Geographical Aspects in Rigveda (ऋग्वेदोक्त भौगोलिकविषयाः)

The Rgveda is treated as the storehouse of recorded valuable geographical information. It contains references to places, rivers, mountains, forests and oceans. To put it in a nutshell, more or less pertains to the area in the northern belt from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar in the east to Afghanistan in the west, the easternmost river mentioned in the text being the Ganga, and the westernmost being the western tributaries of the Indus rivers.

According to A. C. Das, the original areas occupied by the Rgvedic people was geographically described as the Saptasindhu, which included the beautiful valley of Kashmir on the north and Gandhara on the west. Its southern boundary was the Rajputana sea and the eastern boundary the Eastern sea covering the Gangetic trough.

Mountains

The mountains mentioned in the Rigveda (ऋग्वेदे पर्वतानां विवेचनम्) give us a good insight on the geographical aspects of ancient mountain ranges that exist in the present times. One interesting point of mention is about Moojavat mountain, which is said to be the native habitat of Somalata used in Somayajnas.

Oceans or Seas

Rgveda offers good information about oceans, seas and other water bodies such as streams. People were well aware about the vast waterbodies and trade via the seas was prevalent. The terms samudra (समुद्रम्), udadhi (उदधि), sindhu (सिन्धु) and Arnava (अर्णव) have been used for ocean or a sea. The sea has been described as without support, without any land or shores, and without any object that can be grasped for protection. It is defined as a shoreless and limitless ocean, with nothing but and water on every side. This context is mentioned in Rgveda (1.116.5) describing the Bhujyu Akhyana.

In one context we find that the term 'sindhu' and samudra are mentioned together, in which sindhu means the river. We also find references to travel using boats or ships (Rgveda 1.25.7) for whom the direction is given by Varuna (by his winds). Vasishta is said to have made a sea-voyage with Varuna, and he himself has described how the voyage was enjoyed and the vessel rocked and rolled over the waves (2.88.3).

Some important findings include the following

• Rajputana Desert was once a sea (Rgveda 7.95.2): In the present day Rajasthan where there exists a desert, the ancient texts have indicated the presence of a sea.
• The four oceans mentioned in Rigveda (ऋग्वेदोक्त चतुःसमुद्राः) form the boundaries of the earth where the people of those times lived (Rgveda 9.33.6, 10.47.2).
• The rivers all flow towards the seas or oceans and increase it's size is clearly mentioned in many instances in the Rgveda (1.71.7, 1.190.7 etc). It is stated that not only the rivers can fill a big ocean but also rain should pour water upon it (Rgveda 5.85.6).
• The presence of islands (Dvipas) have also been mentioned in the Rgveda (1.169.3) and the islands are surrounded by floods.
• It is in these seas that treasure is said to be available, namely gems and precious stones (Rgveda 1.47.6, 7.6.7, 9.92.44, 10.5.1 etc).
• People had knowledge about the origin of pearls (मुक्ताः) the semi-precious stone, from the seas (Rg.Veda. 1.47.6)

• Sea waves are described in Rgveda (5.78.8, 9.50.1, 9.80.5). That the huge waves in the seas are caused by the air circulation was mentioned in Rgveda (1.19.7 and 8, 1.119.4 etc). Other mantras describe that a hurricane can destroy the ships in the sea. So there is a prayer that the waves do not raise high (Rgveda 3.33.3).
• Presence of natural gases in oceans is discussed in Rgveda (Rgveda 8.102.4). It is termed as पुरीष्य अग्निः। This is so called because it has the ability to light up and spreads across in various places of the ocean bed.
• Medicinal substances and food items from the oceans, rivers and mountains is well explained in this Veda (Rg. Veda. 8.20.25).

Bhujyu Akhyayana

Ancient Indians were explorers; thus shipping, marine travels, and trade-routes were well established. Many mantras are mentioned as reference for the Rig vedic merchants who navigated the four seas in quest of wealth. Merchants used to "plough" the seas with their vessels in quest of wealth.

तं गू॒र्तयो॑ नेम॒न्निष॒: परी॑णसः समु॒द्रं न सं॒चर॑णे सनि॒ष्यव॑: । पतिं॒ दक्ष॑स्य वि॒दथ॑स्य॒ नू सहो॑ गि॒रिं न वे॒ना अधि॑ रोह॒ तेज॑सा ॥२॥ (Rig. Veda. 1.56.2)

They offered prayers to the Ocean before undertaking a voyage (Rig. Veda. 4.55.6). Merchants possessed fleets of tradesmen whom they sent across the seas for the purposes of trade (1.48.3). The anecdote of Bhujya, the son of Tugra, describes about the sea-voyages. According to this legend, Bhujya undertakes a long journey over the sea at the direction of his father, Raja Tugra, to punish some recalcitrant islanders. It was during this voyage that he was shipwrecked and rescued by the Asvini devatas.

अ॒ना॒र॒म्भ॒णे तद॑वीरयेथामनास्था॒ने अ॑ग्रभ॒णे स॑मु॒द्रे । यद॑श्विना ऊ॒हथु॑र्भु॒ज्युमस्तं॑ श॒तारि॑त्रां॒ नाव॑मातस्थि॒वांस॑म् ॥५॥ (Rig. Veda. 1.116.5)

Meaning - This exploit you achieved, Asvins, in the oceans where there is nothing to give support, nothing to rest upon, nothing to cling to: that you brought Bhujyu, sailing in a hundred-oared ship to his father's house.

Here we find the characteristics of an ocean well described. As soon as Bhujyu finds that his ships might break and sink, Bhujyu prays to the Ashvini devatas for protection. With their help he docks the ships to safety and praises the deities who protected his life.

A few things are clear here, namely, that the Rigvedic people

• had ample knowledge of travelling on the seas and oceans
• were aware of the characteristics of oceans and seas (waves, depth, limitlessness etc)
• oceans held a sacred position and they were worshipped before voyages
• they were well versed in constructing big ships of sizeable proportions
• they were adept in navigating these big ships on the high seas

नद्यः ॥ Rivers

In these texts, we see many rivers mentioned along with their characteristic color and flow. The Sapta-sindhu region or the land of seven rivers is stated to be the homeland of the Rgvedic people. The word "Sapta-sindhu" means "seven rivers". Thus the very habitation of the Rgvedic people has been defined on the basis of river basins. Rivers have always supported civilizations and have been the lifelines for many civilizations. Large number of evidences in the recent archeological excavations near the Sarasvati basin revealed the flourishing Indus Valley civilization habitations.

There are at least nineteen rivers mentioned in the Rg veda, with the Sarasvati and Indus rivers (along with it's tributaries) gaining a lot of attention. The rivers mentioned in Rigveda (ऋग्वेदे नदीनां विवेचनम्) drew a great attention in the past few centuries with the Sarasvati (सरस्वती), though long lost, has occupied the media but generally for the wrong reasons. Dr. Michel Danino meticulously summed up the issues and debates associated with Sarasvati backed with the latest research, satellite imagery and archeological evidences.

Ganga and Yamuna have certainly been mentioned in the Rgveda once or twice, but they have not at all been included in the computation of the Saptasindhu that gave the country its name. Beyond the Ganga and Yamuna, no other rivers of Northern India, nor any provinces like Panchala, Kosala, Magadha, Anga and Vanga find any mention in the Rgveda. Towards the south, neither the Deccan, nor the Vindhya mountains nor any of the large and famous rivers flowing in the peninsular Indian region have been mentioned.

देशाः ॥ Places in Rgveda

According to Shrikant Talageri, place-names directly or indirectly in the Rgveda can be classified into five basic geographical regions, from west to east, on the basis of present-day terminology:

A. Afghanistan.

B. Punjab.

C. Haryana.

D. Uttar Pradesh.

E. Bihar.

Afghanistan: The ancient place-name for Kandahar (कन्धार) that we find in the Rigveda is Gandhari (गन्धारि), and this name is a only once in the whole of the Rigveda. There is a mention of the wool bearing sheep.

Punjab: The geographical area covering the present-day Punjab is identified to be the Saptasindhu region mentioned in the Rigveda by many scholars. It is the land of the five rivers enclosed between two more rivers: the Indus in the west and the Sarasvati in the east.

Haryana: There are many places in Kurukshetra referred to in the Rigvedic mantras. The references to Haryana are fairly distributed throughout the Rigveda, 6.1.2. refers to Agni being established at Ilaspada, more so 3.23.4 tells us the Devavaata, an ancestor of Divodasa, established Agni at that spot.

Uttar Pradesh: There are no direct references to any place in Uttar Pradesh, but the Anukramanis provide us with priceless clues. Suktas 9.96 and 10.179.2 are composed by Bharata rshi, who attributes his compositions to his remote ancestor, Pratardana. He uses the epithets of his ancestor: in 9.96, the epithet is DaivodasI (दैवोदासी) son or descendant of Divodasa and in 10.179.2 the epithet is Kasiraja (King of Kasi).

Pratardana was a ruler of Kasi, which is in eastern Uttar Pradesh. Shrikant Talageri, infers that the Bharata kings ruled over the land between Kashi in the east and Kurukshetra in the west. In the Rgveda we find the reference of Chedi rajya whose raja was Kashu (कशु). He was praised highly for giving danas. Chedi is a part of the Bundelkhand region.

Bihar: The most historically prominent part of ancient Bihar was Magadha, also known as Kikata (कीकट). While the word Magadha is not found in the Rigveda, the word Kikata is found in 3.53.14. Some scholars do not agree with this view and refer to Kikata as a place between the rivers Sutlej and Beas and is not Magadha.

According to Pt. Baldev Upadhyaya, in the northwestern countries and the people we find the names Gandhari, Kambhoj, Kikata, Balhika, and Vahika.

• In Rigveda mantra (3.53.14) we learn that between Vipash (Beas) and Shutudri (Sutlej) rivers is a land where cows are found in plenty. That region was called as Kikata (कीकट).
• In the Rigveda mantra (1.126.8) we find the term Gandhari (गन्धारि) referring to the famous place Gandhar. From a reference in the Chandogya Upanishad, we learn that Gandhar is a place far far away from where the Rigvedic people lived. As the settlements happened more towards the eastern regions, it is but natural that Gandhar would be far away for them. "गान्धारीणामिवाविका" refers to the beautiful haired (wooly) sheep that were famous in the Rigvedic times. The present Kandahar (कन्धार) is a vikriti form of Gandhar. In ancient times the region from Takshashila to Kabul was said to be Gandhar. This region also includes the cities Rawalpindi and Peshawar presently situated in Pakistan.

जनाः ॥ People in Rgveda

In the Rigveda, we find that people were divided into five principal classes that possessed homogeneous civilization, performed common religious activities, observed same social customs, followed similar occupations and lived in village communities or in fortified cities. We find the term Panchajana (पञ्चजन) indicating the fine main classes or races. "Panchajana (पञ्चजन)" is found in instances such as in पञ्चजना मम होत्रं जुषध्वम् । (Rig. Veda. 10.53.4). Panchajanaah or the five peoples are mentioned by various terms, viz.

Panchajaah (पञ्चजनाः) as in

इ॒न्द्रि॒याणि॑ शतक्रतो॒ या ते॒ जने॑षु प॒ञ्चसु॑ । इन्द्र॒ तानि॑ त॒ आ वृ॑णे ॥९॥ (Rig. Veda. 3.37.9)

Panchakrshtayaha (पञ्चकृष्टयः) as in

अ॒स्माकं॑ द्यु॒म्नमधि॒ पञ्च॑ कृ॒ष्टिषू॒च्चा स्व१र्ण शु॑शुचीत दु॒ष्टर॑म् ॥१०॥ (Rig. Veda. 2.2.10)

Panchacharshanyaha (या पञ्चचर्षण्यः)

या पञ्च॑ चर्ष॒णीर॒भी॑न्द्रा॒ग्नी ता ह॑वामहे ॥२॥ (Rig. Veda. 5.86.2)

Panchakshitayaha (पञ्चक्षितयः)

इन्द्र॒: पञ्च॑ क्षिती॒नाम्॥९॥ (Rig. Veda. 1.7.9)

According to Pt. Kapil Dev Dwivedi, in the Aitareya Brahmana (8.3.14) we find an explanation about this term. The raja and praja (the king and the citizens) belonging to the purva (east), paschima (west), uttara (north) and dakshina (south) deshas (देश-s - places) along with the madhya-desha namely Kuru and Panchala rajyas constitute the Panchajanas (ध्रुवा मध्यमा प्रतिष्ठा). In this way Panchajana includes the the whole population in the region. According to Sayanacharya, Panchajana includes the people of the four varnas and the Nishada tribes. Traditional history knows of many different streams of tribes or peoples, but the two main streams are of those belonging to the Solar Race of the IkSvAkus, and those belonging to the Lunar Race of the AiLas. The AiLas are further divided into five main branches: the Yadu-s (यदु), TurvaSa-s (तुर्वश), Druhyu-s (द्रुह्यु), Anu-s (अनु) and PUru-s (पूरु). It is mentioned in the mantra as follows

यदि॑न्द्राग्नी॒ यदु॑षु तु॒र्वशे॑षु॒ यद् द्रु॒ह्युष्वनु॑षु पू॒रुषु॒ स्थः । अत॒: परि॑ वृषणा॒वा हि या॒तमथा॒ सोम॑स्य पिबतं सु॒तस्य॑ ॥८॥ (Rig. Veda. 1.108.8)

यदु The Yadu-s

Mentioned frequently in the Rigveda, they are the people born in the race of Yadu. The Yadavas are mentioned with the Parshu, which according to Sayanacharya's commentary the son of Parashu. In the Dasarajna yuddha, the battle of the ten kings, the Yadus took part against Sudas. Indra is said to have crossed the ocean and brought back to the shores of Sapta-sindhu, the Yadu and Turvasa people who left their country and lived on the farther shores of the ocean as unanointed kings, probably in a new colony of their own (Rig. Veda. 4.30.17 and 6.20.12).

तुर्वश The Turvasha-s

The Turvasas are mentioned along with the Yadu in many places. They lived in the west of Parushni i.e. in the region which existed between Vitasta and AsiknI. In the Rgvedic mantra 6.45.1, it is indicated that Yadu and Turvasas come from Paraavata i.e. a distant land or brought by Indra from that region. It is stated that later they merged with the Krivis, etc., to give rise to the Pancala people.

द्रुह्यु The Druhyu-s

The Drhyu-s were as powerful as the Puru-s and Trkshu-s. They were the inhabitants of the region between Parushni in the east and Asikni in the west. Druhyu is regarded as one of the names of the five sons of Yayati.

अनु The Anu-s

The Anus are mentioned with the Druhyus, Yadus and Turvasas (Rigveda 1.108.8, 7.18.14, 8.10.5). Some scholars believe they dwelt on the Parushni river as per the mantra 7.18.14. They are also mentioned in the later texts as one of the five sons of Yayati who dwelt by the Parushni river.

The Puru-s

They are the most powerful among the five different people. Sayanacharya interprets the term "puru" as many. According to Yaska, PUru means man or supplicating men. They dwelt on the banks of the Sarasvati river as mentioned in the following mantra.

उ॒भे यत्ते॑ महि॒ना शु॑भ्रे॒ अन्ध॑सी अधिक्षि॒यन्ति॑ पू॒रव॑: ।... ॥२॥ (Rig. Veda. 7.96.2)

Supported by other scholarly views, C.V. Vaidya states that the Puru-s became prosperous and founded a kingdom in the present Ambala region on the banks of the river Sarasvati to which territory their representatives the Kurus eventually gave their name.

D.C. Sircar also states that these people were later merged with the Kuru people.67 Renou holdsthatthe tribe ofthe Puru wasthe most important, at a latertime it entered into alliance with theBharata, forming them with the new group ofthe Kuru. Together withthe Pancala (formerlytheKrivi), theKuru who hadestablished themselves in theDoab (which the later literature, fromtheirname, called the Kuruksetra), formed the centre ofthe Vedic culture.68 Trasadasyu, Purukutsa and Kurusravanawere the kings of the Purus, as mentioned in the Rgveda. The Purus, Turvasas, the Yadus and theAnus formed acoalition againstthe chiefoftheTrtsus called Sudasinthe battle. Due to constant clash, the Purus were divided into the Bharatas, Trtsu, Kus^ka etc.

The Rigveda is little concerned with the IkSvAkus as a people, inspite of the fact that it has the second most important dynasty of TRkSis, a branch of the Ikshvakus. The word Ikshvaku itself occurs only once in the Rgveda as a name of the Surya (10.60.4).