Indian History

Grand Anicut / Image Credit Cholas were one of the three major ruling dynasties of the Tamil Country during the Sangam period  (between the 3rd century B.C. and 3rd century A.D.). They ruled over an area known as Tondaimandalam or Cholamandalam. The most celebrated ruler of the Sangam Cholas was Karikalan who made a grand anicut at Kaveri and laid the foundation of the capital of Kaveripattinam, also known as Puhar. Kaveripattinam, now a non-descript fishing village silted up by the river mud, had an artificial harbour which was built by prisoners of war who were obtained by him following his successful raid on Sri Lanka. Before Kaveripattinam, Uraiyur was the capital of the Chola kingdom.   Karikalan' father was the son of Ilanjetcenni who was a valiant and brave ruler. Karikalan, which means man with a charred leg, was so named because his leg was caught in flames when the prison, in which he was incarcerated after being kidnapped by his enemies, was set on fire. He, ho...

December 16 is celebrated to commemorate the defeat of the Pakistani troops in the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971 and the emergence of an independent Bangladesh. On this day Pakistani army surrendered to Lt. General Jagjit Singh Aurora , the chief Commander of the Joint military command of India and Bangladesh. The day is celebrated as Victory Day or Bijoy Dibosh . Recently the iconic statue at the 1971 Shaheed Memorial Complex in Bangladesh, depicting the Pakistan Army's surrender, was vandalised amid the attacks on the Hindu population in the country.  The emergence of Bangladesh as a sovereign country in 1971 is an important event in the world history. At the time of Indian independence in 1947 Bangladesh was a part of newly created nation of Pakistan. Since then, (it is still the case) Pakistan had been carrying their hate India campaign since its creation. It was nor ready (is still not ready) to understand that the future of India and Pakistan depends on peace and coopera...

  Original image  by  W.Taylo The First Anglo-Afghan War (1838-42) was fought between the British East India Company (EIC) and, the Emirate of Afghanistan.  The war caused the greatest misfortune that ever befell the British army and dealt a severe blow to their prestige in India. With the fall of Napoleonic France in 1814, Russia had emerged as Britain’s potential rival by 1830s. India was the prized possession of the British Empire at that time. Russia has made its Asiatic ambitions clear. But to realize its ambition it would have to gain a diplomatic and military foothold in Afghanistan, an insignificant and impoverished tribal society in the early 19th century. Instead of entering into an alliance with Afghanistan’s ruler, Dost Mohammad, Britain chose to back Shah Shuja, the deposed ruler of Afghanistan, who had been living in exile in India for three decades. In 1837, Alexander Burnes, an envoy sent by  George Eden (Lord Auckland), the then Governor-Genera...

Terracotta head of Buddha Devnimori Excavations at Devni Mori, 2 km from Shamlaji in  the Aravalli district in northern Gujarat, have revealed a treasure trove of architecturally and sculpturally rich Buddhist remains that include a Buddhist monastery dating back to 3rd-4th century AD. The excavations at this archaeological importance also yielded various artifacts, such as terracotta statues, inscribed caskets, pottery, and  coins.  Devni Mori has been submerged under  the waters of the Meshwo reservoir since the 1970s. Today,  a Buddhist flag is hoisted on a pole in the middle of the reservoir which came into being due to the construction of the  Meshvo dam in the late 1960s. The flag  marks the location where the stupa once stood.     The excavation at the site was carried between 1960 and 1963 under the supervision of R N Mehta,  S. N. Chaudhary and B Subbharao. The relic casket of Devnimor The discovery of the stupa in Shamlaji is a...

46km from Bhopal in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh is situated the world famous Buddhist site of Sanchi the remains of which are among the finest relics of early Buddhism dating from 3nd century BC . The Great stupa at Sanchi is hailed as the crowning achievement of early north Indian sculpture. Today the Great Sanchi Stupa survives to be awe-inspiring spectacles for the pilgrims and tourists who throng to them. It is a massive hemisphere of about 120 feet in diameter.  Towards the end of the 1st century BC four glorious gateways ( torana ) were added at the four cardinal points. The stupa was enlarged to twice its original size in the 2nd century AD. Lesser stupas and monastic buildings surround the great stupa.  The Sanchi gateways, carved with great skill, are more remarkable for their carved ornamentation than their architecture. Carved with a several figures and reliefs, each gateway consists of two square columns, above which are three architraves supported by mass...

Japanese Peace Pagoda, Darjeeling Located on the slopes of the Jalapahar hills of Darjeeling,  the glistening, white-domed Peace Pagoda has been a landmark in Darjeeling since 1992. The edifice was built in by monks and nuns belonging to the Nipponzan Myohoji sect of Nichiren Buddhism. Nichidatsu Fujii (1885–1985), who founded the religious movement of Nipponzan Myohoji which means "Japanese Mountain Dharma Temple", laid the foundation stone of the pagoda in 1972. Nipponzan Myohoji has constructed more than 70 peace pagodas in different parts of the world. They exist all around the world mostly in Asia but also in Europe and North America. Born in 1885, Nichidatsu Fujii founded Nipponzan Myohoji in 1924.  The Darjeeling Japanese Peace Pagoda which is 28.5 metre high has the four incarnations of the Buddha including the Maitreya (the future) Buddha.

According to the Union Ministry of Culture and Tourism steps are afoot to bring back to India an 11th century charter of Chola ruler Rajendra Chola from Universiteit Leiden (University of Leiden) in the Netherlands. The charter inscribed on 21 copper plates and held together by a massive bronze ring fastened with the seal of Rajendra Chola found its way to the Netherlands in the 18th century. The copper plates speak of the genealogy of Raja Raja Chola and his contribution for building a Buddhist vihara in Nagapattinam (in Tamil Nadu). Known for his religious tolerance, Rajaraja gave a helping hand to the Sailendra ruler of the Srivijaya Empire, Mara Vijayottunggavarman in building a Buddhist monastery in  Nagapattinam. The monastery was known Chudamani Vihara after Cudamanivarman, father of Mara Vijayottunggavarman. Srivijaya Empire was in what is now Indonesia and much of the Malay Archipelago.