The Lotus in Indian Art

The Lotus in Indian Art
In the vast repertoire of Indian ornamental motifs, among the symbols and devices that recur in traditional art and architecture, the lotus occupies pride of place. Unlike western art, in which great emphasis is laid on photographic realism and the naturalistic treatment of human and animal forms, the main concerns in Indian art are profoundly spiritual and religious. Each and every object portrayed in Indian art has a religio-spiritual and symbolic significance.
Among the flowers, the lotus is the most preferred symbol, not because of its beautiful form, but because of its profound symbolism. We all know that this flower grows in muddy waters, but remains unaffected by it. Whether white, blue (nilotpala), rose pink or white and pink, its petals evoke the sentiments of purity in everybody’s mind. According to Hindu philosophy, human beings ought to live like a lotus flower in this wily, unscrupulous world, completely detached and pure hearted, untouched by evil forces.
Rising from the depths of water and expanding its petals and leaves on the surface, through its appearance, it gives proof of the life-supporting power of the all nourishing abyss. This is the reason why a lotus flower
  in full bloom is used as the pedestal or throne support of all the deities — Hindu, Buddhist and Jain.
Invariably, they are shown seated or standing on a fully open lotus flower (padmu pitha) or on a double petalled
  lotus (mahambuja). This has symbolic connotations: the deities are represented in their transcendental, subtle forms, i.e. the spiritual body which is weightless. If seated with one leg dangling down, then also the deity’s foot rests upon the lotus pedestal or cushion.
Numerous Hindu deities are shown holding a lotus flower, for example, Vishnu who preserves the universe, is invariably holding the padmu (lotus) in one of his four hands. Vishnu’s spouse Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, Shiva’s consort Parvati, Surya the Sun god, the Bodhisattva Padmapani — all these deities hold a lotus flower in their hands. In fact, even the personified sacred river goddesses Ganga and Yamuna always hold a long stemmed lotus, characterized by a long stalk, the undulations of which match the contours of their elegantly standing ‘S’-shaped bodies.
In Indian paintings, whether miniature ones or frescoes, the flowing waters of the river or a pond are always indicated by lotus flower and their broad leaves floating on their surfaces. This tradition has persisted from ancient times. In the world renowned Ajanta caves frescoes, the lotus pond is an alluring part of the landscape, and continued to be so in subsequent centuries till the dawn of 20th century.
In Indian paintings, whether miniature ones or frescoes, the flowing waters of the river or a pond are always indicated by lotus flower and their broad leaves floating on their surfaces. This tradition has persisted from ancient times. In the world renowned Ajanta caves frescoes, the lotus pond is an alluring part of the landscape, and continued to be so in subsequent centuries till the dawn of 20th century.
www.mysteriesofindia.com

Meenakshi Amman ,Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple, Tiru-aalavaai and Meenakshi Amman Kovil,Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India.

An amazing temple in India.
Meenakshi Amman Temple (also called: Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple, Tiru-aalavaai and Meenakshi Amman Kovil) is a historic Hindu temple located on the southern bank of the Vaigai River] in the temple city of Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is dedicated to Parvati, known as Meenakshi, and her consort, Shiva, here named Sundareswarar. The temple forms the heart and lifeline of the 2,500 year old city of Madurai and is a significant symbol for the Tamil people, mentioned since antiquity in Tamil literature though the present structure was built between 1623 and 1655 CE. It houses 14 gopurams (gateway towers), ranging from 45–50m in height. The tallest is the southern tower, 51.9 metres (170 ft) high, and two golden sculptured vimanas, the shrines over the garbhagrihas (sanctums) of the main deities. The temple attracts 15,000 visitors a day, around 25,000 on Fridays, and receives an annual revenue of sixty millionINR. There are an estimated 33,000 sculptures in the temple.

Meenakshi (IAST Mīnākṣī Tamil மீனாட்சி) is an avatar of the Hindu goddess Parvati - the consort of Shiva, one of the few Hindu female deities to have a major temple devoted to her. The name "Mīnachchi" means fish-eyed and is derived from the words "mīna" meaning fish and "akṣi" meaning eyes. The lady goddess Meenakshi is the principal deity of the temple, not Sundareswarar, unlike most Shiva temples in South India where Shiva is the principal deity. According to Hindu legend, in order to answer the prayers of the second Pandya king Malayadwaja Pandya and his wife Kanchanamalai, Parvati appeared out of the holy fire of the Putra Kameshti Yagna (sacrifice for childhood) performed by the king. According to another legend, the goddess herself gave notice to Kanchanamalai in one of her previous births that Kanchanamalai would have the privilege of mothering the goddess. The happy king named the girl "Tadaatagai" and as the heir to the throne, Tadaatagai was trained carefully in all the 64 sastras, the fields of science.
The Meenakshi temple is believed to have been founded by Indra (king of Deva celestial deities) while he was on a pilgrimage to atone for his misdeeds. He felt his burden lifting as he neared the swayambu lingam (self formed lingam, a representation of Shiva used for worship in temples) of Madurai. He ascribed this miracle to the lingam and constructed the temple to enshrine it. Indra worshipped Shiva, who caused golden lotuses to appear in the nearby pool. Tamil literature speaks of the temple over the last two millennia. Thirugnanasambandar, the famous Hindu saint of Saiva philosophy, mentioned this temple as early as the 7th century, and described the deity as Aalavai Iraivan. The temple is believed to have been sacked by the infamous Muslim invader Malik Kafur in 1310 and all the ancient elements were destroyed.
The initiative to rebuild the structure was taken by first Nayak king of Madurai, Viswanatha Nayak (1559–1600) under the supervision of Ariyanatha Mudaliar, the prime minister of the Nayak Dynasty and the founder of the Poligar System. The original design by Vishwanatha Nayak in 1560 was substantially expanded to the current structure during the reign of Thirumalai Nayak (1623–55). He took considerable interest in erecting many complexes inside the temple. His major contributions are the Vasantha Mandapam for celebrating vasanthorsavam (spring festival) and Kilikoondu Mandapam (corridor of parrots). The corridors of the temple tank and Meenatchi Nayakar Mandapam were built by Rani Mangammal.
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Kumari Kandam in Puranas

References of Kumari Kandam in Puranas and Ancient Tamil Literature.
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In Tamil literary works Aintiram, Silappadhikaram, Manimekhalai and SaivamPaayanam and in Sanskrit literary work Bhagavatha Purana, there are information about Tamil sage Mayan, who wrote one of the Tamil Sangam literary works Aintiram, and was part of Tamil Sangams and lived in Kumari Kandam.
This sage also wrote other Tamil literature Pranava Vedham (which is called by Vyasa as the predecessor of four Vedas in Bhagavatha Purana), MayaMatham (Book about Architecture, Sculptures and Vasthu) and SuriyaNool (Book about Astronomy and Astrology), one Tamil grammatical work, etc. According to Aintiram, Kumari Kandam was a land which has huge area and the PalThuli river (PalThuli – Divided grammatical form of Pahruli according to Tamil grammar which means many drops), one of the Kumari Kandam rivers, originated from PeruMalai(means big mountain – represents MeruMalai – Meru Mountain). It also tells that there were 49 lands in Kumari Kandam.

  Tamil literary work SaivamPaayanam gives information about Kumari Kandam and its territories. It also mentions the existence of PeruMalai (MeruMalai – Meru Mountain) in Kumari Kandam.
•The Tamil literary work Manimekhalai, mentions about multiple Tsunamis in the ancient city of Poompuhar and was swallowed up by the sea. This event is supported by archeological finds of submerged ruins off the coast of modern Poompuhar.
•The Tamil poetic literature Tamil vidu thoothu describes the Topography of Kumari Kandam. It is also said that the Pahruli river was excavated to irrigate the mountain valley by the Pandiyan King Nediyon.
  The third Sangam literary work Purananooru talks about Kumari Kandam and the river Pahruli which was there in Kumari Kandam.
•The Tamil Grammar work Nannool talks about the sunken country Kumari Kandam.
•The Tamil literature SiruKakkaip Paadiniyaar talks about the Kumari Kandam.
•There are references for Kumari Kandam present in Kantapuranam, which mentions it as one of the nine continents of old times, or one of the nine divisions of India and the only region not to be inhabited by barbarians.
•According to the Matsya Purana, Manu was the king of Dravidadesa (South Indian country) in Kumari Kandam.
•There are references for Kumari Kandam present in Garuda Puranam. Also, There are scattered references in Sangam literature, such as Kalittokai 104, to how the sea took the land of the Pandiyan Kings, after which they conquered new lands to replace those they had lost.
References of Kumari Kandam (Lemuria) in Chinese & Greek Literature
In some of the ancient Chinese chronicles, there are references to Pahruli river, Peru river and Meru Mountain (with 49 peaks) from where the Kumari River, Peru river and Pahruli river were originated (according to Tamil literature). It is said that Chinese laborers were employed by the Pandiyan King and when they went down the mines they appeared like a huge army of small ants. Therefore, they were called pon thondi erumbukal (Gold mining ants). This is also confirmed by ancient Chinese chronicles.
Megasthenes (ca. 350 – 290 BCE), a Greek ethnographer and explorer in the Hellenistic period, authored the work Indika, the account of his travels in India. In this work, he says that Taprobane (old name of Sri Lanka) was separated from the mainland (Indian Peninsula) by a river, which means that during the period of Megasthenes, Sri Lanka could have been connected to Indian Peninsula by a small landmass in between them and was divided by Thamirabarani River (Porunai River).
The current Thamirabarani River in Tamil Nadu flows into the sea suggests that the Thamirabarani River would have reached Sri Lanka through a now-submerged landmass existed between Indian Peninsula and Sri Lanka during the period of Megasthenes.
Archaeological Data supporting existence of Kumari Kandam.
 
The marine archeological findings at Poompuhar (Tamil Nadu) by marine archeological research conducted by the National Institute of Marine Archeology (Goa) reveals that much of the town of Poompugar (Tamil Nadu) was washed away by progressive erosion and a Tsunami around 300 BC.
•Ancient Pottery dating back to the 4th century BC have been discovered off shore by marine archeologists east of this town. The timeline of this Tsunami also coincides with the timeline (after the period of Megasthenes visit to India) of the submergence of landmass which was claimed to be existed between Indian Peninsula and Sri Lanka according to Megasthenes accounts
The geological survey reveals that most of the places in the land under the sea, where Kumari Kandam is claimed to be existed, has the maximum depth of the sea of 200 meters. In some of the places, the maximum depth of the sea is 2000 meters. Since, these areas has low sea depth, there are more possibilities to exists a now-submerged land in which people lived.
•Languages spoken by Australian tribes, African tribes, Andaman and Nicobar tribes and Lakshadweep tribes are identical to Tamil language. So, there are high possibilities that there might be a connecting land which exists in between India, Australia and Madagascar
•Types of plants, trees and animals present in Africa and Madagascar are identical with that of in India. So, there might be a connecting land which exists in between India and Madagascar.
According to th Kumari Kandam tradition, over a period of about just 11,000 years, the Pandyans, a historical dynasty of Tamil kings, formed three Tamil Sangams, in order to foster among their subjects the love of knowledge, literature and poetry. These Sangams were the fountain head of Tamil culture and their principal concern was the perfection of the Tamil language and literature. The first two Sangams were not located in what is now South India but in antediluvian Tamil land to the south which in ancient times bore the name of Kumari Kandam, literally the Land of the Virgin or Virgin Continent.
The First Sangam (Mutaṟcaṅkam) is described as having been held at the Pandiyan King’s capital city, Madurai (Kadal Konda Then Madurai – which means Southern Madurai which was submerged in the sea. The old Madurai was called as Southern Madurai to differentiate it with the capital city of Madurai of third Sangam), which lasted a total of 4440 years, and had 549 members, which supposedly included some gods of the Hindu pantheon such as Siva, Kubera and Murugan. A total of 4449 poets are described as having composed songs for this Sangam. There were 89 Pandiyan kings starting from Kaysina valudi to Kadungon were decedents and rulers of that period.
If credence is given to this commentary, then the beginning of first Sangam should be placed somewhere in 9000 B.C.
Most of the lands of Kumari Kandam were submerged in the sea during first devouring of the land by the sea. Then, the Pandiyan King and the remaining people migrated to the remaining land of Kumari Kandam and the king moved his capital to Kapatapuram. At the same time, the present location of Tamil Nadu was ruled by Chera, Chola, and 46 other small kingdoms.
The Second Sangam (Irandaam Caṅkam, Iṭaicaṅkam) was convened in Kapatapuram, the then capital city of Pandiyan King. This Sangam lasted for 3700 years and had 59 members, with 3700 poets participating. There were 59 Pandiyan kings starting from Vendercceliyan to Mudattirumaran were decedents and rulers of that period.
This city was also submerged in sea. Ramayana and Arthasastra of Kautalya corroborates the existence of a city named kavatapuram. There is a reference to a south Indian place called kavata by sugriva in a verse which runs something like ‘having reached Kavata suitable for Pandiya‘. The place kavata is also mentioned by Kautalya (also known as Acharya Chanakya) in Arthasastra.
Having lost the complete Kumari Kandam, the Pandiyan King conquered the part of lands belonging to the Chola and Chera kings (Silapathikaram, Maturaikkandam, verses 17-22) and made Korkai, a seaport on the southernmost tip of the Indian Peninsula, as his capital and in later times moved his capital to the current city of Madurai.
The Third Sangam (Moondraam Caṅkam, Kaṭaicaṅkam) was purportedly located in the current city of Madurai, the then capital city of Pandiyan King, and lasted for 1850 years. There were 49 Pandiyan kings starting from Mudattirumaran (who came away from Kabadapuram to present Madurai) to Ukkirapperu valudi were decedents and rulers of that period.
The academy had 49 members, and 449 poets are described as having participated in the Sangam.
It is the legendary sunken continent, according to many of the ancient extant Tamil literatures and some of the Sanskrit literatures. Almost 100 years back tamil nationalists came to identify and associate Kumari Kandam with Lemuria, a hypothetical “lost continent” posited in the 19th century to account for discontinuities in biogeography.
Located in the Indian and Pacific Oceans but now sunken, this sunked continent is believed to be the connections between Africa to South India, through Madagascar.
Many of the earliest extant Tamil literary works and their commentaries, mentions a Tamil continent called Kumari Kandam, which was ruled by Pandiyan Kings for 10,000 years, before getting submerged in the Indian Ocean, south of present-day Kanyakumari district at the southern tip of India.
References of Kumari Kandam from some of the Tamil literary sources
According to Silappadhikaram, one of the Five Great Epics of Tamil Literature written in 2nd century CE, states that the cruel sea took the Pandiyan’s land, part of which was present between the rivers Pahruli and the mountainous banks of the Kumari. These rivers are said to have flowed in a now-submerged land.
Adiyarkkunallar, a 12th-century CE commentator on the epic, explains this reference by saying that there was once a land to the south of the present-day Kanyakumari, which stretched for 700 kāvatam from the Pahruli river in the north to the Kumari river in the south. The modern equivalent of the measurement kāvatam, which is also known as kātam in Tamil, is a distance of 6.25 miles (10.06 km).
Kanakkathikaram, a 15th century Tamil Mathematical literary work which is in the form of poems, defines the length of 1 kāvatam(1 kātam) as 24,000 muzham (33,000 feet, 6¼ miles) and it also defines the time taken to cover it which is the distance that can be covered by normal walk in 7½ Nāzhigai or 1 Sāmam (equivalent to 3 hours). So, the distance of 700 kāvatam is equivalent to 4,375 miles (7,041 km) in modern day measurements.

This land was divided into 49 territories, which he names as Seven coconut territories (elutenga natu), Seven Madurai territories (elumaturai natu), Seven old sandy territories (elumunpalai natu), Seven new sandy territories (elupinpalai natu), Seven mountain territories (elukunra natu), Seven eastern coastal territories (elukunakarai natu) and Seven dwarf-palm territories (elukurumpanai natu). All these lands, he says, together with the many-mountained land that began with KumariKollam, with forests and habitations, were submerged by the sea. Two of these territories were supposedly parts of present-day Kollam and Kanyakumari districts.
The 7th century CE commentary written by Nakkīranār for the Tamil literary work Iraiyanar Akapporul, gives the list of Pandiyan kings who ruled the Kumari Kandam. It also gives information about the three Tamil Sangams (assemblies of Tamil scholars and poets who do research on Tamil language and also creates literary works) which spans about 10,000 years
Kumari Kandam (Tamil: குமரிக்கண்டம்) refers to a hypothetical lost continent with an ancient Tamil-Kerala civilization, located south of present-day India, in the South Indian Ocean. Alternative names and spelli...ngs include Kumarikkantam and Kumari Nadu. According to the modern science, Kumari Kandam is a pseudo-scientific concept. There have been references to it being the lost city of Atlantis that is propounded to have been submerged in the ocean in an unknown location.

In the 19th century, a section of the European and American scholars speculated the existence of a submerged continent called Lemuria, to explain geological and other similarities between Africa, India and Madagascar. The plate tectonics theory is that Indian continent separated from Australia and pushed towards Asia thereby creating the Himalayas while Madagascar became part of Africa. A section of Tamil revivalists adapted, connecting it to the Pandyan stories of lands lost to the ocean, as described in ancient Tamil and Sanskrit literature. According to these writers, an ancient Indo-Tamilian civilization existed on the Lemuria, before it was lost to the sea in a catastrophe. In the 20th century, the Tamil writers started using the name "Kumari Kandam" to describe this submerged sub-continent. Although the Lemuria theory was later rendered wrong and obsolete by the continental drift theory, the concept remained popular among the Tamil revivalists of the 20th century. According to them, Kumari Kandam was the place where the first two Tamil literary academies (sangams) were organized during the Pandyan reign. They claimed Kumari Kandam as the cradle of civilization to prove the antiquity of Tamil language and cultures. It has to be noted that the current city of Kanya Kumari exists at the southern tip of India and it was part of state of Kerala (and its capital) until the state wide division of land after getting Independence from British Raj - when it was transferred to the governance under Tamil Nadu, the neighboring eastern state to Kerala. Kumari Kandam in literature expands into the southern Indian ocean joining Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka into one huge land mass. There are similarities of interest in language, foods, customs and appearance of folks belonging to these three regions to this day.

http://www.mysteryofindia.com/…/kumari-kandam-lost-continen…
Images:
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http://kumari-kandam.blogspot.com/

MARCH 14,2015

Indian mathematician Aryabhata, among his many accomplishments, he discovered long before the west did, the approximate value of this Irrational and also famous Transcendental Number.
Aryabhata (Sanskrit: आर्यभट; IAST: Āryabhaṭa) or Aryabhata (476–550 CE) was the first in the line of great mathematician-astronomers from the classical age of Indian mathematics and Indian astronomy. His works include the Āryabhaṭīya... (499 CE, when he was 23 years old) and the Arya-siddhanta.

Aryabhata worked on the approximation for pi (\pi), and may have come to the conclusion that \pi is irrational. In the second part of the Aryabhatiyam (gaṇitapāda 10), he writes:
caturadhikam śatamaṣṭaguṇam dvāṣaṣṭistathā sahasrāṇām
ayutadvayaviṣkambhasyāsanno vṛttapariṇāhaḥ.
"Add four to 100, multiply by eight, and then add 62,000. By this rule the circumference of a circle with a diameter of 20,000 can be approached."
This implies that the ratio of the circumference to the diameter is ((4 + 100) × 8 + 62000)/20000 = 62832/20000 = 3.1416, which is accurate to five significant figures.
It is speculated that Aryabhata used the word āsanna (approaching), to mean that not only is this an approximation but that the value is incommensurable (or irrational). If this is correct, it is quite a sophisticated insight, because the irrationality of pi was proved in Europe only in 1761 by Lambert.
After Aryabhatiya was translated into Arabic (c. 820 CE) this approximation was mentioned in Al-Khwarizmi's book on algebra.

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Kumbhalgarh – The Great Wall of India

Kumbhalgarh – The Great Wall of India
The wall that surrounds the ancient fort of Kumbhalgarh is one of the best-kept secrets in India, and perhaps the world. Protecting a massive fort that contains over 300 ancient temples, the wall was constructed by Rana Kumbha in 15th century.
Often referred to as Kumbhalgarh Wall or simply as Kumbhalgarh Fort as a whole, the wall is perhaps best known by its most sensational — and fitting — name: The Great Wall of India. This is appropriate, as the wall extends over 36 Kilometers around the perimeter of the fort, making it the second-longest continuous wall on the planet after the Great Wall of China.
Standing majestically on the high ridge with elevation of 1100 metres (3600 feet) above sea level, it represent the past glory of the Rajput rulers. The wall, which runs through mountain cliffs and valleys, is a great example of architectural brilliance of the Rajput era proved by the fact that in spite of being around 700 years old it is still intact and is in a good shape.
Kumbhalgarh is located in southern Rajasthan in western India. During the time of Rana Kumbha, the kingdom of Mewar extended from Ranthambore to Gwalior, including vast tracts of present-day Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. Out of the 84 forts in his dominion, Rana Kumbha is said to have designed 32 of them, of which Kumbhalgarh is the largest and most elaborate. The fort was built to serve a refuge for Mewar rulers in times of strife.
The great wall was built around the fort to protect it from invasion. The wall is massive, and breathtakingly majestic as it snakes through valleys and along mountaintops. Although at certain points the walls look fairly thin, in some places they are over 15 feet wide and beautifully masoned with thousands of stone bricks and decorative flourishes along the top.
The fort is also protected by 13 mountain peaks of Aravalli range. The fort can be accessed by any of the seven gates which are named as Aret Pole, Hanuman Pole, Ram Pole, Vijay Pole, Nimboo Pole and Bhairon Pole
More than 360 temples are protected within the precincts of the fort. Sixty or so of the temples are Hindu, and the others are Jain temples.
It is said that in the days of the Rana Kumbha, the walls held so many lamps that consumed fifty kilograms of ghee (oil) and a hundred kilograms of cotton to provide light for the farmers who worked during the nights in the valley.
The Fort is also known for its famous palace that resides on the top of structure. This beautiful palace is known as ‘Badal Mahal‘ or the Palace of Cloud. It is also accredited to be the birth place of great warrior Maharana Pratap, who was one the of the greatest warrior kings of Mewar.
It is said that the history of the place where Kumbhalgarh Fort was built dates back to the 2nd century, the Mauryan Era of ancient India.
Yet, despite its size and its history, the Great Wall of India is almost unknown outside its region.
This fort is inducted in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the month of June, 2013 along-with five other hill forts of Rajasthan.
Occupied until the late 19th century, the fort is now open to the public. It is the most important fort in Mewar after Chittorgarh. The fort also provides a panoramic view of the countryside. From the top of the fort one can see a beautiful view of the walls surrounding the fort in the midst of the Aravalli Ranges. The sand dunes of the Thar desert are also visible from the walls.
Tourists are warned that some of the lesser travelled areas of the wall should not be climbed. Ancient defence mechanisms and traps, although mostly disabled, are still assumed to exist in some of its more remote positions. Those wishing to explore the miles of ruins on their own are warned that accidents can happen.
http://www.mysteryofindia.com/…/kumbhalgarh-great-wall-indi…

The ruins of Telhara University older than Nalanda

The ruins of Telhara University older than Nalanda

Telhara is a village in the Nalanda district of Bihar, India. It was the site of a Buddhist monastery in ancient India. Located about 33 km from the ruins of the famous Nalanda University, Telhara could be ‘Tilas-akiya’ or ‘Tiladhak’, the place Chinese travellers Hiuen Tsang visited and wrote about during his travels through India in 7th century AD? So far, there were only vague references but recent excavations at the mound suggest that Telhara was indeed an ancient university, older than Nalanda and Vikramshila universities.
Ruins of Telhara University were found in January 2014 during excavation of a 45-foot high mound. Based on previous findings archaeologists placed the Telhara University in the Gupta period between fourth and seventh century. But during a recent excavation at Telhara site archaeologists have discovered bricks that were used to lay the ancient university’s foundation. Bricks’ dimension 42x32x6 cm and dates back to first century AD to Kushan Empire. That is a strong evidence that the Telhara University is older than fourth century’s Nalanda University and seventh century’s Vikramshila University.
The Telhara project that started on December 26, 2009, has so far come across over 1,000 priceless finds from 30-odd trenches — seals and sealing, red sandstone, ancient pottery, bronze and stone statues of Buddha and several Hindu deities, miniature bronze and terracotta stupas and statues and figurines that go back to the Gupta (320-550 AD) and Pala (750-1174 AD) empires. The government intends to set up a museum to display the antiques found from the site.
But the 2.6-acre mound has now thrown up the most tantalizing find yet — evidence of a three-storeyed structure, prayer hall and a platform to seat over 1,000 monks or students of Mahayana Buddhism mentioned by Hiuen Tsang.

Chinese traveller Heuen Tsang visited Telhara in the 7th century AD and he describes Telhara or Tilas-akiya as containing a number of monasteries or viharas, about seven in number, accommodating about 1,000 monks studying in Mahayan. These buildings, he says, had courtyards, three-storeyed pavilions, towers, gates and were crowned by cupolas with hanging bells. The doors and windows, pillars and beams have bas relieves (sculptures in guilded copper).
A team of archaeologists has found four Buddhist monastery seals made of terracotta, which date back to thousand years and it is totally similar to the seals, which were found at the ruins of Nalanda University. The monastery seals are bearing the inscriptions – “Sri Prathamshivpur Mahavihariyaye Bikshu Sanghas” – in Pali language that indicated the university’s real name.
Finding of northern black polished ware during the latest round of excavation suggests the monastery is much older and the findings of the excavation also suggest that the site might have been flooded and regained its importance during the Kushan period (1st century AD).
“There was a 4-metre-thick layer of sand just above the layer in which northern black polished ware was found. It suggests flooding of the site and sprinklers made of clay, which were an exclusive specialty of the Kushan period, were found in the layer above the sand,” said Atul Kumar Verma, director of state archaeology, who led the excavation team at Telhara.
It is said the mahavihara or university was built by one of the descendents of Magadha ruler Bimbisara. Nalanda University was set on fire by Turkish Muslim army under Bakhtiyar Khilji in 1193. During the excavation work, the team members stumbled upon a 1.5-foot-thick layer of ash, suggesting that Telhara University was also burnt by Khilji on his way.
India has a long and venerable history in the field of higher education. In ancient times, the country was known to have been home to the oldest formal universities in the world. Takshashila university is considered as oldest known university in the world which date back to the 6th century BC.
Source: Telegraph | The Hindu
Mysteries of India.com

Krishna’s Butter Ball - A Balancing Rock at Mahabalipuram.

Krishna’s Butter Ball – A Balancing Rock at Mahabalipuram.
Krishna’s butterball is monolithic granite rock found in Mahabalipuram, India. Its original name is Vaan Irai Kal. In Tamil language, the original language of the land, it means “Stone of The Sky God“.
With its width almost equal to its height, it is looks spherical in some angles but not a perfect sphere. 20 feet high and 5 meter wide rock estimated to weigh over 250 tons miraculously stands on an extremely small, slippery area of a hill. The rock is balanced upon a 4 feet area of the hill and is perilously resting at an angle of 45 degrees. The base of the rock is firmly attached to the hill below. This rock is bigger and heavier than the monolithic stones of Ollantaytambo, Peru. It is also much bigger than the rocks found in the mysterious Machu Picchu.
In Hindu mythology Lord Krishna had an insatiable appetite for butter, and as a child, would often sneak a handful from his mother’s butter jar. Situated on a hill slope near the Ganesh Ratha this massive natural rock boulder is attributed to a bolus of butter the young Krishna would steal
It’s a common sight to see visitors placing hands under the stone posing for pics, which looks as though they are holding it! The rock provides welcome shade if you dare to sit underneath it, and local kids have discovered that the slippery nearby hillside also makes a great natural slide.
The rock is believed to be naturally formed but theorists believe a natural formation such as this is highly improbable, as natural corrosion could not have brought upon such a shape.
There has been a lot of debate how this enormous rock ended up on the hill. Even in modern days, moving a 250 ton rock uphill would be a very difficult task and require complex equipment such as cranes. How did the people do it thousands of years ago?
Several attempts to move the rock have been made, but none of them has been successful. In 1908 the Governor of Madras (Chennai) Arthur Lawley thought that this rock was too dangerous and would slide off the hill and cause harm to people and houses nearby. So he ordered it to be moved with help of seven elephants. However, the rock did not move an inch and the Indian government gave up leaving Krishna’s Butter Ball where it is now.
This mysterious rock raises a number of unanswered questions. How does a 250 ton rock stand on less than 4 feet base? Is there something hidden underneath? If it was impossible to push this rock downhill, how was it pushed up the hill? Who or what put the rock on this slope? Why is the name of the rock related to Sky Gods?
Was the “Stone of The Sky God” placed on the hill by giants, or heavenly gods who wanted to show their strength? Could this superior ancient technology be of extraterrestrial origin?
Krishna’s butter ball stands alone on this hill, boasting of its majestic stature and is a testimony to the limits of our modern technical superiority. No matter who placed Krishna’s Butter Ball here, it will be reminder that our understanding of history is incomplete.
Mystery of India.com