The idea of `invasion’ is actually a naive exaggeration. Most of north
western India was fairly sparsely populated in ancient times and the great
Indian cities (after the Harappan period) were mainly in the region of
present day Bihar until the 6th century BC so many alien tribes from less
fertile areas of the north simply entered with little opposition from the
local inhabitants. Pastoralists never made wars on each other and it was
only with urbanization that rulers of the evolving city states had to keep
standing armies that were dedicated to war.
There were therefore not many wars in ancient times though several probably
small tribal skirmishes that became exaggerated by legends as they evolved.
After Ashoka’s reportedly bloody battle against Kalinga, north India entered
a thousand year period of relative peace under predominantly Buddhist rulers
until the time of Harshavardhan who ruled from 606 to 647 AD. But there had
been many local wars between domestic kingdoms like the Cholas, Pallavas and
Pandyas competing with the Satvahanas and the Guptas or the Rashrakutas,
Gurjara Pratiharas and Palas in later times. There must have been
considerable bloodshed in all these conflicts even if not much is recorded
in Brahmin texts. These battles were however territorial and religion does
not seem to have been used to justify aggression.
Then there was a heady period of vigorous Brahmanical revivalism that
rapidly gathered strength after the 7th century AD. It has to be remembered
that this was not a `Hindu’ revival because the idea of Hindu as a religion
was not known at this time. During this Puranic period most people
worshipped numerous animist deities usually presided over by Brahmin priests
who chanted elevating Vedic hymns even though all the Vedic deities like
Indra, Rudra and Nasatyas had now vanished. Many animist deities including
and several goddesses were absorbed into a new Puranic Hinduism that
included non Vedic deities like Shiv, Ganesh, Hanuman, Kubera, Kali, Durga
and others and new philosophies like reincarnation, Karma and Dharma
borrowed from Buddhism and Jainism. Even the Vishnu of the Puranas was very
different from the Vedic Vishnu. At this time Ram or Krishna were still
heroes of legend and had not yet become deities of worship. A. R. Mujumdar
in The Hindu History (1979) observes … “From 650 AD, perhaps to suit the
needs of the age, Hindus rather suppressed history and invented nice legends
instead”.
Many local rulers, probably at the goading of their Brahmin ministers and
priests, now began to ruthlessly exterminate the previously dominant
Buddhist and Jain faiths. Although the class of Kshatriyas had completely
vanished from history during the thousand years of mainly Buddhist rule they
were reinvented at this time to serve Brahmin interests. No doubt the rich
lands and treasures of their monasteries and temples also gave material
incentives to this religious fervor and many Buddhist and Jain stupas and
monasteries were destroyed and Hindu temples established at their sites.
Similar material motives had actuated religious persecutions in many lands
including those by the nobles in England during the much more recent period
of the Reformation. There are many Hindu references to support this
assertion including the unedited versions of the original Puranas even
though most Buddhist and Jain accounts were destroyed.
Hiuen-Tsang, who visited India from 629 to 645 AD, describes the influence
of a south Indian Brahmin queen on her husband who ordered the execution of
many thousand Buddhists including 8,000 in Madurai alone. Kalhana’s
Rajatarangani (written by a Shaivite scholar about 1149 AD and the first
Brahmin account of India’s historic past from the time of Yudishthira)
relates that Mihirikula, the Hun ruler was converted by Brahmins (in 515 AD)
and unleashed a wave of violent destruction on Buddhist monasteries in
Punjab and Kashmir. He reports (verse 290 in book 1) that “crows and birds
of prey would fly ahead eager to feed on those within his armies reach”. He
proudly proclaimed himself as the killer of three crores.
Hired Brahmin killers later tried to assassinate the Buddhist ruler
Harshavardhana. As a Buddhist, he was unwilling to take life and so banished
500 Brahmins involved in the conspiracy to a remote area south of the
Vindhyas.
Kalhan also reports that several avaricious Hindu rulers looted the
treasuries and even burned Hindu temples of the Shahi and Katoch rulers in
neighboring areas long before the well known looting by Mahmud Ghazni.
According to The Rajatarangani (IV/112), Chandradip, a Buddhist ruler of
Kashmir, was killed by Brahmins in 722 AD. His successor Tarapida was killed
two years later. The newly anointed Brahma-Kshastra (Rajput) rulers usurped
power in the kingdoms of Sind and Kota. Graha Varman Maukhari, married to
Harsha’s sister, was treacherously killed by Sasanka, king of Gauda
(Bengal). He proudly destroyed many stupas and cut down the sacred Bodhi
tree at Gaya.
According to Gopinath Rao (East & West Vol 35) the old tribal shrine at
Jaganath Puri was usurped by Vaisnavas and the walls of the temple even
today displays gory murals recording the beheading and massacre of
Buddhists.
Epigraphica India Vol XXIX P 141-144 records that Vira Goggi Deva, a South
Indian king, described himself as… “a fire to the Jain scriptures, a hunter
of wild beasts in the form of the followers of Jina (Jains) and an adept at
the demolition of Buddhist canon”. It also records “the deliberate
destruction of non Brahminical literature like books of Lokayat/ Carvaca
philosophy by Brihaspati mentioned by Albaruni in the 11th century.” The
huge Buddhist complex at Nagarjunakonda was destroyed. According to Shankara
Dig Vijaya, the newly anointed Brahma-Kshastra kings ordered every Kshatriya
to kill every Buddhist young and old and to also kill those who did not kill
the Buddhists. A Jain temple at Huli in Karnataka had a statue of five Jinas
(Jain heroes) that was re carved into a Shaivite temple with five lingas.
E.S Oakley (Holy Himalaya) Rhys Davids (Buddhist India) and Daniel Wright
(History of Nepal) quote several Nepalese and Kumoani documents showing that
Buddhism had been the prevailing religion of the Himalayas with Badrinath
and Kedarnath as Buddhist temples until Shankaracharya (788 -820 AD) usurped
them in the 8th century and the shrines at Badri and Kedar were then
converted into shrines of Shiv and Vishnu. Wright records that “there had
been a curious intermixture of the two religions with Buddhist priests
officiating at the temples of Pashupati (Shiv) and all the four castes
following the religion of Buddha.” There is no evidence that Shankaracharya
directed such persecution but what is likely is that grasping local rulers
may have used his great name to lend legitimacy to their own destruction and
looting. Many local hill rajas now invited Brahmins to their domains to get
themselves elevated to the rank of Kshatriyas. And many were encouraged to
attack Buddhist monasteries.
Several Nepalese accounts state that the followers of Buddha were ruthlessly
persecuted, slain, exiled and forcibly converted. Though many converted
rather than face death, humiliation or exile. The attackers tested their
faith by making them perform ‘Hinsa’, or the sacrifice of live animals, that
was abhorrent to Buddhists and Jains. Many bhikshunis, or nuns, were
forcibly married and the learned Grihasthas were forced to cut off the
distinguishing knot of hair on top of their heads. 84,000 Buddhist works
were searched for and destroyed.
It is believed that Shankara introduced pilgrimages to these holy places in
the Himalayas for the first time to prevent their relapse into Buddhist or
animist ways. As sufficient local Brahmins could not be found who were
willing to preach in such remote places he imported Nambudri Brahmin priests
from Kerala who, to this day, officiate at Badrinath, and Kedarnath.
Later as the mountain settlements grew, other Brahmins like the Joshis and Pants from Maharashtra, Gairolas from Bengal and Negis from Gujarat were also invited to settle in the hills. Holy pilgrimages then ensured a constant influx of Hindu pilgrims with the presence of many traders, priests, and rulers who had a vested interest in sustaining Hindu pilgrimages to these sacred spots.
