Prodyut Kumar Deka

Ambari

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Ambari

Prodyut Kumar Deka

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Dedicated To

This book is dedicated to my late grandparents Mahendra Nath Deka & Swarnalata Deka X

Preface

The story is told from my point of view as a filmmaker in the way it would have been portrayed in screen if it had been made into a film. I believe a writer and filmmaker have something in common. Both try to communicate a story. I still believe that the story could be made into a film someday. My acknowledgements are due to my friends Pranjal Baruah and Debashish Goswami for taking the pain of reading my first draft; delightful literary couples Utpal & Namrata Datta; Prantik Deka; Madhusmita Borkotoki & my family for their generous support. Educreation Publishing provided me the opportunity to bring out my manuscript to you. I convey my sincere thanks to Vikram Singh Thakur, Shobha Khande and Mithlesh Kaushik, the Management team of Educreation Publishing for guiding me in every step of publishing this book. I am also grateful to Dilip Sharma, Guide Lecturer of the Directorate of Archeology, Assam for his proficient advice. In an age when the world has been applauding the exploits of fictional wizard Harry Potter, it remains virtually unknown to the world that there is

actually a whole village practicing magic in a remote place of India. My book is a modest attempt to introduce the place to you. All places depicted in the story are real while characters and events are ficticious, any resemblance to real persons living or dead is purely coincidence.

Prodyut Kumar Deka. X

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Prologue

Located in the Nilachal hill, in a mountain cave adjacent to the temple, around six head priests clad with dhotis sat in a sort of round table symposium. The priests were around hundred years old, lean and skinny with long grey beards. The time was almost midnight. Such an assembly at this hour didn’t happen in a thousand years. One of the Sadhus pronounced, “We all know what has happened. Let us not talk about the trivialities. Let us now examine the consequence first.” The Sadhu looked like the leader among them. There was silence. The Sadhu reflected on the recent event which has occurred in this part. And which is going to threaten their very existence. There is a myth from this North Eastern part of India which has not been forgotten by all. Like many myths, this story has also some share of history, truth and fiction combined into one, not necessarily in that order. Pragjyotishpura was the capital of Kamrupa at that time, the ancient name of Assam. Bhanu, grandson of Suparna, the ruler of Pragjyotishpura was born in the family of Vajradatta. The genealogy

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of this dynasty traces its lineage from King Naraka and his son King Bhagadatta. Both of them are frequently mentioned in ancient Indian epics like the Purans and Tantras. King Bhagadatta is mentioned in the Mahabharata as a powerful monarch ruling in the east. He died fighting for Kouravas in the great battle which doesn’t need any summation here. Located within Pragjyotishpura are two important seats of tantric worship. One is the shakti temple of Goddess Kamakhya in Nilachal hill and the unique astrological temple Navagraha in Chitrachal Hill. Both are situated atop hills that overlook the Brahmaputra River. It is believed that the Kamakhya Devi shrine hosts the yoni of Sati that fell here following the destruction of Daksha's sacrifice. This Shakti Peetha symbolizes the union of Shiva with Shakti, as described in the Kalika Purana. They are depicted in constant union where Kamakhya is the Goddess of desire, who grants salvation. She is the young bride of Lord Shiva and together they symbolize the sublime reality of the miracle of life, the everlasting bliss of male and female union. The inner sanctum is a deep dark underground rocky chamber into which one descends by a flight of steep steps. The Matra Yoni which is inscribed on a rock is covered with silk sarees and is constantly moist by underground spring water. Not far from Pragjyotispura, is situated a tiny but sovereign monarchy called Mayong which is revered and dreaded by all in the whole of India. It lies on the bank of the river Brahmaputra,

approximately 40 km from the capital of Kamrupa. Mayong comes from the word Maya since it is considered as the land of illusion. The place is considered the cradle of black magic and witchcraft in Asia. It is said that Chief Ghatotkacha took part in the battle of Mahabharata with his magical powers derived from Mayong. It was ironic that two powerful rulers of this region took part in the great battle of Mahabharata on opposite sides. The reasons were purely personal and not based on any treaty. King Bhagadatta’s sister Bhanumati was married to Duryudhana, the eldest brother of the Kauravas. Interestingly, she was his only wife unlike the Pandavas. And Ghatotkacha was a son of Bheema. Due to their respective relationships, Bhagadatta and Ghatotkacha had no other choice in fact. However, Barbarika, son of Ghatotkacha and Maurvi, didn’t participate in the war. It is said that Barbika was bound by the principal of fighting on the losing side. Lord Krishna advised him to stand as witness of the battle without taking any part. Nevertheless, it did create a bit of resentment between the two neighbors. The lineage of Ghatotkacha is not known. After his death, it is assumed his dynasty lived somewhere in the kingdom of Mayong. However, we know for certain that the present rulers of Kamrupa were descendants of Bhagadatta. Nevertheless, both these neighbors grew apart after that Great War. Another reason of their conflict was due to the diverse style of culture adopted by their respective monarchs. Kamrupa being more multicultural and

cordial towards immigrants continued its relations with the rest of India. The rulers of Kamrupa had come under the influence of Hinduism very early and were fond of learning. They often welcomed learned sages and thinkers from the mainland for their discourses here. Chinese pilgrim Hiuen Tsiang who visited ancient Assam in a later period had written an account of his travels and gave a fairly comprehensive description of the place praising the rulers of Kamrupa. Nonetheless, the predominant form of Hinduism in this part of India was Tantric Hinduism. It is said that when the Kamakhya temple was opened newly, the occasion was celebrated by the immolation of no less than a hundred and forty men, whose head were offered to the Goddess on dishes made of copper. Meanwhile magic became the fundamental cult of the kingdom of Mayong. They principally remained outside the mainland and the tribal priests practiced their own form of worship including black magic and witchcraft. The place slowly became isolated and people developed cold feet towards Mayong due to its increasing legends and horror tales. Human sacrifice remained largely prevalent in both places. It was regarded favorably by the Tantric sect of Hinduism. It is said that the person selected for sacrifice was fed sumptuously, until he was in sufficiently plump condition to suit the supposed taste of the Goddess, and he was then executed. Nonetheless, after many years of hostility between them, it was going to change.

Avanti, the young princess of Mayong, had made a short trip to Kamrupa to offer prayers in the temple of Goddess Kamakhya. As per protocol, King Bhanu organized a private gathering in honor of the princess. Both of them met for the first time in the palace and the hot-blooded Suparna couldn’t take his eyes away from her. Princess Avanti was not what we call gorgeous but there were some fascinating features about her especially her being tall, broad shoulders and having a scrumptious body. She was also serious, quiet and calm in her actions which made her even more attractive. The Princess was also aware of the cold vibes their kingdoms shared with each other. Though she would have loved to change that, nevertheless she tried to avoid the King without being discourteous to him. However, destiny had its call. Eventually Avanti also took a liking for the young King of Kamrupa. Meanwhile, King Bhanu arranged numerous occasions to meet her as much as he can. During this short but firm courtship, both the royal blood fell in unfathomable love with each other. Bhanu requested her to prolong her stay in Kamrupa for some more days and the princess enchanted by this offer had agreed. They now secretly met often as they could. Soon their courtship reached the ears of the old priests of the Kamakhya temple. It was inevitable that the powerful priests would be kept up-to-date of this major event by the spies from the royal palace.

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Upon a call by the Head Priest of the temple, they had gathered today to take a decision on the matter even though it was in the wee hours. Finally, another sadhu spoke, “It is impossible. We can’t permit it.” Again there was silence. The leader looked around the faces of his associates. Even though there was not enough light in the room, he visibly saw cynicism. “Why?” he asked. “They can’t be trusted. Their powers are very unpredictable. We can’t let them encroach on our territory.” The sadhu answered. “They are evil.” Another snarled. After half an hour, most of the sadhus had expressed their opinions promptly. No one wanted an alliance between them. “But we may gain from sharing their special powers.” Only one moderate had remarked. But it was immediately criticized and bypassed by the others. “Their objective is to dominate us. We will not be able to control them with their knowledge of dark powers. It will be fatal for Kamrupa.” “Their primary objective is to intrude in our territory.” “We don’t want to be isolated from the world.” Suddenly everybody was silent, waiting for the inevitable to hear. The leader among them looked at each of the priests once again. They were all looking at him eagerly.

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He spoke slowly, “So what do you suggest?” No one said anything. Everyone was silent. It is a fact that the King can’t marry without the approval of the high priests. And the priests don’t approve of this alliance; they will ensure whatever it needs to stop this conjugal. Such a lethal alliance detrimental to their interest has to be stopped. “We will not let the princess return back alive.” One of the Sadhus growled back. “The King also has to pay the price. It would be a precedent for posterity.” “No one will know about it.” The decision had been taken. Instead of telling you the inevitable, let us go to the present-day. Which has nothing to do with the ancient? X

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Ambari

Dr Rabha was taken aback at first. Then slowly he looked at it with his magnifying glass. Very carefully he rubbed away the small layers of dirt from it. A shine come from it. Now he was certain although he had guessed it instantaneously. It was a ring, no doubt about it. A snake ring... The time was about 9.15 pm. Except for the sounds of the distance crickets, there was tranquility in the air. The room was large, around 800 sq. feet surrounded by various artifacts scattered around all over. The walls were hanging with long shelves of large books. Several broken stone statues were also standing nearby. Dr Rabha was seated over an antique chair in front of a long table where several pieces of relics were kept. A bright spot light was hanging on top of the roof. Dr Pratap Rabha, aged 56 years, is a bachelor and a leading archaeologist of the State. He is the Superintending Archaeologist of the Archaeological Survey of India’s Guwahati Circle.

Prodyut Kumar Deka He lives alone in a chalet in the hills of Sarania situated near the heart of the city. He has his own study room and laboratory adjacent with his lodge. Dr Rabha had selected this place after much exploration and deliberations. He had immediately fallen in love with the place after visiting it for the first time. There is also a reason for his fondness for this place. In ancient times, the Sarania hills were called Chitrakut Parvat. According to myths, the capital of the ancient rulers Kirats was situated atop the hills of Sarania. An ancient Kali temple still exits there today. He looked again at the ring and got lost in deep thoughts. The recent excavation at Ambari Archaeological site jointly by the Guwahati Circle of ASI led by Dr Rabha and the Directorate of Archaeology was very important as prior to the discovery of certain terracotta artifacts of first century BC from an excavation site at Ambari in 2010, there was no archaeological evidence of the city’s existence prior to 7th century AD. According to Dr Rabha, even though one can find mention of Guwahati, which was known as Pragjyotishpur in ancient times in epics such as Mahabharata and Puranas, there are not many archaeological evidences about its ancient history, particularly before 7th century AD. Originally the Ambari Archaeological Site situated in the heart of the Guwahati city was accidentally discovered in course of digging the foundation for the building of the Reserve Bank of

Ambari India in 1969. Since then, the site was excavated by different excavators. He had submitted a proposal to the ASI headquarters in New Delhi for conducting fresh excavation in and around the city to search for more such clues, which could fill in the missing link, the period between first century BC and 7th century AD. The Guwahati Circle of ASI was expecting to start their fresh exploration in and around the city after getting the approval from their headquarters. The approval came after a year. “We want to carry out our excavation in areas along the Brahmaputra and the hills. Conducting excavation here was not an easy task since there is not much vacant space available”, Rabha had said to the media before taking on the job. And now the present phase of excavation at the site is going on since February 3 under the joint supervision of Dr Rabha and State Archaeology Director. Three research scholars from Gauhati University are also engaged in the excavation as part of their capacity building exercise. Since then, a large number of remains of pottery were found at the site, it is believed that a ceramic industry may have flourished in the area. Besides pottery, several hearths and iron objects, mixed pottery, some copper objects, iron slabs etc. were also recovered. Dr Rabha was excited by these discoveries. He was certain that the site has the potential to provide the history of the growth of Guwahati for a period

Prodyut Kumar Deka of about 2,000 years in chronological order. Now the only work to be done is to carefully study all those objet d'art found recently. He, however, was not expecting to find a snake ring. Historically, it is one of the oldest and most widespread mythological symbols. Snakes have been associated with some of the oldest rituals known to humankind and represent dual expression of good and evil. Now looking at the relic closely, he was about to write something in his notebook when the sound of the telephone gave him an instant shock. Slowly, he moved to receive the old handset. He was still not in terms with the smart phone. “Hello, Dr Rabha speaking” “Hello Rabha. I am Bhattacharya here. Did I disturb you?” Dr Anil Bhattacharya of the Anthropology department was one of the research scholars from Gauhati University who was engaged in the excavation. The Anthropology Department of Gauhati University was the first to conduct excavation at Ambari in 1969 after which the archaeology department carried out exploration in 1995, before the ASI and the archaeology department carried out joint excavations. “No, no. I was just having a look at those artifacts. It was a routine check… actually I was about to call you regarding something…” Dr Rabha stopped there. “Really, is it to do with those relics?”

Ambari “Yes, I thought I should consult with you over a stuff we recovered there…” “Tell me” “I think we have found a ring.” “What? Did you mean a real ring?” Dr Bhattacharya was still recovering from the initial shock. “Yes, a ring. I had a shock myself. I am also sure it belongs to some important person.” “Are you sure?” “To be precise, it is a snake ring. I have never seen anything like it before. The making of such a delicate specimen suggests royal family. Only we have to verify the period now.” “What do you think yourself?’ Dr Rabha thought for some moments. He was not sure himself. The excavation at Ambari Archaeological Site had for the first time found cultural findings of the Sunga-Kushana period which dates to 2nd century BC to 3rd century AD. Such findings were never unearthed in Northeast India prior to this excavation. The most important discovery is a flight of steps made of bricks leading to the tank. Besides, the excavation has revealed two floors and two hearths resting on the natural soil significantly. “It might be around 2000 years old.” Dr Rabha finally said. “But we don’t have much knowledge of that period except a flight of steps and two floors unearthed just few years ago.”

Prodyut Kumar Deka “Yes, it is a tricky situation. We apparently have no chronological history before the rein of the Varman dynasty.” “About this ring… How much time it will take to examine it?” “I don’t know. Since all the other artifacts have also to be first assembled together and then recorded, it will take time. Also the Director’s approval is needed before these are sent to the laboratory in New Delhi for carbon dating.” “But couldn’t we simply send the ring alone first? “It would also need the Director’s approval.” “That might be arranged. Listen, this is important. I think we have made a great breakthrough to the ancient rulers of Kamrup through this ring. We need to leave the other relics for some time and concentrate on this ring only.” “I agree with you. But I request you not to divulge it to anyone now.” “Sure. Well, I can only leave it to your capable hands now.” Dr Rabha returned to his table. He was in deep thoughts now. The names of the kings of ancient Assam from the Varman dynasty in 430 A.D. has been in general trustworthy and can be treated as historical records. Kamrupa had attained considerably power and fair degree of civilization which was confirmed by the copper plate inscriptions of King Bhaskara Varman and the narrative of Chinese pilgrim Hiuen Tsiang.

Ambari But before this reign, information on the rulers has to be relied on Hindu epics and in tantric literature only. That is a very complicated matter. Dr Rabha remembered the words of Sir Edward Gait, “The ruins which still survive represent only an inconsiderable fragment of the buildings that were once in existence but more will doubtless come to light when the jungle which now covers so vast an area in Assam comes to be removed to make way for extension of cultivation.” Those words have always given him some confidence and fervor in his work. Sir Edward Gait had written “A history of Assam” in 1905 which was one of the first attempts at a connected history of the State in English. Dr Rabha had taken a like to history since his childhood. His family originally hails from Goalpara, a large town in lower Assam. Goalpara was an important trading center from where the British East India Company carried out its business. His father, Chandan Rabha, a school teacher, used to narrate his only son the stories of ancient Kamrupa in his childhood. Father and son used to walk for long periods on the banks of the river Brahmaputra adjoining the Hulukanda hills until the sun goes down. It is one of the natural scenic views in town with various waterfowl and monkeys. “Who built the Kamakhya temple, Deuta?” Ten year old Pratap Rabha asked his father curiously. “There is a story behind it, son. Narakasur was monarch of that time. At first, he was pious and prospered, but afterwards he came under the

Prodyut Kumar Deka influence of Banasur, King of Sonitpur, and grew irreligious and arrogant. He asked Goddess Kamakhya to take him as her husband. She agreed, on condition that he erected a temple to her on Nilachal Hills and also constructs a tank and a road to the temple in a single night. “Did you say in a single night?” Young Rabha was amazed. “Yes, he had almost accomplished this task, when the Goddess caused a cock to call and, claiming this as proof that day had come, evaded her promise and refused to marry him.” “So she played a trick on him?” “Yes”, his father laughed, “Overcome with rage, Narakasur slew the cock, and the place where he did this is still known as Kukurakata.” “Did that angered the Goddess?” “Yes, by this act Narakasur lost forever the favor of the Goddess. Anyway, the temple was built in this fashion.” Young Rabha was an inquisitive type. He would keep on asking questions till he was satisfied. “If the Goddess was not interested to marry him, why didn’t she refuse him in the first place itself?” “The ways of the Gods are strange and mysterious, son. She is a very powerful Goddess. She has her reasons for doing so.” Young Rabha was not satisfied with the answer but he remained quiet.

Ambari After his matriculation, Rabha joined in the Arts stream with Anthropology as the main subject. His father was disappointed that his only son didn’t go for engineering, commerce or the medical line. In India, there are very few positions a person could get from studying Anthropology except the academic route. However, he didn’t object to his son’s choice of study. “Since I have to do a job in my life, I must choose the subject I enjoy. Otherwise, how can I remain in a profession without having some interest in it all my life?” Rabha told his few friends on his selection of Anthropology. “I am basically a man of academics. Though archeology is my favorite pastime, I can hardly earn my livelihood from it. So I have chosen a subject which is close to it.” Nevertheless, Rabha was overall brilliant in his studies. He passed his post-graduation with highest marks and managed an International scholarship for pursuing his doctorate in the prestigious Columbia University in USA. After his return from America, he initially joined Guwahati University as an Anthropology lecturer. After ten years later, he joined the Archaeological Survey of India’s (ASI) Guwahati Circle as a Senior Archaeologist, a dream he had cherished for many years. Initially Dr Rabha took on the study of ancient inscriptions of Assam. The ancient rulers of Kamrupa have adopted Sanskrit culture since early in the Christian era and they have left numerous important inscriptions, many of them in beautiful

Prodyut Kumar Deka verses, which throw much light on the history and culture of the times. He brought together these inscriptions in a single volume, providing a full analysis, notes and accurate translations for each of them. The book brought much name and fame for Dr Rabha in the academic profession and it became an invaluable source book for the serious students of history. Dr. Rabha had brought this plot of land on the Sarania hills during his University days. Later he constructed his own house and a research laboratory there with assistance from Archaeological Survey of India. He devotes much of his time nowadays, sometimes even confines himself in the workroom for several days, to the study of old relics and inscriptions. The recent excavation has made his preoccupation more intense during the last few days. Dr Rabha put down the mysterious relic after going through it again. He felt exhausted with the day’s work. A good night sleep would make him afresh for tomorrow, he thought. He shut down the lights, locked the laboratory carefully and went straight to his solitary chalet. Dr Rabha had remained unmarried by his own choice. His father tried hard to marry him off but he responded back that he was not prepared for it. “I really don’t understand it all. He has everything in life, a good job, a respectable society, decent house.” His father would ask his mother sometimes.

Ambari

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