- Introduction: “The Indus Valley Civilization, of which impressive remains have been discovered at Mohenjodaro in Sindh and at Harappa in the Western Punjab, is the earliest picture that we have of India’s past. These excavations have revolutionised the conception of ancient history”, observes Sri Jawaharlal Nehru in his “Discovery of India”. Before the discovery of Indus Valley civilization in 1922, it generally believed that the history of India begins with the arrival of Aryans in 1500 B.C. But these discoveries have taken back the antiquity of ’ Indian civilization to 3000 B.C, Thus, now India ranks with Egypt, Babylon and Assyria as a centre of ancient civilization.
- Extent: In 1922 under the directions of Sir John Marshall, excavations were made by Mr. R.D. Benerji at Mohenjodaro and by Mr. Dayaram Sahani at Harappa. Harappa is situated on the banks of Ravi in the Montgomery district of West Punjab, Mohenjodaro is in the Larkana district of Sindh. But this civilization was not confined to the Indus Valley alone. Recent excavations at sixty other places indicate that this civilization spread to Gujarat and Hastinapur in the Meerut district of Uttar Pradesh. These recent discoveries established the existence of the same type of civilization in these places also. Therefore, Sri K.N. Dikshit prefers to call it as the Proto-Indian (original Indian) civilization.
- Origin: Sir John Marshall says that the Indus Valley civilization was contemporary with Sumerian and Egyptian civilizations. According to him, the people of Mesopotamia came and settled here. But his is not accepted by Prof. Hall who says that the Sumerian civilization itself was of Indian origin. Father Heras believes that the Indus civilization had Dravidian origin. Dr. Ramachandran argues that it was post-Rigvedic Aryan civilization. But it is generally accepted that it was a non-Aryan and early Indian civilization that existed before the advent of the Aryans.
- Date: Sir John Marshall came to the conclusion that the civilization existed fro about 500 years between 3250-2750 B.C. According to Sri. M. Wheeler, the author of “The Indus civilization”, it flourished between 2500 B.C. and 1500 B.C. At any rate, it is considered to be a pre-Aryan civilization. The inhabitants of Mohenjodaro belonged to three races namely the Mediterranean, Mongolian and Caucasian. Some historians believe that they were Dravidians.
- Buildings: It was an urban civilization. The cities of Harappa and Mohenjodaro were built with a definite plan. The breadth of the streets varied from 13 feet to 33 feet. They cut each other at right angles. Houses were built with burnt bricks. There were some two-storied houses also. There were big, pillared hall which wore probably used as public meeting places. There was a “great bath” at Mohenjodaro. It consisted of a swimming pool surrounded by verandas on four sides. At Harappa, there was a public granary divided into four blocks. The streets had an underground drainage system. The drainage canal passed through the middle of the street.
- Economic buildings: The people cultivated the land and produced wheat and barely. Their diet consisted of wheat, barley, milk products and mutton. They domesticated bulls, cows, buffaloes, sheep, pigs and dogs. The elephant, tiger and crocodile were known to them, but the horses was unknown. They used gold, silver, copper, tin and lead. They did not use iron. They worse woollen and cotton clothes. Dyeing was known to them. Pottery, carpentry, ivory work, and making glass bangles were their industries. Carving of animals on pots and stones testify to their artistic skill. They wore gold and silver ornaments. Their weapons were made of copper and stone. They did not have armours.
- Social conditions: Dancing, singing and dicing were their amusements. Many children’s toys were found at Mohenjodaro. They included whistles, carts and figures of men and women. They had a system of weights and measures. Their measuring scale was 13.2 inches. Their chief conveyance was the bullock cart. They built boats and traded with distant lands.
- Script: The Indus people knew reading and writing. About 530 seals were discovered at Harappa and Mohenjodaro. They throw light on the literacy of the people. The script was pictographic. It was written from right to left and from left to right n alternative lines. According toe Stuart Piggot, 250 different symbols were used by them. Many beautiful figures were carved on the seals. They included the figures of animals, plants and human beings. Among them the statue of the yogic pose and the image of a dancing girl are especially attractive.
- Religion: They worshipped the idols of Mother Goddess of Mahaskti and Lord Shiva. They also worshipped pipal trees, bulls arid serpents. They cremated the dead bodies. Sometimes they buried the dead along the some offerings.
- Political organisations: A fortified citadel was found at Harappa. It shows that there was a well-established kingdom. The existence of a well-planned city indicates a systematic municipal administration. The society was divided into merchant, craftsman and labour classes. The , government was dominated by the merchant classes.
Differences between the Indus and the Vedic civilizations:
- The Aryan civilization was rural , The Indus civilization was urban. The Aryans lived in villages. The Indus people lived in well-built town.
- The Aryans domesticated horses. The Indus people did not use horses.
- The Vedic Aryans were warlike people. They used armours and helmets. The Indus people were peace-loving people. They had no armours.
- Iron was unknown to the Indus people. The Vedic Aryans used iron implements.
- The Aryans worshipped nature in different forms. They performed sacrifices to please the Gods and offered them milk, grain and ghee. Their Gods were Prithvi, Varuna, Indra, and the Sun. The Indus people worshipped Shiva, Shakti, trees and serpents. They also worshipped the Phallus which was hated by the Aryans.
- The Aryans grew beards. The Indus people used to shave their chins.
- The Aryans were interested in outdoor hobbies like hunting and chariot racing. The Indus people preferred indoor hobbies like dancing, dicing and music.
- The skeletons found in Harappa indicated that the Indus people had dark complexion and flat noses. The Aryans, on the other hand were used in complexion with well-built bodies.
Conclusion:
According to Mr. V.G. Childe, The Indus civilization represents a very perfect adjustment of human life to a specific environment that can only have resulted from years of patient effort. And it was endured; it is already specifically Indian and forms the basis of modern Indian culture.