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Primate Fossil Suggests Human Ancestors Originated In Asia, Not Africa

Primate Fossil Suggests Human Ancestors Originated In Asia, Not Africa
Posted: 06/05/2012 8:36 am Updated: 06/05/2012 8:36 am

By: Charles Choi, LiveScience Contributor
Published: 06/04/2012 03:14 PM EDT on LiveScience

Researchers have discovered remains of an anthropoid primate, now named Afrasia djijidae, in Myanmar. Here a reconstruction of the small primate, which probably weighed about 3.5 ounces.

The ancestors of monkeys, apes and humans may have originated in Asia and not Africa as often thought, new fossils suggest.

The origin of anthropoids — the simians, or "higher primates," which include monkeys, apes and humans — has been debated for decades among scientists. Although fossils unearthed in Egypt have long suggested that Africa was the cradle for anthropoids, other bones revealed in the last 15 years or so raised the possibility that Asia may be their birthplace.

Now, an international team of scientists has unearthed a new fossil in Southeast Asia that may prove that anthropoids originated in what is now the East, shedding light on a pivotal step in primate and human evolution.

The fossil is named Afrasia djijidae — Afrasia from how early anthropoids are now found intercontinentally in both Africa and Asia, djijidae in memory of a young girl from village of Mogaung in central Myanmar, the nation where the remains were found. The four known teeth of Afrasia were recovered after six years of sifting through tons of sediment, often working with oxcarts, since even cars with four-wheel drive cannot penetrate the area. [See Photos of the Myanmar Primate]

The teeth of 37-million-year-old Afrasia closely resemble those of another early anthropoid, the 38-million-year-old Afrotarsius libycus, recently discovered in the Sahara Desert of Libya. The anthropoids in Libya were far more diverse at that early time in Africa than scientists had thought, which suggested they actually originated elsewhere. The close similarity between Afrasia and Afrotarsius now suggests that early anthropoids colonized Africa from Asia.

This migration from Asia ultimately helps set the stage for the later evolution of apes and humans in Africa. "Africa is the place of origin of man, and Asia is the place of origins of our far ancestors," researcher Jean-Jacques Jaeger, a paleontologist at the University of Poitiers in France, told LiveScience.

The shape of the Asian Afrasia and the North African Afrotarsius fossils suggest these animals probably ate insects. The size of their teeth hints that in life these animals weighed around 3.5 ounces (100 grams), roughly the size of a modern tarsier.

It remains an open question how early anthropoids actually migrated from Asia to Africa. Back then, the two continents were separated by a more extensive version of the modern Mediterranean Sea, called the Tethys Sea. Early anthropoids may have either swum from island to island from Asia to Africa, or possibly have been carried on naturally occurring rafts of logs and other material washed out to sea by floods and storms. Other animal groups apparently migrated from Asia to Africa at this time as well, such as rodents and extinct piglike animals known as anthracotheres, Jaeger said.

After early anthropoids made their way to Africa, those left behind apparently died out in Asia. "Around 34 million years ago, there was a dramatic glacial event that cooled the world climate and affected Asia more than Africa. During that crisis, we suppose that all primitive Asian anthropoids disappeared," Jaeger said.

The anthropoids we see in Asia now, such as gibbons and orangutans, "immigrated from Africa some 20 million years ago," Jaeger said.

The researchers suggest early anthropoids were once present in areas between Myanmar and Libya. However, such fossils have yet to be unearthed, in part due to safety concerns in some of those regions — for instance, Afghanistan.

The scientists detailed their findings online today (June 4) in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Image Gallery: Our Closest Human Ancestor
Image Gallery: Cute Gelada Monkeys
Top 10 Mysteries of the First Humans

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/04/primate-fossil-human-ancestors-asia-africa_n_1569225.html?view=print&comm_ref=false

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First alphabet was invented by Canaanite miners - Orly Goldwasser

For a version with embedded hieroglyphs go to: http://tinyurl.com/6nhsdxn

The 'Rosetta stone' of the alphabet. Sandstone sphinx bearing a dedication in both Egyptian and Canaanite.

A is for Astonishing – the world’s first alphabet was not invented by the elites after all

It appears we owe our thanks to a group of Canaanite miners who toiled the Sinai desert and gave birth to every written system we know today.

By Orly Goldwasser | 09:43 25.05.12 |

At the beginning of the second millennium B.C.E., Canaanites toiling in the Sinai desert invented the world's first alphabet. The idea of an alphabetic writing system was conceived only once in history, and all known alphabets derive from that seminal script. From the genesis of writing, at the end of the fourth millennium B.C.E. up until the invention of the alphabet, scripts had consisted of hundreds of signs - cuneiform wedges in Mesopotamia and pictographic hieroglyphs in Egypt.

In addition to the difficulty these pre-alphabetic scripts presented with their tremendous sets of characters, the manner in which they guided their readers from sign to word was often tortuous. In these systems, characters could have multiple functions, so merely recognizing a symbol was not enough to understand what it meant. Some Egyptian words, for example, were represented by pictures that depicted the word's meaning. In those cases, the picture is called an "ideogram." For instance, the symbol for an ox was and a dais, or platform, was a straightforward.

But when a word's meaning could not be accurately conveyed with a single picture, a series of symbols were enlisted for the task. Hovever, these pictures no longer served their original function, as they now represented one or more sounds, rather than words. These pictures are called "phonograms." To illustrate, if "exodus" were an Egyptian word, it might have been depicted as "ox-dais" - . (The vowels need not correspond, since only consonants were represented in Egyptian writing.)

To these two categories, we must add a third. Most written words were appended with symbols that classified the word into one of many semantic categories. These "classifiers" had no counterpart in speech and were left unpronounced. In our fictional example, the classifier might have been , signifying movement. Our word would thus have been written: : . We therefore can see that a single symbol could have three distinct roles in the Egyptian writing system: (1 ) ideogram, (2 ) phonogram, (3 ) classifier.

Unlike many modern languages, Egyptian writing did not have a set direction. The word (from left to right ) could just as well have been written (from right to left ). The only rule was that texts were read "into" the symbols, meaning each hieroglyph faced the beginning of the line. This seems somewhat counterintuitive to modern readers (as it likely seemed to many ancient readers, as well ).

The new writing system conceived by Canaanite workers was a remarkable stroke of genius. Instead of hundreds of signs, there were now fewer than 30 to memorize. Even so, these few characters sufficed to represent each and every word in the language. And since these signs now reflected only sounds (and not ideas or categories ), readers would know immediately what each character represented.

Contrary to the prevailing scholarly consensus, according to which the alphabet was invented by members of the intellectual elite, I believe we owe our thanks to a group of illiterate miners. Their lack of education freed them from the shackles of conventional wisdom and facilitated the creation of an utterly novel writing system.
The miners' native tongue was Canaanite, dialects of which were spoken throughout the Levant, and they worked in an area known today as Serabit el-Khadem. Despite their non-Egyptian background, their work in the turquoise and copper mines of southern Sinai was in service of the pharaoh. It was there, nearly 4,000 years ago, that miners invented the alphabet that so many of us depend on today.

The Egyptian pharaohs sent large delegations to the summit of the Serabit el-Khadem mountain. These included not only miners, but also Egyptian scribes, treasury officials, doctors, donkey drivers, soldiers, stonemasons, interpreters - even scorpion sorcerers. In addition to the mining work, a temple was erected in honor of the Lady of Turquoise - better known as the Egyptian goddess Hathor. This impressive mountaintop temple yielded hundreds of inscriptions written in Egyptian hieroglyphs, many of which recounted the delegations' successes thanks to the divine blessings bestowed upon them.
Several hieroglyphic inscriptions were also found around the mines, not far from the temple. We can infer from the inscriptions that the delegations included numerous Canaanites who worked alongside the Egyptians in various capacities. These Canaanites ranged widely in status - from prince to miner - but it appears no slaves were present.

A telling clue

The trove of Egyptian inscriptions is not all that was found. Hilda Petrie (wife of renowned archaeologist Flinders Petrie, who excavated the site in 1905 ) discovered a few odd stones near one of the mines. These stones bore markings that looked like particularly amateurish imitations of Egyptian hieroglyphs, but Flinders Petrie was quick to suggest that they were some sort of alphabetic writing. He had the insight to reach that conclusion even though he was unable to make out a single word.
The script was deciphered in 1916 by Sir Alan Gardiner, a noted British Egyptologist, after realizing that it was a graphic representation of Canaanite dialect. Since then, some 30 such inscriptions have been discovered in and around the mines, and on the nearby roads. The temple itself yielded only a few small objects inscribed with the new script. For that reason, it seems likely that the inscriptions were the handiwork of miners - and not designated temple scribes, or their erudite Canaanite colleagues, as many scholars believe.

But how can we determine if the miners invented the alphabet themselves, and that they did not merely learn it from others? Fortuitously, it appears a telling clue has been lying in plain sight. Several Egyptian hieroglyphs inscribed at Serabit el-Khadem during the reign of Amenemhat III (19th century B.C.E. ) exhibit peculiarities that are mirrored in the early alphabetic script. These striking similarities suggest to me that the alphabet's characters were modeled after hieroglyphs that were in vogue in that particular time and place. This, in turn, indicates that - contrary to most scholars' opinion - the miners of Sinai were indeed the alphabet's inventors. This hypothesis is further substantiated by the fact that the few early alphabetic inscriptions found outside of Sinai have been dated to later periods than those from Sinai itself.
Despite the similarity between the alphabetic characters and hieroglyphs, it is apparent that the inventors of the new script were not well versed in the Egyptian writing system. Otherwise, it is hard to explain their decision to use two different snake hieroglyphs to represent the Semitic letter "N." No educated reader of the Egyptian script would have considered the symbols for the cobra

and the horned viper

interchangeable. Furthermore, the Canaanites broke the cardinal rule of character orientation by often writing each symbol as a mirror image of its Egyptian prototype. It is the equivalent of writing the word "scribe" as follows:

Lastly, the Canaanite inscriptions exhibit haphazard character size and row/column alignment, whereas Egyptian works are characterized by a strict adherence to typographic convention.

What, then, were the conditions that enabled low-class laborers to invent the alphabet in the Sinai desert? The illiterate miners of Serabit el-Khadem were surrounded by numerous Egyptian inscriptions. After all, the Egyptians were almost obsessive in their predilection for writing. The Canaanite workers would have understood that sequences of pictures were used for communication - with fellow Egyptians, as well as gods. Perhaps the Canaanites were drawn to the idea of etching their names into stone, thus eternalizing themselves and their prayers.

Labor in the dark mines was punishing and perilous. To the workers, the gods' dominion over their destiny was palpable on that hot and barren hilltop. Contacting the gods to seek their blessings was an existential need. The Canaanites sought to make contact with their own deities - Ba'alat (meaning "the Lady," the Canaanite appellation for Hathor ), and the Canaanite pantheon's patriarch, El.

The miners adopted only some two dozen symbols out of the hundreds available in the Egyptian repertoire. The pictures they selected depicted things from their everyday lives, such as water , an ox , a human head , arm or eye . Not knowing the complex rules of Egyptian writing, the miners put the hieroglyphs to use in an entirely original manner. Stripped of their original meanings, they served as inspiration for a new Canaanite script.

To name one example, the inventors of the alphabet identified the Egyptian hieroglyph as a head ("rosh" in Canaanite ), so they gave it the value of the first consonant in that word: "R." Now this symbol became a "free agent" in their system, no longer bound by the meaning of the image. This allowed it to mark an "R" sound in any word, regardless of meaning. It thus became what we call a "letter." The Egyptian reading for the same symbol was wholly dissimilar. It was mostly used as an ideogram for "head" and was pronounced something like "tap." But this was of no importance to the Canaanite inventors. The Egyptian system provided the "hardware," and nothing more.

Fashionable Canaanite hairdo

The writers of the new Canaanite script were untrained in the discipline of Egyptian writing and were incapable even of drawing accurate hieroglyphs. This lack of formal education might help explain why some characters changed in appearance as they transitioned from Egyptian to Canaanite. Later versions of the Canaanite "head" character, for instance, were adapted to reflect the fashionable Canaanite hairdo of the day - the "mushroom cut".

The Canaanites identified a box-shaped hieroglyph as the paradigmatic house. They named it "bet" - meaning "house" - and just as with the other symbols, this one represented only the first consonant. Once again, the character was divorced from the real-world object it represented, allowing it to mark the sound "B" in whatever word it appeared. In Egyptian, this symbol represented a stool, which was pronounced "p[oi]." Since the Canaanites were ignorant of the Egyptian value - after all, a square symbol can represent innumerable objects - they were free to supply it with any meaning they desired. The hieroglyph , which was common in contemporary Egyptian inscriptions from Sinai, was interpreted as a man calling "Hey!" (Perhaps they imagined their foreman yelling at them in the mines. ) They therefore called the letter "heh."

The Canaanite inventors didn't see themselves as strictly bound to the Egyptian repertoire - it merely provided a convenient set of characters to choose from. So when they sought a character for the "K" sound, they created their own symbol for the palm of a hand: "kaph".

The names of many alphabetic characters still hark back to their ancient origins, and speakers of Semitic languages can often understand their meanings even today. For instance, the word "ayin" means "eye" in modern Hebrew, corresponding to the original letter . The same is true for the shapes of the characters. The letter M in English preserves the ripples of the original water symbol: . Likewise, the letter A is an upside-down and somewhat simplified ox head: . The names of the letters probably allowed the unschooled Canaanites who used the new script to instinctively recall their shapes.

Up until the 12th century B.C.E., the Canaanite script is found only in brief inscriptions containing names and benedictions. This suggests that the script was still not used for administrative purposes, instead continuing its function as a means of memorializing oneself and communicating with the gods.

This disruptive innovation is interesting in several respects. First, if my analysis is correct, then this epoch-making invention was borne of religious and emotional impulses, rather than administrative needs such as tax collection. Second, the alphabet emerged from a weak segment of society, far from the cultural and political centers of the day. These people managed to preserve their innovation for centuries, thanks to its inherent accessibility and simplicity.

Not all technological revolutions lead immediately to cultural transformations. The advantages of the new writing system became a factor only when its users ascended to greatness. Near the end of the second millennium B.C.E., the central powers of the ancient Near East declined, bringing down the major cities in Canaan, along with their well-educated scribes. As the professional writers of Egyptian and cuneiform scripts disappeared, the void was filled by Canaanites from the periphery of society. These people would ultimately rise in power, coalescing into Hebrews, Ammonites, Moabites, Phoenicians and Arameans. Naturally, these new peoples made use of the Canaanite alphabet, which was born in their own milieu. The rest - as they say - is history.
The ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic script has been dead for millennia. Nevertheless, its phantom lurks in every modern alphabet. Despite the dramatic changes these alphabets have undergone as they evolved from generation to generation, almost every letter in use today can be traced back to the pictographs of ancient Egypt.
________________________________________
Orly Goldwasser is professor of Egyptology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She would like to thank Idan Dershowitz for his assistance in the preparation of the English version of this article. Haleli Harel and Dan Elharrar prepared the signs.
Illustrations originally appeared in the author's article "How the Alphabet Was Born from Hieroglyphs," published in Biblical Archaeology Review, March/April 2010.
http://www.haaretz.com/weekend/week-s-end/a-is-for-astonishing-the-world-s-first-alphabet-was-not-invented-by-the-elites-after-all.premium-1.432604

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Sarasvati river and civilisation - Rajesh Singh

June 6, 2012

The link to the Fluvial landscape study is at http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2012/05/researchers-conclude-that-climate.html

The Saraswati Civilisation

Author: Rajesh Singh

A fresh study by a group of international scientists confirms the dominant role of Saraswati river in sustaining the so-called Indus Valley Civilisation.

A new study titled, ‘Fluvial landscapes of the Harappan civilisation’, has concluded that the Indus Valley Civilisation died out because the monsoons which fed the rivers that supported the civilisation, migrated to the east. With the rivers drying out as a result, the civilisation collapsed some 4000 years ago. The study was conducted by a team of scientists from the US, the UK, India, Pakistan and Romania between 2003 and 2008. While the new finding puts to rest, at least for the moment, other theories of the civilisation’s demise, such as the shifting course of rivers due to tectonic changes or a fatal foreign invasion, it serves to strengthen the premise that the civilisation that we refer to as the Indus Valley Civilisation was largely located on the banks of and in the proximity of the Saraswati river.

More than 70 per cent of the sites that have been discovered to contain archaeological material dating to this civilisation’s period are located on the banks of the mythological — and now dried out — river. As experts have been repeatedly pointing out, nearly 2,000 of the 3,000 sites excavated so far are located outside the Indus belt that gives the civilisation its name.

In other words, the Indus Valley Civilisation was largely and in reality the Saraswati River Civilisation. Yet, in our collective consciousness, numbed by what we have been taught — and what we teach — we continue to relate this ancient civilisation exclusively with the Indus Valley. For decades since Independence, our Governments influenced by Leftist propaganda, brazenly refused to accept even the existence of the Saraswati river, let alone acknowledge the river’s role in shaping one of the world’s most ancient civilisations. In recent years, senior CPI (M) leader Sitaram Yechury had slammed the Archaeological Survey of India for “wasting” time and money to study the lost river. A Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture which he headed in 2006, said, “The ASI has deviated in its working and has failed in spearheading a scientific discipline of archaeology. A scientific institution like the ASI did not proceed correctly in this matter.”

Yet, on occasion after occasion, scientific studies have proved that the Saraswati did exist as a mighty river. According to experts who have studied the map of all relevant underground channels that are intact to date and connected once upon a time with the river, the Saraswati was probably 1500 km long and 3-15 km wide.

The latest study, whose findings were published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, too is clear on the river’s existence and its role in sustaining the ancient civilisation. The report said that the Saraswati was “not Himalayan-fed by a perennial monsoon-supported water course.” It added that the rivers in the region (including Saraswati) were “indeed sizeable and highly active.”

Will the new findings lead to a fresh thinking on the part of the Government and an acknowledgement that the time has come to officially rename the Indus Valley Civilisation as the Saraswati-Indus Civilisation? But the UPA regime had been in denial mode for years, much like the Left has been for decades. As the then Union Minister for Culture, Jaipal Reddy told Parliament that excavations conducted so far had not revealed any trace of the lost river. Clearly, for him and his then Government, it meant that the river was the creation of fertile minds fed by mythological books with an even more fertile imagination. The UPA Government then went ahead and slashed the budget for the Saraswati River Heritage Project — which had been launched by the NDA regime. The project report had been prepared in September 2003, envisaging a cost of roughly Rs 32 crore on the scheme. The amount was ruthlessly pruned to less than five crore rupees. In effect, the project was shelved.

However, despite its best efforts to do so, the UPA could not completely ignore the facts that kept emerging about the reality of the river and the central role which it had played in the flourishing of the so-called Indus Valley Civilisation. In a significant shift from its earlier stand that probes conducted so far showed no evidence of the now invisible Saraswati river, the Government admitted half-way through its first tenure in office that scientists had discovered water channels indicating (to use the scientists’ quote) “beyond doubt” the existence of the “Vedic Saraswati river”. The Government’s submission came in response to an unstarred question in the Rajya Sabha on whether satellite images had “established the underground track of Saraswati, and if so, why should the precious water resources not be exploited to meet growing demands?”

The Union Water Resources Ministry had then quoted in writing the conclusion of a study jointly conducted by scientists of Indian Space Research Organisation, Jodhpur, and the Rajasthan Government’s Ground Water Department, published in the Journal of Indian Society of Remote Sensing. Besides other things, the authors had said that “clear signals of palaeo-channels on the satellite imagery in the form of a strong and powerful continuous drainage system in the North West region and occurrence of archaeological sites of pre-Harappan, Harappan and post-Harappan age, beyond doubt indicate the existence of a mighty palaeo-drainage system of Vedic Saraswati river in this region… The description and magnanimity of these channels also matches with the river Saraswati described in the Vedic literature.”

Interestingly, the Archaeological Survey of India’s National Museum has been as forthright on the issue. This is what a text put up in the Harappan Gallery of the National Museum says: “Slowly and gradually these people evolved a civilisation called variously as the ‘Harappan civilisation’, the ‘Indus civilisation’, the ‘Indus Valley civilisation’ and the ‘Indus-Saraswati civilisation’.” The text further elaborates on the importance of the river: “It is now clear that the Harappan civilisation was the gift of two rivers — the Indus and the Saraswati — and not the Indus alone.”

There is another interesting aspect to the new study by the group of international scientists that deserves mention. The report has discounted the possibility of ‘foreign invasion’ as one of the causes of the ancient civilisation’s decline. But, long before this report was published, NS Rajaram, who wrote the book, Saraswati River and the Vedic Civilisation, had noted that the discovery of the Saraswati river had “dealt a severe blow” to the theory that the Aryans had invaded India, which then had the Harappan Civilisation. The theory supposes that the Harappans were non-Vedic since the Vedic age began with the coming of the Aryans.

But, since the Saraswati flowed during the Vedic period, the Vedic era ought to have coincided with the Harappan age. Rajaram says in his book that the Harappan civilisation “was none other than the great river (Saraswati) described in the Rig Veda. This means that the Harappans were Vedic.”

Not just that, experts have pointed out for long that there is no evidence of an invasion, much less from the Aryans who ‘came from outside’. Rajaram, like many others had concluded that the drying up of the Saraswati river and not some ‘invasion’ was the principal cause for the civilisation’s decline.

However, the latest study by the international group leaves a question mark on the origins of the river. The report claims that Saraswati was not a Himalayan river. But, several experts believe that the river originated from the Har-ki-Dun glacier in Gharwal. Let’s wait for the final word.

(The accompanying visual is a reconstruction of the gateway and drain at Harappa by Chris Sloan. Courtesy: Jonathan Mark Kenoyer, University of Wisconsin-Madison and www.sewerhistory.org)
http://www.dailypioneer.com/columnists/item/51748-the-saraswati-civilisation.html

3 Comments

Comment Link 06 June 2012 posted by Navaratna Rajaram
There is nothing new here, only the scholarly world has caughgt up with it. David Frawley and highlighted all this and gave also a reason for the 300 year drought that brought down not only the Harappan (Sarasvati) but also civilizations from Egypt to China. It was probably due to a 300 year drought that struck in a belt from the Aegean to China.

This was documented in the book VEDIC ARYANS AND THE ORIGINS OF CIVILIZATION by Navaratna Rajaram and David Frawley (1995). It saw three editions.

Later, in 2000, the late Natwar Jha and I (N.S. Rajaram) in our book THE DECIPHERED INDUS SCRIPT convincingly showed that the Sarasvati (Harappan) civilization was Vedic and its language related to Vedic Sanskrit.

This drew the wrath of anti-Hindu forces led by Romila Thapar who brought in the Hindu hater Michael Witzel to launch a personal attack against me and Jha, in the Communist magazine FRONTLINE.

Visit http://folks.co.in for details and also Professor D.K. Chakravarti of Cambridge writing about these leftists on history.

Comment Link 06 June 2012 posted by SatishChandra
Only Satish Chandra can make India the supreme power in the world immediately.

Satish Chandra is India's legitimate ruler:

http://SatyamShivamSundaramSatishChandra.blogspot.ca

An operative of CIA-RAW, which works for American rule over India and is responsible for all insurgencies and separatism in India -- see 'What You Should Know About RAW' ( http://WhatYouShouldKnowAboutRAW.blogspot.ca) -- is posting repeated comments on Times of India on how an Indian boy from Bengal who cracked centuries-old Math problems is Tamil because the scientific community in India is predominantly Tamil. Nobel Prizes, even in science, are awarded by Westerners to serve their imperialist interests. It is well known that Tagore got the Nobel Prize because he wrote 'Jana Gana Mana' as a hymn to the visiting British emperor. An Indian from Uttar Pradesh would easily merit half a dozen Nobel Prizes but an Economics Nobel was given to a mediocre man, Amartya Sen, as a substitute for the former to keep the Westerners' crimes against the former covered up; see 'How India's Economy Can Grow 30% Per Year Or More': http://HowIndiasEconomyCanGrow.blogspot.ca. Tamils are given Nobel Prizes because they are seen as less resisting of Westerners' rule/domination of the subcontinent; the British got into the subcontinent primarily through Bengal and Madras. Jews get a lot of Nobel prizes because of their ferocious crimes; see 'This Is What The Jews Have Been Doing': http://ThisIsWhatTheJewsHaveBeenDoing.blogspot.ca. On knowing this, Rajiv Gandhi when prime minister proposed that India have its own 'Nobel' prizes, but RAW nixed it. After 1857, Sikhs became a principal instrument of British rule over India -- see 'Source Of Manmohan Singh's 'Deep Love' For Bush' ( http://SourceOfManmohanSinghsDeepLoveForBush.blogspot.ca ) -- and the profusion of Sikhs in the 'line of succession' for Army Chief is in service of American rule over India. The Army Chief must immediately impose a 'discipline and vigilance ban' on the promotion of Lt. Gen. Bikram Singh, who has various charges against him pending in courts presided over by "blow with the wind" judges, to the post of Army Chief; there is no need to issue a show cause notice to him first as he did to Lt. Gen. Suhag. If the Army Chief does not do this by noon time, Indian Standard Time, on Monday, May 28 '12, the nuclear destruction of New Delhi simultaneously with that of Washington and New York should proceed immediately (see my blog 'Nuclear Supremacy For India Over U.S.' which can be found by a Yahoo/Google search with the title).

On April 2, 2010 I wrote (see my blog 'Nuclear Supremacy For India Over U.S.') "India's missile men [are] responsible for all of India's problems. They occupy themselves with unproductive activities when all that is needed is prepositioning India's nuclear bombs in U.S. cities OR getting rid of the traitor regime in New Delhi." These were two alternative paths for India to get into a position to destroy the enemy. India's nuclear forces have carried out the first of these alternatives -- emplaced India's nuclear warheads in U.S. cities, ready to be triggered. Triggering them to destroy the enemy has to be done without delay or dawdling because otherwise the enemy may carry out a first strike on India (see my blog) or, since the traitor regime in New Delhi remains in place, do something else, for example, with its special forces teams it has "laid down" in India as a U.S. admiral recently disclosed in Congressional testimony. Since the enemy holds India in slavery -- though this fact is covered up; see http://HaydenSubrahmanyam.blogspot.com for K. Subrahmanyam and CIA Director Michael Hayden coming on line and their offer to transfer one crore rupees into my bank account within 48 hours if I agree to work with them, a computer file of which has been attached to my press releases hundreds of times -- it is meaningless to talk of 'deterring' the United States; the task is to DESTROY -- not DETER -- the United States by simultaneously triggering the warheads in New Delhi, Washington and New York with a warning that additional U.S. cities will be destroyed if there is any retaliation. Destroying the enemy by triggering the warheads in Washington and New York should be a professional, happy act performed in an instant -- no need to agonize over it -- and the best time to trigger them is on a working day during working hours in Washington and New York between 9 A.M. and 5 P.M. Washington and New York time, though other days and times are also good.

Satish Chandra

Comment Link 06 June 2012 posted by suma
thank you for the article and yes UPA is against any word yet any letter that suggests hinduism. These are the very filks who will fall from grace and be blamed for the evils that have a complete control on the country. Dharma has evaporated and adharma prevailed everywhere. UPA has no idea what to to do. They dont debate water crisis, energy crisis and population explosion. They want to appease with some reservations and some subsidies. Bankruptcy of ideas , a classi era ongoing now

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Lady of the spiked throne (Massimo Vidale 2011). Celebration of a smiths' guild.

Reference: Massimo Vidale, 2011, The lady of the spiked throne, the power of a lost ritual, (with a contribution by Emanuela Sibilia) ed. by Paolo Biagi, Trieste, Eural Gnutti S.p.A. (Photography: Federica Aghadian) Source:http://a.harappa.com/sites/harappa.drupalgardens.com/files/Spiked-Throne.pdf

The find is compatible with the dates proposed on archaeological grounds (3rd millennium BCE).

My letter dated June 7, 2012:

Dear Prof. Vidale and Dr. Emanuela Sibilia,

At the outset, please accept my sincere and heartfelt congratulations on a tour de force of a mongraph with a stunning analysis of the terracotta ox-cart artifact of what I call the Indus-Sarasvati civilization.

I read and re-read he exquisite document and the breathtaking pictorial essay which takes any reader back in virtual time to 3rd millennium BCE.

I am sure that the monograph will serve as a reference for getting as close as possible to images of representative people of the civilization and their possible world-view evidenced in the social formation of the passengers of the cart including the central, dominant figure of a female seated on a throne (flanked by a pair of bulls) almost in a worshipful state, almost like a venerated Devi.

The presentation of the artifact is simply breathtaking and one cannot take one's gaze away from the exquisite pictorial presentations ably complimented by the accompanying essays of Massimo Vidale and Emanuela Sibilia.

Thanks a million for throwing such a flood-light on the most extensive civilization of the third millennium BCE.

Finally, a word of thanks to Harappa.com and to Carlos Aramayo for bringing this monograph of Massimo Vidale to the attention of students of the civilization.

What a privilege that we have dedicated scholars like Massimo to unravel the nature of a civilization clearing away the mists of time.

With the background provided by the monograph, I venture to read the message conveyed by the artifact as a representation of smiths' guild.

The reasoning is based on a rebus readings of the glyphs using the lingua franca of the Indian sprachbund which produced over 6000 Indus script epigraphs.

Now that we have a reasonable framework of Indian sprachbund (linguistic area) - cf. my work on Indian hieroglyphs -- , I would venture to

read the artifact as an artists' rendering of the extended family traveling on the bull-boat, a veneration of the ancestors -- of the family --, led

by the great mother:
Set 1: Glyph: ḍangar ‘bull’ (H.) adar ḍangra ‘zebu or humped bull’ (Santali)

Rebus: ḍāṅgar ‘blacksmith’ (H.)

Glyph: khũṭ ‘zebu’.

Rebus: khũṭ ‘guild, community’ (Santali. kūṭa joining, connexion, assembly, crowd, fellowship (DEDR 1882) Pa. gotta ‘clan’; Pk. gotta, gōya id. (CDIAL 4279)

Set 2: Glyph: Kur. kaṇḍō a stool. Malt. kanḍo stool, seat. (DEDR 1179).

Rebus: Wg. káṇṭä ʻwater -- channelʼ, Woṭ. kaṇṭḗl f., Gaw. khāṇṭ*l, Bshk. kāṇḍə. (CDIAL 2680) G. kãṭhāḷ ʻmaritimeʼ. (CDIAL 2682)

Rebus: kaṇḍa ‘fire-altar (Santali);

Set 3: Glyph: kola 'woman' (Nahali)

Rebus: kúla n. ʻherd, troopʼ RV., ʻrace, familyʼ Pāṇ., ʻnoble familyʼ Mn., ʻhouseʼ MBh. Pa. kula -- n. ʻclan, householdʼ, Pk. kula -- n.m. ʻfamily, houseʼ; Dm. kul ʻhouseʼ; Sh. (Lor.) d*lda -- kul ʻ grandfather's relations ʼ; K. kŏl m. ʻfamily, raceʼ; S. kuru m. ʻtribe, familyʼ, L. kull m., P. kul f.; WPah. bhad. kul n. ʻsub -- caste, familyʼ; N. A. B. kul ʻclan, caste, familyʼ, Or. kuḷa, OMth. kula; H. kul m. ʻherd, clan, caste, familyʼ, Marw. kul; G. kuḷ n. ʻfamily, tribeʼ, M. kūḷ n., °ḷī f.; OSi. -- kolaṭ dat. ʻfamilyʼ; -- Si. kulaya ʻfamily, casteʼ ← Pa. or Sk. -- Deriv. Or. kuḷā ʻof good familyʼ (CDIAL 3330).

Rebus: kol ‘working in metal’ (Tamil). kola ‘blacksmith’ (Ka.); Koḍ. kollë blacksmith (DEDR 2133). kolhe ‘iron smelter’ (Santali) kol, kolhe ‘the koles, an aboriginal tribe of iron smelters akin to that of the Santals’ (Santali) kulhu ‘a hindu caste, mostly oil men’; kulhu ‘an oil press’ (Santali) WPah.kṭg. kóllhu m. ʻ sugar -- cane or oil press ʼ. (CDIAL 3536).

For ready reference the monograph is embedded:

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/122221785/Lady-of-the-spiked-throne-(Massimo-Vidale-2011)Lady on the spiked throne (Massimo Vidale 2011)

Lady of the spiked throne. (Massimo Vidale, 2011)

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Kodumanal: archaeological artifacts (Slide show, May 2012)

A black polished ring stand unearthed in Kodumanal village. Dr. Rajan said: “Kodumanal is one of the major horizontal excavations done so far in Tamil Nadu. It is one of the sites in India where the highest number of inscribed potsherds have been found. The highest number of graves was opened here. The presence of pit-burial with skeletons in different postures, urn burials and chamber tombs of different types suggests that multi-ethnic groups lived at Kodumanal. The availability of Prakrit words such as ‘Tissan' and ‘Visaki' in Tamil-Brahmi scripts suggests that this industrial-cum-trade centre had cultural and trade contacts with northern parts of India.” Photo: K.Ananthan

A potsherd with the Tamil-Brahmi inscription reading 'Sam...', unearthed from one of the four habitation site trenches laid in Kodumanal village in Erode district in Tamil Nadu in May 2012. The excavation was done by the Department of History of Pondicherry University under the directorship of Prof. K. Rajan. Photo: K.Ananthan

Amethyst crystal found in a gemstone making industry at a habitation site unearthed at Kodumanal in Erode district. This important discovery was made during excavations at Kodumanal village in Erode district by the Department of History of Pondicherry University in May 2012. Beads from semi-precious stones such as quartz, carnelian, lapiz-lazuli, beryl, agate and so on were manufactured in this industrial complex Photo: K.Ananthan

http://www.thehindu.com/arts/history-and-culture/article3465932.ece

Bonanza at Kodumanal

May 28, 2012
Renewed archaeological excavation in Kodumanal village in April and May this year by the Department of History, Pondicherry University, has yielded a bonanza again.

Read on...

http://www.thehindu.com/arts/history-and-culture/article3463120.ece

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128m-year-old ancestor of squids,octopus found

London: Scientists have unearthed the fossils of a 128-million-year-old spiky creature which they say could be the oldest ancestor of the modern-day squid and octopus.Using 3D scanning technology,a team from the Austria National History Museum unearthed the fossil of the creature,called Dissimilites intermedius,a layer at a time,and then created a video of how the creature lived and moved.
The ammonite was discovered in sediment which formed at the bottom of the ocean during the Cretaceous period some 128 million years ago,but now lies at the top of the Dolomite mountains in the Alps.
The scientists said that the computer tomography had allowed them to see far more than they would ever have been able to with the naked eyewith the creature exposed a layer at a timeThe team,led by Alexander Lukeneder,also discovered that the body was covered with spines each between three and 4mm long.Computer tomography and a 3D reconstruction programme were used to help reconstruct not only the appearance of the fossil,but also to work out how it moved. The spokesman added that prehistoric Tethys Ocean,which existed between the continents of Gondwana and Laurasiam,had left behind millions of years-worth of sediment at the bottom of the sea.
Gondwana would break up to form much of the southern hemisphere,and Laurasia would form much of the northern hemisphere.As the centuries passed and the Alps folded out of the sea,some of the former sea-bottom sediment ended up on the peaks of the Dolomites.And it was here that a section of the former seabed was discovered with the thickest density of fossils.PTI

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CRISIS RECOVERY
Earth took 10m yrs to get over mass extinction: Study

London: It took about 10 million years for the Earth to recover from the greatest mass extinction which nearly wiped out life some 250 million years ago,a new study has suggested.Scientists have long been debating on how life recovered,whether quickly or slowly,from this cataclysm that allowed only 10% of plants and animals to survive.
Now,an international team from the China University of Geosciences in Wuhan and the University of Bristol found new evidence that suggested the recovery from the crisis lasted some 10 million years.According to the team,which detailed its finding in the journal Nature Geoscience,there were apparently two reasons for the delay,the intensity of the crisis and continuing grim conditions on Earth after the first wave of extinction.The end-Permian crisis,by far the most dramatic biological crisis to affect life on Earth,was triggered by a number of physical environmental shocks global warming,acid rain,ocean acidification and ocean anoxia.These were enough to kill off 90% of living things on land and in the sea,the researchers said.
It is hard to imagine how so much of life could have been killed,but there is no doubt from some of the fantastic rock sections in China and elsewhere round the world that this was the biggest crisis ever faced by life, said Zhong-Qiang Chen from the China University of Geosciences.Current research shows that the grim conditions continued in bursts for some five to six million years after the initial crisis,with repeated carbon and oxygen crises,warming and other ill effects.PTI

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Climate killed Harappan civilization

Decline In Monsoon Weakened River Dynamics,Leading To Collapse

Washington: Climate change may be the main culprit behind the collapse of the Indus Valley Civilization around 4,000 years ago,says a new study,which also claims to have resolved the long-standing debate over the source and fate of the Saraswati,a sacred river in Hindu mythology.
The study,combining the latest archaeological data along with state-of-the-art geoscience technologies,suggested that decline in monsoon rains led to weakened river dynamics,and played a critical role both in the development and the fall of the Harappan culture,which relied on river floods to fuel their agricultural surpluses.The international team,which published their findings in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,used satellite photos and topographic data to make and analyse digital maps of landforms constructed by the Indus and other neighbouring rivers,which were then probed in the field by drilling,coring,and even manuallydug trenches.Collected samples were used to determine the sediments origins,whether brought in by rivers or wind,and their age,in order to develop a chronology of landscape changes.
We reconstructed the dynamic landscape of the plain where the Indus civilization developed 5,200 years ago,built its cities,and disintegrated between 3,900 and 3,000 years ago, said lead researcher Liviu Giosan,a geologist with Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in the US.Our study suggests that the decline in monsoon rains led to weakened river dynamics,and played a key role both in development and the fall of Harappan culture, he said.
The research,which was conducted between 2003 and 2008,also claimed that the mythical Saraswati river was actually not fed by glaciers in the Himalayas as believed.Rather,it was a perennial monsoon-supported watercourse and aridification reduced it to short seasonal flows,the researchers said.PTI

ANCIENT MYSTERY SOLVED Ruins of Mohenjodaro in Pakistan

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Spinner bas-relief of Susa, 8th c. BCE -- message of wheelwright guild

Abstract
Hieroglyphs of a spinner bas-relief fragment from Susa dated to 8th cent. BCE (now in Louvre Museum) are identified. The Elamite lady spinner bas-relief is a composition of hieroglyphs depicting a guild of wheelwrights or ‘smithy of nations’ (harosheth hagoyim). The hieroglyphs are read rebus using lexemes of Indian sprachbund given the archeological evidence of Meluhha settlers in Susa.

Figure1. Susa spinner bas-relief fragment. Source: http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fichier:Relief_spinner_Louvre_Sb2834.jpg http://www.louvre.fr/en/oeuvre-notices/spinner

H. 9 cm. W. 13 cm. Bituminous stone, a matte, black sedimentary rock. With her arms full of bracelets, the spinner holding a spindle is seated on a stool with tiger-paw legs. Elegantly coiffed, her hair is pulled back in a bun and held in place with a headscarf crossed around her head. Behind the spinner is an attendant holding a square wickerwork(?) fan. In front is a table with tiger-paw legs, a fish with six bun ingots. Susa. Neo-elamite period. 8th to 6th century BCE. The bas-relief was first cited in J, de Morgan's Memoires de la Delegation en Perse, 1900, vol. i. plate xi Ernest Leroux. Paris. Current location: Louvre Museum Sb2834 Near Eastern antiquities, Richelieu, ground floor, room 11.

Reviewing eight volumes of Délégation en Perse, Memories publiès sous la direction de M. J. de Morgan, délégué-général (quarto, Leroux, editeur, Paris) and noting that a ninth volume was in print (1905), Ernst Babelon offers the following comments on the ‘bas-relief of the spinner’ of the Elamite Period (3400 - 550 BCE): “Again Chaldæan in origin, although of far later date, is a small diorite fragment of bas-relief called the bas-relief of the Spinner. It represents a woman sitting on a stool, her legs crossed and feet behind in the tailor's attitude. She is holding her spindle with both hands; in front of her is a fish lying on a table, and behind her a slave is waving the fly-flap.The round chubby faces of the figures recall the bas-reliefs of Khorsabad, which represent the eunuchs of the Ninevite palace.” (Ernst Babelon, 1906, Archaeological discoveries at Susa, in: Encyclopaedia Iranica.) http://www.cais-soas.com/CAIS/Archaeology/susa.htm

Porada refers to the bas-relief as from the neo-Elamite period and notes, from the details of dress and jewelry, of hair style and furniture found on the relief: “One would like to conclude from this that the Elamites were principally metal-workers who favoured more than other techniques that of modeling in wax in preparation for casting.” (Edith Porada, with the collaboration of RH Dyson and contributions by C K Wilkinson, The art of elamites http://www.iranchamber.com/art/articles/art_of_elamites.php )

Elamites used bitumen, a naturally occurring mineral pitch, or asphalt, for vessels, sculpture, glue, caulking, and waterproofing. Characteristic artifacts of Susa of 2nd millennium are of bitumen compound (containing ground-up calcite and quartz grains). Bitumen is naturally available around Susa and in Khuzistan. (Connan, I. and Deschesne, O. 1996. Le Bitume d Suse: Collection du Musee du Louvre. Paris: Reunion des Musees Nationaux, 228-337.) While discounting the possibility of Chaldæan origin, it is possible that the bas-relief was made at Susa by bronze-age settlers in Susa using the locally available bitumen.

The fish on a stool in front of the spinner with head-wrap can be read rebus for key hieroglyphs:

khuṭo ʻleg, footʼ. khũṭ ‘community, guild’ (Santali)
kāti ‘spinner’ rebus: ‘wheelwright.’
vēṭha’head-wrap’. Rebus: veṭa , veṭha, veṇṭhe ‘a small territorial unit’.
sāi kol ayas kāṇḍa baṭa ‘friend+tiger+fish+stool+six’ rebus: association (of) iron-workers’ metal stone ore kiln.

Hieroglyphs and rebus readings using lexemes of Indian sprachbund

The Indian linguistic area (sprachbund) is evidenced in linguistic studies of Emeneau, Kuiper and Colin Masica with speakers of Indo-Aryan, Munda and Dravidian languages adopting language features from one another. (Emeneau, MB, 1956, India as a linguistic area, Language 32, 1956, 3-16; Kuiper, FBJ, 1948, Proto-Munda words in Sanskrit, Amsterdam, 1948; 1967, The genesis of a linguistic area, IIJ 10, 1967, 81-102; Masica, CP, 1971, Defining a Linguistic area. South Asia. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.)

The Elamite lady spinner bas-relief is a composition of hieroglyphs depicting a guild of wheelwrights or ‘smithy of nations’ (harosheth hagoyim).

1. Six bun ingots. bhaṭa ‘six’ (Gujarati). Rebus: bhaṭa ‘furnace’ (Gujarati.Santali)
2. ayo ‘fish’ (Munda). Rebus: ayas ‘metal’ (Sanskrit) aya ‘metal’ (Gujarati)
3. kātī ‘spinner’ (G.) kātī ‘woman who spins thread’ (Hindi). Rebus: khātī ‘wheelwright’ (Hindi). kāṭi = fireplace in the form of a long ditch (Ta.Skt.Vedic) kāṭya = being in a hole (VS. XVI.37); kāṭ a hole, depth (RV. i. 106.6) khāḍ a ditch, a trench; khāḍ o khaiyo several pits and ditches (G.) khaṇḍrun: ‘pit (furnace)’ (Santali) kaḍaio ‘turner’ (Gujarati)
4. kola ‘woman’ (Nahali). Rebus: kolami ‘smithy’ (Te.)
5. Tiger’s paws. kola ‘tiger’ (Telugu); kola ‘tiger, jackal’ (Kon.). Rebus: kol ‘working in iron’ (Tamil) Glyph: ‘hoof’: Kumaon. khuṭo ʻleg, footʼ, °ṭī ʻgoat's legʼ; Nepalese. khuṭo ʻleg, footʼ(CDIAL 3894). S. khuṛī f. ʻheelʼ; WPah. paṅ. khūṛ ʻfootʼ. (CDIAL 3906). Rebus: khũṭ ‘community, guild’ (Santali)
6. Kur. kaṇḍō a stool. Malt. kanḍo stool, seat. (DEDR 1179) Rebus: kaṇḍ ‘fire-altar, furnace’ (Santali) kāṇḍa ’stone ore’.
7. meḍhi, miḍhī, meṇḍhī = a plait in a woman’s hair; a plaited or twisted strand of hair (P.) Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’ (Ho.)
8. ‘scarf’ glyph: dhaṭu m. (also dhaṭhu) m. ‘scarf’ (Wpah.) (CDIAL 6707) Rebus: dhatu ‘minerals’ (Santali)
9. Glyph 'friend': Assamese. xaï ʻfriendʼ, xaiyā ʻpartner in a gameʼ; Sinhala. saha ʻfriendʼ (< nom. sákhā or < sahāya -- ?). sákhi (nom. sg. sákhā) m. ʻfriendʼ RigVeda. 2. sakhī -- f. ʻwoman's confidanteʼ (Sanskrit), ʻa mistressʼ VarBrS. 1. Pali. sakhā nom. sg. m. ʻfriendʼ, Prakrit. sahi -- m.; Nepalese. saiyã̄ ʻlover, paramour, friendʼ (or < svāmín -- ); 2. Pali. sakhī -- , sakhikā -- f. ʻwoman's female friendʼ, Prakrit. sahī -- , °hiā -- f., Bengali. sai, Oriya. sahi, saï, Hindi. poet. saïyo f., Gujarati. saï f., Marathi. say, saī f. -- Ext. -- ḍ -- : OldMarwari. sahalaṛī f. ʻwoman's female friend’; -- -- r -- : Gujarati. sahiyar, saiyar f.; -- -- ll -- (cf. sakhila -- ): Sindhi. Lahnda. Punjabi. sahelī f. woman's female friendʼ, N. saheli, B. saylā, OAw. sahelī f.; H. sahelī f. ʻ id., maidservant, concubineʼ; OldMarwari. sahalī, sahelī ʻwoman's female friendʼ, OldGujarati. sahīlī f., Marathi. sahelī f. (CDIAL 13074). Apabhramśa. sāhi 'master'-- m.; Gypsy. pal. saúi ʻ owner, master ʼ, Sindhi. sã̄ī˜ m., Lahnda. sã̄i, mult. (as term of address) sāi; Punjabi. sāī˜, sāīyã̄ m. ʻmaster, husbandʼ; Nepalese. saiyã̄ ʻlover, paramour, friendʼ (or < sákhi -- ); Bengali. sã̄i ʻmasterʼ, (used by boys in play) cã̄i; Oriya. sāĩ ʻlord, king, deityʼ; Maithili. (ETirhut) saĩẽ ʻhusband (among lower classes)ʼ, (SBhagalpur) sã̄ĩ ʻhusband (as addressed by wife)ʼ; Bhojpuri. sāī˜ ʻGodʼ; OldAwadhi. sāīṁ m. ʻlord, master , lakh. sāī ʻsaintʼ; Hindi. sã̄ī m. ʻmaster, husband, God, religious mendicantʼ; Gujarti. sã̄ī m. ʻfaqirʼ, sã̄ ʻterm of respectful addressʼ; Marathi. sāī ʻtitle of respect, term of addressʼ; Sinhala. sāmi -- yā, hä° ʻhusbandʼ, himi -- yā ʻmaster, owner, husbandʼ (Perh. in Marathi. -- s affix to names of relationship (see śrī -- Add.). WPahari.poet. saĩ m. (obl. saĩ) ʻ friend, lover, paramour '. (CDIAL 13930). Rebus: 'association': Oriya. sāhi, sāi ʻ part of town inhabited by people of one caste or tribe '; sākhiya (metr.), sākhyá -- n. ʻ association, party ʼ RigVeda., ʻfriendshipʼ Mahāv. [sákhi] Pa. sakhya -- n. ʻ friendship ʼ (< sākhyá -- ? -- acc. sg. n. sakkhi and sakkhī -- f. from doublet sakhyaṁ ~ *sākhiya: cf. type sāmagrī -- ~ sāmagrya -- ) (CDIAL 13323). 10. Glyph: 'head-wrap': veṭha [fr. viṣṭ, veṣṭ] wrap, in sīsa˚ head-- wrap, turban M i.244; S iv.56. (Pali) Prakrit. veṭṭhaṇa -- n. ʻwrappingʼ, °aga -- n. ʻturbanʼ (CDIAL 12131). vēṣṭá m. ʻband, nooseʼ ʻenclosureʼ (Sanskrit), °aka- m. ʻfenceʼ, n. ʻturbanʼ lex. [√vēṣṭ] Marathi. veṭh, vẽṭh, veṭ, vẽṭ m.f. ʻroll, turn of a ropeʼ; Sinhala. veṭya ʻenclosureʼ; -- Pali. sīsa -- vēṭha -- m. ʻhead -- wrapʼ,vēṭhaka -- ʻsurroundingʼ; Prakrit. vēḍha -- m. ʻwrapʼ; Sindhi. veṛhu m. ʻencirclingʼ(CDIAL 12130). Rebus: 'territorial unit': veṭa , veṭha, veṇṭhe ‘a small territorial unit’ (Ka.IE8-4) (Pali) Assamese. Beran ʻact of surroundingʼ; Oriya. beṛhaṇa, °ṇi ʻgirth, circumference, fencing, small cloth worn by womanʼ. (CDIAL 12131). Pushto: باره bāraʿh, s.f. (3rd) ‘A fortification, defence, rampart, a ditch, palisade, an entrenchment, a breastwork’. Pl. يْ ey. (Pushto). Prakrit. vēḍha -- m. ʻwrapʼ; S. veṛhu m. ʻencirclingʼ; Lahnda. veṛh, vehṛ m. ʻfencing, enclosure in jungle with a hedge, (Ju.) blockadeʼ, veṛhā,vehṛā m. ʻcourtyard, (Ju.) enclosure containing many housesʼ; Punjabi. veṛhā, be° m. ʻenclosure, courtyardʼ; Kumaon. beṛo ʻcircle or band (of people)ʼ WesternPahari.kṭg. beṛɔ m. palaceʼ, Assamese. also berā ʻ fence, enclosure ʼ (CDIAL 12130). Hindi. beṛhnā ʻ to enclose, surround ʼ; Marathi. veḍhṇẽ ʻto twist, surroundʼ; (CDIAL 12132). kharoṣṭī 'blacksmith lip, carving' and harosheth 'smithy' kharoṣṭī the name of a script in ancient India from ca. 5th century BCE is a term cognate with harosheth hagoyim of the Old Bible. kharoṣṭī (khar + oṣṭa ‘blacksmith + lip’ or khar + uṣṭa – ‘blacksmith’ + ʻsettledʼ) is a syllabic writing system of the region where Indian hieroglyphs were used as evidenced by Indus Script corpora. The word –goy- in hagoyim is cognate with goy ‘gotra, clan’ (Prakrit). (Details in S. Kalyanaraman, 2012, Indian Hieroglyphs). gōtrá n. ʻ cowpen, enclosure ʼ RigVeda., ʻ family, clan ʼ1. Pali. gotta -- n. ʻ clan ʼ, Prakrit. gotta -- , gutta -- , amg. gōya -- n.(CDIAL 4279). http://tinyurl.com/79nm28f Etymology of harosheth is variously elucidated, while it is linked to 'chariot-making in a smithy of nations'. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harosheth_Haggoyim. Harosheth Hebrew: חרושת הגויים‎; is pronounced khar-o-sheth? Most likely, (haroshet) a noun meaning a carving. Hence, kharoṣṭī came to represent a 'carving, engraving' art, i.e. a writing system. Harosheth-hagoyim See: Haroshet [Carving]; a forest; agriculture; workmanship; harsha [Artifice: deviser: secret work]; workmanship; a wood http://tinyurl.com/d7be2qh Cognate with haroshet: karṣá m. ʻ dragging ʼ Pāṇ., ʻ agriculture ʼ Āp.(CDIAL 2905). karṣaṇa n. ʻ tugging, ploughing, hurting ʼ Manu (Sanskrit), ʻ cultivated land ʼ MBh. [kárṣati, √kr̥ṣ] Prakrit. karisaṇa -- n. ʻ pulling, ploughing ʼ; Gujarati. karsaṇ n. ʻ cultivation, ploughing ʼ; OldGujarati. karasaṇī m. ʻ cultivator ʼ, Gujarati. karasṇī m. -- See *kr̥ṣaṇa -- .(CDIAL 2907). Harosheth-hagoyim is the home of general Sisera, who was killed by Jael during the war of Naphtali and Zebulun against Jabin, king of Hazor in Canaan (Judges 4:2). The lead players of this war are the general Barak and the judge Deborah. The name Harosheth-hagoyim obviously consists of two parts. The first part is derived from the root , which HAW Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament treats as four separate roots (harash I, II, III, & IV). The verb (harash I) means to engrave or plough. HAW Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament reads, "The basic idea is cutting into some material, e.g. engraving metal or plowing soil." Derivatives of this verb are: (harash), meaning engraver; (haroshet) a noun meaning a carving. This word is equal to the first part of the name Harosheth-hagoyim; (harish), meaning plowing or plowing time; (maharesha) meaning ploughshare; (harishi), a word which is only used in Jona 4:8 to indicate a certain characteristic of the sun - vehement (King James) or scorching (NIV). The verb (harash II) most commonly denotes refraining from speech or response, either because one is deaf or mute, or because one doesn't want to respond. None of the sources indicates a relation with the previous root, and perhaps there is none, but on the other hand, perhaps deafness was regarded in Biblical as either being marked or else cut or cut off. The noun (horesh) from root (hrsh III) occurs only in Isaiah 17:9 and has to do with a wood or forest. The noun (heresh) from root (hrsh IV) occurs only in Isaiah 3:3 and probably means magical art or expert enchanter, or something along those lines. The second part of the name, hagoyim, comes from the definite article (ha plus the common word (goy) meaning nation, people, gentile. This word comes from the assumed root (gwh), which is not translated but which seems to denote things that are surpassed or left behind. Other derivatives are: (gaw a and gew), meaning back, as in "cast behind the back," i.e. put out of mind (1 Kings 14:9, Nehemiah 9:26, Isaiah 38:17); (gewiya), meaning body, either dead or alive (Genesis 47:18, Judges 14:8, Daniel 10:6). The meaning of the name Harosheth-hagoyim can be found as any combination of the above. NOBS Study Bible Name List reads Carving Of The Nations, but equally valid would be Silence Of The Gentiles or Engraving Of What's Abandoned. Jones' Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names reads Manufactory for Harosheth and "of the Gentiles" for Hagoyim. http://www.abarim-publications.com/Meaning/Harosheth.html Judges 4:13 And Sisera gathered together all his chariots, even nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the people that were with him, from Harosheth-goiim, unto the brook Kishon. Variant: harosheth hagoyim ‘smithy of nations’. Cognate with kharoṣṭī goy, ‘blacksmith’s lip clan’ खरोष्टी kharōṣṭī , 'A kind of alphabet; Lv.1.29'. Often, there is an alternative (perhaps, erroneous) transliteration as kharōṣṭī. The compound is composed of: khar + ōṣṭī (or, उष्ट mfn. ‘burnt' (CDIAL 2386); uṣṭa -- ʻsettledʼ (Sanskrit) (CDIAL 2385) ṓṣṭha m. ʻ lip ʼ RigVeda. Pali. oṭṭha -- m., Prakrit. oṭṭha -- , uṭ°, hoṭṭha -- , huṭ° m., Gypsy. pal. ōšt, eur. vušt m.; Kashmiri. wuṭh, dat. °ṭhas m. ʻlipʼ; Lahnda. hoṭh m., Punjabi. hoṭh, hõṭh m., WesternPahari. bhal. oṭh m., jaun. hōṭh, Kumaon. ū̃ṭh, gng. ōṭh, Nepalese. oṭh, Assamese. ō̃ṭh, MiddleBengali. Oriya. oṭha, Maithili. Bhojpuri. oṭh, Awadhi. lakh. ō̃ṭh, hō̃ṭh, Hindi. oṭh, õṭh, hoṭh, hõṭhm., Gujarati. oṭh, hoṭh m., Marathi. oṭh, õṭh, hoṭ m., Sinhala. oṭa.WesternPahari.poet. oṭhḷu m. ʻlipʼ, hoṭṛu, kṭg. hóṭṭh, kc. ōṭh, Garhwali. hoṭh, hō̃ṭ. (CDIAL 2563). utaṭu ‘lip’ (Tamil). In the context of use of the term kharōṣṭī for a writing system, it is apposite to interpret the compound as composed of khar + ōṣṭī 'blacksmith + lip'. "The Kharoṣṭī scrolls, the oldest collection of Buddhist manuscripts in the world, are radiocarbon-dated by the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO). The group confirms the initial dating of the Senior manuscripts to 130-250 CE and the Schøyen manuscripts to between the 1st and 5th centuries CE." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_in_archaeology "The Kharoṣṭī script is an ancient Indic script used by the Gandhara culture of ancient Northwest South Asia(primarily modern-day Afghanistan and Pakistan) to write the Gāndhārī language (a dialect of Prakrit) and the Sanskrit language. An abugida (or "alphasyllabary"), it was in use from the middle of the 3rd century BCE until it died out in its homeland around the 3rd century CE. It was also in use in Kushan, Sogdiana (see Issyk kurgan) and along the Silk Road where there is some evidence it may have survived until the 7th century in the remote way stations of Khotan and Niya...As preserved in Sanskrit documents the alphabet runs: a ra pa ca na la da ba ḍa ṣa va ta ya ṣṭa ka sa ma ga stha ja śva dha śa kha kṣa sta jñā rtha (or ha) bha cha sma hva tsa gha ṭha ṇa pha ska ysa śca ṭa ḍha ...

Paper strip with writing in Kharoṣṭī. 2-5th century CE, Yingpan, Eastern Tarim Basin, XinjiangMuseum...The Kharoṣṭī script was deciphered by James Prinsep (1799–1840), using the bilingual coins of the Indo-Greeks (Obverse in Greek, reverse in Pāli, using the Kharoṣṭī script). This in turn led to the reading of the Edicts of Aśoka, some of which, from the northwest of the Indian subcontinent, were written in the Kharoṣṭī script...The study of the Kharoṣṭī script was recently invigorated by the discovery of the Gandharan Buddhist Texts, a set of birch-bark manuscripts written in Kharoṣṭhī, discovered near the Afghan city of Hadda just west of the Khyber Pass in modern Pakistan. The manuscripts were donated to the British Library in 1994. The entire set of manuscripts are dated to the 1st century CE, making them the oldest Buddhist manuscripts yet discovered."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kharosthi
http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2012/04/kharoṣṭī-blacksmith-lip-carving-and.html

Conclusion

The bas-relief fragment of Susa contains hieroglyphs which are read from the lexemes of Indian sprachbund. The message is that the speakers are a guild of iron (metal, kol) stone ore (ayaskāṇḍa) workers belonging to the clan (association, saī) of wheelwrights (kātī). The glosses are of mleccha (meluhha), confirming the Indian hieroglyphic tradition evidenced by Indus script corpora. The Susa bas-relief fragment was written in an area which also used cuneiform syllabic script just as Indus script hieroglyphs continued to be used together with kharoṣṭī syllabic script from ca. 5th cent. BCE in the Indus script corpora area. Apparently, cuneiform was used to denote syllables of names, while the hieroglyphs denoted the professions and artisanal competence or repertoire of metal and mineral resources used using glosses from Indian sprachbund. It is likely that most of the animals such as antelopes, on cylinder seals of the interaction area (Mesopotamia, in particular) were not mere artistic devices but were hieroglyphs representing professions.

S. Kalyanaraman
Sarasvati Research Center
Kalyan97@gmail.com
May 28, 2012

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/121548091/Susa-spinner-bas-relief1
Susa spinner bas-relie

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Antithetical antelopes of Ancient Near East as hieroglyphs (Kalyanaraman 2012)

Antithetical antelopes of Ancient Near East as hieroglyphs

A unique metal artifact of ca. 3rd milennium BCE Ancient Near East, depicts antithetical antelopes with curling tails. Hieroglyphs of the metal artifact of ca. 2000 BCE Ancient Near East can be identified.

A locally made gold pendant of United Arab Emirates, from the Wadi Suq period. This is an evocation of a similar artifact of metal (perhaps gold or electrum ‘gold-silver alloy’) dated to ca. 2000 BCE.

The hieroglyphs are: 1. Antelope; 2. Mirror images joined back-to-back; 3. Curved mollusc as tail.
What do the hieroglyphs signify? Read rebus, it is a calling card of an ancient professional artisan/merchant. The meaning conveyed: Lineage stone (ore, tin) mint merchant.

The patterns of joined animals are most vivid on Indus script corpora which have been explained as sangaḍa ‘joined animals (allograph: standard device often shown in front of a young one-horned bull). Rebus reading explains this gloss as related to jangaḍ ‘treasure entrusted to the treasury’.

The rebus reading is based on the assumption that the images would have been ‘verbalised’ to render ‘meaning’ – as understood by the creators and by the responders of the message conveyed by the hieroglyphs of an artifact. The underlying argument is that the hieroglyphs are not mere decorative devices to be subject to art appreciation but an essential rendering of the economic activities of the people of the times.

This monograph provides examples of glosses from the Indian sprachbund (Meluhha) to read the hieroglyphs as follows:
Hieroglyph: śang, hang ‘snail, mollusc’; rebus: sang ‘stone (ore)’.

Hieroglyph: 1. Kashmiri. hāngi ʻ snail ʼ; Bengali. sã̄khī ʻ possessing or made of shells ʼ. 2. Kashmiri. hö̃giñ f. ʻ pearl oyster shell, shell of any aquatic mollusc ʼ. śāṅkhika ʻ relating to a shell ʼ (Sanskrit)(CDIAL 12380)

Hieroglyph: ranku ‘antelope’; rebus: ranku ‘tin’; ṭagara ‘ram’; rebus: tamkāru, dam-gar ‘(mint) merchant’.

Hieroglyph: Joined back-to-back: pusht ‘back’; rebus: pusht ‘ancestor’. pus̱ẖt bah pus̱ẖt ‘generation to generation.’

In summary, the meaning conveyed by the hieroglyphs is: lineage stone (ore, tin) mint merchant.

Read on...

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/120496443/Antithetical-antelopes-of-Ancient-Near-East-as-hieroglyphs

Antithetical antelopes of Ancient Near East as hieroglyphs

The rebus readings of antelope hieroglyphs and related etyma of Meluhha (Indian sprachbund) are also discussed in the context of hieroglyphs of
1. Warka vase at: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2012/05/hieroglyphs-on-warka-vase-read-rebus-as.html - Hieroglyphs on Warka vase read rebus as epigraphs (S. Kalyanaraman, 2012)
and
2. Seals and artifacts of Ancient Near East at:
http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2012/05/fwd-agade-list-enotes-antelope.html Antelope - Hieroglyphs of Near East and Indus Writing...(Kalyanaraman 2012)

NB. A correction. The gold pendant was made in United Arab Emirates (not Oman as originally stated on this blog). May 15, 2012.

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Surprise find links city temple to Pallava era

M T Saju TNN

Chennai: A beautiful sculpture,perhaps the only material evidence to prove that the famous Kapaleeswarar temple in Mylapore was built by the Pallavas,has been found abandoned below a tree near the temple tank.The 8th century sculpture of Jyeshthadevi,considered to be the elder sister of Goddess Lakshmi,was found with its lower portion buried under the earth.
P D Balaji,head,department of ancient history and archaeology,University of Madras,said he noticed the sculpture lying abandoned when he went to see the annual float festival a couple of months ago.I was taking a walk around the temple tank when I noticed this abandoned sculpture.The lower portion of it was fully buried under the earth.On a closer look,I saw that it was a beautiful Jyeshtha image,flanked by a male figure with bovine head on her right and a female figure on her left.The iconographical features show that it belongs to the 8th century AD, he said.
It is believed that Saiva saint Thirugnanasambandar,who lived during 6-7 th century AD,came to the temple and composed hymns in praise of the presiding deity.Even though the temple was in existence during the time of the Pallavas,there is unfortunately no vestige or sculptures inside it dating back to that period,as it underwent reconstructions and renovations at different points of time.Jyeshthadevi was once worshipped as one of the ashtaparivaradevatas in temples.You can see many sculptures of Jyeshthadevi in the Kailasanathar temple in Kancheepuram.Her image could also be seen in the early Pandya rock-cut art.But by the end of 11th century,due to some unknown reasons,the worship was stopped and the images of Jyeshtha were thrown out of the temples.The Jyeshthadevi must have faced the same fate, said Balaji.
Though this image was examined by archaeologist T A Gopinatha Rao in 1914 and included in his book Elements of Hindu Iconography, the sculpture got buried in passage of time.
mt.saju@timesgroup.com

BLAST FROM THE PAST: The Jyeshthadevi sculpture was found half-buried near the Kapaleeswarar temple tank

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Mirror of Tamil and Sanskrit -- Dr. R. Nagaswamy (2012)

Mirror of Tamil and Sanskrit
by Dr. R.Nagaswamy
Year: 2012,
Publisher: Tamil Arts Academy.
Pages: 425, Pictures
Price: Rs. 800

Author’s preface:- Citing extensively from Ancient Sangam Tamil works and also the Ancient Tamil Grammar, this book establishes for the first time, that Tamil attained Classical status by adopting Vedic and Sanskrit traditions, especially with the help of Brāhmins in the formative stages. This work clearly demonstrates that Tamil rapidly progressed as a result of borrowing from Sanskrit and shows from the very beginning of its known history, the gods worshipped by the ancient Tamils were Siva, Vishnu, Krishna, Balarāma, Rāma, Kumāra (Muruga), Indra, Durgā, Kāli and others who were clearly the Vedic gods. The society was divided on caste basis as Brāhmanas, Kshatriyas, Vaisyas, Sūdras and mixed castes. Most of the Tamils believed in the efficacy of Vedic religion in every field of Tamil life. They were guided by customs and manners prescribed in Vedic lore and performed Vedic yajñas in the domestic life. They were followers of systems introduced by Vedic Brāhmanas. All the kings like Cheras, Cholas, Pāndyas, Velir chieftains, and most of common people including a section of Vellālās who were called the upper castes (Mer kudi), studied Vedas and performed worship as prescribed. The fourfold division of the Tamil life of Kurunji, Mullai, Marudam and Neidal are mentioned in Bharata’s Nātya sāstra as kakhshyas division. The judicial administration was based on the principles of Dharma sāstras compiled by the Vedic rishis like, Yājnyavalkya, Vasishta, Nārada, Manu, Bhrahaspati, Parāsara and others. The civil administration was organized as mentioned in Vedic sabhās – village assemblies of elected representatives. The Tamil poetics as prescribed in Tolkāppiyam was adopted from Sanskrit sources, as for example Tamil phonetics, Alankāras like Upamā etc. Further the earliest readable script - Brāhmi, was invented by Brahmins and hence called after them as Brāhmi in the time of Asoka, in the Saraswati Valley.

The Tamils followed the eight kinds of marriages and the system of registration, specifically formulated by the Brāhmanas. The Eightfold marriage system of the Sanskrit tradition is referred to by Tolkāppiyam, in the karpiyal chapter on chastity. Disposal of the dead, funerary ritual, planting memorial stones etc are as stipulated in Sanskrit and Agamic literature. The temple worship in ancient Tamilnad followed the agamic ritual treatises. The aesthetics of music, dance and literature are based on Bharata’s Nātya sāstras and so was realization of rasas. The Tolkāppiyam grammar is rooted in the Vedic and Bharata’s Nātya tradition. The division of poetry as Aham and Puram are essentially based on dance tradition, as sringāram (Aham) and external exploits (Puram) and were meant for the two types of dances as Aha- kūttu and Pura kūttu. It seems that, like all other parts of India, where each region had its own dialect Tamil also had its own dialect, but with this difference that Tamil had an advanced dialect of its own which could assimilate incoming ideas quickly and flower into a beautiful classical language. There are irrefutable evidences to show that in the science of cosmology, Tamils adopted Vedic tradition. All the names of the Tamil months were named after the names of Stars in the Vedas, like Chittirai, Vaikāsi, Ādi (Āshāda), Proshtapada (Purattasi), Asvayuj (aippasi), Kriitikā, (Karttikai), Mriagasira (Marazi), Tishya (Thai), Māgha (makham), Palguni (Panguni). These names of the stars are found in the Veda and when each star is in conjunction with the full moon in the month it is named after that Astronomical phenomenon, Chiitirai star in connection with full moon that month is called Chittirai month. So are all the other months. Thus in the field of Language, Grammar, Poetics, Literature, art, Architecture, Music, Dance, Royal Administration, Judicial administration, and Social functions, Astronomy, Philosophy and Religion, the Ancient Tamils followed the Vedic Tradition and was greatly influenced by the Northern system. It is possible to reject this theory if one could throw out Tolkappiyam and the entire Sangam literature. At no point of time in Tamil history, there was any attempt to suppress the study of Tamil. The book is truly a path breaking exposition that places Tamil and Sanskrit interaction in proper historical and chronological perspective.

In this sense it challenges many unfounded pedestrian speculators’ assertions of Tamil culture not based on any academic discipline, but subjective and self-seeking writings. The book calls for a deeper study of Tamil literature following multi-dimensional academic discipline and scientific approach. The book appears as a publication of the Tamil Arts Academy that has established a reputation for authenticity and hopes this will stimulate further in depth studies in all aspects of Tamil culture. The author will be very happy if any of the point raised is proved wrong, based on factual material and will stand corrected. I am thankful to Ravi of Jai Ganesh Offset printer, who has taken great pains to see this book through the press. Lastly there is one request to the reader not to start with an emotional approach but to look with the rationalistic and critical mind and I am sure you will be rewarded.

R. Nagaswamy
26-Jan-2012

Director of Archaeology, Tamilnadu Retd,

Former Vice-chancellor of Kanchipuram University,

Visiting Proffesor, Javaharlal Nehru University New Delhi.
http://www.tamilartsacademy.com/journals/volume23/articles/article2.xml

Contents

1.PrehistoricTamilakam
2.TamilLiteraryTradition
3.BrahminicalstudiesinSangamtimes
4.OriginofBrÄhmiscript
5.BrahminsandBrahmiunderAsoka
6.TamilandSanskritrelationship
7.KollippuraiCoin
8.OndatingTamilliterature
9.EpitomeofSilambu
10.Bharata'sNÄtyaÅšÄstraandYamaka
11.Yamakam
12.YamakainTolkappiyam
13.YamakainSangamliterature
14.YamakainSilappadikÄram
15.YamakainTevÄram
16.WorshipofIndrainAncientTamilnadu
17.AgamasonMemorialstones
18.ThirukkoyilurPattu
19.StudyofSangampoemsundertheCholas
20.VangaladesaandtheGangacountry
21.NatarÄjaandVedicstudies
22.NandikesvarainArtandThoughtandliterature
23.UpamanyuBhaktaVilÄsa
24.UttaramerurSabha-Inscrpition
25.JudgesTenure
26.VillageCourts
27.CivilJusticeunderthePÄndyas
28.LegalrightsofWomen
29.OnArrestingwomen
30.AnurÄdhapuraseal
31.Alangudirecord
32.Migrationoffolk
33.NewlightonTradewithMediterranian
34.Tyagaraja'sancestry
35.ÄryadanceorChÄkkaikuttu
36.Brahma-valli

Aryakkuttu at Thiruvidaimarudur
Dr. R.Nagaswamy

Thiruvidaimarudūr near Kumbhakonam, Tanjore district, is a famous Śiva-kṣhetra The temple of Siva as Mahāinga swāmi is sung by Tevāram saints and has been in continuous worship from around the 6th cent if not earlier. This part was under the control of Pallavas from the middle of 6th cent An incomplete inscription found on the main wall, now completely lost, dated in the Kali era 4083,equal to the 13th regnal year of the Chola, Parakesari Uttama chola , refers to Kancanur a nearby village, in the then Nallārrur nādu. Kancanur was also called Simhavishnu caturvedi mangalam. The inscription was left incomplete. However the record is important for it furnishes two historic facts that Kancanur was also called Simhavishnu Caturvedimangalam named after Mahendra Pallava’s father, who ruled in the middle 6th cent, which is in the heart of the Chola country, was firmly under the Pallavas then. This is corroborated by the Pallan-koyil copper plate of Simha-varman, the father of Simha-vishnua in whose plate, Simha-vishnu is credited with the conquest of lands up to the banks of Kaveri. It seems Palaiyārai became the capital of the Pallavas in the Chola country. It is of interest to note that Mahendra Pallava I (590-630 CE) is also associated with this region is seen from this inscription. It is important to mention Mahendra was contemporary of the Saiva saint Appar swamikal who sang delightful Tevaram. His younger contemporary was Jnānasambandar who spread Tamil through Tevāram music. Mahendra himself was a great lover of music and Dance he created a new raga called Sankirna jati. And also two outstanding Dance dramas in Sanskrit named Mattavilāsa prahasana and Bhagavad ajjuga both were to be enacted in temples as offerings on festivals. Both of them were intended for Aryak-kuttu. The Mattavilāsa prahasana by him is enacted till date in Kerala temples by a group of dancers called Chakkaiyārs and that they enact only Aryakkuttu to this day. This tradition has been very much alive in the 6th cent onwards.

The earliest record found in the temple was that of Pallava ruler Nandivarman II (SII III ) Nandivarman’s activity in this region near Kumbhakonam is found in Nathan koil (Palaiyari ) which itself was called “Nandipuram”, after the king. It is not unlikely that that another Pallava king is also referred to in this region, He was the victor of Tellaru, who was the father of Aparājita Pallava who had the title Rāja mārtānda. Nadi III, his father, himself had the title “Kumāra mārtāndan” who gifted 65 kalanju of gold for burning a perpetual lamp. This record was originally reorded on a stone slab. This temple was rebuilt in the time of 4th year of Parāntaka Chola early in his reign -910 CE. During that reconstruction, a copy of the record was made, and the stone was used for the foundation. So when the temple was reconstructed the Merchant guild of Thiruvidaimarudūr, the village sabhā of Tiraimūr, the temple priests, the Administrator of the temple, and the temple accountant, who were to examine the affairs of the temple, found that the stone on which the original record of Nandi was engraved was used as a foundation stone and that a copy of the same made before such a use. They now ordered that the record should be re-engraved on the stone wall after reconstruction. The record says the Administrators met in the “Nātaka sālai” of the temple of Thiruvidai-marudūr. It is an illustrious example of care and scrutiny of ancient records of the temple which were copied and re-engraved in temples. The record also shows that the temple has attracted the attention of the Pallava rulers from the 6th to 9th cent.

This record shows that there was a regular Nātaka sālai in the temple of Thiruvidaimarudur where some of the transactions regarding the administration of the temple was deliberated. There are two records of the time of Aditta Karikāla, the elder brother of Rājarāja I. who conquered the Pāndya and assumed the title of Parakesari, who captured the head of the Pāndya – “Pāndyan talai konda Ko Parkesari”. Both the records are dated in his 4th regnal year. The first record registers the provisions for enacting Sanskrit drama in the temple mentioned as “Aryak-kuttu” in the record. The endowment was examined by the Official Sirringan- udaiyān Parāntaka muvendavelān, a high ranking Royal Officer mentioned as “Koyil nāyakam”, the village assembly of Tiraimūr, the merchant guild of Thiruvidai-marudūr, and the temple attendants who met in dance hall, Nātaka sālai, of the temple and deliberated the endowment. The royal order stipulated that proper apportionment for the enactment of “Aryak kūttu” by Kirti-maraik-kādan alias Thruvellaraic-cākkai, for which purpose one veli of land including Padukkaiceri pattu in the land of Vilāngkudi, a temple land, a devatāna, for that purpose. The said dancer should perform the dance drama from the succeeding year onwards, one dance drama performance on Taip-pusam festival and after the day of Tirthavāri, immersion fcestival perform drama for three days. He should also perform the dance drama in the Vaikāsi Thiruvadirai festival starting from the next day of the festival. He should perform these seven performances in the dance hall, Nātaka sālai where they met. He was entitled to receive 14 kalams of paddy for these performances from the temple treasury for his troupe. If he does not receive this paddy from the temple treasury he should be paid double that quantity. The inscription is left unfinished beyond this point. This record is an illustrious endowment showing king’s involvement in maintaining dance festival called in the record “Āryak kūttu” in the temple and arranging a perpetual endowment for the same. The service was to be conducted by the village assembly, the temple priests, the Merchant guild, and Royal Officers, with the stipulation that failure should be compensated by paying double the amount allotted.

The performance was to be done for seven days in a year from a particular day of festivals and the point that deserves to be noted was that the artist was called Cākkai. Cākkais are the Cākkiyārs who perform to this day Sanskrit dramas in Kerala temples. As this tradition has survived only in Kerala it is generally believed that this art is exclusive to Kerala but it was popular in different parts of Tamilnadu as evidenced in inscriptions. Also please note that Sanskritt was an active living language in Tamil nadu. An inscription in the great temple of Tanjore shows Sanskrit drama was being enacted in Tanjore as well under the Cholas. Another point of Interest is temples in Tamilnadu had Nātaka sālais where dramas were enacted and that they formed part of temple complex. ( South Indian Inscriptions Vol III, no 202)

A new service was started in the temple of Thiruvidaimarudūr creating an enactment for singing the Thirup-padiayams and also arranging for the dancing girls of the temple to sing in the 9th year of Vikrama chola, the son of Kulottunga II. The service was called “Bānap-peru” (Bānap-pani) This was a royal appointment issued by Vikkrama chola and a certain Irumudi Cholan alias Acancala Peraraiayan was appointed to do the service. He was already singing in the temple and this new service was added to the existing one. He was to get paddy and kāsu in addition to his earlier pay. The record states that he was to sing in the God of the Thiruvidaimarudūr temple and direct other Bānas for arranging the Dancing girls to sing (Thiruvidai marudur udaiyārukku pādavum , ikkoyil Taliyilārai pāduvikkavum ikkoyil Devaradiyārai pāduvikkavum Bānapperāka). The Bānas were great singers from the Sangam age and we find the Bānas, Yāl Bāna was a close friend of Jnāna-sambandar and again we find the Bānas were appointed in the Great temple of Thanjavaur. According to this inscription the service should be added to the temple service and the Bāna should be paid one kalam of paddy per days should be paid to the Perariayan for singing. He should be allotted one residence as Bānak-kudiyiruppu as before. It is also interesting to note that there were classes of dancing girls serving in the temple a) Taliyilar and b) Devaradials. The order which conferred the service in perpetuity on this singer and his descendants was to be documented and recorded on the stone wall of the temple. As it was the direct order of the king, a number of Royal Officers had signed the document. The record also gives the names of the Chief priest of the Thiruvidaimarudūr temple at that time as Thiruchirrambalap-Bhattan, the chief Accountant of the temples as Kundaiyur Kilavan, and the Chief Administrator as Mulankudaiyān and the maintainer of the Streets (Thiruvithi) as Anbukkarasu. We find such a post to maintain the streets was existing in interesting. Further the records mention two classes of Women singers (Dancing girls ) named Taliyilār and Devaradiyārs and they are mentioned in later inscriptions as well. It may be mentioned that Taliyilār claimed superiority in caste hierarchy and propbaly married and lived with one erson as is the case Paravai the Dancing of Thiruvarur who married Saint Sundaramurti nayanār in 8th cent. She belonged to Taliyilār family. It is interesting to note that the singing service is called Bānapperu.

Brahma valli
The Final Knowledge
Dr. R.Nagaswamy

This work will come to a close with the important Taittiriya Upanishad which is a part of the Taittiriya Āranyaka, appearing in three parts as the seventh, eighth and ninth Prapataka, which go by the name Sikshā valli, Anandavalli and Brighu valli. They were also called by other names like the second one called as “Brahma Ānandavalli”. Yet another names for them are Samhitā, Yajna, and Vāruni vidyas, but the most popular one for the first one is Sikshā-valli, several hymns in the firsr part associated with a number of seers like Maha camasya, Rathitara, Pauru Sisthi, Nāka the son of Mudgala and finally Trisanku each emphasizing one or other aspect of discipline as for example Mahā-camasya emphasized Brahmam (Mahah), Rathitara emphasized Satyam, Paurusishti emphasized Tapas, and Naka emphasiseed Learning and teaching (svādhyaya and Pravacana). The sage Trisanku experienced that the I in the individual is like the life in the tree, the fame of it is like the peak of a hill, is extreme purity in existence; It is resplendent as the brightness of sun and the abode of truth in soul.” All these experiences of the sages are one and the same and that is the truth about Brahmam. Having taught this the teacher advices the student with a remarkable counseling.

Then Taittirya Upanishad belongs to Taittiriya school of the Yajurveda,. It is divided into three sections called Vallis. The first is th Sikshā valli. Sikshā is th first anga-subject of the six Vedāngas (limbs or auxiliaries of the Vedas).The second is the Brahmānanda valli and the third is the Bhrigu valli. These two deal with the knowledge of the Supreme self -Parmātma Jnāna.” According to Sanskrit traditions the six limbs of the Vedic studies are the 1) Sikshā, 2)Vyakarana, 3)Chandas,4) Niruktam, 5)Jyostisahm, and 6) Kalpam. Thus Sikshā is the first and important limb of Vedic studies and relates to Phonetics, and Pronunciation. It begins with the statement “we now begin with explaining Sikshā: Varnas (letters) Svara, its strength, Mātrās, and their continuity and combination are the rhythmic recitation”.
Sikshām vyākhyāsyāmah; varnas svarah; mātra balam; sāma snathānam.

Radhakrishnan translates this passage as “We will expound pronunciation of letters or sounds, pitch quality, force or stress, articulation, and combination; This is called the section on Sikshā” According to this, the first lesson on Vedānga begins with the study of letters.

The most ancient Tamil Grammar Tolkāppiyam incidentally begins with “Eluttu” the letters. A study of this chapter shows Tolkāppiyar wrote his work when Brāhmi script had already come into vogue in Tamailnadu for he wrote about both the written script and phonetic sound. How Tolkāppiyam deals with the phonetic sounds is brilliantly analyzed by P.S.Subrahmanya Sastry, in his work “An Enquiry into the relationship of Snaskirt and Tamil, published by the University of Travancore, 1946, Chapter II. His following remarks are worth recalling at this point.

Many technical terms relating to Phonology, Morphology, Poetics and Prosody had already existed before his time and Tolkāppiyar should have made use of them. His text tells us not only this, but he has also made use of his knowledge of the Vedas Sikshās,the Prātisākhyas, the Nirukta, Sanskrit grammar, Sanskrit science of poetics, Dharma Sāstras, the Kāmasutra, the Artha sāstra etc. In the chapter on the production of Sound he refers to the four phases of speech sound Parā, Pasyanti, Madhyamā and Vaikahari mentioned in the Rg Veda and tells us that in his work he deals with only the last Vaikhari and those who wish to learn them from Antanar Marai (Vedas of the Brāhmins). Prof Sastri refers to Sutra 102 of Eluttatikāram of Tolkāppiyam.

Ellā eluttm ----
ahattelu vali isai ariltapa nādi alavir kodal Antanar maraitte” It is necessary to note that PS Sastri wrote when much inscriptional material especially about the script was not discovered. A large number of Brāhmi inscription have come to light in recent times and need to be studied in relation to Tolkāppiyam. The earliest inscriptions are found in Brāhmi script that may be ascribed to first cent BCE. As Tolkāppiyar mentions script he may be assigned to first cent CE. The following sutras of Tolkāppiyam refer to written script.

meyyin iyarkai pilliyodu nilayal ie. The natureof consonant is to appear with a dot.

Pulli illā ellā meyyum uru urvāki akaramaodu uyirttalum, enai uyirodu urupu tirindu uyirtalum āyir iyala uyirtal āre. All consonants without dot, appear with modifications to their forms except the syllable of the first varga like “ka” which has only its basic form without any change.

The graphic form of script is “Eluttu” in Tamil which is also used to denote its phonetic sound. So Naccinārkkiniyar, the commentator says that Eluttu stands for both written and phonetic form. “Elutap-paduvatālum eluppap-patuvatālum eluttu”. i.e Eluttu is so called because it is written and is also pronounced. The root “Elu means both raise (sound) and write/draw.

The Vedic Brāhmanas were obliged to serve as judges in village courts and that calls for a knowledge of Dharma Sāstras for him. 18 major Dharma Sāstras like that of Manu, Yajnya valkhya, Vasishta, Nārada, Brhaspati and others were available for study then. The Dharma sāstra insists on the written document for ownership rights and other transactions for deciding disputes. Similarly knowledge of Numerals and Arithmetic is required for all transactions like laying yaga kundas, construction of residences, trade, Royal treasury and administration, etc. The Vedic brāmhanas were to study both written script and numerals. They were also considered as effective ambassadors. When they learnt the Vedas, the knowledge of phonetics and pronunciation was necessary. There is a tradition of calling the Vedas “unwritten text” Elutākkilavi which some scholars mistook and wrote that (Vedic ) Brāhmanas were against written script. This Elutākkilavi applies only to the learning of Vedic texts and not against other subjects -vidyas like dharma sāstra, mathematics, astronomy, royal administration etc. There are three words in the Vedas namely Bhuh, Bhuvah, and Suvah which are used extensively in Vedic recitations and rituals. A certain Maharishi Cāmasya realized and introduced another Vyāhriti called “Mahah” as the fourth Vyāhritih. These terms had multiple layers of meaning given in the Upanishad itself. The meanings of each layer are:- a) Bhuh means earth Prithvi; bhuvah means space ākāsah; Suvah means the whole universe and Mahah means Aditya - sun. It is from Sun all beings grow b) Bhuh means Fire Agni; Bhuvah means Wind Vāyuh; Suvah means Sun and Mahah means Moon Chandramāh. It is from Moon all luminaries shine brightly. c) Bhuh means Rig veda; Bhuvah means Sāma veda; Suvah means Yajurveda and Mahah means Brahmam It is from Brahmam everything attain pre-eminence. d) Bhuh means vital breadth - Prānah, bhuvah means apāna out-breadth air vyāna diffused breadth and mahah means Annam food.

These four Vyāhritis are explained as above by the Upanishad and in which Mahah stands for Aditya, Chandrama, Brahmam, and Anna the four vital requirement of men. Veda stand for lerning process. So the ultimate in Veda is called Brahmam. All these are called as the mystic utterance of the Veda “OM”. This Upanishad praises everything as Brahmam identical with Om. This shows that the first prsna of this Upanishad is devoted to emphasizing Brahmam and is therefore rightly called Brahma valli
Omiti brāhmanah pravakshyan branhmopāpnavan brahmaiva bhavati.

It is because of this unity, the Vedic scholar is called a “Brahmana”. The student who studies this concludes the first part of this Upanishad as “I salute Brahmam Om namo brahmane”.

In this connection there is interesting information provided by Naccinārkkiniyar in his commentary on the study of Vedas and Vedāngas by Brāhmins of Tamilnadu. According to Naccinārkkiniyar the six limbs studied by the Tamil Brāhmins were Nirutta (Niruktam)study of vedic terms, Vyākarana that deals with the grammar of Vedic terms and also worldly usages like Aintiram, Kalpas like that of Bodhāyaniyam, Bhāradvajam, Apastampam, Atreyam,and others; Ganitham Mathematics like that of Nārāyaniyam and Varāham; Chandam classical poetics, and Brahmam standing for Eluttu āraycci”. In this list Ganitham stands for what is called in sanskrit sources as Jyotisham that satnds for astronomical calculations. But the most important point for our study here is the name is “Brahmam” (piramam) mentioned standing for Eluttārāycci which means both written and phonetic sound. This is a clear example of Tamil Brāhmins learning both written script and phonetic letters. The question arises what is the connection between Eluttārāicci and Brāhmam?
We have seen that the first lessons on phonetic letters is called Sikshā-valli in Taittirya Upanishad. We have also seen that this section teaching Varna letters emphasizes “brahmam” So Naccinārkkiniyar gives the name Brahmam to Sikshā valli which by this time included written script as well – Eluttu. Naccinārkkiniyar is an extraordinary commentator who cites hundreds of examples for the sutras but almost all of them are from Sangam literature and none from later period there by showing his primary concern as a stickler to tradition. The tradition of calling Sikshā valli as Brahmam two thousand years ago, is preserved for us by Naccinārkkiniyar, because of the importance given to Brahmam in that first section. It is certain that the study of script and Phonetic letters were very closely and largely used in the learning of Vedic Brāhmanas and so the script itself is came to be called Brāhmi i.e of the Brāhmanas. It naturally was also called Bammi in Prakrit.

Scholars who have studied the Brāhmi script has shown that it was designed for Sanskrit phonetics like the varga sounds and invented by those well versed in Sanskrit. There is also a 7th Cent Chinese annals that mentions the Brāhmi and Kharoshti scripts were invented in India which shows that Brāhmins who used to study the phonetics of Sanskrit invented this script. We may add that Panini’s Vyākarana came into vogue in the North West Frontiers of India and this school was very active in that region.

Asoka Maurya (3rd cent BCE) in whose time the script emerges was the Governor of this province when he started his career as a young prince before he went to Avanti and then became the Ruler of Māgada. He was an enterprising king who had already the knowledge of writings in Greek (Balkan states) and Persia that had Aramaic script. It is not unlikely that he was responsible in encouraging the Sanskrit scholars to invent a script for his administrative and judicial functions. Asoka’s edicts have been found in Greek and Aramaic characters are known. Also he used Kharoshti script which also emerges in that region from that times onwards. So he preferred the use of Brāhmi in his kingdom upto Māgadha and Kharoshti in NWFP. Asoka’s instruction to enter all the gift made by his queen should be entered in her name, in one of his edict, shows that he was using it in his administrative and judicial systems. I have shown in the chapter on “Brāhmins and Brāhmi under Asoka”, that the Dharma he preached was the same as the Sikshā valli of the Taittirya Upanishad, which teaches the study of letters.

It is necessary to point out that the Tolkāppiyam has a prologue Payiram written by Tolkāppiyar’s co student Panam pāranar who categorically states that Tolkāppiyam fully followed a grammar named Aintiram “Aintiram nirainta Tolkāppiyam”. We have seen that Naccinārkkiniyar says the Vyākarana studied by the Tamil Brāhmins in their study of Vedas was Aintiram which deals with Vedic tradition.

Aru angamāva (Shadanga) ulakiyal collai olittu Vaidika collai ārayum Nirukta; avvirandaiyum (ulakiyal and Vaidikam) udan arayum aintiram todakkattu vyakaranamum; bharadvajam, bodhayanaiym, Apasthambam, Atreyam mudaliya karpangalumNarayaniyam, Varhammudaliya ganitangalum elttārāycyākiya biramamum,, Ceyyul ilakkanamākiya Chandamum ām (Naccinārkkiniyar ‘s commenaray on Tolkāppiyam sutram 75, in Purattinai).
Also Naccinārkkiniyar in his commentary on Ahattinai of Tolkāppiyam mentions that the nomenclature used by Tolkāppiyar was the ones used by Agastya in his Tamil grammar Agattiyam. He further state “These technical words were coined by Agastya”. So the terms Ahattinai, Purattinai, etc used in Tolkāppiyam were wholly Vedic terminology. It should be remembered that the Early Pandyas repeatedly claim that their ancestors learnt both Sanskrit and Tamil from Agastya. All evidences in Tamil and Sanskrit point to the fact that the Tamil and Tamil society followed Vedic Tradtions.

The Vedic Roots of Hindu Iconography
Dr. R.Nagaswamy

[A new book with title The Vedic Roots of Hindu Iconography by Dr. R.Nagaswamy has been published in 2012, by Kaveri Books with Bib Details: xxvi+230p, (155) b/w pls, (33) col pls, bib, ind, 26 cm.]

About the book:- The Nature manifests itself in innumerable forms, colours and quality each with a propelling power to bring multitudes of these forms and each form fascinates the poetic mind that creates a lovely imagery in everlasting poetry. The Indian mind living in the midst of nature in days of yore poured forth such immortal poems we call Vedas i.e understand. We hear frequently in the Vedas a phrase “Ya Yevam Veda” i.e one who knows this understands. Behind all these multiple forms are the images with multiple hands, multiple legs, multiple faces and beyond, as Visvarupa with thousand names, Sahasra-naman or even million names laksharccas are in fact many in one, and one in many. So when the Hindus worship many gods they worship the universal power beyond lands, languages, forms, race, colour, sex, or times and that is the concept of Hindu Godhood. It is only ignorant who will call such a concept “immersed in darkness”. The Hindus loudly proclaimed Critical knowledge itself is god Vijnaanam Brahma. And that concept is Brahmam i.e. ever expanding knowledge, Vijnana, different from the Creative power called, Brahmaa, and that was the contribution of the Vedas.

This book explores this expanding knowledge from the Vedic period to recent times in time and space that would dispel many misconceptions. It was Agni, the fire that was the most visible power to which everything was reduced at the ultimate analysis. The first few articles therefore deal with Agni, the fire of Vedas. The Sun, Moon and the fire are the primordial energies. The fire has two inherent powers the consuming heat energy and Illuminating-beneficial energy, which they called on one hand as Rudra and on the other Vishnu. Rudra and Vishnu both inseparably exist in one and the same Fire. So the Harihara emerges as an influential form in the early centuries. Similarly Rudra is like the father and the benevolent energy of the same fire, insuperable, is called Mother Devi Parvati, the male and the female in one and the same form as Ardhanari. Similarly the abode of this inseparable powers called the temple is within man and outside him in the world and both are called the temples “Visvasya Ayatanam”. Most of the important iconographic visualizations arise from such syncretic forms That are dealt with in this volume as for example the concept of linga or Varaha, gives you so many layers that are properly focused that would come as revelations. Bhairava and Krishna are one.. Similarly the creaitive power was also added to Siva and Vishnu who are adored by millions of Hindus as Virinchi Narayana Sankaratmans. At another level some individual manifestations like Andhakasuravadha or Nataraja are rooted in Vedic understanding of darkness and light. The writings of some that there was no worship of feminine power in the Vedic age, is shown in this volume as pedestrian, worthy of outright rejection. Similarly some hold that the Muruga Kartikeya is exclusive and the earliest god of the Tamil is disproved and shown here as a Sanskrit word “Mrgya” in prakrit form and is a pan Indian deity. It is also shown that the concept arise from the sons of Rudra and the River Prishni of Punjab which later merged into a great river lik six bodies of Shanmukha merging into one, later as the son of Rudra and Ganga. The origin of Rama and Krishna and their place in the chronological perspective is detailed with epigraphical evidence and disproved some of the abysmal ignorance of some professorial claimants. Each article in this volume is thought provoking, originl and linked to the factual utterances Vedic Rishis which is absolutely necessary for those who seek proper approach to the subject.

http://www.tamilartsacademy.com/journals/volume23/articles/article3.xml

See: http://www.ifpindia.org/Relationship-Between-Tamil-and-Sanskrit.html

Relationship Between Tamil and Sanskrit
Affinities and Oppositions - September 12-14, 2007

Objectives

From left to right: François Gros; Jean-Pierre Muller; Jennifer Clare; Kannan.M
The Aim of this Conference is to explore the historical relationship between two classical languages of India and also to initiate a new dialogue between these two cultures from a multidisciplinary perspective in the present socio cultural context.

Tamil culture quaffs through the centuries from two sources, one being pan-Indian Sanskrit and the other regional but no less ancient, its brilliant debut the Sangam Corpus: two “classical” languages for a single culture, alternately following the song which has been taken up progressively in the second millennium by other regional, and especially Dravidian, literatures.

Echoes from Kashmir sound in the Tevaram and, if Vaisnavas are divided over the two languages, the songs of the Alvars are accepted unanimously as a Tamil Veda.

The medieval commentators formulated the poetic rules of Tamil literature, sometimes integrating it into the Sanskrit tradition the better to affirm its status. The exploits of the Chola kings are celebrated in inscriptions by both Sanskrit prasasti and Tamil meykkirtti.

A little later, Arunakiri Natar played with equally virtuosity on the verbal register of the two languages, though this game is a tradition practised mainly by a bi-lingual elite. The Buddhists and Jains have their Sanskrit derived source texts in Pali and Ardhamagadhi but it was Tamil they chose for epic masterworks.

Both linguistic registers make their contribution to all technical literature to the extent that it would be possible, seemingly, to attain mastery of the sastra by intensive practice of either one of them.

Two deep currents then have coexisted down the centuries, conscious to be sure of their differences, but never in major conflict. This happy equilibrium was broken, however, in the middle of the 19th c. due mostly to political factors; the confrontation culminated in the resistance of Tamil in the face of Hindi, perceived as being imposed by the North on a South driven onto the defensive.

How may the harmony history suggests to us be retrieved, if not through the systematic development in all domains of the knowledge and perception of the common sources of our culture?

The method used will be to provide a neutral, common platform for discussion and brainstorming amongst scholars specialized in various fields of Tamil and Sanskrit such as Grammar, Linguistics, Lexicography, Philosophy, Literature and History.

See: http://tamilnation.co/sathyam/east/saivaism/vision.htm

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Hieroglyphs on Warka vase read rebus as epigraphs (S. Kalyanaraman, 2012)

Hieroglyphs on Warka vase read rebus as epigraphs

Abstract

Wark vase which is a carved alabaster stone vessel (height: ca. 105 cm.; upper diam.: 36 cm.), found in the Sumerian Inanna temple complex. The vase uses hieroglyphs and is, in effect, a ‘Rosetta stone’ to help decode early writing systems and to identify language(s) of the creators of this artifact. It can be called the ‘Meluhha rosetta stone’. The identification of clear, unambiguous, pictorial motifs carved on the Warka vase, as hieroglyphs is confirmed by parallels on Indus script corpora and select bronze-age artifacts (e.g. Uluburn shipwreck).

Warka vase. Stone alabaster. Museum number: IM19606. Original Source: "The Oriental Institute of The University of Chicago". http://oi.uchicago.edu/OI/IRAQ/Images/strom/strom_fig019l.jpg

Clear, unambiguous, pictorial motifs carved on the Warka vase, are:

1. An antelope and a tiger are shown above two bun ingots atop a fire-altar. (Fig.1) The antelope and tiger hieroglyphs atop two ingots are: (i) ranku ‘antelope’. Read rebus: ranku ‘tin’. (ii) kola ‘tiger’. Read rebus: kol ‘alloy of five metals, pañcaloha’.
2. Between two storage jars containing ingots is shown a bull’s head with a ‘pellet’ between the horns. (Fig.2) mũh ‘face’. Read rebus: mũh ‘(metal) ingot.’ ḍhangar ‘bull’. Read rebus: ḍhangar ‘blacksmith (metalsmith)’. The ‘pellet’ hieroglyph is explained in Annex A. Notes on ‘pellet’ hieroglyph linked with bull/antelope.
3. A ram is shown ahead of the two storage jars. (Fig.3) The ram hieroglyph leading the two storage jars with ingots is tagaru ‘ram’ (Tulu). Read rebus: tamkāru, dagar, dakar, dam-gar, ‘(mint) merchant’. (Sumerian substrate).
4. A procession of bovidae and a set of sprouts are shown on the bottom registers. (Fig.4) (i) khar-warg ‘herd of sheep, goats’. Read rebus: khār ‘blacksmith’. Sheep and goats above 3 years of age are termed خر ورګ ḵẖar-warg and خر ورګه ḵẖar-wargaʿh. (Pushto). (ii) warak ʻwoolʼ(Wg.) Read rebus: wā̆rek ʻhouseʼ (Pr.), vāra -- ʻdoor, gate-way' (Sanskrit) (iii) tagaraka ‘tabernae montana coranaria’(Sanskrit). Read rebus: tagara ‘tin’ (Kannada). The hieroglyph tree: kuṭi ‘tree’; kuṭhi ‘smelter/furnace’ (Santali).
5. Two reed bundles adorned with scarves. (i) The reed hieroglyph: khāg, khāgṛā ʻreed for pensʼ(Bengali), khagaṛā ʻthe reed Saccharum spontaneum’(Oriya). Read rebus: kã̄gar ‘portable brazier’ (Kashmiri)] (ii) Scarf is ligatured to the reed post. dhaṭu ‘scarf’ (WPah.). Read rebus: dhatu ‘mineral’ (Santali) The reed bundles adorn the temple-gateway: wā̆rek ʻhouseʼ (Pr.), vāra -- ʻdoor, gate-way' (Sanskrit).
The pictorial motifs narrated on the vase in four registers are not mere decorations. It is not mere coincidence that many pictorial motifs on the Warka vase recur on Indus script corpora.

The hieroglyphs on the Warka vase conveyed an economic message in the context of deposits of treasure into the (Inanna temple) treasury (as evidenced by the narrative of the second register which shows large storage jars, liquid containing jar, and baskets being carried in).

I suggest that the pictorial motifs are hieroglyphs which can be read rebus. I also suggest that the creators of the pictorial motifs on the Warka vase were speakers of a language which underlies the 6000+ inscriptions of Indus script corpora.

What was the underlying language of the message? One language source is the Indian sprachbund (language union), which can also be called ‘Meluhha’.

What was the message (that is, what treasures were carried for depositing in the temple treasury)? Treasure carried into the temple treasury included: tin ingots, ingots of minerals/metals and alloyed metal ingots.

On the hieroglyphs of the top register, a goat or ram walks towards a pair of reeds ligatured with scarfs. Two large storage jars contain ingots. (That these relate to metal is indicated by the phonetic determinant of a bull’s head dangar ‘bull’; danger ‘blacksmith’). The Uruk (Warka) vase with its hieroglyphs comparable to Indian hieroglyphs and the identification of a few substratum Meluhha words in Sumerian – is a pointer to this possibility of Meluhhan presence and influence. Source of image: “The Warka Vase or the Uruk Vase is a carved alabaster stone vessel found in the temple complex of the Sumerian goddess Inanna in the ruins of the ancient city of Uruk, located in the modern Al Muthanna Governorate, in southern Iraq. Like the Narmer Palette from Egypt, it is one of the earliest surviving works of narrative relief sculpture, dated to c. 3,200–3000 BC. The vase was discovered as a collection of fragments by German Assyriologists in their sixth excavation season at Uruk in 1933/1934. It is named after the modern village of Warka - known as Uruk to the ancient Sumerians.” http://arthistorypart1.blogspot.in/2011/01/sumerian-art-warka-vase.html cf. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warka_Vase

Indian sprachbund (linguistic area or language union)

Indian linguistic area, that is an area of ancient times when various language-speakers interacted and absorbed language features from one another and made them their own. (Emeneau, 1956; Kuiper, 1948; Masica, 1971; Przyludski, 1929; Southworth, 2005).

Read on...

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/120407347/hieroglyphs-on-warka-vase-read-rebus-as-epigraphs-_S-Kalyanaraman_-2012_

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Playing commie politics with Dhamma

Playing commie politics with Dhamma. Globalising with Lumbini, Nalanda intl. universities? Amartya Sen and CCP should quit ideology games in the name of Bauddham.

Let there be an honest effort to study Dhamma, esha dhammo sanantano. Chinese Communist Party and ideological and bogus chamcha-s like Amartya Sen should quit playing politics with Bauddham. Stay away from the sacred, heritage, world pilgrimage sites of Lumbini and Nalanda. Don't forget: "religion is a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things, that is to say, things set apart and forbidden." (Durkheim, The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life, (1912, English translation by Joseph Swain: 1915) The Free Press, 1965, p.47). Amartya Sen and CCP, don't violate the forbidden territorial imperative, because it is sacred.Dhamma is sacred.

Kalyanaraman

By Jayadeva Ranade
10 May 2012 12:07:00 AM IST

China’s Buddhist dilemma

China’s attempts to play Buddhist politics and further its strategic agenda, by concurrently organising two international conferences last month in Lumbini in Nepal and Hong Kong both failed. They also revealed a schism within the CCP’s United Front Work Department (UFWD).

Important factors contributing to this setback are the CCP’s apparent unwillingness to address the growing incidence of self-immolations among Tibetan Buddhists; inability to calm restiveness in Tibet and Tibetan-populated areas in China; and the policy of consistently excluding the Dalai Lama. Reports filtering out of Beijing cite factional in-fighting within the UFWD, which handles all matters relating to China’s non-communist entities and ethnic minorities, including Tibet and the Dalai Lama, as a concern.
Beijing for the first time planned to demonstrate its influence in Nepal by organising an international convention in Buddha’s birth-place of Lumbini between April 27-30. China first exhibited interest in Lumbini in June 2011, when the Asia Pacific Exchange and Cooperation Foundation (APECF), a Chinese government-sponsored NGO, proposed a $3 billion plan for its development. Lumbini’s inhabitants protested at not being consulted and the plan was dropped.

The composition of APECF’s board hints strongly at links with the CCP and the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Xiao Wunan, a senior CCP cadre is the executive vice president of APECF. He envisages the proposed university in Lumbini as rivalling that planned at Nalanda. The Foundation’s executive director Eric Tay, graduated in 1993 from China’s Air Force Institute of Engineering. Nepal’s pro-Beijing Maoist leader Prachanda, is the vice chairman of APECF.

Though the Nepalese government did not approve APECF’s proposal, its unwillingness to discard China’s proposal was indicated when it constituted the Greater Lumbini National Development Directive Committee (GLNDDC) under the chairmanship of Pushpa Kamal Dahal, better known by his nom de guerre ‘Prachanda’. The GLNDDC initiated plans for this three day ‘international’ event in Lumbini in late April.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s visit was to be the highlight and he was to co-chair a conference on Lumbini with UCPN-Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal. China’s agenda was evident in the exclusion of the Dalai Lama from this essentially Buddhist event. It was reinforced by the comment of a GLNDDC member, that the Dalai Lama could visit after “the leadership of China will find ways to deal with His Holiness the Dalai Lama, which will be respectful of the Chinese people”. Ban Ki-moon’s decision to visit Lumbini, later dropped, attracted widespread media criticism in Nepal.

While it hints strongly at China’s influence, Xiao Wunan played a key role. He used his wide network of contacts in South Korea to revive the Lumbini proposal. In October, an APECF co-chairman and retired Australian ambassador to South Korea with interests in mining in China, was requested to facilitate a meeting with Ban Ki-moon in Australia to discuss re-floating of the Lumbini project. That Ban Ki-moon and his mother are devout Buddhists would have helped. Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai followed up Xiao Wunan’s efforts with an official invitation to Ban Ki-moon on March 16.

Despite Xiao Wunan’s efforts the events in Lumbini failed to materialise. Reports additionally suggest that differences exist within the UFWD, with one group siding with the military and security establishment that favours a firmer governmental grip over Nepal rather than pushing this ‘soft power’.

Beijing’s other major initiative was the third World Buddhist Forum from April 25-27, in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). Its objective continues to be to obtain legitimacy and support of the domestic and global Buddhist community and enhance tacit recognition of the Chinese-selected Panchen Lama. The latter assumes significance following the Dalai Lama’s assertion last September that Beijing has no legitimacy in such selections. The forums are additionally intended to project China’s global leadership of Buddhists.

While China’s official media publicised that over a thousand religious personages and leading scholars from 50 countries attended, but the absence of prominent religious leaders considerably muted the event’s impact. The supreme religious patriarchs and prominent delegates from Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Mongolia, Russia and Japan did not attend despite the close government level relations between China and these countries.

Zhu Weiqun, deputy head of the CCP CC’s UFWD, and Wang Zuo’an, director of the State Administration for Religious Affairs (SARA) both attended. In his first public appearance outside mainland China, the Chinese-appointed 11th Panchen Lama, Gyaincain Norbu, delivered a keynote speech on the Buddha Dharma.

Intriguingly, among the greetings messages received by the forum was one from Ban Ki-moon. He said the forum’s proposals would be “helpful for the work of the UN in the fields of peace, development and human rights”.

The Dalai Lama’s avowed critics, Akong Tulku of Samyeling Monastery, Scotland and Gangchen Lama, founder of the LG World Peace Foundation, Italy and worshipper of the Shugden Deity, attended. Many who attended the 60th anniversary celebrations of the ‘peaceful’ liberation of Tibet last year were, however, absent.

A dozen persons from India attended including Ven Dhammaviryo, a critic of the Dalai Lama. Rather surprisingly, Ravindra Panth, director of the Nava Nalanda Mahavihara (Deemed University), India, sent a congratulatory message.

Importantly, the third World Buddhist Forum revealed factionalism inside the CCP’s United Front establishment, which was triggered by the APECF’s bid to take charge. Xiao Wunan’s APECF established a Hong Kong-registered company, ‘Link-wise’, to handle all communications and funds for World Buddhist Forums. APECF’s activism, however, accentuated differences with the UFWD. Reports suggest that Wang Zuo’an declined to release funding for the forum unless the money already disbursed so far to APECF was accounted for. Consequently, the Hong Kong Buddhist Association, which hosted the forum, received only approximately $1.75 million and had to raise the rest. The extent of rift was evident when Xiao Wunan pointedly did not attend the third World Buddhist Forum.
The differences within the United Front establishment could be reflective of the in-fighting underway at the highest echelons of the CCP. While rumours circulating in Beijing suggest Xiao Wunan is associated with Xi Jinping, PBSC member Jia Qinglin who oversees UFWD is a Jiang Zemin loyalist. Wang Zuo’an though reputedly personally affable, is credited with believing that religious freedom is the Party’s prerogative to bestow or determine.

(Views expressed in the column are the author’s own)

Jayadeva Ranade is a former additional secretary in the Cabinet Secretariat, Government of India

http://expressbuzz.com/opinion/op-ed/china%E2%80%99s-buddhist-dilemma/390537.html

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Dinosour 20120503aK014100008

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Samanar padugai 04_05_2012_104_042

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OTZI THE ICEMAN
Worlds oldest human blood found in 5,300-year-old Iceman mummy

Washington: Scientists have discovered what they say the oldest red blood cells ever identified in the body of Otzi the Iceman,a 5,300-year-old mummy found in the Alps in 1991.
The new finding,published in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface,is a first for Otzis mummy,which has been under scientific scrutiny since a pair of hikers stumbled over the body frozen in ice on the Austrian-Italian border.
And the research could also help confirm the story of the ancient mans death,the researchers said.It was very surprising,because we didnt really expect to find compete red blood cells, study leader Albert Zink,a biological anthropologist at the European Academy of Bozen,was quoted as saying by LiveScience.
We hoped to find maybe some remnants or shrunken red blood cells,but these are looking like a modern-day sample;the dimensions are the same, Zink said.
The Iceman was so well preserved that scientists could estimate his age (about 45),his health,his last meals (that included red deer meat with herb bread) and even his probable cause of death,an arrow wound to the shoulder that sliced an artery.But no one ever found blood cells in his corpse.
In the study,Zink and his colleagues took tissue samples from Otzis arrow wound and from an earlier wound on his hand.Using a light microscope,they identified round objects that looked a bit like red blood cells,Zink said.But to be sure,the researchers needed more advanced technology.They used atomic force microscope,which works by feeling rather than seeing an object,and found that the roundish shapes were indeed red blood cells.
They have the typical form,this kind of doughnut-like shape of red blood cells,Zink said.PTI

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Rare Gilgit Lotus Sutra manuscripts to be published

Archana Khare Ghose TNN

New Delhi: The Gilgit Lotus Sutra Manuscripts,discovered by cattle grazers in Gilgit in a Buddhist stupa in 1931,are set to be released in a facsimile edition in New Delhi on Thursday.
The rare manuscripts,housed with the National Archives of India,date back to 5th-6 th century AD and are perhaps the only body of Buddhist manuscripts discovered in India.This is not just the oldest surviving manuscript collection in India but also one of the oldest manuscripts in the world.The facsimile edition of the manuscripts is the exact replica published in the form of a book designed to reach wider readership.
The first set of the Gilgit Lotus Sutra Manuscripts was found in a wooden box inside a circular chamber of a Buddhist stupa in Gilgit in 1931,now in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.Sources at the National Archives informed that the ancient manuscripts had managed to survive for centuries due to two vital reasons the near-zero temperatures of the region and the fact that the manuscripts were written on the bark of the Bhoj (birch) tree that does not decay.Upon discovery,the manuscripts were sent to Srinagar where the reputed British archaeologist Sir Aurel Stein knighted for his discovery of rare Buddhist manuscripts at the Mogao Caves in China in 1907 studied them and announced the big find to the world.
The Lotus Sutra is one of the most revered scriptures of the Mahayana Buddhism and represents the discourse delivered by the Buddha towards the end of his life.The sutra was originally written in the Buddhist form of Sanskrit in the Sharada script and known by its Sanskrit title,Saddharma Pundarika Sutra,which when translated in English means Sutra of the White Lotus of the Sublime Dharma.It is popularly referred to as the Lotus Sutra and was first translated from Sanskrit to Chinese by scholar Zhu Fahu (Dharmaraksha) in 286 CE.It is one of the most important texts discovered in the corpus of Gilgit manuscripts.All the texts in the Gilgit corpus throw significant light on the evolution of Sanskrit,Chinese,Korean,Japanese and Tibetan literature.

ANNALS OF HISTORY

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ஆதிவரலாற்றைக் கூறும் ஆதிச்சநல்லூர்

திருநெல்வேலியிலிருந்து திருச்செந்தூர் செல்லும் வழியில் 17 கி.மீ. தொலைவில் தாமிரபரணி ஆற்றின் கரையில் ஆதிச்சநல்லூர் என்ற ஊர் உள்ளது. இது ஓர் இடுகாடு. இறந்தவர்களைப் புதைத்த இடம். இதன் பரப்பளவு 114 ஏக்கர். இங்கு 4 அடிக்கு ஒருவர் வீதம் தாழிகளில் இறந்தவர்களை வைத்துப் புதைத்துள்ளனர். தாழி என்றால் பானை என்பது பொருள். இவ்வாறு புதைக்கப்பட்ட பானைகளை முதுமக்கள் தாழி என்றும் ஈமத்தாழி என்றும் கூறுவர். தென்பாண்டி நாட்டில் இத்தாழிகள் ஏராளம் உண்டு. ஆதிச்ச நல்லூரில் ஆயிரக்கணக்கான தாழிகள் வரிசை வரிசையாகக் கிடைக்கின்றன. இதுதான் உலகிலேயே மிகப்பெரிய இடுகாடாகும். அது மட்டுமல்ல பத்தாயிரம் ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முன்னர் இவர்கள் புதைக்கப்பட்டுள்ளனர் என்பதும் இங்கே குறிப்பிடத்தக்கது.

இந்த ஆதிச்ச நல்லூர்.......ஏறத்தாழ பத்தாயிரம் ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முன்பாக நமது மக்கள் நாகரீகத்தோடு வாழ்ந்த ஊர்.ஆச்சரியமாக இருக்கிறதா?.. ஆம் அதுதான் உண்மை ...

இந்த இடுகாடு கி.மு பத்தாம் நூற்ராண்டுக்கும் முந்தையது. இன்றைய ஆய்வுகள் மேலும் ஒரு ஆயிரம் வருடங்களை பின்னுக்குத் தள்ளலாம் என்று தெரிவிக்கின்றன. நாம் அறிந்த எந்த இந்திய சரித்திர காலகட்டத்துக்கும் முந்தைய காலகட்ட மக்களின் இடுகாடு இது. தமிழ்க்குடியின் தொன்மைக்கான முதற்பெரும் தொல்பொருட் சான்றும் இதுவே. ஏறக்குறைய கிருஸ்து பிறப்பதற்கு எண்ணூறு வருடங்கள் முன்பே இங்கு நாகரீகம் மிகுந்த மக்கள் வாழ்ந்திருக்கிறார்கள். இதனை முதன் முதலில் கண்டுபிடித்தவர் ஜெர்மனி நாட்டைச் சேர்ந்த டாக்டர். ஜாகர் என்பவர்தான். 1876 -ஆம் ஆண்டு இந்த பகுதியில் ஆராய்ச்சிக்காக வந்த அவர் கண்டுபிடித்ததுதான் இந்தத் தொல் தமிழர்களது நாகரீகம். அந்த ஜாகர் தான் கண்டுபிடித்தவற்றில் பலவற்றை ஆதாரத்துக்காக ஜெர்மனுக்கே எடுத்துச் சென்றுவிட்டார். அப்பொருட்கள் இன்னமும் ஜெர்மனியில் உள்ள பெர்லின் அருங்காட்சியகத்தில் இருக்கிறது

பிரஞ்சு நாட்டைச் சார்ந்த லூயி வேப்பிக்கியூ என்ற அறிஞர் 1903 ஆம் ஆண்டு ஆதிச்ச நல்லூர் வந்து சில தாழிகளைத் தோண்டி எடுத்தார். அப்போது மண்வெட்டி, கொழு முதலியன கிடைத்தன. ஆதிச்ச நல்லூரில் அகழ்வாய்வில் கிடைத்த அந்தப் பொருள்களை அவர் பாரிசுக்கு எடுத்துப்போய்விட்டார். இவ்வாறு ஆதிச்ச நல்லூரில் கிடைத்த மிகத்தொன்மை வாய்ந்த பொருள்கள் மேல் நாட்டிற்கு எடுத்துச் செல்லப்பட்டன. அந்த புதைபொருள் சின்னங்கள் கிடைத்தால் ஆதிச்சநல்லூரின் தொன்மையான வரலாறு நமக்குத் மேலும் தெரியும்.

1905 ஆம் ஆண்டு சென்னை அருங்காட்சியக மதிப்புறு துணைக் கண்காணிப்பாளர் அலெக்சாந்தர் ரீயா அவர்கள் ஆதிச்சநல்லூர் வந்து மிகவும் நுணுக்கமாக அகழ்வாய்வு செய்து ஒரு பட்டியல் தயாரித்துக் கொடுத்ததோடு அகழ்ந்தெடுத்த பொருள்கள் அனைத்தையும் சென்னை அருங்காட்சியகத்தில் இடம்பெறச் செய்தார்.

இவரும் இங்குள்ள மக்கள் பயன்படுத்திய முதுமக்கள் தாழி, ஆபரணங்கள், எழுத்துக்கள் போன்றவற்றை அகழ்வாராய்ச்சி மூலம் ஆராய்ந்து பார்த்து விட்டு அதிர்ச்சியில் உறைந்து போனார்...

இதிலென்ன அதிர்ச்சி இருக்கிறது? என நினைக்கிறீர்களா?..அந்த அதிர்ச்சிக்கு காரணம் அந்த அகழ்வாராய்ச்சியில் கண்டுபிடிக்கப்பட்ட அன்றைய மக்கள் பயன்படுத்திய இரும்பால் ஆன கருவிகள்தான்.”மூவாயிரம் ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முன்பே இங்கு வாழ்ந்த தமிழர்கள் இரும்பைப் பயன்படுத்தி இருக்கிறார்கள் என்றால், அதை உருக்குவதற்கான உலைகளை எங்கு வைத்திருந்தார்கள், அதை செதுக்குவதற்கும் சீராக்குவதற்கும் எத்தகைய தொழில் நுட்பங்களைக் கையாண்டார்கள், அப்படியாயின் இவர்களது நாகரீகம்தான் மற்ற அனைத்து நாகரீகங்களுக்கும் முற்பட்ட நாகரீகமாக இருந்திருக்க வேண்டும் அல்லவா?.

பத்தாயிரம் ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முன்பே தமிழர்கள் இரும்பைக் கண்டுபிடித்து தேன் இரும்பு, வார்ப்பு இரும்பு, எஃகு இரும்பு ஆகியவற்றை உருவாக்கி இருக்கின்றனர். பயிர்த்தொழில்,சட்டிப்பானை வனையும் தொழில், நெசவுத் தொழில், கப்பல் கட்டும் தொழில் போன்றவற்றை இரும்புக் கருவிகள் மூலம் திறம்பட வளர்த்து கடல் வாணிபம் செய்து உலகப் புகழ்பெற்றவர்கள் தமிழர்கள் என ஆதிச்சநல்லூரில் கிடைத்த அகழ்வாய்வுச் சின்னங்கள் உறுதிப்படுத்துகின்றன. திராவிடர்கள் குறிப்பாக தமிழர்கள் வெளிநாட்டிலிருந்து இங்கு வந்தார்கள் என்ற கருத்துக்கு இந்த அகழ்வாய்வுச் சின்னங்கள் முடிவு கட்டியது குறிப்பிடத்தக்கதாகும்.

மிகத் தொன்மையான காலத்திலிருந்தே இரும்பைப் பிரித்தெடுத்து அதை பல பொருள்களாகச் செய்து பயன்படுத்துவதில் தமிழர்கள் கைதேர்ந்தவர்கள் என்று அறியமுடிகிறது. சங்க இலக்கியத்தில் இரும்பினால் செய்யப்பட்ட பொருள்கள் உவமையாகக் கூறப்பட்டுள்ளன.

மிகத் தொன்மையான காலத்திலேயே தமிழர்கள் எகிப்து,ஆப்பிரிக்கா, சுமேரியா, கிரீஸ், மெக்சிகோ முதலிய நாடுகளுக்கு இரும்புப் பொருள்கள் ஏற்றுமதி செய்து வந்தனர். எகிப்தியர்களும், கிரேக்கர்களும் இந்திய நாட்டில் இருந்துதான் இரும்பை உருக்கி பயன்படுத்தும் முறைகளை அறிந்தனர் என்று கூறப்படுகிறது. 1837ஆம் ஆண்டு இராயல் ஏஷியாட்டிக் சொசைட்டியில் சமர்ப்பித்த ஆய்வுக்கட்டுரை ஒன்றில் அறிஞர் ஹீத் என்பவர் தென் இந்தியாவில் செய்யப்பட்ட எஃகுப் பொருள்களே எகிப்துக்கும், ஐரோப்பா கண்டத்திற்கும் ஏற்றுமதி செய்யப்பட்டன என்று எடுத்துக்காட்டியுள்ளார்.

மெக்சிகோ நாட்டிலுள்ள பிரமிடுகளில் தமிழனின் கைவினைக் கலைகளைக் காணலாம். அண்மையில் எகிப்தில் கிடைத்த தமிழ் பிராமி கல்வெட்டிலிருந்து சாத்தன், கண்ணன் என்ற இரண்டு தமிழர்கள் கடல் பயணம் செய்து எகிப்து நாடு சென்று அங்கே கொல்லன் பட்டறை ஒன்று நிறுவி, பணி செய்ததாக கல்வெட்டு அறிஞர் ஐராவதம் மகாதேவன் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளார். பிரமிடுகள் கட்டப் பயன்படுத்திய கற்களை செதுக்குவதற்குரிய உளிகள் இந்த கொல்லன் பட்டறையில் உருவாகி இருக்க வேண்டும். தமிழனின் இரும்பு நாகரிகத்தை வெளிப்படுத்தியது இந்த ஆதிச்ச நல்லூர்தான்.

அதனைத் தொடர்ந்து சகர்மேன் என்ற அறிஞர் ஆதிச்சநல்லூரில் கிடைத்த மண்டைஓடுகள் பற்றி ஒரு நூல் வெளியிட்டார். ஆதிச்ச நல்லூரில் அகழ்ந்து எடுக்கப்பட்ட மண்டை ஓடுகள் திராவிடர்களின் மண்டை ஓடுகள் என்றும்,ஒன்று மட்டும் ஆஸ்திரேலிய பழங்குடி மக்களின் மண்டை ஓடு என்றும் அவர் கூறியுள்ளார். எனவே திராவிடர்களின் முன்னோர்கள் ஆஸ்திரேலிய நாட்டு பழங்குடி மக்களோடு தொடர்பு கொண்டிருந்தனர் என்று தெரியவருகிறது. அங்குள்ள பழங்குடி மக்கள் பேசும் மொழியில் தமிழ்ச் சொற்கள் இடம் பெற்றுள்ளமை இங்கே குறிப்பிடத்தக்கது. ஆஸ்திரேலியா தென் இந்தியாவோடு இணைந்திருந்தது என்ற கருத்தை மட்டுமல்ல குமரிக் கண்ட கோட்பாட்டையும் இது உறுதி செய்கிறது என்றும் கூறலாம். ஆஸ்திரேலிய பழங்குடி மக்கள் பயன்படுத்திய பூமராங் என்னும் ஒருவகை ஆயுதம் தமிழகத்தில் கிடைத்துள்ளதும் இங்கே குறிப்பிடத்தக்கது. பகைவர் மீது எறிந்தால் அவர்களைத் தாக்கிவிட்டு வீசியவர்கள் கைக்கு திரும்ப வரும் ஒருவகை ஆயுதம்தான் பூமராங்.

ஆதிச்சநல்லூரில் கிடைத்த தாழிகளில் மண்வெட்டி,கொழு, நெல், உமி, பழைய இற்றுப்போன பஞ்சாடை ஆகியவை கிடைத்துள்ளன என்பது குறிப்பிடத்தக்கது. ஆதிச்ச நல்லூரில் புதைக்கப்பட்டவர்கள் தாமிரபரணி கரையில் நெல்,பருத்தி ஆகியவற்றை விவசாயம் செய்தது மட்டுமல்ல நெசவுத் தொழிலும் செய்து வந்தனர் என்று அறியமுடிகிறது. ஆதிச்சநல்லூரில்அகழ்வாய்வு செய்ததில் டாக்டர் கால்டுவெல்லுக்கும் முக்கியமான பங்கு உண்டு. தாழியில் சில அரிய பொருட்களை அவரே கண்டெடுத்து அவற்றைப் பற்றிய செய்திகளை வெளியிட்டுள்ளார். ஆதிச்சநல்லூரில் வாழ்ந்த மக்கள் நாகரிகம் மிக்கவர்கள் என்ற கருத்தை டாக்டர் கால்டுவெல் வெளியிட்டார்.

ஆதிச்சநல்லூரின் மண்ணுக்குள் புதையுண்டு கிடக்கும் பூமியில் ஒரு பரபரப்பான நகரமே இயங்கிக் கொண்டிருந்திருக்கிறது. அங்கு வாழ்ந்த மனிதர்கள் வெள்ளி, செம்பு, தங்கத்தால் ஆன ஆபரணங்களைப் பயன்படுத்தி இருக்கிறார்கள். அழகிய மதிற்சுவர்கள் இருந்திருக்கின்றன. ஆனால் இன்றைக்கு அது யாரும் கேள்வி கேட்பாரற்ற பொட்டல்காடு.

ஏனிந்த நிலைமை என்று பார்த்தோமானால்..

”எல்லாம் அந்த பாழாய்ப்போன அரசியல்தான்”

எல்லாம் இந்த வடக்கத்தியர்களுக்கு தமிழன் மேல் உள்ள காழ்ப்புணர்ச்சிதான்.

இதுதான் இன்றைய ராமேஸ்வரம் மீனவன் முதற்கொண்டு ஈழம் வரை நடந்து கொண்டிருக்கிறது.

இந்த ஆய்வுகளை ஒப்புக் கொண்டால் உலகின் தொல் நாகரீகமே தமிழர்களுடையது என்றாகிவிடுகிறது. அப்படியாயின் வெள்ளையர்களும் வடக்கத்தியர்களும் கண்டுபிடித்தவை எல்லாம் இதற்குப் பிந்தைய நாகரீகங்கள்தான் என்பதை ஒப்புக்கொண்டதாகி விடும். இதுதான் பிரச்னை. இப்போது இங்குள்ள 150 ஏக்கர் நிலத்தை மத்திய அரசின் தொல்லியல் துறை சுற்றி வளைத்து கையகப்படுத்தி வைத்திருக்கிறது. 2005 ஆம் ஆண்டு அத்துறை செய்த ஆய்வுகளின் முடிவுகளைக் கூட இன்னமும் வெளிவிடாமல் வைத்திருக்கிறது. வேறு யாரும் இங்கு ஆய்வுகளை மேற்கொள்ளக் கூடாது என்று ஓர் உத்தரவையும் போட்டிருக்கிறது. இதுதான் இன்றைய சோகம்.

இதைச் உலகறியச் செய்யவேண்டியது மத்திய அரசு, செய்ய வலியுறுத்த வேண்டியது தமிழக அரசு.

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4bn-year-old asteroid pieces found in US

London: A meteor hunter has stumbled on two marble-sized nuggets of an asteriod that detonated after colliding with the Earth,worth 10 times as much as gold,said scientists.
The tiny stones were found in northern Californias Sierra foothills,part of the asteroid that exploded with a third of the force of Hiroshima atomic bomb,scientists say.
Each rock weighs about 10g,said John Wasson,professor at University of California.Talking of his discovery,Robert Ward of Arizona,said he instantly knew hed found a rare meteorite CM carbonaceous chondrite.He suspects both rocks of being part of the same meteorite.
Experts say the rock fragments come from a flaming meteor which dates from the early formation of the solar system around four to five billion years ago.IANS

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Mathuranthakam sivalingam 23_04_2012_155_038

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kharosti 'blacksmith lip, carving' and harosheth 'smithy'

kharosti 'blacksmith lip, carving' and harosheth 'smithy' Suniti Kumar Chatterjee suggested that kharōṣṭī may be cognate with harosheth in: harosheth hagoyim 'smithy of nations'. Etymology of harosheth is variously elucidated, while it is linked to 'chariot-making in a smithy of nations'. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harosheth_Haggoyim See also: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2011/11/archaeological-mystery-solved-site-of.html Harosheth Hebrew: חרושת הגויים‎; is pronounced khar-o-sheth? Most likely, (haroshet) a noun meaning a carving. Hence, kharoṣṭī came to represent a 'carving, engraving' art, i.e. a writing system. Harosheth-hagoyim Harosheth-hagoyim is the home of general Sisera, who was killed by Jael during the war of Naphtali and Zebulun against Jabin, king of Hazor in Canaan (Judges 4:2). The lead players of this war are the general Barak and the judge Deborah. The name Harosheth-hagoyim obviously consists of two parts. The first part is derived from the root , which HAW Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament treats as four separate roots (harash I, II, III, & IV). The verb (harash I) means to engrave or plough. HAW Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament reads, "The basic idea is cutting into some material, e.g. engraving metal or plowing soil." Derivatives of this verb are: (harash), meaning engraver; (haroshet) a noun meaning a carving. This word is equal to the first part of the name Harosheth-hagoyim; (harish), meaning plowing or plowing time; (maharesha) meaning ploughshare; (harishi), a word which is only used in Jona 4:8 to indicate a certain characteristic of the sun - vehement (King James) or scorching (NIV). The verb (harash II) most commonly denotes refraining from speech or response, either because one is deaf or mute, or because one doesn't want to respond. None of the sources indicates a relation with the previous root, and perhaps there is none, but on the other hand, perhaps deafness was regarded in Biblical as either being marked or else cut or cut off. The noun (horesh) from root (hrsh III) occurs only in Isaiah 17:9 and has to do with a wood or forest. The noun (heresh) from root (hrsh IV) occurs only in Isaiah 3:3 and probably means magical art or expert enchanter, or something along those lines. The second part of the name, hagoyim, comes from the definite article (ha plus the common word (goy) meaning nation, people, gentile. This word comes from the assumed root (gwh), which is not translated but which seems to denote things that are surpassed or left behind. Other derivatives are: (gaw a and gew), meaning back, as in "cast behind the back," i.e. put out of mind (1 Kings 14:9, Nehemiah 9:26, Isaiah 38:17); (gewiya), meaning body, either dead or alive (Genesis 47:18, Judges 14:8, Daniel 10:6). The meaning of the name Harosheth-hagoyim can be found as any combination of the above. NOBS Study Bible Name List reads Carving Of The Nations, but equally valid would be Silence Of The Gentiles or Engraving Of What's Abandoned. Jones' Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names reads Manufactory for Harosheth and "of the Gentiles" for Hagoyim. http://www.abarim-publications.com/Meaning/Harosheth.html khar 5 ख््र्, in khara-ponzu ख््र-पं&above;जु&below; । म्लिष्टरेखाः unmeaning scrawls in imitation of writing, made by untaught children, or the like.(Kashmiri)khār 1 खार् । लोहकारः m. (sg. abl. khāra 1 खार; the pl. dat. of this word is khāran 1 खारन्, which is to be distinguished from khāran 2, q.v., s.v.), a blacksmith, an iron worker (cf. bandūka-khār, p. 111b, l. 46; K.Pr. 46; H. xi, 17); a farrier (El.). This word is often a part of a name, and in such case comes at the end (W. 118) as in Wahab khār, Wahab the smith (H. ii, 12; vi, 17). khāra-basta खार-बस््त । चर्मप्रसेविका f. the skin bellows of a blacksmith. -büṭhü -ब&above;ठू&below; । लोहकारभित्तिः f. the wall of a blacksmith's furnace or hearth. -bāy -बाय् । लोहकारपत्नी f. a blacksmith's wife (Gr.Gr. 34). -dŏkuru -द्वकुरु‍&below; । लोहकारायोघनः m. a blacksmith's hammer, a sledge-hammer. -gȧji -ग&above;जि&below; or -güjü -ग&above;जू&below; । लोहकारचुल्लिः f. a blacksmith's furnace or hearth. -hāl -हाल् । लोहकारकन्दुः f. (sg. dat. -höjü -हा&above;जू&below;), a blacksmith's smelting furnace; cf. hāl 5. -kūrü -कूरू‍&below; । लोहकारकन्या f. a blacksmith's daughter. -koṭu -क&above;टु&below; । लोहकारपुत्रः m. the son of a blacksmith, esp. a skilful son, who can work at the same profession. -küṭü -क&above;टू&below; । लोहकारकन्या f. a blacksmith's daughter, esp. one who has the virtues and qualities properly belonging to her father's profession or caste. -më˘ʦü 1 -म्य&above;च&dotbelow;ू&below; । लोहकारमृत्तिका f. (for 2, see [khāra 3] ), 'blacksmith's earth,' i.e. iron-ore. -nĕcyuwu -न्यचिवु&below; । लोहकारात्मजः m. a blacksmith's son. -nay -नय् । लोहकारनालिका f. (for khāranay 2, see [khārun] ), the trough into which the blacksmith allows melted iron to flow after smelting. -ʦañĕ -च्&dotbelow;ञ । लोहकारशान्ताङ्गाराः f.pl. charcoal used by blacksmiths in their furnaces. -wān वान् । लोहकारापणः m. a blacksmith's shop, a forge, smithy (K.Pr. 3). -waṭh -वठ् । आघाताधारशिला m. (sg. dat. -waṭas -वटि), the large stone used by a blacksmith as an anvil.(Kashmiri) Allograph: khāra 2 खार (= ) or khār 4 खार् (L.V. 96, K.Pr. 47, Śiv. 827) । द्वेषः m. (for 1, see [khār 1] ), a thorn, prickle, spine (K.Pr. 47; Śiv. 827, 153)(Kashmiri) खरोष्टी kharōṣṭī , 'A kind of alphabet; Lv.1.29'. Often, there is an alternative (perhaps, erroneous) transliteration as kharōṣṭhī. The compound is composed of: khar + ōṣṭī (or, उष्ट 'mfn. burnt' (CDIAL 2386); uṣṭa -- ʻ settled ʼ (CDIAL 2385) ṓṣṭha m. ʻ lip ʼ RV. Pa. oṭṭha -- m., Pk. oṭṭha -- , uṭ°, hoṭṭha -- , huṭ° m., Gy. pal. ōšt, eur. vušt m.; Ash. ọ̈̄ṣṭ, Wg. ṳ̄ṣṭ, wūṣṭ, Kt. yūṣṭ (prob. ← Ind. NTS xiii 232); Paš. lauṛ. ūṭh f. ← Ind. (?), gul. ūṣṭ ʻ lip ʼ, dar. weg. uṣṭ ʻ bank of a river ʼ (IIFL iii 3, 22); Kal. rumb. ūṣṭ, uṣṭ ʻ lip ʼ; Sh. ō̃ṭṷ m. ʻ upper lip ʼ, ō̃ṭi̯ f. ʻ lower lip ʼ (→ Ḍ ōṭe pl.); K. wuṭh, dat. °ṭhas m. ʻ lip ʼ; L. hoṭh m., P. hoṭh, hõṭh m., WPah. bhal. oṭh m., jaun. hōṭh, Ku. ū̃ṭh, gng. ōṭh, N. oṭh, A. ō̃ṭh, MB. Or. oṭha, Mth. Bhoj. oṭh, Aw. lakh. ō̃ṭh, hō̃ṭh, H. oṭh, õṭh, hoṭh, hõṭhm., G. oṭh, hoṭh m., M. oṭh, õṭh, hoṭ m., Si. oṭa.WPah.poet. oṭhḷu m. ʻ lip ʼ, hoṭṛu, kṭg. hóṭṭh, kc. ōṭh, Garh. hoṭh, hō̃ṭ. (CDIAL 2563). In the context of use of the term kharōṣṭī for a writing system, it is apposite to interpret the compound as composed of khar + ōṣṭī 'blacksmith + lip'. "The Kharosti scrolls, the oldest collection of Buddhist manuscripts in the world, are radiocarbon-dated by the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO). The group confirms the initial dating of the Senior manuscripts to 130-250 CE and the Schøyen manuscripts to between the 1st and 5th centuries CE." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_in_archaeology "The Kharoṣṭhī script is an ancient Indic script used by the Gandhara culture of ancient Northwest South Asia(primarily modern-day Afghanistan and Pakistan) to write the Gāndhārī language (a dialect of Prakrit) and theSanskrit language. An abugida (or "alphasyllabary"), it was in use from the middle of the 3rd century BCE until it died out in its homeland around the 3rd century CE. It was also in use in Kushan, Sogdiana (see Issyk kurgan) and along the Silk Road where there is some evidence it may have survived until the 7th century in the remote way stations of Khotan and Niya...As preserved in Sanskrit documents the alphabet runs: a ra pa ca na la da ba ḍa ṣa va ta ya ṣṭa ka sa ma ga stha ja śva dha śa kha kṣa sta jñā rtha (or ha) bha cha sma hva tsa gha ṭha ṇa pha ska ysa śca ṭa ḍha ...

Paper strip with writing in Kharoṣṭhī. 2-5th century CE, Yingpan, Eastern Tarim Basin, XinjiangMuseum...The Kharoṣṭhī script was deciphered by James Prinsep (1799–1840), using the bilingual coins of the Indo-Greeks (Obverse in Greek, reverse in Pāli, using the Kharoṣṭhī script). This in turn led to the reading of the Edicts of Ashoka, some of which, from the northwest of the Indian subcontinent, were written in theKharoṣṭhī script...The study of the Kharoṣṭhī script was recently invigorated by the discovery of the Gandharan Buddhist Texts, a set of birch-bark manuscripts written in Kharoṣṭhī, discovered near the Afghan city of Hadda just west of the Khyber Pass in modern Pakistan. The manuscripts were donated to the British Library in 1994. The entire set of manuscripts are dated to the 1st century CE, making them the oldest Buddhistmanuscripts yet discovered." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kharosthi List of all known Gandhari inscriptions (20 edicts): http://gandhari.org/a_inscriptions.php  Salomon, Richard. New evidence for a Ganghari origin of the arapacana syllabary. Journal of the American Oriental Society. Apr-Jun 1990, Vol.110 (2), p. 255-273.  Salomon, Richard. An additional note on arapacana. Journal of the American Oriental Society. 1993, Vol.113 (2), p. 275-6.  Salomon, Richard. Kharoṣṭhī syllables used as location markers in Gāndhāran stūpa architecture. Pierfrancesco Callieri, ed., Architetti, Capomastri, Artigiani: L’organizzazione dei cantieri e della produzione artistica nell’asia ellenistica. Studi offerti a Domenico Faccenna nel suo ottantesimo compleanno. (Serie Orientale Rome 100; Rome: Istituto Italiano per l’Africa e l’Oriente, 2006), pp. 181–224.  "In general, some form or other of Bühler's essential thesis that Brâhmî was developed out of a Semitic prototype in pre-Mauryan India has been accepted by most scholars in the west, but rejected by the majority of South Asian experts, who generally argue for a separate and indigenous origin for the Indic scripts, often by way of derivation, direct or indirect, from the Indus script...The major conclusion shared by the studies of Fussman, von Hinüber, and Falk is that at least the Brâhmî script, and possibly also Kharo.s.thî, originated in the Mauryan period and not earlier. Although they disagree in specifics, especially with regard to the date of the development of Brâhmî, all three agree that Kharo.s.thî, which was a regional script of the far northwest, was older than the pan-Indian Brâhmî and influenced its formation...That the basic system of indication of post-consonantal vowels by diacritic marking was originally developed in and adapted from Kharo.s.thî seems well established...Kharo.s.thî itself almost certainly did predate Brâhmî, as argued by Falk et al., and probably dates back at least to the late 4th century, and ( contra Falk) quite possibly even before then...Nevertheless, it would be unwise to rule out surprises in the future, and we should leave the door open, as does Falk (p.340), to discoveries that could revive theories of an early development of Brâhmî. But we must also agree, if reluctantly, with his final sentence: "Zur Zeit erscheint dieser Fall jedoch kaum zu erwarten" (Trans. Currently, this case seems hardly to be expected.)(p.340)." On The Origin Of The Early Indian Scripts: A Review Article by Richard Salomon, University of Washington (via archive.org) http://web.archive.org/web/20060516000049/http://www.ucl.ac.uk/~ucgadkw/position/salomon.html The Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 122, April-June, 2002. Kharosti and Brahmi by Hartmut Scharfe THE EMERGENCE OF WRITING (1) IN INDIA and the relation between the two early scripts, Brahmi and Kharosti, have received new attention in the last several years. (2) A consensus has emerged that challenges Georg Buhler's theories that had widely been accepted in Western scholarship for a century: that the Brahmi script was derived for commercial use in the eighth century B.C. from an Aramaic alphabet, and that later, during the Achaemenid domination of Northwestern India, a more modern Aramaic script was introduced into that part of India and subsequently modified under the influence of the Brahmi script. (3) Several Indian scholars (and some early European scholars) considered the Brahmi script an indigenous development, and some tried to derive it from the undeciphered script found on the seals of the Indus Valley Civilization that flourished before 2000 B.C. (4) One of the problems with Buhler's theory is the oddity that the Brahmi which is better equipped to write an Indian language, would have been replaced by the less apt Kharosti (which would see some secondary modifications under the influence of the Brahmi). Buhler refers to the introduction of the Arabic script after the Muslim conquest, but the parallel is not close: the massive influx of Afghans and Turks and the introduction of Islam and Quran study into India cannot be compared with the few Aramaic scribes who would have served the Persian overlords in the provinces of Gandhara and Sindhu. In fact no Aramaic documents of any kind have surfaced from the period of Achaemenid domination in India. Raj Bali Pandey (5) concluded from this lack of Aramaic documents that Kharosti could not be derived from Aramaic, and that perhaps "the Persians did not rule over India directly." But while no Aramaic inscriptions or other texts are known from the whole eastern half of the Achaemenid empire, the Aramaic inscriptions of Asoka, almost a century later, found in Eastern Afghanistan prove the importance of the Aramaic language and script in that border area. The distinctive features of both scripts are well known. The Kharosti is more cursive, the Brahmi more monumental. While the Kharosti is written from the right to left, does not differentiate between long and short vowels, and indicates initial vowels with similar signs, the Brahmi is written from left to right, distinguishes between long and short vowels, and uses distinctive letters for the initial vowels. Neither direction of writing offers distinct advantages--it is like driving either on the right side or the left side of the road. The other two features are now seen as improvements of the Brahmi over the Kharosti, but all is not well with the arguments offered. The Kharosti script used in the inscriptions of Asoka, the Sakas, and Kusanas does not differentiate between short and long vowels. Buhler, who considered the Kharosti essentially a clerk's script, spoke of the "lack of [signs for] the long vowels which are useless in everyday usage," (6) and Pandey argued that "The absence of long vowels in the Kharosthi is due to the fact that it was used for writing Prakrits which avoid long vowels ... not due to any Semitic influence." (7) While long vowels were usually shortened in all Prakrit dialects before a consonant cluster, long vowels in open syllables remained mostly unchanged. The contrast wasphonemic and could result in different meanings, e.g., dina "day" and dina "miserable." In the shorthand of accounting and of business notes the ambiguity could be tolerated. But the careful distinction of phonetic and phonemic qualities was essential for maintaining the correct recital of Vedic mantras, and the brahmin phoneticians and grammarians studied the distinctions with great care. The Brahmi script essentially differentiates between short and long vowels, but the distinction of i/i and u/u is not always observed, especially in the Asoka inscriptions at Kalsi and the inscriptions at Sohgaura, Piprawa, and Mahasthan. (8) In the more carefully executed inscriptions the strictly phonemic form of the Brahmi script is maintained: one letter for each phoneme (and only one phoneme for each letter). (9) The lack of differentiation of vowel length in the Kharosti (10) has nothing to do with the phonetic or phonemic reality of the Prakrit languages underlying these inscriptions. It derives ultimately from the technique of Semitic writing that essentially only wrote the consonants--with the occasional option to mark a vowel with the letter yod or waw (for /i/ or /u/), in the so-called plene writing. (11) It has been suggested--most recently by H. Falk--that these innovations are at least partially due to Greek influence. But R. Salomon has rightly countered that the Greek distinction of vowel length is very haphazard and incomplete, (12) whereas the Indian sound table and alphabet are strictly phonemic and well ordered. At the same time, the Indian scribes did not move on to a letter script (as later the Avestan scribes did, probably under Greek influence, in the fourth century A.D.) (13) but stayed with the semi-syllabic design. (14) The pattern of the phonemic analysis of the Sanskrit language achieved by Vedic scholars is much closer to the Brahmi script than the Greek alphabet. The modern analysis of the writing of initial vowels in the Kharosti script has been deeply flawed. "The full or initial vowel signs further differ from those of Brahmi in that they are all constructed from the basic vowel sign for a to which are affixed the postconsonantal vowel diacritics to form initial i, u, and so on: thus [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] = initial a/a, while [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] = initial i/i/." (15) This statement of Salomon's echoes similar statements by Buhler, (16) Charu Chandra Das Gupta, (17) and others. (18) As [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (ta) with vowel diacritics denotes [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (ti) and [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (te) and [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (tu), we have [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (a), [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (i), [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (u), etc. All these scholars confused the "original" letter [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (t) with the syllabic value /ta/ that it has in Kharosti. The vowel diacritics for /i,u,e/ "displace" the basic /a/ in creating syllabic signs for /ti/, /tu/, /te/, etc., and equally these vocalic diacritics are not attached to the "basic vowel sign for a"--they displace the /a/. Then what are these diacritics attached to? The answer has to come from the Semitic writing system, where the vowel onset, the Semitic aleph, is treated as a consonant--the aleph is phonemic in Semitic languages (cf. Arabic ra's "head," qur'an "Koran"). The Kharosti writing of initial vowels continues directly the Semitic way of writing (19) rather than "responding to a desire for simplification." (20) Why did the creators of the Brahmi go their own way in the denotation of initial vowels, creating discrete letters for each of them? (21) One could suspect Greek influence, but Greek influence cannot explain the precise notation of vowel length in Brahmi, and it would have failed to promote a true alphabetic script. As the notation of vowel length can be fully explained by the advances of Indian phoneticians and grammarians, we should look at these achievements for inspiration when trying to explain the initial vowel signs of the Brahmi. In the "semi-syllabic" Indian scripts (both in Kharosti and Brahmi) the vowels are marked on the preceding consonant: ka (by default), ki, ku, etc. (by diacritics). But how could an initial vowel be marked by a diacritic? The Kharosti simply followed the Semitic model, attaching the diacritic to the sign for the (consonantal) phoneme aleph. But the Brahmi is a phonemic script, and the vowel onset is not a phoneme in Sanskrit (or any Indian language). There could thus be no consonantal sign in the Brahmi for the vowel diacritics to be attached to. To write iyam "this" (the beginning of Asoka's Rock Edict I) it was necessary to create special letters for the vowels in initial position. Only in the second half of the first millennium A.D. do we come across letters for initial r and au--some with a unique design, and some based on the letter for/a/. Buhler pointed out that in modern Devanagari the letters for /o/ and /au/ (also for /r/!) are modifications of the letter for /a/ and that this trend continued in Gujerati where also the letters for /e/ and /ai/ are formed that way; but the innovation did not spread to the notation of initial /i/ or /u/. The need for letters for initial /r/, /ai/, and /au/ was negligible, since continuous writing made the notation of initial vowels less common than, e.g., in Greek or English--and words beginning with these vowels (i.e., r, ai, au) are not numerous to begin with. Buhler erred when he saw in this trend a parallel to the Kharosti notation of initial vowels--which is not a simplification of Brahmi writing but its forerunner. (1.) I leave aside here the undeciphered script of the Indus Valley Civilization of a much earlier time. (2.) Oskar von Hinuber, Der Beginn der Schrift und fruhe Schriftlichkeit in Indien, Abhandlungen der Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur, 1989 nr. 11 (Mainz 1989); Harry Falk, Die Schrift im alten Indien (Tubingen 1993); Richard Salomon, Indian Epigraphy (New York 1998). (3.) Georg Buhler, Indische Palaeographie (Strassburg 1896), 18-21. (4.) Raj Bali Pandey, Indian Paleography, 2nd ed. (Varanasi 1957), 51. Pandey (57f.) denies also the derivation of Kharosti from Aramaic for which the evidence, though, is quite strong: CharuChandra Das Gupta, The Development of the Kharosthi Script (Calcutta 1958), 284-90. (5.) Pandey, 56. (6.) Buhler, 20: "das Fehlen der, fur den Gebrauch des taglichen Lebens unnutzen, langen Vocale..." (7.) Pandey, 56. (8.) Salomon, Indian Epigraphy, 31. (9.) It has been suggested (M. B. Emeneau, Language 22, PP. 86-93) that n in Sanskrit is not a phoneme, since it is predictably conditioned by its context (rajne, panca). But this is not true for Prakrit (anno, ranno). Panini includes n in his pratyaharasutra-s and uses it as a metalinguistic determinative; is this acceptance of n prompted by a desire for symmetry in the table of consonants or by acceptance of a sound that was phonemic in Prakrit? (10.) In later times, probably under the influence of Brahmi, Kharosti texts from Niya in Central Asia show notations of long vowels. E. J. Rapson (Kharosthi Inscriptions Discovered by Sir M. A. Stein, part III [Oxford 1927] pp. 298f.) wrote: "It was formerly supposed that the Kharosthi alphabet lacked the means of distinguishing long from short vowels; and the fact that such a means existed, even if it was not commonly used, was first made clear by evidence supplied by Niya documents. The lengthening of any vowel may be indicated by a short stroke written below the line, in form and position like the virama of the Devanagari alphabet; cf. a, 3." (11.) The Pehlevi script of the inscriptions and books of the Persian middle ages stayed closer to the Semitic pattern where only consonants were written and where virtually no word began with a vowel. Kharosthi innovated with the consistent use of diacritical markers to denote the vowel--but still not its length. (12.) The distinction of [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] and [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (and o and [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]) is one of vowel quality as much as length (lengthening of [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] is often written as [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII], of o as o[LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]), and there is no marking of different vowel length in the ease of [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] and [LANGUAGE NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]. (13.) Though the Avesta script runs from right to left (like the Semitic scripts), it writes all sounds individually, including all vowels. The Avesta alphabet with its phonemic and phonetic distinctions exceeds the precision of the Greek alphabet: it observes the phonemic distinctions like the Brahmi and Devanagari alphabet, adding phonetic (allophonic) distinctions that were noted in India only in phonetic manuals of the Siksa, but were rarely expressed in the script. (14.) A rare exception in the Mahanistha is recorded by W. Schubring, Abhandlungen der Preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften (1918), 13, 74ff. (15.) Salomon, Indian Epigraphy, 48. (16.) Buhler, Indische Palaeographie, 25. (17.) Charu Chandra Das Gupta, The Development of the Kharosthi Script, 3. (18.) Ahmad Hasan Dani (Indian Palaeography [Oxford 1963] 257) similarly writes: "While Brahmi has three basic forms of vowels, a, i and u, Kharoshthi has only one, the forms of the remaining vowels being obtained by the addition of diacritic strokes." (19.) Seen correctly by M. J. Halevy, Journal asiatique ser. 8, 6 (1885), 264. (20.) Buhler, Indische Palaeographie, 25: "einem Streben nach Vereinfachung zuzuschreiben." E. J. Rapson (Kharosthi Inscriptions, p. 297) remarks: "Hoernle has shown how the same principle tended to modify Brahmi when it was used for Khotanese in Central Asia, and how it has prevailed in the Tibetan alphabet which was borrowed from Khotan." Is it accidental that these trends were strongest in areas that were constantly exposed to the Semitic way of writing, i.e., the marking of the vowel onset? (21.) Only a a i u e o are attested in the oldest inscriptions. The letter a is a modification of the letter a, as the rare letters for initial i and u in later inscriptions are modifications of those for i and u. A treasure hunt in the paddy fields A STAFF REPORTER Monday, August 09, 2004 |Telegraph, Kolkata

A paddy field dug up for Chandraketugarh relics. Picture by Aranya Sen The beaten track snaking through fields of paddy and jute leads to a mango grove, where two pits have been dug up that could easily be mistaken for ponds. The foliage is so thick and luxuriant the smell of green comes strong. Concealed behind the shrubs is another pit, freshly dug but quite as deep. It looks like a huge cake from which a giant has taken a large helping, exposing the layers of clay with what is definitely a stratum of brickwork sandwiched in between. A young farmhand exclaims: “People lease land and dig it.” Why do they do it? He has no reply. But a village homoeopath, who was walking his cycle down the path, says they do to look for artefacts sometimes found even after scratching the surface of what was once Chandraketugarh, a huge fortified township dating back to 4th/3rd century BC. They confirm what Dilip Maite, a man considered a local guardian of this priceless heritage, has been crying himself hoarse about all these years. He has been collecting artefacts since the 50s. Berachampa, a bustling little town, is the name by which this area, 25 km off Barasat, is better known as today. And it has suddenly come into the limelight after Hutch, the mobile telephone company, started digging up a spot, a few metres away from Khana-Mihirer Dhipi or Baraha-Mihirer Dhipi, a site that the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has taken under its wing. Hutch had planned to set up a communication tower there, and the digging had reportedly yielded valuable artefacts. Six men were arrested, thereafter, including Rishi Singh, the labourer engaged by Sadhu Khan, the man on whose land Hutch was erecting the tower. They are out on bail now. Work at the Hutch site has stopped. It would be hardly surprising if artefacts were found at the site. It is common knowledge that ever since Kunjagobinda Goswamy of Calcutta University’s Asutosh Museum, after pioneering excavations in 1956-57, had established the antiquity of the site, Chandraketugarh is there for everybody to plunder. Gautam Sengupta, state director of archaeology and museum, says that as a student, when he had first visited the site covering several km in 1974, children would offer Chandraketugarh objects for sale, and he had bought a tiny plaque for eight annas. Now they command a price of anything between £1,000 and £5,000. The treasure hunt had started soon after they became increasingly hard to get, and they began to command astronomical prices in international sale-rooms. Slivers of Chandraketugarh are so much in demand that there is already a flourishing cottage industry of producing fakes. Terracotta artisans from Bishnupur are hired to produce replicas of the relics. They are adept at reproducing the Kharosti script inscribed on pottery. Arun Hazra, officer-in-charge of Deganga police station, says the area is being patrolled regularly for they are aware that there is a huge racket in rare artefacts operating at Kalitala, Tetultala and the fields of Chandraketugarh. The racket operates from Calcutta, Mumbai and Bangladesh. Hadipur 1 panchayat members allege that Putul Samad, Habibur, Pintu and Bhola are the key players in this racket. They allegedly have private collections of artefacts which they sell to go-betweens. They often con these go-betweens by handing out fakes. Historian Bratindra Nath Mukherjee says Chandraketugarh was named after a legendary king. Excavations had first revealed a continuous sequence of cultural remains dating from 4th/3rd Century BC. “The history of lower Bengal began to be rewritten soon after these excavations. The names of kings were revealed and also the fact that a confederacy was converted into a royalty,” he says. The Kharosti and Brahmi-Kharosti scripts were discovered, along with clay seals of ships bearing cargoes of horses. Mukherjee has authored a book entitled Kharosti and Kharosti-Brahmi Inscriptions in West Bengal (India), Indian Museum Bulletin, Vol 25, 1990. ASI had excavated two sites in Chandraketugarh — the rampart, about a km from Berachampa on the road to Haroa, and the other at Khana-Mihirer Dhipi, on the left, in the middle of the market. Mukherjee stressed that the entire area should be excavated both horizontally and vertically. If required, the area should be acquired. Gautam Sengupta says Chandraketugarh was an early settlement in a relatively new geographical formation and is linked with the pan-Indian process of urban development. Its historical worth cannot be overstressed. “Large-scale problem-oriented multi-disciplinary excavation is very essential. Excavation by archaeologists is not adequate. A whole range of disciplines has to be involved. A national register of Chandraketugarh artefacts is also a must,” he said. Bimal Bandyopadhyay, superintending architect of the ASI, Calcutta circle, says the ASI executed trial trenching in 1999-2000 at the rampart but had to abandon it due to the high level of water.

“History is quite clear now. Archaeological excavation is not treasure-hunting. We excavate with an objective,” he asserts. “Now we know about the development of an urban centre during the advent of the historical period. I have written to the administration several times to alert it about the illicit diggings. Hadipur is the centre of most of this activity. It is not possible for ASI to protect the entire area for certain areas are quite densely populated,” he adds. http://www.telegraphindia.com/1040809/asp/calcutta/story_3530329.asp Kharosti inscriptions discovered by Sir Aurel Stein in Chinese Turkestan. Transcribed and edited by A.M. Boyer, E.J. Rapson, and E. Senart. Published under the authority of His Majesty's Secretary of State for India in Council (1920) http://archive.org/details/kharostiinscript00boyeuoft http://www.scribd.com/doc/77892585/Kharosti-Inscriptions-of-Niya-Slates Kharosti inscriptions of Niya statesKharosti Inscriptions of Niya Slates

http://www.scribd.com/doc/77892585/Kharosti-Inscriptions-of-Niya-Slates

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Chola-era Shiva lingam found in Madurantakam

D Madhavan TNN

Madurantakam: Villagers digging a trench for a local landlord on Sunday discovered a 600-year-old granite Shiva lingam in Madurantakam,77km southwest of Chennai.Archaeologists confirmed the historicity of the find,linking the lingam to the Later Chola period.
This is the second time in a decade that an ancient relic has been found in the area.The villagers,hired to dig a trench for the foundation of a Shiva temple on Surrakuttai Substation Main Road,struck something hard at a depth of 7 feet.I found it difficult to remove sand at the spot and even the excavator could not move the granite object, said S Kandan,one of the villagers recruited by the landlord to dig the trench.The workers informed the landlord,A Udayakumar,who makes stone sculptures for temples.He advised them to remove the object with caution so as not to cause it any damage.After painstakingly removing earth from the sides of the green granite monolith,workers lifted out it out with a crane.
The Shiva lingam was recovered complete and without damage to the icon.We will take steps to preserve the idol and request archaeologists to study the lingam, said Madurantakam municipality chairman K Malarvizhi.
The Shiva lingam,archaeologists said,appeared to belong to the Later Chola period.Based on its characteristics,the icon appears to have been made during the Later Chola period because that era produced lingams made from a single stone, said former deputy superintending archaeologist,state archaeological department,K Sridharan.
The name of the place,Surrakuttai,where the lingam was discovered also indicates that a pond may have existed there,a spot where villagers probably worshipped the lingam.Excavation of entire area could yield more rare objects.

RARE FIND: The 600-year-old granite Shiva lingam

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Afgan fossils 21_04_2012_010_021

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3,000-yr-old burial urn found in Trichy

Dennis Selvan TNN

Trichy: A burial urn dating back 3,000 years was unearthed near Lalgudi recently.The urn was on Tuesday officially added to the exquisite collection of the Trichy museum by district collector Jayashree Muralidharan.The district museum was set up in 1982 on the governments principle of providing museums to all districts,and it was the third in the state after Salem and Madurai.
In order to provide room to the increasing collection of sculptures,bronzes and fossils,the museum was shifted to the historical Rani Mangammal Durbar Hall in 1998 that had been built by Chokkanatha Nayak in 1666.
In fact,the 41-inch-tall burial urn with a circumference 104 inches at its widest portion with a conic bottom was first spotted on October 30 last year near a present day burial ground on a roadside poromboke land in the nondescript Pallividai,falling under Madakudi village panchayat.
Its VAO made arrangements to carefully excavate it without damaging it in any way.Pudukottai curator S Panneer Selvam who is also in charge of Trichy museum told TOI that he brought it to the notice of the commissioner of museums who directed the Trichy district collector take possession of the ancient artefact and restore it to the museum.Panneer Selvam said the urn belonged to the megalithic culture in which people used to keep the bones of the deceased,weapons and different food grains in such urns and bury them.The conic bottom stands testimony to the fact of it being buried underground.There were 10 types of burials and this practice was prevalent until AD 200,the curator said.

RARE FIND: The burial urn at the Trichy museum

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What is the offering on seal m1186? It is a bowl with spoons.

Set the browser to encoding Unicode (UTF-8).

Offering and adorant glyphs of Indus script

m1186

There are two seals of Indus script (m1186 and m0488) depicting a kneeling person with some offerings on a stool/tray. In a vivid orthographic analysis, John C. Huntington identifies the nature of the offering on m1186: it is a bowl with ladles. The offering kept on a stool on m0488 is likely to be a similar glyph, though analysis of a higher resolution image is not possible because the tablet with this glyph is worn-out.

m0488

On both the seals, the adorant making the offerings is shown with wide horns and (possibly, a twig as a head-dress) and wearing a scarfed-pigtail; the adorant is accompanied by a ram with wide horns.

I suggest that the orthography points to two spoons (ladles) in an offering bowl:

ḍabu ‘an iron spoon’ (Santali) Rebus: ḍab, ḍhimba, ḍhompo ‘lump (ingot?)’, clot, make a lump or clot, coagulate, fuse, melt together (Santali) ḍabe, ḍabea wide horns (Santali) Rebus: ḍhābā workplace (P.)

The stool on which the bowl is placed is also a hieroglyph read rebus:

Kur. kaṇḍō a stool. Malt. Kanḍo stool, seat. (DEDR 1179) Rebus: kaṇḍ 'stone (ore)' as in: ayaskāṇḍ 'excellent iron' (Panini)

dhaṭu m. (also dhaṭhu) m. ‘scarf’ (WPah.) (CDIAL 6707) Allograph: ḍato = claws of crab (Santali) Rebus: dhātu = mineral (Skt.), dhatu id. (Santali)

See the human face ligatured to a ram's body (an indication of the hieroglyphic nature of the orthographic composition):

mũh 'face' (Santali). Rebus: mũh metal ingot (Santali) mũhã̄ = the quantity of iron produced at one time in a native smelting furnace of the Kolhes; iron produced by the Kolhes and formed like a four-cornered piece a little pointed at each end; mūhā mẽṛhẽt = iron smelted by the Kolhes and formed into an equilateral lump a little pointed at each end; kolhe tehen mẽṛhẽtko mūhā akata = the Kolhes have to-day produced pig iron (Santali.lex.)

miṇḍāl 'markhor' (Tor.wali) meḍho 'a ram, a sheep' (G.)(CDIAL 10120)mēṇḍhaʻramʼ(CDIAL 9606).मेंढा [mēṇḍhā] m (मेष S through H) A male sheep, a ram or tup. मेंढका or क्या [ mēṇḍhakā or kyā ] a (मेंढा) A shepherd (Marathi) Rebus: meḍ 'iron' (Ho.) mēṇḍh 'gold' as in: मेंढसर [ mēṇḍhasara ] m A bracelet of gold thread. (Marathi)

मेढ [mēḍha] f A forked stake. Used as a post. Hence a short post generally whether forked or not. Pr. हातीं लागली चेड आणि धर मांडवाची मेढ.

I suggest that the orthography points to two spoons (ladles) in an offering bowl.

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/18075052/offering

See: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2012/04/indus-script-corpora-and-business.html

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Khirsara in Gujarat Emerges Prominent Harappan Site

Khirsara in Gujarat Emerges Prominent Harappan Site

PTI | AHMEDABAD | APR 16, 2012

After three years of extensive excavation by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Khirsara has emerged as the prominent mature Harappan site in western Kutch, showing how advance the trade from this part of Gujarat used to be around 4,600 years ago.

"Khirsara has emerged as one of the most prominent mature Harappan settlements in Western Kutch. Earlier, Dholavira and Junikuren had emerged as prominent Harappan sites in Kutch," ASI's Superintendent Archaeologist, Vadodara, Dr Jitendra Nath said.

"The evidences found over last 3 years of excavation there show how advance trade used to be from this part of Gujarat around 4,600 years ago," he said.

Khirsara lies about 85 km Northwest of Bhuj on the Bhuj-Narayan Sarover State Highway. The site is locally known as 'Gadhwali Wadi' and is located on the south-eastern outskirts of the present village overlooking river Khari.

"The prime reason for Harappans to settle at Khirsara was perhaps the availability and easy accessibility to raw materials and minerals in the vicinity," Nath said.

"Khirsara produced a variety of objects for export such as various types of beads of semiprecious stones, steatite and gold, shell bangles, inlays etc," he said.

Discovery of a large number of drill bits and shells debitage indicates that these items were meant for export, the officer said.

During excavation, we have discovered a unique warehouse, a factory site, a citadel, seals, antiquities from the Indus Valley settlement at Khirsara, which is fortified and measures roughly about 310 x 230 metres, Nath said.

The super structure of warehouse seems to have been made of perishable items like wood or wattle and daub. The space in between the parallel walls might have served as a duct for circulation of fresh air to protect the stored material, he said.

The Harappan civilisation is sometimes called the Mature Harappan culture to distinguish it from earlier and later cultures existed in the same area of the Harappan Civilisation.

Khirsara's close proximity with river Khari might certainly have supported the maritime trading activities of its inhabitants, Nath said.

The citadel, a fortress overlooking a city or perhaps protecting a town, shows fortification and re-fortification which scholars reason that elite clan might have lived there. The rooms found there show finer structure, he said.

The factory site discovered during excavation had several products showing that it was utilised for manufacturing activity.

The presence of big furnaces, tandoor, storage jars, small water tanks and discovery of a hoard of gold beads, semi-precious and steatite beads, copper implements, seals, weights, shell objects and debitage indicate that this area (factory site) was once utilised for manufacturing activity, he said.

"Amongst prominent antiquities we have found 25-26 pieces of disk type gold beads from the factory site there. The gold beads are of disk type, globular and tubular," Nath said.

A variety of seals which include square, rectangular and bar types made of steatite, soap stone and sand stone have been discovered at Khirsara.

The bar type seals bear Harappan character only whereas the two rectangular seals represent figurines of unicorn and bison on the obverse, Nath said.

The analysis of botanical remains done by the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, Lucknow reveals that the carbon dates for samples collected from the site fall in the range of 2600-2200 BC approximately, which is roughly 4,600 years old, Nath said.

Khirsara was first reported by the Department of Archaeology, Gujarat government in 1969-70. The site was revisited by a team of Excavation Branch of ASI Vadodara in July 2009 for a survey during which they observed a variety of Harappa artifacts and carried out further digging.

FILED ON: APR 16, 2012 11:31 IST
http://news.outlookindia.com/items.aspx?artid=759764

For decoding of inscriptions found at Khirasa, see the embedded document:

Indus writing: professional guild calling cards --(including decoding of Indus script epigraphs of Chanhujo-daro, Khirasara, Kish, Susa and 16 other sites)

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/118851672/Decoding-Indus-script-epigraphs-of-20-sites2

Decoding Indus script epigraphs of 20 sites2

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12 billion-year-old white dwarf stars merely 100 light years away identified

Published: Thursday, Apr 12, 2012, 21:42 IST
Place: London | Agency: AN

In a new study, astronomers have identified two white dwarf stars considered to be the oldest and closest known to man.

A University of Oklahoma assistant professor and colleagues identified these 11-12-billion-year-old white dwarf stars only 100 light years away from Earth.

According to the OU researcher, these stars are the closest known examples of the oldest stars in the Universe forming soon after the Big Bang.

Mukremin Kilic, assistant professor of physics and astronomy in the OU College of Arts and Sciences and lead author on a recently published paper, announced the discovery.

“A white dwarf is like a hot stove; once the stove is off, it cools slowly over time.By measuring how cool the stove is, we can tell how long it has been off. The two stars we identified have been cooling for billions of years,” Kilic said.

Kilic explained that white dwarf stars are the burned out cores of stars similar to the Sun. In about 5 billion years, the Sun also will burn out and turn into a white dwarf star.It will lose its outer layers as it dies and turn into an incredibly dense star the size of Earth.

Known as WD 0346+246 and SDSS J110217, 48+411315.4 (J1102), these stars are located in the constellations Taurus and Ursa Major, respectively.

Kilic and colleagues obtained infrared images using NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope to measure the temperature of the stars. And, over a three-year period, they measured J1102’s distance by tracking its motion using the MDM Observatory’s 2.4m telescope near Tucson, Arizona.

“Most stars stay almost perfectly fixed in the sky, but J1102 is moving at a speed of 600,000 miles per hour and is a little more than 100 light years from Earth,” John Thorstensen, co-author of the study from Dartmouth College, said.

“We found its distance by measuring a tiny wiggle in its path caused by the Earth’s motion—it’s the size of a dime viewed from 80 miles away,” he said.

Piotr Kowalski of Helmholtz Centre Potsdam in Germany modelled the atmospheric parameters of these stars. Based on these temperature measurements, Kilic and his colleagues were able to estimate the ages of the stars.

“Based on the optical and infrared observations of these stars and our analysis, these stars are about 3700 and 3800 degrees on the surface,” Kowalski, co-author of the study, said.

The study will be published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

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ROCKY PAST: The fossil of a mesosaurus an aquatic reptile is displayed in Pinamar,Uruguay,on Wednesday.The fossil is about 280 million years old

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Temple ruins throw up rare sculptures

M T Saju TNN

Chennai: When a team headed by veteran archaeologist T Satyamurthy visited the ruins of an ancient Pallava-era temple in Pandur village,12km from Vayalur in Kancheepuram district,they could see only bricks scattered all over the premises.But when they started digging the site,they found sculptures of Chandikeswara,Bhairava and a neatly carved Sivalingam under the ruins.The most surprising thing,however,was the finding of a broken Nandi,made of terracotta.
The temple belongs to late Pallava period (9century AD).An unearthed temple basement was found amidst cultivated fields.We found sculptures of gods like Chandikeswara and Bhairava.The style of the lingam and the broken terracotta Nandi were a clear sign of the late Pallava art, said Satyamurthy of the REACH Foundation,an NGO that works for heritage conservation.
Even though rebuilding the temple to its original form is not possible due to encroachment by private parties upon the premises,the heritage lovers in the village want a small temple to be built in the available space.From the bricks used for the construction,we can be sure that the temple was constructed during the late Pallava period.But now only a small portion of the original site is available due to encroachment by the local people upon the temple land.But still,we can build a small temple here without uprooting the Sivalingam, he said,adding that more excavations in and around the temple might help bring in more details of the temple and the Pallava era.
While some villagers are interested in the construction of a new temple in the premises,those who use the encroached land are against the renovation project.They also worry that if further excavation takes place,they may lose their land.
Since there was no one to take care of the temple for long,some influential people encroached up on its premises.Now they say its their property.We dont want to see the sculptures of gods lying scattered under the ruins.Its our duty to preserve it,for which at least a small temple must be built in the available place, said K Nagamuthu,a heritage-enthusiast in Vayalur.
mt.saju@timesgroup.com

CRYING FOR ATTENTION: The statutes found at the site of a Pallava-era temple in Kancheepuram district

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Geography, Peoples and geodynamics of India in Puranas and Epics, A Geologist's interpretations (KS Valdiya, 2012)

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/118366790/valdiya-purana-geo
Geography, Peoples and geodynamics of India in Puranas and Epics, A Geologist's interpretations (KS Valdiya, 2012)

This book endeavours to demonstrate that the narratives by scholarly sages embodied in these ancient Sanskrit works do not represent figments of poetic imagination, but provide-if shorn of metaphors, idiomatic pharases and allegories-the kernels of truths-the revealing facts-and invaluable information on the geography and geomorphological layout.

Written by a geologist who read the texts of the puranas and the epics in conjunction with a mass of studies on geological history of the larger Indian continent and his own extensive field work in different parts of the country, this illustrated book endeavours to demonstrate that the narratives by scholarly sages embodied in these ancient Sanskrit works do not represent figments of poetic imagination...

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/118366790/valdiya-purana-geo

A revies by RN Iyengar of Valdiya's book on Puranic Geography April 9, 2012

Prof.Valdiya the famous geologist now settled in Bangalore has written
an interesting book
"Geography, Peoples,And Geodynamics of India in Purana and Epics".
Publ. Aryan Books, NDelhi, 2012 (Rs. 500/= Libr.Edn.Rs1500/-).

It is an easily readable book, illustrated very well in colour. It is
a good reference on the social and geographical relevance of Puranas
for the contemporary society. Such a book was expected by many like me
and Valdiya has eminently fufilled the wish of his admirers. After the
book by S.M.Ali on Puranic Geography, I had not seen a book of this
type written by an academic scholar.

Apart from the geological/geographical synthesis of varied Sanskrit
texts (dispersed in hundred places) which only a geo-scientist like
him could do, personally I am impressed with his love for
Bhaarata-varsha. His frequent references to greater India and
pre-independence India is very apt. I wish this book will provoke the
younger generation to experience a sense of loss for the vibrant
Puranic-India that was senselessly partitioned.

I have attached a few pages from the book for information.

RN Iyengar

http://www.adityaprakashan.com/index.php?String=57814&p=sr&Field=bookcode&Exactly=yes&Format=detail

http://www.geosocindia.org/contents/2011/dec/p495-500.pdf

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Young bull + lathe hieroglyphs on Indus seals

Correction. 10 April 2012

The seals with these hieroglyphs may be jangad 'for approval' process/trade transactions (say, between workers' platforms to warehouse or from warehouse to sales agents).

Since modern use of 'heifer' refers to a young cow, I would like to correct the meaning of koḍiyum (G.) as 'young bull, bull-calf'. The cognate term in Telugu: కోడియ [ kōḍiya ] Same as కోడె [ kōḍe ] kōḍe. [Tel.] n. A bullcalf. కోడెదూడ. A young bull.खोंड [ khōṇḍa ] m A young bull, a bullcalf.(Marathi) ['Heifer' may be derived from Old English heahfore; related to Greek poris calf, bull.]

Harappa h006 Seal and impression.

Many seals depict a hieroglyphic composition: (1) one-horned heifer with pannier and neck-rings; and (2) a gimlet/lathe on portable furnace. koḍiyum ‘young bull’ (G.) koḍ ’horn’ (Kuwi) koṭiyum ‘rings on neck; a wooden circle put round the neck of an animal’ (Gujarati.) खोंडा [khōṇḍā] m A कांबळा of which one end is formed into a cowl or hood (Marathi). kõdā ‘to turn in a lathe’(B.) कोंद kōnda ‘engraver, lapidary setting or infixing gems’ (Marathi) kũdār ‘turner, brass-worker’(Bengali) খোদকার [ khōdakāra ] n an engraver; a carver (Oriya). Glyph: sangaḍa ‘lathe’ (Marathi) Rebus: जांगड [jāngaḍ] ‘a tally of products delivered into the warehouse ‘for approval’ (Marathi). Rebus: koḍ ’artisan’s workshop’ (Kuwi) cf. खोट [ khōṭa ] f A mass of metal (unwrought or of old metal melted down); an ingot or wedge.(Marathi)

See: H جاکڙ जाकड़ jākaṛ [fr. S. यतं+कृ; cf. jakaṛnā], s.m. A deposit or pledge left with a vendor for goods brought away for inspection or approval; goods taken from a shop for approval, a deposit or pledge being left; a conditional purchase; articles taken on commission sale;—adv. On inspection, for approval:—jākaṛ-bahī, s.f. Account book of sales subject to approval of goods, &c.:—jākaṛ bećnā, v.t. To sell conditionally, or subject to approval:—jākaṛ le jānā, v.t. To take away goods on inspection, or for approval, leaving a deposit or pledge with the vendor. (Urdu)

Note: The meaning of ‘jangad’ is well-settled in Indian legal system. Jangad meand "Goods sent on approval or 'on sale or return'… It is well-known that the jangad transactions in this country are very common and often involve property of a considerable value." Bombay High Court
Emperor vs Phirozshah Manekji Gandhi on 13 June, 1934 Equivalent citations: (1934) 36 BOMLR 731, 152 Ind Cas 706 Source: http://www.indiankanoon.org/doc/39008/

Jangad sale is sale on approval and/or consignment basis (that is, taken without definite settlement of purchase).

Discussion of sales on jangad (approval) basis: http://www.lawyersclubindia.com/sc/INDRU-RAMCHAND-BHARVANI-AND-OTHERS-Vs-UNION-OF-INDIA-OTHERS-281.asp

http://indiankanoon.org/doc/1802495/?type=print

The effect of these terms on the relation between the parties, and the possession of the goods in the hands of the broker, was considered by Madgavkar J. in an unreported judgment in Kanga Jaghirdar & Co. v. Fatehchand Hirachand (1929) O.C.J. Suit No. 1117 of 1928. At that time the relative section of the Indian Contract Act did not contain the expression "mercantile-agent" but only "person". On a consideration of the terms mentioned above the learned Judge came to the conclusion that the possession obtained under a document worded as aforesaid was not juridical possession within the meaning of Section 178 of the Indian Contract Act. As regards the term jangad used in the document the learned Judge observed as follows : "Assuming that jangad in Gujerati ordinarily means 'approval' there is no reason to assume that the goods entrusted jangad are goods to be sold on approval, rather than goods to be shown for approval...The dictionary meaning of the word "jangad" is "approval". As stated by Madgavkar J. in the passage quoted above, having regard to the printed terms in this case, there appears no reason to assume that the diamonds were entrusted to defendants Nos. 1 and 2 to be sold on approval and not that they were given to them to be shown for approval. In my opinion taking the document as a whole, it is clear that they were given to defendants Nos, 1 and 2 to be shown for approval only...It is, therefore, clear that by the delivery of 173 diamonds to him, even on jangad terms, no property can pass to him under Section 24 of the Sale of Goods Act." [unquote]http://www.indiankanoon.org/doc/1749483/

Kalyanaraman
April 10, 2012

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Amdavadi architect to recreate Angkor Wat. Celebrate Angkor Wat as sacred temple of the world.

Millions more, the entire population of the planet globe should visit and revisit the world heritage Angkor Wat. No replication can take away the grandeur and sanctity of this ancient, sacred monument for peoples' vision. There should be daily worship and prayers at this largest vishnu temple of the globe, together with celebration of periodic festivals by all Khmer people, according to age-old traditions.

Let architects recreate using varieties of architectural traditions. The heritage of Angkor Wat (Nagara Vatika) lives on and should stay sacred as a tribute to Paramatman.

Kalyanaraman

Amdavadi architect to recreate Angkor Wa

Bharat Yagnik, TNN Mar 31, 2012, 02.19AM IST

AHMEDABAD: Indians won't have to go all the way to Cambodia to see Angkor Wat, considered to be one of the biggest religious structures in the world, which was constructed in the 12th century. It is thronged by 2 million visitors every year. A replica of the entire temple is slated to be constructed in the Vaishali district of Bihar. The city will have a lion's share in executing the project as a city-based temple architect has been entrusted with the construction of the mega structure.

Piyush Sompura of Panna Craft, a city-based firm specializing in temple construction all over India, told TOI that ever since he had seen Angkor Wat, he had a dream to replicate it. The dream has been realized. "I was contacted by Bihar Mahavir Mandir Trust, the organization that was planning to make Virat Angkor Wat Ram Mandir," he said. "It will be a temple dedicated to Lord Ram, on the outskirts of Patna and I immediately joined the project."

Sompura said that the 900 feet long and 270 feet tall structure is expected to be finished in the next five years at the cost of Rs 150 crore, employing 900 masons. The temple, complete with sprawling campuses and gardens, will have 21 shikhars, he added. His son Dhruv will assist him in the task.

"The temple's main deity is Lord Ram and Sita along with Luv and Kush and sage Valmiki," said Sompura. "However, we are planning to construct temples of various incarnations of Vishnu, Shiva, Ganesha and Surya among others. Being true to the original form, the temple will have Dravidian and Nagar styles of architecture and it will be constructed with 2.5 crore cubic feet of Chunar stone of pink hue."

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-03-31/ahmedabad/31265944_1_temple-construction-angkor-wat-bihar-mahavir-mandir-trust

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Italian Bishops 06_04_2012_002_015

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Looking at the earth from above can reveal incredible secrets. delayed gratification

Archaeology is the study of the remains of the past but has long been predatory on the sciences and their ever-growing technologies. I was brought up as a student in 1970s Britain, when we learned of the wonderful revelations to be made through aerial viewing of almost any human landscape.

Today we have moved on to add, first, satellite imagery to our arsenal, and now the astonishing virtual globes any one of us can use to explore many of the most remote and difficult places in the world. This was never clearer to me than during the past two years, when I began finding thousands of prehistoric sites in the Middle East … from my desk in Perth, Australia, using Google Earth.

ARCHAEOLOGY FROM THE AIR

Aerial reconnaissance for archaeology – Aerial Archaeology – has been an indispensable part of fieldwork in most of north-western Europe for decades. Hundreds of flights are dedicated annually to archaeology, which provide access to millions of aerial photographs. It would not be overstating it to say this technique has been transformational for the discipline.

Click for a larger version. APAAME

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Known sites and landscapes recorded cost-effectively, monitored routinely and mapped, as well as new discoveries, have all added to the database. In Britain, for example, the immense number of new sites recorded has transformed ancient landscape studies.

Although the Middle East witnessed important pioneering aerial reconnaissance in the 1920s and 30s it was largely confined to the British and French Mandates and ended with the Second World War and independence movements.

In the decades since, the landscape of the entire Middle East has been transformed through massive development, largely driven by a population explosion. In Jordan, for example, the population has increased by almost 2,000% since 1943, equivalent to an increase in Australia from the 7.5 million we had in 1947 to 150 million now. In short, the Middle East was deprived of one of the most powerful tools for discovery, recording, mapping and initial interpretation at the very time it was most needed.

But there have been a few glimmers of light.

GOOGLING THE PAST

It has always been relatively easy for archaeologists in Israel and Jordan to obtain aerial photographs and, since 1997, Jordan has supported me in an annual programme of aerial reconnaissance along with my colleague Dr Robert Bewley.

More recently still, the quality of available satellite imagery has improved significantly with the declassification of US military imagery from the 1960s onwards. And now we have virtual globes –Google Earth and Bing, providing extensive high-resolution imagery over large areas of the Middle East.

Click for a larger version. APAAME

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At a stroke and within a very short period of time, archaeologists who were accustomed to working without access to aerial imagery, have had immense landscapes opened up for exploration from their home office. For Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine and Jordan there is extensive high-resolution imagery; for Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Oman, high-resolution coverage is more limited but increasing.

The consequences can be measured immediately, although it will be some years before the detailed impact is known.

At the very least, many archaeologists can see their site or area of interest in colour and useful detail. Many users now produce maps based on Google Earth imagery. In our Aerial Archaeology in Jordan project, Google Earth imagery is used routinely and symbiotically with our aerial reconnaissance.

Although even the best Google imagery cannot substitute for low-level aerial photographs, it does provide a superb photo-map offering vertical views hard to obtain easily from helicopters or aircraft. The major recent impact has been in Jordan’s Arab neighbours where aerial archaeology is not allowed and even access to archive aerial photographs is limited or impossible.

WHAT DID WE FIND?

Large parts of Syria, for example, have now come into sharp focus. One example of the change concerns the prehistoric stone-built structures called kites. French archaeologists reported fewer than 300 in 1995; today we have more than 900 including many in areas where none were previously known.

Click for a larger version. APAAME

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The greatest potential impact will come in the Arabian Peninsula. Saudi Arabia has not normally given access to archive aerial photographs although they are the only viable means of exploring its immense area (2.15 million sq km) and often daunting landscape. Although Yemen and Oman have benefitted from more extensive ground work, both suffer from the same absence of a key tool.

Although 19th century travellers and recent archaeologists noted extensive remains, there was little scope for quantifying what survived. This was especially true of the stone-built structures the bedouin call “the Works of the Old Men”, which are all probably prehistoric.

Recent systematic interpretation of a single high-resolution “window” of Google Earth for an area near Jeddah underscores, counter-intuitively, the surprisingly rich archaeological remains even in the bleakest landscape.

Some 2,000 stone structures were recorded, many of them of a type familiar from eastern Jordan, but a local variant. In a second “window” we have recorded 281 Kites, many of them in forms different from those long-known in Jordan and southern Syria.

A third “window” has revealed a score of tracks leading to an ancient settlement, each flanked for an overall total of several kilometres by burial cairns, Pendants (a cairn with a “tail” of small cairns), keyhole, trumpet and various other shapes of what are probably burial places.

A NEW PERSPECTIVE

There is the potential now for much of “Interior Arabia”, from northern Syria to Yemen, to be explored systematically and its visible remains mapped. Preliminary interpretations can emerge from creating sites, analysing maps and setting the known data against a variety of backgrounds (geology, soils, hydrology, climate, fauna and flora etc).

Aerial Archaeology – whether working with aircraft or satellites, cannot answer many of the questions of interest to archaeologists. But it can be an indispensable tool for building the big picture and establishing the immensely enriched database available to archaeologists.

Click for a larger version. APAAME

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The programme of Aerial Archaeology in Jordan will continue. It provides a rich database of low-level detailed imagery and a permanent record of sites that are often under threat. More than that, it can assist in the interpretation of data from the wider region where aerial reconnaissance is impossible and ground exploration harder or impossible. It will remain part of the increasingly rich mixture of tools for exploring these “works of the old men”.

The digital exploration of the Middle East can involve at least as much time as traditional aerial reconnaissance, but it gives us a new perspective on some of Earth’s most ancient sites.

Developments both in the field and at home can be followed on our blog.

http://theconversation.edu.au/googling-the-past-how-i-uncovered-prehistoric-remains-from-my-office-3569

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Antiquities at Chu Lai Museum

Last update 01/04/2012 02:00:00 PM (GMT+7)

Antiquities at Chu Lai Museum

VietNamNet Bridge – Thousands of Vietnamese antiques from the 18th to 19th centuries and hundreds of Cham cultural items are exhibited at the Chu Lai Museum in the central province of Quang Nam.

The museum is built on five hectares in Tam Nghia commune, Nui Thanh district. This is the first private museum in this region.

The museum’s owner – Mr. Pham Xuan Long – says that he collected these antiques for nearly 40 years. Some items are worth millions of USD. “There are antiques that you cannot buy with money. There are items that I offered very high prices, but owners refused to sell until I told them that I bought the items to exhibit in my future museum. It turned out that they were afraid that I would sell antiques overseas,” Mr. Long says.

Inside the museum, antiques are displayed on different zones, including antiques of the Nguyen Dynasty, the Mac Dynasty, the Tay Son Dynasty, Late Sa Huynh culture, etc.

The museum has many ceramic items of 100-300 years old, weapons and tools used in the houses of mandarins and decorative items.

The most impressive zone is the one for ancient cannons, with more than 100 items. Cannons were very important weapon in fighting invaders of Vietnamese people from the Tran to the Nguyen dynasties (over 500 years). Mr. Ho Nguyen Trung of the Ho Dynasty was the inventor of the cannon. Cannon casting techniques were the best under the reign of King Gia Long and King Minh Mang of the Nguyen dynasty.

The area for Cham antiques is also very attractive to visitors.

Some antiques at the Chu Lai Museum:

Around 50 cannons are displayed at the museum.

Cannon bullets.

Ceramic dragons made in the southern province of Dong Nai in the 19th century.

Happiness-wealth-longevity statues made in Dong Nai.

Carp turns into a dragon – Dong Nai ceramic.

A rock which was displayed in the palace of the Ho Dynasty.

Antiques of the Nguyen Dynasty in the 19th century.

A gramophone of the 19th century.

Bicycles that were used by King Bao Dai.

Chairs and table of the 19th century.

Plates of the 18th century.

Bowls used by mandarins in the 18th century.

The hat of a Tay Son general in the 18th century.

Jars of the late Sa Huynh culture.

Cham items.

Dan Tri

http://english.vietnamnet.vn/en/vietnam-in-photos/20511/antiquities-at-chu-lai-museum.html

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Historic find at Bujang Valley - Himanshu Bhatt

Historic find at Bujang Valley

Posted on 4 April 2012 - 05:29am

Himanshu Bhatt

newsdesk@thesundaily.com

Prof Mokhtar Saidin (L) explaining about the ancient stone, aged 1.83 million years old, to Prof Datuk Omar Osman (3rd, L) and Datin Paduka Zuraina Majid (2nd, L) while visiting the USM Archaeology Gallery, April 3, 2012. BERNAMA

GEORGE TOWN (April 3, 2012): The historical significance of the Bujang Valley in Kedah has intensified with the dramatic discovery of a structure that has existed there since 50 BC – making it the oldest man-made building to be found in South-east Asia.

The excavation was made late last year at the Sungai Batu archaeological area. The age of the site – a metal foundry – was recently confirmed through radiocarbon tests conducted by the Beta Analytic Inc laboratory in Florida.

In hailing the find, Prof Mokhtar Saidin, director of the Centre for Global Archaeological Research of Universiti Sains Malaysia, stressed that it pointed to an advanced civilisation on our shores as far back as 2,062 years ago.

"This will help us to rewrite history," he said. "What we have found is a centre for an iron industry together with a port that existed here during that period."

The foundry is among 97 ancient structures, all covered over time in mounds of earth, that have been detected within a 4 sqkm area at Sungai Batu.

Of these, only 29 have been excavated so far, Mokhtar said.

The structure also pre-dates a nearby 1,900 year old ritualistic monument built with detailed geometric precision, whose discovery was reported by theSun in March 2010.

Since then, other iron-smelting structures have also been found, dating back to 60AD, as well as a jetty.

Mokhtar was speaking after the opening of USM's Archaeology Gallery by Heritage Commissioner Prof Emeritus Datuk Zuraina Majid today. Also present was USM vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Omar Osman.

Zuraina said the government has allocated RM20 million through the National Heritage Department for the conservation of the Sungai Batu archaeological area.

The amount would include land acquisition of the oil palm plantations where the mounds have been found, and the development of an information gallery and visitors' trail.

Prior to the Sungai Batu archaeological project which began in 2009, excavations in other parts of the Bujang Valley during the 70s and 80s had recorded mostly Hindu-Buddhist structures and artefacts dated between the 8th century AD and 13th century AD.

It is understood that the system of metallurgy found here is similar to techniques used in ancient India.

The Sungai Batu finds pre-date other man-made structures in South-east Asia, including the Batu Jaya Site in Karawang, western Java (3rd century AD) and the Siva-Bhadresvara Temple in My Son, Vietnam (4th Century AD).

Earlier, Zuraina inspected three new scientific equipment acquired by USM, with a price tag of RM4.2 million, to facilitate studies on fossils and artefacts.

http://www.thesundaily.my/news/339238

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THE ROMAN CONNECTION
ROOTS OF HISTORY hold together eroding mound

New Interest In Arikamedu Prompts Pondy Govt To Make Tourism Plans

Nandini Sen Gupta | TNN

Puducherry: For nearly two thousand years Arikamedus name,which literally means eroding mound,pretty much marked its destiny.Now a resurgent Indias curiosity about its own heritage is triggering a new kind of interest in this scenic spot,4km south of Puducherry on the banks of the river Ariyankuppam.
Once,a bustling trading station with a rich and active link with Rome,modern day Arikamedu is turning into a tourist destination for European and Indian travellers.Arikameduhasdefinitely turnedinto a popular touristdestination and we have been getting a constant flow of tourists,particularly European groups,visiting the site, says Puducherry tourism department secretary A S Shivakumar.Itis alsobecoming quite popular withIndian tourist groups specifically interested in heritage and we are getting good response particularly from north Indian tourists.
The sites tourist pull has also prompted the Puducherry tourism department to acquire 100 acres of land surrounding thecore 66 acresthat areunder theArcheological Survey of India.The government planstotakeup tourism projects including a Roman sculpture park,a museum,an interpretation centre and a backwater resort, says Shivakumar.Objection from environmental groups has prompted the government to wait till the excavation is over before starting on its projects.These are at the proposal stage and will be taken up later, says Shivakumar.
Known for its local expertise in bead making (glass and stone ),Arikamedu once attracted a rich haul of goods from the Mediterranean.On display in the dusty shelves of Puducherry Museum is a collection of pottery shards retrieved during successive excavations here.This terra sigillata or arretine ware (which has only been reported here ) came to our shores from the farthest corners of the Roman empire from south of Spain to the Greek Rhodes Islands.
Arikamedu is among a handful of trading centres dotting the coastline of peninsular India which were among the most important globally in the ancient world, says art historian Benoy Behl.Textiles from India,mostly Deccan cotton woven in theentire region from Maharashtra toAndhra Pradesh,were one of the most important exports of the time contributing to the prosperity and fame of cities like Kancheepuram for instance. Like Arikamedu,there are similar Roman trading sites in Kerala and Andhra Pradesh and the attraction of Indian imports among its elite was a serious economic drain for Rome, says Behl.
Arikamedu came into prominence in the 1930 s and 40s following the excavations of a group of French,English and Indian archaeologists.First discovered by Frenchman Guillaume Le Gentil in 1760,it gained fame when excavations at the site began under Jouveau Dubreuil and A Aiyappan (curator of the Madras Museum ) in the late 1930 s.

LOOKING BACK

The sites tourist pull has also prompted the Puducherry tourism department to acquire 100 acres of land surrounding the core 66 acres that are under the ASI Arikamedu,which was once known for its bead making,attracted trade with the Mediterranean First discovered by Frenchman Guillaume Le Gentil in 1760,it gained fame when excavations at the site began under Jouveau Dubreuil and A Aiyappan (curator of the Madras Museum) in the 1930s

STANDING TALL: Arikamedu has become a popular destination for Indian and foreign travellers.Like Arikamedu,there are similar Roman trading sites in Kerala and Andhra Pradesh

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African fossil foot signals new prehuman species

Offers Insight Into How Man Started Walking On 2 Feet

John Noble Wilford

Now it seems that Lucy shared eastern Africa with another prehuman species,one that may have spent more time in trees than on the ground.
A 3.4-million-year-old fossil foot found in Ethiopia appears to settle the long-disputed question of whether there was only a single line of hominins species more closely related to humans than to chimpanzees between four million and three million years ago.The fossil record for that period had been virtually limited to the species Australopithecus afarensis,made famous by the 3.2-million-year-old Lucy skeleton.
Of perhaps more importance the newfound foot not only belonged to a different species but also had evolved a distinctive mode of locomotion,which scientists described as equivocal. It clung to the trees and never adapted to terrestrial mobility outright.
The Lucy species had long before evolved almost human-like upright walking,bipedality,as attested by the Laetoli footprints in Tanzania from as early as 3.7 million years ago.This other species was still built for climbing trees and grasping limbs.It was capable of walking,though less efficiently and probably at an awkward gait.
At a pivotal period in prehuman evolution,the discoverers concluded,two lines of hominins practiced contrasting locomotion behavior.Their feet,mostly,told the tale: the divergent,opposable big toe,long digits and other bones of the newfound species did not match the feet of afarensis.Lucys foot had a strong arch and the big toe was lined up with the other four digits,much like the feet of modern humans and all critical for effective bipedality,while retaining some agility for climbing trees.
Yohannes Haile-Selassie,a paleoanthropologist at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History in Ohio,and his colleagues said the species the foot belonged to remains undetermined,for lack of any cranial or dental remains associated with the specimen.But they said the foot was strikingly similar to the earlier hominin Ardipithecus ramidus,nicknamed Ardi,which lived 4.4 million years ago,also in what is now Ethiopia.
Ardis foot also had a divergent big toe,similar to those of apes and gorillas,for tree climbing,though Ardi was an occasional upright walker.
Daniel E Lieberman,a human evolutionary biologist at Harvard wrote in a commentary for the journal that the hominin foot is a valuable addition to the fossil record as it extends the existence of Ardipithecus-like feet by a million years.
This and other recent discoveries,Lieberman said,indicate that there was more diversity in hominin locomotion than we had previously thought,and not all of it took place on the ground.
Donald C Johanson,the discoverer of Lucy,admired this new member of the fossil kingdom.Its a lovely little foot to have, he said,agreeing that its similarity to the Ardi suggested the existence of two parallel lineages in this long time period. NYT NES SERVICE

BURIED PAST: The 3.2m-year-old skeleton called Lucy.Now,it seems Lucy had company another prehuman that also walked,but spent more time on trees

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New Human ancestor 30_03_2012_008_021

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Coins in Tirupati temple traced back to pre-Christian era

Coins in Tirupati temple traced back to pre-Christian era

M T Saju, TNN | Mar 28, 2012, 04.37AM IST

Members of a numismatic scholars' committee have found that some of the earliest coins in the collection belonged to the Satavahana period and pre-Christian era.

CHENNAI: Members of a numismatic scholars' committee, formed to segregate the huge collection of coins in the famous Tirupati Tirumala temple, have found that some of the earliest coins in the collection belonged to the Satavahana period and pre-Christian era.

The panel, which included 20 numismatic scholars from the south, has segregated more than 36 tonnes of coins from the total 48 tonnes in three sessions.

We have segregated about 36 tonnes of coins so far. The earliest coins found in the collection belonged to the Satavahana period, pre-Christian and the Chola era. The remaining 12 tonnes will be segregated in a couple of months, said T Sathyamurthy, one of the members in the team and vice president of South Indian Numismatic Society.

Sathyamurthy said the gold coins accumulated in the hundi (temple collection box) are found to be embedded in the necklaces of the god. The temple administration has stored a huge amount of copper and lead coins in the nearby treasury. The temple is administered by the Tirupati Tirumalai Devasthanams.

It was in January 2011 that the administration decided to segregate the ancient coins from the collection due to lack of storage facility in the treasury.

The coins during the Nayak cover the major share. Others include coins of Bahmani, Khilji, Chatrapathi Sivaji, Qutub Shahi, Mysore Wodayars, Travancore kings, East India Company and Dutch India Company, Sathyamurthy said, adding that modern coins from as many as 60 countries, including the Middle-East, Africa, US, UK, Australia, Canada, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines are also found in the collection.

We are planning to display the rare coins in the two museums here. We are actually working on how to do it, said J Vijayakumar, chief museum officer of the Sri Venkateswara Museum, Tirupati.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Coins-in-Tirupati-temple-traced-back-to-pre-Christian-era/articleshow/12435361.cms

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Kovai kalvettu 25_03_2012_409_032

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Amman 19_03_2012_016_016

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Because the inertia of tectonic plates is negligible, plate velocities result from the balance of forces acting at plate margins and along their base¹. Observations of past plate motion derived from marine magnetic anomalies provide evidence of how continental deformation may contribute to plate driving forces^{2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8}. A decrease in convergence rate at the inception of continental collision is expected because of the greater buoyancy of continental than oceanic lithosphere^2, 3, but post-collisional rates are less well understood. Slowing of convergence has generally been attributed to the development of high topography that further resists convergent motion^7, 8, 9,10; however, the role of deforming continental mantle lithosphere on plate motions has not previously been considered. Here I show that the rate of India’s penetration into Eurasia has decreased exponentially since their collision. The exponential decrease in convergence rate suggests that contractional strain across Tibet has been constant throughout the collision at a rate of 7.03 × 10⁻¹⁶ s⁻¹, which matches the current rate. A constant bulk strain rate of the orogen suggests that convergent motion is resisted by constant average stress (constant force) applied to a relatively uniform layer or interface at depth. This finding follows new evidence that the mantle lithosphere beneath Tibet is intact¹¹, which supports the interpretation that the long-term strain history of Tibet reflects deformation of the mantle lithosphere. Under conditions of constant stress and strength, the deforming continental lithosphere creates a type of viscous resistance that affects plate motion irrespective of how topography evolved.

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Bulgarian Archaeologist Discovers World's Likely Oldest Sun Temple

Archaeology | December 16, 2010,

Archaeologist Ganetsovski might have found the world's oldest sun temple. Photo by BNT

Bulgarian archaeologist Georgi Ganetsovski has made a new hit discovering by unearthing what might be the world's oldest sun temple.

The team of Georgi Ganetsovski, an archaeologist from the Vratsa Regional History Museum, who specializes in paleolithic settlements, has uncovered a structure similar in function to the Stonehenge in the UK but is 3 000 years older than it.

The 8000-year-old structure has been found near the village of Ohoden, VratsaDistrict, Northwestern Bulgaria.

The ancient people used this sanctuary to track the movement of the sun in order to decide what is the best time for planting and harvesting their crops; furthermore, there they would offer gifts to the sun hoping for abundance of their harvests.

The floor of the sanctuary, which was uncovered from under tons of earth mass, was paved with cobblestones; the structure itself has the form of the Cyrillic letter "П", with its open end directed to the east.

"My research during the fall equinox and the measurements and tests that we made show that the shape of the structure is focused on the sunrise, and, what is more, taking into account the shifting of the magnetic poles of the Earth that occurred in the past 8000 years. Another interesting fact is that we found dozens of clay and stone discs at this spot," explained Ganetsovski as cited by the Bulgarian National TV.

In his words, in early agricultural societies the disc with a dot in the middle symbolized the sun disc, which indicates that the sanctuary is the oldest temple dedicated to the cult for the Sun god in Bulgaria, and possibly in the world.

Ganetsovski has recently presented his discovery at a prestigious archaeological forum in Romania with the participation of archaeologists from across the EU and the USA.

Ganetsovski has been excavating the site near Ohoden for years, which is believed to harbor important remains from the first agricultural communities in Europe; over the summer he found an 8000-year-old skeleton of a young man dubbed by the media "The First European."

Archaeology: 8000 year-old Sun temple found in Bulgaria In the summer of 2009, Ganetsovski spoke to Novinite.com (Sofia News Agency) and the Australian channel SBS TV about the troubles he had in dealing with raids by treasure hunters, who are a real plight for Bulgaria's archaeological heritage. He said that to avoid aggressive behavior on part of armed treasure hunters, he would let them search his sites because he knew that the paleolithic settlements had no metal, which is what the treasure hunters are after, and they would then leave him alone.

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Chinese fossils16_03_2012_011_010

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Mammals appeared before dinos died out

Sindhya N Bhanoo

It was long believed that mammals began to diversify and flourish only after dinosaurs died out in the mass extinction about 66 million years ago.
But a new study in the journal Nature suggests that some mammals diversified well before that.The story appears more complex, said study author Gregory Wilson,from the University of Washington.
Wilson and his colleagues studied the teeth of multituberculates,a group of rodentlike mammals that lived from 165 million years ago to about 35 million years ago.Some of the teeth were tiny: as small as four-hundredths of an inch across.
They found that over time,the mammals teeth evolved to have more patches,or bumps.In modern mammals,the greater number of patches you have,the more likely you are to have a diet of high-fiber or plants, Wilson said.NYT NEWS SERVICE

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China fossils point to unknown human species

Skeletons Show Unusual Mix Of Features Of Bygone & Modern Man

Melbourne: The mysterious fossils unearthed in Chinese caves could be of a previously unknown type of human,as the skeletons possess a highly unusual mix of bygone and modern human features,researchers have claimed.
Surprisingly,the fossils are only between 11,500 and 14,500 years old.That means they would have shared the landscape with modern humans when Chinas earliest farmers were first appearing,the researches said.
These new fossils might be of a previously unknown species,one that survived until the very end of the ice age around 11,000 years ago, said lead researcher Darren Curnoe,palaeoanthropologist at University of New South Wales,Australia.
Alternatively,they might represent a very early and previously unknown migration of modern humans out of Africa,a population who may not have contributed genetically to living people, Curnoe was quoted as saying by LiveScience.
At least three fossil specimens were uncovered in 1989 by miners quarrying limestone at Maludong or Red Deer Cave near the city of Mengzi in southwest China.They remained unstudied until 2008.The scientists are calling them the Red Deer Cave People because they cooked extinct red deer in their namesake cave.
Carbon dating,a technique that estimates the radioactive decay of carbon in samples of charcoal found with the fossils helped establish their age.The charcoal also showed they knew how to use fire.
Stone artifacts found at the Maludong site also suggest they were toolmakers,they reported in the journal PLoS ONE.
Meanwhile,a Chinese geologist found a fourth skeleton,which looks very similar to the Maludong fossils,in a cave in southwest China in 1979.It stayed encased in a block of rock neglected in the basement of an archaeological research centre until 2009 when it was rediscovered by the team.PTI

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LordBairavar 15_03_2012_006_005

New Indian-Chennai News + more

The earliest inscription in Malayalam - Iravatham Mahadevan

Primate Fossil Suggests Human Ancestors Originated In Asia, Not Africa

First alphabet was invented by Canaanite miners - Orly Goldwasser

Sarasvati river and civilisation - Rajesh Singh

Lady of the spiked throne (Massimo Vidale 2011). Celebration of a smiths' guild.

Kodumanal: archaeological artifacts (Slide show, May 2012)

Spinner bas-relief of Susa, 8th c. BCE -- message of wheelwright guild

Antithetical antelopes of Ancient Near East as hieroglyphs (Kalyanaraman 2012)

Mirror of Tamil and Sanskrit -- Dr. R. Nagaswamy (2012)

Hieroglyphs on Warka vase read rebus as epigraphs (S. Kalyanaraman, 2012)

Playing commie politics with Dhamma

ஆதிவரலாற்றைக் கூறும் ஆதிச்சநல்லூர்

kharosti 'blacksmith lip, carving' and harosheth 'smithy'

What is the offering on seal m1186? It is a bowl with spoons.

Khirsara in Gujarat Emerges Prominent Harappan Site

12 billion-year-old white dwarf stars merely 100 light years away identified

Geography, Peoples and geodynamics of India in Puranas and Epics, A Geologist's interpretations (KS Valdiya, 2012)

Young bull + lathe hieroglyphs on Indus seals

Amdavadi architect to recreate Angkor Wat. Celebrate Angkor Wat as sacred temple of the world.

Prehistoric remains: Laptop archaeology -- David Kennedy

Googling the past: how I uncovered prehistoric remains from my office

Author

David Kennedy

Disclosure Statement

The Conversation

ARCHAEOLOGY FROM THE AIR

GOOGLING THE PAST

WHAT DID WE FIND?

A NEW PERSPECTIVE

Antiquities at Chu Lai Museum

Historic find at Bujang Valley - Himanshu Bhatt

Coins in Tirupati temple traced back to pre-Christian era

When continents collide: A new twist to a 50 million-year-old tale of Himalayas

WHEN CONTINENTS COLLIDE: A NEW TWIST TO A 50 MILLION-YEAR-OLD TALE

Continental collision slowing due to viscous mantle lithosphere rather than topography

ARTICLE TOOLS

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Bulgarian Archaeologist Discovers World's Likely Oldest Sun Temple