Studies in the Geography of Ancient and Medieval India c8.s4: Supplement

Studies in the Geography of Ancient and Medieval India c8.s4

Language: English

Supplement

The Prasthas or Tantrik territorial divisions of ‘India’ are enumerated as five, viz. (1) Indra-prastha, (2) Yama-prastha, (3) Varuṇa-prastha, (4) Kūrma-prastha, and (5) Deva-prastha. The word prastha means ‘a level expanse’, ‘level plain,’ ‘table-land on the top of a mountain’, ‘the top of a mountain’, etc. The word also indicates ‘going on a journey’ and hence possibly, ‘pilgrimage’. This fivefold division of India may therefore have been made from a Tantric pilgrim’s point of view. The association of Aśvapati and Narapati with Indra-prastha and Yama-prastha respectively reminds us of the medieval imperial title Aśvapati-Gajapati-Narapati-rāja-tray-ādhipati.¹

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¹ Cf. C. I. I., Vol. IV, pp. c-ci.

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1. Indra-prastha (vv. 3-6).

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Indraprastha, the name used in ancient literature to indicate a city in the suburbs of Delhi (see v. 4), appears to have been connected with Yoginīpura which is another name of Delhi. In the eastern district of our Indra-prastha lay Mathurā and Gokula, the famous pilgrim-spots of North India. Vṛndāvana, which is near Mathurā, is placed at the kola-deśa, i.e. side, of Indra-prastha while Hastināpura in the Meerut District lay in its north. Dvārakā is placed to the west and Gadāvarta to the south. Dvārakā is the famous Tīrtha in Kathiawad. Gadāvarta, quite well-known from the Harivaṃśa as the place where the Gadā or club thrown by Jarāsandha against Kṛṣṇa at Mathurā fell, is also to be placed not very far from Mathurā. This Indraprastha is therefore bounded by Delhi and Meerut in the north, Gadāvarta in the south, Mathurā in the east, and Dvārakā in the west. Roughly speaking it included the Meerut region in the north-east and parts of Kathiawad in the south-west with its centre at the city of Indraprastha (Delhi). It is stated to have been the land of the Aśvapati or the lord of horses or cavalry.

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2. *Yama-prastha* (vv. 7-9).

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Yama-prastha seems to be placed in the south (i.e., to the south of Indra-prastha) with Someśvara in the west, Sapta-śṛṅga in the east, Māyāpura in the north and Vyaṅkaṭeśa in the south. Someśvara and Vyaṅkaṭeśa are evidently the gods at the celebrated temples at Somanātha in Kathiawad and at Tirupati in the Chittur District of Andhra Pradesh. Māyāpura and Sapta-śṛṅga are no doubt the places of these names mentioned in connection with Varvara (No. 55). There is reference to another locality called Śaṅkhāvarta which is possibly also called Māyā-kṣetra. Roughly speaking, Yama-prastha or the southern *prastha* comprised parts of Kathiawad in the north-west and the district round Tirupati in the south. Thisw as the seat of the *Narapati* or the lord of men or foot-soldiers.

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3. *Varuṇa-prastha* (vv. 10-13).

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Varuṇa-prastha or Vāruṇa-prastha is said to have Jagannātha (in the Puri District, Orissa) in the east, Makkeśvara (at Mecca) in the west, Hiṅgulā (in Sind) in the north and Trailokyavijayā in the south. The seven Sāgaras and Samudras (seas and oceans?) are placed beyond or near this *prastha*. Trailokyavijayā appears to indicate some deity or pilgrim-spot in Ceylon. There is reference also to a place called Rājāvarta. Thus Varuṇa-prastha was evidently connected with the sea and comprised most of the districts on the coast of the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal. This was probably the seat of the *Gajapati* or the lord of elephants (cf. the Gajapatis of Orissa).

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4. *Kūrma-prastha* (vv. 14-16).

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Kūrma-prastha is placed to the north of Gokarṇeśa, to the west of Kāmākhyā, to the south of Mānseśa and to the east of Śāradā. Gokarna in Nepāl, Kāmākhyā in Assam, the Mānasa-sarovara in the Northern Himalayas and the Śaradā-maṭha in Kāśmīra are all well known and have already been referred to.¹ This is the Himalayanan *prastha* and comprised the northernmost areas of India. This Gokarna is not to be confused with the town of this name having a famous Śiva temple in the North Kanara District.

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¹ See above, pp. 86-87 (Nos. 8-9), pp. 96-97 (Nos. 32-33).

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5. *Deva-prastha* (vv. 17-19).

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Deva-prastha seems to be placed to the west of Vairajanātha (or Candranātha), and to the south (east?) of the Amarakaṇṭaka, and Kāñcīpura and Mohanāvarta are located in this *prastha* which had possibly something to do also with Kāmākhyā. Vairajanātha may be connected with the Virajā-kṣetra or Jājpur; but Candranātha, the celebrated god in the Chittagong District in Bengal, seems to be actually indicated. Kāñcīpura of the verse does not appear to mean the famous Kāñcīpuram near Madras. It is better to identify it with the Kāñcī-pīṭha on the Kopāi river near Bolpur in the Birbhum District of West Bengal. Deva-prastha therefore comprised the south-eastern and eastern regions of India. Bengal and Assam which had the greatest centres of medieval Tantricism were included in this *prastha* which is possibly called *Deva-prastha* significantly.

Linked texts (2)

Harivaṃśa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit
Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum