place. Without wishing to offend anyone, I must say that Christianity was more Asiatic than Paganism, and the Orient was better fitted to be the home of political and religious absolutism than the occident. Christianity, as the religion of meekness and obedience, had irresistible attractions for Constantine. He not only embraced it, but he went to dwell as close to where its cradle had swung as he could.
It is not the fault of Christianity that the Asiatic is servile, but the fault of the Asiatic that Christianity is so supple and submissive. It is not so much religion that makes the character of a people, as it is the people who determine the character of their religion. Religion is only the resume of the national ideas, thoughts, and character. Religion is nothing but an expression. It is not, for instance, the word or the language which creates the idea, but the idea which provokes the word into existence. In the same way religion is only the expression of a people's mentality. And yet a man's religion or philosophy, while it is but the product of his own mind, exerts a reflex influence upon his character. The child influences the parent, of whom it is the offspring; language affects thought, of which, originally, it was but the tool. So it is with religion. The Christian religion, as soon as it got into power, turned the world about. It struck at the Roman Empire, and grabbing everything it could lay its hands on -- the sceptre, the sword, the imperial diadem, the throne -- it walked away with them to Asia. We could never ask for a more eloquent defense of the position that Christianity is Asiatic than is found in this historic transfer of the seat of power from Europe to Asia, from Rome to Constantinople.
Now, naturally enough, a religion which combats the culture and traditions of European life in Europe, will not tolerate them in Asia. Do we understand this point? If it seeks to down European thought in Europe, how much more will it seek to expel it from Asia? If it persecutes Socrates, Plato, Cicero, and Seneca in Europe, it cannot, of course, tolerate them in Asia. Christianity tried to destroy all the monuments of Paganism in Rome, in free and proud Rome; could it, then, leave them standing in Alexandria, in Constantinople, or in Antioch? On the contrary, in Asia, which is her proper home, the seat of her power, and with the Emperor transferred to Constantinople, Christianity became more aggressive against Paganism and civilization than even in Europe. Religion, like everything else, is consistent as long as it is young and virile, and Christianity in the early centuries was both young and virile, and therefore logical. Changing slightly the great words of Shakespeare, we might say:
There is a logic which shapes our ends
Rough hew them as we may.
We wonder sometimes that a Japanese gentleman or an Arab, or a Siamese, who has never mingled with Europeans or Americans, should think as we do, or exhibit the polite manners of occidental races. There are those who refuse to believe that a Pagan, living three thousand years ago, could possess the very virtues which we prize today. The sectarian who believes that only people of the size and calibre of his creed can be good, is at a loss to explain the universality of culture and virtue. This is explained by his inability to perceive that there is a logic in the development of the human being which brings about the same results the world over -- before Christ, and after. Let us appreciate this truth. How can a Moslem or a Jew or a Pagan be as good as a Christian? By a law of nature and evolution the ripened human fruit is the same the world over. If only Mohammedanism or Christianity or Judaism possessed the power to make men good, then there would be no morality outside these religions. But history contradicts so sweeping a conclusion. There is a logic, we repeat, in the culture of the mind which makes a Trajan, who was a Pagan, as sweet and sane as a Washington, who was born in a Christian era, or the Chinese Confucius, as noble and independent as the French Voltaire. I say there is a universality in the evolution of man, before which all sectarian pretenses and conceits are like chaff for the wind to sport with. And we cannot be really large-minded, nor can we read history and philosophy aright, until we appreciate the power of the logic which shapes our ends "rough hew them as we may."
The transference of the capital of the world and the seat of authority from Europe to Asia was not an accident. It was a logical step. Christianity, to be consistent, had to break up housekeeping in Europe and move its menage from Rome to Constantinople. She was homesick for the climate, the atmosphere, the peoples, the traditions, the spirit, the institutions -- the milieu in which she was born. Unable to assimilate western ideas, she pined for Asia. By the same logic, she wished to wipe out in Asia every trace of European thought and culture. When, therefore, we read of the destruction of Pagan schools, libraries, and monuments, let us not look upon such acts as accidents in the history of Christianity, but as the logical unfolding of its genius. Why, you may ask, does it no longer pursue the policy of extermination? For the best of reasons; it is no longer virile enough to be logical. It has stumbled into the ways of inconsistency by reason of old age. Fifteen hundred years ago, in Alexandria, when our religion was both young and lusty, it attempted to, and succeeded in, destroying everything that reminded the world of the glory and liberty of ancient Rome and Greece.
Theodosius was at the time, of which we will now speak, the Christian ruler of the Empire. In reply to a request by the Archbishop of Alexandria, he sent a sentence of destruction against the ancient religion of Egypt. Both the Pagans and the Christians had assembled in the public square to hear the reading of the Emperor's letter, and when the Christians learned that they may destroy the gods of the Pagans, a wild shout of joy rent the air. The disappointed Pagans, on the other hand, realizing the danger of their position, silently slipped into their homes through dark alleys and hidden passage-ways. Yet they did not stand aside and see the temples of their gods razed to the ground without first offering a desperate resistance. Under the leadership of a zealot, Olympus, the Pagans fell upon the Christians, maddened with the cry in their ears of their leader, "Let us die with our gods!" Then came the turn of the Christians. Theophilius, the Archbishop of Alexandria, with a cross in his hand, and followed by his monks, marched upon the temple of Serapis, and proceeded to pull its pillars down. When they came to strike at the colossal statue of the god, for centuries worshiped as a deity, even the Christians turned pale with superstitious awe, and held their breath. A soldier armed with a heavy axe, was hesitating to strike the first blow. Will the god tolerate the insult? Will he not crash the roof upon the heads of the sacrilegious vandals? But the soldier struck the thundering blow right in the cheeks of Serapis, who offered no remonstrance whatever. The sun shone as usual, and the laws of nature maintained their even pace. Encouraged by this indifference of the god to defend himself, the Christian rabble rushed upon the statue, and pulling Serapis off his seat, dragged him in pieces through the streets of Alexandria that the Pagans might behold the disgrace into which their great god had fallen. Thousands of Pagans, seeing how helpless their gods were to avenge this insult, deserted Paganism and joined the Christians. As soon as the ground of the temple was sufficiently cleared, a church was erected on the ancient site. The Alexandrian library was the next point of attack. Its shelves were soon cleared, and you and I, and twenty centuries, were most lamentably deprived of the intellectual treasures which our Greek and Roman forefathers had bequeathed unto us.
When the archbishop under whose influence the monuments and libraries of Pagan civilization were pillaged and pulled down died, he was succeeded by his nephew, St. Cyril, who was even more Asiatic in his sympathies and more hostile to European thought than his uncle, Theophilius. The new archbishop directed his efforts against the living monuments of Paganism -- the scholars, the poets, the philosophers -- the men and women who still cherished a passionate regard for the culture and civilization of the Pagan world. The most illustrious representative of Greco-Roman culture in Alexandria about this time was Hypatia, the gifted daughter of Theon, a mathematician and a philosopher of considerable renown. It is said that Theon would have come down to us as a great man had not his daughter's fame eclipsed his.
Hypatia was a remarkably gifted woman. Her example demonstrates how all difficulties yield to a strong will. Being a girl, and excluded by the conventions of the time from intellectual pursuits, she could have given many reasons why she should leave philosophy to stronger and freer minds. But she had an all-compelling passion for the life of the mind, which overcame every obstacle that interfered with her purpose. The example of a young woman conquering tremendous difficulties, and becoming the undisputed queen of an intellectual empire, ought to be a great inspiration to us faint hearts. She won the prize which was denied her sex, and became "the glory of her age and the wonder of ours."
To pursue her studies, she persuaded her father to send her to Athens, where her earnest work, her devotion to philosophy, the readiness with which she sacrificed all her other interests to the cultivation of her mind, earned for herself the laurel wreath which the university of Athens conferred only upon the foremost of its pupils. Hypatia wore this wreath whenever she appeared in public, as her best ornament. Upon her return to Alexandria, she was elected president of the Academy, which at this period was the rendezvous of the leading minds of the East and West. In fact, it was in this academy that the effort of the advanced thinkers to bring about a pacification between the culture of Europe and that of Asia originated. They wished to make Alexandria, situated midway between the occident and the orient, the point of confluence of the two streams of civilization. They wished to celebrate the marriage of the East as bride to the West as bridegroom. It was their plan to make Alexandria a sort of intellectual distillery, refining and fusing the two civilizations into one. But this amalgamation -- this assimilation -- Christianity, alas, helped to prevent by bringing into still bolder relief the Asiatic habits of mind, and by refusing to concede an inch to the larger spirit of the West. Christianity is responsible for the miscarriage which has ever since left Asia a widow, or, to change the simile, a withered branch upon the tree of civilization. Christianity broke the link which scholarship and humanity were trying to forge between Europe and Asia. The world has never since been one as it came near being under the Roman Empire.
Cyril, the Archbishop of Alexandria, persuaded himself that Hypatia's good name and talents were giving the cause of Paganism a dangerous prestige, and thereby preventing the progress of the new faith. Hypatia was indeed a great power in Alexandria. She was the most popular personage in the city. When she appeared in her chariot on the streets people threw flowers at her, applauded her gifts, and cried, "Long live the daughter of Theon." Poets called her the "Virgin of Heaven," "the spotless star," "of highest speech the flower." Judging by the chronicles of the times, it appears that her beauty, which would have made even a Cleopatra jealous, was as great as her modesty, and both were matched by her eloquence, and all three surpassed by her learning.
Her beauty did astonish the survey of eyes,
Her words all ears took captive.
Her renown as a lecturer on philosophy brought students from Rome and Athens, and all the great cities of the empire, to Alexandria. It was one of the great events of each day to flock to the hall in the academy where Hypatia explained Plato and Aristotle. Cyril, the Asiatic archbishop, passing frequently the house of Hypatia, and seeing the long train of horses, litters, and chariots which had brought a host of admirers to the female philosopher's shrine, conceived a terrible hatred for this Pagan girl. He did not relish her popularity. Her learning was rubbish to him. Her charms, temptations for the ruin of man. He hated her because she, a frail woman, dared to be free and to think for herself. He argued in his mind that she was competing with Christianity, taking away from Christ the homage which belonged to him. With Hypatia out of the way the people would turn to God, and give him the love and honor which they were wasting upon her. She was robbing God of his rights, and she must fall; for He is a jealous God. Such was the reasoning of Cyril, whom the Church has canonized.
Moreover, Orestes, the Prefect of Alexandria, respected Hypatia, and was a constant attendant at her lectures. Cyril believed that she influenced the Prefect and tainted him with her Paganism. With Hypatia crushed, Orestes would be more responsive to Christian influences. Ah, it is a cruel story which I am about to unfold. Generally speaking, if a man is jealous and small, no religion can make him sweet; and if he is generous and pure-minded, no superstition can altogether poison the springs of his love. Religion is strong, but nature is stronger. Unfortunately Cyril was a barbarian, and the doctrines of his religion only sharpened his claws and whipped his passion into a rage.
If we were living in those days we would have witnessed at the close of each day, when both sea and sky blush with the departing kiss of the sun, Hypatia mounting her chariot to ride to the academy, where she is announced to speak on some philosophical subject. She is followed by many enthusiastic and devoted admirers impatient to catch her eye. She is nodding to her friends on her right and on her left. She, who refused lovers that she may love philosophy, is not insensible to the appreciation of her pupils. Approaching the academy, she dismounts, ascends the white marble steps and enters by the door, on either side of which sit two silent sphinxes. As we follow her into the hall, we see that it is lighted by numerous swinging lamps filled with perfumed oil; the rotunda of the ceiling has been embellished by a Greek artist, with figures of Jupiter and his divine companions, who appear to be rapt in the words which fall from his lips. The walls have been decorated by Egyptian artists, with pictures of the sacred animals, the crocodile, the cat, the cow, and the dog; and with sacred vegetables, the onion, the lotus, and the laurel. Besides these there is a scene on the walls representing the marriage of Osiris and Isis. On an elevated platform is a divan in purple velvet, and upon a little table is placed the silver statue of Minerva, goddess of wisdom and patron of Hypatia. Behind the table sits the philosophic young woman dressed in a robe of white, fastened about her throat and waist by a band of pearls, and carrying upon her brow the laurel crown which Athens had decreed to her. A musical murmur sweeps over the audience as she rises to her feet. But in a moment all is silent again save the throbbing and trembling of Hypatia's silvery voice. She speaks in Greek, the language of thought and beauty, of the ancient world. Alas! this is her last appearance at the academy. Tomorrow that hall will be a tomb. Tomorrow Minerva will be childless. When Hypatia's listeners bade her farewell on that evening they did not know that within a few hours they would all become orphans.
The next morning, when Hypatia appeared in her chariot in front of her residence, suddenly five hundred men, all dressed in black and cowled, five hundred half-starved monks from the sands of the Egyptian desert -- five hundred monks, soldiers of the cross -- like a black hurricane, swooped down the street, boarded her chariot, and, pulling her off her seat, dragged her by the hair of her head into a -- how shall I say the word? -- into a church! Some historians intimate that the monks asked her to kiss the cross, to become a Christian and join the nunnery, if she wished her life spared. At any rate, these monks, under the leadership of St. Cyril's right-hand man, Peter the Reader, shamefully stripped her naked, and there, close to the alter and the cross, scraped her quivering flesh from her bones with oystershells. The marble floor of the church was sprinkled with her warm blood. The alter, the cross, too, were bespattered, owing to the violence with which her limbs were torn, while the hands of the monks presented a sight too revolting to describe. The mutilated body, upon which the murderers feasted their fanatic hate, was then flung into the flames.
Oh! is there a blacker deed in human annals? When has another man or woman been so inhumanly murdered? Has politics, has commerce, has cannibalism even committed a more cruel crime? The cannibal pleads hunger to cover his cruelty -- what excuse had Hypatia's murderers? Even Joan of Arc was more fortunate in her death than this daughter of Paganism! Beautiful woman! murdered by men who were not worthy to touch the hem of thy garment! And to think that this happened in a church -- a Christian church!
I have seen the frost bite the flower; I have watched the spider trap the fly; I have seen the serpent spring upon the bird! And yet I love nature! But I will never enter a church nor profess a religion which can commit such a deed against so lovable a woman. No, not even if I were offered as a bribe eternal life! If, O priests and preachers! instead of one hell, there were a thousand, and each hell more infernal than your creeds describe, yet I would sooner they would all swallow me up, and feast their insatiable lust upon my poor bones for ever and ever, than lend countenance or support to an institution upon which history has fastened the indelible stigma of Hypatia's murder!
I wish I could live a thousand years to admire the noble spirit and delight in the courage and beauty of this brave martyr of Philosophy, Hypatia! O that my voice were strong enough to reach the ends of the world! I would then summon all independent minds to join with me in a hymn of praise to that incomparable woman, who has joined the choir invisible and
Whose music is the gladness of the world.
Honor and love to beautiful Hypatia! Pity to the monks who killed her! A delicious feeling of satisfaction, like a warm sunshine on a wintry day, spreads over me as I contemplate the privilege I am enjoying of vindicating her memory against her assassins. Fortune has smiled upon me in selecting me as one of her defenders. I congratulate myself on having both the heart and the head to weep over her sad fate. And I tremble and shrink, as from a paralyzing nightmare, when I think that, under different circumstances, I might still have a minister of the Church whose hands are, after fifteen hundred years, still unwashed of her innocent blood. The thought overpowers me; I labor for breath. But I am free. O joy, O rapture! I am free to speak the truth about Hypatia. Let the clergy praise Peter and Paul, St. Cyril and St. Theophilius. I give my heart to thee, thou glorious victim of superstition!
If we, of this present generation, are responsible for Adam's sin, and deserve the penalties of his disobedience, as the clergy say we do, then the Church of today is responsible for Hypatia's fate. How will they take this practical application of their own dogma? It will not do for them to say: "We wash our hands clean of St. Cyril's sin"; for if Adam can, by his remote act, expose us all to damnation, so shall Bishop Cyril's dark deed cleave for ever unto the religion which his followers profess. Yet, let the Church people apologize, and we shall forgive them; but no apology short of discarding this Asiatic slave-creed, which in the Old Testament stoned the free thinker to death, and in the New pronounces him a "heathen and a publican," will satisfy the ends of justice.
I have intimated, by the wording of my subject, that it was a classic world which was murdered in the person of one of its last and noblest representatives, Hypatia. Hypatia embodied in her life and teaching, the proud spirit, the beauty, the culture, and the sanity of Greece. With her, fell Greece; fell the intellectual world from her eminence.
Then followed the nearly ten centuries of Egyptian darkness, which settling over Europe, paralyzed all initiative. During the thousand years in which the spirit of St. Cyril and his Church managed, with undisputed sway, the affairs of religion and the State, night folded to its sterile bosom our orphaned humanity, and the chains of slavery were upon every mind. A cloud of dust rising heaven-high choked the flow and dried up the fountains which had, in the days of Pericles and Antoninus, poured forth a world of living waters. The barren and lumbering theology of the Church crowded out the Muses from their earthly walks, and the world became a prison after having been the home of man. One by one the great lights went out; Athens was no more, Rome was dead. The bloom had vanished from the face of the earth, and in its place there fell upon it the awful shadow of a future hell.
Symonds, in his "The Greek Poets," says that while Cyril's mobs were dismembering Hypatia, the Greek authors went on creating, "Musaeus sang the lamentable death of Leander, and Nonnus was perfecting a new and more polished form of the hexameter." These authors, ignorant that the Asiatic superstition had destroyed their world, or that they had themselves been stabbed to death -- like one who has been shot, but whose wound is still warm, and who does not know that he has but a few more breaths to draw -- kept on singing their song. But their song was, indeed, the "very swan's notes" of the classical world. "With the story of Hero and Leander, that immortal love poem, the Muse," says the same author, "took her final farewell of her beloved Hellas."
After a thousand years of night, when the world awoke from her sleep, the first song it sang was the last long of the dying Pagan world. This is wonderfully strange. In the year 1493, when the Renaissance ushered in a new era, the first book brought out in Europe was the last book written in Alexandria by a Pagan. It was the poem of Hero and Leander. The new world resumed the golden thread where the old world had lost it. The severed streams of thought and beauty met again into one current, and began to sing and shine as it rushed forth once more, as in the days of old. A Greek poem was the last product of the Pagan world; the same Greek poem was the first product of the new and renascent world.
Between the dying and reviving Pagan world was the Christian Church -- that is to say, ten dark centuries.
If Greece and Rome made art, poetry, philosophy, sculpture, the drama, oratory, beauty, (and) liberty classical, (then) Christianity the Syrian, Asiatic cult made for nearly fifteen hundred years persecution, religious wars, massacres, theological feuds and bloodshed, heresy huntings and heretic burnings, prisons, dungeons, anathemas, curses, opposition to science, hatred of liberty, spiritual bondage, the life without love or laughter, a classic!
But the dawn is in the sky, and it is daybreak everywhere!
We are reasonably confident that never again will this religion, born and bred in Asia, command sufficient influence over the minds of modern men to burn or murder the intellectual aristocrats, the daily beauty of whose lives makes the ugliness of superstition so very noticeable. What a difference there would have been in our attitude toward the Christian Church, if, instead of fearing the thinker and the inquirer, and persecuting him with a hatred too awful to contemplate, it had opened both its arms to welcome him with affection and gratitude! But the "divine" is always jealous of the human. Hypatia eclipsed the glory of God. She was murdered because only "the poor in spirit" -- the intellectual babes, are the elect of Heaven.
It is good news, however, that while the Church may still exclude the mental giants from the world to come, it can no longer exclude them from the world that now is!

Bibliographic information:
· Mangasar Mugurditch Mangasarian 1859-1943, Mangasarian's lectures Chicago : s.n., 1912-1919 (v. ; 22 cm) Series: Rationalist (Independent Religious Society of Chicago), v. 1-4
· Mangasar Mugurditch Mangasarian 1859-1943, "The martyrdom of Hypatia, or, The death of the classical world.", The Rationalist, May 1915

Text entry by someone who wishes to remain anonymous, from The Rationalist. HTML conversion by Howard A. Landman.

Howard A. Landman / howard@polyamory.org
Created 1996 April 10
Last updated 1999 April 29


http://www.polyamory.org/~howard/Hypatia/

o The Life of Hypatia from The Suda. This is the first ever English translation of this important source.
o The Life of Hypatia by Socrates Scholasticus. This biography tells the story of her murder.
o The Life of Hypatia by John, Bishop of Nikiu. This Christian writer spoke with approval of the murder of Hypatia because "she was devoted at all times to magic, astrolabes, and instruments of music."
o http://www.polyamory.org/~howard/Hypatia/primary-sources.html

1) Treasures of the Alexandrian Library - By John P. Mater
Reference: http://www.theosophy-nw.org/theosnw/world/general/rel-jvm.htm
2) Revival of the Alexandrian Library - By Paul Johnson
Reference: http://www.theosophy-nw.org/theosnw/world/med/me-pjoh.htm
3) Alexandrias's Beacon against the Dark - By I. M. Oderberg
Reference: http://www.theosophy-nw.org/theosnw/world/med/me-imo3.htm






Reference: http://www.theosophy-nw.org/theosnw/world/general/rel-jvm.htm

Treasures of the Alexandrian Library
By John P. Mater
The concert of reincarnation enhances our understanding of history. Like pictures viewed through a stereoscope we suddenly see them in spectacular new depths. In a similar fashion reincarnation helps us comprehend the nature of civilizations, the stages of their development, and the causes of their decline.
For any age is the souls that are incarnated in it and the karma they are working out. The golden age of Greece in the time of Pericles was magnificent because of the great men and women then living. Without these creative individuals there would not have been an Age of Pericles. Similarly, when a nation, empire, or city becomes wealthy and powerful and its citizens no longer have to strive for their liberties or even for their livelihood, other souls begin to incarnate, softer, more effete. In time the civilization loses its virility and sinks into obscurity, or it may be overrun by a race or nation often less civilized than itself, whose cycle or karma is on its rise to power -- generally at the expense of its contemporaries. In such times the wide avenues and halls of learning and art ring with the hoarse cries of the destroyers, and the accumulated wisdom of centuries is burned. Yet, in the throes of its decline the Alexandrian flowering achieved a new birth, like Phoenix rising from the ashes.
The collection of manuscripts at Alexandria was probably the largest in the western world until the invention of printing, though there may have been even larger libraries in India and China during the many flowerings that marked their long and glorious civilizations. As for the New World, Diego de Landa, Bishop of Yucatan, speaks of the Mayan manuscripts he burned as creations of the devil, thus rendering voiceless the true genius of this great people at the height of their accomplishments.
The story of Alexandria should properly begin with Philip of Macedonia, father of Alexander the Great. In a series of campaigns Philip unified for the first time in history the various Greek city-states, which for centuries had warred continuously with one another. After creating the Hellenic League he turned his eyes towards Persia, the Greeks' traditional enemy. Xerxes had burned Athens in 480 B.C. and stolen its library. But Philip was unable to fulfill his desire to conquer Persia, for he was assassinated by one of his own courtiers. When Alexander at 20 years of age succeeded to the throne in 336 B.C., he defeated the Persians, first at the Dardenelles not far from legendary Troy, and later at Issus in Asia Minor. He then liberated the Greek kingdoms along the coast of the Mediterranean and, continuing southward, subjugated Egypt. Working his way eastward, he again defeated the Persians at Arbella. Then he took Babylon, Susa, and finally Persepolis, capital of the Persian empire, burning the marvelous palaces surrounding the city. Such was the revenge of the Greeks.
Continuing eastward toward India, Alexander made war against Chandragupta, founder of the Maurya dynasty, whose empire was even larger than his own. After occupying a portion of India bordering the Indus River, he turned back, reaching Babylon in 323 B.C. Soon after, in the midst of plans to conquer Arabia, he died of the fever.
Upon the death of Alexander three dynasties emerged, descending from three of his generals. The Antigonids, who ruled over Macedonia and Greece, was the most short-lived and soon became attached to the expanding Roman empire. Seleucus, the youngest and strongest of the generals, became ruler of the largest part of Alexander's empire, stretching from the Mediterranean Sea to India. Seleucus built many cities, among them what was perhaps the most beautiful in the ancient world -- Antioch. Founded in 300 B.C., it endured for over a thousand years. The Seleucid dynasty can be dated from 312 to 65 B.C., when it was annexed by Pompey, the Roman general. Five months after Alexander's death, his childhood friend, General Ptolemy took over the province of Egypt.
The Nile River as it flows through the enormous Delta seeks several channels leading to the Mediterranean Sea. Alexandria is located on the westernmost of these. Alexander had personally chosen the site for the city which bears his name, traced the boundaries and pointed out where temples and public works should be located; but he did not live to see a single structure rise, for when he resumed his conquests he never returned. He had charged Dinocrates with building a magnificent city and improving the harbor. From the outset Alexandria was a city of stone and marble. Underneath were cisterns connecting with the Nile, which provided water for domestic use. Eventually there were enormous docks and warehouses along the harbor; boulevards 100 feet wide intersected one another, with side streets wide enough for chariots. A good deal of work must have been accomplished even during the short interval before Alexander's death.
Ptolemy I was an able general, diplomat, and ruler, yet his other claims to fame are even more significant. Between 300 and 290 B.C. he founded the Museum and the great Library. In this he was advised by the erudite and gifted Demetrios of Phaleron, who had come to Ptolemy seeking asylum, was made welcome and later put in charge of the Library. He was devoted to Athens and his influence no doubt strengthened in Ptolemy a desire to make of Alexandria a second Athens (The early rulers of Egypt were called Pharaoh -- ruler or king. The name Ptolemy supplanted the title pharaoh, as a succession of Ptolemies became kings of Egypt. There were in all 14 Ptolemies, the last being the son of Caesar and Cleopatra, Caesarion, murdered at age 17 by order of Augustus in 30 B.C. Thereafter Egypt became a Roman province.).
Ptolemy brought the body of Alexander to Egypt and housed it in a magnificent tomb which appears to have been on display throughout the kingships of the Ptolemies. But when the forces of destruction ran rampant through the streets, it was somehow dismantled, removed, hidden, or perhaps destroyed so that its whereabouts are still a mystery. Possibly the renovation of Alexandria* will help fill in some of the gaps in history. (*Cf. Paul Johnson, "Revival of the Alexandrian Library," SUNRISE, April/May 1989).
Ptolemy II called Philadelphus, who reigned from 283 to 246 B.C., is considered the most gifted of the Ptolemies. Off the shores of Alexandria was an island called Pharos, mentioned centuries before by Homer in his Odyssey (IV: 355). A spit of land had been laid down linking Pharos with Alexandria and creating an outer and an inner harbor. Philadelphus decided to build a lighthouse on Pharos, and about 270 B.C. a splendid one was constructed 140 meters (460 ft) in height. This mighty structure remained until the 13th century A.D., a span of some 1,600 years, when it was destroyed by an earthquake (The word pharos eventually acquired the meaning "lighthouse," French phare, Italian and Spanish fero; sometimes pharos is used in English to designate a ship's lantern).
Another achievement of Philadelphus was the sending of an embassy to Jerusalem, to the high priest Eleazar, asking if he would lend to Alexandria the manuscript of the Old Testament, and to send six scholars from each of the twelve tribes of Israel. In due course, according to the story, the 72 scholars arrived and were given quarters on Pharos. In 72 days they produced a Greek translation of the Old Testament, which was called Septuagint -- 70 in round numbers -- in memory of the 72 scholars and the 72-day task they had accomplished.
An interesting custom adopted by the early Ptolemies was to search ships that entered the harbor. If manuscripts were found that were not in the library collection, the vessel would be held in port until a copy could be made -- a form of highway robbery!
As time went by, Alexandria divided into ethnic sections. The native Egyptian quarter housed the Serapeum, one of the most majestic buildings of the ancient world. There Greek and Egyptian devotees met in common worship. A second part of the city was called the Brucheion, the Greek-Macedonian quarter, which included the offices of government and the mausoleum of Alexander. Above all, it contained the great Museum and Library. There were other adjuncts to this huge complex, such as the theater for lectures and performances, and the palaces of the Ptolemaic kings. The third section of Alexandria consisted of the large Jewish quarter, which had its Sanhedrin (council).
The city was pictured by a classic writer in the 3rd century as "a universal nurse; every race of men did settle there"; Greeks from every part of the Mediterranean, Syrians, Arabs, Babylonians, Assyrians, Medes, and Persians. There also were Carthaginians, Romans, Gauls, and Iberians. The intellectual life was similarly diversified: scholars, priests, and philosophers of every conceivable affiliation. Merchants, tradesmen from throughout the known world came and went. There were also workmen, laborers, and a horde of governmental and private slaves. By the beginning of the 1st century A.D. the population of Alexandria is estimated at one million.
The late George Sarton, professor of history at Harvard University, described the Museum as occupying several large buildings equipped for various scientific purposes, much like a research institute today, with an astronomical observatory, and rooms for physiological and medical experiments. There were also botanical gardens and a zoological collection. The members lived together like the tutors or Fellows of a medieval college.
Some of the greatest figures in Greek science at one time or another visited or worked in the Museum and Library. Eratosthenes was chief librarian from 228-196 B.C. under Ptolemy III. He was an omnivorous scholar and scientist, delving into mathematics, astronomy, geography, philosophy, and also literature. Among other accomplishments, he calculated the circumference of the earth. Contrary to popular opinion, he and many of his colleagues recognized that the earth and the other planets traveled around the sun. In the same century the great geometrician Euclid brought his genius to the Museum as did Aristarchus of Samos who wrote upon the sizes and distances of the sun and moon, while Aratos of Soloi (Soli) named the constellations. The famous Archimedes, although a resident of Syracuse, discussed physics, geometry, and mathematics with the savants of the Museum. Apollonius of Perga was sent to Alexandria; and there he wrote his Elements and his 8-volume work on conic sections; also his theory of epicycles to account for the motions of the planets which appear at times to move retrograde. Specialists in all these fields and many more frequented the Museum in the course of its long and brilliant history.
The chief activity of the Library, aside from preserving, copying, repairing, and cataloguing the scrolls, was to compare the texts of the great works on drama, history, fiction, poetry, etc., from most ancient times; also more recent works by contemporary poets, dramatists, and philosophers of Greece and elsewhere. These were in many languages, but an effort was made to render them into Alexandrian Greek. Meticulous scholarship characterized the Alexandrian Library. There were also lectures on a wide variety of topics, for the librarians were not merely cataloguers and custodians, but full-fledged philologists, and the manuscripts that have survived show their erudition. Aristophanes of Byzantium, one of the most distinguished critics and grammarians, formulated rules for punctuation and capitalization, which up to that time had been hit or miss. He became head of the Library upon the death of Eratosthenes in 195 B.C.
Over the centuries Alexandria became the crossroads of the world. Scriptures from many lands found their way into the Library, while Egyptian or Pharaonic beliefs remained influential. Zoroastrian texts were there, for Egypt had been a Persian satrapy from 525-332 B.C., and many Persian ideas must have taken root. Undoubtedly there were texts from as far away as the Orient, with which there were trade relations. There was a commingling of cultures. Gymnosophists, the "naked philosophers" of India, were also present, as were Jewish beliefs and the ideas of the Babylonian Magi.
Among the Greeks and perhaps other nations as well, science and the arts were part of the Lesser Mysteries, which included teaching and discipline. The science of architecture was well understood, and in the Museum and Library of Alexandria this and other subjects were discussed openly, though the details were not broadcast, nor are they found in the literature of the times. The same secrecy was undoubtedly enforced elsewhere in both Occident and Orient, yet the high level of expertise in applied science, architecture, and art supports the view that there existed among the ancients hidden sources of knowledge. In the Greater Mysteries, according to tradition, the candidate who was considered ready by the hierophants, was led stage by stage, first to an awareness of his higher self or inner god, and finally through his own strength and perception to bring to birth the god within him.
There were a number of secret and semi-secret organizations in Egypt and the Near East, such as the Essene communities and the early Gnostics. One can only speculate to what extent the Mysteries were active in the Library and Museum; most certainly they were an important although esoteric aspect of the Alexandrian experience. H. P. Blavatsky in her Secret Doctrine refers to the initiates at Alexandria (II:574), and to Gnostics "divulging the secret of initiations" at that center (I: 416).
With the decline of the Mysteries the vitality of the Library and Museum diminished, and the Roman civilization soon swept over the Mediterranean world and most of Asia Minor. The Christian movement was also in the offing, and the Roman republic was about to give way to the rule of the Caesars. In 48 B.C. Julius Caesar visited Egypt where he met Cleopatra. During his stay there was an uprising among the Macedonian troops and others protesting his presence. Caesar retaliated by burning the Egyptian fleet in the harbor. Unfortunately the fire spread to the docks and warehouses, and thousands of manuscripts were accidentally burned. He returned to Rome where he was assassinated in 44 B.C.
Later Antony came to Egypt. Since Pergamon had been incorporated into the Roman empire, its library of some 200,000 scrolls was given by Antony to Alexandria to compensate for the accidental burning by Caesar. In 37 B.C. Antony joined Cleopatra in Alexandria. A split developed between Antony and Octavian resulting in a sea battle in 31 B.C. in which Antony was defeated, whereupon he returned to Egypt where he and Cleopatra took their own lives (Cleopatra had a son by Julius Caesar, and two sons and a daughter by Antony. The tragic fate of these offspring illustrates graphically the cruelty that invariably accompanies the surge of empire). Now Octavian, taking the name Augustus, became the first of a long line of Roman emperors called Caesars.
The activities at Alexandria continued for some centuries, but on a declining scale. The dawning Christian movement became organized: several churches sprang up in the city, which eventually became the diocese of Christian bishops. The new religion did not look kindly upon so-called pagan activities. Under the Emperor Aurelian in the 3rd century A.D. the greater part of the Museum and Library were destroyed. Books were packed into the Serapeum for safe keeping, but eventually (400 A.D.) these too suffered a similar fate by order of Theophilus, Bishop of Alexandria. There were riots and in 415 A.D. the brilliant Hypatia, last head of the Library-Museum complex, was brutally murdered. The treasures of the Library, Museum, and Serapeum were open to pillage. The final destruction took place in 642 A.D. when the Arabs conquered Egypt and eventually, it is reported, used what was left of the Library to heat the baths.
Meanwhile, about the beginning of the 3rd century A.D. a remarkable man, Ammonius Saccas, founder of Neoplatonism, began to teach. His best known and perhaps greatest pupil was Plotinus, who was in Alexandria in 205 A.D. Plotinus wrote some powerful treatises based upon the precepts of his teacher. He gained wide popularity and in his later years taught at Rome. Following Plotinus came others, such as Porphyry, Amelius, Synesius, and Iamblichus. Neoplatonism had a broadening influence on some of the fathers of the Church, such as Origen who, according to Porphyry, had attended the classes of Ammonius Saccas. The last great Neoplatonist was Proclus, who taught at Athens and headed the Academy until his death in 485 A.D.
Neoplatonism was indeed a Platonic philosophy in that it researched into first principles. But it contained another element: it sought not merely to give man clear knowledge, but encouraged him to enter into a loftier state of consciousness, which Plotinus termed ecstasy, defining it as "the flight of the soul towards God, on whom it gazes face to face and alone" (Dictionary of Christian Biography, IV, "Neoplatonism," an excellent article on Plotinus by J. R. Mozeley. See also Plotinus, Enneads VI. 9. 11).
Like Phoenix rising from the ashes, Neoplatonism had a profound influence, coming as it did near the end of the Alexandrian cycle and amid sometimes violent chaos. Three centuries later Proclus expounded this doctrine to quite a following at the Academy in Athens, the home of philosophy, founded by Plato nearly a thousand years earlier. It was like a sunset, however, for not more than forty years after the death of Proclus, the Emperor Justinian in 529 A.D. suppressed the philosophical schools and closed the Academy. But by that time the Phoenix bird had risen and flown away.
One might suppose that all the treasures of the Alexandrian Library were destroyed, yet there are traditions, echoed by H. P. Blavatsky in her monumental The Secret Doctrine (I:xxiii-ix; II:692, 763), that the most valuable and irreplaceable volumes were rescued and housed secretly, to be revealed at times and in places where they will most profitably serve the welfare of humanity.
All this is particularly reassuring when we deplore the destruction of the Alexandrian treasures. Yet from the viewpoint of reincarnation, the real treasures of the Alexandrian School were the grand souls who created and composed it. From life to life these remarkable individuals will bring religion, philosophy, science, and art to flower wherever they may incarnate. The Phoenix bird never really dies but is perpetually reborn.
It is fitting to close with a few words about Alexander the Great. In spite of the brutality of his conquests, Alexander was not a crude and vulgar person. He envisioned the establishment of a world polis, a world civilization, where all men would be brothers, and the sciences, religions, and arts could flower side by side in peace and cooperation. This dream was in part achieved at Alexandria. In this spirit it is exciting to follow the present efforts by UNESCO, the Egyptian government, and other nations to rebuild the Alexandrian Library.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:
· Blavatsky, H. P., The Secret Doctrine, Theosophical University Press, Pasadena, 1988.
· Desmond, Alice D., Cleopatra's Children, Dodd, Mead & Co., New York, 1972.
· Heur, Kenneth, City of the Star Gazers, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, 1972.
· Mackenna, Stephen, Plotinus V, Sixth Ennead, The Medici Society, London, 1930.
· Mozeley, J. R., "Neoplatonism," A Dictionary of Christian Biography, TV: 18-23, edited by Wm. Smith and Henry Wace, John Murray, London, 1877.
· Parsons, Edward A., The Alexandrian Library, Cleaver Hume Press, London, 1952.
· Sarton, George, "Hellenism," History of Science, II, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, 1959.

(Reprinted from Sunrise magazine, February/March 1990. Copyright © 1990 by Theosophical University Press)

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2) Reference: http://www.theosophy-nw.org/theosnw/world/med/me-pjoh.htm

Revival of the Alexandrian Library
By Paul Johnson
The future relevance of the theosophical heritage is confirmed by a plan recently announced for the rebuilding of the Alexandrian Library. Library Journal for February 1, 1988 reported:
The rebuilding will take place close to what archaeologists believe is the original site; the complex will include a conference center, a research library, a school of information studies, and housing for visiting scholars. The project, constructed on 48,000 acres with an unobstructed view of the Mediterranean Sea, is expected to be completed in 1995.
An international appeal for funds similar to those made for the preservation of the Acropolis and the treasures of Venice has been launched by UNESCO. The American Library Association passed a resolution of support of the revival of the Alexandrian library at Council in San Francisco last summer. -- 113:2:13
What relevance does this have to the future of theosophical values and teachings? Alexandria can be regarded as a precursor of the modem theosophical movement, as indicated by H. P. Blavatsky in her discussion of Ammonias Saccas and his eclectic theosophical system. Alexandria is one likely source of the basic synthesis of Eastern and Western wisdom which is the foundation of all HPB's teaching. The Library at Alexandria was the most celebrated library of the ancient world, and its repeated destruction the greatest blow to preservation of the ancient wisdom which could possibly have been dealt.
The Library, which flourished between 300 B.C. and 400 A.D., is believed to have been founded by Ptolemy I Soter (reigned 323-285 B.C.) in conjunction with a Museum which served as an international academy. The Library's collection included Greek works as well as works translated from other languages. Under Ptolemies II and III the Library was expanded and a subsidiary library added. The total collection exceeded 500,000 papyrus rolls before it was damaged by fire during the siege of Alexandria by Julius Caesar in 48 B.C. In a civil war during the late third century A.D., the main library was ravaged, but the auxiliary collection at Serapeum lasted until 391 A.D. "when Christians, following the edict of Emperor Theodosius, destroyed the temple and its literary treasures" (Encyclopedia Americana 1:544). Whatever was left was finally destroyed when the Muslims sacked Alexandria in the year 645 A.D.
In both Isis Unveiled and The Secret Doctrine, HPB asserts that this was a temporary setback, rather than a permanent defeat, for those who valued the wisdom of the ancients:
There are strange traditions current in various parts of the East -- on Mount Athos and in the Desert of Nitria, for instance -- among certain monks, and with learned Rabbis in Palestine.... that not all the rolls and manuscripts, reported in history to have been burned by Caesar, by the Christian mob in 389, and by the Arab general Amru, perished as is commonly believed; . . .
No more do sundry very learned Copts scattered all over the East in Asia Minor, Egypt, and Palestine believe in the total destruction of the subsequent libraries. -- Isis II:27-28
In her Introductory to The Secret Doctrine, HPB elaborates:
It has been claimed in all ages that ever since the destruction of the Alexandrian Library, every work of a character that might have led the profane to the ultimate discovery and comprehension of some of the mysteries of the Secret Science, was, owing to the combined efforts of the members of the Brotherhoods, diligently searched for. It is added, moreover, by those who know, that once found, save three copies left and stored safely away, such works were all destroyed. In India, the last of the precious manuscripts were secured and hidden during the reign of the Emperor Akbar.
It is maintained, furthermore, that every sacred book of that kind, whose text was not sufficiently veiled in symbolism, or which had any direct references to the ancient mysteries, after having been carefully copied in cryptographic characters, such as to defy the art of the best and cleverest palaeographer, was also destroyed to the last copy. -- SD I:xxiii-xxiv
Perhaps it is naive to regard the project of the Egyptian government as much more than a symbolic gesture. All the king's horses and men cannot restore what was lost in the destruction of the Alexandrian Library. Yet, as HPB insists, evolution proceeds from within outward. Was not the entirety of her lifework a rebuilding of the purpose and spirit of the Alexandrian Library? The modern theosophical movement was intended in large part to reimbody the Alexandrian synthesis. If we dismiss the rebuilding of the Library on the physical plane as an intellectual achievement alone, we are denying ourselves the joy of celebrating a symbolic fulfillment of our deepest yearnings as theosophists. HPB clearly states that the destruction of the Alexandrian Library marked the beginning of an era when the "mysteries of the secret science" were deliberately hidden from unworthy humanity. Her work, then, was the partial unveiling of long-hidden truths. Can we see the rebuilding of the Library through international cooperation as a powerful statement that humanity is once more ready to accept and appreciate the ancient wisdom we call theosophy?
Even in the century cycle of modern theosophical history, we can discern a pattern of destruction and rebuilding. HPB's unique role in history has been misinterpreted through reductionism on the one hand and mythmaking on the other. The world at large has dismissed her as unworthy of serious interest, while theosophists have not yet convinced it otherwise. But as we approach the end of the century, there is a rising tide of interest in HPB and theosophy. Could the revival of the Library at Alexandria be inspired by the same inner current? The centrality of Egypt in HPB's association with these "very learned Copts" in her early years would make it an apt setting for an event of such theosophical
significance.
(From Sunrise magazine, April/May 1989; copyright © 1989 Theosophical University Press)

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Reference: http://www.theosophy-nw.org/theosnw/world/med/me-imo3.htm

Alexandrias's Beacon against the Dark
By I. M. Oderberg
One of the 'Seven Wonders' of the ancient world was the Pharos of Alexandria, the remarkable lighthouse of many stories built in 279 B.C. on a foundation of solid blocks of glass, on Pharos Island at the harbor entrance. Its ingenuity embodied scientific purpose and architectural beauty. The architect Sostratus chose glass above all other materials because tests indicated that the sea did not corrode it. The Pharos was planned to endure, warning and guiding ships far into the future; also providing a fort and accommodation for garrisons to protect the city. What the natural elements did not destroy, man's greed and rapacity succeeded in accomplishing. In 700 A.D. the threat of war and a zealous search for Alexander's treasure rumored beneath the Pharos, led to the demolition of the upper stories which fell into the sea, together with the scientific instruments kept there. The truncated remains now house what is called the Castle, and a mosque. However, the real beacon of Alexandria was not the Pharos, sending its beam far out to sea, but rather the great library which shed a pervading light over Europe for more than eight centuries.
In the latter part of the fourth century B.C. the Athenian culture seemed to be in decay, when Alexander of Macedon propelled himself like a meteor across Greece and into Asia. After numerous victories in war he became known as Alexander the Great, but his most magnificent work was not the conquest, it was the reopening of the traffic of ideas from the orient to the west, and the creation of a new city destined to play an important role in this process. Alexandria was built upon a sandbank in the Nile, and lifted high the Hellenic glory achieved in science, art, speculative thought; enduring through the Roman occupation of Egypt, it influenced the civilizations of Europe and Asia Minor.
When Alexander died in 323 B.C., his battle-won empire was divided among his generals as satraps. Ptolemy, his close friend and possibly half-brother, received Egypt and Libya over which he ruled more like a king than a governor. He assumed the royal title in 305 B.C. and began the Macedonian or XXXIst Dynasty, the last to reign over an independent Egypt. He was a successful general in subsequent campaigns in Syria and Cyrenaica, and for preserving the nation from invaders he was surnamed Soter. But he is entitled to our respect for more than his prowess in war and astuteness as an administrator. We remember him for raising Alexandria into pre-eminence as Europe's center of learning, through the library and museum he founded.
Ptolemy I Soter invited leading Hellenic philosophers, scientists and literary figures of the day to come to his city. Among them was Demetrios of Phaleron, a famous Greek statesman and litterateur who suggested the establishment of the library and himself assembled the first collection for it, donating many of the scrolls he possessed. Ptolemy took personal interest in the enterprise, which soon grew into a vast treasurehouse of the Greek inheritance. In the process it also became a center of the inherited knowledge and wisdom in general, responsible for translating into the Greek tongue many important writings of other peoples, especially of India. However, it was more than a mere repository of learning, for it not only attracted scholars and editors of texts capable of deciding upon the authenticity of received versions of Homer, Hesiod and other authors, but it also provided laboratories, gardens and a small zoo for research. Beyond this, it became the living heart from which flowed an influence such as that of Eleusis and Samothrace in earlier times, and we may assume it had connections with similar centers located in Egypt from time immemorial.
The post of chief librarian carried court dignity and the prestige of association with a number of very distinguished scholars, such as Eratosthenes, the mathematician and astronomer who was also eminent in other fields. Aristarchos of Samothrace, believed to be the first archaeologist of language, Apollonius of Rhodes, whose Argonautica with its Orphic overtones still survives, and Theocritus the poet, are a few of them. The library and museum established by Ptolemy I Soter and by Demetrios were housed in a complex of buildings modeled on the Museion of Athens and given the same name, but it was very much more extensive in scope and size. The prototype in Athens once held the considerable library of Aristotle that passed to his pupil and heir Theophrastus, and a large portion of this collection was purchased by Soter's son Ptolemy II Philadelphus and located in Alexandria.
Ptolemy's Museion included museums, lecture theaters, astronomical and other laboratories, study rooms and dining halls; the buildings of white marble and stone were reported as being of harmonious design, and liberally ornamented with sculptures and artifacts of various kinds. We do not know how the library was classified, but many passages that have come down to us state that the Greek section was paramount and disposed through ten large halls, containing all the extant works the Greeks had produced, each hall being devoted to a separate department in accordance with the ten divisions of Hellenic knowledge set out in Callimachus' Catalogue, the famous Pinakes. From scattered references, we are led to believe that the contributions of other peoples radiated out from the Greek theme, so the whole collection might well have been arranged according to countries of origin.
Each faculty was superintended by a priest-president responsible to the king and to the chief librarian who was the foremost official of the entire Museion. At its peak the library housed over 500,000 books and a catalogue of 120. We should remember that all of these were in the form of scrolls, requiring specialized care different from our own books. Each scroll, written by hand, had to be checked with master texts and classified according to source and subject. So the various librarians had to be philologists and editors, as well as skilled in performing the duties usual in our own libraries.
The project grew so rapidly that an annex was established in the temple compound dedicated to Serapis, a somewhat benign Zeus, Egyptian in name (derived from the fusion of Osiris with Apis) but purely Greek in character. These buildings were called the Serapeum.
Not all the rulers between the first Ptolemy and the last were committed to the library; Ptolemies VI, VII and VIII could not have cared less what happened to it. After 150 B.C. it fell into serious neglect. But it was revived during the time of Cleopatra, after the disastrous fire for which Julius Caesar has been unjustly blamed. Plutarch says that Cleopatra was very distressed and ordered the immediate restoration of the library and its satellite institutions in the Serapeum. Mark Anthony endeavored to repair the loss by transferring 100,000 scrolls from the famous Pergamum library. To distinguish between the two Alexandrian institutions, the first library (Soter's) is known as the 'Mother' and the second (Cleopatra's) as the 'Daughter.' The latter is supposed to have been the larger because it contained over 700,000 manuscripts (some authorities say 800,000 and others more: even a million, but the evidence is inconclusive). There must have been a continuity in spirit between the two, as suggested by the fact that Gnosticism was connected with the first library, and both the Christian form of Gnosticism and Neoplatonism with the second.
After the Church was granted official recognition and power, and its teachings made compulsory, the monks thought they were free to attack the worship of Serapis. The library in the Serapeum was particularly detested, because it was the home of philosophy, 'magic,' and learning of various kinds and therefore considered "a citadel of disbelief and immorality." As the power of the Patriarchs of Alexandria and the associated bishops grew, the derided paganism ebbed away, making the library and its museums the last publicly known refuges of the ancient wisdom in Europe.
The monks under the extremely hate-ridden Patriarch Theophilus attacked it in 391, destroying the library and installing a monastery on the ruins. The persecution of the non-Christians continued under the Patriarch's equally fanatic nephew and successor Cyril, who in 415 aroused a mob of monks and sent them on a rampage. The Imperial Prefect was murdered and, as E. M. Forster writes: "Cyril's wild black army filled the streets, human only in their faces, and anxious to perform some act of piety before they retired to their monasteries. In this mood they came upon Hypatia who was driving from a lecture . . . dragged her from the carriage to the Caesareum, and there tore her to pieces with tiles . . . with her the Greece that is a spirit expired -- the Greece that tried to discover truth and create beauty and that had created beauty." Even Socrates, the Church historian, said Hypatia surpassed all contemporary philosophers in character as in learning.
Somehow manuscripts were regathered and the library continued, though much reduced in size and effectiveness, until the seventh century when the Arab Muslims are said to have razed to the ground all that remained of the Serapeum. But the story of this destruction in 645 has never been proved; indeed, it has been questioned, for the Muslims had nothing to fear from the library -- they did not read Greek nor did the rolls have value for them. The late historian, Dr. George Sarton, viewed the collection as having been far more dangerous for the overzealous, bigoted Christians of the day.
There is reason to assume that not all the scrolls were destroyed, not even after the first fire in Cleopatra's time. The staff was large, numbering possibly as many as 160 experts with assistants of various grades, and an indefinite number of unskilled help. It was the custom for the librarians to take to their quarters rolls for checking, repairs or even reading. (In Isis Unveiled, H. P. Blavatsky relates that a monk in a Greek convent had shown her a scroll attributed to Theodas, a scribe employed in the Museum during Cleopatra's reign.) A major part of the building was undergoing repairs at the time and those manuscripts possessed only in single copies were temporarily stored in the home of one of the senior librarians. When Caesar ordered the firing of the rebel Egyptian fleet, the flames spread inadvertently to the neighboring wharf and from there to the city. The flames and smoke would surely have warned the library staff long before the fire reached the Museion, affording them plenty of time to rescue at least the most treasured material. It is as likely that books were hidden away at the first signs of violence and persecution in the latter half of the fourth century A.D. -- the trend of events had already been evident for some time.
This possibility might explain how a Turkish portolano map of 1513 could have contained parts of a more ancient map, drawn with great skill and knowledge of cartography, evidently projected from a center close by Alexandria. This map was found in dusty archives in Constantinople, formerly Byzantium, the last stronghold of the Hellenic culture. It would have been natural for scholars to have fled there from Alexandria carrying precious manuscripts. Just as greed and hatred destroyed the main part of the Pharos, so fanaticism and hatred despoiled a spiritual center of the ancient wisdom. The latter was not destroyed; through the centuries afterwards there appeared flickers of light as dedicated individuals or groups here and there in Europe seem to show connections with an unseen stream of culture stretching back to an earlier age.
What did the library contain? Of course we can only hazard guesses. We know that Eratosthenes' important researches were carried out in the laboratories of the Museion, and that other scientists also worked there. Astronomers may have had their tables of observations, botanists and zoologists their classifications. But the humanities were richest, especially in literature, for the very masterpieces themselves were there in accredited texts.
All of this pertains to the library's aspect as a university. Beyond this function extended its inner range. In its early days, Ptolemy II Philadelphus, himself a fine scholar, asked for a translation into Greek of the Old Testament, and the chief librarian convened the group of 72 Hebrew specialists who worked independently of each other to produce what is called the Septuagint, or LXX as it is designated in its Latin translation, the Roman Vulgate. Much later, Philo attempted to fuse Greek philosophy with Hebraic theology, and he would surely have worked in the Serapeum consulting its vast resources with its many texts of Plato and other philosophers. Where else in Alexandria could he have had access to these and so much besides, but in the library?
In any event, his efforts flowed into the stream that later took the form of Neoplatonism, leading exponents of which were Ammonius Saccas, who is reputed to have frequented the library, and his greatest pupil, Plotinus. There are many parallels between the text of Plotinus and the Hermetica, and while it has been assumed that this proves the latter are younger than Neoplatonism and so incorporate its concepts, it can also mean that both derive from the same source: that hidden wisdom which was for a time focalized through the inner resources of the Alexandrian institutions in the Serapeum.
We should not, however, think that only Greek and Egyptian systems were studied in the library. The wise men of India were students there under the Hellenic name 'Gymnosophists' -- not merely students but sharing the treasures of their homeland. We know also that many manuscripts were copied from the oldest parchments in the Chaldean, Phoenician, Persian and other languages, including the ancient hieratic script of the Egyptians. The earliest Fathers of the Church, such as Origen and Clement of Alexandria, were students at the Museion, and despite the later proscription against their teachings, not a few of their central ideas, sometimes under other terms, seem to have crept into aspects of Christian mysticism.
Persecution may appear to drive the light and fire of the ancient wisdom-religion out of existence, but it is really only a case of temporary eclipse. The expression of the innermost soul of man cannot be annihilated, although at times its voice may be repressed. So days return when the stream rises to the surface once more and all may drink of its life-giving waters. The Alexandrian library had its day, but the sun will never set upon what it represented. Or we may say that there will be no end to the dawns, for others will come again and again, far into the future.
(From Sunrise magazine, August-September 1972; copyright © 1972 Theosophical University Press)

World Spiritual Traditions Menu
419: Moche people of Peru build a Sun temple 150 feet high using 50 million bricks.
438-45: Council of Ferrara-Florence, Italy, strengthens Roman Catholic stance against doctrine of reincarnation.
ca 440: Ajanta cave frescoes (long before Islam) depict Buddha as Prince Siddhartha, wearing "chudidara pyjama" and a prototype of the present-day "Nehru shirt."
450-535: Life of Bodhidharma of South India, 28th patriarch of India's Dhyana Buddhist sect, founder of Ch'an Buddhism in China (520), known as Zen in Japan.
ca 450: Hephtalite invasions (ca 450-565) take a great toll in North India. These "white Huns" (or Hunas) from China are probably not related to Europe's Hun invaders.
ca 450: As the Gupta Empire declines, Indian sculptural style evolves and continues until the 16th century. The trend is away from the swelling modeled forms of the Gupta period toward increasing flatness and linearity.
453: Attila the Hun dies after lifetime of plundering Europe.
499: Aryabhata I (476-ca 550), Indian astronomer and mathematician, using Hindu (aka Arabic) numerals accurately calculates pi () to 3.1416, and the solar year to 365.3586805 days. A thousand years before Copernicus, Aryabhata propounds a heliocentric universe with elliptically orbiting planets and a spherical Earth spinning on its axis, explaining the apparent rotation of the heavens. Writes Aryabhatiya, history's first exposition on plane and spherical trigonometry, algebra and arithmetic.
ca 500: Mahavamsa, chronicling Sri Lankan history from -500 is written in Pali, probably by Buddhist monk Mahanama. A sequel, Chulavamsha, continues the history to 1500.
ca 500: Sectarian folk traditions are revised, elaborated and reduced to writing as the Puranas, Hinduism's encyclopedic compendium of culture and mythology.
500: World population is 190 million. India population is 50 million: 26.3% of world.
510: Hephtalite Mihirakula from beyond Oxus River crushes imperial Gupta power. Soon controls much of N.C. India.
ca 533: Yashovarman of Malva and Ishanavarman of Kanauj defeat and expel the Hephtalites from North India.
ca 543: Pulakeshin I founds Chalukya Dynasty (ca 543-757; 975-1189) in Gujarat and later in larger areas of West India.
548: Emperor Kimmei officially recognizes Buddhism in Japan by accepting a gift image of Buddha from Korea.
553: Council of Constantinople II denies doctrine of soul's existence before conception, implying reincarnation is incompatible with Christian belief.
565: The Turks and Persians defeat the Hephtalites.
Reference: http://thebanmappingproject.com/resources/timeline_10.html
In A.D. 395, a separation occurred between the western and eastern parts of the Roman Empire, leaving Constantinople with the supremacy of the East. Egypt maintained its role as grain provider for the Empire, but Alexandria lost its predominant position to Constantinople. As a consequence, Egypt was left out of the conflicts created by the imperial successions and international politics.
During the fourth and the fifth centuries A.D., as Egyptians converted to Christianity, they were able to access important functions first in religious life and then in public life. The increasing power of the clergy of Alexandria eventually posed a threat to the clergy of Constantinople. At the Council of Chalcedon, in A.D. 451, their differences resulted in a break between the Church of Alexandria and the Church of Constantinople. The emperors, unwilling to let Egypt slip from their influence, tried to reinstate the authority of Constantinople by persuasion and persecution, without any real success. In A.D. 619, the Persians managed to invade the Eastern Empire and Egypt, ruling over the country for a decade. The emperor managed to expel the Persians, but the resulting weakness of the Empire's borders paved the way for the Arab conquest and the beginning of the Islamic period in A.D. 641.
Christian monasticism originated in Egypt during this period. In Thebes several churches and monasteries were set up in the ruins of temples at Karnak and Luxor [13511]. On the West Bank, Madinat Habu became the Coptic village of Djeme. Monasteries were built at the site of the Hathor temple of Dayr al Madinah and on the ruins of the Hatshepsut's Memorial Temple at Dayr al Bahri. Other monasteries were constructed on hilltops such as Qurnat Mura'i and Dayr al Bakhit above Dira' Abu al Naja. Many tombs in Shaykh Abd al Qurna were used by monks as dwellings, while in the Valley of the Kings, several of the Dynasty 19 and Dynasty 20 tombs (KV 1, KV 2, KV 3, KV 4, KV 8, KV 9) were used as dwellings or chapels [10514].
Reference: http://www.hinduism.co.za/kaabaa.htm
Note: A recent archeological find in Kuwait unearthed a gold-plated statue of the Hindu deity Ganesh. A Muslim resident of Kuwait requested historical research material that can help explain the connection between Hindu civilisation and Arabia.]
Was the Kaaba Originally a Hindu Temple?
By P.N. Oak (Historian)
Glancing through some research material recently, I was pleasantly surprised to come across a reference to a king Vikramaditya inscription found in the Kaaba in Mecca proving beyond doubt that the Arabian Peninsula formed a part of his Indian Empire.
The text of the crucial Vikramaditya inscription, found inscribed on a gold dish hung inside the Kaaba shrine in Mecca, is found recorded on page 315 of a volume known as ‘Sayar-ul-Okul’ treasured in the Makhtab-e-Sultania library in Istanbul, Turkey. Rendered in free English the inscription says:
"Fortunate are those who were born (and lived) during king Vikram’s reign. He was a noble, generous dutiful ruler, devoted to the welfare of his subjects. But at that time we Arabs, oblivious of God, were lost in sensual pleasures. Plotting and torture were rampant. The darkness of ignorance had enveloped our country. Like the lamb struggling for her life in the cruel paws of a wolf we Arabs were caught up in ignorance. The entire country was enveloped in a darkness so intense as on a new moon night. But the present dawn and pleasant sunshine of education is the result of the favour of the noble king Vikramaditya whose benevolent supervision did not lose sight of us- foreigners as we were. He spread his sacred religion amongst us and sent scholars whose brilliance shone like that of the sun from his country to ours. These scholars and preceptors through whose benevolence we were once again made cognisant of the presence of God, introduced to His sacred existence and put on the road of Truth, had come to our country to preach their religion and impart education at king Vikramaditya’s behest."
For those who would like to read the Arabic wording I reproduce it hereunder in Roman script:
"Itrashaphai Santu Ibikramatul Phahalameen Karimun Yartapheeha Wayosassaru Bihillahaya Samaini Ela Motakabberen Sihillaha Yuhee Quid min howa Yapakhara phajjal asari nahone osirom bayjayhalem. Yundan blabin Kajan blnaya khtoryaha sadunya kanateph netephi bejehalin Atadari bilamasa- rateen phakef tasabuhu kaunnieja majekaralhada walador. As hmiman burukankad toluho watastaru hihila Yakajibaymana balay kulk amarena phaneya jaunabilamary Bikramatum".
(Page 315 Sayar-ul-okul).
[Note: The title ‘Saya-ul-okul’ signifies memorable words.]
A careful analysis of the above inscription enables us to draw the following conclusions:
1. That the ancient Indian empires may have extended up to the eastern boundaries of Arabia until Vikramaditya and that it was he who for the first time conquered Arabia. Because the inscription says that king Vikram who dispelled the darkness of ignorance from Arabia.
2. That, whatever their earlier faith, King Vikrama’s preachers had succeeded in spreading the Vedic (based on the Vedas, the Hindu sacred scriptures)) way of life in Arabia.
3. That the knowledge of Indian arts and sciences was imparted by Indians to the Arabs directly by founding schools, academies and cultural centres. The belief, therefore, that visiting Arabs conveyed that knowledge to their own lands through their own indefatigable efforts and scholarship is unfounded.
An ancillary conclusion could be that the so-called Kutub Minar (in Delhi, India) could well be king Vikramadiya’s tower commemorating his conquest of Arabia. This conclusion is strengthened by two pointers. Firstly, the inscription on the iron pillar near the so-called Kutub Minar refers to the marriage of the victorious king Vikramaditya to the princess of Balhika. This Balhika is none other than the Balkh region in West Asia. It could be that Arabia was wrestled by king Vikramaditya from the ruler of Balkh who concluded a treaty by giving his daughter in marriage to the victor. Secondly, the township adjoining the so called Kutub Minar is named Mehrauli after Mihira who was the renowned astronomer-mathematician of king Vikram’s court. Mehrauli is the corrupt form of Sanskrit ‘Mihira-Awali’ signifying a row of houses raised for Mihira and his helpers and assistants working on astronomical observations made from the tower.
Having seen the far reaching and history shaking implications of the Arabic inscription concerning king Vikrama, we shall now piece together the story of its find. How it came to be recorded and hung in the Kaaba in Mecca. What are the other proofs reinforcing the belief that Arabs were once followers of the Indian Vedic way of life and that tranquillity and education were ushered into Arabia by king Vikramaditya’s scholars, educationists from an uneasy period of "ignorance and turmoil" mentioned in the inscription.
In Istanbul, Turkey, there is a famous library called Makhatab-e-Sultania, which is reputed to have the largest collection of ancient West Asian literature. In the Arabic section of that library is an anthology of ancient Arabic poetry. That anthology was compiled from an earlier work in A.D. 1742 under the orders of the Turkish ruler Sultan Salim.
The pages of that volume are of Hareer – a kind of silk used for writing on. Each page has a decorative gilded border. That anthology is known as Sayar-ul-Okul. It is divided into three parts. The first part contains biographic details and the poetic compositions of pre-Islamic Arabian poets. The second part embodies accounts and verses of poets of the period beginning just after prophet Mohammad’s times, up to the end of the Banee-Um-Mayya dynasty. The third part deals with later poets up to the end of Khalif Harun-al-Rashid’s times.
Abu Amir Asamai, an Arabian bard who was the poet Laureate of Harun-al-Rashid’s court, has compiled and edited the anthology.
The first modern edition of ‘Sayar-ul-Okul’ was printed and published in Berlin in 1864. A subsequent edition is the one published in Beirut in 1932.
The collection is regarded as the most important and authoritative anthology of ancient Arabic poetry. It throws considerable light on the social life, customs, manners and entertainment modes of ancient Arabia. The book also contains an elaborate description of the ancient shrine of Mecca, the town and the annual fair known as OKAJ which used to be held every year around the Kaaba temple in Mecca. This should convince readers that the annual haj of the Muslims to the Kaaba is of earlier pre-Islamic congregation.
But the OKAJ fair was far from a carnival. It provided a forum for the elite and the learned to discuss the social, religious, political, literary and other aspects of the Vedic culture then pervading Arabia. ‘Sayar-ul-Okul’ asserts that the conclusion reached at those discussions were widely respected throughout Arabia. Mecca, therefore, followed the Varanasi tradition (of India) of providing a venue for important discussions among the learned while the masses congregated there for spiritual bliss. The principal shrines at both Varanasi in India and at Mecca in Arvasthan (Arabia) were Siva temples. Even to this day ancient Mahadev (Siva) emblems can be seen. It is the Shankara (Siva) stone that Muslim pilgrims reverently touch and kiss in the Kaaba.
Arabic tradition has lost trace of the founding of the Kaaba temple. The discovery of the Vikramaditya inscription affords a clue. King Vikramaditya is known for his great devotion to Lord Mahadev (Siva). At Ujjain (India), the capital of Vikramaditya, exists the famous shrine of Mahankal, i.e., of Lord Shankara (Siva) associated with Vikramaditya. Since according to the Vikramaditya inscription he spread the Vedic religion, who else but he could have founded the Kaaba temple in Mecca?
A few miles away from Mecca is a big signboard which bars the entry of any non-Muslim into the area. This is a reminder of the days when the Kaaba was stormed and captured solely for the newly established faith of Islam. The object in barring entry of non-Muslims was obviously to prevent its recapture.
As the pilgrim proceeds towards Mecca he is asked to shave his head and beard and to don special sacred attire that consists of two seamless sheets of white cloth. One is to be worn round the waist and the other over the shoulders. Both these rites are remnants of the old Vedic practice of entering Hindu temples clean- and with holy seamless white sheets.
The main shrine in Mecca, which houses the Siva emblem, is known as the Kaaba. It is clothed in a black shroud. That custom also originates from the days when it was thought necessary to discourage its recapture by camouflaging it.
According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, the Kaaba has 360 images. Traditional accounts mention that one of the deities among the 360 destroyed when the place was stormed, was that of Saturn; another was of the Moon and yet another was one called Allah. That shows that in the Kaaba the Arabs worshipped the nine planets in pre-Islamic days. In India the practice of ‘Navagraha’ puja, that is worship of the nine planets, is still in vogue. Two of these nine are Saturn and Moon.
In India the crescent moon is always painted across the forehead of the Siva symbol. Since that symbol was associated with the Siva emblem in Kaaba it came to be grafted on the flag of Islam.
Another Hindu tradition associated with the Kaaba is that of the sacred stream Ganga (sacred waters of the Ganges river). According to the Hindu tradition Ganga is also inseparable from the Shiva emblem as the crescent moon. Wherever there is a Siva emblem, Ganga must co-exist. True to that association a sacred fount exists near the Kaaba. Its water is held sacred because it has been traditionally regarded as Ganga since pre-Islamic times (Zam-Zam water).
[Note: Even today, Muslim pilgrims who go to the Kaaba for Haj regard this Zam-Zam water with reverence and take some bottled water with them as sacred water.]
Muslim pilgrims visiting the Kaaba temple go around it seven times. In no other mosque does the circumambulation prevail. Hindus invariably circumambulate around their deities. This is yet another proof that the Kaaba shrine is a pre-Islamic Indian Shiva temple where the Hindu practice of circumambulation is still meticulously observed.
The practice of taking seven steps- known as Saptapadi in Sanskrit- is associated with Hindu marriage ceremony and fire worship. The culminating rite in a Hindu marriage enjoins upon the bride and groom to go round the sacred fire four times (but misunderstood by many as seven times). Since "Makha" means fire, the seven circumambulations also prove that Mecca was the seat of Indian fire-worship in the West Asia.
It might come as a stunning revelation to many that the word ‘ALLAH’ itself is Sanskrit. In Sanskrit language Allah, Akka and Amba are synonyms. They signify a goddess or mother. The term ‘ALLAH’ forms part of Sanskrit chants invoking goddess Durga, also known as Bhavani, Chandi and Mahishasurmardini. The Islamic word for God is., therefore, not an innovation but the ancient Sanskrit appellation retained and continued by Islam. Allah means mother or goddess and mother goddess.
One Koranic verse is an exact translation of a stanza in the Yajurveda. This was pointed out by the great research scholar Pandit Satavlekar of Pardi in one of his articles.
[Note: Another scholar points out that the following teaching from the Koran is exactly similar to the teaching of the Kena Upanishad (1.7).
The Koran:
"Sight perceives Him not. But He perceives men's sights; for He is the knower of secrets , the Aware."
Kena Upanishad:
"That which cannot be seen by the eye but through which the eye itself sees, know That to be Brahman (God) and not what people worship here (in the manifested world)."
A simplified meaning of both the above verses reads:
God is one and that He is beyond man's sensory experience.]
The identity of Unani and Ayurvedic systems shows that Unani is just the Arabic term for the Ayurvedic system of healing taught to them and administered in Arabia when Arabia formed part of the Indian empire.
It will now be easy to comprehend the various Hindu customs still prevailing in West Asian countries even after the existence of Islam during the last 1300 years. Let us review some Hindu traditions which exist as the core of Islamic practice.
The Hindus have a pantheon of 33 gods. People in Asia Minor too worshipped 33 gods before the spread of Islam. The lunar calendar was introduced in West Asia during the Indian rule. The Muslim month ‘Safar’ signifying the ‘extra’ month (Adhik Maas) in the Hindu calendar. The Muslim month Rabi is the corrupt form of Ravi meaning the sun because Sanskrit ‘V’ changes into Prakrit ‘B’ (Prakrit being the popular version of Sanskrit language). The Muslim sanctity for Gyrahwi Sharif is nothing but the Hindu Ekadashi (Gyrah = elevan or Gyaarah). Both are identical in meaning.
The Islamic practice of Bakari Eed derives from the Go-Medh and Ashva-Medh Yagnas or sacrifices of Vedic times. Eed in Sanskrit means worship. The Islamic word Eed for festive days, signifying days of worship, is therefore a pure Sanskrit word. The word MESH in the Hindu zodiac signifies a lamb. Since in ancient times the year used to begin with the entry of the sun in Aries, the occasion was celebrated with mutton feasting. That is the origin of the Bakari Eed festival.
[Note: The word Bakari is an Indian language word for a goat.]
Since Eed means worship and Griha means ‘house’, the Islamic word Idgah signifies a ‘House of worship’ which is the exact Sanskrit connotation of the term. Similarly the word ‘Namaz’ derives from two Sanskrit roots ‘Nama’ and ‘Yajna’ (NAMa yAJna) meaning bowing and worshipping.
Vedic descriptions about the moon, the different stellar constellations and the creation of the universe have been incorporated from the Vedas in Koran part 1 chapter 2, stanza 113, 114, 115, and 158, 189, chapter 9, stanza 37 and chapter 10, stanzas 4 to 7.
Recital of the Namaz five times a day owes its origin to the Vedic injunction of Panchmahayagna (five daily worship- Panch-Maha-Yagna) which is part of the daily Vedic ritual prescribed for all individuals.
Muslims are enjoined cleanliness of five parts of the body before commencing prayers. This derives from the Vedic injuction ‘Shareer Shydhyartham Panchanga Nyasah’.
Four months of the year are regarded as very sacred in Islamic custom. The devout are enjoined to abstain from plunder and other evil deeds during that period. This originates in the Chaturmasa i.e., the four-month period of special vows and austerities in Hindu tradition. Shabibarat is the corrupt form of Shiva Vrat and Shiva Ratra. Since the Kaaba has been an important centre of Shiva (Siva) worship from times immemorial, the Shivaratri festival used to be celebrated there with great gusto. It is that festival which is signified by the Islamic word Shabibarat.
Encyclopaedias tell us that there are inscriptions on the side of the Kaaba walls. What they are, no body has been allowed to study, according to the correspondence I had with an American scholar of Arabic. But according to hearsay at least some of those inscriptions are in Sanskrit, and some of them are stanzas from the Bhagavad Gita.
According to extant Islamic records, Indian merchants had settled in Arabia, particularly in Yemen, and their life and manners deeply influenced those who came in touch with them. At Ubla there was a large number of Indian settlements. This shows that Indians were in Arabia and Yemen in sufficient strength and commanding position to be able to influence the local people. This could not be possible unless they belonged to the ruling class.
It is mentioned in the Abadis i.e., the authentic traditions of Prophet Mohammad compiled by Imam Bukhari that the Indian tribe of Jats had settled in Arabia before Prophet Mohammad’s times. Once when Hazrat Ayesha, wife of the Prophet, was taken ill, her nephew sent for a Jat physician for her treatment. This proves that Indians enjoyed a high and esteemed status in Arabia. Such a status could not be theirs unless they were the rulers. Bukhari also tells us that an Indian Raja (king) sent a jar of ginger pickles to the Prophet. This shows that the Indian Jat Raja ruled an adjacent area so as to be in a position to send such an insignificant present as ginger pickles. The Prophet is said to have so highly relished it as to have told his colleagues also to partake of it. These references show that even during Prophet Mohammad’s times Indians retained their influential role in Arabia, which was a dwindling legacy from Vikramaditya’s times.
The Islamic term ‘Eed-ul-Fitr’ derives from the ‘Eed of Piters’ that is worship of forefathers in Sanskrit tradition. In India, Hindus commemorate their ancestors during the Pitr-Paksha that is the fortnight reserved for their remembrance. The very same is the significance of ‘Eed-ul-Fitr’ (worship of forefathers).
The Islamic practice of observing the moon rise before deciding on celebrating the occasion derives from the Hindu custom of breaking fast on Sankranti and Vinayaki Chaturthi only after sighting the moon.
Barah Vafat, the Muslim festival for commemorating those dead in battle or by weapons, derives from a similar Sanskrit tradition because in Sanskrit ‘Phiphaut’ is ‘death’. Hindus observe Chayal Chaturdashi in memory of those who have died in battle.
The word Arabia is itself the abbreviation of a Sanskrit word. The original word is ‘Arabasthan’. Since Prakrit ‘B’ is Sanskrit ‘V’ the original Sanskrit name of the land is ‘Arvasthan’. ‘Arva’ in Sanskrit means a horse. Arvasthan signifies a land of horses., and as well all know, Arabia is famous for its horses.
This discovery changes the entire complexion of the history of ancient India. Firstly we may have to revise our concepts about the king who had the largest empire in history. It could be that the expanse of king Vikramaditya’s empire was greater than that of all others. Secondly, the idea that the Indian empire spread only to the east and not in the west beyond say, Afghanisthan may have to be abandoned. Thirdly the effeminate and pathetic belief that India, unlike any other country in the world could by some age spread her benign and beatific cultural influence, language, customs, manners and education over distant lands without militarily conquering them is baseless. India did conquer all those countries physically wherever traces of its culture and language are still extant and the region extended from Bali island in the south Pacific to the Baltic in Northern Europe and from Korea to Kaaba. The only difference was that while Indian rulers identified themselves with the local population and established welfare states, Moghuls and others who ruled conquered lands perpetuated untold atrocities over the vanquished.
‘Sayar-ul-Okul’ tells us that a pan-Arabic poetic symposium used to be held in Mecca at the annual Okaj fair in pre-Islamic times. All leading poets used to participate in it.
Poems considered best were awarded prizes. The best-engraved on gold plate were hung inside the temple. Others etched on camel or goatskin were hung outside. Thus for thousands of years the Kaaba was the treasure house of the best Arabian poetic thought inspired by the Indian Vedic tradition.
That tradition being of immemorial antiquity many poetic compositions were engraved and hung inside and outside on the walls of the Kaaba. But most of the poems got lost and destroyed during the storming of the Kaaba by Prophet Mohammad’s troops. The Prophet’s court poet, Hassan-bin-Sawik, who was among the invaders, captured some of the treasured poems and dumped the gold plate on which they were inscribed in his own home. Sawik’s grandson, hoping to earn a reward carried those gold plates to Khalif’s court where he met the well-known Arab scholar Abu Amir Asamai. The latter received from the bearer five gold plates and 16 leather sheets with the prize-winning poems engraved on them. The bearer was sent away happy bestowed with a good reward.
On the five gold plates were inscribed verses by ancient Arab poets like Labi Baynay, Akhatab-bin-Turfa and Jarrham Bintoi. That discovery made Harun-al-Rashid order Abu Amir to compile a collection of all earlier compositions. One of the compositions in the collection is a tribute in verse paid by Jarrham Bintoi, a renowned Arab poet, to king Vikramaditya. Bintoi who lived 165 years before Prophet Mohammad had received the highest award for the best poetic compositions for three years in succession in the pan-Arabic symposiums held in Mecca every year. All those three poems of Bintoi adjudged best were hung inside the Kaaba temple, inscribed on gold plates. One of these constituted an unreserved tribute to King Vikramaditya for his paternal and filial rule over Arabia. That has already been quoted above.
Pre-Islamic Arabian poet Bintoi’s tribute to king Vikramaditya is a decisive evidence that it was king Vikramaditya who first conquered the Arabian Peninsula and made it a part of the Indian Empire. This explains why starting from India towards the west we have all Sanskrit names like Afghanisthan (now Afghanistan), Baluchisthan, Kurdisthan, Tajikiathan, Uzbekisthan, Iran, Sivisthan, Iraq, Arvasthan, Turkesthan (Turkmenisthan) etc.
Historians have blundered in not giving due weight to the evidence provided by Sanskrit names pervading over the entire west Asian region. Let us take a contemporary instance. Why did a part of India get named Nagaland even after the end of British rule over India? After all historical traces are wiped out of human memory, will a future age historian be wrong if he concludes from the name Nagaland that the British or some English speaking power must have ruled over India? Why is Portuguese spoken in Goa (part of India), and French in Pondichery (part of India), and both French and English in Canada? Is it not because those people ruled over the territories where their languages are spoken? Can we not then justly conclude that wherever traces of Sanskrit names and traditions exist Indians once held sway? It is unfortunate that this important piece of decisive evidence has been ignored all these centuries.
Another question which should have presented itself to historians for consideration is how could it be that Indian empires could extend in the east as far as Korea and Japan, while not being able to make headway beyond Afghanisthan? In fact land campaigns are much easier to conduct than by sea. It was the Indians who ruled the entire West Asian region from Karachi to Hedjaz and who gave Sanskrit names to those lands and the towns therein, introduce their pantheon of the fire-worship, imparted education and established law and order.
It may be that Arabia itself was not part of the Indian empire until king Vikrama , since Bintoi says that it was king Vikrama who for the first time brought about a radical change in the social, cultural and political life of Arabia. It may be that the whole of West Asia except Arabia was under Indian rule before Vikrama. The latter added Arabia too to the Indian Empire. Or as a remote possibility it could be that king Vikramaditya himself conducted a series of brilliant campaigns annexing to his empire the vast region between Afghanisthan and Hedjaz.
Incidentally this also explains why king Vikramaditya is so famous in history. Apart from the nobility and truthfulness of heart and his impartial filial affection for all his subjects, whether Indian or Arab, as testified by Bintoi, king Vikramaditya has been permanently enshrined in the pages of history because he was the world’s greatest ruler having the largest empire. It should be remembered that only a monarch with a vast empire gets famous in world history. Vikram Samvat (calendar still widely in use in India today) which he initiated over 2000 years ago may well mark his victory over Arabia, and the so called Kutub Minar (Kutub Tower in Delhi), a pillar commemorating that victory and the consequential marriage with the Vaihika (Balkh) princess as testified by the nearby iron pillar inscription.
A great many puzzles of ancient world history get automatically solved by a proper understanding of these great conquests of king Vikramaditya. As recorded by the Arab poet Bintoi, Indian scholars, preachers and social workers spread the fire-worship ceremony, preached the Vedic way of life, manned schools, set up Ayurvedic (healing) centres, trained the local people in irrigation and agriculture and established in those regions a democratic, orderly, peaceful, enlightened and religious way of life. That was of course, a Vedic Hindu way of life.
It is from such ancient times that Indian Kshtriya royal families, like the Pahalvis and Barmaks, have held sway over Iran and Iraq. It is those conquests, which made the Parsees Agnihotris i.e., fire-worshippers. It is therefore that we find the Kurds of Kurdisthan speaking a Sanskritised dialect, fire temples existing thousands of miles away from India, and scores of sites of ancient Indian cultural centres like Navbahar in West Asia and the numerous viharas in Soviet Russia spread throughout the world. Ever since so many viharas are often dug up in Soviet Russia, ancient Indian sculptures are also found in excavations in Central Asia. The same goes for West Asia.
[Note: Ancient Indian sculptures include metal statues of the Hindu deity Ganesh (the elephant headed god); the most recent find being in Kuwait].
Unfortunately these chapters of world history have been almost obliterated from public memory. They need to be carefully deciphered and rewritten. When these chapters are rewritten they might change the entire concept and orientation of ancient history.
In view of the overwhelming evidence led above, historians, scholars, students of history and lay men alike should take note that they had better revise their text books of ancient world history. The existence of Hindu customs, shrines, Sanskrit names of whole regions, countries and towns and the Vikramaditya inscriptions reproduced at the beginning are a thumping proof that Indian Kshatriyas once ruled over the vast region from Bali to Baltic and Korea to Kaaba in Mecca, Arabia at the very least.
---
570-632: Lifetime of Mohammed, preacher of the Quraysh Bedoin tribe, founder of Islam. Begins to preach in Mecca, calling for an end to the "demons and idols" of Arab religion and conversion to the ways of the one God, Allah.
Reference:
http://www.hindutva.org/AnwarShaikh/Reviews/ISLAM.html


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[GuestBook by TheGuestBook.com] Review on Anwar Shaikh's ISLAM: The Arab National MovementBy Bhagawandas P. LathiFrom: India Post
AN INSIDER'S VIEW OF ISLAMThis scholarly critique of Islam, written by Anwar Shaikh, an Urdu poet and an Islamic theologian from Pakistan, now residing in Great Britain, is the most riveting book on Islam that I ever read. Generally speaking, critical books exposing the truth about Islam are not easy to find because the author immediately earns a fatwa on his life. Anwar Shaikh, who was once a pious Muslim, has a dubious honor of being a fatwaee (who is under a fatwa). Shaikh was trained to be an Islamic cleric (Mullah), but along the way he discovered the sad truth about Islam, which greatly disillusioned him. Ever since, he has been writing about Islam for his co-religionists to awake them to the truth about Islam. This book will shock many, who have been brought up on the constant Mantra of Hindu Gurus that all religions teach the same (nice) things, etc. It will force them to have a first-hand look at the primary Islamic sources. Hindus (and Muslims too) would do well to look at the Quran (and the Hadis) to discover the truth about Islam for themselves. This book demonstrates the awesome power of brainwashing which can easily overpower natural human decency, compassion, and reasoning ability. It explains how decent people can do horrible things to other innocent humans without any remorse and feel it as a duty commanded by God. It helps in understanding the blood-soaked Islamic history and the puzzling behavior of Muslims all over the world in general, and on Indian subcontinent in particular. It explains what makes Islam tick. The main thesis of Shaikh in his own words is "Islam has caused more damage to the national dignity and honor of Non-Arab Muslims than any other calamity, yet they believe that this faith is the ambassador of equality and human love. This is a fiction which has been presented as a fact with an unparalleled skill. The Islamic love of mankind is a myth of even greater proportion. Hatred of non-Muslims is the pivot of the Islamic existence. It not only declares all dissidents as the denizens of hell but also seeks to ignite a permanent fire of tension between Muslims and non- Muslims; it is far more lethal than Karl Marx's idea of social conflict." He further states that "Islam does not qualify as a religion. It is an instrument for Arabs to colonize the world in the name of Islam. Moreover, it has succeeded remarkably well in brainwashing non-Arab Muslims, who have divested themselves of all pride for their own heritage, ancestry, language, dress and customs. They have no loyalty to their motherland for being devoid of national honor. Indeed, Muslims take pride in vandalizing their ancient heritage from the pagan era to adore the Arab sanctity, superiority and supremacy. Its spring is the mythical intercessory Power of the Prophet Muhammad. This psychological paralysis caused the decline of great Asian nations such as India, Egypt and Iran, which once constituted as the great gushers of civilization but now rank as members of the "Third World" for losing their national identity and zest under the influence of Islam." The book opens with a perceptive statement "Islam is an offshoot of the Semitic culture, which is an expression of man's aggressive behavior." All the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) have conducted repeated genocide in the name of their revealed religions. In revealed religions, God reveals His will and the only Truth to mankind through his agent, the Prophet, or the Son. There is no scope for dissent because the final word is contained in the revelation. Hence, official dogmas, blasphemy, heretics and massacres are inevitable. The author believes the concept of revelation is the pivot of Semitic culture. The tradition of Semitic chiefs to claim as God's representative, viceroy goes back to mythical times well before 3000 years. This tradition was maintained masterfully by assigning to the deity incredible powers and attributes to frighten people into submission. Thus, the king could do anything in the name of revelation without much danger of rebellion. God's messenger is God's servant in name only. In practice, he is God's superior. Basically, revelation is nothing but a tool of dominance. The two Prophets, Moses and Muhammad used this device of revelation with great skill to their advantage. A prophet desperately wants to be loved and adored as God but without being called so. A prophet's urge of dominance is much stronger than that of a secular suzerain; a prophet wants to become immortal and wants to command people from the grave and desires to be worshipped exclusively. Muhammad even warns people that he was the last prophet, and any prophet after him would be an impostor. However, to be remembered and loved after his death, he must have a devoted band of followers. This is why a prophet also has to be a national leader, openly or discretely. Every person who seeks dominance as a prophet through the device of revelation creates a god of his own, and when another person aspires to be a prophet he has to demolish the god of his competitor and erect the image of new god to establish his Prophethood to operate the device of revelation. This truth is well illustrated by the examples of Assur (of Shalmanester III), Marduk (national god of Babylonia), Yahweh (of Moses) and Allah (of Muhammad). The Author then analyzes Moses' prophethood to show how it follows exactly this pattern. Then he analyzes Mohammed's claim in details. Mohammed's religion was named Islam and his God was Allah. Muhammad claimed that all earlier prophets (Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus) were Muslims, whose teachings were corrupted by their followers. So he adopted most of the Jewish principles and practices with a view to renovating the old religion of God. He made great effort to convert Jews. In earlier part of the Quran, Jews are eulogized and treated with lavish praise, even making Jerusalem, the KIBLA. Mohammed adored Abraham, the common ancestor of the Jews and the Arabs. When the Jews ignored his loving approach, they were damned (in later part of the Quran) with the apostolic wrath: "God has cursed them for their unbelief." Jerusalem was demoted as the Kibla of the believers and Kaaba, the Arab sanctuary, was bestowed this honor. The policy of ethnic cleansing (of banishing and slaughtering Jews) was adopted. Now the Prophet consciously started elevating Islam above Judaism and Arabs above Jews. Bible declares (Genesis 17-18) that God made an everlasting covenant with Isaac (the Jewish patriarch), but now the Quran says (Cow:115) that the God made covenant with Abraham and Ishmael (the Arab patriarch). So, earlier Jews were the God's chosen people, now the Arabs are the chosen people. Thus, among all people of the world, God chose two Semitic tribes, the descendants of Isaac and Ishmael (the two sons of Abraham) as the best. Among these two tribes He chose the descendants of Ishmael (the Arabs) as the best. Among Arabs, God chose Quresh (Mohammed's tribe) as the best people, and from this clan He chose Muhammad as the best of all men. On the day of judgment, Muhammad (and nobody else) would occupy the right-hand side of God's throne with a power of intercession ( Waseela) to forgive sins and act as a medium to paradise (Christians make the same claim for Jesus). The portrait of Allah as seen from the Quran is not a pretty one. He resembles more a Mafia don than a loving and caring father. Allah says that He has created man for no purpose but worship and adore Him (The Scatterers:55). Every possible sin can be pardoned, but Shirk (worshipping anything besides Allah) is the only unpardonable sin in the eyes of Allah. Allah sings His own glory that there is no God but He, He is the King, all-holy, all- peaceable, all-faithful, all-preserver, all-mighty, all-compeller, all-sublime, all-wise, all-forgiving, all-merciful, and so on. The unbelievers in general, and idolaters in particular, are the filth of the earth, and must be destroyed by whatever means, fair or foul. God says in the Quran "Then when the sacred months have passed, slay the idolaters wherever you find them, and take them captive and besiege them, and prepare an ambush for each of them,.... Those who disbelieve our revelations, We (God) shall expose them to the fire.... As often as their skins are consumed, We shall exchange them for fresh skins (and burn again and again) that they may taste the torment.... Accursed, they will be seized wherever found and slain with a fierce slaughter.... Idolaters and their gods are fuel of hell.... The fire is the reward of Allah's enemy, payment for denying Our revelation.... Disbelievers are an open enemy to you,.... Murder those disbelievers.... and let them find harshness in you,... The idolaters only are unclean,... Those who won't accept Islam are to be killed. When you encounter the unbelievers, strike off their heads, until you have made a great slaughter among them.... How many populations have we destroyed.... Humiliate the non-Muslims.... These are just samples of the Allah's threats to his children for disobeying and disbelieving Him. But are the unbelievers (kafirs) so vile as to deserve the Allah's wrath. No! Allah preordains who shall be a believer and who shall not. He says so in many places (none can be believer except by the will of Allah....). Allah says that He has Himself led unbelievers astray. He has deliberately put them---complete with their obstinate unbelief, their scheming and treachery---in the way of believers so as to test the believers. In other words, the believers will have to fight them, they must fight them---till the unbelievers submit (accept Islam) or they are exterminated. How interesting! Allah creates unbelievers (kafirs) by his will and then visits them with the most terrible vengeance for disbelieving Him. Poor kafirs! While on this earth the believers humiliate, torment, and then slaughter them. When they are dead, Allah tortures them for eternity. And all this, not because kafirs want to disbelieve Allah, but because Allah wants them to disbelieve Him and wants then as targets for practice by His believers. Surely, this no-win situation of kafirs must have caused many people to become Muslims. Of course, the Muslims fully believe all this to be the word of God. This is why the author observes "Revelation is the greatest medium of brainwashing because this is the agent of faith, which shuts down all doors of reasoning. The Author wonders about such a jealous, vengeful, cruel, unstable, and unjust God who desires constant worship from man. "Is worship really noblest desire? In fact it is the lowest wish a being can have because it is the worst form of flattery. Someone who wants to be praised all the time is a maniac who has lost all sense of decency. He is a danger to his own dignity as well as to the self-respect of those who are required to creep, crawl, and cry before him. Desire for praise is a human weakness, and urge of dominance happens to be its fountain. The concept of Allah as all- powerful, Absolute and totally independent is negated by the Quranic depiction of Allah as desperate for being loved and worshipped. He curses and swears at the unbelievers. He mocks and misleads them and threatens them with the most sadistic punishment of flaming hell, and also bribes them with paradise full of beautiful virgins. He repeatedly asserts that He is the most Terrible Avenger and His retributive punishment knows no bound. He hates those who do not prostrate before Him and recommends their slaughter until they are wiped out or submit to His will." The author asks, " Is it really the character of true God? He cannot be the Creator. If He were, He would have created the man to obey Him because praise, worship, and submission are his greatest desires, whose unfulfilment makes Him so unhappy and ruffled. If He cannot make Himself happy, how can He have the ability to make other people happy? Especially, when His happiness solely depends upon the deeds of man, He cannot be God." What is He then? The author claims that it is not Allah who created Muhammad, it is Muhammad who created Allah in the tradition of revelation discussed earlier. Allah is a factotum (handyman) of Muhammad and does whatever Muhammad wants from Him. Allah tells believers not to walk in front of the Prophet or raise voice above that of the Prophet. Allah tells the believers how to enter the house of the Prophet, how not to stay there, and not to indulge in idle talk when they are in his house. The Prophet was surely capable of giving such instructions. Even in such fundamental spiritual matter of Kibla, Muhammad wants it to be changed from Jerusalem to Kaaba, Allah does it. Muhammad says that the previous divine books Torah and Bible had been corrupted, but God has guaranteed the integrity of the Quran. Is it not amazing that God did not think it fit to protect His other books, only the Quran! Why? It is the same thing with the tradition of God to guide every generation through his prophets such as Adam, Noah, Joseph, Moses, etc. Now, suddenly Allah changed his mind. He made Muhammad the last prophet. No more prophets after him, only the impostors. Although Allah declares that no man can change the word of God (Cattle:30), Allah allows Muhammad to be above His laws. A Muslim is allowed four wives simultaneously, but Muhammad was allowed more wives (He had nine). A Muslim must be equitable to all his wives, but the Prophet can suspend any of them. Ayesha, one of the Prophet's wife was displeased when the Prophet was taking yet another wife (Khaula bint Halo). Then suddenly Allah revealed to Muhammad that " You may suspend any of your previous wives that you please". Poor Ayesha realized her predicament and capitulated saying "Allah hurries in pleasing you." Another wife Hafza found the Prophet in her bed with another woman (Marya). That was Hafza's day to be in bed with the Prophet according to the rotation system. She was mad, and the Prophet promises her not to transgress again. But immediately Allah sends revelation that the Prophet is absolved of any oath (66.1) so that he is free to break his promise. We see this again and again in the Quran that God makes or changes laws to suit the Prophet. The only function of Allah seems to be to secure the pleasure of Muhammad. The true Creator and all-powerful God will not dispense or bend his laws to please a man or legalize his actions. According to the author, this clearly shows that Allah is Mohammed's creation and Allah's duty is to give supernatural sanctity to Mohammed's words and deeds. Observe: Revelations are received by Muhammad for the benefit of Muhammad. Moreover, these revelations cannot be independently verified because only Muhammad (and nobody else) can receive them. If any one so claims, he is a heretic whose punishment is death. Thus, Muhammad is the Judge, the jury and the executioner. Even a banana republic has better checks and balances in its constitution. We all accept the cardinal principle of the modern science that a Truth must be independently verifiable by anyone who is willing to take the trouble. But Islam (indeed every revealed religion, including Judaism and Christianity) shuts its door to any verification of its claims. It is also clear that though the Quran in the beginning treats Muhammad as Human, eventually, like Moses, Mohammed appears as God's superior. A person does not rank as a believer until he loves the Prophet more than his father, his children and all mankind. Muhammad is as great as Allah because the former like the latter, has 99 attributes. Obedience to Muhammad becomes as compulsory as to Allah and gradually the Prophet shares authority with Allah. On the last day of judgment, the criterion of judgment shall not be the quality of deeds but who has loved the Prophet most. All unbelievers will go to hell with unspeakable torture for eternity even if they led virtuous life. But any murderer, rapist, thug, etc., who ever mentioned Mohammed's name affectionately even once in their life-time and believed in his Prophethood would go to paradise. This is in reality Shirk (worshipping others with Allah), which is unpardonable sin. According to the author, this exposes the true nature of revelation, that is, it serves the tool of dominance-seeker who wants to be loved and worshipped by his fellow men by projecting himself as God indirectly. Although idolatry deserves hell in Islam, Muslims vied with one another in gathering Prophet's (trimmed) hair, nails as divine objects. If this is not idolatry, what is? The author makes a convincing argument that the prophet was in reality an Arab national leader aiming at establishing a system of Arab imperialism. This he does by shifting the God's covenant from Isaac (Jews) to Ishmael (Arabs), by shifting the Kibla from Jerusalem to Kaaba, by making Quresh (Mohammed's tribe) as the God's chosen tribe (Moses had declared Jews as the chosen people). Moses created Jewish nation in the name of Yahweh. Muhammad created Muslim nation in the name of Allah. Sahih Al Bokhari volume 8 says " Even the most virtuous and capable non Arab Muslim cannot legitimately rule. This exposes the racial nature of Islam and the much-vaunted Islamic principles of equality and democracy a myth." The Arabs have acquired the status of a nucleus whereas the non-Arab Muslims have gladly become their satellites in the hope of gaining paradise. The Prophet says that he will not open the gates of paradise to those Muslims who are not friendly with the Arabs (Sahih Tirmizi, vol. 2, pp. 835,840). The author marvels at how Muslims of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and African origin deny nationality of their own.... They have no national histories... and cling to the Arab history, which they call the "Islamic history" for having some kind of identity, no matter how inferior. The author believes that to ensure victory of his nationalism, the Prophet used a two-pronged strategy of "stick and carrot". Stick (eternal torture of hell) for those who do not follow him and carrot (eternal pleasure of heaven with most beautiful virgins) for those who follow him. He also formulated the doctrine of Jihad (fighting against unbelievers) for taking over their country, personal possessions and women, and subjugating them to Arabian hegemony. The Quran says " God has bought from the believers their selves against the gift of paradise.... They kill and get killed." If a Muslim soldier wins, his life becomes paradise on this earth because of the booty and plunder he receives by way of wealth and women. If he is killed, he goes straight to the paradise. What a philosophical temptation to murder and pillage! Since Jihad is against the unbelievers, the Prophet created unlimited opportunities for holy wars by declaring all religions false and ungodly. The Quran says " And whoever desires a religion other than Islam, it will never be accepted...." (3.85). the Prophet declared that he was commanded (by Allah) to fight against people ceaselessly until they confessed that their was no god but Allah and Muhammad was his messenger. Author further states that these holy wars were, in fact, the wars of national ambition and gives several examples of wanton cruelties of the Prophet, who also emphasizes that "war is deceit" (Sahih Al Bokhari, vol. 4). Thus, the author says "one can see Islam is not a message of mercy but a secular code like all other contemporary codes. To perpetuate opportunities for war to keep the Mujaheddin (warriors of Allah) on war footing, Islam is based on the hatred of non-Muslims." He then goes on to give many quotes from the Quran to buttress his argument about hate mongering such as "Muslims must wage a struggle against the non-Muslims and be harsh with them ... Slay the idolaters wherever you find them... God has cursed the unbelievers and prepared a blaze for them, and so on. One is amused at the description of heaven and hell. In heaven, a believer gets to enjoy 70 divinely beautiful virgins (Houris) with swelling breasts which are round and horizontal (not drooping). To enjoy these houries every faithful will be given the virility of 100 men. Moreover, this joy is for ever (eternity). The author reminds here that Jihad (the holy war) is a duty laid on the believers to destroy the unbelievers in return for paradise. This is what made people believe that the reward of Jihad , i.e., killing and robbing the non-Muslims in the name of Allah is paradise. Without the expectation of such a reward, Muslims would not have fought with half the zeal that they displayed in eradicating the non-Muslims. To highlight the effect of paradisiac delight, the Prophet narrates the doleful plight of hell in contradistinction. For instance, nonbelievers will be tortured by burning their skins, given new skins to burn again and again and again. They will have to drink boiling water, that tears their bowels asunder, etc. Author then dissects the political claims of Islam such as the Islam offers democracy. Not true! The first four rulers (Caliphs) were appointed. After the battle of Karbala, the Islamic Caliphate became a dynastic rule or kingship. Islamic claim that the rule of the first four Caliphs was a golden period of Islam is also not true. Of the four, only Abu Bakr died naturally. The other three were assassinated. The pillaged wealth and the abducted daughters and sisters of the foreign nations (Egypt and Iran were the earliest victims) lent the golden touch to this Arab era. They claim that Islam is a socialistic system. Nonsense. Islam openly declares that Allah makes king whom he likes, and gives wealth to a person he chooses. They say that Islam is a religion of brotherhood. Thousand times no! Islamic hatred for non-Muslims makes Islam the opponent of human rights. This is the reason that one cannot find many non-Muslims in Muslim countries. A Muslim cannot be executed for murdering a non-Muslim. Muslims can have a mosque in the holiest places of Hinduism, but nobody can build a temple, a church, or a synagogue in Mecca. Association of Muslim with a non-Muslim is forbidden by the Quran, and the membership of the United Nations by all Muslim nations is un-Islamic. What a model of international brotherhood it is!" They say that Islam is a religion of love and peace. A million times no! Islam glorifies violence and sanctifies murder and pillage of the non-Muslims and abduction of their women for spreading the name of Allah, who calls himself the Most Merciful, yet he sanctions the basest form of cruelties to those humans, who do not acknowledge Him as the Divine. Murder, rape, pillage, abduction, etc., are the worst form of moral vices, yet Allah adores them as virtues for the Crusaders (Mujaheddins) who subjugate the non- Muslims to the yoke of Islam. One is baffled by such a morality which has been invented to initiate aggression." So far the response of the Muslim world is hand-wringing, cursing, death threats, vituperation and a fatwa on the Shaikh. No refutation of his claims. They seem to have no arguments to refute Shaikh's impeccable scholarship. Islam: The Arab National Movement101 pp. Paperback Principality Publishers, Cardiff, Great Britain Distributor: A. Ghosh Publisher, 5740 W. Little York, Suite 216, Houston TX 77091, $ 7.50 Copyrights © 2000-2010 Anwar Shaikh. All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced without permission of the publisher.


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Aditi Chaturvedi
Vedic Past of Pre-Islamic Arabia - Part 1
Many centuries before prophet Muhammad and the destructive advent of Islam, Arabia or Arabistan was an extremely rich and glorious center of Vedic civilization. In this article, I will prove to you point by point that pre-Islamic Arabia was in fact a flourishing civilization which revered Vedic culture.
It is the prophet Muhammad and the followers of Islam who are fully responsible for the dissemination and destruction of this once glorious culture.
In learning about this most ancient heritage, let's begin with the word Arabistan itself. Arabistan is derived from the original Sanskrit term Arvasthan which means The Land of Horses. Since time immemorial proponents of the Vedic culture used to breed exceptional horses in this region. Thus eventually the land itself began to be called Arva (Horses) -Sthan (place). The people who lived in this land were called Semitic. Semitic comes from the Sanskrit word Smritic. Arabs followed the ancient Vedic Smritis such as Manu-Smriti as their revered religious guides and thus they were identified as Smritic which has been corrupted into Semitic.
At that time the Uttarapath (Northern Highway) was the international highway to the North of India. It was via Uttarapath that Arabia and other Middle Eastern countries drew their spiritual, educational and material sustenance from India. Besides, this Sea-links were formed with India at least 800 years before the advent of Islam. Basra was the ancient gateway to India because it was at this port that the Arab lands recieved Indian goods and visitors. At that time the spoken language was Sanskrit, which later dwindled into the local variation that we now call Arabic. The proof of this is that thousands of words that were derived from Sanskrit still survive in Arabic today. Here is a sampling of some:
Sanskrit Arabic English
Sagwan Saj Teakwood
Vish Besh Poison
Anusari Ansari Follower
Shishya Sheikh Disciple
Mrityu Mout Death
Pra-Ga-ambar Paigambar One from heaven
Maleen Malaun Dirty or soiled
Aapati Aafat Misfortune
Karpas Kaifas Cotton
Karpur Kafur Camphor
Pramukh Barmak Chief
Even various kinds of swords were referred to as Handuwani, Hindi, Saif-Ul-Hind, Muhannid and Hinduani. The Sanskrit Astronomical treatise Brahma-Sphuta-Siddhanta in Arabic translation is known as Sind-Hind, while another treatise Khanda-Khadyaka was called Arkand. Mathematics itself was called Hindisa .
The Arabs derived technical guidance in every branch of study such as astronomy, mathematics and physics from India. A noted scholar of history, W.H. Siddiqui notes:
"The Arab civilization grew up intensively
as well as extensively on the riches of
Indian trade and commerce. Nomadic Arab
tribes became partially settled communities
and some of them lived within walled towns practised agriculture and commerce, wroteon wood and stone, feared the gods and honored the kings."
Some people wrongly believe that Arabs used the word Hindu as a term of contemptuous abuse. Nothing could be further from the truth. The people of pre-Islamic Arabia held Hinduism in great esteem as evidenced from the fact that they would endearingly call their most attractive and favourite daughters as Hinda and Saifi Hindi. The fact that Arabs regarded India as their spiritual and cultural motherland long before the damaging influence of Islam is corroborated by the following poem which mentions each one of the four Vedas by name: (The English translation is in black)
"Aya muwarekal araj yushaiya nohaminar HIND-eWa aradakallahamanyonaifail jikaratun"
"Oh the divine land of HIND (India)(how) very blessed art thou!Because thou art the chosenof God blessed with knowledge"
"Wahalatijali Yatun ainana sahabiakha-atun jikra Wahajayhi yonajjalur-rasu minal HINDATUN "
"That celestial knowledge which likefour lighthouses shone in suchbrilliance - through the (utterances of)Indian sages in fourfold abundance."
"Yakuloonallaha ya ahal araf alameenkullahumFattabe-u jikaratul VEDA bukkunmalam yonajjaylatun"
"God enjoins on all humans,follow with hands downThe path the Vedas with his divineprecept lay down."
"Wahowa alamus SAMA wal YAJURminallahay TanajeelanFa-e-noma ya akhigo mutiabay-anYobassheriyona jatun"
"Bursting with (Divine) knowledgeare SAM &YAJUR bestowed on creation,Hence brothers respect andfollow the Vedas, guides to salvation"
"Wa-isa nain huma RIG ATHAR nasayhinKa-a-KhuwatunWa asant Ala-udan wabowa masha -e-ratun"
"Two others, the Rig and Athar teach usfraternity, Sheltering under theirlustre dispels darkness till eternity"
This poem was written by Labi-Bin-E- Akhtab-Bin-E-Turfa who lived in Arabia around 1850 B.C. That was 2300 years before Mohammed!!! This verse can be found in Sair- Ul-Okul which is an anthology of ancient Arabic poetry. It was compiled in 1742 AD under order of the Turkish Sultan Salim.
That the Vedas were the religious scriptures to which the Arabs owed allegiance as early as 1800 B.C. proves not only the antiquity of the Vedas but also the existence of Indian rule over the entire region from the Indus to the Mediterranean, because it is a fact of history that the religion of the ruler is practised by his subjects.
Vedic culture was very much alive just before the birth of Muhammad. Again let's refer to the Sair-Ul-Okul. The following poem was written by Jirrham Bintoi who lived 165 years before the prophet Muhammed. It is in praise of India's great King Vikramaditya who had lived 500 years before Bintoi. (The English translation is in red).
"Itrasshaphai SantulBikramatul phehalameen KarimunBihillahaya SamiminelaMotakabbenaran BihillahaYubee qaid min howaYaphakharu phajgal asarinahans Osirim BayjayholeenYaha sabdunya Kanateph natephibijihalin Atadari Bilala masaurateenphakef Tasabahu. Kaunni eja majakaralhadawalhada Achimiman, burukan, Kad, Toluhowatastaru Bihillaha yakajibainanabaleykulle amarenaPhaheya jaunabil amaray Bikramatoon"- (Sair-ul-Okul, Page 315)
"Fortunate are those who were bornduring King Vikram's reign, he wasa noble generous, dutiful ruler devotedto the welfare of his subjects. But atthat time, We Arabs oblivious of divinitywere lost in sensual pleasures. Plotting& torture were rampant. The darkness ofignorance had enveloped our country.Like the lamb struggling for its lifein the cruel jaws of a wolf, we Arabswere gripped by ignorance. The wholecountry was enveloped in a darkness asintense as on a New moon night. But thepresent dawn & pleasant sunshine ofeducation is the result of the favor ofthat noble king Vikram whose benevolencedid not lose sight of us foreigners as wewere. He spread his sacred culture amongstus and sent scholars from his own landwhose brilliance shone like that of the sunin our country. These scholars & preceptorsthrough whose benevolence we were once againmade aware of the presence of god, introducedto his secret knowledge & put on the road totruth, had come to our country to initiate usin that culture & impart education."
Thus we can see that Vedic religion and culture were present in Pre-Islamic Arabia as early as 1850 B.C., and definitely present at the time of Mohammed's birth.
In his book Origines, Volumes 3 & 4", Sir W. Drummond adds:
"Tsabaism was the universal language of mankind when Abraham received his call, their doctrines were probably extended all over the civilized nations of Earth."
Tsabaism is merely the corruption of the word Shaivism which is Vedic religion. On page 439 of this book, Sir Drummond mentions some of gods of pre-Islamic Arabs, all of which were included in the 360 idols that were consecrated in the Kaba shrine before it was raided and destroyed by Muhammad and his followers. Here are some of the Vedic deities and their original Sanskrit names:
Arabic Sanskrit English
Al-Dsaizan Shani Saturn
Al-Ozi or Ozza Oorja Divine energy
Al-Sharak Shukra Venus
Auds Uddhav -
Bag Bhagwan God
Bajar Vajra Indra's thunderbolt
Kabar Kuber God of wealth
Dar Indra King of gods
Dua Shara Deveshwar Lord of the gods
Habal Bahubali Lord of strength
Madan Madan God of love
Manaph Manu First Man
Manat Somnath Lord Shiv
Obodes Bhoodev Earth
Razeah Rajesh King of kings
Saad Siddhi God of Luck
Sair Shree Goddess of wealth
Sakiah Shakrah Indra
Sawara Shiva-Eshwar God Shiva
Yauk Yaksha Divine being
Wad Budh Mercury
The Kaba temple which was misappropriated and captured by Muslims was originally an International Vedic Shrine. The ancient Vedic scripture Harihareswar Mahatmya mentions that Lord Vishnu's footprints are consecrated in Mecca. An important clue to this fact is that Muslims call this holy precint Haram which is a deviation of the Sanskrit term Hariyam, i.e. the precint of Lord Hari alias Lord Vishnu. The relevant stanza reads:
"Ekam Padam GayayantuMAKKAYAANTU DwitiyakamTritiyam SthapitamDivyam Muktyai Shuklasya Sannidhau"
The allusion is to the Vamana incarnation of Lord Vishnu whose blessed feet were consecrated at three holy sites, namely Gaya, Mecca and Shukla Teertha. Worshipping such carved, holy foot impressions is a holy Vedic custom which convert Muslims are inadvertently perpetuating. But in doing this they delude themselves and mislead others that these foot-impressions which are on reverential display in several mosques and tombs around the world are in fact Muhammad's own. There are several snags in this argument. Firstly worshipping a foot -impression amounts to idolatry and should therefore be taboo for a true Muslim. Secondly Muhhamad disclaimed having performed any miracles. Therefore there can be no foot-impression of his on stone. Thirdly foot-impressions must always be in pairs like shoes. Yet in most of these shrines, it is usually a single footprint which suggests that Muhammad walked on only one foot. Another question that crops up is whether the foot-impression is of the same size and foot in all the shrines. The fact appears to be that when the Vedic Kaba shrine in Mecca was invaded by Muhammad, the pairs of foot impressions of Vedic deities there were plundered and later traded to the gullible and devout as Muhammad's own footprints for some favour, reward or personal gain by unscrupulous muslims. That is why they are single and not in pairs.

Figure 1.
The Shiv Ling at The Kaba. It was broken in seven
places and now is held together by a silver band.
The Black Stone which is the Shiv Emblem (also known as Sange Aswad which is a corrupted form of the Sanskrit word Sanghey Ashweta--meaning non-white stone) still survives in the Kaba as the central object of Islamic veneration. All other Vedic Idols could be found buried in the precincts or trampled underfoot in labyrinthine subterranean corridors if archaeological excavations are undertaken. The Black Stone has been badly mutilated, its carved base has disappeared and the stone itself is broken at seven places. It's parts are now held together by a silver band studded with silver nails. It lies half buried in the South Eastern portion of the Kaba Wall (Refer to Figure 1). The term Kaba itself is a corruption of the Sanskrit word Gabha (Garbha + Graha) which means Sanctum.
In addition, in the inscriptions from Hajja and its neighborhood was found a votive vessel dedicated by members of two tribes called Rama and Somia. Rama and Soma are Vedic deities, Rama is of the Solar dynasty and Soma is of the Lunar Dynasty. The moon god was called by various names in pre-Islamic times , one of them was Allah. Allah had 3 children, Al-Lat, Al-Uzza and Manat. Al-Lat and Al-Uzza were both feminine deities. Alla is another name for the Hindu goddess Durga. It is obvious that the goddess Al-Lat was Alla (Durga) and Al-Uzza was Oorja (energy or life force also known as Shakti). Manat was none other than Somnath which is another name for Lord Shiva. One significant point to note that Soma in Sanskrit means Moon and Nath means Lord. Thus the Kaba itself was dedicated to the Moon God Somnath alias Shiv and the word Somnath was corrupted to Manat. The famous Black Stone is none other than the ShivLing of Makkeshwar alias Mecca. Lord Shiva is always shown with a crescent Moon on his head and every Shiva temple is supposed to have a sacred water spring representing the Ganges. The Crescent Moon pinnacle of the Kaba and the Zamzam spring (actually Zamza from Ganga) are irrefutable testaments to the Vedic origins of the Kaba.
Figure 2 below depicts the image of Maqam-E-Ibrahim in the Kaba.

Figure 2.
Maqam-E-Ibrahim or more appropriately the pedestal of Brahma.
Muslims from all over the world pay homage to this shrine. This shrine is actually the pedestal of Brahma. Notice that the word, Ibrahim is actually a corruption of the word, Brahma. The octogonal grill which is a Vedic design, protects the holy footprints which represent the start of the creation nearly 2000 million years ago. Before it was captured by the Muslims it was an international shrine of the Vedic trinity.
In fact the names of the holiest of Muslim cities Mecca and Medina come from the Sanskrit words Makha-Medini which means the land of Fire-Worship. Even the most ancient names of these 2 cities were Mahcorava- which came from Mahadeva (Lord Shiva) and Yathrabn - which came from Yatra-Sthan (place of pilgrimage).
Islam came into being about 1372 years ago. It is well known that over 7500 years ago, at the time of the Mahabharat War, Kurus ruled the world. The scions of that family administered the different regions. Prophet Muhammed himself and his family were adherents of Vedic culture. The Encyclopedia Islamia admits as much when it says: "Muhammed's grandfather and uncles were hereditary priests of the Kaba temple which housed 360 idols!"
According to Arab traditions, Muhammad is a title. We do not know what name his parents had given him. We do however know that the central object of worship which survives at the Kaba today is a Shivling. That was allowed to remain there because that was the faceless family deity of Muhammad's family. One of the original names of Lord Shiv is Mahadev (The Great God) therefore it is entirely possible Muhammad came from Mahadev. This appears fairly certain because the Arabs still have a Mahadevi sect. Moreover the title Mehdi of a Muslim chief is also a malpronounciation of the term Mahadeva. According to Sanskrit etymology the term Muhammad implies 'a person of great inspiration' - 'Mahan Madah yasya assau Muhammadah' In a hostile sense it also implies 'a person of a proud and haughty temperament'.
The Qurayshi tribe into which Mohammed was born was particularly devoted to Allah and and the three children of the Moon God. Therefore when Muhammad decided to create his own Divine religion, he took innumerable aspects of the daily Vedic culture that surrounded him and corrupted them to suit his needs. It was with the advent of the Prophet and Islam that the death-knell of the glorious Arab culture was sounded. With Islam came the flood of destruction, murder, plunder and crime that destroyed the great Vedic heritage of Arabs. The Prophet merely took some existing artefacts and terms and corrupted them so profoundly that no one would be able to discover their actual origins.
In my next article, I will elaborate further on the Vedic Heritage of Arabia.
Note: Works of P.N. Oak and Robert A. Morey have been used to compose this article.

Aditi Chaturvedi
Vedic Past of Pre-Islamic Arabia - Part 2
In 570 AD, the year of Muhammad's birth, Arabia was a thriving, rich and varied Vedic culture. Although monotheism in the forms of Christianity and Judaism were known to the people of Arvasthan, they were undeterred in their uncompromising faith to the religion of their ancestors: Hinduism . Every household had an idol of a Hindu god or goddess. There were hundreds of sacred groves, places of pilgrimage, and temples which were sanctuaries containing images of the entire range of Vedic gods. The temples in addition to being the religious focus of the Arabs, were also the cultural centres of learning. It was the temples that were the venues of literary and poetry competitions, of glorious festivals.
The virtues most highly prized by people of Arvasthan were bravery in battle, patience in misfortune, loyalty to one's tribe, and generosity to the needy and the poor. They proudly upheld the value of tolerance in matters of religious practice and belief. The respect they showed towards other people's religions was fully in keeping with their Vedic spiritual tradition.
The status of women was that of pride and equal respect. How could it be otherwise with a people whose chief deity was the goddess Durga (Alla). Women married men of their choice and were financially independent. They were entrepeneurs, artisans, poets and even warriors! Later on Muhammad would marry Khadija, who was not only a wealthy merchant but also in the position to choose her own husband. This clearly demonstrates the level of freedom women enjoyed in Vedic Arabia. Hind, who was the wife of Muhammad's chief enemy Abu Sufyan, herself participated in the battlefield.
Hind opposed Muhammad tooth and nail. She followed her husband to the battlefield and when Abu Sufyan surrendered Mecca to Muhammad without a fight she caught hold of him in the marketplace and cried:
"KILL this fat greasy bladder of lard! What a rotten protector of the people"
When Muhammad tried to baptise her & asked her not to commit adultery , She spat out the bitter words:
"A free woman does not commit adultery!"
How proud this woman was of the rights and privileges that her Vedic society had invested to her!
It was Islam that extinguished the light of knowledge in Vedic Arabia. It is ironic that the man who brought about such darkness himself belonged to the Qurayshi Tribe of Mecca. The Qurayshi were particularly devoted to Allah (Durga) and the famous Shivling of the Kaaba Temple. The fact that the Shivling remains to this day in the Kaaba is solely due to the fact that it happened to be the Qurayshi tribe's faceless Family Deity. As I mentioned before Muhammad's name itself came from Mahadeva, which is another cognate for Lord Shiva. Muhammad's own uncle, Umar-Bin-E-Hassham was a staunch Hindu and fervent devotee of Lord Shiva. He was a renowned poet and wrote many verses in praise of Shiva. One of these has survived on page 235 of Sair-Ul-Okul and reads as follows:
Kafavomal fikra min ulumin Tab asayru
Kaluwan amataul Hawa was Tajakhru
We Tajakhayroba udan Kalalwade-E Liboawa
Walukayanay jatally, hay Yauma Tab asayru
Wa Abalolha ajabu armeeman MAHADEVA
Manojail ilamuddin minhum wa sayattaru
Wa Sahabi Kay-yam feema-Kamil MINDAY Yauman
Wa Yakulum no latabahan foeennak Tawjjaru
Massayaray akhalakan hasanan Kullahum
Najumum aja- at Summa gabul HINDU
which translates as:
The man who may spend his life in sin
and irreligion or waste it in lechery and wrath
If at least he relent and return to
righteousness can he be saved?
If but once he worship Mahadeva with a pure
heart, he will attain the ultimate in spirituality.
Oh Lord Shiva exchange my entire life for but
a day's sojourn in India where one attains salvation.
But one pilgrimage there secures for one all
merit and company of the truly great.
Muhammad's uncle was one of the resident priests of the Shiv temple known as "Kaaba". This sacred sanctum was decorated in an extremely rich and beautiful fashion. The Kaaba was astronomically oriented to face the winds. The minor axis of the rectangular base of the Kaaba was solistically aligned towards summer sunrise and winter sunset. It contained 360 statues of Vedic deities and was a shrine primarily associated with sun worship. The temple was an architectural representation of an interlocking set of theories covering virtually all creation and comprehending chemistry, physics, cosmology, meteorology and medicine. Each wall or corner of the Kaaba was associated with a specific region of the world. Thus this glorious Hindu temple was made to symbolically represent a microcosm of the universe. The Arabs would face east when praying. This representation of a microcosm demonstrated by the eight directional structure was derived from the Tantric pattern (Refer to Figure 1) of Hinduism. Right at the centre of the Kaaba was the octogonal pedestal of Bramha the creator. Today this very pedestal is called Maqam-E-Ibrahim by the Muslims.


Figure 1.
A tantric pattern which defines the structure of Kaaba
However, more significant was the fact that the Kaaba was an extremely rich and ornate temple. On its walls hung innumerable gold plaques commemorating the winners of the annual poetry competition known as the Okaj fair. There were gold, silver and precious gems everywhere. It is no wonder that Muhammad armed with his facade of a new brand of religion set out to capture the immense wealth of the Vedic shrine of Mecca. After plundering the riches of the Kaaba, the wealth enabled him to systematically destroy all traces of the religion that threatened him so directly. It is an indisputable fact that money will make any low criminal devoutly religious in a hurry.
Despite the fact that Muhammad had to destroy all traces of Hinduism in order to make his "new religion" work, he knew that in order to fool people convincingly he would have to borrow from the Vedic culture that surrounded him. Being illiterate he picked out rituals and symbols that he didn't understand and distorted and falsified them for his own ends. Here is a list of these distortions:
1. Muhammad destroyed all 360 idols, but even he could not summon the courage to completely obliterate the Shivling in the Kaaba. He entered the temple and kissed the black stone. The Shivling was so sacred that the man who so detested idol- worship ended up kissing the largest idol in the Kaaba. Later his followers in a fit of piety broke the Shivling and then out of remorse repatched it together again. Today it lies broken at seven places and held together by a silver band studded with silver nails, bearing the name "Sangey Aswad" which came from the Sanskrit Ashwet meaning non-white or black stone.
2. He jumbled up the Sanskrit words Nama and Yaja (which meant "bowing and worshipping" respectively) into a combination word Namaz and used that to describe his prescribed method of prayer.
3. Because the Vedic custom was to pray facing the East, in his hatred for all things Hindu, he directed his followers to pray facing only the west.
4. The method of circling around a shrine seven times in a clockwise direction is an ancient Vedic custom. Muhammad with his lack of originality decided that the 7 ritual perambulations should be retained but again in his hatred of all things Vedic decided the direction of the perambulations should be anti-clockwise.
5. With his phobia of all things Vedic, Muhammad knew that the greatest reminder and threat to his forced brand of religion were the beautiful Vedic idols of Arabic temples. Thus he destroyed every idol he could find and made idol worship the greatest crime for a Muslim. Such a man could never have comprehended how an abstract concept can be conveyed through a symbolic representation in the form of an image. Thus he made all image representation a sin as well.
6. Vedic religion is known for its ancient oral tradition. It is well known that the Vedic culture emphasized oral debate and expression far more than the written word. In adition the oral recitation of Vedic scriptures was always done in a lyrical fashion, utilizing music and thus reaching a height of expression. In fear of this musical tradition Muhammad decided to forbid Music.
7. All Arabic copies of the Koran have the mysterious figure 786 imprinted on them . No Arabic scholar has been able to determine the choice of this particular number as divine. It is an established fact that Muhammad was illiterate therefore it is obvious that he would not be able to differentiate numbers from letters. This "magical" number is none other than the Vedic holy letter "OM" written in Sanskrit (Refer to figure 2). Anyone who knows Sanskrit can try reading the symbol for "OM" backwards in the Arabic way and magically the numbers 786 will appear! Muslims in their ignorance simply do not realise that this special number is nothing more than the holiest of Vedic symbols misread.

Figure 2.
Read from right to left this figure
of OM represents the numbers 786
There are many such instances where the symbols and rituals of Vedic culture were completely distorted and falsified by Muhammad in his bid to "create" his brand new religion. However in his haste to deceive and because of his ignorance and illiteracy, thousands of Vedic symbols still remain. Although they have been distorted beyond imagination, they still remain as solemn reminders of Arabia's glorious Vedic past. They can never be supressed.
In fact the rise of Islam put a full stop to all the previous knowledge of Arabia. The imperialistic message of Islam diverted all energies into raiding, looting and destruction. The incentive to learn and preserve the Vedic wisdom that had thrived in Arabia for so many centuries, was wiped out by the brutal pressure of Islam. Making easy money through loot and massacre was far more appealing than upholding the tenets of ancient knowledge. Gone were the schools, teachers, libraries, poets, artists, philosophers and scholars that had littered the Vedic landscape of Arabia like stars. Everyone had to become a raider if not from choice then for the sake of surviving the absolute intolerance of dissenters, that Islam preached. Thus was the light of learning extinguished in Arabia. All that remained was the Koran, the Kalma and the murderous hatred of anything Non-Muslim.
In my next article I will explore how the Arabs fought to keep the integrity and pride of their Vedic culture alive in the face of the violent, unjust and murderous destruction caused by the followers of Islam.
Note: Works of P.N. Oak, Sita Ram Goel, Arun Shourie, Jay Dubashi, Harsh Narain and Ram Swarup have been used to compose this article.

ca 590-671: Lifetime of Saiva saint Nayanar Tirunavukkarasu, born into a farmer family at Amur, now in South Arcot, Tamil Nadu. He writes 312 songs, totalling 3,066 Tirumurai verses. Cleaning the grounds of every temple he visits, he exemplifies truly humble service to Lord Siva. His contemporary, the child-saint Nayanar Sambandar, addresses him affectionately as Appar, "father."
ca 598-665: Lifetime of Brahmagupta, preeminent Indian astronomer, who writes on gravity and sets forth the Hindu astronomical system in his Brahma Sphuta Siddhanta. Two of 25 chapters are on sophisticated mathematics.
ca 600: Religiously tolerant Pallava King Narasinhavarman builds China Pagoda, a Buddhist temple, at the Nagapatam port for Chinese merchants and visiting monks.
ca 610: Muhammed begins prophecies, flees to Mecca in 622.
ca 600-900: Twelve Vaishnava Alvar saints of Tamil Nadu flourish, writing 4,000 songs and poems (assembled in their cannon Nalayira Divya Prabandham) praising Narayana, Rama and narrating the love of Krishna and the gopis.
ca 600: Life of Banabhatta, Shakta master of Sanskrit prose, author of Harshacharita (story of Harsha) and Kadambari.
606: Buddhist Harshavardhana, reigning 606-644, establishes first great kingdom after the Hephtalite invasions, eventually ruling all India to the Narmada River in the South.
(reference: Jihad the Islamic doctrine of permanent war by Suhas Majumdar)
624 Banu Kainuka (Jewish tribe) expelled from Medina
625 Banu Nazir (Jewish tribe) expelled from Medina
627 Banu Kuraizah (Jewish tribe) in Medina exterminated
628 non-Medinese Jewish tribes of Khaiber conquered & forced to pay Jizyah
ca 630: Vagbhata writes Ashtanga Sangraha on ayurveda.
630-34: Chalukya Pulakeshin II becomes Lord of South India by defeating Harshavardhana, Lord of the North.
630-44: Chinese pilgrim Hiuen-Tsang (Huan Zang) travels in India, recording voluminous observations. Population of Varanasi is 10,000, mostly Saiva. Nalanda Buddhist university (his biographer writes) has 10,000 residents, including 1,510 teachers, and thousands of manuscripts.
632: Muhammed dies
634-644: reign of Caliph Umar after Muhammed‘s death.
Arab invasion of Sindh started soon after their first two naval expeditions against Thana on the coast of Maharashtra and Broach on the coast of Gujarat repulsed. The expedition against Debal in Sind met the same fate. The leader of the Arab army Mughairah was defeated and killed.Umar decided to send another army by land against Makran which was at that time a part of the kingdom of Sindh, but he was advised by the governor of Iraq that he should think no more of Hind”. reference page 10 , Heroic Hindu Resistance to Muslim Invaders by Sita Ram Goel.

636: first Arab Muslim expedition against Thana near Bombay(after 570 years of trying established the Delhi Sultanate in ca 1206)
636-637: Arab Muslims conquer Byzantine provinces of Palestine and Syria after a six month campaign
637: Arab Muslims defeat the Sassanid empire of Persia which included Iraq, Iran, and Khorasan.
641-45: Arab Muslims conquer Mesopotamia, Egypt and Persia.
646-656: reign of Caliph Usman
650: Turkish speaking territories of Inner Mongolia, Bukhara, Tashkand, and Samarkan etc annexed by Arab Muslims.
ca 650: Lifetime of Nayanar Saiva saint Tirujnana Sambandar. Born a brahmin in Tanjavur, he writes 384 songs totalling 4,158 verses that make up the first three books of Tirumurai. At 16, he disappears into the sanctum of Nallur temple, near Tiruchi, Tamil Nadu.
ca 650: More than 60 Chinese monks have traveled to India and her colonies. Four hundred Sanskrit works have been translated into Chinese, 380 survive to the present day.
656-661: reign of Caliph Ali
686-705: Reign of Pallava King Rajasinha. He inherits the stone-carving legacy of Emperor Mahendra and his son, Narasinha, who began the extensive sculptural art in the thriving sea-port of Mahabalipuram.
ca 700: Over the next 100 years the Indonesian island of Bali receives Hinduism from its neighbor, Java.
709: After having marched over North Africa and reached the Atlantic Arab armies cross over into Spain
712: Muslims conquer Sind region (Pakistan), providing base for pillaging expeditions that drain North India's wealth.
Reference: http://www.aryawat.com/heritage/firstmuslim.htm
The first Muslim Aggression in Sindh
When Harsha's rule ended with his death in 641 C.E., an event had taken place in far away Arabia which was to have a deep impact on India and its subsequent history. Needless to state that this was the rise of Islam and the beginning of the Jehad which was to bring Muslim invaders and rule to India from 1194. The very first Muslim attack on India had taken place nearly 500 years earlier in Sindh in the year 715 C.E. These Muslim invaders were Arabs led by Mohammad Bin Qasim. They had displaced Raja Dabir who ruled Sindh from his capital Deval (near modern Karachi).
The actual reason for this invasion was that Raja Dabir was aiding the Iranian (Zoroastrian) princes in trying to overthrow the Arab Rule in Persia. This seems to be a fact as many Sassanian nobles from Iran had taken refuge in Sindh and were plotting for the liberation of their country from the Arab yoke.
But the pretext given by Arab historians for the Arab invasion of Sindh is that Raja Dabir's navy had detained an Arab merchant ship.
To avenge this detention of a merchant ship, the Arabs overran the entire kingdom of Raja Dabir as also the neighbouring kingdom of Mulasthana (Multan). They even unsuccessfully tried to attack Malwa (Malibah in Arab records)!
After this invasion which was limited to Sindh, for a period of 300 years all further Muslim attacks were thwarted by Kings like Raja Bhoja and other Parmara and Gurjara Kings. So although the first Muslim invasion of India took place in Sindh in 715 C.E. the presence of strong Hindu Kingdoms in Central India ruled by Kings like Raja Bhoja in the 7th century C.E. and later the Gurjara Kingdoms, prevented the march of the Arabs into India.
It is not well known that in the period 750 to 850 C.E., the Arabs based in Sindh, had attacked Malwa (called Malibah by the Arabs), but were repulsed by Raja Bhoja and his successors. The later Arabs attacks were repulsed first by the Gurjara rulers and later on the Rajputs who play an important role in Indian history from the 9th century C.E. till the coming of the Muslims in the 12th century. But before we go to the Rajputs, let's look at the scene in Afghanistan in the period 950 C.E.
The Arabs had 300 years before that age, i.e. around 650 C.E., overthrown the Zoroastrian Sassanian rulers of Persia and had managed to wipe off Zoroastrianism as a religion in Iran and Western Afghanistan by converting the population to Islam. It was now the turn of the then frontier provinces of India to face the sword of the Islamic Jehad. In those days, Western Afghanistan comprising the provinces of Heart (whose name is derived from Hari-Rud which is said to be a derivation from the older term Hari-Rudra - two Hindu dieties), Kandahar (the ancient Gandhara of the Mahabharata) was ruled by Sabuktagin a Muslim ruler from a town named Ghazni. He was facing Raja Jaya Pala who ruled from Kubha (modern Kabul) in Eastern Afghanistan. His kingdom comprised the provinces of Kapisa on the western side of the Hindu Kush Ranges and Punjab on the Eastern side. (Incidentally, his kingdom was like that of Ambhi who ruled approximately the same provinces, when Alexander the Great had invaded the area in 330 B.C.E.)
The year 980C.E. marks the beginning of the Muslim invasion into India proper when Sabuktagin attacked Raja Jaya Pal in Afghanistan. Afghanistan is today a Muslim country separated from India by another Muslim country Pakistan. But in 980 C.E. Afghanistan was also a place where the people were Hindus and Buddhists. The name "Afghanistan" comes from "Upa-Gana-stan" which means in Sanskrit "The place inhabited by allied tribes". This was the place from where Gandhari of the Mahabharat came from Gandhar whose king was Shakuni. The Pakthoons are descendants of the Paktha tribe mentioned in Vedic literature. Till the year 980 C.E., this area was a Hindu majority area, till Sabuktagin from Ghazni invaded it and displaced the ruling Hindu king - Jaya Pal Shahi.
The place where Kabul's main mosque stands today was the site of an ancient Hindu temple and the story of its capture is kept alive in Islamic Afghan legend which describes the Islamic hero Sabuktagin who fought with a sword in every hand to defeat the Hindus and destroy their temple to put up a Mosque in its place. (This is not being mentioned here to reclaim the place as a temple. But to record a long forgotten fact that today's Islamic battlefield of the Taliban was once inhabited by Hindus.)
The victory of Sabuktagin pushed the frontiers of the Hindu kingdom of the Shahis from Kabul to behind the Hindu Kush mountains (Hindu Kush is literally "killer of Hindus" - a name given by Mahmud Ghazni to describe the number of Hindus who died on their way into Afghanistan to a life of captivity) . After this setback, the Shahis shifted their capital from Kubha (Kabul) to Udbhandapura (modern Und in NWFP). Sabuktagin's son Mahmud Ghazni, kept up the attacks on the Shahis and captured Und. Subsequently, the Shahis moved their capital to Lahore and later to Kangra in Himachal.
Tirlochan Pal Shahi - the Last Hindu Ruler of Punjab
Three generation of Shahi kings laid down their lives and their kingdom in battling the invaders. Raja Jaya Pal Shahi was followed by his son Anand Pal Shahi who fought a battle with Mahmud near Lahore, but lost as his elephant is said to have run amok within his own army. His son Tirlochan Pal Shahi continued his struggle with the Muslims from Kangra but he too went down fighting when he was treacherously killed when away from the battlefield.
The defeat of the Shahis opened up the Gangetic plains to the Muslims and Mahmud Ghazni repeatedly attacked the main Hindu kingdoms ruled by the Gurjara-Pratiharas and sacked Hindu temples. The main ruler in those days was Rajyapala Pratihara who resisted Mahmud Ghazni's raids, partly successfully. In his last attack on Somnath, Mahmud Ghazni successfully sacked the temple at Prabhasa Patan in Gujarat, but on his way back he was roundly defeated by the Gujar rulers of North Gujarat. Mahmud never came back to India after that. (Refer to the Glory that was Gujar Desha by K.M. Munshi) But these first Muslim raids into India proper had given an ominous indication of what was to come a couple of centuries later in the year 1194 C.E.
But for now, the Muslim rule of the Ghaznivids was established in Kabul, Paktoonistan and in the land of the five rivers - Punjab. Thus after Sindh in 715; Kabul Paktoonistan and Punjab became the next Indian provinces which went under Muslim domination in the period 980 C.E. to 1020 C.E.
Tirlochan Pal Shahi was the last Hindu ruler of Punjab and only after an intermission of 700 years of Muslim rule could the next Hindu ruler - Maharaja Ranjit Singh consolidate Hindu (Sikh) rule after the Moghul rule in Punjab had been weakened by the first blow given to it by the Marathas in 1756 C.E.


Reference: http://www.indialink.com/Forum/Arts-Culture/messages/686.html
The year 980C.E. marks the beginning of the Muslim invasion into India proper when Sabuktagin attacked Raja Jaya Pal in Afghanistan. Afghanistan is today a
Muslim country separated from India by another Muslim country Pakistan. But in 980 C.E. Afghanistan was also a place where the people were Hindus and
Buddhists. The name "Afghanistan" comes from "Upa-Gana-stan" which means in Sanskrit "The place inhabited by allied tribes". This was the place
from where Gandhari of the Mahabharat came from Gandhar whose king was Shakuni. The Pakthoons are descendants of the Paktha tribe mentioned in Vedic
literature. Till the year 980 C.E., this area was a Hindu majority area, till Sabuktagin from Ghazni invaded it and displaced the ruling Hindu king - Jaya Pal Shahi.
The place where Kabul's main mosque stands today was the site of an ancient Hindu temple and the story of its capture is kept alive in Islamic Afghan legend which
describes the Islamic hero Sabuktagin who fought with a sword in every hand to defeat the Hindus and destroy their temple to put up a Mosque in its place. (This is
not being mentioned here to reclaim the place as a temple. But to record a long forgotten fact that today's Islamic battlefield of the Taliban was once inhabited by
Hindus.)
The victory of Sabuktagin pushed the frontiers of the Hindu kingdom of the Shahis from Kabul to behind the Hindu Kush mountains (Hindu Kush is literally "killer of
Hindus" - a name given by Mahmud Ghazni to describe the number of Hindus who died on their way into Afghanistan to a life of captivity) . After this setback, the
Shahis shifted their capital from Kubha (Kabul) to Udbhandapura (modern Und in NWFP). Sabuktagin's son Mahmud Ghazni, kept up the attacks on the Shahis
and captured Und. Subsequently, the Shahis moved their capital to Lahore and later to Kangra in Himachal.



732: French prevent Muslim conquest of Europe, stopping Arabs at Poitiers, France, the NW limit of Arab penetration.
739: Chalukya armies beat back Arab Muslim invasions at Navasari in modern Maharashtra.
ca750-1159: Pala dynasty arises in Bihar and Bengal, last royal patrons of Buddhism, which they help establish in Tibet.
ca 750: Kailasa temple is carved out of a hill of rock at Ellora.
ca 750: Hindu astronomer and mathematician travels to Baghdad, with Brahmagupta's Brahma Siddhanta (treatise on astronomy) which he translates into Arabic, bestowing decimal notation and use of zero on Arab world.
ca 750: Lifetime of Bhavabhuti, Sanskrit dramatist, second only to Kalidasa. Writes Malati Madhava, a Shakta work.
ca 750: Valmiki writes 29,000-verse Yoga Vasishtha.
ca 750: A necklace timepiece, kadikaram in Tamil, is worn by an Emperor (according to scholar M. Arunachalam).
788: Adi Shankara (788-820) is born in Malabar, famous monk philosopher of Smarta tradition who writes mystic poems and scriptural commentaries including Viveka Chudamani, and regularizes ten monastic orders called Dashanami. Preaches Mayavada Advaita, emphasizing the world as illusion and God as the sole Reality.
ca 800: Bhakti revival curtails Buddhism in South India. In the North, Buddha is revered as Vishnu's 9th incarnation.
ca 800: Life of Nammalvar, greatest of Alvar saints. His poems shape the beliefs of Southern Vaishnavas to the present day.
ca 800: Lifetime of Vasugupta, modern founder of Kashmir Saivism, a monistic, meditative school.
ca 800: Lifetime of Auvaiyar, woman saint of Tamil Nadu, great devotee of Lord Ganesha and author of Auvai Kural. She is associated with the Lambika kundalini school. (A second date for Auvaiyar of 200 bce is from a story about Auvaiyar and Saint Tiruvalluvar as siblings. A third Auvaiyar reference is dated at approximately 1000. (Auvaiyar is a Tamil word meaning "old, learned woman;" some believe it may refer to three different persons.)
ca 800: Lifetime of Karaikkal Ammaiyar, one of the 63 Saiva saints of Tamil Nadu. Her mystical and yogic hymns, preserved in the Tirumurai, remain popular to the present day.
ca 825: Nayanar Tamil saint Sundarar is born into a family of Adishaiva temple priests in Tirunavalur in present-day South Arcot. His 100 songs in praise of Siva (the only ones surviving of his 38,000 songs) make up Tirumurai book 7. His Tiru Tondattohai poem, naming the Saiva saints, is the basis for Saint Sekkilar's Periyapuranam.
ca 800: Lifetime of Andal, woman saint of Tamil Nadu. Writes devotional poetry to Lord Krishna, disappears at age 16.
ca 825: Vasugupta discovers the rock-carved Siva Sutras.
846: Vijayalaya reestablishes his Chola dynasty, which over the next 100 years grows and strengthens into one of the greatest South Indian Empires ever known.
ca 850: Shri Vaishnava sect established in Tamil Nadu by Acharya Nathamuni, forerunner of great theologian Ramanuja.
ca 850: Life of Manikkavasagar, Saiva Samayacharya saint, born in Tiruvadavur, near Madurai, into a Tamil brahmin family. Writes famed Tiruvasagam, 51 poems of 656 verses in 3,394 lines, chronicling the soul's evolution to God Siva. Tirupalli-eluchi and Tiruvembavai are classic examples of his innovative style of devotional songs.
875: Muslim conquests extend from Spain to Indus Valley.

Reference: http://www.hindunet.org/hindu_history/modern/hindu_kush.html
Hindu Kush means Hindu Slaughter
By Shrinandan Vyas

All the Encyclopedias and National Geographic agree that Hindu Kush region is a place of Hindu genocide (similar to Dakau and Auschwitz). All the references are given. Please feel free to verify them.

ABSTRACT
All Standard reference books agree that the name 'Hindu Kush' of the mountain range in Eastern Afganistan means 'Hindu Slaughter' or 'Hindu Killer'. History also reveals that until 1000 A.D. the area of Hindu Kush was a full part of Hindu cradle. More likely, the mountain range was deliberately named as 'Hindu Slaughter' by the Moslem conquerors, as a lesson to the future generations of Indians. However Indians in general, and Hindus in particular are completely oblivious to this tragic genocide. This article also looks into the reasons behind this ignorance.
21 References - (Mainly Encyclopedia Britannica & other reference books, National Geographic Magazines and standard history books).

INTRODUCTION
The Hindu Kush is a mountain system nearly 1000 miles long and 200 miles wide, running northeast to southwest, and dividing the Amu Darya River Valley and Indus River Valley. It stretches from the Pamir Plateau near Gilgit, to Iran. The Hindu Kush ranges mainly run thru Afganistan and Pakistan. It has over two dozen summits of more than 23,000 ft in height. Below the snowy peaks the mountains of Hindu Kush appear bare, stony and poor in vegetation. Historically, the passes across the Hindu Kush have been of great military significance, providing access to the northern plains of India. The Khyber Pass constitutes an important strategic gateway and offers a comparatively easy route to the plains of Punjab. Most foreign invaders, starting from Alexander the Great in 327 BC, to Timur Lane in 1398 AD, and from Mahmud of Ghazni, in 1001 AD, to Nader Shah in 1739 AD attacked Hindustan via the Khyber Pass and other passes in the Hindu Kush (1,2,3). The Greek chroniclers of Alexander the Great called Hindu Kush as Parapamisos or Paropanisos (4). The Hindu name of the Hindu Kush mountains was 'Paariyaatra Parvat'(5).

EARLY HISTORY OF HINDU KUSH REGION (UP TO 1000 AD)
History of Hindu Kush and Punjab shows that two major kingdoms of Gandhaar & Vaahic Pradesh (Balkh of Bactria) had their borders extending far beyond the Hindu Kush. Legend has it that the kingdom of Gandhaar was established by Taksha, grandson of Bharat of Ayodhya (6). Gandhaar's borders extended from Takshashila to Tashkent (corruption of 'Taksha Khand') in the present day Uzbekistan. In the later period, Mahabharat relates Gaandhaari as a princess of Gandhaar and her brother, Shakuni as a prince and later as Gandhaar's ruler.
In the well documented history, Emperor Chandragupt Maurya took charge of Vaahic Pradesh around 325 BC and then took over Magadh. Emperor Ashok's stone tablets with inscriptions in Greek and Aramaic are still found at Qandahar (corruption of Gandhaar?) and Laghman in eastern Afganistan(3). One such stone tablet, is shown in the PBS TV series 'Legacy with Mark Woods' in episode 3 titled 'India: The Spiritual Empire'. After the fall of Mauryan empire, Gandhaar was ruled by Greeks. However some of these Greek rulers had converted to Buddhism, such as Menander, known to Indian historians as Milinda, while some other Greeks became followers of Vishnav sects (Hinduism)(7). Recent excavations in Bactria have revealed a golden hoard which has among other things a figurine of a Greek goddess with a Hindu mark on its forehead (Bindi) showing the confluence of Hindu-Greek art (8). Later Shaka and KushaaN ruled Gandhaar and Vaahic Pradesh. KushaaN emperor Kanishka's empire stretched from Mathura to the Aral Sea (beyond the present day Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Krygzystan)(9).
Kanishaka was a Buddhist and under KushaaN influence Buddhism flourished in Gandhaar. Two giant sandstone Buddhas carved into the cliffs of Bamian (west of Kabul) date from the Kushan period. The larger Buddha (although defaced in later centuries by Moslem invaders) is about 175 ft tall (10,11). The Kushan empire declined by 450 AD. The Chinese traveller Hsuan-Tsang (Xuan-zang) travelled thru the region in 7 th century AD and visited many Buddhist religious centers (3) including Hadda, Ghazni, Qonduz, Bamian (3,10,11), Shotorak and Bagram. From the 5 th thru 9 th cenury AD Persian Sasanians and Hepthalites ruled Gandhaar. During their rule Gandhaar region was again influenced by Hinduism. The Hindu kings (Shahiya) were concentrated in the Kabul and Ghazni areas. The last Hindu Shahiya king of Kabul, Bhimapal was killed in 1026 AD. The heroic efforts of the Hindu Shahiya Kings to defend the northwestern gates of India against the invaders are described by even al-Biruni, the court historian of Mahmud of Ghazni (12). Some excavated sites of the period include a major Hindu Shahiya temple north of Kabul and a chapel that contains both Buddhist and Hindu images, indicating that there was a mingling of two religions (3).
Islamic invasions on Afganistan started in 642 AD, but over the next several centuries their effect was marginal and lasted only a short time after each raid. Cities surrendered only to rise in revolt and the hastily converted returned to their old religion (Hinduism or Buddhism) once the Moslem armies had passed (3).
THUS TILL THE YEAR 1000 AD AFGANISTAN WAS A FULL PART OF HINDU CRADLE.

HINDU KUSH AND THE HINDU GENOCIDE
Now Afganistan is a Moslem country. Logically, this means either one or more of the following must have happened:
a) original residents of Hindu Kush converted to Islam, or
b) they were slaughtered and the conquerors took over, or
c) they were driven out.
Encyclopedia Britannica (3) already informs us above about the resistance to conversion and frequent revolt against to the Moslem conqueror's rule from 8 th thru 11 th Century AD. The name 'Hindu Kush' itself tells us about the fate of the original residents of Gandhaar and Vaahic Pradesh during the later period of Moslem conquests, because HINDU KUSH in Persian MEANS HINDU SLAUGHTER (13) (as per Koenraad Elst in his book 'Ayodhya and After'). Let us look into what other standard references say about Hindu Kush.
Persian-English dictionary (14) indicates that the word 'Kush' is derived from the verb Kushtar - to slaughter or carnage. Kush is probably also related to the verb Koshtan meaning to kill. In Urdu, the word Khud-kushi means act of killing oneself (khud - self, Kushi- act of killing). Encyclopedia Americana comments on the Hindu Kush as follows: The name Hindu Kush means literally 'Kills the Hindu', a reminder of the days when (Hindu) SLAVES from Indian subcontinent died in harsh Afgan mountains while being transported to Moslem courts of Central Asia (15). The National Geographic Article 'West of Khyber Pass' informs that 'Generations of raiders brought captive Hindus past these peaks of perpetual snow. Such bitter journeys gave the range its name Hindu Kush - "Killer of Hindus"'(10). The World Book Encyclopedia informs that the name Kush, .. means Death ..(16). While Encyclopedia Britannica says 'The name Hindu Kush first appears in 1333 AD in the writings of Ibn Battutah, the medieval Berber traveller, who said the name meant 'Hindu Killer', a meaning still given by Afgan mountain dwellers who are traditional enemies of Indian plainsmen (i.e. Hindus)(2). However, later the Encyclopedia Britannica gives a negationist twist by adding that 'more likely the name is a corruption of Hindu-Koh meaning Hindu mountains'. This is unlikely, since the term Koh is used in its proper, uncorrupted form for the western portion of Hindu Kush, viz. Koh-i-Baba, for the region Swat Kohistan, and in the names of the three peaks of this range, viz. Koh-i-Langer, Koh-i-Bandakor, and Koh-i-Mondi. Thus to say that corruption of term Koh to Kush occurred only in case of Hindu Kush is merely an effort to fit in a deviant observation to a theory already proposed. In science, a theory is rejected if it does not agree with the observations, and not the other way around. Hence the latter negationist statement in the Encyclopedia Britannica must be rejected.
IT IS SIGNIFICANT THAT ONE OF THE FEW PLACE NAMES ON EARTH THAT REMINDS US NOT OF THE VICTORY OF THE WINNERS BUT RATHER THE SLAUGHTER OF THE LOSERS, CONCERNS A GENOCIDE OF HINDUS BY THE MOSLEMS (13).
Unlike the Jewish holocaust, the exact toll of the Hindu genocide suggested by the name Hindu Kush is not available. However the number is easily likely to be in millions. Few known historical figures can be used to justify this estimate. Encyclopedia Britannica informs that in December 1398 AD, Timur Lane ordered the execution of at least 50,000 captives before the battle for Delhi, .. and after the battle those inhabitants (of Delhi) not killed were removed (as slaves) (17), while other reference says that the number of captives butchered by Timur Lane's army was about 100,000 (18). Later on Encyclopedia Britannica mentions that the (secular?) Mughal emperor Akbar 'ordered the massacre of about 30,000 (captured) Rajput Hindus on February 24, 1568 AD, after the battle for Chitod' (19). Another reference indicates that this massacre of 30,000 Hindu peasants at Chitod is recorded by Abul Fazl, Akbar's court historian himself (20). These two 'one day' massacres are sufficient to provide a reference point for estimating the scale of Hindu genocide. The Afgan historian Khondamir records that during one of the many repeated invasions on the city of Herat in western Afganistan, 1,500,000 residents perished (11).
Since some of the Moslem conquerors took Indian plainsmen as slaves, a question comes : whatever happened to this slave population? The startling answer comes from New York Times (May-June 1993 issues). The Gypsies are wandering peoples in Europe. They have been persecuted in almost every country. Nazis killed 300,000 gypsies in the gas chambers. These Gypsies have been wandering around Central Asia and Europe since around the 12 th Century AD. Until now their country of origin could not be identified. Also their Language has had very little in common with the other European languages. Recent studies however show that their language is similar to Punjabi and to a lesser degree to Sanskrit. Thus the Gypsies most likely originated from the greater Punjab. The time frame of Gypsy wanderings also coincides early Islamic conquests hence most likely their ancestors were driven out of their homes in Punjab and taken as slaves over the Hindu Kush.
The theory of Gypsie origins in India was first proposed over two centuries ago. It is only recently theta linguistic and other proofs have been verified. Even the Gypsie leadership now accepts India as the country of their origin.
Thus it is evident that the mountain range was named as Hindu Kush as a reminder to the future Hindu generations of the slaughter and slavery of Hindus during the Moslem conquests.

DELIBERATE IGNORANCE ABOUT HINDU KUSH
If the name Hindu Kush relates such a horrible genocide of Hindus, why are Hindus ignorant about it? and why the Government of India does not teach them about Hindu Kush? The history and geography curriculums in Indian Schools barely even mention Hindu Kush. The horrors of the Jewish holocaust are taught not only in schools in Israel and USA, but also in Germany. Because both Germany and Israel consider the Jewish holocaust a 'dark chapter' in the history. The Indian Government instead of giving details of this 'dark chapter' in Indian history is busy in whitewash of Moslem atrocities and the Hindu holocaust. In 1982, the National Council of Educational Research and Training issued a directive for the rewriting of school texts. Among other things it stipulated that: 'Characterization of the medieval period as a time of conflict between Hindus and Moslems is forbidden'. Thus denial of history or Negationism has become India's official 'educational' policy (21).
Often the official governmental historians brush aside questions such as those that Hindu Kush raises. They argue that the British version is the product of their 'divide and rule' policy' hence their version is not necessarily true. However it must be remembered that the earliest reference of the name Hindu Kush and its literal meaning 'Hindu Killer' comes from Ibn Battutah in 1333 AD, and at that time British were nowhere on the Indian scene. Secondly, if the name indeed was a misnomer then the Afgans should have protested against such a barbaric name and the last 660 plus years should have been adequate for a change of name to a more 'civil' name. There has been no effort for such a change of name by the Afgans. On the contrary, when the Islamic fundamentalist regime of the Mujahadeens came to power in 1992, tens of thousands of Hindus and Sikhs from Kabul, became refugees, and had to pay steep ransom to enter into Pakistan without a visa.
In the last 46 years the Indian Government also has not even once demanded that the Afgan Government change such an insulting and barbaric name. But in July 1993, the Government of India asked the visiting Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra to change its name because the word Jerusalem in its name is offensive to Moslem Fundamentalists.

CONCLUSION
It is evident that Hindus from ancient India's (Hindustan's) border states such as Gandhaar and Vaahic Pradesh were massacred or taken as slaves by the Moslem invaders who named the region as Hindu Kush (or Hindu Slaughter,or Hindu Killer) to teach a lesson to the future Hindu generations of India. Unfortunately Hindus are not aware of this tragic history. The Indian government does not want the true history of Hindu Moslem conflicts during the medieval ages to be taught in schools. This policy of negationism is the cause behind the ignorance of Hindus about the Hindu Kush and the Hindu genocide.

COMMENTS & FUTURE WORK
Although in this article Hindu Kush has been referred to as Hindu slaughter, it is quite possible that it was really a Hindu and Buddhist slaughter. Since prior to Moslem invasions influence of Buddhism in Gandhaar and Vaahic Pradesh was considerable. Also as the huge 175 ft stone Buddhas of Bamian show, Buddhists were idol worshipers par excellence. Hence for Moslem invaders the Buddhists idol worshipers were equally deserving of punishment. It is also likely that Buddhism was considered an integral part of the Hindu pantheon and hence was not identified separately.
This article barely scratches the surface of the Hindu genocide, the true depth of which is as yet unknown. Readers are encouraged to find out the truth for themselves . Only when many readers search for the truth, the real magnitude of the Hindu genocide will be discovered.

REFERENCES
1. Encyclopedia Britannica, 15 th Ed, Vol.5, p.935, 1987
2. Encyclopedia Britannica, 15 th Ed, Vol.14, pp.238-240, 1987
3. Encyclopedia Britannica, 15 th Ed, Vol.13, pp.35-36, 1987
4. The Invasion of India by Alexander the Great (as described by Arrian, Q.Curtius, Diodoros, Plutarch & Justin), By J.W.McCrindle, Methuen & Co., London, p.38, 1969
5. Six Glorious Epochs of Indian History, by Veer Savarkar, Savarkar Prakashan, Bombay, 2nd Ed, p.206, 1985
6. Chanakya - a TV series by Doordarshan, India
7. Encyclopedia Britannica, 15 th Ed, Vol.21, pp.36-41, 1987
8. V.Sarianidi, National Geographic Magazine, Vol.177, No.3, p.57, March 1990
9. Hammond Historical Atlas of the World, pp. H4 & H10, 1993
10. W.O.Douglas, National Geographic Magazine, vol.114, No.1, pp.13-23, July 1958
11. T.J.Abercrombie, National Geographic Magazine, Vol.134, No.3, pp.318-325, Sept.1968
12. An Advanced History of India, by R.C.Majumdar, H.C.Raychaudhuri, K.Datta, 2nd Ed., MacMillan and Co, London, pp.182-83, 1965
13. Ayodhya and After, By Koenraad Elst, Voice of India Publication, p.278, 1991
14. A Practical Dictionary of the Persian Language, by J.A.Boyle, Luzac & Co., p.129, 1949
15. Encyclopedia Americana, Vol.14, p.206, 1993
16. The World Book Encyclopedia, Vol.19, p.237, 1990
17. Encyclopedia Britannica, 15 th Ed, Vol.21, pp. 54-55, 1987
18. An Advanced History of India, by R.C.Majumdar, H.C.Raychaudhuri, K.Datta, 2nd Ed., MacMillan and Co, London, pp.336-37, 1965
19. Encyclopedia Britannica, 15 th Ed, Vol.21, p.65, 1987
20. The Cambridge History of India, Vol.IV - The Mughul Period, by W.Haig & R.Burn, S.Chand & Co., New Delhi, pp. 98-99, 1963
21. Negationism in India, by Koenraad Elst, Voice of India Publ, 2nd Ed, pp.57-58, 1993

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885: Cholas kill Aparajita, king of the Pallavas, in battle.
ca 900: Lifetime of Matsyendranatha, exponent of the Natha sect emphasizing kundalini yoga practices.
ca 900: Under the Hindu Malla dynasty (ca 900-1700) of Nepal, legal and social codes influenced by Hinduism are introduced. Nepal is broken into several principalities.
ca 900-1001: Lifetime of Sembiyan Ma Devi, queen of Maharaja Gandaraditta Chola from 950-957 and loyal patron of Saivism, builds ten temples and inspires and molds her grand-nephew prince, son of Sundara Chola, into the great temple-builder, Emperor Rajaraja I.
900: Mataramas dynasty in Indonesia reverts to Saivism after a century of Buddhism, building 150 Saiva temples.
ca 950: Lifetime of Gorakshanatha, Natha yogi who founds the order of Kanphatha Yogis and Gorakshanatha Saivism, the philosophical school called Siddha Siddhanta.
ca 950-1015: Lifetime of Kashmir Saiva guru Abhinavagupta.
960: Chola King Vira, after having a vision of Siva Nataraja dancing, commences enlargement of the Siva temple at Chidambaram, including the construction of the gold-roofed shrine. The enlargement is completed in 1250 ce.
985: Rajaraja I (reign 985-1014) ascends the South Indian Chola throne and ushers in a new age of temple architecture exemplified at Tanjavur, Darasuram, Tirubhuvanam and Chidambaram. Pallava architectural influences (dominant vimanas, inconspicuous gopuras) fade.
ca 1000: Gorakshanatha writes Siddha Siddhanta Paddhati, "Tracks on the Doctrines of the Adepts." The nature of God and universe, structure of chakras, kundalini force and methods for realization are explained in 353 verses.
911 => 9 are the doors to the body, 11 are the senses ( 1 Mind, 5 Action, 5 Perception = MAP)
existence (sat) consciousness (chit/sri) joy (anand/akaal) being becoming:
addons/takeoffs inputs please email to: oyash@msn.com
Hindu Timeline #3
Reference:http://www.himalayanacademy.com/books/timeline/HinduHistory.html
1000ce to 1500
1000: World population is 265 million. India population is 79 million, 29.8% of world.
ca 1000: A few Hindu communities from Rajasthan, Sindh and other areas, the ancestors of present-day Romani, or Gypsies, gradually move to Persia and on to Europe.
ca 1000: Vikings reach North America, landing in Nova Scotia.
ca 1000: Polynesians arrive in New Zealand, last stage in the greatest migration and navigational feat in history, making them the most widely-spread race on Earth.
1001: Turkish Muslims sweep through the Northwest under Mahmud of Ghazni, defeating Jayapala of Hindu Shahi Dynasty of S. Afghanisthan and Punjab at Peshawar. This is the first major Muslim conquest in India.
ca 1010: Tirumurai, Tamil devotional hymns of Saiva saints, is collected as an anthology by Nambiandar Nambi.
1017: Mahmud of Ghazni sacks Mathura, birthplace of Lord Krishna, and establishes a mosque on the site during one of his 17 Indian invasions for holy war and plunder.
1017-1137: Life of Ramanuja of Kanchipuram, Tamil philosopher-saint of Shri Vaishnava sect that continues bhakti tradition of S. Indian Alvar saints. His strongly theistic nondual Vishishtadvaita Vedanta philosophy restates Pancharatra tradition. Foremost opponent of Shankara's system, he dies at age 120 while head of Shrirangam monastery.
1018-1060: Lifetime of Bhojadeva Paramara, Gujarati king, poet, artist and monistic Saiva Siddhanta theologian.
1024: Mahmud of Ghazni plunders Somanath Siva temple, destroying the Linga and killing 50,000 Hindu defenders. He later builds a mosque on the remaining walls.
1025: Chola ruler Maharaja Rajendra I sends victorious naval expeditions to Burma, Malaysia and Indonesia, initiating decline of Mahayana Buddhist empire of Shrivijaya.
ca 1040: Chinese invent the compass and moveable type and perfect the use of gunpowder, first invented and used in India as an explosive mixture of saltpetre, sulfur and charcoal to power guns, cannons and artillery.
ca 1050: Lifetime of Shrikantha, promulgator of Siva Advaita, a major philosophical school of Saivism.
ca 1130-1200: Lifetime of Nimbarka, Telegu founder of the Vaishnava Nimandi sect holding the philosophy of dvaitadvaita, dual-nondualism. He introduces the worship of Krishna together with consort Radha. (Present-day Nimavats revere Vishnu Himself, in the form of the Hamsa Avatara, as the originator of their sect.)
ca 1130: Lifetime of Sekkilar, Tamil chief minister under Chola Emperor Kulottunga II (reign 1133-1150) and author of Periyapuranam, 4,286-verse epic biography (hagiography) of the 63 Saiva saints and 12th book of Tirumurai.
ca 1150: Life of Basavanna, renaissance guru of the Vira Saiva sect, stressing free will, equality, service to humanity and worship of the Sivalinga worn around the neck.
ca 1150: Khmer ruler Suryavarman II completes Angkor Wat temple (in present-day Cambodia), where his body is later entombed and worshiped as an embodiment of Vishnu. This largest Hindu temple in Asia is 12 miles in circumference, with a 200-foot high central tower.
ca 1162: Mahadevi is born, female Saiva ascetic saint of Karnataka, writes 350 majestic and mystical poems.
1175: Toltec Empire of Mexico crumbles.
1185: Mohammed of Ghur conquers Punjab and Lahore.
1191: Eisai founds Rinzai Zen sect in Japan after study in China.
1193: Qutb ud-Din Aybak founds first Muslim Sultanate of Delhi, establishing the Mamluk Dynasty (1193-1290).
1197: Great Buddhist university of Nalanda is destroyed by Muslim Ikhtiyar ud-din.
1200: All of North India is under Muslim domination.
1200: India population reaches 80 million.
ca 1200: An unknown author writes Yoga Yajnavalkya.
1215: King John is forced to sign the Magna Carta, giving greater rights to citizens in England.
1227: Mongolian Emperor Genghis Khan, conqueror of a vast area from Beijing, China, to Iran and north of Tibet, the largest empire the world has yet seen, dies.
1230-60: Surya temple at Konarak, Orissa, India, is constructed.
1238-1317: Lifetime of Ananda Tirtha, Madhva, venerable Vaishnava dualist and opponent of Shankara's mayavadin advaita philosophy. He composes 37 works and founds Dvaita Vedanta school, the Brahma Vaishnava Sampradaya and its eight monasteries, ashtamatha, in Udupi.
ca 1250: Lifetime of Meykandar, Saiva saint who founds the Meykandar school of pluralistic Saiva Siddhanta, of which his 12-sutra Sivajnanabodham becomes its core scripture.
1260: Meister Eckhart, the German mystic, is born.
1268-1369: Lifetime of Vedanta Deshikar, gifted Tamil scholar and poet who founds sect of Vaishnavism called Vadakalai, headquartered at Kanchipuram.
1270-1350: Lifetime of Namadeva, foremost poet saint of Maharashtra's Varkari ("pilgrim") Vaishnava school, disciple of Jnanadeva. He and his family compose a million verses in praise of Lord Vithoba (Vishnu).
1272: Marco Polo visits India en route to China.
1274: Council of Lyons II declares that souls go immediately to heaven, purgatory or hell; interpreted by Catholic fathers as condemning the doctrine of reincarnation.
1275-96: Lifetime of Jnanadeva, Natha-trained Vaishnava saint, founder of the Varkari school, who writes Jnaneshvari, a Marathi verse commentary on Bhagavad Gita, which becomes Maharashtra's most popular book.
1279: Muktabai is born, Maharashtrian Varkari saint and Natha yogini, writes 100 sacred verses.
1280: Mongol (Yuen) dynasty (1280-1368) begins in China, under which occurs the last of much translation work into Chinese from Sanskrit.
1296: Ala-ud-din, second king of Khalji dynasty, rules most of India after his General Kafur conquers the South, extending Muslim dominion to Rameshwaram.
ca 1300: Lifetime of Janabai, Maharashtrian Varkari Vaishnava woman saint who writes a portion of Namadeva's million verses to Vithoba (Vishnu).
ca 1300: The Ananda Samucchaya is written, 277 stanzas on hatha yoga, with discussion of the chakras and the nadis.
1300: Muslim conquerors reach Cape Comorin at the southernmost tip of India and build a mosque there.
1317-72: Life of Lalla of Kashmir. Saiva renunciate, mystic poetess contributes significantly to the Kashmiri language.
1336: Vijayanagara Empire (1336-1565-1646) of South India is founded. European visitors are overwhelmed by the wealth and advancement of its 17-square-mile capital.
1345: Aztecs establish great civilization in Mexico.
1346-90: Life of Krittivasa, translator of Ramayana into Bengali.
1347: Plague called the Black Death spreads rapidly, killing 75 million worldwide before it recedes in 1351.
ca 1350: Svatmarama writes Hatha Yoga Pradipika.
ca 1350: Lifetime of Appaya Dikshita, South Indian philosoper saint whose writings reconcile Vaishnavism and Saivism. He advances Siva Advaita and other Saiva schools and compiles a temple priests' manual still used today.
1398: Tamerlane (Timur) invades India with 90,000 cavalry and sacks Delhi because its Muslim Sultanate is too tolerant of Hindu idolatry. A Mongolian follower of Sufism, he is one of the most ruthless of all conquerors.
1399: Hardwar, Ganga pilgrimage town, is sacked by Timur.
ca 1400: Goraksha Upanishad is written.
1414: Hindu prince Parameshvara of Malaysia converts to Islam.
1414-80: Life of Gujarati Vaishnava poet-saint Narasinha Mehta.
1415: Bengali poet-singer Baru Chandidas writes Shrikrishnakirtana, a collection of exquisite songs praising Krishna.
1429: Joan of Arc, age 17, leads the French to victory over the English.
ca 1433: China cloisters itself from outside world by banning further voyages to the West. (First bamboo curtain.)
1440-1518: Lifetime of Kabir, Vaishnava reformer with who has both Muslim and Hindu followers. (His Hindi songs remain immensely popular to the present day.)
ca 1440: Johannes Gutenberg (ca 1400-1468) invents the West's first moveable-type printing press in Germany.
1450?-1547: Lifetime of Mirabai, Vaishnava Rajput princess saint who, married at an early age to the Rana of Udaipur, devotes herself to Krishna and later renounces worldly life to wander India singing to Him beautiful mystic compositions that are sung to the present day.
1469-1538: Lifetime of Guru Nanak, founder of Sikhism, originally a reformist Hindu sect stressing devotion, faith in the guru, repetition of God's name and rejection of renunciation and caste. (Most Sikhs in the present day consider themselves members of a separate religion.)
1478: Spanish Inquisition begins. Over the next 20 years, Christians burn several thousand persons at the stake.
1479-1531: Lifetime of Vallabhacharya, a married Telegu brahmin saint who teaches pushtimarga, "path of love," and a lofty nondual philosophy, Shuddhadvaita Vedanta, in which souls are eternally one with Brahman. Vallabhacharya's Vaishnavism worships Krishna in the form of Shri Nathji.
1483-1563: Lifetime of Surdas, sightless Hindi bard of Agra, whose hymns to Krishna are compiled in the Sursagar.
1486-1543: Life of Chaitanya, Bengali founder of popular Vaishnava sect which proclaims Krishna Supreme God and emphasizes sankirtan, group chanting and dancing.
1492: Looking for India, Christopher Columbus lands on San Salvador island in the Caribbean, thus "discovering" the Americas and proving that the earth is round, not flat.
1498: Portugal's Vasco da Gama sails around Cape of Good Hope to Calicut, Kerala, first European to find sea route to India.
ca 1500: Life of Arunagirinathar, Tamil saint, author of Tiruppugal hymns; emphasizes feeding the hungry during a time of Muslim oppression and disrupted family life.
ca 1500: Buddhist and Saiva Hindu princes are forced off Java by invading Muslims. They resettle on neighboring Bali, with their overlapping priesthoods and vast royal courts: poets, dancers, musicians and artisans. Within 100 years they construct what many call a fairytale kingdom.

911 => 9 are the doors to the body, 11 are the senses ( 1 Mind, 5 Action, 5 Perception = MAP)
existence (sat) consciousness (chit/sri) joy (anand/akaal) being becoming:
addons/takeoffs inputs please email to: oyash@msn.com
Hindu Timeline #4
Reference:http://www.himalayanacademy.com/books/timeline/HinduHistory.html
1500 to 1800ce
1500: World population 425 million; 105 million live in India.
1503-1566: Lifetime of Nostradamus, French physician and astrologer who wrote Centuries (1555), a book of prophecies.
1509-1529: Reign of Maharaja Krishnadevaraya of the Vijayanagara Empire in Andhra Pradesh.
1510: Portuguese Catholics conquer Goa to serve as capital of their Asian maritime empire, beginning conquest and exploitation of India by Europeans.
1517: Luther begins Protestant reformation in Europe.
ca 1520: Poet-saint Purandardas (1480-1564) of the Vijayanagara court systematizes Karnatak music.
1526: Mughal conqueror Babur (1483-1530) defeats the Sultan of Delhi and captures the Koh-i-noor diamond. Occupying Delhi, by 1529 he founds the Indian Mughal Empire (1526-1761), consolidated by his grandson Akbar.
1528: Emperor Babur destroys temple at Lord Rama's birthplace in Ayodhya, erects Muslim masjid, or monument.
1532-1623: Life of Monk-poet Tulasidasa. Writes Ramacharitamanasa (1574-77), greatest medieval Hindi literature (based on Ramayana). It advances Rama worship in the North.
1542: Portuguese Jesuit priest Francis Xavier (1506-1552), most successful Catholic missionary, lands in Goa. First to train and employ native clergy in conversion efforts, he brings Christianity to India, Malay Archipelago and Japan.
Reference: http://www.hinduunity.com/articles/christ/popeapologize.html
Why The Pope Should Apologize To India

Vishwas Varghese
Why The Pope Should Apologize To India

The VHP's protest march against the Pope's visit in India this week, has drawn quite a lot of attention and flak as a misguided attempt to "create disorder by fascist". The Indian media has been having a field day with mongering rumors that seek to undermine and defame the Hindutva oriented organizations. One has to look beyond all the politically motivated hype and hoopla and look analytically at what is the logic behind the demand for the Pope's apology. The rationale behind this demand is cited to be the Christian Inquisition which took place in Goa, for the purpose of forcefully converting the Hindus to Christianity. Let us take a look at some historical facts to see if the Hindutva minded organizations are truly justified in asking the pope as the representative of the Catholic church to apologize and atone for such crimes against Hindus in the past.

Alan Machado-Prabhu has recently written a book about the history of Goa starting from ancient times, titled Sarasvati's Children: A History of the Mangalorean Christians. The book describes in detail the origins of Goa's inhabitants. According to Machado's account and that of several established historians, some time around 1000 B.C. an immense number of Vedic people who originally lived on the banks of the river Sarasvati migrated to this coast. Their emigration was forced by the drying up of the Sarasvati River which was the basis for much of the so called Indus Valley civilization. This civilization has now been termed the Sarasvati-Sindhu civilization in view of its indelible dependence on the Sarasvati and Sindhu rivers. Moreover the work of such accomplished scholars as N.S. Rajaram, David Frawley, N. Jha, S.R. Rao, etc. has proven that the Sarasvati Sindhu civilization was a Vedic one. As a consequence the people who were forced to seek fresh fields and pastures in view of the drying up of Sarasvati, were none other than Hindus. Large numbers of them followed the ancient Dakshinapatha, the southern route and came all the way to Gomantak and to what is now called Goa. Gomantak had no indigenous population and therefore made an ideal place to settle down for these scholars.

The new location was a highly successful one because of the fertile quality of the land. The majority of the emigrants were highly educated and well versed in the advanced scientific, artistic and literary traditions of Vedic civilization and therefore began to be called the Brahmins of the north (Gaud). Eventually they began to be referred to as the Gaud Sarasvat Brahmins. They were famous all over India and abroad for their immense scholarship and learning. Over the centuries Goa was comparatively undisturbed under the rule of the Mauryas, the Kadambas and the Chalukya dynasty. But around 1327 AD Goa was conquered by Mohammed Bin Tughlak and thousands of Hindus were massacred in cold blood. A number of murderous Muslim rulers such as Bahamani king Mohammed Shah, Yusuf Adil Shah, etc. held the state in the grip of terror until the Portugese Christians who came to foreign lands led by Vasco De Gama in the hope of converting millions of "Heathens" managed to overcome them. By the mid 1500s, the Portugese had established a strong hold on Indian ports and the terror of the Inquisition sanctioned by the Catholic Church was established and institutionalized in Goa. The main objective of the Inquisitors was to ensure that all natives be converted to Christianity whether by the sword, bribery or blackmail.

Around 1540 the Inquisition was at its peak, thousands of Hindus were dispossessed, massacred and mutilated if they refused to convert. Half the property of a person found in possession of idols went to the Church. According to Machado, "The Church acquired urban and rural properties on an impressive scale". An incredible amount of loot and plunder of the immense riches possessed by the Hindus was shipped off to the Church. Hindus were forbidden from performing any of their festivals openly. Hindu were amassed and deliberately forced to participate in grotesque public performances for the Christian feast days during the very same days that they used to celebrate Hindu festivals. To this day these macabre enactments still survive in Goa today as the Milagres feast dance, the Carnavalo and the Festa de Leques.

In 1542 the most barbaric of these oppressors in the form of Jesuit priest "Saint" Francis Xavier arrived on the scene. The incredible hatred and venom that this man nursed against the Hindus is obvious from his own writings and records. In 1543 , Xavier sent a Letter from India, to the Society of Jesus at Rome which outlined his perspective of the Indian people. The extremely racist and intolerant views of Christian proselytizers like Xavier pour out of every word in this letter:

"We have in these parts a class of men among the pagans who are called Brahmins. They keep up the worship of the gods, the superstitious rites of religion, frequenting the temples and taking care of the idols. They are as perverse and wicked a set as can anywhere be found, and I always apply to them the words of holy David, "from an unholy race and a wicked and crafty man deliver me, O Lord." They are liars and cheats to the very backbone. These are the ignorant people whose blind superstitions have made the others their slaves, their imposture and tricks, and this has induced many to leave the worship of the false gods, and eagerly become Christians. If it were not for the opposition of the Brahmins, we should have them all embracing the religion of Jesus Christ.

As there is so great a variety of color among men, and the Indians being black themselves, consider their own color the best, they believe that their gods are black. On this account the great majority of their idols are as black as black can be, and moreover are generally so rubbed over with oil as to smell detestably, and seem to be as dirty as they are ugly and horrible to look at."

Xavier would become an increasingly frustrated and embittered man as he discovered the obstinate stubbornness with which the Hindus refused to be forced to convert to Christianity. His frustration is evident in a Letter on the Missions sent in 1949 to St. Ignatius de Loyola, of the Catholic Church. In it as usual he displays his ample hatred for the "idolaters" as he calls the Hindus, but his most vitriolic animosity is reserved for the Brahmins who were the primary defenders of Hinduism. By this time Xavier has apparently become aware of the fact that it is the Brahmins who are the final line of defense in keeping the Hindu followers together. His inability to suppress them leads to his sweeping generalization that the entire race of Indians is "barbaric" in this letter:

"May the grace and charity of our Lord Christ always be with us! Amen.

My own and only Father in the Heart of Christ, I think that the many letters from this place which have lately been sent to Rome will inform you how prosperously the affairs of religion go on in these parts, through your prayers and the good bounty of God. But there seem to be certain things which I ought myself to speak about to you; so I will just touch on a few points relating to these parts of the world which are so distant from Rome. In the first place, the whole race of the Indians, as far as I have been able to see, is very barbarous; and it does not like to listen to anything that is not agreeable to its own manners and customs, which, as I say, are barbarous. It troubles itself very little to learn anything about divine things and things which concern salvation. Most of the Indians are of vicious disposition, and are adverse to virtue. Their instability, levity, and inconstancy of mind are incredible; they have hardly any honesty, so inveterate are their habits of sin and cheating. We have hard work here, both in keeping the Christians up to the mark and in converting the heathen. And, as we are your children, it is fair that on this account you should take great care of us and help us continually by your prayers to God.

You know very well what a hard business it is to teach people who neither have any knowledge of God nor follow reason, but think it a strange and intolerable thing to be told to give up their habits of sin, which have now gained all the force of nature by long possession. The experience which I have of these countries makes me think that I can affirm with truth, that there is no prospect of perpetuating our Society out here by means of the natives themselves, and that the Christian religion will hardly survive us who are now in the country; so that it is quite necessary that continual supplies of ours should be sent out from Europe."

One is amazed at Xavier's Christian definition of barbarism. Apparently anyone who does not recognize Jesus Christ as his savior qualifies for this title. It would have been fascinating to know what the victims of this undisguised genocidal aggression thought of their tormentors. Indeed "barbarism" is too mild a word to aptly describes the horrific aggression that was perpetrated on the Goans for the sake of Christ!

In Machado's book the chapter on the Inquisition is aptly headed: Horrendum Ac Tremendum Spectaculem. Machado relates how the historian Fryer describes one of the instances of the Christian aggression - "In the principal market was raised an Engine of great height, at top like a Gibbet, with a Pulley for the Strapado which unhinges a Man's joints, a cruel Torture." Even Fryrer's (1675) brief reference to the Inquisition barely does justice to the fearful dread it brought to the people living in Portuguese territories. Of all the organizations the Portuguese took to her overseas territories it was the Inquisition that stalked the land, menacing and seeking all it might devour".

Portugese records themselves show that the Inquisition burned at the stake 57 alive and 64 in effigy, 105 of them being men and 16 women. Others sentenced to various cruel punishments totaled 4,046 of whom 3,034 were men. The people who were converted but still continued occasionally and secretly to perform Hindu rituals were treated even more harshly. Even this low number represented by the perpetrators themselves is enough to provide us a clue to how many were truly subjected to the horrors. There can be no doubt that thousands if not millions perished at the hands of the Christian Sword which would not tolerate non believers in the path of the Church.

Many of the orders dictated by the Portugese administration demonstrate the depth of oppression against their victims. Mr. Kanchan Gupta, the editor of BJP Today had researched and presented these records in his brilliant article on Rediff magazine, earlier this year. Some of the historical records that Mr. Gupta unearthed, clearly demonstrated the unabashedly oppressive nature of the Christian regime which had ruthlessly usurped Goa.

On April 2, 1560, Viceroy D Constantine de Braganca issued orders instructing that Brahmins should be thrown out of Goa and other areas under Portuguese control. They were given al of one month to dispose of all possessions. Anyone found violating the order would have their properties seized.
On February 7, 1575, Governor Antonio Morez Barreto declared that the estates of Brahmins whose "presence was prejudicial to Christianity" would be confiscated and used for "providing clothes to the New Christians".
In 1585, The Third Concilio Provincial which was a gathering of bishops and other Christian leaders adopted a resolution declaring, 'His Majesty the king has on occasion ordered the viceroys and governors of India that there should be no Brahmins in his lands, and that they should be banished therefrom together with the physicians and other infidels who are prejudicial to Christianity. As the orders of His Majesty in this regard have not been executed, great impediments in the way of conversion and the community of New Christians have followed and continue to follow. From now onwards at certain times in each year the archbishop should obtain information regarding Brahmins, physicians and any other infidels who might be prejudicial to conversion to Christianity, and in consultation with the Christian priests, prepare a roll of their names which should be signed by him. This should be presented to the viceroy or the governor in order that the latter might issue orders for banishing them from the lands of the king, as His Majesty has ordered...'
On January 31, 1620, the Portugese declared that '...no Hindu, of whatever nationality or status he may be, can or shall perform marriages in this city of Goa, nor in the islands or adjacent territories of His Majesty, under pain of a fine of 1000 Xerafins.'
The Third Concilio Provincial also demanded a ban on the traditional thread ceremony and the ban was imposed by the Sword. The Brahmins who tried to evade such prejudicial dictates by going outside Portuguese territory for the ceremony were prevented from doing so by the ominously threatening order that said 'I hereby order that no Hindu subject proceed beyond the borders of the state to celebrate the thread ceremony...' Orders prohibiting Hindu women from wearing Bindi on their foreheads along with an order allowing the Christian clergy the right to baptize all orphans are blatant proofs of the violent suppression of religious rights by the Christian Church in Goa.
Such then is the history of Christian persecution in Goa. And yet the cruelest of these proselytizers from the past are supposed to be treated as 'Saints" by the very nation that was victimized by them! Stating the facts about the past tyranny of the Church in India, quickly becomes an "earth shattering" conspiracy by the "fascist" Hindu extremists. The signs of India's humiliation and oppression at the hands of her Christian aggressors is present everywhere in the nomenclature of innumerable roads, buildings and educational institutions named after the very criminals who sought to annihilate all traces of India's vast and ancient repertoire of advanced knowledge.

Is asking the Pope to apologize for such a vast range of heinous crimes unjustified? Saint Francis Xavier, the missionary who was responsible for the death of thousands of innocent Hindus of Goa was canonized and is cited today as one of the foremost Saints of the Catholic Church. A quick search of the catholic Encyclopedia yields us this information about him.

"It is truly a matter of wonder that one man in the short space of ten years (6 May, 1542 - 2 December, 1552) could have visited so many countries, traversed so many seas, preached the Gospel to so many nations, and converted so many infidels. The incomparable apostolic zeal which animated him, and the stupendous miracles which God wrought through him, explain this marvel, which has no equal elsewhere. St. Francis Xavier is considered the greatest missionary since the time of the Apostles, and the zeal he displayed, the wonderful miracles he performed, and the great number of souls he brought to the light of true Faith, entitle him to this distinction. He was canonized with St. Ignatius in 1622, although on account of the death of Gregory XV, the Bull of canonization was not published until the following year. The body of the saint is still enshrined at Goa in the church which formerly belonged to the Society. In 1614 by order of Claudius Acquaviva, General of the Society of Jesus, the right arm was severed at the elbow and conveyed to Rome, where the present altar was erected to receive it in the church of the Gesu. "

Even today the body of the "Saint" in Goa is said to be in a "marvelous" state of preservation as proof of his miraculous character.

With Saints like Francis Xavier epitomizing the nature of Christian kindness in India, is it any wonder that the proselytizing nature of the Church is increasingly condemned and denounced by civilized human beings all over the world? The souls of the thousands of Indians that suffered genocide at the hands of the religious fanaticism which was institutionalized by the Catholic Church, would hardly find succor in any apology by the Pope.

But at the very least it would have been a some small form of retribution for the sins committed by the forces he represents.
1544-1603: Life of Dadu, ascetic saint of Gujarat, founder of Dadupantha, which is guided by his Bani poems in Hindi.
1556: Akbar (1542-1605), grandson of Babur, becomes third Mughal Emperor at age 13. Disestablishes Islam as state religion and declares himself impartial ruler of Hindus and Muslims; encourages art, culture, religious tolerance.
1565: Muslim forces defeat and completely destroy the city of Vijayanagara. Empire's final collapse comes in 1646.
1565: Polish astronomer Copernicus' (1473-1543) Heliocentric system, in which the Earth orbits the sun, gains popularity in Europe among astronomers and mathematicians.
1569: Akbar captures fortress of Ranthambor, ending Rajput independence. Soon controls nearly all of Rajasthan.
ca 1570: Ekanatha (1533-99), Varkari Vaishnava saint and mystic composer, edits Jnanadeva's Jnaneshvari and translates Bhagavata Purana, advancing Marathi language.
1588: British ships defeat the Spanish Armada off the coast of Calais, France, to become rulers of the high seas.
1589: Akbar rules half of India, shows tolerance for all faiths.
1595: Construction is begun on Chidambaram Temple's Hall of a Thousand Pillars in South India, completed in 1685.
ca 1600: "Persian wheel" to lift water by oxen is adopted, one of few farming innovations since Indus Valley civilization.
1600: Royal Charter forms the East India Company, setting in motion a process that ultimately results in the subjugation of India under British rule.
1603-4: Guru Arjun compiles Adi Granth, Sikh scripture.
1605: Akbar the Great dies at age 63. His son Jahangir succeeds him as fourth Mughal Emperor.
1605: Sikh Golden Temple (Harimandir) at Amritsar, Punjab, is finished, completely covered with gold leaf.
1608-49: Lifetime of Tukaram, beloved Varkari sant famed for his abhangas, "unbroken hymns," to Krishna. Considered greatest Marathi spiritual composer.
1608-81: Lifetime of Ramdas, mystic poet, Sivaji's guru, Marathi saint, who gives Hindus the dhvaja, saffron flag.
1610: Galileo of Italy (1564-1642) perfects the telescope, with which he confirms the Copernican theory. Condemned a heretic by the Catholic Inquisition for his discoveries.
1613-14: British East India Company sets up trading post at Surat.
1615-18: Mughals grant Britain right to trade and establish factories in exchange for English navy's protection of the Mughal Empire, which faces Portuguese sea power.
1619: Jaffna kingdom is annexed and Sri Lanka's ruling dynasty deposed by Portuguese Catholics who, between 1505 and 1658, destroy most of the island's Hindu temples.
1619: First black slaves from Africa are sold in the USA.
1620: European pilgrims land and settle at Plymouth Rock, US.
1627-80: Life of Sivaji, valiant general and tolerant founder of Hindu Maratha Empire (1674-1818). Emancipates large areas confiscated by Muslims, returning them to Hindu control. First Indian ruler to build a major naval force.
ca 1628-88: Lifetime of Kumaraguruparar, prolific poet-saint of Tamil Nadu who founds monastery in Varanasi to propound Saiva Siddhanta philosophy.
1630: Over the next two years, millions starve to death as Shah Jahan (1592-1666), fifth Mughal Emperor, empties the royal treasury to buy jewels for his "Peacock Throne."
1647: Shah Jahan completes Taj Mahal in Agra beside Yamuna River. Its construction has taken 20,000 laborers 15 years, at a total cost equivalence of US$25 million.
1649: Red Fort is completed in Delhi by Shah Jahan.
ca 1650: Dharmapuram Aadheenam, Saiva monastery, founded near Mayuram, South India, by Guru Jnanasambandar.
ca 1650: Robert de Nobili (1577-1656), Portuguese Jesuit missionary noted for fervor and intolerance, arrives in Madurai, declares himself a brahmin, dresses like a Hindu monk and composes Veda-like scripture extolling Jesus.
ca 1650: Two yoga classics, Siva Samhita and Gheranda Samhita, are written.
1654: A Tamil karttanam is written and sung to celebrate recovery installation of Tiruchendur's Murugan murti.
1658: Zealous Muslim Aurangzeb (1618-1707) becomes Mughal Emperor. His discriminatory policies toward Hindus, Marathas and the Deccan kingdoms contribute to the dissolution of the Mughal Empire by 1750.
1660: Frenchman Francois Bernier reports India's peasantry is living in misery under Mughal rule.
1664: Great Plague of London kills 70,000, 15% of the population.
1675: Aurangzeb executes Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur, beginning the Sikh-Muslim feud that continues to this day.
1679: Aurangzeb levies Jizya tax on non-believers, Hindus.
1688: Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb demolishes all temples in Mathura, said to number 1,000. (During their reign, Muslim rulers destroy roughly 60,000 Hindu temples throughout India, constructing mosques on 3,000 sites.)
1700: World population is 610 million. India population is 165 million: 27% of world.
1705-42: Lifetime of Tayumanavar, Tamil Saiva poet saint and devotional yogic philosopher of Tiruchirappalli.
1708: Govind Singh, tenth and last Sikh guru, is assassinated.
1708-37: Jai Singh II builds astronomical observatories in Delhi, Jaipur, Ujjain, Benares and Mathura.
1718-75: Lifetime of Ramprasad, Bengali Shakta poet-saint.
1722: Peter the Great rules in Russia.
ca 1725: Jesuit Father Hanxleden compiles first Sanskrit grammar in a European language.
ca 1750: Shakta songs of Bengali poets Ramprasad Sen and Kamalakanta Bhattacharya glorify Her as loving Mother and Daughter and stimulate a rise in devotional Shaktism.
1751: Robert Clive, age 26, seizes Arcot in modern Tamil Nadu as French and British fight for control of South India.
1760: Saiva sannyasis fight Vaishnava vairagis in tragic battle at Hardwar Kumbha Mela; 18,000 monks are killed.
1760: Eliezer (Besht), liberal founder of Hasidic Judaism, dies.
1761: Afghan army of Ahmad Shah Durrani routs Hindu Maratha forces at Panipat, ending Maratha hegemony in North India. As many as 200,000 Hindus are said to have died in the strategic eight-hour battle.
1764: British defeat the weak Mughal Emperor to become rulers of Bengal, richest province of India.
1769: Prithivi Narayan Shah, ruler of Gorkha principality, conquers Nepal Valley; moves capital to Kathmandu, establishing present-day Hindu nation of Nepal.
ca 1770-1840: Life of Rishi from the Himalayas, guru of Kadaitswami and first historically known satguru of the Nandinatha Sampradaya's Kailasa Parampara since Tirumular.
1773: British East India Company obtains monopoly on the production and sale of opium in Bengal.
ca 1780-1830: Golden era of Karnatik music. Composers include Tyagaraja, Dikshitar and Shastri.
1781: George Washington defeats British at Yorktown, US.
1781-1830: Lifetime of Sahajanandaswami, Gujarati founder of the Swaminarayan sect (with 1.5 million followers today).
1784: Judge and linguist Sir William Jones founds Calcutta's Royal Asiatic Society. First such scholastic institution.
1786: Sir William Jones uses the Rig Veda term Aryan ("noble") to name the parent language (now termed Indo-European) of Sanskrit, Greek, Latin and Germanic tongues.
1787-95: British Parliament impeaches Warren Hastings, Governor General of Bengal (1774-85) for misconduct.
1787: British Committee for the Abolition of the Slave Trade is formed, marking the beginning of the end of slavery.
1789: French revolution begins with storming of the Bastille.
1792: Britain's Cornwallis defeats Tipu Sahib, Sultan of Mysore and most powerful ruler in South India, main bulwark of resistance to British expansion in India.
1793: Eli Whitney invents the cotton gin in the US, greatly affecting the institution of slavery.
1796: Over two million worshipers compete for sacred Ganga bath at Kumbha Mela in Hardwar. Five thousand Saiva ascetics are killed in tragic clash with Sikh ascetics.
1799: Sultan Tipu is killed in battle against 5,000 British soldiers who storm and raze his capital, Srirangapattinam.


911 => 9 are the doors to the body, 11 are the senses ( 1 Mind, 5 Action, 5 Perception = MAP)
existence (sat) consciousness (chit/sri) joy (anand/akaal) being becoming:
addons/takeoffs inputs please email to: oyash@msn.com
Hindu Timeline #5
Reference:http://www.himalayanacademy.com/books/timeline/HinduHistory.html

1800ce to the Present and Beyond!
1803: Second Anglo-Maratha war results in British Christian capture of Delhi and control of large parts of India.
1803: India's population is 200 million.
1803-82: Lifetime of Ralph Waldo Emerson, American poet who helps popularize Bhagavad Gita and Upanishads in US.
1807: Importation of slaves is banned in the US through an act of Congress motivated by Thomas Jefferson.
1809: British strike a bargain with Ranjit Singh for exclusive areas of influence.
ca 1810-75: Lifetime of renaissance guru Kadaitswami, born near Bangalore, sent to Sri Lanka by Rishi from the Himalayas to strengthen Saivism against Catholic incursion.
1812: Napoleon's army retreats from Moscow. Only 20,000 soldiers survive out of a 500,000-man invasion force.
1814: First practical steam locomotive is built.
1817-92: Lifetime of Bahaullah, Mirza Husayn 'Ali, founder of Baha'i faith (1863), a major off-shoot religion of Islam.
1818-78: Lifetime of Sivadayal, renaissance founder of the esoteric reformist Radhasoami Vaishnava sect in Agra.
1820: First Indian immigrants arrive in the US.
1822-79: Life of Arumuga Navalar of Jaffna, Sri Lanka, renaissance activist who propounds Advaita Siddhanta, writes first Hindu catechism and translates Bible into Tamil so it can be compared faithfully to the Vedas and Agamas.
1823-74: Life of Ramalingaswami, Tamil saint, renaissance founder of Vadalur's "Hall of Wisdom for Universal Worship."
1824-83: Lifetime of Swami Dayananda Sarasvati, renaissance founder of Arya Samaj (1875), Hindu reformist movement stressing a return to the values and practices of the Vedas. Author of Satya Prakash, "Light on Truth."
1825: First massive immigration of Indian workers from Madras is to Reunion and Mauritius. This immigrant Hindu community builds their first temple in 1854.
1828: Ram Mohan Roy (1772-1833) founds Adi Brahmo Samaj in Calcutta, first movement to initiate religio-social reform. Influenced by Islam and Christianity, he denounces polytheism, idol worship; repudiates the Vedas, avataras, karma and reincarnation, caste and more.
1831-91: Lifetime of Russian mystic Madame H.P. Blavatsky, founder of Theosophical Society in 1875, bringing aspects of psychism, Buddhism and Hinduism to the West.
1831: British Christians defeat Ranjit Singh's forces at Balakot, in Sikh attempt to establish a homeland in N.W. India.
1833: Slavery is abolished in British Commonwealth countries, giving impetus to abolitionists in United States.
1835: Civil service jobs in India are opened to Indians.
1835: Macaulay's Minute furthers Western education in India. English is made official government and court language.
1835: Mauritius receives 19,000 immigrant indentured laborers from India. Last ship carrying workers arrives in 1922.
1836-86: Lifetime of Shri Ramakrishna, God-intoxicated Bengali Shakta saint, guru of Swami Vivekananda. He exemplifies the bhakti dimension of Shakta Universalism.
1837: Britain formalizes emigration of Indian indentured laborers to supply cheap labor under a system more morally acceptable to British Christian society than slavery, illegal in the British Empire since 1833.
1837: Kali-worshiping Thugees are suppressed by British.
1838: British Guyana receives its first 250 Indian laborers.
1838-84: Lifetime of Keshab Chandra Sen, Hindu reformer who founds Brahma Samaj of India, a radical offshoot of the Adi Brahmo Samaj of Ram Mohan Roy.
1840-1915: Lifetime of Satguru Chellappaswami of Jaffna, Sri Lanka, initiated at age 19 by Siddha Kadaitswami as next satguru in the Nandinatha Sampradaya's Kailasa Parampara.
1840: Joseph de Goubineau (1816-1882), French scholar, writes The Inequality of Human Races. Proclaims the "Aryan race" superior to other great strains and lays down the aristocratic class-doctrine of Aryanism that later provides the basis for Adolf Hitler's Aryan racism.
1842-1901: Life of Eknath Ranade, founder of Prarthana Samaj. His social-reform thinking inspires Gokhale and Gandhi.
1843: British conquer the Sind region (present-day Pakistan).
1845: Trinidad receives its first 197 Indian immigrant laborers.
1846: British forcibly separate Kashmir from the Sikhs and sell it to the Maharaja of Jammu for pounds1,000,000.
1849: Sikh army is defeated by the British at Amritsar.
1850: First English translation of the Rig Veda by H.H. Wilson, first holder of Oxford's Boden Chair, founded "to promote the translation of the Scriptures into English, so as to enable his countrymen to proceed in the conversion of the natives of India to the Christian religion."
1851: Sir M. Monier-Williams (1819-99) publishes English-Sanskrit Dictionary. His completed Sanskrit-English Dictionary is released in 1899 after three decades of work.
1853-1920: Lifetime of Shri Sharada Devi, wife of Shri Ramakrishna.
1853: Max Muller (1823-1900), German Christian philologist and Orientalist, advocates the term Aryan to name a hypothetical primitive people of Central Asia, the common ancestors of Hindus, Persians and Greeks. Muller speculates that this "Aryan race" divided and marched west to Europe and east to India and China around 1500 bce. Their language, Muller contends, developed into Sanskrit, Greek, Latin, German, etc., and all ancient civilizations descended from this Aryan race.
1856: Catholic missionary Bishop Caldwell coins the term Dravidian to refer to South Indian Caucasian peoples.
1857: First Indian Revolution, called the Sepoy Mutiny, ends in a few months with the fall of Delhi and Lucknow.
1858: India has 200 miles of railroad track. By 1869 5,000 miles of steel track have been completed by British railroad companies. In 1900, total track is 25,000 miles, and by World War I, 35,000 miles. By 1970, at 62,136 miles, it has become the world's greatest train system. Unfortunately, this development depletes India's forest lands.
1859: Charles Darwin, releases controversial book, The Origin of Species, propounding his "natural selection" theory of evolution, laying the foundations of modern biology.
1860: S.S. Truro and S.S. Belvedere dock in Durban, S. Africa, carrying first indentured servants (from Madras and Calcutta) to work sugar plantations. With contracts of five years and up, thousands emigrate over next 51 years.
1861: American Civil War begins in Charleston, S. Carolina.
1861-1941: Lifetime of Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore, awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913.
1863-1902: Life of Swami Vivekananda, dynamic renaissance missionary to West and catalyst of Hindu revival in India.
1869-1948: Lifetime of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, Indian nationalist and Hindu political activist who develops the strategy of nonviolent disobedience that forces Christian Great Britain to grant independence to India (1947).
1870: Papal doctrine of infallibility is asserted by the Vatican.
1872-1964: Lifetime of Satguru Yogaswami, Natha renaissance sage of Sri Lanka, Chellappaswami's successor in the Kailasa Parampara of the Nandinatha Sampradaya.
1872-1950: Life of Shri Aurobindo Ghosh, Bengali Indian nationalist and renaissance yoga philosopher. His 30-volume work discusses the "superman," the Divinely transformed individual soul. Withdraws from the world in 1910 and founds international ashram in Pondicherry.

Chronology
1872, Aug. 15 - Sri Aurobindo is born in Calcutta; he spends his first years at Rangpur (now in Bangladesh), and at the age of 5 is sent to Loreto Convent School, Darjeeling.
1878, Feb. 21 - Mother is born in Paris.
1879, June - Sri Aurobindo leaves India for England with his parents and his two eld