From the Beginning: themes in the prehistory and ancient history of Nepal

8/10/2019 From the Beginning: themes in the prehistory and ancient history of Nepal

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Published in Voice of History, Vol. XV, no.2: 69-38, 2000.(some later amendments are indicated by

bold or red tye!ace "ith conse#uent chan$e in !ootnote numberin$ but not main a$ination%

FROM THE BEGINNING: THEMES IN THE PREHISTORY AND ANCIENT HISTORY OF

NEPAL

&ohn 'helton

Introduction

risin$ !rom on$oin$ "or) on a history o! *eal, this article aims to re+ie" brie!ly some o! the

methodolo$ical roblems in studyin$ early *eal and also some o! the main areas o! contro+ersy

amon$ students o! the eriod. ince my o"n rimary research has been limited to the 9th. and 20th.

centuries, this contribution is o!!ered "ith aolo$ies to secialists but in the belie! that the #uestions

raised can use!ully be debated amon$st all those "ith a serious interest in *eals ast and its rele+ance

to her resent situation.

The Scope o Nep!"e#e Hi#tor$

/he "ord *eal re!erred ori$inally to the 1athmandu Valley and it is only in the resent century that

is has become the o!!icial name o! the entire country. n addition,, !or as !ar bac) as "e ha+e records

the Valley has been the most imortant economic and olitical centre in the east-central imalayas andthere!ore the one !or "hich the most source material is a+ailable. /here are thus t"o reasons temtin$

historians to concentrate on *eal in the narro"er sense and to ta)e note o! other areas only in so !ar as

they e!!ect de+eloments at the centre. history o! *eal in the "ider sense must, ho"e+er, deal "ith

other re$ions, includin$ articularly the /arai, "hich has lon$ been the most imortant area !or !ood

roduction and is no" home to o+er hal! the countrys oulation.

4in)ed "ith the $eo$rahical issue is the broader #uestion o! recisely "hat )inds o! e+ents and

rocesses "e should be studyin$. ! history is de!ined as the systematic in+esti$ation o! the ast then

any asect o! human acti+ity !alls le$itimately "ithin its scoe. 5o"n the centuries, ho"e+er, historical

"ritin$ has $enerally tended to concentrate uon the state and the interrelationshis o! those "ho

"ielded state o"er or contended !or it. /his !ocus on hi$h olitics came under increasin$ criticism

durin$ the 20thcentury and there "as a steady $ro"th o! interest in economic and social history, in the

study o! mentalities as ad+ocated by theAnnalesschool in rance, and in history !rom belo". or

outh sianists, the last-mentioned is articularly associated "ith the "or) o! 7anit uha and his

or the shi!t in the meanin$ o! the "ord, and the olitical imlications behind it, see 7ichard ur$hart, /he ormation o! the;oncet o! *ation-tate in *eal,Journal of Asian Studies,+ol..


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C+erybody "ill ha+e his or her o"n +ie" on "here the balance is to be struc) bet"een the more

traditional style o! history "ritin$ and ne"er aroaches. !eel mysel! that there is still an imortant

lace !or the !ormer. irst, because attitudes and beha+iour amon$ the elite in any society do imact on

that society $enerally. econdly, !or the simle reason that olitical history is an imortant art o! "hat

the reader, articularly the non-secialist reader, "ants a historian to ro+ide. nyone aimin$ to "rite a

$eneral history o! *eal or any other country has to try to co+er both sides o! the icture.

%#in& the #ource#

t is, o! course, the a+ailable sources !or di!!erent eriods "hich artly determine "hat )ind o! historycan be "ritten. /he use o! inter+ie"s is a +ery e!!ecti+e tool !or unearthin$ history !rom belo" !or the

recent ast, as sho"n, !or e?amle, in "or) by @ary 5es ;hene on ur)has in the ritish army or

5a+id olmber$ and his collea$ues on /aman$ !orced labour.6 7eliance on tales handed


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do"n !rom one $eneration to the ne?t can e?tend the methods reach bac) into the nineteenth century,

as "ith tanley te+ens in+esti$ation o! land-use in olu 1humbu, but it can tell us little about the

"ays o! li!e and the !eelin$s and belie!s o! a more distant ast. or the 4iccha+i and early medie+al

eriod, "here the scholar is mainly deendent on inscritions and manuscrit colohons, it is o!ten

only olitical history that can be "ritten "ith any )ind o! con!idence. 1.P. @allas criticism o! 4uciano

Petechs concentration on )in$s and their dates is thus not entirely !air. /o $o beyond this chronolo$ical

s)eleton is to enter a realm o! seculation, as "ith Praya$ 7a harmas interretation o! the land-

tenure system or @allas o"n reliance on Cn$els +ie"s on the conse#uences o! the introduction o!

money into ancient society.= /he seculation may be "ell "orth attemtin$, esecially i! it starts !rom

the realisation that the inscritions are o!!icial, ublic ronouncements and thus, as @alla uts it, the

ancient e#ui+alent o! 'or(ha!atraeditorials. *onetheless, establishin$ the !rame"or) o! dynastic

history is the lo$ical !irst ste. n contrast, "here there is no "ritten record, it is $enerally only +ery

broad social and economic history that can be "ritten at all. /he tools here are archaeolo$y, lin$uistics

and ethno$rahy, "hich tell us nothin$ about the doin$s o! indi+idual rulers.

Cach o! these tools has its indi+idual limitations. rchaeolo$y re+eals only material asects o! culture,

thou$h "e can, o! course, use the results to ma)e intelli$ent $uesses about reli$ious belie! or social

strati!ication. @aor chan$es in the archaeolo$ical se#uence in a articular area, !or e?amle, the

introduction o! a ne" style o! ottery, are o!ten ta)en as e+idence o! mass mi$ration but may simly be

the result o! cultural borro"in$. ;omarison o! e?istin$ lan$ua$es enables the lin$uist to build u aicture o! the e?tinct roto-lan$ua$es !rom "hich they de+eloed. /he rocess is haIardous, ho"e+er,

since the tendency !or one lan$ua$e to borro" "ords or e+en $rammatical atterns !rom another belies

the simli!ied icture con+eyed by the lin$uists con+entional tree-dia$rams. n addition, di!!erences in

lan$ua$e, li)e di!!erences in ottery, do not necessarily corresond to hysical di!!erences in

oulation. Virtually comlete relacement o! one oulation by another does sometimes occur, as

"ith the Curoean coloniIation o! *orth merica and the much earlier sulantin$ o! *eanderthal man

in Curoe by modern humans mi$ratin$ !rom !rica.8/o a lar$e e?tent, ho"e+er, o+er centuries and

millennia, it is $enerally lan$ua$es and not eoles that are relaced.9 /he main e+idence !or this last

statement is $enetic analysis o! mitochondrial 5*, "hich is normally transmitted unchan$ed !rom the

!emale to her o!!srin$ but mutates o+er lon$ eriods o! time at a )no"n rate. /his is no" be$innin$ to

$i+e us


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a "indo" onto the de+eloment o! biolo$ical oulations, thou$h the techni#ues remain contro+ersial.

Cthno$rahy o!!ers another "indo" into the ast because o! the sur+i+al into the resent a$e o!

some $rous "hose li!e-styles seem to reser+e an earlier sta$e in the cultural e+olution o! other

communities. *eals 7autes still li+e as hunter-$atherers, millennia a!ter a$riculture became the main

source o! subsistence !or the +ast maority o! *ealese. ;aution is needed here, ho"e+er, since a

societys culture is not !ully determined by its technolo$y. n articular)it "as one thin$ to be a hunter-

$atherer be!ore a$riculture became an otion, but rather di!!erent to ma)e a conscious reection o! that

otion as encasulated in the slo$an ll die be!ore !arm. o"e+er, "hile no"here on earth is totally

!ree !rom the in!luence o! modern society, a !e" remote areas do remain almost untouched. n his

recent analysis o! the contrasts in de+eloment o! di!!erent societies, &ared 5iamond dra"s e?tensi+ely

on data !rom Paua *e" uinea, "here tone $e cultures ha+e ersisted ri$ht u to the resent

century in +irtual seclusion !rom the outside "orld.0

7eturnin$ to *eals indi$enous "ritten record, a!ter the inscritions and colohons already

mentioned, "e ha+e the e+idence o! the #amsa#alis. /he earliest o! these, the 'o!alaraja#amsa#ali,

dates only !rom the !ourteenth century and there are di!!erin$ +ie"s on the #amsa#alis3 +alue as sources

!or earlier eriods, articularly the re-4iccha+i era. 7iccardi ar$ues that their accounts o! the 1irata

and earlier dynasties lac) any historical basis and criticises those "ho scour the archaeolo$ical record

tryin$ to !ind e+idence that matches the "ritten one. n contrast, yl+ain 4J+i re$ularly sou$ht to !ind a

basis !or the dates in the #amsa#alis, belie+in$ that althou$h they are clearly inaccurate as they stand,

they can !re#uently be e?lained by assumin$ transosition o! !i$ures or con!usion bet"een the Vi)ram

and ha)a eras etc. 4J+i almost certainly "ent too !ar in this re$ard, but there is much in the #amsa#alitradition that does match the inscritional record. /here is broad corresondence in the names o! rulers,

thou$h "ith some distortion o! their order. /he dates in terms o! the 1aliyu$a, "hich $enerally ut

historical !i$ures li)e msu+arman much too !ar bac) into the ast, may erhas be artly e?lained i!

"e assume the tradition ori$inally reser+ed $enealo$ies but not dates. ssumin$ too many years !or

each $eneration is similarly a reason "hy some o! the traditional dates !or early ree) history are too

e!r"$

/here is then material e+idently roduced in *eal but !ormin$ K or urortin$ to !orm K art o!

the broader ndian Puranic tradition. /he Puranas in $eneral contain a mi?ture o! the urely mythical

"ith linea$e history "hich mi$ht ha+e some basis in !act.n any case the circumstances in "hich such

literature

< V..%, 7amni+as Pande and 5ineshchandra 7e$mi discuss both *eals o"nlocal Puranic material and re!erences to the *eal /arai in the "ider ndian tradition.


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Preser+in$ an account o! the successi+e $enerations o! rulin$ !amilies had ori$inally been the !unction

o! bards and chroniclers (suta, magadha%, but in the early centuries .5. they "ere relaced by

rahman !amilies "ho "rote accounts o! the "orld !rom its mythical ori$ins do"n to their o"n times.

/he rahmans resented the !inished roduct as the "or) o! sa$es li+in$ at the close o! the

@ahabharata 'ar. C+ents a!ter that time "ere there!ore $enerally related as a rohecy in the !uture

tense, "hich $enerally ended in the uta era around the


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ima+at)handa o! the )andaurana. /he )andaurana is reco$nised as art o! the main ndian

canon, and includes le$ends lin)ed "ith sacred sites outside *eal.. t aears to be a )ind o!

recetacle !or material "hich could not be !itted into any other Purana.6&ust "hen the *ealese

section "as "ritten is uncertain as scholars disa$ree on the interretation o! the date $i+en in the

earliest )no"n manuscrit o! the "or)./he author o! a recent Cn$lish translation laces it in the 9th

century "hilst 1.P.@alla ar$ues !or =>>=

Conceptu!" r!*e+or,

! their "or) is to be more than an antholo$y o! source material, historians need or$anisin$ concets to

ma)e sense o! their data. t the same time, they also ha+e to be a"are o! the dan$er o! !orcin$ !acts

into an unsuitable !rame"or), somethin$ articularly li)ely to haen "hen the abstractions used !orm

art o! a stron$ly held ideolo$ical standoint. second dan$er is !ailure to de!ine clearly and

unambi$uously the concets alied.

Bne o! the most commonly emloyed abstractions !or the study o! re-modern society, but also one o!

the most li)ely to $enerate con!usion, is !eudalism. B+er the last $eneration there has been a li+ely

debate amon$st ndian historians o+er "hether this "ord can be use!ully alied to ancient and

medie+al ndian society and, i! so, to recisely "hat eriod (s%. /he cru? o! the ndian debate seems to

be "hether the "ord should in !act be used broadly !or any socio-economic order "ith a easantry and

a class o! landlords e?tractin$ surlus by e?tra-economic means, or "hether it should be restricted to

the seci!ic )ind o! social structure that emer$ed in "estern Curoe a!ter the !all o! the 7oman Cmirein the 'est. /he Curoean system in+ol+ed a #uasi-reli$ious bond bet"een lord and +assal and the

institution o! ser!dom, "hich obli$ed the easant to di+ide his time bet"een his lords land and his

o"n. Curoean !eudalism "as also characterised by arcellised so+erei$nty, under "hich those at the

bottom o! the yramid "ere $o+erned by their immediate sueriors instead o! directly by the so+erei$n

ruler at the to o! the hierarchy.8 /he lac) o! many o! these !eatures in the outh sian system has

lead @u)hia and others to #uestion "hether it really #uali!ies as a mode o! roduction in the classic

@ar?ist sense. C+en i! it is


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easantry in a restricted area and a re-e?istin$ central $o+ernment, or !eudalism !rom abo+e, "here a

!ormerly indeendent )in$ is con#uered by a nei$hbour but remains in lace as a subordinate ruler.

i$ni!icantly, the ans)rit termsamanta, "hich ori$inally meant nei$hbourin$ ruler subse#uently

came to mean a deendent one.9

/hus, althou$h the contro+ersy is to some e?tent simly a disute o+er terms, there are also imortant

disa$reements on emirical issues. or e?amle, "hat "as the relati+e imortance !or olitical

e+olution in medie+al outh sia o! the land $rants to rahmans "hich are attested on a lar$e-scale

!rom late uta times on"ards and o! the samantaiIation o! the state as more o"er!ul )in$doms

s"allo"ed "ea)er onesF nd, erhas most crucially, does the states alienation o! its re+enue

collection ri$hts to others re!lect an internal crisis "ithin a hitherto stron$ly centralised structure or

rather simly the e?tension o! state authority, albeit in an indirect !orm, into areas "here it had not

really been e?ercised be!ore.20 ll these comle?ities ha+e tended to be i$nored by historians o! *eal,

"ho treat !eudalism as an unroblematic term. /his is true not only o! "riters such as 5illi 7aman

and 5hanbara aracharya, "hose !ocus is on the micro-detail o! the ancient e+idence, but also o!

those li)e Praya$ 7a harma and 1amal Pra)ash @alla, "ho ha+e made stimulatin$ attemts to tac)le

broader issues o! interretation.

second )ey concet !or the analysis o! *ealese history and society is that o! the tribe, a tribal order

bein$ $enerally seen in contrast to a indu (and !eudal% order "hich sulants it. /he theme o! outh

sian history as the ro$ressi+e incororation o! tribal elements "ithin the indu order has beenta)en u by many "riters. Particularly celebrated is yl+ain 4J+is su$$estion that the rocess in

*eal, comin$ later than in the core areas o! outh sian ci+ilisation, o!!ers the

6, .29th-6th. centuries .5. o"e+er, althou$h the sho)an inscritions use the "ordonly in the indeendent sense, the deendent one is aarently already !ound in Vedic usa$e(@onier-'illiams, Sans(rit 8ictionary, s.#.%.20/he !ormer +ie" is articularly associated "ith 7..harma, the latter su$$ested by, amon$ others,ermann 1ul)e (/he early and the imerial )in$dom: a rocessual model o! inte$rati+e state

!ormation in early medie+al ndia, in 0he State in ndia., o!.cit., .2


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an ethnic !ra$ment K a $rou o! eole "ith stron$ cultural similarities but no sin$le olitical

structure and no sense o! common identity.22t is only in this sense that most o! the $rous no" termed

janajaticould be described as tribes, since, in most cases, they ossessed neither olitical unity nor a

real sense o! solidarity be!ore their incororation in the *ealese state. n alternati+e de!inition !or

tribe, ho"e+er, "ould be a $rou "ith stron$ cultural homo$eneity and a uni!ied olitical structure

but "ith much simler institutions and a less strati!ied social structure than a state. /his !ormulation

could itsel! be alied to a $reat +ariety o! $rous and, in the interests o! clarity o! discussion,

roose to use in this aer the more restricted de!inition o!!ered by &ared 5iamond as art o! an

o+erall schematisation o! the de+eloment o! human society. 5iamond reser+es the term tribe !or the

sta$e beyond bands o! u to ei$hty closely related indi+iduals "anderin$ constantly in search o! !ood.

5iamonds tribe is a !ace-to-!ace community, consistin$ o! no more than a !e" hundred indi+iduals,

all o! "hom are )no"n to each other. ts members d"ell in a sin$le +illa$e or $rou o! adacent hamlets

"ith a system o! ritual e?chan$e bet"een !amilies and indi+iduals and a di+ision into e?o$amous clans,

but no economic strati!ication and no !ormal mechanism !or the re$ulation o! internal con!licts. more

comle? !orm or or$anisation robably only !irst emer$ed in the in the 6 th. millenium .;, in the !orm

o! chie!doms, $rouin$ to$ether u to !i!ty thousand indi+iduals. /he linea$e that sulied the chie!

enoyed a suerior osition o+er the others and a one-"ay !lo" o! tribute relacin$ e$alitarian

e?chan$e. /he chie! and his relati+es !re#uently o"ned lu?ury $oods, the unearthin$ o! "hich by

archaeolo$ists may enable the emer$ence o! this olitical !orms in seci!ic areas to be aro?imately

dated. 4and "as tyically under the chie!s control rather than bein$ held in common by the clan as had

been the case in tribal communities. rudimentary bureaucracy mi$ht de+elo at this sta$e, alon$ "ithbuildin$s !or ublic uroses but the olitical unit remained culturally #uite homo$eneous. /he !inal

transition, robably !irst achie+ed in the early < th. millennium .;. in @esootamia, "as !rom

chie!doms to states, in "hich olitical o"er "as no lon$er tied to descent and the oulation mi$ht

be multi-ethnic. /he state "as characterised by an elaborate bureaucracy "ith secialised !unctions and

by the chan$e o! tribute into ta?ation.23


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units reresentin$ an earlier sta$e are !re#uently !ound embedded in a lar$er unit "hich e?emli!ies a

later one. n the *ealese conte?t, +illa$es inhabited solely or redominantly by one ethnic $rou, such

as ha+e been the subect o! many ethno$rahic studies, may still retain many tribal !eatures in

5iamonds sense. /he (i!atland-holdin$ system in such *ealese settlements "ill ori$inally ha+e

in+ol+ed strai$ht!or"ard clan-tenure, also as in 5iamonds tribal model, but "ith a tendency to"ards

control o! the land by a +illa$e headman or a chie!tain "ith authority o+er more than one +illa$e.2-6, !or the di!!erin$ ersecti+es o! headman and ordinary culti+ators on "ho the landbelon$ed to. /he article also ma)es clear that, amon$ the unu"ar community studied, althou$h sale o!land to outsiders "as not ermitted, indi+idual !amilies normally controlled their o"n lots.2>n e?amle o! history in this mould is Paul &ohnson, 0he 6ffshore slanders4ondon: 'eiden!eld G*icolson, 9=2. or a re+isionist ersecti+e, see *orman 5a+ies, 0he sles: a History.4ondon:@acmillan., 999. 'hile ta)in$ a critical aroach to"ards ritish (and articularly% Cn$lish

nationalist !ormulations, 5a+ies at times aears to endorse the re+erse simli!ications associated "ithrish nationalist historio$rahy. more scetical account o! the latter by a rominent rish historian is7oy . oster,)odern reland 1$1;*/, 4ondon: llen 4ane, 988.


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also ar$uably imlies an assumed re-e?istin$ sense o! shared identity "hich "as only "aitin$ to be

$i+en olitical e?ression. /his mi$ht ha+e concei+ably been the case and, as ha+e ar$ued else"here,

there "as at least a certain basis !or unity amon$ some arts o! the oulation. o"e+er there are

reasons !or sceticism and su!!icient e+idence to re!ute the doubters has not been roduced. /he same

also alies to the assumtions o! manyjanajati acti+ists. /he inhabitants o! medie+al 1athmandu

certainly so)e *e"ari but they are unli)ely to ha+e had the same sense o! bein$ *e"ar as de+eloed

by their descendants in a modernisin$ state dominated by Parbatiya culture.26

! the *ealese nation is seen as a +ery late creation K indeed as somethin$ still under rocess o!

creation K and or)has e?ansion as in many areas the imosition o! alien rule, can the concet o!

colonialism be use!ully aliedF ! one belie+es that the rulers in #uestion "ere indeed ne"comers,

can the same be said o! 4iccha+i rule in the 1athmandu Valley in the ancient eriod and o! the

establishment o! /ha)uri rincilaities in the hills in medie+al timesF Janajati acti+ists "ould o!ten

"ant to ans"er Les, but, as "ith !eudalism, colonialism can be used in both a broad and a

narro"er sense. ! colonialism is de!ined as one $rou o! eole mo+in$ into and assumin$ control o! a

territory already occuied by another, then the rocess has been reeated time a!ter time in human

history and certainly did not be$in "ith the Curoean e?ansion o! the last !e" centuries. /he outcome

+aried bet"een: (% total dislacement o! the ori$inal oulation (relati+ely rare%E (2% the ne"comers

constitutin$ a distinct, rulin$ eliteE or (3% the assimilation o! one society into the other. B+er time, the

second scenario o! course !inally $a+e "ay to the third. /he e?ansion o! ndo-Curoean lan$ua$es

into Curoe and northern


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early ;hinese state !rom the Lello" 7i+er and the con#uest o! Cn$land by the n$lo-a?ons certainly

"ere. 'e may choose, ho"e+er, to restrict the use o! the "ord to the e?ansion o! Curoean eoles

!rom >00 on"ards, "hen distant and culturally +ery di!!erent lands "ere con#uered and retained

under the control o! the metroolitan country, $enerally "ithout assimilation o! the eoles in+ol+ed.

Dnli)e the ne" lands occuied by the an ;hinese, Curoes colonies "ere $enerally +ie"ed as not a

comonent but an anne?.28/he con#uest o! 1iranti territory by the or)ha armies in the 8th. century

could not be termed colonialism in this narro"er sense but it certainly could in the broader one.

Perhas, thou$h, the di!!erence is more aarent than real, since assimilation may be the lon$-term !ate

!or the remainin$ indi$enous eoles o! ustralia and *orth merica. n addition "here non-

Curoeans e?anded, !or e?amle as "ith the ustronesian mo+ement into the islands o! outh-Cast

sia, there may ha+e been a +ery clear-cut searation o! indi$enous and settler oulation initially. or

the analyst, the solution is erhas to emloy !or the rocess in *eal the term internal colonialism,

ori$inally coined to describe the situation o! ;eltic areas on the erihery o! ritain.29

The e-o"ution o #ociet$ !nd #t!te in Nep!"

'ith any country, the story o! human society must be$in "ith the hysical en+ironment "ithin "hich it

de+eloed. *eals earliest history is $eolo$ical history, "ith the north"ards mo+ement o! the ndian

sub-continent to"ards central sia and the slo" disaearance o! the /ethys (or an$es% ea "hich

once searated them. bout =0 million years a$o came the !irst sta$e in the !ormation o! the /ibetan

mar$inal mountains, "hich still !orm the "atershed bet"een the an$es and rahmautra ri+ersystems. et"een 6 and ten million years a$o, roc) strata on the ed$e o! the ndian late "ere !orced

u"ards and !olded bac) to"ards the south. /he root Ione o! this so-called nae !ormation became

the main line o! the imalayas, "hilst the section "hich no" o+erlay youn$er roc)s to the south "as

eroded to !orm the resent *ealese midlands. t around the same time the /ibetan mountains rose

!urther and then, bet"een 800, 000 and >00,000 years a$o the main imalayan ran$e "as also uli!ted

to reach its resent hei$ht. inally, !urther mo+ements roduced the i"ali) and @ahabharat hills to

the south.30

>0

/hese last mo+ements bloc)ed the ath o! ri+ers drainin$ to"ards the an$es lain, !ormin$ la)es in

the 5uns (inner /erai +alleys bet"een the @ahabharat and the i"ali)s% and also in the 1athmandu

Valley. /he 1athmandu 4a)e may ha+e dried u as recently as 00,000 years a$o by "hich time its

shores "ere almost certainly inhabited. /he mythical account o! the drainin$ o! the Valley by

@anushri (uddhist +ersion% or Pradyumna (indu +ersion% could thus concei+ably reresent an oral

oulation (see belo", .20%.285a+id 4andes, 0he ealth and 5o#erty of Nations,*e" Lor): *orton, 998, ..

29ee @ichael echter,nternal &olonialism : the &eltic 4ringe in "ritish National 8e#elo!ment,1+=$1;, er)eley : Dni+ersity o! ;ali!ornia Press, 9=>.30/oni a$en,Ne!al, *e" 5elhi: B?!ord and , 980,.9=-03.


12/37

tradition datin$ bac) more than three thousand $enerations. t is, thou$h, unli)ely that memories could

ha+e been reser+ed o+er such a time deth. y "ay o! comarison, there is a ;hinese !ol) story about

a land lin) bet"een /ai"an and the mainland, "hich "ere in !act oined until around


13/37

metres hi$h. /here "as understandable e?citement amon$st *ealese researchers and some e?tra+a$ant

claims "ere made. Bne scholar "rote in 989 that members o! this secies could "al) erect, mo+e

their hands !reely and had e+en the o"er o! communicatin$ their ideas "ith "ords. e also sa" them

as ancestors o! the ma)ers o! the earliest tools !ound in *eal.33Dn!ortunately, recent thin)in$ is that

7amaithecus "as not in the e+olutionary line leadin$ directly to man and is more li)ely to ha+e been a

!orerunner o! the oran$-utan$s o! C sia.3

/he earliest e+idence o! human acti+ity in *eal is ro+ided by stone tools !ound in the +alleys

(5uns% o! the nner /arai, bet"een the i"ali) and @ahabharat ran$es . urther to the east, "here the

archaeolo$ical record starts a little later, disco+eries ha+e been made on teraes !ormed by ri+ers as they

lea+e the i"ali)s and enter the an$etic lain /he outer !oothills o! the imalayas aear to ha+e

been a articularly suitable en+ironment !or early man, as the ndian i"ali)s ha+e also yielded

e?tensi+e remains. Prehistoric hunter-$atherers resumably li+ed on the shores o! the la)es !ormed as

the hills "ere uli!ted. similar en+ironment "ill ha+e e?isted on the shores o! the la)e "hich once

!illed much o! the 1athmandu Valley: !ossils disco+ered there include those o! an alli$ator and a

hiootamus.36t should be remembered, thou$h, that disco+eries here ha+e been made easier by the

attern o! ri+er erosion e?osin$ !ormerly buried material and that areas "here no remains ha+e yet

been !ound mi$ht still ha+e been used by early man.

/he !irst disco+ery o! stone tools "as made by 7amni"as Pande in the !ar-"estern district o! ardia in

966H= and it has been claimed that one o! his !inds

>2

is o! re-;helean tye, imlyin$ an a$e o! se+eral hundred thousand years.3= o"e+er, this and other

early !inds had been "ashed a"ay !rom their ori$inal site and are thus e?tremely di!!icult to date. /he

337amni"as Pande, ncient *eal, in 1amal Pra)ash @alla (ed.%,Ne!al: 5ers!ecti#es on &ontinuityand &hange, 1athmandu: ;*, 989, .>3.3-2< (200% !or its e!!ect on the "or) o! ;hinese alaeo-historians.

36udrun ;or+inus, 7eort on the 'or) done on the Proect o! Quarternary and Prehistorictudies in*eal,Ancient Ne!al86-88, 98>, .>E Pande, Palaeo-Cn+ironment, !.n. no. 33..

3= 7.*.Pande, o!.cit.,.8 /ools o! ;helean style are laced early in the @iddle Pleistocene eriod(&.4.harma,Hamro Samaj: E( Adhyayan, 1athmandu: aha, 2039 V.., /ables on . and 3%,"hich is no" rec)oned to ha+e lasted !rom about 900,000 to 2=,000 years .P. (5.1.;ha)rabarti,

ndia: an Archaeological History, 5elhi: B?!ord Dni+ersity Press, 999, .> %. *.7.aneree(5isco+ery o! the 7emains o! Prehistoric @an in *eal,Ancient Ne!al, no.6 (969%, .6-9% aears to

claim that hand-a?es "hich he and &.4.harma disco+ered in 968H9 date bac) about 200,000 years.;or+inuss resentation o! her o"n later disco+eries as the earliest reliable ones caused someresentment amon$st *ealese researchers.


14/37

!irst disco+eries o! Palaeolithic remains in strati!ied conte?ts "ere made more recently by udrun

;or+inus. /hey included a hand-a?e site at adari in the 5an$ +alley and another !urther east at

atati. /hehand-a?e (in !act robably used as a scraer rather than a?e% is the name con+entionally

$i+en to a tool tyically used byHomo erectus, the redecessor o! both the *eanderthals and modern

men.Homo erectus "as already an inhabitant o! much o! the $lobe by =>0,00 years .P, at "hich time

the second uli!tin$ o! the main imalayan ran$e "as under "ay.38/he *ealese hand-a?es are o! a

desi$n common in !rica and ndia but not !ound north o! the imalayas. ;or+inus belie+es the 5an$

site dates bac) at least to the later @iddle Pleistocene, +iI. rou$hly bet"een >00,000 and 2=,00 years

P or erhas earlier.39or comarison, the oldest tools disco+ered in outh sia (in the ndian

i"ali)s !urther "est alon$ the imalayan !oothills% are thou$ht to be about t"o million years old.

s)ull disco+ered in the *armada Valley in @adhya Pradesh and belon$in$ either toHomo erectusor an

earlyHomo sa!iens,is belie+ed to date !rom in or ust a!ter the later @iddle Pleistocene.000 .;. or earlier, has uni#ue !eatures o! its o"n but also some C sian a!!inities, esecially to the

oabinhian culture o! Vietnam. /he occuants o! the @ahottari site used lar$e stone tools (macroliths%

38&[email protected], 0he 5enguin History of the orld, 4ondon: Pen$uin, 990, .28.39udrun ;or+inus, 0he 5rehistory of Ne!al after 0en 9ears of %esearch, n 7am Prata /haa G&oachim aaden (eds.%,Ne!al: )yths and %ealities, 5elhi: oo) aith ndia., 2000. /he article alsoreorts the !indin$ o! !la)e and core tools in one o! the tributary +alleys to the 5an$ 5un.


15/37

in contrast to the smaller ones (microliths% tyical o! contemorary ndian sites

similar attern is !ound "ith the neolithic tools !ound in many di!!erent arts o! the country,

includin$ the 1athmandu Valley, and dated on $rounds o! tyolo$y to the 2nd millennium .;. /hese

mostly resemble ssamese tyes but there aears to be an additional in!luence in the 5an$ Valley,

"hich has been described as aA meetin$ lace o! t"o cultures, one e?andin$ !rom ssam and

i))im and the other north ndian.0 .5.ha+e

disco+ered remains o! the +arieties o! barley, "heat and buc)"heat still lanted in the locality today.

/his raises the ossibility that the cro attern in most arts o! *eal remained much the same !rom the

be$innin$s o! a$riculture until the introduction o! *e" 'orld cros such as maiIe, chillies and otatoes

!rom @o$hul times on"ards. /ool disco+eries so !ar erhas su$$est a date in the third millennium

.;. !or the arri+al in *eal o! the *eolithic 7e+olution but it could "ell ha+e been some"hat earlier

in +ie" o! the current estimates !or the transition !rom huntin$ and $atherin$ in nei$hbourin$ re$ions..

/he re!erences in the #amsa#alisto

>.Predita Pohle,eo$rahical research on the history o! the cultural landscae o! outhern @ustan$ Kthe 4and Dse @a o! 1a$beni as a asis.Ancient Ne!al, no.3=-8.


16/37

.;., "hile "heat and barley "ere domesticated in the ndus Valley not lon$ a!ter =000.

oular candidate both !or a substratum lan$ua$e(s% in the imalayas and !or the lan$ua$e o! early

a$riculturalists has been @unda, the "estern branch o! the ustroasiatic !amily. @unda is no"

the re+erse.6, n.2. or a discussion o! modern /arai ethnicity, see run uneratne,@oderniIation, the state and the construction o! a /haru identity in *ealJournal of Asian Studies,+ol.>=, no.3 (u$ust 998%, .=. @arc aborieau (2e N7!al et ses !o!ulations, russels: Cditions comle?es, 9=8, .8%. ;a+alli-!orIa and his collea$ues (0he History and 'eogra!hy of Human 'enes.Princeton: PrincetonDni+ersity Press, .239% claim to ha+e disco+ered a close $enetic similarity bet"een /harus andur)has (the latter term aarently re!errin$ to Pahadi sea)ers in northern Dttar Pradesh% but the

/haru are erhas best seen, li)e the *e"ars, as an a$$lomeration o! eoles "ho entered the /eraiun$les at di!!erent times (c!. iselle 1raus)o!., ;or+Jes (e$aari% in 5an$: Cthno-istorical *otes,in arold B. )ar (ed.%,Ne!al: 0haru and 0arai Neighbours, 1athmandu: C@7, 999 .>0%


17/37

reresented in *eal only by ant(h%ali "hich has somethin$ o+er thirty-thousand sea)ers in &haa

and @oran$ districts. lthou$h the resent antal oulation aears to be the result o! mi$ration !rom

ndia since the mid-9th. century,>2 @unda lan$ua$es "ere concei+ably so)en "idely in *eal be!ore

the arri+al o! the /ibeto-urmans !rom their resumed ori$inal homeland in "estern ;hina.>3/he most

!re#uently cited e+idence !or this used to be the e?istence in lan$ua$es such as 7ai and 4imbu o! a

comle? system o! +erbal a!!i?es sho"in$ a$reement "ith the $rammatical obect as "ell as the

subect. /his $rammatical !eature (ronominaliIation% "as belie+ed to be due to in!luence !rom

@unda, but in !act it is common in /ibeto-urman lan$ua$es outside *eal and thus robably inherited

!rom the arent lan$ua$e.>6

*e+ertheless, there still remains the ri+er name 'anda(i, "hich has been lausibly deri+ed !rom the

@unda "ord !or "ater (gad, gand%>>and this, to$ether "ith the sur+i+al o! @unda lan$ua$es in

oc)ets o! *C and central ndia, still ma)es it lausible that its distribution once included a much "ider

area, includin$ at least art o! *eal. ;omarison o! the +ocabulary o! resent-day @unda lan$ua$es

su$$ests that the sea)ers o! the arent lan$ua$e, "hich is belie+ed to ha+e bro)en u some time in the

second millennium ;, "ere !amiliar "ith subsistence a$riculture based on rice, millet and le$umes.>6

Carly @unda e?ansion across north ndia could thus "ell ha+e been dri+en by a !ood roduction and

>2u$$eland, nne.. 1ali "orshi amon$ the antals o! *eal: induiIation and ethnic boundaries,in @ichael llen (ed.%.Anthro!ology of Ne!al: 5eo!le, 5roblems and 5rocesses,1athmandu: @andala,996, no.2 (993%, . 292-33and 9=>'itIel, o!.cit., .230, 2>6.

>6rlene 7.1. G *orman . Ride 9=6. Proto-@unda ;ultural Vocabulary: e+idence !or Carly$riculture, in 4aurence ;. /homson G tanley tarosta (ed.%,Austroasiatic Studies, t.2, onolulu:Dni+ersity o! a"aii, cited in Caton, o!.cit., ..


18/37

the *C ndian neolithic culture "hich in!luenced de+eloments in *eal could ha+e been de+eloed (or

adoted% by @unda-sea)in$ eoles.>=

*eolithic oulation $ro"th may also ha+e been behind the immi$ration o! /ibeto-urman

sea)in$ eoles. /he imalayan !oothills in 1ashmir sa" the de+eloment !rom 3000 ; on"ards o!

the northern neolithic, a culture "hich "as rou$hly contemoraneous "ith the urban ci+ilisation o!

the ndus Valley cities to the south but sho"ed !e" si$ns o! any interaction "ith the more ad+anced

culture. /he northern neolithic had se+eral similarities "ith the neolithic cultures o! northern ;hina,

includin$ the use o! er!orated stone )ni+es and the burial o! do$s "ith their masters. t "as su$$ested

!irst by Parola that these eole "ere /ibeto-urmans and the lin$uist eor$e +an 5riem has recently

su$$ested that their subse#uent mo+ement east"ards throu$h the hills "as the rocess that brou$ht

most o! *eals /ibeto-urman lan$ua$es to their resent locations.>8/he ossibility o! mi$ration !rom

the "est rather than !rom the east or north had already been raised in 'itIels e?amination o! ri+er

names in the hills. /hese su$$est the resence at one time o! 7ais as !ar "est as @u$u and also o!

@a$ars in "estern hill areas that are no" e?clusi+ely *eali-sea)in$. /his e+idence is suorted by a

>=

tradition amon$ some 7ai that they mi$rated !rom @u$u and amon$ the /hami that they ori$inally

came !rom umla. t may !inally also be rele+ant that the term 1irata, !ound in classical ndian

sources !rom the Vedas on"ards and usually understood as re!errin$ articularly to /ibeto-urman

oulations, must ori$inally ha+e re!erred to inhabitants o! the "estern imalaya, since this "as the

only art o! the ran$e the Vedic ryans "ould initially ha+e had contact "ith.>9

/he !acts can, o! course, be interreted in a di!!erent "ay: eoles "ho entered !rom the east

mi$ht ha+e be$un mo+in$ in the oosite direction later on, "hilst the term 1irata may "ell ha+e

been e?tended to include any abori$inal inhabitant o! the imalayas.60 i+en the robable +ery lo"

oulation densities at the time and the !act that most o! the $rous in+ol+ed "ould ha+e remained

>=Van 5riem, /ibeto-urman correlatesA, o!.cit.,.=. 'hile reortin$ this theory, Van 5riemhimsel! re!ers to see an early "a+e o! /ibeto-urman mi$rants into ssam as the ori$inators o! the*C neolithic.

>8Van 5riem, /ibeto-urman correlates.., .==-82. Van 5riems theory is resented as art o! a lar$erstructure, in+ol+in$ a series o! mi$rations corresondin$ to nodes in the /ibeto-urman !amily tree ashe himsel! reconstructs it. t is hi$hly contro+ersial, articularly in lacin$ ;hinese as a member o! aino-odic sub-!amily "ithin /ibeto-urman and also because o! the early dates he has su$$ested !orinitial oulation mo+ements, but the east"ard mo+ement can be acceted indeendent o! the rest. eealso his ino-odic,"ulletin of the School of 6riental and African Studies,+ol.60, no.3 (99=%, .>>-88 and (!or a stron$ rebuttal o! his e+idence !or a secial lin) bet"een ;hinese and the odic

lan$ua$es%, &..@atiso!! (2000%.>9'itIel, o!.cit..2


19/37

deendent on art in huntin$ and ha+e ractised shi!tin$ rather than settled culti+ation, a Ii$-Ia$

attern o! mo+ement must ha+e been !re#uent. /he theory o! a $eneral dri!t to the east ne+ertheless

remains attracti+e since it "ould arallel the later mi$ration traectory o! the ndo-ryan 1has eole

and also the east"ard ad+ance o! ndo-ryan settlement do"n the an$es Valley. /he attern could be

art o! an e+en "ider one i! +an 5riem is ri$ht in lacin$ the ori$inal ustroasiatic homeland in outh

sia, so that the lin$uistic !orerunners o! the Vietnamese and ;ambodians must also ha+e mi$rated

east"ards to reach their current osition in C sia. Bne conditionin$ !actor !or the trend could ha+e

been climatic: althou$h there are "ide micro-re$ional +ariations, rain!all $enerally increases to"ards

the south-east and, in eriods o! drou$ht, it "ould ha+e been the lo$ical direction to mo+e. lso

imortant could ha+e been ressure !rom other eoles enterin$ the sub-continent !rom the north-"est

and enetratin$ the hills either +ia the ranian lateau or directly !rom central sia.

'hate+er the $eneral trend in the hills, some /ibeto-urmans did certainly enter "hat is no"

*eal directly !rom the north, the most !amous case bein$ the "ell-documented mi$ration o! the

heras into olu-1humbu in the 6th. century.6'hile less recent arri+als, the /aman$, urun$ and

/ha)ali almost certainly entered in a similar "ay. /he three lan$ua$es are clearly closely related and

they are also closer to /ibetan than are other *ealese /ibeto-urman lan$ua$es.62 /his

>8

mi$ration traectory is con!irmed by the oral traditions reser+ed in the urun$!ye. ublished

account based on the!yehas the urun$s settle in @ustan$ bet"een the st cent..;. and stcent. 5.

and cross to the south side o! the imalaya in around >00 .5. t is, ho"e+er, di!!icult to e+aluate

ho+ar and Larun$ /amus claims as they do not ma)e it clear ho" !ar they are relyin$ urely on the

!yeitsel! and ho" !ar on deductions made !rom other sources.63 Cstimates based on the de$ree o!

6@arc BitI, @yths and !acts: considerin$ some data concernin$ the clan history o! the heras,in ;. +on Srer-aimendor! (ed%, &ontributions to the Anthro!ology of Ne!al, 'arminster: ris GPhilis, 9=


20/37

di+er$ence o! the three lan$ua$es are said to indicate a date around 800 or 900 .5 !or their searation,

"hich robably coincided "ith the !irst mi$ration. lottochronolo$y is a notoriously unreliable tool

but, !ollo"in$ 'itIel, one mi$ht suose that the =thto 9thcenturies .5., corresondin$ to the

!ormation, e?ansion and collase o! a united /ibetan )in$dom, mi$ht ha+e seen at least one o! the

mi$rations in+ol+ed.69

connected "ith /aman$ and urun$. o"e+er, enedicts tentati+e lin)in$ o! it "ith the 1iranti

lan$ua$es (7ai and 4imbu% has recently been con!irmed by +an 5riems comarison o! the latters

+erbal morholo$y "ith that o! the archaic *e"ari o! 5ola)ha.6=/his stren$thens the case !or the

&ener!""$ !ccepted -ie+that *e"ar society e+ol+ed out o! the 1irata eriod recedin$ the

establishment o! the 4iccha+i rule.. 'hate+er their $enetic ma)e-u, the inhabitants o! the 1athmandu

Valley are most li)ely the lin$uistic heirs o! an earlier, robably east"ard mo+ement o! eoles and

cultures that also brou$ht the 7ais, 4imbus and @a$ars into their current locations.O-er the centurie#

the$ h!-e cert!in"$ !"#o !##i*i"!ted ! nu*(er o i**i&r!nt# ro* the #outh) !# i# *!de c"e!r

6


21/37

(oth ($ their c!#te/#tructure !nd the ori&in *$th# o p!rticu"!r c!#te#012

ll o! the cultures so !ar discussed, !rom the aleolithic era to the e+e o! the 4iccha+i eriod,

"ere at the re-state sta$es in terms o! 5iamonds cate$ories discussed abo+e. e!ore the neolithic,and

in some cases e+en a!ter it be$an, human bein$s in *eal li+ed simly in bands. /he tribal attern,

"ith +illa$es normally di+ided into e?o$amous clans, then robably became the dominant !orm in

some arts o! the country. /he crucial sta$e o! chie!doms K "hich imlies structures lar$er than a !ace-

to-!ace community K "as resumably reached only under the 1irata rulers o! the 1athmandu Valley.

*othin$ much more can be said about social conditions. t is o!ten assumed that li!e be!ore the arri+al

o! social strati!ication and the state "as a harmonious a!!air, and hunter-$atherer communities in

resent-day outh sia do $enerally seem able to mana$e their internal relations #uite eace!ully. s

has been ointed out already, ho"e+er, "e cannot simly e?traolate !rom such cultural sur+i+als to the

situation be!ore such societies "ere in contact "ith more technolo$ically ad+anced nei$hbours. C+en in

resent conditions , hunter-$atherers do ha+e their internal tensions and de!usion o! these deends

hea+ily on the ease "ith "hich a$$rie+ed arties can ut hysical distance bet"een themsel+es. Srer-

aimendor!s "ell-)no"n study re!ers to the disorder that ensued "hen at the be$innin$ o! the last

century the @adras Presidency $o+ernment brou$ht the ;henchus o! ndhra Pradesh to$ether in lar$e

settlements.69 5iamonds *e" uinean data sho"s that brea)do"n is also a ossibility e+en "ithout

inter+ention !rom a modern state. e $i+es us this account o! a !riends +isit to the ayu, a *e"

uinean eole "ho had re+iously had no contact "ith the modern "orld, and "hose numbers had

been cut do"n drastically by internecine +iolence:

the ayu normally li+ed as sin$le !amilies, scattered throu$h the s"am and comin$ to$ether onceor t"ice a year to ne$otiate an e?chan$e o! brides. 5ou$s +isit coincided "ith such a $atherin$, o!

a !e" doIen ayu. /o us, a !e" doIen eole constitute a small, ordinary $atherin$, but to the ayu

it "as a rare, !ri$htenin$ e+ent. @urderers suddenly !ound themsel+es !ace-to-!ace "ith their

+ictims relati+es. or e?amle, one ayu man sotted the man "ho had )illed his !ather. /he son

raised his a?e and rushed at the murderer but "as "restled to the $round by !riendsE then the

murderer came at the rostrate son "ith an a?e and "as also "restled do"n. oth men "ere held,

screamin$ in ra$e, until they seemed su!!iciently e?hausted to be released. Bther men eriodically

shouted insults at each other, shoo) "ith an$er and !rustration, and ounded the $round "ith their

a?es.=0

Thi# e3!*p"e i# not intended to rep"!ce the #tereot$pe o Eden/"i,e h!r*on$ +ith the oppo#ite

one o ! Ho((e#i!n +!r o !"" !&!in#t !""0 It #hou"d) ho+e-er) re*ind u# th!t the re!"it$ i# !

co*p"e3 one0 Carly *ealese hunter-$atherer society need not al"ays ha+e been so dys!unctional, but

"e can assume some $rous had the same roblem. t "as not

68

D!-id Ge""ner) per#on!" co**unic!tion069See the !ccount in Chri#toph -on F4rer/H!i*endor)0Morals and Merit: a Study of Values and Social controls inSouth Asian Societies. London: 5eidene"d !nd Nico"#on) 67180

=05iamond, o!.cit..26>-6.


22/37

60

$reater $entleness that distin$uished such societies !rom more ad+anced ones but rather $reater

intimacy and one can ha+e intimate enemies as "ell as intimate !riends.

/he transition to state-societies "as, o! course, made !irst in the an$es Valley be!ore in!luencin$

the hills. 'hat is no" the /arai "as imortant to this de+eloment !or t"o reasons. irst, one o! the

rincial routes !or mi$ration do"n the an$es Valley lay alon$ the base o! the hills, robably because

it "as easier to clear !orest !or a$riculture there than nearer the an$es itsel!.= ccordin$ to the

Puranic $enealo$ies, the rulin$ !amilies o! 1osala and Videha, the territories belo" the hills to the "est

and east o! the anda)i resecti+ely, shared Surya#amsidescent and this mi$ht indicate that the

dominant linea$es (or, less li)ely, the ancestors o! the t"o eoles $enerally% mi$ht ori$inally ha+e

been art o! a sin$le east"ard e?ansion.=2 econdly, the area alon$ both sides o! the resent ndo-

=7amila /haar,4rom 2ineage to State, o!.cit.,.=0 and =3.=27amila /haar,enealo$y as a ource o! ocial istory, inAncient ndian Social History, o!.cit..296


23/37

*ealese border ro+ided the initial conte?t in "hich uddhism emer$ed. /he archaeolo$ical record

also sho"s that Painted rey 'are ottery, o!ten associated "ith the east"ard ndo-ryan e?ansion,

"as in use !rom early on at sites such as /ilaura)ot, robably the ancient 1aila+astu.=3 Thou&h *uch

o the Ter!i +!# to re-ert to 9un&"e in *edie-!" ti*e# !nd (eco*e #o*ethin& o ! *!r&in!" !re!) it

p"!$ed ! ,e$ ro"e !t !n e!r"ier d!te08

e+eral imortant trends "ere oeratin$ to$ether on the an$es lain durin$ the !irst millennium

.;. irst "as technolo$ical ro$ress, in articular the use o! iron. /he metal, "hich "as already in use

in south ndia, aears to ha+e been used by the ndo-ryans initially mostly !or "eaons, but by the

middle o! the millennium iron imlements "ere robably bein$ used e?tensi+ely !or !orest clearance

and articularly !or lou$h-shares. /his enabled the hea+ier soils to be e?loited more e!!iciently, e+en

thou$h !armin$ o! such soils and settlement in the an$es-&amuna doab had already be$un "ith only

stone and bronIe tools.=> n any case, the introduction o! ne" +arieties o! rice and o! imro+ements in

translantin$ techni#ues allo"ed substantial $ro"th in oulation. econdly, the Vedic chie!doms "ere

e+ol+in$ to"ards $reater strati!ication "ith a $ro"in$ emhasis on

6

the ideolo$y o! )in$shi.=6/he stron$ monarchical state that emer$ed in @a$adha (ihar% "as in some

"ay a culmination o! this trend, thou$h also brea)in$ "ith the linea$e rincile on "hich the chiedoms

had been based. /he reublican tribes o! the /erai and , o! "hich the 4iccha+is and the ha)yas are

the best )no"n, aear to ha+e been con!ederacies o! older-style chie!taincies, erhas also "ith a

/ibeto-urman bac)$round.==

third !actor "as the $ro"in$ imortance o! trade and o! to"ns, deendent on a rural economy

boosted by the ne" techni#ues and in+ol+in$ no" not linea$e-tenure but easant-rorietors (grihasta%

"or)in$ their land "ith !amily and also "ith aid and sla+e labour. uddhism and &ainism "ere !rom

early on articularly lin)ed to the merchant class, "hich erhas hels e?lain "hy the radically

=3@aintainin$ the identi!ication o! /ilaura)ot "ith the ha)yas caital, made !irst durin$ by 9 th. century archaeolo$ists,hasbecome a oint o! national ride !or *ealese scholars. ee, !or e?amle, hu+an 4al Pradhans2umbini$Ka!ilastu$8eadaha,1athmandu: ;*, 9=9 and abu 1rishna 7ial,Archaeological remains of Ka!ila#astu, 2umbini and 8e#adaha, 1athmandu:Cducational Cnterrises, 9=9. /he counter-ar$uments in !a+our o! Piraha"a in asti district, Dttar Pradesh, are resented in1.@. hri+asta+a,8isco#ery of Ka!il#astu, *e" 5elhi: oo) G oo)s, 986. 'here+er the truth lies, both sides o! the resentborder !ormed a sin$le cultural unit in the uddhas time, as, in some resects, they still do.=


24/37

e$alitarian imlications o! their reection o! rahmanism "ere not !ully "or)ed out. s 7omila /haar

uts it. the element o! social rotest in uddhism "as A.. limited to ro+idin$ the intellectual

encoura$ement and usti!ication !or the !ormation o! a ne" elite.=8

/he renouncer cults also de+eloed close lin)s to the emer$in$ monarchies in @a$adha,

culminatin$ "ith the @auryas in the 3rd. cent..;., and then else"here. or the @auryans and !or later

royalty the monasteries "ere use!ul a$ents o! acculturation and o! social control. /his "as a maor

!actor behind the land $rants to uddhists and &ains and, later on, to sects li)e the Pashuatas, "ho

emer$ed in the 2ndcentury .5.. rants to monasteries, and also to rahmans "ere to become an e+en

more imortant !eature !rom the time o! the uta emire in the 3 rd. to >th.centuries .5.

/he e?tent to "hich the @auryan state and its "ould-be imitators e?ercised direct control o+er its

subects remains a hi$hly contentious issue. /he icture o! centralised, almost totalitarian rule

resented in theArthasastramay "ell ha+e been a royal asiration rather than a reality, or at any rate

reresents the reality only at the centre o! the royal domain.=9 s indu monarchy de+eloed o+er

succeedin$ centuries this asiration "as not lost but, in contrast to the @a$adhan rulers "ho had made

no attemt to conceal lo"-caste ori$ins, there "as by uta times a rene"ed emhasis on edi$ree

and Puranic literature emer$ed in lar$e art to meet that demand.

/he 4iccha+i state in *eal emer$ed a$ainst this an$etic bac)$round and its ublic

ronouncements, "hich !orm the maor art o! the sur+i+in$ inscritions o! the eriod, !aith!ully re!lect

ndian de+eloments. /he inscritional record be$ins

62

"ith a statue o! 8 or 28 .5. commissioned by 1in$ &aya Varman and erhas deictin$ the

)in$ himsel!.80/he statue is in the 1ushan style re+alent at the time in ndia. /he earliest substantial

inscrition, that o! @anade+a at ;han$u *arayan datin$ !rom 3.=91ul)e,80/he readin$ o! the date on the statue edestal is in disute. 1ashinath /amot G an lso, ( 1ushan eriod sculture !romthe rei$n o! &aya Varma - 8 .5., 1athmandu, *eal.%, Asian Art0H=H996, ar$ue !or the earlier one. /heir article, "ith

some udatin$ is currently (5ecember 2000% a+ailable at """.asianart.comHarticlesHayaHinde?.html., "ith hyer-lin) to anundated article by n$elo ndrea 5i ;astro and 7iccardo arbini, n nscribed statue o! the Lear 20= !rom @ali$aon,1athmandu. /he third century date "ould brin$ the a+era$e rei$n len$th !or )in$s bet"een &aya Varman and @anade+a in line"ith that !or later 4iccha+i rulers. am $rate!ul to Praya$ 7a harma !or ro+idin$ in!ormation on the !ind.
http://www.asianart.com/articles/jaya/index.html.http://www.asianart.com/articles/jaya/index.html.


25/37

and Cics, but it aears to ha+e been rare be!ore the latter hal! o! the !irst millennium.8or $ood or

ill, the 4iccha+i state "as abreast, or e+en sli$htly ahead, o! trends in the south and the matrimonial

lin)s o! later rulers "ith rominent north ndian !amilies sho" that the south itsel! ac)no"led$ed this.

/he emer$ence o! such a state in *eal "as art o! a $eneral e?ansion o! indu )in$shi into hitherto

eriheral areas and the 4iccha+i rulers $rants o! re+enue ri$hts to intermediaries, articularly reli$ious

bene!iciaries, "as similarly art o! a re$ional trend already alluded to. /he *ealese data is thus

rele+ant to the debate on "hether the latter rocess can use!ully be termed !eudalisation. s has already

been ointed out, this contro+ersy is not solely a disute o+er terminolo$y but also in+ol+es the real

#uestion, o! "hether such $rants re!lected a "ea)enin$ o! the central $o+ernment in the !ace o! easant

resistance, or rather an e?tension o! state authority (albeit indirectly e?ercised% into areas !rom "hich it

had earlier been absent. Praya$ 7a harmas analysis o! the 4iccha+i land system su$$ests that the

o!!icials "ho are so o!ten !orbidden !rom enterin$ articular +illa$e "ere arts o!

63

the re+enue collection machinery set u by the re+ious 1irata rulers.82Bn this +ie", the 4iccha+is

relaced that system "ith one based on limited direct ta?ation by royal a$ents, reco$nition o! a de$ree

o! local sel!-$o+ernment and dele$ation o! trans!er o! re+enue ri$hts to $rantees. ! "e suose that the

mechanism the ne" re$ime sou$ht to relace had !unctioned only "ea)ly, "e can erhas see the ne"

system as an e?tension, not a "ea)enin$ o! state authority, e+en i! resented to the ublic as a olicy o!

leniency. Very robably $rants in *eal to, !or e?amle, the Pashuatas, "ho "ere clearly lin)ed "ith

the emer$ence o! Pashuatinath as the Valleys central shrine, rein!orced 4iccha+i authority in a similar

"ay to that in "hich the 1anhata Lo$is aided the establishment o! /ha)uri rincialities in the later

medie+al eriod.83

number o! "riters ha+e ointed out that the *ealese 4iccha+is claim to descent !rom the 4iccha+is

o! Vaisali, li)e the later claims o! hahs and 7anas to 7aut descent, mi$ht "ell ha+e been surious.8


26/37

C+en $reater sceticism is usti!ied in the case o! .*.&has su$$estion that the uta !amily "ho

ri+alled the 4iccha+is !or o"er in the 6 thand =thcenturies "ere identical "ith the imerial ndian

utas.8>/here is no doubt, ho"e+er, o! the cultural lin)s bet"een the *ealese state and the Vaisali

re$ion: recent e?ca+ations ha+e !ound similarities bet"een ceramic remains at 5uma)hal in the Valley

and at asarh, the ancient Vaisali.86/he interestin$ #uestion is ho" comlete "as the brea) bet"een

the older, /ibeto-urman *eal and the ans)ritic culture o! the the 4iccha+i eriod. Praya$ 7a

harma belie+es that the inscritions hint at the settlement in e?istin$ +illa$es o! substantial numbers o!

immi$rants !rom the lains and that the!anchali+illa$e committees "hich !i$ure rominently in the

records "ere comosed solely o! those immi$rants. n contrast, @alla assumes that they "ere

indi$enous institutions allo"ed to continue under the ne" re$ime. n any case it should be remembered

that the transition !rom autonomous !ace-to-!ace communities to the chie!dom sta$e must already ha+e

been made be!ore the commencement o! 4iccha+i rule. slo" ans)ritisation o! an emer$in$

indi$enous elite, to$ether "ith a limited amount o! immi$ration, articularly o! rahmans and ascetics,

is #uite ossible. /his "ould accord "ell "ith Crdosys model !or the ryanisation o! ndia itsel!:

ryas do not constitute a racial $rouE rather, belon$in$ to di+erse

6

/here is thus a ossibility that the "ordNe!aladid not come into $eneral use in north ndia until the

4iccha+i dynasty established itsel! in the Valley, erhas in the stor 2ndcentury .5.

/he Valleys strate$ic imortance and its !lourishin$ commerce, "hich so imressed ;hinese +isitors in

the =th. century, rested on its location on a maor trans-imalayan route. 'ith the establishment o! a

united /ibetan )in$dom under ron$-tsen-amo (rei$ned c.62=-4J+i2e N7!al, o!.cit.,.62-3. /he mention in both the sur+i+in$ ans)rit +ersions o! the other"ise un)no"n Lashah)etusu$$ests the name "as used in the ori$inal."rihat(atha.96@ary lusser,Ne!al )andala, Princeton: Princeton Dni+ersity Press, 982, .32-33


29/37

domination, "hich seems to be su$$ested by one interretation o! the 'o!alaraja#amsa#aliE the

ambi$uity arises because the "ord"hotain the #amsa#alimi$ht instead re!er to anea. ome

historians also doubt the e?istence o! the hrit)uti, the *eali rincess "ho, accordin$ to /ibetan

sources, married ron$-tsen-amo.9= /he main ar$ument is the silence o! ;hinese and *ealese

sources on the marria$e but it is also su$$ested that a (shatriya ruler "ould not ha+e $i+en his dau$hter

to a mlechharuler. n !act, o! course, i! o"er olitics had dictated a marria$e, caste di!!iculties could

easily ha+e been o+ercome. Bbli$in$ $enealo$ists mi$ht ha+e disco+ered a suitable ancestry !or

ron$-tsen-amo, and there is indeed one tradition that he "as o!

6=

4iccha+i descent.

98

n any case ron$-tsen-amo "as not a man to ta)e no !or an ans"er, as histhreat o! !orce to obtain the hand o! a ;hinese rincess amly demonstrated.99

'hate+er the e?act details o! *eals status +is-U-+is /ibet, it is imortant not to see it "ithin the

concetual !rame"or) o! inter-state relations re+alent in Curoe since the Peace o! 'esthalia in 6>->=E 1.1.dhi)ari,A "rief Sur#ey of Ne!alese Historiogra!hy, 1athmandu:u)u, .6, .2, cited in &ha, o!.cit., .>,99or /ibet as a maor military o"er in the =thand 8thcenturies see no" ;hristoher ec)"ith, 0he 0ibetan Em!ire in &entralAsia, Princeton: Princeton Dni+ersity Press, 98=E and Pan Lihon$, Son of Hea#en and Hea#enly Daghan: Sui$0ang &hina andits Neighbours.ellin$ham: 'estern 'ashin$ton Dni+ersity.


30/37

ruleF /he analyses o! 4iccha+i society by harma and @alla re!erred to earlier ta)e di!!erent lines.

harma, !ollo"in$ a hint in the5ashu!ati 5urana, sees the dynasty establishin$ itsel! by o!!erin$

milder rule than that o! the 1irata rulers and he su$$ests that A tenancies re+alent in *eal in those

days o! a re-caitalistic and re-colonial economy, robably oerated more leniently A. /han !orms

o! tenancy ractised in recent centuries "ithin *eal itsel! or in outh sia as a "hole.00n contrast,

@alla sees the system as harshly e?loitati+e, the e?ressions in the inscritions o! concern !or oular

"el!are as mysti!ication. s the society "as one "hich had only recently seen the introduction o!

money and the rise o! a merchant class, he assumes that it "as mar)ed by the rimiti+e cruidity (sic%

and

68

+iolence that Cn$els sa" as tyical o! this state in the de+eloment o! ci+ilisation.0 /he authors

interretations erhas re!lect the di!!erent stances that harma, a hill rahman, and @alla, a *e"ar

ta)e to"ards the incororation o! *eals /ibeto-urman sea)in$janajatis "ithin the !rame"or) o!

an ndic, caste society, thou$h @alla is +ery much a"are, that the 4icha+is themsel+es "ere not

necessarily immi$rants. harmas more ositi+e e+aluation o! the 4iccha+i re$ime is erhas the

mainstream one in *eal today. recent essay on the imact o! $lobalisation on !ood suly !or the

1athmandu Valley contrasted a relati+ely beni$n 4iccha+i a$rarian order "ith that o! 7ana times, and,

by imlication, "ith that obtainin$ under the ;on$ress $o+ernments liberalisation olicy.02

t is hard to say "hether harma or @alla is nearer the truth as the inscritional e+idence admits

either readin$ and there are also many comlicatin$ !actors. n ancient and medie+al ndia $enerally,

the easantry may "ell ha+e been )et at or near subsistence le+el,03and the !act that land could

almost certainly be bou$ht and sold in the Valley in 4iccha+i times means that reduction o! easants to

landlessness "as a ossibility. 'hile these considerations !a+our @allas +ie", it is also true that in the

hills as a "hole there "as land !or the ta)in$ by "hoe+er chose to clear it. ny ruler or re+enue $rantee

00P.7.harma, 4and systemA o!.cit.,.>6.0

1.P.@alla, Ci$rahy and society, o!.cit.,.8


31/37

"ho s#ueeIed them too hard ran the ris) o! seein$ them +ote "ith their !eet by mo+in$ to a ne" area.

n !act, "e simly do not at resent ha+e enou$h e+idence to ans"er the #uestion o! ho" harsh

4iccha+i rule "as in comarison either "ith contemorary ndian states or "ith later ractice. end

then "ith a con!ession o! i$norance, "hich is, re$rettably, o!ten the only honest course !or the historian

o! the eriods "ith "hich this essay has been dealin$.

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From the Beginning: themes in the prehistory and ancient history of Nepal

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