Aryans have started claiming that they too are natives of India. They have already started fabricating history books to say that the great glorious Indus Valley Civilisation was built by the alien Aryans. (Prof. H.M. Kemparaju: “Aryan Bluff Bomb: Say they too are original Indian’s, DV. Aug. 16, 91 p.19). They are resorting to such heinous crimes because of the fear that the original inhabitants may retaliate and recover their lost land from the alien Aryans. We have started publishing such documents to help Brother Yogesh Varhade in Canada who is making his second valiant attempt at the UN Sub-Commission at Geneva (DV. Oct 1, 91 p.8) to establish that SC/ST/BCs are pre-Aryan indigenous peoples of India. Here is one from S. Natarajan, Reader in History, Osmania University, Hyderabad. The passage (p.1 to 8) is from the very first chapter of his book. Main Currents in Indian History (1960), Institute of Indo-Middle East Cultural Studies, 470, Agapura, Hyderabad:
PROF. S. NATARAJAN
Early Non-Aryan Strains
Indus Valley Culture: The cultural heritage of India is a fine product of synthesis of many strains spread over nearly five thousand years; and of these strains the Indus Valley Culture is the earliest and one of the most significant. Archaeological discoveries at Mohenjodaro in Sind and Harappa in the Punjab and various other sites in Baluchistan, Kathiawar and the Gangetic basin have brought to light the remains of a highly advanced civilisation, thus ranking India along with the cradles of civilisation where the civilising process of humanity was first inaugurated and developed.
This civilisation belonged to what is known as the Chalcolithic Age and was contemporaneous with a phase of a widely distributed chain of civilisations, focussed primarily in the river valleys of the Nile in Egypt, the Euphrates and the Tigris in Mesopotamia, the Karun and the Karesh in Western Persia and the Helmud in Seistan. Sir John Marshall has suggested 3250-2750 B.C. as the most probable date while Dr. Mackay believes that it must have developed a little later about 2750 or 2550 B.C.
It is still difficult to fix with certainty the identity of the builders of this civilisation. The striking contrast between this civilisation and the one developed by the early Aryan settlers in India clearly proves that It was not Aryan. The Rig Veda refers to the opponents of the Aryans as Dasas or Dasyus who are described as dark-dkinned people of hostile speech who worshipped phallus and did not observe rites. They are also said to have constructed edifices some of which had hundred pillars. Archaeological discoveries show that some of these epithets applied to the Dasyus may be applied to the Indus people. Further the Rig Veda may be assigned to the fifteenth Century B.C. in which case the Indus Valley Civilisation must have been developed before the Rig Vedic Civilisation and must have been in a flourishing condition when the Aryans entered India. Hence it seems quite probable that the Dasyus of the Rig Veda were the builders of the Indus Valley Civilisation.
Dasyus are Dravidas: These Dasyus may be Identified with a later generation of the Dravidians who seem to have been once dominant throughout India and had developed their own distinctive civilisation. Like the Indus people the Dravidians worshipped Siva and Sakti in iconic and symbolic forms of linga and yoni. On the basis of the unmistakable Dravidian influence over the Pali language, and because of the close similarity between the Dravidian languages and the languages of the regions from the Punjab to Orissa as regards gender, case ending, adjectives, construction of sentences, figures of speech, etc ., some scholars are of the opinion that the Dravidian language was widely spoken throughout India in the remote past. It is also pointed out that the language of the Indus people, like the Dravidian language in the early stages of its development, contained mostly monosyllabic words. Thus archaeological, linguistic and religious proofs suggest that the builders of the Indus Valley Civilisation were the Dravidians. This hypothesis can at best be regarded as only highly probable in the absence of conclusive evidence establishing the Dravidian origin of the Indus Valley Culture.
Archaeological discoveries in the various sites give a comprehensive picture of the life led by the people. The cities were big and well- planned with broad, straight and regular streets. There were a number of commodious and well- built houses of different sizes on either side of the roads. Many of the houses had more than one storey. A striking feature of these houses is the presence of one or more bath rooms whose floors were carefully laid and were connected with the main street by means of drains. The most important of all the remains unearthed at Mohenjodaro is the Great Bath which is a marvel of engineering skill. Sir John Marshall believes that “a more effective method of construction with the materials then available could hardly have been possible”. The solidity of construction is proved by the fact that in spite of the ravages of nature during nearly four thousand years it is still amazingly well preserved.
Watch & Ward: An interesting feature of this civilisation was that the ordinary citizen enjoyed the comforts and amenities of civilised life. Mr. K.N. Dikshit believes that the municipal administration was efficient and well-planned and probably contained the germs of the Board System of the Mauryan epoch or the City Councils of the Gupta period. He further suggests that the existence of a watch and ward system for different quarters, public storehouses, sanitation and drainage of private houses and public roads indicate a civic organisation quite modern in character. The main occupations of the people were spinning, agriculture, commerce and small scale industries. There were regular systems of weights and the fine polish and uniformity of size found in these weights must have been due to the strict control exercised by market officers. These people were not averse to the amusements of life and they practised the allied arts of music and dancing with success. It is inferred from the archaeological discoveries that stringed musical instruments and drums were not unknown to them. Different kinds of toys were made for the amusement of children, the most interesting among them being those of carts, whistles, animals, birds and human beings with detachable limbs.
Enterprising races: The Indus people were a vigorous and enterprising race who had commercial and cultural contacts with the Egyptians, the Cretans and peoples of Western and Central Asia. The discovery of a masted boat scratched on a pot-shred indicates that the people of the Indus Valley were not unfamiliar with maritime activities and Dr. Mackay suggests that the Indus merchants reached Sumer and Elam by sea route also. They had contacts with the people of other parts of India. They got the stag’s horn from the Nilgiri hills, gold from South India, a beautiful green stone of which a cup was discovered and the lapis lazuli from Afghanistan. It is also suggested that the conch shells and pearls, popular among the Indus people, were supplied by the Tamils.
Indus script: A fascinating feature of the Indus Valley Civilisation is the Indus script having “neat monumental forms” and remarkable alike for ingenuity, unity and variety of characters. They belong to the same group as the other quasi- pictographic scripts of this period such as the early Sumerian, Minoan and Egyptian scripts. More than five hundred seals have been discovered with short inscriptions on them. All attempts to decipher the writing have been inconclusive since the real key to ther reading of the script has not so far been discovered. Prof. Langden believes that the Brahmi script was derived from the Indus style.
Worship of Shiva: The Mohenjodaro art is equally peculiar, stamped with an individuality of its own. The numerous engravings and models of animals and human beings that have been unearthed are undoubtedly works of skilled artists, and these, in the opinion of Sir John Marshall, exhibits a remarkable degree of anatomical accuracy, truthfulness to nature and a fine feeling for plastic form.
Though the relics of religion are unfortunately scanty, the few seals, figures, images, etc. that have been discovered reveal the organic connection between the ancient religion of the Indus people and modern Hinduism. An important feature of the religion was the worship of Siva both in iconic and symbolic forms. Three important seals bearing a representation of this deity have been discovered. He is sitting in a typical padmasana posture and this is a representation of Siva as Mahayogi or the Great Ascetic. In two of the figures he has three faces, three eyes, and three horns. These represent Siva as Trimukha (three faced) and Trinetra or Trinayana (three-eyed). All these representations of Siva have horns, out of which, probably the trident or the Trisula was evolved. We also find a sprig of flowers or leaves rising from the head between the horns. This indicates that Siva was regarded as a personification of the reproductive powers of Nature and was worshipped as God of Fertility or Vegetation. He is surrounded by an elephant and a tiger on the right and a rhinoceros and a buffalo on the left. A deer is also standing near the throne. This again is a representation of Siva as Pasupathi or Lord of Living Beings. A figure of a horned archer dressed in leaves, which has been discovered, is probably a representation of Siva as Divine Hunter. There is another figure of a male dancer standing on his right leg which is a representation of Siva as Nataraja. Some deities have four arms and these are anticipations of the four- armed deities of later times. These indicates that the male deity of the Indus people is the prototype of Siva of later Hinduism and that Saivism ranks as the most ancient living faith with its history going back to the Chalcolithic Age.
Mother worship: Some figures are depicted in Kayotsarga Yoga, a standing posture peculiar to the Jain Yogis, with a bull in the foreground. Dr. Radha Kumud Mukherjee suggests that it might be taken as the forerunner of Rishaba. “If so, Jainism also, along with Saivism, must take its place as one of the oldest religions of Chalcolithic origins, thus helping over the hiatus between the Indus and subsequent Indian civilisation as phases in a common cultural evolution”.
Worship of Divine Mother was very popular as is evidenced by the discovery of a larger number of Yoni rings and some female figures of terra cota, faience, etc. depicting a female figure, almost nude except for a short skirt and decorated with a fan-shaped head-dress and ornaments. The continued popularity of this cult is proved by the association of every village with a female patron deity or Gramadevata. Representations in a seal from Harappa clearly indicate that human and animal sacrifices formed an aspect of worship, thus establishing the fact that sacrifices of animals are significant survivals from this period. Worship of trees, animals and probably rivers also was common. The Swastika and the wheel found in the seals are said to be symbolic representations of the Sun.
Thus the religion of the Indus people may be regarded as “the lineal progenitor of Hinduism” which even to-day retains some of the features like the worship of Siva and Sakti, of animals, of trees, etc. The difference between the religion of the Rig Veda, the earliest of Aryan religious literature and the religion of the later Yajur Veda and the Atharva Veda, which believe in spirits and the survivals of Indus religion inter-mixed with the practices and beliefs of the Aryans continue to be popular among the lower classes of Hindu society even to-day.
South India: An account of the Non-Aryan civilisation will not be complete without a reference to that phase which manifested itself in South India where traces of cultural development from the Paleolithic Age have been discovered. It is generally believed that in the Paleolitic Age man lived in caves, particularly in those regions where a special kind of stone called quartzite was available. This stone was used for making implements, specimens of which have been discovered in several sites in South India. Bruce Foot, who has done much commendable work in this field, has recognised ten distinct forms of tools like axes of different types, spears, implements for digging and other purposes, choppers, knives, scrapers, hammer stones, etc. The Paleolithic man led ‘a nomadic life gathering food where he found it. He also ate the flesh of the animals he killed by hunting and used their hide to clothe himself. A few paintings discovered in some caves give a glimpse of the art expressions of the Paleolithic man. These portray a hunting scene, a group of figures which are not intelligible and some animals. A scene with some human figures in dancing pose, some with legs crossed and some with hands lifted up, has also been discovered and this is said to represent some religious ceremony.
Luxury goods: From the Paleolithic stage there was a gradual transition to the Neolithic Culture characterised by the use of polished implements, made not of quartzite as in the earlier stage, but of trap rock found among gneiss and granite formations. Among the tools of this variety the most interesting are adzes, anvils, axe-hammers, celts, chisels, corn-crushes, mealing-stones, troughs, mortars, pestles etc. Articles of luxury like beads, buttons, toys, pendants, bangles and vessels and also human and animal figures have been found. The chief occupations of the people were hunting, fishing and cattle rearing. During this stage people probably cultivated the habit of living together in order to protect themselves and their cattle from wild animals. Toward the close of this epoch the art of pottery was developed and in several Neolithic settlements pottery of different varieties was found. Most of them were plain but some were decorated with patterns of natural objects like flowers, leaves, fruits, etc. In some of the graves burial urns, vases, bowls, cups, dishes, etc. were unearthed.
Linga worship: The most important discovery among the rock bruisings discovered in the Kapgallu hill in the Bellary district is that of a lingam and a bull in crouching posture. On the basis of the discoveries in the Indus Valley it was supposed that Siva and Phallus worship existed from the Chalcolithic Age. But the Kapgallu discovery pushes back the antiquity of this cult to even the Neolithic period. It also proves that the association of the sacred bull (Nandi) usually represented in crouching posture is a legacy of the Neolithic Age.
Matriarchal society : Some archaeologists believe that in South India there was no Bronze Age or Copper Age and that the Iron Age emerged straight from the Neolithic Age. An important feature of this period was the beginning of agricultural life and cultivation of food crops. Continuous living in particular regions and common occupations probably led to the growth of some primitive social organisation and common habits of life, which fostered a sense of kinship. Sex relationship must have been still promiscuous and hence the tendency was towards the growth of matriarchal society.
Tamil society: Tamil literature like the Sangam works, and the great Sanskrit epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, give a fascinating picture of the society and culture of the Tamilians, their philosophical concepts and their religious outlook. It is clear from these works that even from very remote times the Tamils lived in big cities enjoying many of the refinements and luxuries of civilised and highly cultured life.
The Tolkappiam, the oldest Tamil work extant, refers to five natural divisions of earth’s surface and the development of different types of civilisation in these different regions. In Palai (sandy desert) lived the Marayar, a wandering tribe of adventurous warriors who lived by plunder. They sacrificed animals and even men to their dreaded Gods and Goddesses. In the second region, Kurunji (mountain region) lived a semi-nomad tribesmen of hunters called Kuravar. In the third region Mullai (forest region) lived the Idaiyar who led the merry life of shepherds. Their God was Mayon or Kannan. The fourth region, the Marudam (river valley), was inhabited by farmers and their God was Siva. The Paradavars, who occupied the fifth region Neydal (coastal region), lived by fishing and salt making. They sailed to far off countries where they exchanged cotton cloth and timber of South India for scented gums and other foreign products.
Vanniyars: Besides the above regional classification there was another based on the status of the people in society. At the head of the society was the king and below him were the noblemen (Vallal), owners of land (Vellalar), and merchants (Vanigar), who were called Melor. Below these were the Vinaiyalars and Adiyars who were working class people and personal servants.
The Dravidian society was organised on a matriarchal basis and in this respect the Dravidians differed fundamentally from the Aryans.
Agriculture was their main occupation and, in the opinion of Sir John Marshall, the Dravidians were the earliest to systematise agriculture. They were the first to build dams across rivers for purposes of irrigation. They also followed a number of other occupations of which those of the potter, weaver, carpenter, masons and smith were most important. The Dravidians were skilled in casting iron and goldsmiths prepared beautiful ornaments of gold, silver, pearls and precious stones. A poem in the famous Sangam work, Agananuru, refers to a community in South India which was engaged in cutting conch shells and dressing pearls. The Dravidians carried on extensive trade both inland and foreign.
Dravida languages: The languages of the Dravidians in the South are now represented by the modern languages of South India like Tamil, Telugu, Kanarese and Malayalam. Their ancient alphabet was Vatteluttu which was probably derived from a Semetic script. Dr. Maclean believes that the Tamils had a highly developed practical astronomy before they were touched by Brahminical influences, and their system holds its ground in many respects even now. Their calendar is also said to aim at a high degree of astronomical accuracy and consistency.
Gradually Aryan influence began to spread in South India. The advent of sage Agastya is said to mark the earliest stage of this cultural infiltration and the Ramayana is regarded as an allegorical representation of the cultural conquest of South India. In course of time the impact of Aryan cultural concepts on the indigenous cultures such as have been described above started a new process of cultural integration which culminated in the evolution of what is known as Hindu civilisation.
