HOW OLD IS INDIAN CIVILIZATION?

01

Challenging the “Two Urbanizations” narrative

Re-examine the conventional divide between a “pre-Vedic” Indus Valley Civilization and a later Vedic civilization in the Gangetic plains, and look at the evidence for cultural continuity between them.

02

The Saraswati-Drishadvati cradle

Examine the concentration of major Harappan settlements, including Rakhigarhi and Bhirrana, along the palaeochannels traditionally associated with the Saraswati and Drishadvati river systems.

03

Connecting Rigvedic tribes with archaeological cultures

Ask whether the tribes, settlements, geography, and material culture described in the Rigveda can be meaningfully compared with the archaeological record of the northwest Indian subcontinent.

04

The great drought and the shift eastward

Investigate the climatic changes and river-system transformations that affected Harappan settlements, and whether environmental stress pushed populations gradually toward the eastern Gangetic regions.

05

Beyond the “Dark Age”: evidence for continuity

Challenge the idea of a cultural break between the mature Harappan period and later Iron Age societies by tracing changes and continuities in settlement, technology, pottery, agriculture, and cultural practice.

06

How old is Indian civilization?

Bring the evidence together and ask the larger question: when should the history of Indian civilization actually begin, and does the archaeological record support a longer story of continuity than the conventional timeline allows?