SACRED GROVES OF JHARKHAND

 

A Sarna in the woods of Jharkhand. 

Sarnas in Jharkhand have predominance of Saal trees as in this grove.

Sacred groves were worshipped as one of the foremost temples of the humankind in the entire sub-continent of India along with the rest of the world in the hoary antiquity and they still are by both the tribal and the non tribal communities. Across the Indian landscape these groves are known with different names as in Ajmer they are known as Kenkri where as in other parts of Rajasthan they are called Vani. In Kerala the sacred groves are known as Kavu and in  Meghalaya they are called Lyndoh.

Both the tribals and non tribals of rural Jharkhand still worship in water holes known as chuiyan, caves called kho, megaliths locally known as sasandiri, birdiri, haragarhi. jaangraha or jaanbagha et al and also in sacred groves known differently with different names as Sarna, Madar or Mandar, Gamhel or Majhi Than in different regions of the state. 

These sacred groves of Jharkhand may not be as large as the ones in the North-East or in Kerala but they can be spotted any where in the state. Surprisingly many of these grove temples as in the district of Chatra house megalithic burials as well.

The different names of these groves are because they are worshipped by different communities of tribals or even non-tribals and these groves house different deities but indubitably these groves in Jharkhand are indeed female/Mother principles.

SARNA

Sarna is a cluster of trees where the adivasis would worship in various occasions. Such a grove among many others must house atleast five saal (shorea robusta) trees also known as sorjum, held very sacred by the tribals.

Many anthropologists believe that the Mundas arrived in Jharkhand first (this claim is ofcourse shunned by the austric Asurs who believe that they had arrived in Jharkhand prior to the Mundas) claiming their khunkatti. The Mundas cleared the woods and left a cluster of the primitive forest as a memory and began worshipping it as their Sarna.

A Sarna in Gurua

The origin of the word Sarna lies in mystery, but the noted scholar on tribal matters,the late D.B.Kisku of Dumka who has authored more than five books on the Santals and is also an authority on tribals' history believes that  the adivasis had migrated from Sumeria/Chaldea where among many other goddesses they also worshipped  Goddess Anna or Anu. 

Arriving in India thousands of years ago they carried Goddess Anna too with them along with other deities who they later 'placed' within their Sarnas. Sarna therefore can be understood to have stemmed form the confluence of two words Sar or the Sal trees and Anna or the goddess Anna. 

                     

                                                 A Sarna in Banjha

Sarna therefore can be regarded as the sacred grove of Sar(sal) trees where the Goddess Anna resides. It is true that the Sarna is a female principle.

Sacred groves are worshipped by the tribals in different parts of India and are known with various names . In the Santal Parganas the Santals regard their grove as Jaher Than where the Santal deity Jaher Era or Goddess Jaher resides. In Jaisalmer these Sarnas are called Oraan. 


Sarnas in Jharkhand are the new target of destruction resulting from mining and other destructive activities on going in Jharkhand and in many other states as no one has respect for the tribal way of life, their temples and heritages.
The priests of Sarnas or Jaher Thans called Pahans, Naike, or Mati etc respectively  are usually tribals as Mundas, Ganju, Asur, Pahadiya or Santals in origin. Worship in a Sarna is conducted primarily during the Sarhul festival of the tribals and even during the Asadiya puja during the Asad months in June apart from other rituals.

MADAR or MANDAR 

Mandars have the dominance of Banyan and Peepal trees.

The non-tribal Hindus also worship in sacred groves in many villages of Jharkhand which they call Madar or Mandar. It could be that the adivasis having moved away from these villages left behind their sacred Sarnas which the Hindus later began worshipping perhaps naming them Mandar. Mandar may be a mutilated form of the Sanskrit term Mandir or temple.

A Mandar called TONGRI BABA in Nagoa. (The site positioned atop a small tongri is at the brink of complete destruction due to stone mining)

A Bankura Horse shaped tree near the Mandar grove.

The sacred temple of quartz stones. Sitting on the cemented platform is the pahan of the alternative open air temple situated within the Mandar grove.

Below. 

Another sacred Mandar grove

 A child pahan (priest) of the Bhuiyan tribe conducting the gachatti rites in the Tuti Mandar by sacrificing a hen after feeding him rice and local hooch (in the bottle).

                                  A non tribal Mandar grove in Banadag 

It however may not be true that Sarnas and Madars or Mandars are same. My study shows that these sacred groves were raised by different set of people; as Sarnas have a dominance of Saal trees the Mandar however has prominence of Peepal or Banyan type Hindu trees and these have hardly and tribal Saal.
The priests of Mandars are Ganjus, Bhuiyans etc. The Asadiya Puja too is conducted during months of June and even personal gachatti rituals are conducted in regular manner.


GAMHEL

A GAMHEL IN OBRA.
Gamhels like Mandars comprise non-tribal trees as Peepal, Banyan and Simul etc trees.

A Gamhel in Rola.

Gamhels are sacred groves typical to Chatra and are non tribal in origin. Nothing could be deciphered in regards to the etymology of the term Gamhel.  In such groves there are predominance of Hindu trees as Peepal and banyan etc. What difference is there between the Gamhel and Mandar groves is still not established. The priests of Mandars are Ganjus, Bhuiyans etc. Much in the fashion of ritualistic oblations in a Mandar, the Asadiya Puja too is conducted during months of June and even personal gachatti rituals are conducted in regular manner in such Gamhels.

AILWARE & CHUTO KURIA

Both the Ailwares and Chuto Kurias are sacred groves of the Mal and the Kumarbhag Pahadiyas in the Godda sub-division of the Santal Parganas. The nature of worship in such groves are more or less similar to the rituals conducted by the pahans or the naikes in other sacred groves of the state i.e. sacrifice of cock etc.

JAHER THAN

                                                                                        Jaher Than

JaherThans are temple groves of the Santal tribe. In Purulia and Santhal Parganas these groves are found in profusion as the Santals had arrived here about a few hundred of years ago from Hazaribagh. JaherThans can also be spotted in Hazaribagh and Giridh district; an evidence of their stay here prior to their migration to Saatbhum or Purulia and subsequently to the Santal Parganas. However there are plenty of Santal villages yet in and around Hazaribagh and Giridih along with their sacred groves; the Jaher Than. 

 .Much similar to the Mundari and Oraon Sarna a Santali Jaher Than too would comprise of at-least five saal (shorea robusta) trees. 

According to the noted Santal researcher the late D.B.Kisku of Dumka the term Jaher Than is derived from the confluence two austric words Jaher and Than. 
His research has shown that Jaher Than is the abode of Jaher Era. Jaher being the deity while Era in Santali means Goddess. Than suggests place. Jaher Era therefore means the than or the abode of Goddess Era.

MEGALITHIC BURIALS IN GROVES

This megalithic site is housed within a Mandar. The site is called Purni Mandar.

This  Sarna in Banjha comprise of a large megalithic burial within itself.

I have sighted megalithic burials both in Sarnas and Mandars and am yet to see one within a Gamhel. That  I have not perceived a megalithic site in such a grove would not mean that a Gamhel does not hold megalithic burials but only that I have not sighted one..

Megalithic burial sites within a Sarna: Banjha, Rohmar etc
Megalithic burial sites within a Mandar: Purni Mandar, Hurnali etc.

Megaliths of Jharkhand: Destruction of the Megalithic Complex of Chano

Subhashis Das

Cited from my following books :

1. UNKNOWN CIVILIZATION OF PREHISTORIC INDIA: Kaveri Books. New Delhi.

2. THE ARCHAEOASTRONOMY OF A FEW MEGALITHIC SITES OF JHARKAHND. Niyogi Books. New Delhi.

3. LOST HERITAGE OF JHARKHAND INCLUDING MEGALITHS (Colours of Jharkhand). Outlook. Traveller Getaways. New Delhi.

The now demolished tiny yet the most significant megalithic complex of Chano

In this blog page I mention one major megalithic complex of Chano in the state of Jharkhand in East India which I had discovered over 2 decades ago. These stunning megaliths apart from being burials of the dead were created by using using basic geometry and astronomy.

Chano was a very small and insignificant looking megalithic complex. A few slim recumbent stones suggested that they were used as burial covers which differed from the sasandiri type burials of the proto austroloid Mundas, Asurs and other tribes.

The walls of a large dug out from which the villagers collected mud for their use revealed fragments of pottery and microliths. I had collected a few broken Black on Red Ware pottery and even a section of a bone flute apart from iron arrowheads, few iron implements and large amount of iron slags. 
Chano also comprised of a phallus stone. 

The site interestingly had three triangular stones of which two smaller ones were accurately positioned towards the sunrises and sets of the Summer and the Winter Solstices. 

This image shows the accurate positioning of the stones within the complex

We gather to witness the Winter Solstice Sunrise at the now demolished Chano megaliths where the small stone triangle A points towards it.

I am not citing more about the mathematics and alignments of the site in here as for that you need to read my above mentioned books, particularly THE ARCHAEOASTRONOMY OF A FEW MEGALITHIC SITES OF JHARKHAND which can be procured from major book stalls or online from Flipkart or Amazon etc.

 Today this major site exists no more as the land mafia has felled and towed with them the prehistoric stones demolishing this major heritage of our country, forever. 
   

PHOTOGRAPHIC TOUR OF MUSSOORIE

 I have seen that most of the hill stations in India are known as the Queen of the Hills, but Mussoorie indeed is a queen among all the hill stations in India. 

Here below I present a small photographic display of the wealth of the beauty of Mussoorie.

A few landmarks of the hill town:

The famed library of Mussoorie town that was established by the British in 1843

The Mall

The renowned Cambridge Book Store made famous by the presence of Ruskin Bond here on every saturday.

The well-known cycle rickshaws of Mussoorie.

The celebrated British benches at The Mall

The spectacular Kempty waterfalls

...but the real beauty of  Mussoories lies in her outskirts..

Wandering amidst the tall deodars, oaks and pines and listening to the constant buzz of the cicadas, the call of numerous birds and the murmur of some flowing stream somewhere in the woods...

Budding wild flowers inside the Mussorie Wild Sanctuary that draws hundreds of bees towards these. 

Sipping a hot cuppa tea and listening to the silence and the language of the woods.

A jungle stream that runs through the unknown hedges and shrubs, the deodars and the oaks oozing musical chimes.

Were Viracocha of the pre Inca and Incas and Viracol/Virakhod of India, same?

 Subhashis Das

Left: Viracocha of Peru on a standing stone (credit: Pinterest). Right: a standing stone (menhir) called Viracol/Birakhod/Birdiri in India. 

Could Viracocha of the Incas in South America and Viracol (Virakol)/Birakol or Viracod/Birakhod of India represented as menhirs be of same origin?

Viracocha, also called Weiraquocha etc was a pre-Incan God who was later absorbed into the Inca fold. Inca beliefs confirm that Viracocha made the earth and the sky and it was he who taught them the various facets of civilization and culture.
He is also represented in the bearded form on tall standing stones known as menhirs which are sacred to the Incas. 

Strangely the tall standing stones (menhirs) are called with names close to Viracocha as Viracol (Virakohl)/Birakhol, Virakallu/Birakallu, Birdiri and Virakhod/Birakhod by both the megalithic tribals and the non-tribals in large parts of India.

 Megalithism is a cultural and a civilizational phenomenon that once flourished during times of prehistory all over the globe and which still does in India of which menhir is an accessory. Megaliths were known with different names all over the globe.

 We however have no evidence to suggest that Viracol (Virakol) was a God of the megalithic tribals in India; nonetheless etymologically Viracocha and Viracol (Virakol) are dissimilar.
 However the near similar pronunciation of the words and they being represented as/on menhirs and they being sacred to both the Incas and Indian tribals does put forth several questions;  could Viracocha and Viracol (Virakol) despite being separated by thousands of miles and being of near identical articulation be the same or of  the same origin?

Cart Ruts of India

 Subhashis Das

    India has numerous cart ruts. This blog-page cites only a few of the large treasure of these ruts in the country.

     Rajgir has only one pair of chariot/cart ruts or incised parallel grooves on the bed rock (refer to the plates below). 

  How these ruts have formed is not known but Archaeological Survey of India has put up a board (refer to the pic below) that does NOT speak much about the ruts; indication that these people have clearly avoided the mystery of the tracks. 

   However as the legend goes they have associated the ruts with Krishna and the Mahabharata. 

   Just beside the cart rut in Rajgir embossed on a horizontal slab of rock are the undecipherable Sankh Lipi (Conch script).(Image below)

                 The sankh Lipi (the Conch Script) beside the cart rut in Rajgir.

                                 Board of ASI in Rajgir

   Cart ruts have been found all over the world as in Malta, Portugal and Rome etc. They have also been found in various places across India as in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu (refer to the pics below) other than Rajgir.

Bidar. Karnataka

Mahabalipuram. Tamil Nadu

Mahabalipuram. Tamil Nadu

   

These ruts have been discovered in Jharkhand

Credit: Lalit Vijay 

   Lalit Vijay has discovered a pair of something that can perhaps be called smaller sized cart ruts on a boulder  at the origin of the Damodar River at Chulha Pani in Jharkhand. 

Can these chiselled marks be called ruts, well they do appear to be so.

    It is difficult to say whether these ruts across the world and India are geological formations or they were created by prehistoric humans. If these parallel track marks were man made then how were these made and why?

The Amazing Barabar and Nagarjuna caves

We travelled to the Barabar caves through Gaya. The 10 km stretch from Bela to the rock-cut caves of Barabar Hill is perhaps the worst road I have travelled on  so far. The villagers say that the road has not been repaired for decades.

Our local contact Avinash met us midway to the Hills who accompanied us as our guide . He told us that the twin hills of Nagarjuna and Barabar comprise of seven rock-cut caves, the oldest of it kind in India. 

We decided to drive to the Barabar Hill first about 1.5 kms from the Nagarjuna Hill. Avinash, our guided highlighted us that the Barabar Hill comprised of four rock-cut caves. 

The Barabar Rock-Cut caves

                   (Co ordinates: Long: 85 deg 3' 46.8" E Lat : 25 deg 0' 18" N)

Arriving at the Barabar Hill we began ascending the steps that would lead us to the caves.Today Hindu temples have been built both at the bottom and at the peak of the hill. 
Avinash narrated that Archaeological Survey of India has put up gates at the entrance of the caves as visitors were desecrating the ancient caves by writing on their walls.These caves were built for the now defunct Ajivika monks during the reigns of both Ashoka and Dashrath (Ashoka’s descendant) between 3^rd and 2nd cent BCE. The four rock-cut caves in Barabar are believed to have been made between the 3rd to 2nd cent BC during the Mauryan era perhaps by Piyadasi Ashoka the Great; all of which were dedicated to the bhikshus of the Ajivika sect. 

 

The three caves of Karan Chaupar, Lomas and Sudama are crafted in one submarine type monolithic granite stone of which Karan Chaupar is at the North West and the rest two on the opposite side.

These caves are believed to be older than the ones of Nagarjuna. One learns from the inscriptions that the Hill during the Mauryan period was called Khalatika Hill. 
According to a new set of researchers the earlier scholars had missed out on the word "nishidhi" in the inscriptions which according to them means attaining moksha by fasting to death much similar to the manner of the Jainas. This find shows that the Ajivika ascetics may had also practiced the death ritual in these caves.

Karan Chauper cave: 

Built possibly around 245 BC, the cave has a floor area of about 10 X 4.2. m. The name seems Hindu in origin is sure to have been ordained later. The Brahmi script on the doorway wall however names the cave as Supiya cave. 
The back wall to the NW has a platform perhaps for the high priest to address the congregated Ajivika bhikshus. The polished entrance to the cave opens to 20 deg NE of N. The rock-cut cave reveals stunning acoustics.
The inscription states,  "The King's grace when he had been sanctified nineteen years granted the Supiya Cave in Khalatika Hill for as long as the sun and moon endure."

The Karan Chaupar Cave

The glossy surface of the inner walls of the cave like the other ones is fascinating. Notice the  flash of the camera  being reflected by the shinny back wall. The platform was perhaps meant of the Guru or the Chief Monk to sit and address the resident monks

The opposite back wall of the Karan Chauper with the door at its side

Lomas Rishi cave: 

Elephants have been carved on the arch type entrance on the facade which can be seen paying obeisance to a stupa (perhaps that of Buddha) which was perhaps a copy of wooden structures of contemporary times. 

The inside has two chambers which seem to have been deserted leaving the cave unfinished.
The ceilings  and the floors of both the chambers has distinct chisel marks.  The reason that the cave was deserted is clear as a long crack can be viewed inside the cave. Rain water still seeps in through this crack and the cave gets flooded during monsoon suggesting that habitation in the cave during ancient times was impossible for the monks hence was deserted.
The back wall has two horses drawn on them. The doorway which also houses inscription  on it  opens up towards 220 deg SW. One 7th/8th century inscription speaks of Sardulvarman and his son Ananatvarman of the Maukhari dynasty. The inscription also suggest that a Krishna idol was once placed inside the cave by them.

The facade of the Lomas cave. The exquisite carving here shows the elephants offering their reverence to a stupa 

The ASI caretaker opens the gate of the Lomas cave for us.

The unfinished floor of this unfinished Lomas cave

The roof of the unfinished inner sanctum of the Lomas replicates a circular mud hut..

The linear crack in the unfinished ceiling of the Lomas is visible here. Rain water seeped in through this crack during the monsoon flooding the cave which perhaps compelled the artisans to desert it without its completion.

SUDAMA OR NIGOHA KUBBA OR THE BANYAN TREE CAVE: 

Located just adjacent to the Lomas cave and behind the Karan Chaupar was supposedly built around 261 BC making it the oldest rock-cut caves of them all .
The cave also has two chambers similar to the Lomas cave. This cave too has been given a Hindu name but according to the inscription on the doorway the cave was originally named "Nigoha Kuba" or the "Banyan Tree cave" .

The mysterious science fiction type inner chamber is actually  the copy of a circular mud hut of yesteryear. 

The circular chamber has acoustics that has to be heard to be believed.The creation of the stunning echo effect inside the inner chamber required for their rituals is perhaps testimony of high skill of science prevalent among these unknown skilled artisans during the Mauryan era. 

Pillars in front the entrance of the cave have been found during the excavation suggesting that the entrance was once perhaps more grand. The shine of this cave wall also known as the Mauryan shine is indeed stunning and is the best of all the caves. The doorway also opens towards 220 deg SW.

The inscription on the doorway reads "The Banyan Tree cave was granted to the Ajivikas by the king's grace when he had been consecrated twelve years."

The Sudama Cave is believed to be the oldest of the caves. Lomas can be seen  in the right.

The inside of the Sudama. The cracked back wall has a recess carved in perhaps for a standing Buddha idol to be inserted in there.

The rock art of two horses done on the back wall.

The glossy doorway like all the rest of the doorways has a narrowed top and a wide bottom. Notice the flash of the glossy wall.

This mysterious science-fiction type structure inside the Sudama Cave in actuality is a prayer room  duplicating a circular mud hut. The architecture is stunning and  so is the gloss finish on the exterior and even on the circular inner walls. The echo  inside this hemispherical dark chamber is just incredible.

Vishwa Jhopdi cave:

The cave is the smallest of them all and can be reached by steps carved during the Mauryan period known today as Ashokan steps.

The property of the granite rocks here is such that walking on the steps over two millennia has also polished them, therefore one needs to be careful walking on them lest one may skid and fall.

The cave actually comprises of two cubical prayer rooms. the entrance is much different from the rest and also opens up to 220 deg SW. Many scholars believe the cave resemble many Egyptian architecture.

 

Both the above images are of the Vishwamitra or the Vishwa Jhopdi Cave. The small cave is different from the rest as it also has a different sized entrance way as well.

The Ashoka steps. The steps were sculpted during Ashoka era for the ascetics to ascend the caves. Notice the perforation to reduce the slipperiness.

The musical stone. Avinash demonstrates the musical quality of this amazing stone near the Viswa Jhopdi cave.

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                 The Nagarjuna Rock-Cut Caves

                                          Long: 85 deg 4'37.56' Eat: 25 deg 0' 51.84' N

After the rock-cut caves in the Barabar Hill it was our time to visit the Nagarjuna Hill some 1.5 kms away in which as Avinash enlightened us were three rock-cut caves. 

Monks of the now extinct Ajivkas sect too were believed to have resided and practiced their religion in these caves.
The hill is named after the Buddhist ascetic Nagarjuna, the founder of the Madhyamaka School of the Mahayana Buddhism.

The Nagarjuna caves are named as under:

Gopika (Gopi-ka-Kuba)
Vadithika (Vadithi-ka-Kuba)
Vapiyaka also known as Mirza Mandi (Vapiya-ka-Kuba)

The caves sculpted out of the granite rocks in the hill have been polished to give an extraordinary gloss finish that is seen to be believed. The perfect semicircles, arcs, spheres, hemispheres and linear edges too are unique.

The glass finish doorways have narrow tops and broadened bottoms and generally open up towards 220 SW of S which could be the direction of Bodh Gaya. This would mean the artisans looked hard to find the boulders whose  sides had such a  bearing in which the caves could be dug in.
The inscription reveals that Ashoka's descendant Dashratha devoted this cave to the Ajivikas. This inscription is in all the three rock-cut caves of the Nagarjuna Hill.

 

The Nagarjuna Hill, where there are three rock-cut caves.

 

Climbing up the ancient steps of the Nagarjuna Hill with Abhishek Mishra while Abhinash is a dot seen standing high up there near the Gopika caves

The Gopika Cave

The inner sanctum of the Gopika cave. The polished semi circular wall and the hemispherical ceiling is visible.

The glass finish doorway with Brahmi script on the right wall.

The Brahmi script on the left wall of the entrance to the cave with a possible Peepul leaf below  is also visible. Note the  precise right-angled edges .

The amazing science fiction type entrance to the Vadathika rock-cut cave.

Another view of the Star Wars type entrance to the cave. Note the precise edges. The polished doorways narrow at the top and broaden at the bottom.

The inner sanctum of the Vadathika cave. Note the architecture and the gloss shine of the inner sanctum.

The entrance of this cave is on the back wall and not on the side . The shinning side wall of the entrance is also visible. Like all the doorways here this one too is narrowed at its top and is broadened at the bottom.

THE VAHUVIKA OR VAPYA-KA-KUBBA CAVE

There is a well next to this cave which has dried up today. The name of the cave Vapya-ka-Kubba means "The cave next to the well" which suggests that it is for the well the cave had acquired its name.

The Vapiyaka cave is also visible to the left of the Vadathika cave.

This dried well is near the Vapiyaka cave that lends it name to the cave: Vapya-ka-Kubba or the Cave of the Well.

The hemispherical back wall of the Vapiyaka cave. Note how neatly the arcs, both at the top and the floor have been crafted.

Note the gloss finish of the doorway of Vapiyaka and the Brahmi script on the left wall. The circular holes both at the floor and the ceiling perhaps points to the fact that a wooden or iron door was fixed here.

The rock-cut caves exude exemplary skill of the artisans who created the caves. The perfect semicircles, arcs, spheres, hemispheres and linear and the inclined edges and the glossy finish of the walls have elevated these caves into masterpieces. 

No one for sure knows who the artisans were. Were these craftsmen Indians or were they hired from Egypt, Persia or Greece; no one knows for sure. 

But the polish has been christened as Mauryan Polish. Several statues and idols and even the Ashoka Pillars have been given this polish that has survived till date. What ingredients were used to acquire the shine is not known but the outstanding craftsmanship has survived the ravages of time for us to ponder as to how did the ancients do this...