Mahabharata-Upinder Singh Flashcards
(22 cards)
when did delhi fall into power politics for the first time? and how?
mahabharata
yudhistra & bros demanded city of indraprashta, banks of yamuna
what was mahabharata?
story of two feuding factions of the bharata people fighting for kurukshetra, land of the kurus
kurukshetra-thaneshwar, delhi, upper gangetic doab
who was the author of mahabharat
by tradition it was krishna davaipayana vyas
how did the pandavas obtain their share of the kingdom and when
pandavas, kunti and draupad-went to dhritarashta for their share of the kingdom
dhrit, in order to avoid war, he split the kingdom into hastinapura(kaurava) and khandava forest region (pandava)
at the end of the adi parva
how did pandavas rule the khandava forest
they founded city indraprashta-new heaven
yudhishtra ruled and cultivated -dharma, artha, kama
what happened in the burning of the khandava forest? and when did it take place?
at the end of the adi parva, when krishna & arjun were in a drunken haze, agni (brahmin) asked them to help him burn down the forest
they do.
6 survive-ashvasenaa(son of serpant king), maya (demon), 4 shargaka birds
how did maya express his thanks to arjun and when
at the beginning of the sabha parva
maya built a golden pillared hall w studded precious stones for arjun
how did maya express his thanks to arjun and when
at the beginning of the sabha parva
maya built a golden pillared hall w studded precious stones for arjun
what did the excavations at purana quila reveal?
in 1954-55 under b b lal, sherds of pgw was found which indicated settlement as old as 1000 bc up until early centuries ad
in 1967-70, under bb lal. bk thapar and mc joshi, nbpw was found which indicated settlement from 4th/3rd bc medieval periods
these excavations do not confirm nor deny the mahabharata but they do confirm settlement from ancient times(1000 bc)
what did the ain i akbari entail
written by abul fazl
synopsis of the mahabharat
delhi was first called indrapat
humayun restored indrapat and named in dinpanah
indicares-strong tradition connected indraprashta w the site of purana wuila
there was a village named indrapat within purana quila till the 19th century
what did tarikh i firuz shahi entail
by shams siraj afif
indraprashta was the headquarters of pargana
what did the stone inscription at naraina indicate
talks about nadayana- a village located to the west on indraprastha
how is nigambodh related to the mahabharat
on the banks of yamuna
(i) where yudhistra perfomed ashwamedha (horse sacrifice) for political paramountcy
(ii) nili chatri temple, near it, is where yudhistra built a temple
what does the mahabharat say about decline of indraprastha under yudhistra’s successors?
fly fell in his food
transferred his court to hastinapura and left the city in hands of dhritrashta’s only surviving son
what does the vishnu purana say about decline of indraprastha under yudhistra’s successors?
a massive flood in ganga led to shift of capital from hastinapura to kaushambi under the reign of nichakshu
this suggests that the capital mustve moved from indraprashta to hastinapura at soem point
what do the buddhist jataka tales say about decline of indraprastha under yudhistra’s successors?
indraprashta was the capital of a line of kings claiming to be of yudhitthila gotra
what happened to kurukshetra when indraprashta lost importance
it lost importance too
centre of political gravity shifted further east to patliputra
tilpat
in faridabad
could be tilprashta which was one of the five kingdoms demanded by the pandavas
bb lal excavations in 1950 unearthed pgw, nbpw levels
sihi
acc to locals, this is where janmeyjana performed his snake sacrifice
janmey was the son of parikshit who was killed by a snake bite
hence he sought to avenge his death and wanted to destory all the snakes in the wrold but he did not succeed(adi parva)
BUT acc to the mahabharatm snake sacrifice took place in takshila
HOWEVER large quanitites of old iron slag have been found here believe to be the remains of bones of snakes sacrificed in the fire
bisrakh
ghaziabad
acc to locals this is the birthplace of ravana
‘proof’-no, of medival shiva lingas all over + headless sculpture of nandi
how did people live in bhorgarh
late harappan pottery was found
period II- people lived in roundish huts supported by wooden posts
how did people live in mandoli
break in occupation bw late harappan period and the pgw peiod
pgw- houses rammed in mud floors and post holes
