Synopsis

on
Aryans Civilization

Submitted by

Supervisor

University Logo

Department Name
University Name

1
Abstract

The purpose of this study is to analyse the history of Aryans Civilization and its

impacts on Indian civilization. For this purpose, the theoretical framework of Aryan

Invasion Theory (AIT) will be useful to explore the critical features of this study. The

current study is significant because it will analyse Aryans civilization. The current

research will be quantitative in nature for which document analysis will be used as

analytical technique and secondary sources will be used as data collection. Finding of

this study will explore the real history of Aryans Civilization.

Introduction

The purpose of this study is to conduct historical analysis of Aryans

Civilization. In the traditional telling of this tale, a group of people known as

"Aryans" lived in India circa 1500 BC, imposed their culture, language, and religion

on the indigenous Dravidians and subjugated them in AD. This view includes the

concept of institutionalised racial discrimination in addition to reinforcing the social

structure as a fundamental component of Hinduism. The accounts of the Aryan

invasion are based on European accounts of India from the 19th century and have

been widely regarded as historical truths about India for the past 200 years. The

majority of contemporary Indian history texts are still open with a section on the

Aryans and their invasion of India, despite the fact that this mainstream narrative has

drawn significant criticism1.

The Vedic Aryans of Central Asia, who were invading people from the

subcontinent, overthrew the Indus Valley civilisation and replaced it with their village

culture. According to several historians, the two Aryan invasions that destroyed the

black Bantu civilisation in 1500 BC and 1400 BC are what caused the fall of the Indus

Valley civilization. The initial Aryan invasion was led by the Aryan deity Indra, who

2
is portrayed in Hindu mythology as a powerful warrior and master of the sky,

weather, and clouds. He crossed the rivers to exterminate the non-Aryans, and this is

when the original Aryan assault started. Because of the overwhelming numbers of

barbaric invaders and the lack of experience with violence and killing, society fell into

anarchy, mayhem, and slaughter. Black, Semitic, and Mongolian indigenous people

were completely wiped off. The region's agriculture was interrupted by the collapse of

the Indus irrigation system, the earliest known instance of ecological warfare.

Bharata (from which India's present name, Bharat, is derived) led another

Aryan invasion from Afghanistan in the year 1400 BC, conquering a large portion of

the upper Ganges. With the exception of the Black Sudroids, whose sad survivors fled

to the Ganges Valley and Rajasthan, chaos and killings persisted until this point,

leaving little evidence of the Indus Valley civilisation. The Vedic version, which

despises the unfortunate old "blacks" as fiends, devils, and monsters to be destroyed

by the fire and sword of the Aryans and the faithful Aryan invaders as an example of

a civilised coloniser who came to India and established a utopian state, easily fools

the world despite the fact that hundreds of thousands of people died in the Indus

Valley. However, the archaeological discoveries at Harappa, Muhenjodaro, Taro

Hills, Chanhandro, Zob, etc. showed the falsity of the Vedic censure and the

maliciousness of the "black Indian" condemnation. They demonstrated that the

Dravidians, who became the South Asian Sudras, were highly civilised peoples who

built strong kingdoms and flourished in huge civilizations2.

However, the Rig-Veda gives a picture of the Aryas who, together with

countless dasa or dashu, most likely made their home in Sapta-Sindhavah (Land of the

Seven Streams). In northern Pakistan, where the Indus River is the primary source of

life, is where you may find Sapta-Sindhavah. These communities are typically made

3
up of several tribes involved in hostilities. Their battles are intended to seize the

resources and territory of other tribes. In the Rigveda, the conflict between Arya and

Dasa is shown from both sides. Aryan tribes also engaged in combat, with the Battle

of the Ten Kings on the banks of the Parushni (Ravi) River being the most well-

known of these conflicts. Dasa and Ariere are separate breeds Ariere is tall and

beautiful while Dasa is black with a short and flat nose. There are differences in

concepts of life, language, belief and practice between Dasa and Aryans. But

compared to the material culture, there is not much difference. The only obvious

contrasts are the castles of Dasa and the Aryan horse-drawn chariots. They all live

from agriculture, which relies on rainwater and irrigation. The primary Aryan

communities, known as grama, were also close to agriculture. There is a patrilineal

family structure (kula) with a male head of household (kulapati). The wife, Dampati,

is standing next to the man. Although polygamy is not common, monogamy is the

norm. Dowries and dowries are recorded, but in general daughters are a burden to

their fathers and are considered duhita (daughter, literally the one who treats their

father. The highest political entity is the jana, meaning 'masculinity of the collective

tribe'. Jana is Rajan, and he usually inherits his post.He is supported by the Purohita

(priest), and in meetings referred to as Sabha and Samiti, elders may provide him

further counsel. Therefore there are two barques the different classes used in the days

of Radhas ruled: the rulers or Rajanya and the priests or Brahmins. Among them we

find commoners called Viz, from whom the word Vaisya was later derived. The

Aryas were divided into three main social classes, but they differed from the Dasas of

the non-Aryas Dasyus, known as Sudras, divided the population into four main

categories or castes, and these four castes were further divided into n Taus end of

subcaste. Caste determines a person's occupation and social class. Those who are not

4
assimilated directly into the caste system are referred to as untouchables. Over time,

Aryan culture and its caste system spread to most of the Indian subcontinent. Aryan

kingdoms developed in several regions, particularly in the Great Plains around the

Ganges. These became important centres of agriculture and trade3.

The domestication of cattle and the breeding of sheep for wool supplemented

agriculture as the mainstay of the Aryan tribes' economies. The cow was both a

worshipped object and a yardstick of appraisal. Since the non-Aryan Panites are the

people described in this article, there is no information on Aryan engagement in trade

or commerce. Sewing, reed mat weaving, and fabric weaving were all done by

women. The Aryans made the most of their life. They engaged in chariot races, drank

the intoxicating soma and sura, played dice games, went on forest hunts, and sang and

danced to music. They don't mind eating beef even if the cow is known as aghnya

(indestructible) for its courage. Their clothing consisted of two or three robes of wool,

but also of sheepskin. Both men and women wear colourful clothing and various types

of ornaments. The Aryans usually buried their dead, but sometimes burned them. In

this way, the ashes are collected and then buried4.

The worship of the One in diverse forms was the foundation of the Aryans'

polytheistic religion. They revered the god Deva as well as other deities including

Varuna, who created order in the cosmos, Mitra, and several sun gods like Surya,

Savitra, Pushan, and Vishnu. Indra (the deity of clouds or rain), Maruts (the god of

wind), Parjanya, and Rudra (the god of storms) all manifest due to the weather. The

earth gods Prithvi (earth), Soma (a kind of plant), Agni (fire), and Usha (the morning

goddess) are shown in the following phase. The primary Aryan religious rite of

sacrifice (yujna) is used as the mode of devotion rather than conventional puja. In

addition to meat and carcasses, the variety also includes milk, grain, and ghee5.

5
Statement of the Purpose

In order to better comprehend the intricate patterns of genetic variety created

by population growth and gene flow, population geneticists population growth, and

other aspects of demographics, mutation, drift, and selective evolution. Therefore,

without detailed knowledge and an accurate understanding of the historical, cultural,

and archaeological context, it is impossible to interpret the phylogenetic scenarios that

these data can generate. Incredibly diversified socially, linguistically, and genetically

are the Indian people. Unfortunately, rigorous reading of pertinent social science

material, which is mainly non-existent, is rarely used to enlighten researchers

researching Aryan civilisation. Here is a quick summary of the major discoveries in

this field from both sides of the Aryan debate (Reddy, 2014; Tripathy et al., 2008)6,7.

We anticipate more writing on how it all came about given the prominence of

Aryans in depictions of Indian culture in general and the caste system in particular.

There is no reason to support this assertion without a tenable, evidence-based

explanation of how the Aryans managed to establish a system that demoted India's

native inhabitants to a lesser social standing. Such answers are not found in the

literature on ideologies, but what about those offered by the sciences that study the

past of prehistoric societies, such as linguistics, archaeology, and more recently

genetics? We expect these to provide a scholarly basis for profiles of Indian cultural

development, or at least to show why their acceptance is warranted.

The above context of this study raises the question what is the real history of

Aryan civilization and their impact on Indian culture. How is it understood that the

Aryan invasion theory was accepted and reproduced as a valid theory if one of the

cores of the Aryan invasion theory, How is its acceptance to be understood now that

the invasion concept has been disproven without more justification for how the

6
Aryans could have had the effect they would have had without conquest? This

research looks into Aryan civilisation in an effort to find the answers.

Research Questions

This research intends to seek answers to the following questions:

1. Where did the Aryans come from?

2. What is Aryans Civilization?

3. How Aryans’ language, religion and social structure invaded Indian

civilization which made them inferior?

Significance of the Study

Aryan civilization has been a central point of discussion for several scholars

who claim that around 1500 BC the Aryans came to India from somewhere outside

the country and pushed the local Dravidians southward. Local historians, linguists,

and archaeologists, especially those who identify as Hindu, said that the thesis was

created with the presumption that foreigners had always governed and civilised India.

It is also believed that the Aryan Invasion Theory (AIT) was in fact part of the Asian

Bengali community's imperialist agenda. A prominent member of this society and

servant in charge of the East India Company, Friedrich Max Müller, had the idea.

Although scientists who support say that opposing is actually a "Hindu" agenda. This

study is an examination of Aryan civilization and the opinions and arguments that

support and oppose it. Attempts to analyse the Aryan civilization from the perspective

of history, but also attempts to examine the perspective of the Aryan civilization from

the perspective of Indian culture. This study will be significant for them who want to

know about different cultures, languages, civilizations in Indian sub-continent,

interested in the history of Aryans civilization, want to reach root cause of existing

conflicts in Indian society, want to know background of Hindutva movement in India,

7
seek to cultural, linguistics, religious differences among different Indian communities

want to know caste system in Indian society based on discrimination.

Research Objectives

In the light of literature review the following objectives are set out to fill up the

gaps in previous researches;-

1. To explore the history of Aryans.

2. To examine the Aryans Civilization.

3. To find out how Aryans’ language, religion and social structure invaded

Indian civilization that made them inferior.

Literature Review

In his last book, India, Stanley Wolpert tells us: "Between about 1500 and

1000 B.C. the Aryan tribes conquered the entire Indus Valley and the pre-Aryan

tribes”. The Aryans were alleged to have "enslaved" the latter group (Keppens, M.,

2017)8. Wolpert just briefly covers some of the weaponry and other military tools

(such as horses and tanks) utilised in the conflict; he doesn't go into great detail about

how it transpired.

We find a similar description in Wendy Doniger's book on Hindus. Aware of

the recent controversy surrounding Aryan theory, Doniger criticizes the term "Aryan"

and prefers to speak of "Vedic". The latter is defined as the community that makes up

the Vedas (Doniger 2009:90)1.

Kulke and Rothermund's A History of India is a last illustration of arias in

contemporary Indian cultural literature. The "Indo-Aryan migration and settlement" is

referred to by these academics as a "great historical event" in the early history of the

subcontinent in the second millennium BC, "after the rise and fall of the Indus". The

Aryans, they say, were “a semi-nomadic people who called themselves Aryans in

8
their sacred hymns and came through the mountain passes of Afghanistan to the

plains of the northwest” (Kulke and Rothermund 2010, 12)10.

One of the few writers who take the issue of Aryan influence—not invasion—

seriously is Starr. Others, like Witzel, believed it to be sufficient evidence that the

Aryans could not have originated in India. The rest happened "somehow": "The

"Aryan problem" is related to the migration of populations who spoke Old Indo-

European (IE) Vedic Sanskrit, who celebrated their gods and goddesses in the oldest

poems - Indian literary guides, Rgveda, and thereafter spread theirs Language,

religion, rituals and social organization throughout the subcontinent” (Witzel 2005,

341)10.

Research Methodology

A research effort is a planned and methodical inquiry done by researchers. The

researcher will adopted the following research methodology to conduct this research.

The current research will be quantitative in nature and will show historical overview

of Aryans civilization in Indian sub-continent. Secondary data sources like articles,

online journals, books and reviews related to Aryans Civilizations will be used to

analyse Aryan Civilization. As analytical technique, document analysis will be used

as it is one of the primary techniques of data collection in qualitative research.

Reasons for Data Collection

Data collection is an integral part of any research work which enables the

researcher to analyse their study related facts and figures to fill the research gaps and

to get the answers of research questions.

Framework for the Present Study

The present research will interpret the multiple facts of Aryans Civilization in Indian

subcontinent. It will also focus on the discrimination and marginalization faced by

9
other communities due to the impacts of Aryans Civilization on Indian culture and

society. In this regard, the theoretical framework of Aryan Invasion Theory will be

useful to explore the critical features of this study. The current study is significant

because it will analyse the Aryans civilization.

Aryans Aryan Invasion Indian

What is Aryan What is the Impact on

Figure 1: Conceptual and Theoretical Framework

Expected Findings

This study may be resulted as follows;

1. Findings of this study will examine how Aryans invaded into Indian

sub-continent.

2. Finding of this study will explore the real history of Aryans

Civilization which had a great impact on Indian culture.

3. Findings of this study will also help to identify the social, cultural,

religious and identical differences among various civilizations i.e.

Muslim, Hindu, Budhism, Sikhs etc. in Indian sub-continent.

4. Findings of this study will also help to know how different social

classes work, operate and resist against foreign civilizations to invade

in to their demographical circle.

10
Tentative Chapterization

This study will comprise six chapters from which first chapter will discuss

introductory features like study background, significance, statement of problem,

objectives, research questions, literature review, research methodology, theoretical

framework and expected results while the second chapter will highlight the history of

Aryan Civilization along with its cultural and conceptual foundations. Third chapter

will explore how Aryn Civilization invaded in Indian sub-continent and when it has

completely dominant the Indian communities into its cultural, political, economic and

religious concepts. In chapter four, the resistance and movements of Indian

communities including Muslims, Sikhs, Budhmat etc. against Aryan Civilization will

be discussed. The fifth chapter will be contained on comparison among Aryan

Civilization and other communities in terms of their civilizations, concepts and social

differences. The last and final chapter will comprise on discussion, conclusion and

recommendations.

References

1. Doniger, Wendy. The Hindus: an Alternative History. New York: The

Penguin Press, 2009, p. 57

2. Kulke, Hermann and Rothermund, Dietmar. A History of India. 5th Ed. New

York: Routledge, 2010, p. 132

3. Müller, Max. On the Relation of the Bengali to the Arian and Aboriginal

Languages of India. In Three Linguistic Dissertations Read at the Meeting of

the British Association in Oxford. London: Richard and John E. Taylor, 1848,

Pp. 50-319

4. Staal, Frits. Discovering the Vedas, Origins, Mantras, Rituals, Insights. New

Delhi: Penguin Books, 2008, p. 56

11
5. Wolpert, Stanley. India. 4th Ed., Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of

California Press, 2009, p. 87

6. Reddy, A. L. (2016). Archaeology of Indo-Gulf relations in the early historic

period: The ceramic evidence. Bridging the Gulf: Maritime cultural heritage

of the western Indian Ocean, 53-78.

7. Tripathy, R. Green City: Akey To Protecting Wilderness.

8. Keppens, M. (2017). The aryans and the ancient system of caste. Western

foundations of the caste system, 221-251.

9. Schlee, G. (2013). Ruling over Ethnic and Religious Differences: a

comparative essay on empires.

10. Witzel, M. (2000). The home of the Aryans.

12