Indus Valley People and Hinduism

41 min readJul 16, 2020

By Arvind Bhagwath

Introduction:

The Indus River Valley Civilization is also known as the Harappan Civilization extended from modern-day northeast Afghanistan till northwest India(Punjab Region including Gujarat) and this ancient civilization contributed several important innovations such as new techniques in metallurgy, standardized weights, measures and several others. This civilization hosted one of largest ancient city and one of the world’s earliest major urban centers. This civilization ended due to climate change and people migration around 1800 BCE and due to this, very little is understood about the Indus script, Indus valley religion and its cultural past. Several scholars are struggling hard to understand this mysterious civilization by understanding Indus script with collection of written texts on clay and stone tablets unearthed at Harappa which have been carbon dated 3300–3200 BC. As of today, the Indus script still remains indecipherable with several researchers are using technological advances in computer science in order to attempt to decipher it. Here in this research paper, I am trying to decipher using ancient Hindu Puranic texts and also trying to establish its relation with Brahmi Script.

Image Credit: Avantiputra7 (**Wikipedia**)

As we all know Indus valley civilization ended due to climate change and people migration around 1800 BCE. The Harappan people moved south and mixed with the local people to produce what geneticists call Ancestral South Indians with a culture based on Dravidian languages and around the same time, the Harappans also mixed with Steppe pastoralists who had by then migrated to north India through Central Asia, to form the Ancestral North Indian (ANI) population who primarily spoke Indo-Aryan languages. Farming related migration also occurred when migrants from the Chinese heartland swamped south-east Asia and reached India, bringing the Austroasiatic family of languages.

Indo-Iranian (Aryan) — Steppe pastoralists migrations might have taken place in multiple waves from 2nd Millennium BCE to give birth to mixed race in Indian sub-continent. The first wave consisted of the Indo-Aryan migration into Syria, that gave birth to Vedic Mittani kingdom, and a migration south-eastward of the Vedic people, over the Hindu Kush into northern India that mixed with people of Indus valley civilization giving birth to Ancestral North Indian (ANI) population.

Sanatana Philosophy (referred as Hindu Philosophy) can be regarded as completely reformed as of today with changes and reforms brought by several scholars from past till date. However, when we speak of culture or rituals followed by Hindus (Indians), it is mix of several traditions and the practice of rituals, Idol worship that are almost 11000 years old that includes cultures of Indus valley civilization (primary culture), Proto-Indo-Europeans, Sumerians, ancient Egyptians, ancient Persians, and several others. Ancient rituals that have been followed from several generations got included with several waves of people migration here into Indian culture. It is this great culture that has digested any kind of cultural invasion and regarded them as its own. It accepted everything and rejected none. This is the power of Indian culture and greatness of India.

India is a land of “Unity in diversity”. “Unity in diversity” is based on the concept where the individual or social differences in physical attributes, skin color, castes, creed, cultural and religious practices, etc. are not looked upon as a conflict. Rather, these differences are looked upon as varieties that enrich the society and the nation. The first migrants came with the Southern Coastal dispersal, ca. 60,000 years ago, thereafter complex migrations within south and southeast Asia took place with people of Australoid Race. Then the migration of Mediterranean race, later Indo-European and finally Mongoloid Race (Tibet-Burmese) speaking people in North eastern parts of India.

Genetics prove that Indians are purely mixed race. Below is chart showing ancestry distribution between Indus Valley people, Steppe and Hunter Gatherers among various Indian groups.

Full Study: https://www.biorxiv.org/content/biorxiv/early/2018/03/31/292581.full.pdf

In the paper published on September 5, 2019 in the prestigious journal ‘Cell’, the authors Prof. Vasant Shinde, Vagheesh M. Narasimhan, Nadin Rohland, Nick Patterson, Niraj Rai, David Reich and others mention details of ancient genome from the Indus Valley Civilization (IVC). It mentions that the individual they sequenced fits as a mixture of people related to ancient Iranians (the largest component) and Southeast Asian hunter-gatherers, a unique profile that matches ancient DNA from 11 genetic outliers from sites in Iran and Turkmenistan in cultural communication with the IVC. These individuals had little if any Steppe pastoralist-derived ancestry, showing that it was not ubiquitous in northwest South Asia during the IVC as it is today. The Iranian-related ancestry in the IVC derives from a lineage leading to early Iranian farmers, herders, and hunter-gatherers before their ancestors separated, contradicting the hypothesis that the shared ancestry between early Iranians and South Asians reflects a large-scale spread of western Iranian farmers east. Instead, sampled ancient genomes from the Iranian plateau and IVC descend from different groups of hunter-gatherers who began farming without being connected by substantial movement of people.

Reference: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/335641385_An_Ancient_Harappan_Genome_Lacks_Ancestry_from_Steppe_Pastoralists_or_Iranian_Farmers

In similar way, a genetic analysis of the ancient DNA of Mesopotamian skeletons was made on the excavated remains of four individuals from ancient tombs in Tell Ashara (ancient Terqa) and Tell Masaikh (near Terqa, also known as ancient Kar-Assurnasirpal), both in the middle Euphrates valley in the east of modern Syria. The two oldest skeletons were dated to 2,650–2,450 BCE and 2,200–1,900 BCE respectively, while the two younger skeletons were dated to circa 500 AD. All the studied individuals carried mtDNA haplotypes corresponding to the M4b1, M49 and/or M61 haplogroups, which are believed to have arisen in the Indian subcontinent during the Upper Paleolithic and are absent in people living today in Syria. These haplogroups are still present in people inhabiting today’s Tibet, Himalayas (Ladakh), India and Pakistan, and are restricted today to the South, East and Southeast Asia regions.

Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indus%E2%80%93Mesopotamia_relation

As we know, Indus valley civilization ended due to climate change and people migration around 1800 BCE. The Harappan people moved south and mixed with the local people to produce what geneticists call Ancestral South Indians with a culture based on Dravidian languages. For reference, sounds of ancient Sumerian and Indus valley town mentioned by Mesopotamians is like any Dravidian language (Kannada or Tamil).

Proto-Dravidian may have been spoken in the Indus civilization and several geneticists have noted a strong correlation between Dravidian and the Ancestral South Indian (ASI) component of South Asian genetic makeup. Narasimhan et al. (2018) argue that the ASI component itself resulted from a mixture of Iranian-related agriculturalists, moving southeast after the decline of the Indus Valley Civilization (early 2nd millennium BCE), and hunter-gatherers native to southern India. Introduction from the northwest would be consistent with the location of Brahui and with attempts to interpret the Indus script as Dravidian. They conclude that one of these two groups may have been the source of proto-Dravidian. Dravidian is a family of languages spoken by 220 million people and the Dravidian languages with the most speakers are Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Tulu, Kodava, Gondi from India and Brahui (Baluchistan region of Pakistan). Some scholars have argued that the Dravidian languages may have been brought to India by people migrations from the Iranian plateau in the fourth or third millennium BCE to Indus Valley. Dravidian languages also display typological similarities with the Uralic language group, and there have been several attempts to establish a genetic relationship in the past. Proto-Dravidian was spoken in the 4th or 3rd millennium BCE and it is thought that the Dravidian languages were the most widespread indigenous languages in the Indian subcontinent before the advance of the Indo-Aryan languages.

In similar way, as speakers of Proto-Indo-European became isolated from each other through the Indo-European migrations, the regional dialects of Proto-Indo-European spoken by the various groups diverged, as each dialect underwent shifts in pronunciation (the Indo-European sound laws), morphology, and vocabulary. Over many centuries, these dialects transformed into the known ancient Indo-European languages. From there, further linguistic divergence led to the evolution of their current descendants, the modern Indo-European languages. Today, the descendant languages of PIE with the most native speakers are Spanish, English, Portuguese, Hindustani (Hindi and Urdu), Bengali, Russian, Punjabi, German, Persian, French, Marathi, Italian, and Gujarati.

Proto-Indo-European (PIE) is hypothesized to have been spoken as a single language from 4500 BC to 2500 BC during the Late Neolithic to Early Bronze Age, though estimates vary by more than a thousand years. According to the prevailing Kurgan hypothesis, the original homeland of the Proto-Indo-Europeans may have been in the Pontic–Caspian steppe of eastern Europe. The linguistic reconstruction of PIE has provided insight into the pastoral culture and patriarchal religion of its speakers. Proto-Indo-European mythology is the body of myths and deities associated with the Proto-Indo-Europeans, the hypothetical speakers of the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European language. One of the earliest attested and thus one of the most important of all Indo-European mythologies is Vedic mythology, especially the mythology of the Rigveda, the oldest of the Vedas.

Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proto-Indo-European_mythology

Proto-Indo-Iranian (Sintashta culture) emerged from the interaction of two antecedent cultures around Yamnaya. Its immediate predecessor in the Ural-Tobol steppe was the Poltavka culture, an offshoot of the cattle-herding Yamnaya horizon that moved east into the region. The oldest evidence of Vedic Swastika is available at Mezine, Ukraine. Arkaim (Russian: Аркаим) is an archaeological site in Russia, situated in the steppe of the Southern Ural. Scholars have identified the structure of Arkaim as the cities built “reproducing the model of the universe” described in ancient Aryan/Iranian spiritual literature, the Vedas and the Avesta. The structure consists of three concentric rings of walls and three radial streets, reflecting the city of King Yima described in the Rigveda.

Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arkaim

DNA study clearly shows rare R1a1 Y-haplogroup (Y-HG) L657 clade subtype designated as LPKSTR found in most male members of a clan of “founder” families within the Pancha Gaud Brahmin (RigVedic Sarasvat Brahmin community) and several others.

DNA Reference: Genetic and Cultural Reconstruction of the Migration of an Ancient Lineage of Sarasvat Brahmins or Brahmins of Sarasvati river

https://www.hindawi.com/journals/bmri/2015/651415/

Further migrations of Vedic tribes towards east from Rigvedic river Sarasvati happened early 1st Millennium BCE.

With arrival of Indo-Aryans into Indian sub-continent, from Indian side, Kambojas are included in the Uttarapatha. In ancient literature, the Kamboja is variously associated with the Gandhara, Darada and the Bahlika (Bactria) and is also referred in the Rigveda. The Mahājanapadas (Sanskrit: महाजनपद, lit. ‘great realm’, from maha, “great”, and janapada “foothold of a people”) were sixteen kingdoms or oligarchic republics that existed in Northern ancient India from the sixth to fourth centuries BCE during the second urbanization period. The 6th–5th centuries BCE is often regarded as a major turning point in early Indian history; during this period India’s first large cities arose after the demise of the Indus Valley Civilization. Archaeologically, this period has been identified as corresponding in part to the Northern Black Polished Ware culture.

Initially it appears that early RigVedic tribes have settled close by the river Helmand that is the central part of western and eastern rivers frequently mentioned in the Rig Veda as below:

Sarayu river is mentioned in RigVeda(RV X.64.9, IV.30.18.,V.53.9) and this river is identified with Avestan Harayu or Hari-rud of Afghanistan
Kubha river mentioned in RigVeda(RV V.53.9, X.75.6.) is identified with the Kabul river of Afghanistan.
Krumu river mentioned in RigVeda(RV V.53.9, X.75.6) is identified with the Kurram river of Afghanistan.
Many scholars mention that Rigvedic description(Rigveda (RV 6.61.8) of Saraswati and Avestan description of Harahvaiti in Helmand of Afghanistan almost same.

For the fact, the Helmand culture of western Afghanistan was a Bronze Age culture of the 3rd millennium BCE. Scholars link it with the Shahr-i Sokhta, Mundigak, and Bampur sites along with Jiroft Culture. The Jiroft culture flourished in the eastern Iran, and the Helmand culture in western Afghanistan at the same time. In fact, they may represent the same cultural area and hence the Jiroft and Helmand cultures are closely related and single culture. The Mehrgarh culture, on the other hand, flourished far earlier.

Jiroft culture inscriptions — Source : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jiroft_culture

Demeter(DA-MA-TE) and “SITO”(Giver of Grain)

RigVedic Saraswati river was known to the ancient Iranians as Haraxvaiti in Avestan and Harahuvati in Old Persian, which are cognate with Rigvedic Sarasvati (as described in its “family books”). Greek Arachosia is believed to be a hellenisation of the name, meaning the land of Haraxvaiti. Rigveda’s hymn VI.61.2 describes it with the words:

By means of her gushing and powerful waves, this (Sarasvatī) has crushed the ridge of the mountains, (breaking river banks) like a man who digs for lotus roots; with praises and prayers, we solicit Sarasvatī for her help, (Sarasvatī) who slays the foreigners.

Historian Asko Parpola states: “Arghandab […] descends from a height of nearly four kilometers down to about 700 meters, when it joins the Helmand River, which eventually forms shallow lakes.” Sarasvatī- is interpreted to mean “full of lakes”.

Several Indian historians, however, state that the Avestan Haraxvaiti as well as the Rigvedic Sarasvati refer to the Helmand River. The Rigvedic name of Arghandab is then believed to be Drishadvati

Reference : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arghandab_River

Avestan geography is the compilation of the geographical references in the Avesta (the primary collection of Zoroastrian religious texts) which are limited to the regions on the eastern Iranian Plateau up to Indo-Iranian border. It was common among the Indo-Iranians to identify concepts or features of traditional cosmography — mountains, lakes, rivers, etc. — with their concrete historical and geographical situation as they migrated and settled in various places. Below is reference to Avestan Geography:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avestan_geography

Avestan Geography is like RigVedic geography with reference to ancient towns/tribes found in epics like Ramayana and Mahabharata. Probably people of this Indo-Aryan civilization shared same history as we see in these later composed epics based on below striking similarities:

Vedic Mitra and Avestan Mithra (Roman-Graeco Mithras)
Vedic Aryaman and Avestan Airyaman
Vedic Varuna and Avestan Ahuramazda
Vedic Indra and Avestan Verethra
Vedic Surya and Avestan Hvarxsaeta
Vedic Agni and Avestan Atar (Roman-Graceo culture — Ignis)
Vedic Hiranya and Avestan Zaranya (Gold)
Vedic Seyna and Avestan Hayna (Army)
Vedic Rsti and Avestan Arsti (Spear)
Vedic Ksatra and Avestan Xsatra (Sovereignty)
Vedic Asura and Avestan Ahura (Lord)
Vedic Yajna and Avestan Yasna (Sacrifice)
Vedic Hotar and Avestan Zaotar (Sacrificing Priest)
Vedic Soma and Avestan Haoma (Sacrificing Drink)
Vedic Turvasas and Avestan Tuiryas (Turan tribes)
Vedic Purus and Avestan Pouru (Pouru tribes)
Vedic Dasyu and Avestan Dahai ( Dahan Scythians)
Vedic Parsu and Avestan Parsa
Vedic Saraswati and Avestan Haraxvaiti (Arachosia)
Vedic Sapta Sindhu and Avestan Hapta Hindu( Indus River)
Vedic Sarayu and Avestan Harayu( Hari River — Afghanistan)
Vedic Panis and Avestan Parthians(Scythian tribe)
Vedic Yavanas and Avestan Yauna tribe( Ionians — Greeks)
Vedic Bhalanas to Bhalanas tribes lived in East Kabulistan(Bolan Pass)
Vedic Vaikarṇa (Vaikarna) (Udichya Āryāvarta — Northern Āryāvarta)tribes to Avestan Varkana Tribes — Varkana (thought to mean land of the wolves) — Hyrcania, Old Persian Varkana, (“Wolf’s Land”), ancient region located southeast of the Caspian Sea.

Aryā daiŋ́hāvā “the Aryan lands” as consolidated by the Achaemenid Empire.

According to H. Lommel, the original name of the divinity in Indo-Iranian times was Sarasvatī, which also means “she who possesses waters”. In Sanskrit, the name आर्द्रावी शूरा अनाहिता means “of the waters, mighty, and immaculate”. Like Hindu mythology Sarasvatī, Anāhitā of Avestan myths mentions this river that nurtures crops and herds; and she is hailed both as a divinity and as the mythical river which she personifies, “as great in bigness as all these waters which flow forth upon the earth” (Yasht 5.3). As per (Yasht 10.88) …. Harā is tall and luminous. The sacred plant haoma (Soma in Vedic) grows on Harā. It is also the home of the yazata Mithra. It is the site in legend of sacrifices (yasnas) to the yazatas Mithra, Sraoša, Arədvī Sūrā Anāhitā, Vayu, and Druvāspa, by sacrificers such as the divine priest Haoma (epitome of the sacred plant) and kings like Haošyaŋha and Yima.

Several Indian historians, however, state that the Avestan Haraxvaiti as well as the Rigvedic Sarasvati river to the Helmand River. The Rigvedic name of Arghandab is then believed to be Drishadvati.

Reference : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arghandab_River

NOTE : One ‘yojana’ is almost equivalent to two miles(12 kms) in distance and this should be around 1200KMS that is exactly distance from (Harayu River bank-Panchavati(Panjwai)-Kishkinda-Sabari lake -Zranka of Afghanistan) — 1200 KMS.

The current distance between Ayodhya of India to Sri Lanka is approximately 3,000km and roughly one would take around 66 days, but from Valmiki Ramayana, we learn that Lord Ram returned to Ayodhya near Sarayu river from Lanka in just 20 days by foot and further according to Ramayana written by Valmiki, Lanka was hundred ‘100 yojana’ away which comes around 1200 KMS. This distance could be perhaps distance from Ayodhya or banks of Harayu river itself. Hence confusion comes on actual location of Lanka(Current Srilanka that is 3000KMS away or some other Lanka that is 1200KMS away ?).

With distance of 1200KMS(100 Yojanas) mentioned in Valmiki Ramayana, I strongly believe Lanka was ancient Zranka of Afghanistan. Please note “Sir-ra-an-qa” was Elamite reference for Zranka(current Zaranj) clearly sounds like Sri Lanka.
Zranka to banks of Harayu river in Afghanistan is approximately 20 days on foot and 1200 KMS that matches Valmiki’s description exactly. Hence Zranka/Sir-ra-an-qa was Lanka/Sri Lanka of ancient times.

Geography from Valmiki’s Ramayana captures below important spots during Rama’s journey to Lanka and has striking similarities with ancient towns and rivers in Afghanistan :

SPOT 1 : Sarayu River bank- It could be Harayu River of Afghanistan ?
SPOT 2 : Ram’s Forest Exile — Chitrakoot, Dandakaranya in Kara kingdom, Chitrakoot could be Chitral Mountain Valley and Kara mountains of Afghanistan could be Kara kingdom(Black mountains) near Nuristan Forest Range.
SPOT 3 : Panchavati Ashram — could be Panjwai province of Afghanistan?
SPOT 4 :- Kishkinda — could be Kishk-e Nakhūd of Afghanistan?
SPOT 5 : Meeting Sabari — could be Sabari lake of Afghanistan?
SPOT 6: Lanka — could be Zranka(Elamite : Sir-ra-an-qa) of Afghanistan?

Valmiki Ramayana clearly mentions that Kekeya region has Saraswati flowing and also land of Bharata. Bharata is the name of Kaikeyi’s son — Two cities founded by the descendants of Bharata are Taksha(current Taxila) and Pushkara/Pushkalavati(current Peshawar). This Kekeya region is identified as Gandhara(Current Kandhara) — refer above image for Kandhara/Gandhara region.

SPOT 2: Ram’s Forest exile was Chitrakoot. Chitrakoot means the ‘Hill of many wonders’. Kūṭa (कूट): — The word, kūṭa, gives several meanings of which one is “the summit or peak of a mountain”. It also means “end” or “corner”. Valmiki Ramayana mentions that it was in these deep forests and mountain ranges that Ram, Goddess Sita and his brother Lakshman spent eleven years and six months of their fourteen years of banishment and next to this was Dandaka Forest range which was ruled by Ravana’s governor by name “Kara”.

To be exact specific of Valmiki’s description, we have Chitral peak mountain valley next to Nuristan Forest range that is greenest portion of Afghanistan and it is this valley that gives birth to several mentioned RigVedic rivers and matches exactly to description given by Valmiki of crystal clear rivers and lakes.

Further, KARA is black in Old Persian and Sanskrit and this region on east of Herat is full of Black mountains. Karakoram is also a Turkic term meaning black gravel and we also have famous Kara-Khanid Khanate later from this region. Karakul is wool from black sheeps from this region of Afghanistan and has several glacial lakes on northern side and it is this region of Afghanistan that is rich in iron ore. Possibly the largest deposit( 2 billion tones) of iron ore in entire Asia that makes these region of mountains and forest appear black in color. Kara kingdom of Valmiki Ramayana could be Kara region of Afghanistan. Ravana’s governor Kara ruled this province and a stronghold of the Rakshasa tribes. River or lake is mentioned at the northern entrance of this forest and we can find Chitral river. As per Valmiki Ramayana, head of a wicked-souled Rakshasa was killed here by Rama in Kara Kingdom. Possibly this could be personification of Black or Kara mountains in this region in poetic terms.

Chitral is drained by the Kunar River which flows southward, through Afghanistan, to meet the East flowing Kabul River near Hadda(Jalalabad). This river in earlier times was known as the “Sita River” as per Tibetan sources:

Uddiyana Until The Eighth Century

The Kalash People are considered to be an indigenous Indo-Aryan people of Asia, with their ancestors migrating to Chitral valley from another location possibly further south, which the Kalash call (Siyam)”Tsiyam” in their folk songs and epics. Kalash mythology and folklore has been compared to that of ancient Greece, but they are much closer to the Hindu traditions(RigVedic).

Kalash people — Wikipedia

The toponym Hadda/Hasti(Jalalabad) has its origins in Sanskrit hadda n. m., “a bone”. The other name: Hasti. Some people have belief that Hadda housed a bone-relic of Buddha. In 630 AD, Xuan Zang, the famous Chinese Buddhist monk, visited Jalalabad, which he referred to as Adinapur that has origins from earlier Hasti/Hadda ( bone relics).

This was also known as land of Bharata. Bharata is the name of Kaikeyi’s son — Two cities founded by the descendants of Bharata are Taksha(current Taxila) and Pushkara/Pushkalavati(current Peshawar). This Kekeya region is identified as Gandhara(Current Kandhara) in Geography of Ramayana.

It was this location probably Hasti/Hadda was immersed during Vedic death rituals, hence name Adinapur(Current name Jalalabad) derived from Hadda/Hasti(Sanskrit). We also have reference of Lord Rama performing Shraddha(Hasti Visarjan) of his father at Chitrakoot down valley in Ramayana.

Hadda, Afghanistan — Wikipedia

The Gandhara grave culture(Hasti) may be an artifact of the Indo-Aryan migrations, but it may also be explained by regional cultural continuity.

Single burials are characteristic of the early phase, along with bronze objects and pottery within the graves. Cremation is distinctive in the middle phase, and ashes(Hasti) were laid in large jars, often bearing a human-like face design, this jars were then placed frequently in circular pits, surrounded by objects of bronze, gold and pottery.

Narasimhan et al. 2018 analyzed DNA of 362 ancient skeletons from this region and they state that the Swat valley grave DNA analysis provides gives clear evidence of connections between [Central Asian] Steppe population and early Vedic culture in India.

Gandhara grave culture — Wikipedia

SPOT 3: Panchvati means five (pancha) — vati(banyan trees) and Valmiki Ramayana mentions this town on banks of a river. We also have famous town with same name — Panjwai in Afghanistan on bank of a RigVedic river. Possibly Panjwai of Afghanistan was Valmiki’s Panchvati ( Town of five banyan or Peepal trees). This town also had ancient Ram Darbar temple that is completely destroyed now.

SPOT 4: Kishk-e Nakhūd of Afghanistan near Kandhara/Gandhara could be Kishk-indha of Valmiki Ramayana which was the kingdom of the Vanaras (forest-dwellers).

SPOT 5: In same way, Hamun-e-Sabari lake in region near Zaranka sounds like Sabari of Ramayana. In Ramayana, Sabari could be personification of river/lake like Saraswati.

SPOT 6: Zranka ( Water lands of Sistan Basin) itself sounds like Lanka. “Sir-ra-an-qa” was Elamite reference for Zranka(current Zranj) clearly sounds like Sri Lanka. This region comprises territory around Hamun Lake, wetlands in endorheic Sistan Basin that comprised very huge lakes and possibly it was looking like island referred in Valmiki Ramayana.

In Ramayana, we know that Lanka was burnt by Hanuman and here, we have burnt city in Zranka.

Ram Shahristan was the ancient capital of Sistan (Sakastan) in Helmand Region.

The Burnt city(Shahr-i Sokhta) near Ram Shahristan had four stages of civilization and was burnt down three times before being abandoned. Shahr-i Sokhta shows signs of advanced civilization between the ages of 2900 and 1900 BC.

Helmand Region(Iran -Afghan Border) — Burnt City — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shahr-e_Sukhteh

Shahr-e Sukhteh bears exceptional testimony to a peculiar civilization and cultural tradition that entertained trade and cultural relations with ancient sites and cultures on the Indus Plain, southern shores of the Persian Gulf, the Oman Sea and Southwest Iran, and Central Asia.

The Burnt City was one of rare ancient settlements, in which women were in charge of the financial affairs of their families.

· The oldest known backgammon, dice, and caraway seeds, together with numerous metallurgical finds (e.g., slag and crucible pieces), an artificial eyeball with a thin layer of gold have been found. These excavations are among the wonders of this city.

· Other objects found at the site include a human skull which indicates the practice of brain surgery and an earthen goblet depicting what archaeologists consider to be the first animation.

Other notable discoveries have included: a 10-centimeter (3.937-inch) ruler, accurate to half a millimeter.

Helmand civilization flourished between 3200 and 2350 BCE and may have coincided with first phase of the great flourishing Indus Valley Civilization.

Several Indian historians maintain that Avestan Harahvaiti as well as the Rigvedic Sarasvati refer to the Helmand River.

Reference : Arghandab River — Wikipedia

Kekeya region was near Ayodhya as per Valmiki Ramayana, however Vāyu Purana places Kekeya region on Saraswati belt in Āryavarta and also mentioned as land of Bharata. Bharata is the name of Kaikeyi’s son — Two cities founded by the descendants of Bharata are Taksha(current Taxila) and Pushkara/Pushkalavati(current Peshawar). This Kekeya region is identified as Gandhara(Current Kandhara) in ancient sources — refer above image for Kandhara/Gandhara region.

Nearby Kingdom of Ayodhya — Mithila — Videha Kingdom were called Janakas that was near Kekeya. King Aswapati ruled Kekaya kingdom when Janaka was the king of Videha. Possibly they were next to each other in Gandhara region of Aryavarta — refer above image for Kandhara/Gandhara region.

Satapatha Brahmana mentions that Videha Kingdom near Kekeya was on the river Saraswati(Harahvaiti) earlier and later shifted to current Videha(Sadanira) near Ganges as Aryan tribes migration happened towards Ganges.

The Shatapatha Brahmana (Sanskrit: शतपथब्राह्मण Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa) too captures this later part of Vedic Tribes migration towards Gangetic belt from Sarasvati river in Fourth ADHYÂYA and first BRÂHMANA.

Reference : https://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/sbr/sbe12/sbe1217.htm

The Shatapatha Brahmana (Sanskrit: शतपथब्राह्मण Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa) too captures this part of Vedic Tribes migration towards Gangetic belt from Sarasvati river in Fourth ADHYÂYA and first BRÂHMANA.

Reference: https://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/sbr/sbe12/sbe1217.htm

As mentioned above, some scholars identify RigVedic Sarasvati with the Helmand or Haraxvati river since Sanskrit S changes to H in Avestan language. Sarasvatī may be a cognate of Avestan Haraxvatī, perhaps referring to Arədvī Sūrā Anāhitā, the Zoroastrian mythological world river, which would point to a common Indo-Iranian myth of a cosmic or mystical Sarasvati. In the younger Avesta, Haraxvatī is Arachosia, a region described to be rich in rivers, and its Old Persian cognate Harauvati, which gave its name to the present-day Hārūt River in Afghanistan, may have referred to the entire Helmand drainage basin (the center of Arachosia).

Croatian people call themselves Hrvati when it comes to defining their origins and tracing their ancient roots they turn towards the land of Iran and Persia from Harahvaiti/Sarasvati river belt.

Reference: https://croativ.net/sokantno-otkrice-crni-ahat-hrvati-bastinici-civilizacije-saraswati-4517/

The oldest recorded name Harvat was found in the Mittani documents spoken by King Tusratta some 3500 years ago. In the documents he refers to his Kingdom as Huravat Ehillaku. He was a Vedic King, Tusratta being a corruption of Dasaratha. King Dasaratha was one of many Vedic Kings who ruled the Kingdom of Mittani. The chronology of these Mittani Kings are as follows: Kirta — Suttarna — Baratarna — Parsatatar — Saustatar — Rtadharma — Suttarna II — Artashumara — Dasaratha — Mativasa — Sattuara — Vashasatta — Sattuara II.

Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indo-Aryan_superstrate_in_Mitanni

Origins- “Hindu” from people of Indus Valley Civilization

The word “Hindu” came into existence because ancient Persians pronounced Sanskrit river name “Sindhu” as “Hindu” and Greeks pronounced “Hindus” as “Indus”. Ancient Persians(Indo-Iranians) share common ancestry with the ancient Indians. Indu or Sindu or Hindu cannot be called as a religion, it is just a way of life for Indians. Hindu does not claim any one prophet; it does not worship any one god; it does not subscribe to any one dogma; it does not believe in any one philosophic concept; it does not follow any one set of religious rites or performances and it may broadly be described as a way of life and nothing more.

Hindu could:
1. Follow any of the Hindu schools of philosophy, such as Advaita (non-dualism), Vishishtadvaita (non-dualism of the qualified whole), Dvaita (dualism), Dvaitadvaita (dualism with non-dualism)
2. Follow a tradition centered on any form of the Divine, such as Shaivism, Vaishnavism, Shaktism
3. Practice any one of the various forms of yoga systems to achieve moksha — that is freedom in current life (jivanmukti) or salvation in after-life (videhamukti)
4. Practice bhakti or puja for spiritual reasons, which may be directed to one’s guru or to a divine image. A visible public form of this practice is worship before an idol or statue.

Hinduism has different traditions as below. Goddess Durga is a central deity in Shaktism tradition of Hinduism, where she is equated with the concept of ultimate reality called Brahman.One of the most important texts of Shaktism is Devi Mahatmya, also known as Durgā Saptashatī, which celebrates Durga as the Goddess, declaring her as the Supreme Being and the creator of the universe. In Vaishnava traditions, Lord Vishnu is central deity. Lord Vishnu is revered in one of many distinct incarnations.

Dharma is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, and others. In Hinduism, dharma is one of the four components of the Puruṣārtha, the aims of life, and signifies behaviours that are in accord with Ṛta.

Ṛta (/ˈrɪtə/; Sanskrit ऋत ṛta “order, rule; truth”) is the principle of natural order which regulates and coordinates the operation of the universe and everything within it. In the hymns of the Vedas, Ṛta is described as that which is ultimately responsible for the proper functioning of the natural, moral, and sacrificial orders. Conceptually, it is closely allied to the injunctions and ordinances thought to uphold it, collectively referred to as Dharma, and the action of the individual in relation to those ordinances, referred to as Karma — two terms which eventually eclipsed Ṛta in importance as signifying natural, religious, and moral order in later Hinduism.

Ṛta has been compared to similar ideas in other cultures, such as Ma’at (Cosmic Order) in Ancient Egyptian religion, Moira and the Logos in Greek paganism, and the Tao. The word dharma has roots in the Sanskrit dhr-, which means “to hold” or to support Rta (Law/Cosmic Order) or Ma’at. In Classical Sanskrit, and in the Vedic Sanskrit of the Atharvaveda, the stem is thematic: dhárma- (Devanāgarī: धर्म). In Prakrit and Pāli, it is rendered dhamma.

Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maat

For Egyptians, the soul of the dead king before reaching Aaru (afterlife location near North Star), in the Duat, the Egyptian underworld, the hearts of the dead were said to be weighed against single “Feather of Maat”, representing the concept of Maat, in the Hall of Two Truths. Therefore, hearts were left in Egyptian mummies while their other organs were removed, as the heart (called “ib”) was part of the Egyptian soul. If the heart was found to be lighter or equal in weight to the feather of Maat, the deceased had led a virtuous life and would go on to Aaru(afterlife). Osiris (Orion Constellation) came to be the guardian of the gates of Aaru after he became part of the Egyptian pantheon and displaced Anubis (Canis Major) in the Ogdoad tradition. A heart which was unworthy was devoured by the goddess Ammit and its owner condemned to remain in the Duat. Orion’s Belt is one of the easiest star patterns to recognize iconography of Osiris, the god of the underworld. In Hindu Puranic reference, Lord Yama with iconography of Orion constellation (Osiris) with his two dogs (Canis major and Minor) was Lord of Naraka (Underworld).

The weighing of the heart, as typically pictured on papyrus in the Book of the Dead, or in tomb scenes, shows Anubis(Canis Major) overseeing the weighing and Ammit seated awaiting the results to consume those who failed. The image contains a balancing scale with an upright heart standing on one side and the Shu-feather standing on the other. Other traditions hold that Anubis brought the soul before the posthumous Osiris who performed the weighing. While the heart was weighed the deceased recited the 42 Negative Confessions as the Assessors of Maat looked on.

Feather being light in weight, it was ancient symbol to show emptiness(free from sin, lust, desires, misdeeds etc.) and represented as the symbol of truth, law, order and justice in several ancient civilization including Egyptians.

In ancient hieroglyphics(before the origin of formal human writing), the best way to represent this emptiness was symbol of feather since it does not have any weight and for Egyptians, this symbol showcased soul that is free from sin, lust, desires etc. and was placed on various deities of ancient Egypt and several civilizations took this representation later that you can refer. You can also find deities with feather on crown even in Mayan, Sumerian cultures too.

Below is one such comparison with Egyptian deity and Lord Krishna.

Circumpolar stars near Draco, Big Dipper( 7 Sages) acted as “indestructible” stars which were a constant reminder of eternity for ancient Egyptians, the afterlife location. These circumpolar constellations never seem to set and they simply rotate around the pole star that basically supported concept of Heaven/God for people of ancient civilizations.

It appeared for ancient Egyptians that these circumpolar constellations was controlling the movement of all stars(constellations as celestial deities) and planets around it in perfect Cosmic Order. In Hindu mythology, these circumpolar constellations are referred as Shisumara planetary system and other stars are also fixed on different sides of the Śhiśumāra planetary system according to the calculations of ancient Indian astronomers. Even in current world and to concentrate their minds, Vedic sages worship the Śhiśumāra planetary system, which is technically known as the Kuṇḍalini-cakra.

We can see the concept of circumpolar stars in Pashupati seal of Indus valley civilization.

Doctrines or Religious laws were developed to enable people to reach afterlife. Egyptians were often entombed with funerary texts to be well equipped for the afterlife as mandated by ancient Egyptian funerary practices. These often served to guide the deceased through the afterlife, and the most famous one is the Book of the Dead or Papyrus of Ani (known to the ancient Egyptians as The Book of Coming Forth by Day). The doctrine of Maat is represented in the declarations to Rekhti-merti-f-ent-Maat and the 42 Negative Confessions listed in the Papyrus of Ani.

Sanatana Dharma has several roots and among them it includes primary polytheistic culture followed by the people of ancient Indus Valley civilization and then followed by introduction of Vedic culture by Aryans or Indo-Iranians. The Indus Valley religion was polytheistic and there are many seals to support the evidence of the Indus Valley Gods like Pashupati (Proto Hindu God Shiva), Mother Goddess symbolizing fertility etc. As captured in below image, some seals depict a tree which the Indus Valley believed as the tree of life. Origin of worship around Peepal tree in Hindu religion can be traced in Indus Valley and in Hinduism, women circumambulate the peepal tree to be blessed with children or any desired wishes.

From the image below, you can clearly see Hindu astronomy in Indus valley seals as these ancient civilizations located circumpolar constellations (Draco/Shisumara and Solstice Axis/Tree of Life) around pole star of Northern night sky. The Symbolism of the Kundalini serpent — Ahira-Budhnaya and Channel to Root is found in several Hindu scriptures.

Ahira-Budhnaya is also called Ohi-bridna or Uroboros. He is the king of the Nagas. Originating in ancient Egyptian iconography, the ouroboros has also entered Western tradition via Greek magical tradition and was adopted as a symbol in Gnosticism and Hermeticism and most notably in alchemy.

Arvind (2019). Ancient Star Myths [Personal Blog image]
https://ancientstarmyths.blogspot.com

ऊर- ध्वमूलमधः शाखमश्वत्थ- प्राहुरव्य- यम्‌ ।

छन्दांसि यस्य पर्णानि यस्तं वेद स वेदवित्‌ ॥-15.1

TRANSLATION — Bhagvad Gita (Chapter 15.1):
The Blessed Lord said: There is a banyan tree which has its roots upward and its branches down and whose leaves are the Vedic hymns. One who knows this tree is the knower of the Vedas.

Apart from Hinduism, this Peepal tree is associated in almost every religion either as Tree of Life or Tree of Souls like the concept you might have seen in “Avatar”- Hollywood movie which are similar in lines of ancient Hindu philosophy as mentioned above. Understanding ancient Greek astronomy, the Milky Way formation during solstice was visualized as path of Souls to Heaven near North Star. In Greek myth, the Gate of Man corresponds with the crossing of the Milky Way and ecliptic at 5° Gemini/Taurus (sidereal zodiac) while the Gate of God corresponds with the crossing of the Milky Way and ecliptic in 5° Sagittarius/Capricorn.

Below is representation of Bodhi tree in Buddhism as shown below with Draco symbolism.

Reference: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tree_of_life

The concept of tree of life is a fundamental widespread archetype in many of the world’s mythologies, religious and philosophical traditions that has taken birth from Axis Mundi concept. The term axis mundi, also called the cosmic axis, world axis, world pillar, center of the world, world tree) was greatly extended to refer to any mythological concept representing “the connection between Heaven and Earth” or the “higher and lower realms”. It is closely related to the mythological concept of Lingam/omphalos (navel) of the world or cosmos.

Circumambulation is the act of moving around a sacred object or idol. Circumambulation of temples or deity images is an integral part of Hindu and Buddhist devotional practice (known in Sanskrit as pradakśiṇā).It is also present in other religions, including Christianity, Judaism, and Islam

Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circumambulation

Origin of circumambulation around Peepal tree can be traced in Indus Valley and in Hinduism, Women circumambulate the peepal tree to be blessed with children or any desired wishes. The Skanda Purana of Hinduism considers the peepal a symbol of Vishnu. In Bhagvad Gita, Lord Krishna mentions that among trees, he is sacred Ashwatha (the peepal tree). Further details can be found in Holy Gita Chapter 15.1 on importance of Peepal Tree in Hinduism.

Reference: https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/chapter/15/verse/1

Logic behind circumambulation:

Circumpolar constellations never seem to set and they simply rotate around the pole star that basically supported concept of Heaven/God for people of ancient civilizations. It appeared for them as these circumpolar constellations was controlling the movement of all stars and planets around it. In Hindu mythology, these circumpolar constellations are referred as Sisumara planetary system and other stars are also fixed on different sides of the Sisumara planetary system according to the calculations of ancient Vedic astronomers. Even in current world and to concentrate their minds, Vedic sages worship the Sisumara planetary system, which is technically known as the Kuṇḍalini-cakra.

During time of Indus Valley, Vernal Equinox was in Taurus that supported this civilization to build cultural calendar associated with Taurus (Sacred Bull) as beginning of ritual calendar(first day of the solar cycle year) and you can find this sacred bull in almost every Indus valley seals that speaks about key rituals during this age. In Geo-centric model(Pre-Copernican), it appears that Sun, Moon and visible planets like Jupiter, Venus, Mercury, Mars etc. transit over star constellations(Zodiac) or circum-ambulate the Pole star that form 12 months (Solar Calendar) of a year and 29 days in Month (Lunar Calendar). You can find the symbols of these Zodiac (Hindu Astronomy) like Dhanu (man with bow), Vrishabha etc. as shown below clearly visible in most of Indus Seals.

If you observe Pashupati seal as shown below, you can find out that most of animals what was visible in Zodiac (Night Sky) for ancient civilization and circum-ambulating the central circumpolar planetary system are engraved in the seal. Concept of Master or Lord of Animals(Master of Animals — Wikipedia) or Pashupati is clearly visible with all Zodiac constellations, Sun, Moon etc. paying obeisance while circum-ambulating the Lord in center.

The River was the source of life for the ancient civilization or ancient Kingdoms and people believed that it descends from heaven and we currently have various Puranic references. In night sky, the visible Milky Way or Solstice axis was considered as heavenly river. Egyptians identified the Nile with the Milky Way and in Hindu belief system, it is referred as Akash Ganga(Cosmic River). We can find mention of this Cosmic river(Ritual water) in several ancient literature. Milky Way(Solstice Axis) of the sky is the heavenly Soma as per Vedic views. It is also the nectar of immortality and the drink of the Gods or Yajna. I believe people of Indus valley civilization too were masters of astronomy based on location cities which hosted this grand civilization. In several Indus valley seals, we can find these references of star mythology and offering to Gods referring the same solstice axis(Milky Way) that directs towards seat of God. As shown below, in front of the unicorn is a ritual offering stand.

The practice of animal sacrifice or offerings to God is present in almost every major human religion and in Hinduism, it is mostly associated with Vedic Śrauta rituals, Shaktism, and in currents of folk Hinduism strongly rooted in local popular or tribal traditions.

Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_sacrifice_in_Hinduism

In Egyptian ideology, circumpolar stars are referred as good metaphor for the afterlife because when viewed, they never seem to set: they simply rotate around the pole star. They are the undying stars, or in Egyptian terminology, the “Indestructible”, a perfect destination for the soul of the dead king”. Egyptian pyramids are precisely orientated to North Pole star (Thuban during 2800 till 2000 BCE). Deities of ancient Egyptian religion were constellations or as actual stars. This cosmology helped them to identify yearly flooding of the Nile coordinated with the summer solstice, carry out religious rituals associated with respective Gods (Constellations) and further supported them as crucial event for growing crops.

Understanding ancient astronomy as it appears that in most of ancient myths, the Milky Way formation as shown below during solstice was visualized as path to heaven. In some myths, it was believed to be Tree of life (path of souls). The River was the source of life for the ancient civilization or ancient Kingdoms and people believed that it descends from heaven and we currently have various Puranic references. In night sky, the visible Milky Way or Solstice axis was considered as heavenly river. Egyptians identified the river Nile with the Milky Way and in Hindu belief system, it is referred as Akash Ganga (Cosmic River) or localized river in respective kingdoms. If you observe carefully, you will find all the pyramids or temples found on the western side of the river that reflect Milky Way or Solstice axis. The Solstice axis or visible Milky Way (cosmic river) or Tirtha was identified as the Path of Souls that acted as cosmic river that flows all the way to Heaven near Circumpolar or afterlife location.

Due to this, any river that is north flowing or changes the direction towards north or north-easterly direction becomes sacred or auspicious. It normally becomes a holy site and people make offerings for the souls of their ancestors. According to Hindu belief, the soul wanders after death until pindadan, or religious service seeking salvation for the dead from the cycle of rebirth, is performed. Pindadan is traditionally offered on the banks of holy river. It is mandatory for Hindu devotees offering pindadan to shave their heads and take a holy dip.

In Hinduism, Tirtha refers divine river and means passage and Sthal means location. When cosmic sky is mimicked in temple plan, then localized river (Tirtha-sthal) act as path for souls to heaven. In Hinduism, when we burn a dead body, we always put the ashes in the Ganga or a nearby river which is associated with this cosmology.

In Hindu Puranic reference, Lord Yama also is represented from Orion constellation shown below with his two dogs(Canis major and Minor) was lord of Naraka(Underworld) and his vahana was Taurus(represented as Buffalo or Bull) and his duty was to direct the soul to a Swarga (heaven) or return it to Bhoomi (earth) based on human deeds(God or Bad Karma).If one’s soul were to rise to heaven after death to the Milky Way(path of soul) it had to pass through a gate(via constellations) and again we should note that the position of this gate(constellation) changes based on earth’s axial precession. If we observe ancient Indus Valley seals, it speaks almost same cosmic mythology as this ancient civilization visualized the night sky which are parallels to that of nearby Sumerian and Egyptian civilizations.

VārāhaMihira who was the most famous Indian astronomer from ancient times identified North Pole as the location of Holy Meru in his work Pancha-Siddhāntikā and same goes with the ancient Hindu astronomical text known as the Suryasiddhanta, locates Meru as the ‘Navel of the Earth’. Many famous Buddhist and as well as Hindu temples have been built as symbolic representations of this mountain and several myths have been associated with this holy mountain. If we refer Hindu Puranas in particular, it describes that Gods reside at north direction.

In ancient Hindu tantric texts, it is believed that Shakti, the feminine aspect called Kundalini lives in Human body and this energetic force rests at the base of the spine in the sacrum. The Tantric practice of Kundalini yoga is about igniting this powerful cosmic energy to ascend through the chakras that live along the axis of the spine where conscious thought is born(The Moola) and finally unite with Shiva, pure consciousness. The same symbol is even depicted within Egyptians, Mayans, Sumerians, Greek and Roman several other mythologies. This symbolism also appears in Bible as Holy Spirit.

Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kundalini_yoga

Reference: Vibhuti Pada — The third chapter of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras

ध्रुवे तद्गतिज्ञानम् ॥२८॥

dhruve tadgati-jñānam ॥28॥

Explanation: Meditating on the polestar (Dhruva) engenders knowledge (jnana) ||28||

If you observe few other seals, you can clearly find the origin of ‘OM’ Symbol as shown below and also Proto-Hindu deities like Shiva. In one of seal as shown below, it captures sacred 7 Sages (Saptarishi) — Big Dipper constellation, Pleiades, Taurus and almost all the animals of Hindu Astronomy that later supported in development of Hindu Mythology.

In ancient Indian astronomy, the constellation of the Big Dipper (Ursa Major) is called saptarishi, with the seven stars representing seven rishis, namely “Vashistha”, “Marichi”, “Pulastya”, “Pulaha”, “Atri”, “Angiras” and “Kratu”.

Pole star now is located at end of Ursa Minor as shown below and you can locate seven sages doing circumambulation to pole star and all central deities of Dhruvaloka.

In Hindu rituals, the symbol with arms pointing clockwise (卐) is called swastika. If you try to locate the ancient Ramayana verse on ‘Dhruvam sarve Pradakshinam’ it refers Dhruvam as the pole star and these seven sages (Saptarishis) offer Pradakshinam.

Most of Hindu rituals in which devotees doing pradaskshina around God, pradaskhina in temples, holy hills, pradakshina around Agni God(Fire) during Hindu marriage rituals have been associated with this cosmology.

As mentioned above, Earth axis encounters a motion called precession which causes our axis to trace out an imaginary circle on the celestial sphere every 26,000 years. This is the same calculation which ancient Vedic astrologers referred as Yugas.

Unlike Hindu cosmology, even Jain and Buddhist scriptures mention the Mount Meru model as shown above, but Dhruvaloka is particularly not mentioned. In Norse mythology, they talk about a World Tree that connects Heaven, Earth and Hell just like Meru. For Egyptians, Meru was something like Pyramid that supported God re-birth Myth as the Egyptians believed that the unmovable area the stars circled was heaven, the pyramids were built to align north with a single, perfectly aligned vent.

Below is reference on Lingam found in Indus Valley and it proves that this civilization was associated with Hindu cosmology:

Greeks referred the location of union from earth to Heaven(circumpolar constellation) with structure of omphalos, “the navel” of the earth and they localized Omphalos(Stone of Delphi) as the central point from which terrestrial life originated in ancient Greek temples of Delphi and for Hinduism, it is referred as Linga(Union between Purusha and Prakrati).

Almost every religion has the same philosophical concept and the ideas looks exactly identical. Above image shows very close similarities like milk offering rituals to Axis mundi/mandala stone structure in ancient Greek and current Hindu religion.

Reference: Axis mundi — Wikipedia

Most of ancient scriptures describe Mount Meru/Lingam as the Central Pivot of the Universe and the entire cosmos revolves around it. 7 Sages (Big Dipper), Draco, the Sun, Moon and Stars paying obeisance while circumambulating the Holy Mountain Meru or around Shishumara Planetary system.

The five central towers of Angkor Wat symbolize the peaks of Mount Meru, which according to Hindu mythology is the dwelling place of the gods. The famous Brihadeeswara Temple of Tamil Nadu is referred as “Dakshina Meru” — the Meru Mountain of the South. Every Hindu temple is built on a cosmic plan and the roof tower crowning the shrine refers to Kalasha (The Purna-Kalasha is considered a symbol of abundance and “source of life” in the Vedas) and temple Shikara represents Meru which reaches the ground and extends into the heavens pointing towards the world axis.

Ancient Avestan scriptures refers Hara mountains (Alborz) as Sumeru near south coast of Caspian Sea. The name Alborz is derived from Harā Barazaitī, a legendary mountain in the Avesta, the main text of Zoroastrianism.

It is Mt Meru in Jainism and Buddhism. ‘Su’ means good in Sanskrit and thus the name Mount Sumeru. Ancient Hindu civilization have localized this concept and associated cosmogony in whichever place they migrate. Ancient Puranas explains the significance and origin of Lingam aligned to North Star.

Crocodile/Sisumara Connection (Indus Valley to Hinduism):

NOTE: Due to Earth’s precession cycle, location of Pole star (Dhruva) appears to have changed from earlier Puranic reference from tail of Sisumara (Draco) to tail of Ursa Minor (Current Polaris).

Reference: Viṣhṇu Purāṇa, Part 2, Chapter 9

The basis and support of this constellation of Śiśumāra is Mahā Viṣhṇu, who is the support of all light and effulgence. Dhruva, son of Uttānapāda came to be installed at the tail-end of Śiśumāra as he had worshiped Viṣhṇu. Śiśumāra is dependent upon Viṣhṇu, the Lord of all, and Dhruva is dependent upon Śiśumāra. Sūrya is dependent on Dhruva.

Reference: https://www.wisdomlib.org/definition/shishumara

Tārāmaya; the eternal deity; Uttānapāda is the upper jaw, Yajña is the lower lip, Dharma is the head, heart is Nārāyaṇa, Sādhya and Aśvins front feet, Varuṇa and Aryama is the hind feet, the samvatsara, child; Mitra is Apāna; tail is Agni, Mahendra, Marīci and Kaśyapa and Dhruva; all the planets are centered in Dhruva.

Even Atharvaveda Parishishta also indicates that North Pole star was in the Draco (Shishumara) constellation as mentioned above.

We can also have reference to Sisumara type of creature in most of Indus Valley seals and findings that relate to crocodile cult in Gujarat, Bastar etc. These are circumpolar constellations of night sky near Pole star that has supported the concept of Proto-God/Heaven in several religions as of today. All of these cultures were developed based on ancient astronomy of axis mundi as these ancient civilization has observed the night sky towards North Pole star that supported them the concept of central God.

To check accuracy of Vishnu Purana, I tried Stellarium application and moved the night sky date back to 2800 BCE and I was perfectly able to locate Thuban at end of 14 star Draco constellation (Shishumara). Thuban was Pole star during 3000–2500 BCE.

Stellarium App — Arvind (2019). Ancient Star Myths [Personal Blog image]
https://ancientstarmyths.blogspot.com

Sisumara being circumpolar, in Hinduism, crocodile is sacred animal: Apart from Lord Varuna, Ganga Devi rides on a crocodile, Durga Goddess, Akhilandeshvari rides her crocodile. We can find several of these crocodile cult in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and also in some parts of Pakistan in which few of ethnic people still practice the old traditions.

Understanding Indus Valley and Elamite Scripts:

The earliest writing systems evolved independently and at roughly the same time of Indus Valley, Egypt and Mesopotamia, but current scholarship suggests that Mesopotamia’s writing appeared first. During the period 8,000–7,500 BCE, the Sumerian agriculturalists needed a way to keep records of their animals and goods. Small clay tokens were formed and shaped by the palms to represent certain animals and goods. As the clay tokens became difficult to store and handle, impressing the tokens on clay tablets became increasingly popular. Clay tablets were easier to store, neater to write on, and less likely to be lost. Impressing the tokens on clay tablets was more efficient but using a stylus to inscribe the impression on the clay tablet was shown to be even more efficient and much faster for the scribes. Writing system from Sumerians, emerged in Mesopotamia around 3500 BCE.

Indus valley civilization writing appeared almost same time and these scripts shown below have very close resemblance to Proto-Elamite writing of Mesopotamian’s.

Indus valley civilization writing appeared almost same time and these scripts shown below have very close resemblance to Proto-Elamite writing of Mesopotamian’s. Ancient Indus valley seals clearly show that this civilization had knowledge of ancient Hindu astrology and deities associated with Hindu astrology based on constellations formed in night sky. However, Indus script has not yet been completely deciphered, but efforts are ongoing and I have tried from my side too with assumption below from few proto-elamite symbols, few from Egyptian hieroglyphs and few proto-sinaitic scripts including Brahmi scripts. Most of Indus scripts have symbols of current Hindu astrology that were associated with rituals.

Proto-Elamite scripts are close to Indus valley writing. Indus Valley writings might have gradually replaced by early Brahmi Script from which almost all South Asian scripts are evolved and below are few reverse engineering techniques used to decipher both Indus valley writing and Linear Elamite scripts using Brahmi.

The original Sumerian script was adapted for the writing of the Semitic Akkadian (Assyrian/Babylonian), Eblaite and Amorite languages, the language isolates Elamite, Hattic, Hurrian and Urartian, as well as Indo-European languages Hittite and Luwian later. Cuneiform writing was gradually replaced by the Phoenician alphabet during the Neo-Assyrian Empire

In similar way, Indus Valley writings might have gradually replaced by early Brahmi Script from which almost all South Asian scripts are evolved. Below are few reverse engineering techniques used to decipher both Indus valley writing and Linear Elamite scripts using Brahmi and Kharosthi Script.

I believe Proto-Kharosthi script of Kandahar/Gandhara region was evolved from earlier Linear Elamite script.

Using reverse engineering techniques, we can easily decipher Linear Elamite scripts using Kharosthi Script as shown below

Below is one more example of decipherment of Linear Elamite using Kharoshthi and Aramaic alphabet.

Below is method that I adapted to decipher Indus Script using Brahmi and we can easily arrive at Dravidian language like Kannada or Tamil spoken by Indus Valley Civilization

Graffiti marks resembling Brahmi letters have been found among the Neolithic rock engravings on a rock on the Thovari hills near Ambalavayal in Wayanad district(Kerala, India). We can also see a graffiti sign almost like Indus valley signs used in Tissamaharama inscription №53(black and red ware Pottery) of Srilanka and the language here used appears to be Indo-Aryan.

Puthrada Ekadashi Ritual — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pausha_Putrada_Ekadashi

Tried to decipher few more Tamizh/Brahmi script dating to 500 BCE found at Porunthal site located 12 km South West of Palani, Tamil Nadu.

A Tamil-Brahmi script on a pot rim, reading “a ma na shasana”, meaning a Jaina, has been found at Pattanam in Ernakulam district, Kerala, establishing that Jainism was prevalent on the west coast at least from second century CE (Common Era).

Dravidian and Indo-Aryan languages co-existed and below is one such example based on coins circulated from Indian empires as early as 100 BCE — 200 AD.

Brahmi script appears to have actually come from mixture of Indus script along with few of proto-Sinaitic scripts.

Just take Alphaphet A as example — you can clearly find relation with representation of Taurus Head (Sacred Bull) in Indus Valley symbols too which have supported in origin of Brahmi scripts later.

Below is Transformation of Indus sign ‘ma’ to ‘ma’ in Tamil Brahmi.

Look at the evolution of all Tamil script from Brahmi till current form.

References:

Star Myths: https://ancientstarmyths.blogspot.com/

Night Sky Planetarium: (Stellarium — https://stellarium.org/ )

Understanding Brahmi and all other ancient scripts: htttp://www.ancientscripts.com/brahmi.html

History of Writing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_writing

Understanding Zoroastrianism and Aryan Homelands: http://www.heritageinstitute.com/zoroastrianism/index.htm

People Migration — DNA Reference: https://www.ebi.ac.uk/ena/browser/view/PRJEB32466

Sacred Verses (Shatapatha Brahmana): https://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/sbr/sbe12/sbe1217.htm

History of ancient Indo-Aryan society from research book of Dr. B R Ambedkar (Chief architect of the Constitution of India) — Who Were the Shudras? — Wikipedia : https://www.mea.gov.in/Images/attach/amb/Volume_07.pdf

Indus Valley People and Hinduism

Understanding Indus Valley and Elamite Scripts:

References:

Written by Arvind Bhagwath