Indraprastha – The Ancient Delhi

The glorious kingdom of Indraprastha (इन्द्रप्रस्थ) of the Mahabharat (महाभारत), an epic of world fame, happens to be that enigma which combines all these. Though carved out of sheer wilderness of Khandavaprastha (खांडवप्रस्थ), it attained glory that was comparable to Amravati, the mythical abode of Lord Indra.

Indraprastha was the first city stated to date back to approximately 1000 BC to 1800 BC. According to Alfred Cunningham, King Yudhishthir had established his kingdom of Indraprastha in 1500 BC. As mentioned in Buddhist texts, Indraprastha was one of the three main cities of the contemporary ‘Jambudwipa’ - the geo-cultural India of Buddhist tradition. Buddhist texts have described in great detail this glorious city of Indraprastha. Later researchers and archaeologists trying to determine the historicity of the place could not ignore this vast body of Buddhist literature. The reference is found in Jain literature as well, but for some reason they describe Hastinapur in greater detail.

The name Indraprastha survived in later Puranas and Tantric works but nothing much is added to our knowledge of the city. The Mahabharat thus remains the most popular source of information about the city, the lives of its inhabitants, the love-hate relationship, and about the Great War. There is a vivid description of the founding of Indraprastha, and its unsurpassed grandeur and beauty. The legend goes that the Kauravas were constantly plotting against their cousins, the Pandavas. When the relationship became strained, Dhritrashtra - the father of the Kauravas - decided to divide the kingdom to put an end to the strife. The region of Khandavaprastha, on the banks of the river Yamuna, was given to the Pandavas. It was a densely forested area, full of wild beasts. The Pandavas accepted it with their usual grace and equanimity. It is said that they demanded five villages, near Delhi.

Excavations at these places have also yielded specimens of the painted grey ware, which is said to belong to the Indraprastha era. The grey earthen-wares were similar to those found in the excavations in Purana Quila in Delhi , a site of Indraprastha. The excavations carried out by the Archaeological Survey of lndia have proved the validity of the data collected from the literary and Buddhist texts. After a good deal of research, a mound was found and selected for excavation. Amongst the objects found during the excavation were baked bricks, cast copper coins, terracotta human and animal figures, toys, inscribed seals, beautifully designed ceramic ware, small rings, discs of banded agate, and clay seals bearing motifs of arched hills, trees and hollow cross. All these artifacts indicate that the civilization was highly developed.

When Mughal ruler Humayun was searching for an auspicious location for his new kingdom, he came to know of the location of this ancient city. That was enough to convince him of the suitability of the place for his new kingdom. Even till the early part of the 20th century, Purana Quila was known as the Pandavon Ka Quila (Pandava’s fort) and the entire complex as Indraprastha village. Expansion and the changing topography have changed things almost beyond recognition.

There is a fairly large description about how the Pandavas, the great heroes of the Mahabharata, handled the arduous task of clearing the dense forest of Khandavaprastha to establish their new kingdom. As the legend goes, the Pandavas had once helped Maya Danav (मय दानव - legendary architect of Asuras - the demons) and saved his life. When Maya found out that the Pandavas were establishing a new kingdom on a forest tract which needed to be cleared, he rushed to offer his help. His offer was not only to clear the tract but also to take charge of constructing the city as visualized by the Pandavas. Initially the Pandavas did not want such repayment for what they thought was a little act of kindness. They refused his help. He was greatly disappointed as he genuinely wanted to help. Finally Lord Krishna advised Pandavas to accept the offer. Maya cleared the forest with the help of his friend Agni. After that task, the entire area was measured. The city was laid out on the principles of Vedic knowledge and the canons of the Mansura, the treatise of architecture and town planning.

The Pandavas then performed a ‘yajna’ (यज्ञ) to propitiate the gods and obtain their blessings. To invoke the benevolence of the Supreme was essential for sanctifying the land. The form of the city was derived on the principles of Vastupurush - Mandal. It determined the basic form, its location and the orientation of various functions to ensure the safety, elegance and auspiciousness of the city. Great significance was attached to the placement of squares and circles. The Brahmasthan, the Soul Supreme, was identified with the centre of the Mandal.

The five cities: Indraprastha, Vikasprastha, Paniprastha, Soneprastha and Tilaprastha (the latter four now identified with Bagpat, Panipat, Sonipat and Tilapat respectively) supposed to signify the five elements of nature - air, space, water, fire and earth. Radiating from the Brahma Mandal (the Central Square) the city grew in various directions. The famous city, which was both a temple and a palace, was built to face the east, so it could receive the morning sun and the cool breeze. One can visualize the city to be a well-planned and neatly laid out place said to have been divided into sectors. The sectors belonged to different communities, according to the social order of the time.

The city, according to the Mahabharat, was made strong by wide moats. The surrounding walls seemed to reach the sky. The high, white painted walls gave the semblance of snowy ranges. The iron gates of the city were massive and double-hung, and were topped by huge winged ‘garudas’ (the large birds of Indian mythology). The enormity of the gates was compared to Mount Mandar (मंदार पर्वत). The skilled architects had covered the walls with spiked iron spears and javelins of various kings. The tops of the spikes were well turned out and looked almost like double-tongued snakes. The gates were well guarded by warriors. The legend goes that the forts or palaces were placed on sturdy, massive wheels and were easily moved from one place to another. The streets were well- planned and laid out systematically.

Maya designed and built an exquisite palace for the Pandavas. It was said that Maya Danav had tremendous wealth safely stored in the Himalayan caves. When the Pandavas gave him permission to build their palaces, he hastened northwards with his crew. They returned with all the gold, diamonds and sapphires, crystals and other precious stones, which Maya used to beautify the buildings. It was unique.

The Kauravas were very impatient to see this wondrous place for themselves. They were invited to a party. Duryodhan came with his entire clan. They were shown around. Maya had been very discreet in his use of the gems. Walls were painted to look like doors and doors sometimes appeared to be ordinary walls. What appeared to be a pool was firm ground. The next time Duryodhan saw a ‘pool’, he walked right into the water with a splash! Draupadi, showing him around, could not contain her mirth. The embarrassment he felt is said to have led to the Mahabharat war, though it may only have been one of the aggravating factors.

Trade seemed to have flourished in Indraprastha. Great care was taken to connect it with other trading centers, like Varanasi and Magadha. Artists, artisans and learned men of all disciplines considered it an honor to come and settle in Indraprastha. Even Buddha is said to have visited that city, and it had the honour of preserving a lock of his hair and other relics.

The legends say that the gardens of Indraprastha were a heavenly delight. They were all around the city, inside the city, and of course beautified the palace. The palace gardens had the rarest of fruits, flowers and shrubs. Pavilions with fragrant floral creepers crisscrossed the entire garden. Cuckoos, parrots and peacocks filled the garden with their melodious calls and showy feathers. The pools of crystal clear water were filled with the fragrance of lotus and water lilies.

The Pandavas are said to have moved to Hastinapur after they won the Mahabharat war. They handed over Indraprastha to the Yadavas and ruled from Hastinapur, and were there till Nikakshu, who was fifth in succession from Parikshit. According to another account, Nikakshu had to abandon Hastinapur because of a devastating flood in Ganga River, which almost washed away the city. He is said to have moved to Kaushambi. The Yadavas also abandoned Indraprastha and moved to Mathura. But it seems the city restored its image, and was a place of consequence in the Kuru Kingdom.

An interesting anecdote recount that one day when Yudhishthir sat down for his meal, a fly fell into his bowl. He took it to be a bad omen and felt it was not wise to live in Indraprastha anymore. That is why he shifted to Hastinapur. After him, thirty more generations are said to have ruled over the kingdoms of Indraprastha and Hastinapur.

A brief summing up will not be out of place. The accounts are from the Mahabharat in its present form. However, there might have been some changes, omissions and interpolations in this ancient text from time to time. The Buddhists texts could perhaps be placed before the Mahabharat in its present form, because these Buddhists texts have gathered accounts of much earlier times, which were transmitted orally from generation to generation. There is no doubt that Pah, Sanskrit and Brahmanical Literature all draw upon the same sources.

This is the interesting story of a city, lost in space but immortalized in time by the epics and continued to live in mass memory and is still being reflected in legends and myths.

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