Kamatipura

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Author:Laxman Burdak, IFS (R)

Assam State Map

Kamatipura (कामातिपुर) is probably variant of Kamarupa (कामरूप), the ancient name of Assam.

Origin

Variants

History

Visit by Xuanzang in 639 AD

Alexander Cunningham[1] writes that From Paundra Varddhana, or Pubna, in Middle India, the Chinese pilgrim proceeded for 900 li, or 150 miles, to the east, and crossing a great river, entered Kia-mo-leu-po, or Kamarupa, which is the Sanskrit name of Assam.[2] The territory is estimated at 10,000 li, 1667 miles, in circuit. This large extent shows that it must have comprised the whole valley of the Brahmaputra river, or modern Assam, together with Kusa-Vihara, and Butan. The valley of the Brahmaputra was anciently divided into three tracts, which may be described as the Eastern, Middle, and Western districts, namely, Sadiya, Assam proper, and Kamrup. As the last was the most powerful state, and also the nearest to the rest of India, its name came into general use to denote the whole valley. Kusa-Vihara was the western division of Kamrup proper ; and as it was the richest part of the country, it became for some time the residence of the rajas, whose capital, called Kamatipura, gave its name to the whole province.[3] But the old capital of Kamrup is said to have been Gohati, on the south bank of the Brahmaputra. Now, Kamatipura, the capital oi Kusa-Vihara, is exactly 150 miles, or 900 li, from Pubna,[4] but the direction is due north ; while Gohati is about twice that distance, or say 1900 li, or 317 miles, from Pubna, in a north-east direction. As the position of the former agrees exactly with the distance recorded


[p.501]: by the pilgrim, it is almost certain that it must have been the capital of Kamrup in the seventh century. This would seem to be confirmed by the fact that the language of the people differed but slightly from that of Central India. It was therefore not Assamese, and consequently I infer that the capital visited by Hwen Thsang was not Gohati, in the valley of the Brahmaputra, but Kamatipura, in the Indian district of Kusa-Vihara. The great river crossed by the pilgrim would therefore be the Tista, and not the Brahmaputra.

On the east Kamrup touched the frontiers of the south-western barbarians of the Chinese province of Shu; but the route was difficult, and occupied two months. On the south-east the forests were full of wild elephants, which is still the case at the present day. The king was a Brahman, named Bhaskara Varmma, who claimed descent from the god Narayana, or Vishnu, and his family had occupied the throne for one thousand generations. He was a staunch Buddhist, and accompanied Harsha Varddhana in his religious procession from Pataliputra to Kanoj, in A.D. 643.

कामातिपुर

विजयेन्द्र कुमार माथुर[5] ने लेख किया है ...कामातिपुर (AS, p.170) अकबर के दरबार के प्रसिद्ध विद्वान अबुलफजल ने आईने-अकबरी में कामातिपुर को तत्कालीन असम के सूबे की राजधानी लिखा है. जान पड़ता है कि कामातिपुर असम के प्राचीन संस्कृत नाम कामरूप का ही अपभ्रंश है.

External links

References

  1. The Ancient Geography of India/Eastern India, p.500-501
  2. Julien's ' Hiouen Thsang,' iii. 76.
  3. ' Ayin Akbari,' ii. 3. " Kamrup, which is also called Kamtah."
  4. See Map No. I.
  5. Aitihasik Sthanavali by Vijayendra Kumar Mathur, p.170