South India

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South India Map

South India is the area encompassing the the following states and union territories of India.

Variants

South India, also known as Peninsular India, has been known by several other names. The term "Deccan", referring to the area covered by the Deccan Plateau that covers most of peninsular India excluding the coastal areas, is an anglicised form of the Prakrit word dakkhin derived from the Sanskrit word dakshina meaning south.[1] Carnatic, derived from "Karnād" or "Karunād" meaning high country, has also been associated with South India.[2]

Location

South India includes the southern part of the peninsular Deccan Plateau and is bounded by the Arabian Sea in the west, the Indian Ocean in the south and the Bay of Bengal in the east. The geography of the region is diverse, encompassing two mountain ranges, the Western and Eastern Ghats, and a plateau heartland.

Rivers

The Godavari, Krishna, Tungabhadra, Kaveri, and Vaigai rivers are important non-perennial sources of water.

History

Carbon dating shows that ash mounds associated with Neolithic cultures in South India date back to 8000 BCE. Artifacts such as ground stone axes and minor copper objects have been found in the Odisha region. Towards the beginning of 1000 BCE, iron technology spread through the region; however, there does not appear to be a fully developed Bronze Age preceding the Iron Age in South India.[3] The region was in the middle of a trade route that extended from Muziris to Arikamedu linking the Mediterranean to East Asia.[4][5] Trade with Phoenicians, Romans, Greeks, Arabs, Syrians, Jews, and Chinese began during the Sangam period (c. 3rd century BCE to c. 4th century CE).[6] The region was part of the ancient Silk Road connecting the East with the West.[7]

Several dynasties ruled over the region from the 6th century BCE to the 14th century CE. These are

The Vijayanagara Empire, founded in the 14th century CE. was the last Indian dynasty to rule over the region. After repeated invasions from the Sultanate of Delhi and the fall of Vijayanagara empire in 1646, the region was ruled by Deccan Sultanates, the Maratha Empire, and polygars and Nayak governors of the Vijayanagara empire who declared their independence.[8]

The South Indian Malabar Coast and the people of the Sangam age traded with the Graeco-Roman world. They were in contact with the Phoenicians, Romans, Greeks, Arabs, Syrians, Jews, and Chinese.[9]

Buddhism was at its peak during 4th century BCE to 8th century CE in South India.

Andhra Pradesh has the majority of Buddhist remnant sites (approximately 160) both documented and undocumented. Buddhism reached East Asian countries from the seaports of Andhra Desa.

Expansion of Naga Race in South India

The Expansion of Serpent worship and Naga Race in South India has been described by in Dr Naval Viyogi in his book Nagas the Ancient Rulers of India, p.30-33.

Dr Naval Viyogi[10] writes....[p.30]: Therefore in South Gurgan, another form of Subrahmanya and a well known serpent protector deity, is also considered to be a serpent by the local people. Murug Subrahmanya, a serpent protector, invites special attention among all the deities.[11]

Jyotiva of Maharashtra and Khalnath of Konkan Gomantak, both are recognize as serpent protector god. Tere is mutual intercourse between the protector deities and the serpents. The reason of this secret is that serpent is protector as well as lord of lands. Valmiki is a form of vulva of earth and serpent is a form of man-hood or Linga. It is being worshipped particularly in the fonn of giver of issue.[12]

The Bherava form of Jageshwari and protector of Mhāskovā are famous in Maharashtra likewise Jyotiva of Thamāi and Khalnath of santeri, Mhāskovā is particularly a deity of Dhangars. It appears to devotees in the form of serpent with five hoods and take shelter in Valmiki. It seems that there is similarity in between Jyotiva of Mhaskova, Khalnath, Murug Subrahmanya etc famous protector deities.[13]

It is clear that Jyotiva serpent deity is recognized and worshipped in the form of protector. This serpent is also Kshetra-pati or lord of land. Valmiki is a form of vulva of earth and serpent is a form of manhood or Linga. It is particularly worshipped in the form of deity of issue giver. Most of the protector deities of south are maintaining their form as serpent. Their most favourite and influencing protector deity, Murug, appears to his devotee in the form of serpent. Kartikeya who is identified with Subrahmanya is worshipped in the form of Valmiki and serpent both and he represents serpent king.

South India

In whole of the southern India, serpent worship is more popular. It is specially the cobra which is held sacred. The higher castes consider it a sin to kill it, and believe that the man who does so will be striken with all kinds of misfortunes.[14]

The great popularity of this cult, in the south, is testified by the snake slabs or Nagakal, which are usually found, sometimes, in great numbers, at the entrance of a town or village. Groups of such stones may be seen in a corner of the coutryard of a temple, either Hindu or Jain, near a tank or under a sacred tree. They are mostly due to childless wives who make a vow to install a snake-stone if they are blessed with an off spring.[15]

The Naga-Kals show a considerable variety of pattern. The simplest and perhaps commonest type of these snake-slabs exhibit a single cobra-, standing as it were on the tip of his tail and curling upwards with

[p.31]: expanded hood. The number of the heads varies between three, five and seven, but apparently there exists a certain preference for the figure five. The number of heads, it will be noticed, is always uneven.[16]

Usually the cobra is carved in relief on a stone slab some four feet in height. But at Adichanallur[17] (a well known large centre of Magaliths) in the Tinnevelly district, there is a large group of Nagakals which shows the peculiarity that they are carved in the round. The snakes are either single-hooded or many-hooded and several of the later have a little human figure seated on the coils and overshaded by the serpents' hood.

Finally we would notice a type of snake-stones in which the serpent deity appears as a hybrid being, its upper half being human and the lower half serpentine. This hybrid is a female and in all probability represents the serpent-goddess who in Southern India is known by the name of Mudam [18]. Over her head, she wears the usual hood combined of three,five or seven snakes' heads. She holds both hands, joined in front of her breast and in each arm she has a baby snake.

In the South Kanara [19] district, on one of the highest mountains of the Western Ghat named, Subrahmanya, there is one of the most famous serpent-temples of India. Here the locality is extremely wild and full of fever excessively, so during the cold and dry seasons; nevertheless, great numbers of pilgrims resort thither especially during the December festival.

Other famous serpent temples are reported to exist at Nagapatnam (or Nega Patam) the well-known ancient seaport on the coast of Coromandel and at Bhomaparanden in the Hyderabad state. The shrine at the former place is dedicated to the serpent deity under the name of Nāganāth. Inside the temple near the image there is a white-ant hill to which large offerings are made in honour of the serpent[20] god.

The Malabar[21] coast according to Vogel is a great seat of the serpent cult. Usually a clump of wild jungle trees luxuriantly festooned with graceful creepers is to be found in the south-west corner of the gardens of all respectable Malayali Hindus. The spot is free to nature to deal with it as she likes. Every tree and bush, every branch and twig is sacred. This is the Nakotta (Snake Shrine). There is mostly a granite stone carved after the fashion of a cobra's hood set up and consecrated in this waste spot. If the shrines are not respected, it is supposed to have a bad influence on human beings. Leprosy, itch, barrenness in women, deaths of children, the frequent appearance of snakes in the garden and other diseases and calamities supposed to be brought about by poison, are all set down to the anger of the cobras. In this[22] district the Naga is the tutelar deity of the house and god and shrine are conveyed with the property and frequently specified in deeds of transfer. Puja is offered at

[p.32]: least once a year, often by a Brahman; and the serpents are periodically propitiated by songs and dances, called 'Nagam-Pattu'. The high[23] priest of the serpent cult in Malabar is the Pāmbanmākkād Nambudri who lives in the town of Ponnāni in a house full of cobras which are said to be harmless to his family.

In South Kanara[24] two curious rites are known to exist in connection with serpent worship; they have been described as follows : Three afflictions are looked upon as due to the wrath of serpents for having killed a snake in a former life, namely leprosy, childlessness and sore eyes. People so afflicted often perform costly ceremonies to remove the curse which are superintended by the Mādhava Brahmans, originally fishermen, and not acknowledged as Brahmans out of Kanara.

The great festival[25] in honour of the serpents in the Nagpanchami, which, as the name indicates, is celebrated on the fifth day of the bright fortnight of the month of savan, the first month of the rainy season. Ananta, Basuki, Shesha, Padma, Kambala and even so Nagas Karkotaka and the serpent Asvatara, Dhritrashtra, Sankhapala, Kaliya and like wise Takshaka and great Naga Pingla are lauded month by month.

The Expansion of Chera (Sera), Nevar, Kirita Nagas In India

Kashmir to Assam, Himalyan ranges have been the largest centre of the abode of Naga race since dark age of prehistoric time. But their traces are still visible in the form of ethnic groups, social and religious traditions, old architectural remains, inscriptions, coins, name of cities and places all over India.

In some parts of Ceylon and in ancient Malabar country , ancient Nagas established their rule. The Tamil literature of first century A.D. has repeated description of Naga-Nadu or the Country of Nagas. Still tooay Malabar coast is one of the largest Cenires Naga Worship. In South, Travancore temple of Nagercoil[26] is famous.

CF. Oldham has thrown much light on this subject. He writes[27] "The Dravidians were divided into Chera, Choru and Pandyas in ancient time. Chera or Sera (in ancient Tamil Sarai is synonym of serpent in Dravidian language. It is clear from the words like Chera-Mandel (Coromandal) Naga-Dipa (serpent Island), and Naga-Nadu' (Naga country) that Dravidians of South were of Asura or Naga family. In addition to the above, the Cheru or Sirai had also spread in all the Gangatic valley, which are in existence still to-day. They maintain their origin from some Naga deity or Devta. (Elliot, sup Glossary N. W. F. PP 135-36) Cherus are most ancient people. They possessed a large part of Gangatic valley

[p.33]: and lived there from time immemorial. During the incendiary, time of the Muslim invaders, Cherus were forced to draw hands from their lands and now they are landless people. They are undoubtedly blood relatives of Dravidian Cheras."

From the various traditions of Chera people, it seems that they were closely related to Lichchhavis and Nevaras of Nepal such as election of king of five or six families, ceremonial royal functions and coronation and wearing of royal insignia.[28] Various customs of both the Nevars an Lichchhavis and Dravidian people of South are quite similar. All are snake worshippers. As Neel Nag is venerable in Kashmir, similarly Karkotak Nag is venerable in Nepal. The venerable deity of Vaisali at the capital of Lichchhavis, was serpent or Nag. The marriage customs of Nevars and Lichchhavis are similar to those of Tamil of South on the basis of these evidences, it can be concluded that these people would have been of one race or tribe in origin.[29]

Among the Nevars, heredity is decided after the matriarchal tradition. Such a tradition of heredity was sometime prevalent among the Arattas, Andhakas Vahikas and also Takkas or Takhya people of Punjab. It means heredity right was transferred to sister's son instead of once own son[30]. Hence Nevars are blood relatives of Dravidians.

Similarly people of Naga race residing in Himalaya region of Himachal Pradesh were known Kirtas. The word Kir means serpent or Nag. Chera people living in the Khasi hills of Assam are also of Naga race. Their chiefs or kings are known as 'siem' whose dead-body is buried in a hallowed out trunk of a large[31] tree.

The town of Cherapunji (Means, estate of Cheras) is also named after the name of this tribe. Col James Tod[32] informs that, "This ancient relation between the Suryabanshi chiefs and the Chawaras or Sauras of Saurashtra (Saura+ Rashtra) is still maintained after a lapse of more than one thousand years....the present heir apparent of a line of one hundred kings, the prince Jawan Singh (1828-38) is the off spring of Chawara mother, the daughter of a petty chieftain of Gujrat." It is clear from this description that Chawara Rajputs were born from the Sauras or Chauras after whom Saurashtra} took its name. Saura is Gujrati form of Chaura or Chera.

In short, we can say that the Kir or Kirit of Himalaya region, Saraj or Sevraj of Satluj Beas valley, Saura or Chawara of Saurashtra, Sevari or Cheru of Gangatic valley, Saurya of central province, Chera or Sera of Khasi hills and Kera, Chera, Sera or Serai of South India all are worshippers of serpents and they are all different branches of Naga race.[33] Chera branch of Khasi has been stated to be of Dinaric Alpine race by

[p.34]: Sudhakar Chattopadhyaya[34] and A.B. Keith.It means some of them were ethnically of Alpine race, some others were Dravidians and others blended race of both of them.

Dr Naval Viyogi[35] writes....South India has been the home of naga-worship since prehistoric period, where every house and village worship cobra. The great popularity of this cult in South is testified by snake slabs or Nagakals, which are usually found some times in great number at the entrance of town or village. Some famous serpent temples are reported to exist at Nagpatnam, Nagercoil, etc. So it is clear that Naga-worshipping people or Naga race had their sway throughout India in remote past. In short we can say that Kir or Kirit in Himalayan region, Saraja or Sevaraj in Satluj and Beas valley, Soura or Chawara in Saurashtra, Sevari or Cheru in Gangatic vallley, Saurya in central province, Chera or Sera in Khasi hills and Kera, Chera, Sera or Serai in south India all are Naga-worshipping tribes who were putting up and are still putting up in different parts of India. It means they were in power in the whole nation in pre-historic and historic times. Thus the tradition of Nag-worship and Naga race had spread up in the whole nation in ancient time.

References

  1. ↑ Yule, Henry; Burnell, A. C. Hobson-Jobson: The Definitive Glossary of British India. Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-164583-9.
  2. ↑ "Origins of the word 'Carnatic' in the Hobson Jobson Dictionary". University of Chicago. Archived from the original on 14 July 2012.
  3. ↑ Agarwal, D.P. (2006). Urban Origins in India (PDF). Uppsala University.
  4. ↑ Schoff, Wilfred (1912). The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea: Travel And Trade In The Indian Ocean By A Merchant Of The First Century. South Asia Books. ISBN 978-81-215-0699-1.
  5. ↑ J. Innes, Miller (1998) [1969]. The Spice Trade of The Roman Empire: 29 B.C. to A.D. 641. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-814264-5.
  6. ↑ Landstrom, Bjorn (1964). The Quest for India. Allwin and Unwin. ISBN 978-0-04-910016-9.
  7. ↑ Elisseeff, Vadime (2001). The Silk Roads: Highways of Culture and Commerce. UNESCO Publishing / Berghahn Books. ISBN 978-92-3-103652-1.
  8. ↑ "They administered our region". The Hindu. 4 June 2007.
  9. ↑ (Bjorn Landstrom, 1964; Miller, J. Innes. 1969; Thomas Puthiakunnel 1973; & Koder S. 1973; Leslie Brown, 1956
  10. ↑ Dr Naval Viyogi: Nagas the Ancient Rulers of India, p.30-34
  11. ↑ Mandlik N. V. PP 159-61 Mentioned by H L Kosare P- 216
  12. ↑ Mandlik N. V. P-162 Mentioned by Kosare H L P-217
  13. ↑ Mandlik N. V. PP-188-89 Mentioned by Kosare P-218
  14. ↑ Vogel JPH p-270
  15. ↑ Ibid
  16. ↑ Vogel JPH P-271
  17. ↑ Ibid
  18. ↑ Vogel JPH P-272
  19. ↑ Ibid
  20. ↑ Vogel JPH P-273
  21. ↑ Vogel JPH PP-273-74
  22. ↑ Vogel JPH P-274
  23. ↑ Ibid
  24. ↑ Ibid
  25. ↑ (a) Vogel JPH P-274-75, (b) Rao Gopalachari T A, "Element of Hindu econography" vol-II Nagpur university
  26. ↑ Proceedings of the 7th All India Oriental conference PP 248-49
  27. ↑ Oldham CF.; "The Sun and the Serpent" PP157 and 191
  28. ↑ Sherring M.A., "Races of N. W. Province" PP376-77
  29. ↑ Sherring M. A. P-376
  30. ↑ M. B. Karan Chpt. 15
  31. ↑ Gurdon PRt PP 138-39
  32. ↑ Tod James I P-123
  33. ↑ Beal Semul, "Si-yu-ki" I P-195
  34. ↑ Chattopadhyaya Sudhakar, P-71
  35. ↑ Dr Naval Viyogi: Nagas the Ancient Rulers of India, p.34-35
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