Pariksha SaathiLesson 1 of 10 · Haryana General Knowledge
Ancient Haryana: Harappan Sites, Kurukshetra and Thanesar
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Why ancient Haryana matters
Haryana lies between the Yamuna and the dried channels of the Ghaggar, the river system that many scholars identify with the Vedic Saraswati. This fertile corridor between the Indus valley and the Ganga plain was settled very early and always stood on the main route into the heart of India. So the state's ancient history runs as one long line: Harappan towns, the Vedic heartland, the Kuru kingdom of the Mahabharata, tribal republics such as the Yaudheyas, and finally Harshavardhana's capital at Thanesar. Exams test this line by asking which site lies in which district, what was found there and which ruler belongs to which place.
Harappan sites
The Ghaggar-Chautang plain holds one of the densest clusters of Harappan settlements anywhere. Rakhigarhi, a village of Narnaund tehsil that long lay in Hisar district and now falls in the newly created Hansi district, is regarded as the largest Harappan site in India; it was excavated by Amarendra Nath of the Archaeological Survey of India in the late 1990s and later by a Deccan College team led by Vasant Shinde, and in 2020 the Union Budget named it one of five iconic archaeological sites to be developed. Banawali in Fatehabad district, excavated by R.S. Bisht in the 1970s, yielded a terracotta model of a plough and evidence of barley. Kunal, also in Fatehabad, shows very early pre-Harappan levels and a hoard of ornaments that included silver crowns. Bhirrana, in Fatehabad too, has pre-Harappan levels that a 2016 study dated to the 8th-7th millennium BCE, and a potsherd there bears a figure resembling the bronze dancing girl of Mohenjo-daro. Mitathal in Bhiwani and Siswal in Hisar were excavated by Suraj Bhan, and Siswal gives its name to an early pre-Harappan culture.
Saraswati, Drishadvati and Brahmavarta
The Rigveda praises the Saraswati as the greatest of rivers. Tradition places its source at Adi Badri in the Shivalik foothills of Yamunanagar district; the seasonal Ghaggar is widely identified with it, and the Chautang with the Drishadvati. The Manusmriti calls the land between these two divine rivers Brahmavarta, the land made by the gods, and this region became the core of Vedic culture. Pehowa, ancient Prithudaka on the Saraswati, is still a place for rites for ancestors. The name Haryana itself is explained in two popular ways, as Hari-ayana, the abode of God, or as harit-aranya, the green forest; both are traditional explanations, not proven history.
Kurukshetra and the Kurus
Kurukshetra, named after King Kuru, is the setting of the Mahabharata war, and the Bhagavad Gita opens with the words 'dharmakshetre kurukshetre'. Jyotisar, near Thanesar, is revered as the spot where Krishna taught the Gita to Arjuna, and the sacred land of Kurukshetra is traditionally a circuit of 48 kos dotted with tirthas. In the 6th century BCE the Kurus formed one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas listed in the Buddhist Anguttara Nikaya, with Indraprastha as their capital; their land covered much of present Haryana and the Delhi area.
Mauryas, Yaudheyas and Agroha
The pillar from Topra in northern Haryana carries the edicts of Ashoka; Firoz Shah Tughlaq moved it to Delhi in the 14th century, and it is the only Ashokan pillar that bears all seven pillar edicts. The Chaneti stupa near Jagadhri is attributed to the Mauryan age, and nearby Srughna (Sugh) was a prosperous town later described by the Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang. After the Mauryas, the Yaudheyas, a martial republic (gana), held much of the region; their coins show Kartikeya and the legend 'Yaudheya ganasya jayah' (victory to the Yaudheya republic), and coin moulds have been found at Khokrakot near Rohtak. The Junagadh inscription of Rudradaman (150 CE) boasts of defeating them, and Samudragupta's Prayag prashasti lists them among the tribes that submitted to the Guptas. Agroha in Hisar district is the traditional seat of Maharaja Agrasen, ancestor of the Agrawal community, and its excavated mound has yielded coins and remains of an ancient town.
Thanesar and Harshavardhana
In the 6th century CE the Pushyabhuti (Vardhana) dynasty rose at Sthanvishvara, modern Thanesar near Kurukshetra. Prabhakaravardhana was the first of the line to take the title Maharajadhiraja. After the deaths of his elder son Rajyavardhana and of Grahavarman, the Maukhari king of Kannauj who had married his daughter Rajyashri, the younger son Harshavardhana came to the throne in 606 CE, the first year of the Harsha era. Harsha later moved his capital to Kannauj, ruled until 647 CE and wrote the Sanskrit plays Ratnavali, Priyadarshika and Nagananda. His court poet Banabhatta described Sthanvishvara in the Harshacharita, and Xuanzang visited his kingdom. The mound called Harsh ka Tila at Thanesar is linked with his capital.
Key facts
- Rakhigarhi (Narnaund tehsil; long in Hisar district, now in the new Hansi district): regarded as the largest Harappan site in India; named one of five iconic archaeological sites in the Union Budget of 2020.
- Banawali (Fatehabad, excavated by R.S. Bisht): terracotta plough model and barley. Kunal (Fatehabad): very early pre-Harappan levels and silver crowns.
- Bhirrana (Fatehabad): pre-Harappan levels dated to the 8th-7th millennium BCE by a 2016 study, and a potsherd with a 'dancing girl' figure. Mitathal (Bhiwani) and Siswal (Hisar) were excavated by Suraj Bhan.
- Brahmavarta (Manusmriti): the land between the Saraswati (Ghaggar) and the Drishadvati (Chautang). Adi Badri (Yamunanagar) is the traditional source of the Saraswati.
- Kuru Mahajanapada: one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas, capital Indraprastha. Kurukshetra is named after King Kuru; Jyotisar is the traditional site of the Gita sermon.
- Topra pillar: an Ashokan pillar moved to Delhi by Firoz Shah Tughlaq; the only Ashokan pillar with all seven pillar edicts.
- Yaudheyas: a martial republic; coins with Kartikeya and 'Yaudheya ganasya jayah'; coin moulds at Khokrakot (Rohtak); defeated by Rudradaman (Junagadh inscription, 150 CE); submitted to Samudragupta.
- Agroha (Hisar): traditional capital of Maharaja Agrasen, ancestor of the Agrawals. Pehowa (Prithudaka) on the Saraswati is a centre of rites for ancestors.
- Thanesar (Sthanvishvara): Pushyabhuti capital; Harshavardhana crowned 606 CE (start of the Harsha era), later ruled from Kannauj till 647 CE; Banabhatta wrote the Harshacharita; Xuanzang visited.
Quick revision
Rakhigarhi largest Harappan site in India (Narnaund; long in Hisar district, now Hansi district; iconic site 2020); Banawali (Fatehabad, R.S. Bisht) plough model; Kunal silver crowns; Bhirrana 8th-7th millennium BCE; Mitathal (Bhiwani); Brahmavarta between Saraswati and Drishadvati (Manusmriti); Kuru capital Indraprastha; Jyotisar Gita site; Topra pillar has all seven edicts; Yaudheyas, Kartikeya coins, Khokrakot; Agroha-Agrasen; Harsha crowned at Thanesar 606 CE, later Kannauj; Banabhatta.