Chronology of Ancient India Erected on False Foundations During Colonial Era

Actually, the problem of dating of King Vikramaditya and his Navaratnas used to haunt me since my college days. Traditionally, Vikramaditya is dated in the 1st century BCE who founded an era in 57 BCE but his court scholars like Varahamihira and Kalidasa refer to the epoch of Saka era. The traditional historians could not provide a solution to this chronological problem. This was the reason why the colonial historians rejected the traditional chronology and presented Indian chronological history based on their own assumptions. Ironically, these colonial historians, rather than solving it, created more inconsistencies in Indian chronology. For example, Kalidasa refers to Varahamihira as his senior contemporary but the modern textbooks of history teach us that Kalidasa lived around 380-450 CE whereas Varahamihira was supposed to have lived around 505-587 CE. Moreover, Kalidasa refers to poets Ramilla and Saumilla in his play, Malavikagnimitram, who were in the court of Sri Harsha (606-647 CE).

Evidently, there are numerous chronological contradictions and inconsistencies in the modern textbooks of history which continue to teach us a fictional chronology of ancient India. This is the reason why I have decided to undertake a comprehensive study of the chronology of ancient India with an objective to scientifically reestablish the sheet anchors of Indian chronology.

Colonial historians cleverly propagated a myth that there was never a political unity in India before the British rule. Since their main agenda was to break the unity of Indian society, they smartly defined that the political unity could only be achieved if there was a rule of one political power over entire country. All Indian territories were rarely under the rule of one power before the colonial rule. Therefore, it is generally assumed that India was never politically one nation though there existed cultural unity in diversity.

In reality, since the Rig-Veda era, India has been not only culturally one but also politically one country. Though India had many kingdoms but all Indian rulers of various dynasties including Pandyas, Cholas and Cheras traced their origin either from Chandra or Surya Vamsha. Both Surya and Chandra Vamshas ultimately traced their origin from Brahma, father of Manu. All Indians used to trace their origin from Saptarshis who were the manasaputras of Brahma. This was the real reason behind the cultural, political and geographical unity of India.

The colonial rulers had conspired to sabotage our common and larger identity by labeling it as mythology and deliberately created conflicts among smaller identities like caste, creed, language, etc. It would be totally wrong to attribute the credit to the British rulers for political unification of India. Rather, they planted mines to blow up the eternal unity of Indian society.

Traditionally, Indians have followed a perfect chronology starting from the epoch of Mahabharata war in the 32nd century BCE but it was William Jones who wrongly identified Sandrokottus as Chandragupta Maurya and dated him as a contemporary of Alexander. Based on this mistaken identification, colonial historians questioned the authenticity of the traditional chronology because Chandragupta Maurya has been traditionally dated in the 16th century BCE.

In fact, the complex problems of Indian chronology arise from a misapprehension of the epochs of ancient Indian eras. My research studies of the Kurtakoti copper plate dated ?aka 530 found reference to a total solar eclipse which occurred on 9th May 53 BCE in Northern Karnataka, thus conclusively establishing that the ?aka era commenced in 583 BCE and the ?ak?nta era in 78 CE. Historians fallaciously mixed up these two epochs, leading to a chronological error of 660 years. This dating error of 660 years was further complicated when later Jain historians inadvertently identified the Ujjain King Chandragupta, a disciple of Bhadrab?hu as the Maurya King Chandragupta which led to the wrong inference that Mah?vira was a contemporary of Buddha. In reality, Buddha attained nirvana 675 years before the year of Mah?vira nirv??a. The Pur??as and some Burmese inscriptions clearly indicate that Buddha attained nirvana around 1864 BCE. But colonial historians brought forward the date of Buddha nirv??a by 1381 years and fixed in 483 BCE based on the mistaken identification of Sandrokottus. This is the reason why I said that the entire edifice of the chronology of ancient India was erected on false foundations during the colonial era.

The main objective of the Project Itihasa is to undertake a comprehensive study for rediscovering the true chronology of India and the world. Right now, the research work is at an advanced stage and I am glad to inform you that I have recently published two books on the Chronology of India and one book on the chronology of world history. Further research on the chronology may continue for few more years. In the second phase of Project Itihasa, we are working hard to build a pan-India movement not only for spreading the awareness about the true chronological history of India but also to sensitize the government agencies about the pressing need for rewriting of the textbooks of Indian history.

India is the birthplace of mathematics and astronomy. Indian mathematicians and astronomers were the first who introduced the basic techniques and principles of mathematics which are instrumental in evolution of all modern sciences and technologies. Based on astronomy software simulations, I have conclusively proven that Mayasura wrote his Surya Siddhanta in 6778 BCE. Mayasura referred to a great conjunction of planets, sun and moon in Aries on Chaitra Shukla Pratipada that occurred on 22 February 6778 BCE. Starting from Mayasura (6778 BCE) to Madhava of Sangamagrama (1340-1425 CE), ancient Indians were the pioneers of decimal place value system with zero, eight operations of arithmetic i.e. addition to cube root, fractions, negative numbers, rule of three, permutation and combinations, concept of infinity, geometry, linear, quadratic, biquadratic, cubic and indeterminate equations, plane and spherical trigonometry, magic squares, power series, calculus and mathematical analysis.

For instance, Baudhayana was the first who gave the so-called Pythagoras theorem. Pingala and Virahanka had the knowledge of Pascal’s triangle and Fibonacci sequence of numbers. Brahmagupta gave the Pell’s equation and Madhava of Sangamagrama was the inventor of infinite series, power series, trigonometric series, rational approximation of infinite series and calculus.

This syndrome has a colonial legacy. In fact, the colonial masters systematically corrupted the narrative of India’s past to undermine the pride and self-respect of Indian society for obvious reasons. They glamorized it as progressivism in academic institutions and patronized only those Indians who refrained from propagating the glory of India’s past. This is how they created a gated community of intellectuals who had hardly any respect for the glory of ancient India. The modern descendants of the same gated community of intellectuals are genetically carrying the symptoms of colonial hangover. We must publically name and shame these so-called progressive but intellectually challenged people because their disease can’t be cured.

Colonial historians not only rejected the traditional chronology due to the chronological error of 1381 years in dating of Buddha nirvana but also doubted the historicity of Ramayana and Mahabharata. In reality, the entire traditional and internal astronomical evidence suggests that the Mahabharata war took place in 3162 BCE and the events of Ramayana era can be dated around 5674-5600 BCE. The studies of post-glacial sea level rise indicate that Sri Lanka was connected with India through land route at least up to 6200 BCE. The last pulse “Melt Water Pulse 1C” (MWP 1C) took place around 6200-5600 BCE, which produced a rise of 6.5 meters in less than 140 years. Evidently, the submerging of the R?masetu area began after 6200 BCE. Internal astronomical evidence suggests that Nala-built setu in 5635 BCE. Undoubtedly, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata were historical. Only the chronology of these historical events has to be scientifically re-established.

The so-called eminent historians are more politicians than historians. Sanskrit knowledge is essential for Indian historical research because the majority of epigraphic and literary sources were written in Sanskrit. But these eminent historians have no knowledge of Sanskrit. Their research based on secondary sources is highly speculative, politically motivated and far from the truth. They are not the truth seekers but just cheerleaders of a false narrative of Indian history. The glory of India’s past is like the sun which is currently under the cover of dark clouds. It will shine once again and the day is not far off.

I have already pointed out that all Indians used to trace their origin from Saptarshis and Brahma. There was never any divide between north Indians and south Indians in Indian history. There were also no Aryans or Dravidians ever existed in India. The word ‘Arya’ means gentleman in Sanskrit. The Dravida Kings of Tamil Nadu were the descendants of Dravida, son of Sri Krishna and Jambavati. All Indians traditionally worshipped same deities since ancient times. Though India was traditionally a multilingual society but Sanskrit has been a pan-Indian communication medium since Vedic era. In fact, colonial rulers have deliberately attempted to create a divide between north Indians and south Indians that never existed.

Unfortunately, a false narrative is being taught in schools and colleges in the name of Indian history due to unsolved chronological problems.

Truth-finding or fact-finding in Indian history can never be a fascist agenda. In the light of latest

findings in the chronological research, the text books of Indian history need to be reviewed and rewritten immediately. I would recommend that a textbook on Indian chronology should be introduced in the

curriculum because ironically, the history teachers and students have no idea how the chronology of India has been arrived. It is a fact that the majority of eminent historians also have no knowledge of the basics of Indian chronology. It is high time now that the misinformation has to be weeded out and the true information must be included in the textbooks of Indian history.