War in Ancient India c7.s3.27

c7.s3.27

The Purāṇas have several references to the use of ships and boats. The *Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa* speaks of vessels tossing about on the sea. The *Varāhapurāṇa* refers to the people who sailed far into the ocean in search of pearls and oysters. The ships floated daily on the shoreless, deep, and fearful waters of the ocean.¹¹⁹ We are on a firm ground when we see in the Andhra period their coins marked with ships. The ship building activities were great on the east coast, and the Coromandel coast in particular. From this period to about 15th century A.D. there was a regular intercourse with the islands of the Archipelago most of which were colonised and also with ancient America right across the Pacific as testified to us by the archaeological finds and inscriptions in those parts. The Pāli books of Ceylon like the Mahāvaṃśa refer to ocean going vessels carrying 700 passengers. Such frequent intercourse and colonisation through the ages could not have been effected without a powerful fleet.