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Āryāvarta (Sanskrit: आर्यावर्त,lit. 'Land of theAryans',[a][web 1][web 2]Sanskrit pronunciation:[aːrjaːˈʋərtə]) is a term for the northernIndian subcontinent in the ancientHindu texts such asDharmashastras andSutras, referring to the areas of theIndo-Gangetic Plain and surrounding regionssettled byIndo-Aryan tribes and whereIndo-Aryan religion and rituals predominated. The limits ofĀryāvarta extended over time, as reflected in the various sources, as the influence of theBrahmanical ideology spread eastwards in post-Vedic times.[3][4]
TheBaudhayanaDharmasutra (BDS) 1.1.2.10 (perhaps compiled in the 8th to 6th centuries BCE) declares that Āryāvarta is the land that lies west of Kālakavana, east of Adarsana, south of theHimalayas and north of the Vindhyas, but in BDS 1.1.2.11 Āryāvarta is confined to thedoab of theGanges-Yamuna. BDS 1.1.2.13-15 considers people from beyond this area as of mixed origin, and hence not worthy of emulation by the Aryans. Some sutras recommend expiatory acts for those who have crossed the boundaries of Aryavarta. BaudhayanaSrautasutra recommends this for those who have crossed the boundaries of Aryavarta and ventured into far away places.[5]
TheVasistha Dharma Sutra (oldest sutras ca. 500–300 BCE) I.8-9 and 12-13 locates the Āryāvarta to the east of the disappearance of theSarasvati River in the desert, to the west of the Kālakavana, to the north of thePariyatra Mountains and the Vindhya Range and to the south of the Himalayas.[6]
Patanjali'sMahābhāṣya (mid-2nd century BCE) defines Āryāvarta like theVashistha Dharmasutra.[citation needed] According to Bronkhost, he "situates it essentially in the Ganges plan, between theThar desert in the west and the confluence of the rivers Ganges (Ganga) and Jumna (Yamuna) in the east."[3]
TheManusmṛti (dated between 2nd cent. BCE to 3rd cent. CE) (2.22) gives the name to "the tract between theHimalaya and theVindhya Ranges, from the Eastern Sea (Bay of Bengal) to the Western Sea (Arabian Sea)".[7][8]
TheManava Dharmasastra (ca.150-250 CE) givesaryavarta as stretching from the eastern to the western seas, reflecting the growing sphere of influence of the Brahmanical ideology.[3]
The post-Vedic period of the Second Urbanisation saw a decline of Brahmanism.[9][10] With the growth of cities, which threatened the income and patronage of the rural Brahmins; the rise of Buddhism; and theIndian campaign of Alexander the Great (327-325 BCE), the rise of theMaurya Empire (322-185 BCE), and theSaka invasions and rule of northwestern India (2nd c. BC - 4th c. CE), Brahmanism faced a grave threat to its existence.[11]
The decline of Brahmanism was overcome by providing new services[12] and incorporating the non-Vedic Indo-Aryan religious heritage of the eastern Ganges plain and local religious traditions, giving rise to theHindu synthesis.[11]
These texts also identify other parts of the Indian subcontinent with specific designations. TheManusmṛti mentionsBrahmavarta as the region between theSarasvati and theDrishadvati innorthwest India. The text defines the area as the place where the "good" people are born, the twice-born who adhere to the Vedic dharma, in contrast to themlecchas, who live outside the Aryan territory and Vedic traditions.[13] The precise location and size of the region has been the subject of academic uncertainty.[14] Some scholars, such as the archaeologistsBridget Allchin andRaymond Allchin, believe the termBrahmavarta to be synonymous with Aryavarta.[15]
Madhyadesa extended from the upper reaches of theGanges and theYamuna to theconfluence of the two rivers atPrayaga, and was the region where, during the time of theMahajanapadas, theKuru Kingdom andPañcāla existed. The entire region is considered sacred in theHindu mythology as gods and heroes mentioned in the two epics, theRamayana andMahabharata, lived here.[16][17]
Kanyakubja or modern dayKannauj was a central city of Aryavarta and was used as capital-city from 510 CE to 1197 CE underMaukharis,Harshavardhana,Varmans,Pratiharas andGahadavala dynasty.[18][19][20][21][22]
TheGurjara-Pratihara king in the tenth century was titled theMaharajadhiraja of Aryavarta.[23]Devapala, the emperor ofPala Empire was known to be theOverlord of Aryavarta.[24]