In Search of the Cradle of Civilization
Encyclopedia
In Search of the Cradle of Civilization: New Light on Ancient India is a 1995 book by Georg Feuerstein
, Subhash Kak
, and David Frawley
that argues against the theories that Indo-European peoples arrived in India in the middle of the second millennium BC (Indo-Aryan migration
) and supports the concept of "Indigenous Aryans
" and the Out of India theory
.
The book was published by Quest Books, a branch of the Theosophical Society in America
.
views, the authors argue that Vedic civilization grew out of the "Indus-Sarasvati civilization", or Indus Valley civilization
. The authors enumerate fifteen arguments for their revisionist views. Several of these arguments emphasize linguistic
, architectural
, cultural, agricultural
, and technological
continuity between Harappan culture, the Vedas
, and post-Vedic Hinduism
. They also argue that it is improbable that the Vedas were the product of a nomadic or semi-nomadic group. Early opinion considered the Rigveda
as containing memories of an earlier nomadic period, whilst the later Vedas
were the product of a society native to India. The authors argue that this early viewpoint of the Rigveda
is based on mistaken and speculative interpretations, and that in actuality the Rigveda
also describes society native to India.
The authors leave open the view that India
is the Urheimat
(original homeland) of the Indo-Europeans
(the "out of India model"), saying that "the Aryan
s could just as well have been native to India for several millennia, deriving their Sanskrit
ic language from earlier Indo-European dialects."
The authors find continuity in Indian spiritual and religious artifacts from Mehrgarh
, one of the first cities in the world, to the present. Historical linguistics
does not rule out elements of cultural continuity in spite of language change, so that such claims, likewise, are not in conflict with mainstream opinion. In the view of the authors, however, this alleged continuity rules out the later influx of another ethnic group.
New age writer Deepak Chopra
hailed the book as "ground-breaking".
Georg Feuerstein
Dr. Georg Feuerstein is a German-Canadian Indologist specializing on Yoga. Feuerstein has authored over 30 books on mysticism, Yoga, Tantra, and Hinduism...
, Subhash Kak
Subhash Kak
Subhash Kak is an Indian American computer scientist, most notable for his controversial Indological publications on history, the philosophy of science, ancient astronomy, and the history of mathematics...
, and David Frawley
David Frawley
David Frawley is an American Hindu author, publishing on topics such as Hinduism, Yoga and Ayurveda. He is the founder and director of the American Institute for Vedic Studies in Santa Fe, New Mexico, which offers courses on Yoga philosophy, Ayurveda, and Hindu astrology...
that argues against the theories that Indo-European peoples arrived in India in the middle of the second millennium BC (Indo-Aryan migration
Indo-Aryan migration
Models of the Indo-Aryan migration discuss scenarios of prehistoric migrations of the proto-Indo-Aryans to their historically attested areas of settlement in the northwest of the Indian subcontinent...
) and supports the concept of "Indigenous Aryans
Indigenous Aryans
The notion of Indigenous Aryans posits that speakers of Indo-Aryan languages are "indigenous" to the Indian subcontinent.The "Indigenous Aryans" position may entail an Indian origin of Indo-European languages, and in recent years, the concept has been increasingly conflated with an "Out of India"...
" and the Out of India theory
Out of India theory
The Out of India theory is the proposition that the Indo-European language family originated in the Indian subcontinent and spread to the remainder of the Indo-European region through a series of migrations...
.
The book was published by Quest Books, a branch of the Theosophical Society in America
Theosophical Society Adyar
The Theosophy Society - Adyar is the name of a section of the Theosophical Society founded by Helena Petrovna Blavatsky and others in 1875. Its headquarters moved with Blavatsky and president Henry Steel Olcott to Adyar, an area of Chennai in 1883...
.
Content
Contradicting early historical linguisticHistorical linguistics
Historical linguistics is the study of language change. It has five main concerns:* to describe and account for observed changes in particular languages...
views, the authors argue that Vedic civilization grew out of the "Indus-Sarasvati civilization", or Indus Valley civilization
Indus Valley Civilization
The Indus Valley Civilization was a Bronze Age civilization that was located in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, consisting of what is now mainly modern-day Pakistan and northwest India...
. The authors enumerate fifteen arguments for their revisionist views. Several of these arguments emphasize linguistic
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
, architectural
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
, cultural, agricultural
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
, and technological
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
continuity between Harappan culture, the Vedas
Vedas
The Vedas are a large body of texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism....
, and post-Vedic Hinduism
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
. They also argue that it is improbable that the Vedas were the product of a nomadic or semi-nomadic group. Early opinion considered the Rigveda
Rigveda
The Rigveda is an ancient Indian sacred collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns...
as containing memories of an earlier nomadic period, whilst the later Vedas
Vedas
The Vedas are a large body of texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism....
were the product of a society native to India. The authors argue that this early viewpoint of the Rigveda
Rigveda
The Rigveda is an ancient Indian sacred collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns...
is based on mistaken and speculative interpretations, and that in actuality the Rigveda
Rigveda
The Rigveda is an ancient Indian sacred collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns...
also describes society native to India.
The authors leave open the view that India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
is the Urheimat
Urheimat
Urheimat is a linguistic term denoting the original homeland of the speakers of a proto-language...
(original homeland) of the Indo-Europeans
Indo-European languages
The Indo-European languages are a family of several hundred related languages and dialects, including most major current languages of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and South Asia and also historically predominant in Anatolia...
(the "out of India model"), saying that "the Aryan
Aryan
Aryan is an English language loanword derived from Sanskrit ārya and denoting variously*In scholarly usage:**Indo-Iranian languages *in dated usage:**the Indo-European languages more generally and their speakers...
s could just as well have been native to India for several millennia, deriving their Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
ic language from earlier Indo-European dialects."
The authors find continuity in Indian spiritual and religious artifacts from Mehrgarh
Mehrgarh
Mehrgarh , one of the most important Neolithic sites in archaeology, lies on the "Kachi plain" of Balochistan, Pakistan...
, one of the first cities in the world, to the present. Historical linguistics
Historical linguistics
Historical linguistics is the study of language change. It has five main concerns:* to describe and account for observed changes in particular languages...
does not rule out elements of cultural continuity in spite of language change, so that such claims, likewise, are not in conflict with mainstream opinion. In the view of the authors, however, this alleged continuity rules out the later influx of another ethnic group.
New age writer Deepak Chopra
Deepak Chopra
Deepak Chopra is an Indian medical doctor, public speaker, and writer on subjects such as spirituality, Ayurveda and mind-body medicine. Chopra began his career as an endocrinologist and later shifted his focus to alternative medicine. Chopra now runs his own medical center, with a focus on...
hailed the book as "ground-breaking".
Bibliographic information
- Georg FeuersteinGeorg FeuersteinDr. Georg Feuerstein is a German-Canadian Indologist specializing on Yoga. Feuerstein has authored over 30 books on mysticism, Yoga, Tantra, and Hinduism...
, Subhash KakSubhash KakSubhash Kak is an Indian American computer scientist, most notable for his controversial Indological publications on history, the philosophy of science, ancient astronomy, and the history of mathematics...
, David FrawleyDavid FrawleyDavid Frawley is an American Hindu author, publishing on topics such as Hinduism, Yoga and Ayurveda. He is the founder and director of the American Institute for Vedic Studies in Santa Fe, New Mexico, which offers courses on Yoga philosophy, Ayurveda, and Hindu astrology...
, In Search of the Cradle of Civilization: New Light on Ancient India, Quest Books (October, 1995), ISBN 0-8356-0720-8. - 2001 reprint, Quest Books, ISBN 978-0835607414.
- 2005 reprint, Motilal BanarsidassMotilal BanarsidassMotilal Banarsidass is a leading Indian publishing house on Sanskrit and Indology since 1903, located in Delhi, India. It publishes and distributes serials, monographs, and scholarly publications on Asian religion, philosophy, history, culture, arts, architecture, archaeology, language,...
, ISBN 978-8120820371.
See also
- Aryan Invasion of India: The Myth and the Truth (1993)
- Update on the Aryan Invasion DebateUpdate on the Aryan Invasion DebateUpdate on the Aryan Invasion Debate is a book by Koenraad Elst. The book discusses various aspects of the Indo-Aryan migration debate and concludes by proposing a chronological order for the events in the spread of Aryans Out of India....
(1999) - The Rigveda: A Historical AnalysisThe Rigveda: A Historical AnalysisThe Rigveda: A Historical Analysis is a book by Shrikant G. Talageri . It was published by Aditya Prakashan, New Delhi in 2000....
(2000)