FReeper Canteen ~ Part III: War in Ancient India ~ July 27, 2004

A Tribute to Hinduism ^ | July 27, 2004 | LaDivaLoca

[LaDivaLoca]

For the freedom you enjoyed yesterday...
Thank the Veterans who served in
The United States Armed Forces.

Looking forward to tomorrow's freedom?
Support The United States Armed Forces Today!

Part III: War in Ancient India

Weapons of War as Gathered from Literature

Dhanur Veda classifies the weapons of offence and defense into four - the mukta, the amukta, the mukta-mukta and the yantramukta. The Nitiprakasika, on the other hand, divides them into three broad classes, the mukta (thrown), the amukta (not thrown), and the mantramukta (discharged by mantras). The bows and arrows are the chief weapons of the mukta group. The very fact that our military science named Dhanur Veda provides sufficiently clearly that the bow and arrow were the principle weapons of war in those times. It was known by different terms as sarnga, kodanda, and karmuka. Whether these are synonyms of the same thing or were different is difficult to say. The Rg vedaic smith was not only a steel worker but also an arrow maker. 

Fire-Arms:

It would be interesting to examine the true nature of the agneya-astras. Kautalya describes agni-bana, and mentions three recipes - agni-dharana, ksepyo-agni-yoga, and visvasaghati. Visvasaghati was composed of 'the powder of all the metals as red as fire or the mixture of the powder of kumbhi, lead, zinc, mixed with the charcoal and with oil wax and turpentine.' From the nature of the ingredients of the different compositions it would appear that they were highly inflammable and could not be easily extinguished. 

A recent writer remarks: 'The Visvasaghati-agni-yoga was virtually a bomb which burst and the fragments of metals were scattered in all directions. The agni-bana was the fore-runner of a gun-shot.....

Sir A. M. Eliot tells us that the Arabs learnt the manufacture of gunpowder from India, and that before their Indian connection they had used arrows of naptha. It is also argued that though Persia possessed saltpetre in abundance, the original home of gunpowder was India. It is said that the Turkish word top and the Persian tupang or tufang are derived from the Sanskrit word dhupa. The dhupa of the Agni Purana means a rocket, perhaps a corruption of the Kautaliyan term natadipika. 

(source: Fire-Arms in Ancient India -  By Jogesh Chandra Ray I.H.Q. viii. p. 586-88).

Heinrich Brunnhofer (1841-1917), German Indologist, also believed that the ancient Aryans of India knew about gunpowder. 

(source: German Indologists: Biographies of Scholars in Indian Studies writing in German - By Valentine Stache-Rosen. p.92).

Gustav Oppert (1836-1908) born in Hamburg, Germany, he taught Sanskrit and comparative linguistics at the Presidency College, Madras for 21 years. He was the Telugu translator to the Government and Curator, Government Oriental Manuscript Library. Translated Sukraniti, statecraft by an unknown author.

He attempted to prove that ancient Indians knew firearms. 

(source: German Indologists: Biographies of Scholars in Indian Studies writing in German - By Valentine Stache-Rosen. p.81).

(For more refer to article by G R Josyer - India: The Home of Gunpowder and Firearms).

In his work, Political Maxims of the Ancient Hindus, he says, that ancient India was the original home of gunpowder and fire-arms. It is probable that the word Sataghni referred to in the Sundara Kanda of the Ramayana refers to cannon. 

(source: Hindu Culture and The Modern Age - By Dewan Bahadur K.S. Ramaswami Shastri - Annamalai University 1956 p. 127).

The word astra in the Sukraniti is interpreted by Dr. Gustav Oppert as a bow. The term astra means a missile, anything which is discharged. Agneya astra means a fiery arm as distinguished from a firearm.  

Dr. Oppert refers to half a dozen temples in South India to prove the use of fire-arms in ancient India. The Palni temple in the Madura District contains on the outer portion in an ancient stone mantapa scenes of carved figures of soldiers carrying in their hands small fire-arms, apparently the small-sized guns mentioned in the Sukranitisara. Again in the Sarnagapani temple at Kumbakonam in the front gate of the fifth story from the top is the figure of a king sitting in a chariot drawn by horses and surrounded by a number of soldiers. Before this chariot march two sepoys with pistols in their hands. In the Nurrukkal mantapam of the Conjeevaram temple is a pillar on the north side of the mandapa. Here is a relief vividly representing a flight between two bodies of soldiers. Mounted horsemen are also seen. The foot-soldier is shown aiming his fire-arm against the enemy. Such things are also noted in the Tanjore temple and the temple at Perur, in the Coimbatore District. In the latter there is an actual representation of a soldier loading a musket. 

The Borobudar in Java where Indian tradition is copied wholesale. They are ascribed roughly to the period 750-850 A.D. There is a striking relief series PL. I, fig. 5, (1605) representing a battle in which two others are seen on each side, one wearing a curved sword in the right hand and a long shield, and the other a mace and a round shield resembling a wheel, all apparently made of iron. The story of the Ramayana is also given as in the Tadpatri temple from Rama's going to the forest down to the killing of Ravana. There is also a wonderful sculpture of an ancient Hindu ship. 

(source: Suvarnadvipa - By R.C. Majumdar. pp 194-5).

Medhatithi remarks thus "while fighting his enemies in battle, he shall not strike with concealed weapons nor with arrows that are poisoned or barbed on with flaming shafts."

Sukraniti while referring to fire-arms, (agneyastras) says that before any war, the duty of the minister of war is to check up the total stock of gunpowder in the arsenal. Small guns is referred as tupak by Canda Baradayi. The installation of yantras (engines of war) inside the walls of the forts referred to by Manasollasa and the reference of Sataghni (killer of hundreds of men) pressed into service for the protection of the forts by Samaranganasutradhara clearly reveals the frequent use of fire arms in the battle-field.

(source: India Through The Ages: History, Art Culture and Religion - By G. Kuppuram p. 512-513).

Lord Rama with his bow defeats Ravana in the gold city of Lanka

In the light of the above remarks we can trace the evolution of fire-arms in the ancient India. There is evidence to show that agni (fire) was praised for vanquishing an enemy. The Arthava Veda shows the employment of fire-arms with lead shots. The Aitareya Brahmana describes an arrow with fire at its tip. In the Mahabharata and Ramayana, the employment of agnyastras is frequently mentioned, and this deserves careful examination in the light of other important terms like ayah, kanapa and tula-guda. 

The agnicurna or gunpowder was composed of 4 to 6 parts of saltpetre, one part of sulphur, and one part of charcoal of arka, sruhi and other trees burnt in a pit and reduced to powder. Here is certain evidence of the ancient rockets giving place to actual guns in warfare. From the description of the composition of gunpowder, the composition of the Sukraniti can be dated at the pre-Gupta age. 

(source: War in Ancient India - By V. R. Ramachandra Dikshitar 1944. p. 103 -105).

Next Tuesday, Part IV of War in Ancient India

[tomkow6]

FINAL

CUBS 3

Brewers 1 

 

TODAY

JULY 28 @ 7:05 p.m. CT
 Radio: WGN 720

  VS
 

 

FINAL

CUBS 3

Brewers 1 

 

TODAY

JULY 28 @ 7:05 p.m. CT
 Radio: WGN 720

  VS
 

[tomkow6]

 

Chicagoland Weather

July 27, 2004
Chicago, IL
Sunrise	5:39 AM (CDT)
Sunset	8:18 PM (CDT)
Hrs. of Daylight	14 Hrs., 39 Mins

 

Currently
60°

Mostly Cloudy

	Hi: 78

	Lo: 58

5 Day Forecast

WED

THU

FRI

SAT

SUN

Sunny

High:	83
Low:	63

Partly Cloudy

High:	85
Low:	65

Scattered Thunderstorms

High:	83
Low:	64

Isolated Thunderstorms

High:	83
Low:	64

Partly Cloudy

High:	84
Low:	65

[tomkow6]

Hi, Frumious Bandersnatch!

Welcome to the Canteen!

Wanna buy a burka?

 

[tomkow6]

Morning, B4F!

[PGalt]

Outstanding history, comments, current information bump. Thanks.

[tomkow6]

Camp Run-A-Muk!

 

[beachn4fun]

Good morning Diva. Thank you for your continued support even though you can't be with us all day. Good morning everyone. Good morning to our

Military and our allies. Thank you for all you do. Welcome Home to the crew of USS George Washington

(((MOJO))).....did I ever tell you that YOU are

too? The things you do for the Canteen and the Military is greatly appreciated! Thank you for being there yesterday. I know the weather was not pleasant. And, so it adds more meaning that you stood out there. Please give your boys, "atta boy" for me.

We are in for more rain today. What a wet week!

Ok, gonna go read up on the thread before time demands that I get to work. See you all in a bit.

[beachn4fun]

You know I'm ready!

[beachn4fun]

Morning Tom

[beachn4fun]

Whoa! EG......... you deserve a wOOhOO for that one..........ready? set? here it is...............

[beachn4fun]

Hey Frumious Bandersnatch .................

[Ryan Tiger]

Good morning. I have a sore throat from hollering at those fools on that darn tv last nite but I'm rested becasue I went to bed so early. what an interesting opening today, I didn't know they had guns that long ago.

Thank you troops for doing what must be done.

Have fun everyone.

[beachn4fun]

Good morning Ma. Isn't it exciting that another group of our "kids" have made it home? I am so excited for them!

[E.G.C.]

((HUGS))Back at 'ya.

[beachn4fun]

Good morning. I couldn't bring myself to watch any of that stuff last night! I knew it would send my blood pressure through the roof! I had a hard time listening to Sean Hannity yesterday on the way home cause he is doing his show from Boston. And, of course, he was interviewing Liberals (barf....gag......choke.....choke...). I'm sure glad there are people out there like him who can handle that sh!t. LOL

p.s. be sure to have your beach wear ready. I hear there's a beach party happening soon!

[beachn4fun]

Good morning. Thanks for visiting with us today.

[armyboy]

Good Morning FReeper Canteen!!!

[tomkow6]

Good morning, ARMYBOY!

[Valin]

On This Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on July 27:
1612 Murad IV, sultan of Turkey (1623-40)/conquered Baghdad
1768 Charlotte Corday assassin of Jean-Paul Marat
1812 Thomas Lanier Clingman, Brig General (Confederate Army), died in 1897
1820 John Franklin Farnsworth, Brig General (Union volunteers)
1824 Alexandre Dumas fils France, playwright/novelist (Camille)
1840 Ranald Slidell Mackenzie, Bvt Major General (Union volunteers)
1857 Jos‚ Celso Barbosa Puerto Rico, found Federalist Party in 1900
1870 Joseph Hilaire Belloc England, author (Path to Rome)
1880 Donald Crisp Scotland, actor (How Green Was My Valley, Pollyana)
1880 Joseph Tinker baseball Hall of Famer, 1/3 of fame double play combo
1906 Leo (the lip) Durocher, baseball manager (Brooklyn Dodgers, NY Giants)
1916 Kennan Wynn NYC, actor (Dr Strangelove, Absent Minded Professor)
1922 Norman Lear TV writer/producer/activist(PFTAW) (All in The Family)
1924 Vincent Canby critic (NY Times)
1931 Jerry Van Dyke Danville Ill, actor (My Mother the Car, Coach)
1937 Don Galloway Brooksville Ky, actor (Arrest & Trial, Ironside)
1939 Irv Cross NFL sportscaster (CBS-TV)
1939 James McGee, pathologist/professor (Morbid Anatomy at Oxford)(soon to be a major motion picture staring Pamala Sue Anderson)
1944 Bobbie Gentry Mississippi, what did Billi-Jo throw off the bridge
1947 Betty Thomas St Louis Mo, actress (Lucy Baines-Hill Street Blues)
1948 Peggy Fleming San Jose Cal, ice figure skater (Olympic-gold-1968)
1949 Maureen McGovern Youngstown Oh, singer (Got to be a morning after)
1951 Janet Eilber Detroit Mich, actress (Hard to Hold, Romantic Comedy)

---

Deaths which occurred on July 27:
0082 Joseph of Arimathea, dies & is buried in tomb he once lent to Jesus
0432 Celestine I, Italian Pope (422-32), dies
1101 Koenrad, RC-German king (1087-98), dies
1498 Vespasiano da' Bisticci, Italian book seller/writer, dies at about 77
1811 Miguel Hidalgo y Castilla, Mexican priest/freedom fighter, executed
1844 John Dalton, Engl physicist/chemist (molecular theorist), dies at 77
1863 William Lowndes Yancey one of the South's strongest voices of states' rights.
1883 Montgomery Blair lawyer (Dred Scot V Sandford), dies at 70
1921 Engelbert Humperdinck (The Original), composer (Hansel und Gretel), dies at 66
1946 Gertrude Stein, US/Fren author/poet (Ida, Tender Buttons), dies at 72
1970 Antonio de Oliveira Salazar, dictator of Portugal (1932-68),
1974 Lightning Slim blues singer, dies at 61
1976 Ray Brennan becomes 1st to, die of "Legionnaire's Disease"
1980 Shah Mohammed Reza Pahavala of Iran, dies in Cairo at 60
1984 James Mason actor, dies at 75 of a heart attack
1990 Bobby Day rocker (Rockin' Robin), dies of cancer at 60

---

Reported: MISSING in ACTION

1965 BERG KILE D. SEATTLE WA.
[02/12/73 RELEASED BY DRV, ALIVE IN 96]
1965 KOSKO WALTER COLUMBIA VA.
[EJECT NO BEEP SEARCH NEG]
1965 PURCELL ROBERT B. LOUISVILLE KY.
[02/12/73 RELEASED BY DRV, ALIVE AND WELL 98]
1967 BARE WILLIAM ORLAN OKLAHOMA CITY OK.
[RADIO CONTACT LOST]
1967 CORBITT GILLAND W. DENVER CO.
[RADIO CONTACT LOST]
1967 HARDIE CHARLES D. HOUSTON TX.
1967 PATTERSON BRUCE M. PORTLAND OR.
1968 FULLERTON FRANK E. JONESBORO GA.
1968 PATTON WARD K. FONTANA KS.

POW / MIA Data & Bios supplied by
the P.O.W. NETWORK. Skidmore, MO. USA.

---

On this day...
0432 St Celestine I ends his reign as Catholic Pope
1214 At the Battle of Bouvines in France, Philip Augustus of France defeats John of England.
1298 Albert I, son of Rudolf of Habsburg, crowned Holy Roman Emperor
1360 Danish King Waldemar IV destroys Visby Gotland
1501 Copernicus formally installed as canon of Frauenberg Cathedral
1586 Sir Walter Raleigh brings 1st tobacco to England from Virginia
1643 Cromwell defeats Royalist at Battle of Gainsborough
1655 Jews of New Amsterdam petition for a Jewish cemetery
1661 Parliament confirms the Navigation Act
1663 British Parliament passes a second Navigation Act, requiring all goods bound for the colonies be sent in British ships from British ports.
1689 Jacobite Scottish Highlanders defeat royal force at Killiecrankie
1694 Bank of England chartered
1777 The Marquis of Lafayette arrives in New England to help fight the British.
1789 Congress establishes Dept of Foreign Affairs (State dept)
1816 US troops destroy Ft Apalachicola, a Seminole fort, to punish Indians for harboring runaway slaves
1836 Adelaide, South Australia founded
1837 US Mint opens in Charlotte, NC
1844 Fire destroys the US mint at Charlotte, NC
1861 Battle of Mathias Point, VA - Rebel forces repel a Federal landing
1861 Battle of St Augustine Springs, NM Terr
1861 Confederate troops occupy Fort Fillmore, New Mexico
1861 Union Gen George McClellan took command of Potamic Army
1862 Hurricane hits Canton; about 40,000 die
1862 Steamer "Golden Gate" burns & sinks off west coast of Mexico
1864 Battle of Darbytown, VA (Deep Bottom, Newmarket Road) (Strawberry Plains)
1866 Cyrus W. Field finally succeeded, after two failures, in laying the first underwater telegraph cable between North America and Europe.(1,686 miles long)
1897 37.5 cm (14.75") of rainfall, Jewell, Maryland (state 24-hr record)
1898 Start of Sherlock Holmes "The Adventure of The Dancing Men" (BG)
1905 J Palisa discovers asteroid #569 Misa
1909 Orville Wright tests 1st US Army airplane, flying 1h12m
1919 Chicago race riot (15 whites & 23 blacks killed, 500 injured)
1920 Resolute beats Shamrock IV (England) in 14th running of America's Cup
1931 Grasshoppers in Iowa, Nebr and SD destroyed thousands of acres of crops
1932 Paul Gorgoulov, French president Doumer's assassin, sentenced to death
1933 K Reinmuth discovers asteroid #1284 Latvia

1940 Bugs Bunny's debut, in Warner Bros. cartoon "A Wild Hare".

1940 Billboard magazine starts publishing bestseller charts
1941 Japanese forces land in Indo-China
1944 1st British jet fighter used in combat (Gloster Meteor)
1944 US regains possession of Guam from Japanese
1944 Soviet Army liberates Majdanek concentration camp
1946 Red Sox Rudy York hits 2 grand slams in 1 game
1947 Yogi Berri starts record 148 game errorless streak
1948 Otto Skorzeny escapes anti-nazi camp at Darmstadt
1949 Havilland Comet 40-passenger airliner makes maiden flight
1953 Armistice signed ending Korean War
1954 Armistice divides Vietnam into two countries
1955 Israeli passenger plane shot down above Bulgaria, 58 die
1955 Austria regains full independence after 4-power occupation
1955 Goethe Link Observatory discovers asteroid #1751 Herget
1960 VP Nixon nominated for pres at Republican convention in Chicago
1962 Mariner 2 launched to Venus; flyby mission
1962 Martin Luther King Jr jailed in Albany Georgia
1964 President Lyndon Johnson sends an additional 5,000 advisers to South Vietnam.
1965 Pres Johnson signs a bill requiring cigarette makers to print health warnings on all cigarette packages about the effects of smoking
1968 Race Riot in Gary Indiana
1969 Pioneer 10 launched
1972 NHL star Maurice "Rocket" Richard signs with WHL Quebec Nordiques
1974 House Judiciary Committee votes 27-11 recommends Nixon impeachment
1976 Japanese ex-premier Tanaka arrested (Lockheed Affair)
1976 8.2 Tangshan earthquake kills estimated 240,000 Chinese
1977 John Lennon is granted a green card for permanent residence in US
1980 Palestinian throws hand grenade on Jewish children in Antwerp, 1 dead
1982 Indian PM Indira Gandhi 1st visit to US in almost 11 years
1987 John Demjanjuk, accused Nazi "Ivan the Terrible" testifies in Israel
1988 Boston's worst traffic jam in 30 years (until today)
1988 Tommy John commits rec 3 errors on 1 play as Yanks rout Brewers 16-3
1988 Radio Shack announces the Tandy 1000 SL computer
1990 Zsa Zsa Gabor begins a 3 day jail sentence for slapping a cop
1991 TV Guide publishes it's 2000th edition
1995 The Korean War Veterans Memorial was dedicated in Washington by President Bill Clinton and South Korean President Kim Young-sam.
2003 Lance Armstrong won the Tour de France, an international 2,036-mile cycling race, for the fifth consecutive year.

---

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Puerto Rico : Jos‚ Celso Barbosa Birthday (1857)
Virgin Islands : Hurricane Supplication Day ( Monday )
Gilroy, California : Garlic Festival ( Friday )
National Parents Day.
Day of Hatshepsut (Egyptian).
Take Your House Plants for a Walk Day
57 Varieties Day
National July Belongs to Blueberries Month

---

Religious Observances
RC : Commem of St Pantaleon, martyr/patron of medicine
Orth : Feast of Vladimir, evangelizer of Russia (7/15 OS)
Ang : Commemoration of William Reed Huntington, priest

---

Religious History
1741 Birth of Fran‡ois H. Barth‚l‚mon, French Swedenborgian composer. Two of his manyworks later became hymn tunes: AUTUMN (Hail, Thou Once Despised Jesus) and BALERMA (Oh, fora Closer Walk with God).
1861 Birth of Cyrus H. Nusbaum, an American Methodist clergyman who penned the hymn,'Would You Live for Jesus, and Be Always Pure and Good?' (aka 'His Way With Thee').
1901 Death of B.F. Westcott, 76, English N.T. scholar. In 1881, he and colleague F.J.A.Hort published the most precise critical text of the Greek New Testament ever compiled --still in use today.
1903 Death of Caroline (Lina) V. Sandell Berg, 71. Known as the 'Fanny Crosby of Sweden,' her most beloved hymns (in their English translation) include 'Day by Day' and'Children of the Heavenly Father.'
1913 In Oxford, PA, the first Victorious Life Conference closed. Founder Robert C.McQuilkin, inspired by England's Keswick Movement, emphasized in these meetings anattainment of spiritual freedom from the power of every known sin.

Source: William D. Blake. ALMANAC OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987.

---

Thought for the day :
"Politics is either passing the buck or passing the dough."

---

Things To Do If You Ever Became An Evil Overlord...
DO NOT tell your Legions of Terror "And he must be taken alive!" The command WILL BE "And try to take him alive if it is reasonably practical."

---

Letters To God From The Dog...
Dear God,
If a dog barks his head off in the forest and no human hears him, does he still get his ass whacked with a newspaper?

---

Dumb Laws...
Wyoming:
It is illegal for women to stand within five feet of a bar while drinking.

---

How To Annoy Osama bin Laden If You're Invited To A Dinner Party At His Secret Afghan Lair...
Claim you once saw him at a Hooter's in Muncie wearing a yarmulke.

[USVet6792Retired]

No time to play this morning since it's the end of the month and I have to play Controller for a couple days. But I'll pop in when I can. Y'all have fun!!!