Re: Indo-Aryan Migration in <<Several Waves>>

ranjit_mathews_at_yahoo.com
Date: 03/16/05 

Date: 16 Mar 2005 07:23:52 -0800

Meme Slayer wrote:

> Then, what prevents that river from being identified as Saraswati? I
> have read in multiple online sources about vedic mention of
saraswati,
> and most of them tell
>
> 1. Saraswati was a larger river than indus with abundant water
> 2. Saraswati was between Indus and Ganga
> 3. Saraswati was dried up later
> 4. Saraswati flows from mountain to sea

To shoot holes in Irfan Habib's speculations, ...
http://members.tripod.com/ahsaligarh/river.htm

... look at this map:
http://www.sawf.org/newedit/edit02192001/map1.jpg

On this map, the present course of the Ghaghar would be Banawali-
Kalibangan, Sirsa in Bikaner state- dry bed of the Ghaghar-Hakra. Habib
claims that the Sarsuti river is next to Sirsat town and is different
from the Ghaghar. He has also found a different Sirsa river, formerly
the Sarsuti river, near Simla. These two Sarsuti Rivers are claimed to
make it impossible for the Ghaghar to be the Sarasvati.

But then, the Ghaghar too is very close to Sirsa. If as water flows
moved from one channel to another, different channels near Sirsa town
were called the Sarasvati, that would make it possible for to speculate
that the Ghagar was the Sarasvati. (1)

Speculating that the Abohar branch canal off the Sutlej follows an old
course of the Sutlej, then the Sutudri joined the Sarasvati at
Sandhanawala (2) ...

... and speculating that the Vipasa (Beas) once followed the course of
the current Sutlej+Beas till past the Pakistan border and then turned
south along the Hakra branch canal to join the Sarasvati at Kudwala.
(3)

Conflating speculations 1,2,3, at Gangeriwala, the Sarasvati carried
the waters of the upper Sarasvati, Sutudri(Sutlej) and Vipasa(Beas),
and joined the rest of the Indus rivers after that and thereby flowed
into the sea. (4)

These speculations might not be correct, but they don't seem worse*
than Irfan Habib's speculations.
* although they would be worse to someone who doesn't want the Ghaghar
identified with the Sarasvati.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Indo-Aryan Migration in <<Several Waves>>
    ... Saraswati was a larger river than indus with abundant water ... To shoot holes in Irfan Habib's speculations, ... the present course of the Ghaghar would be Banawali- ... make it impossible for the Ghaghar to be the Sarasvati. ...
    (sci.archaeology)
  • Re: Indo-Aryan Migration in <<Several Waves>>
    ... what prevents that river from being identified as Saraswati? ... All rivers that flow into the Indus flow from mountain to sea. ... "Favour ye this my laud, O Ganga, Yamuna, Sarasvati ... Sarasvati and the rest of the river downstream was called the Saraswati ...
    (sci.lang)
  • Re: Indo-Aryan Migration in <<Several Waves>>
    ... what prevents that river from being identified as Saraswati? ... All rivers that flow into the Indus flow from mountain to sea. ... "Favour ye this my laud, O Ganga, Yamuna, Sarasvati ... Sarasvati and the rest of the river downstream was called the Saraswati ...
    (sci.archaeology)