Ancient Kurukshetra of Mahabharat

[Michael Witzel]

Being busy with other things right now (watch out for FRONTLINE... again!),
a brief answer:

>the Kuru emerged(page3)in the late Rigvedic period(1350-1200 BCE). Does this
>mean the Mahabharat war(in which Kurus were involved)took place either in
>this period or sometimes after 1200 BCE?

As for dates, they are ALWAYS indirectly derived from archaeological ones
(as long as we do not get a "Rgvedic ambassador" to Mesopotamia in some
Babylonain/Elamite record!). The RV has no iron yet and should be before
1200 BCE, the date favored in recent years for the introduction of iron;
however, Possehl has recently questioned the very idea of an Iron "Age".
Some adjustment may be necessary. I will write about this after proper
study.

As for the "great battle," its archetype is in RV 7.18 (in Central Panjab!,
with 10 'kings') -- but already the late book RV 1 has another one, of 20
'kings'! Post-RV (Vedic oral, not poetically formulated) traditions shift
the names of the involved and the location ... All of this briefly summed
up in the last section of my paper in Erdosy's Aryan Vol. of 1995 (see via
my website below).

>Kurukshetra, the hub of
>the Kuru realm was located in the northwest of Delhi according to early
>post-RV texts.Is this Kurukshetra the same where Mahabharat war took place?

According to Post-RV texts (PB 25) Kuruksetra is on the Sarasvati (modern
Sarsuti-Ghaggar-<Hakra>)  and Drsadvati (Chautang) rivers. Same area as in
the final version of the Mahabharata (with modern shrines on the Sarsuti
etc., commemorating the battle etc. locations).

>If yes, then to the best of my knowledge, to this day, no decisive
>archaeological evidence had been presented in the support of the ancient
>Kurukshetra of Mahabharat being northwest of Delhi.

That might be very difficult to find! Note the *legendary* character of the
battle: from a very real fight about supremacy in central Panjab (RV 7.18)
to a more and more legendary version of it,  plus,  a gradual shift of
location from the Ravi (paruSNI) to the Sarsuti (sarasvatI).
Even real battles of that period, or of the classical period, are difficult
to trace archaeologically. Does anyone know, by chance, about any trace of
the great Hunnic battle (c. 400 CE)  on the Catalaunian fields, in
N.France, yet?

>To the best of my knowledge,
>there is no archaeological evidence about Kuru-Paancaal realm spreading
>from Delhi towards east

This is a cultural matter: the spread of orthopraxy and the Kuru model of a
state,
not Kuru conquest (see my Kuru paper, all via my web site, below). However,
note that the PGW culture agrees with the Middle Vedic description of its
own area, and this excludes the east (non-PGW, Bihar = Videha, and Kosala,
in part)

>and no evidence to Khandava, Kikata and Pramaganda
>somewhere south of Kurukshetra near Delhi.

in RV 3.53  itself.  Khandava mentioned in a later Vedic texts (TA 5)

Hope this helps. MW>
========================================================
Michael Witzel
Department of Sanskrit & Indian Studies, Harvard University
2 Divinity Avenue, Cambridge MA 02138, USA

ph. 1- 617-496 2990 (also messages)
home page:  http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~witzel/mwpage.htm

Elect. Journ. of Vedic Studies:  http://www1.shore.net/~india/ejvs