Abstract of the Myth of the Aryan Invasion of India
or A Faux invasion
By Ben
11/2/04
Indus Valley
The main theory for interpreting data collected in the Indus Valley is based on the Aryan Invasion theory. The idea that Aryans invaded the Indus Valley does not fit with history and the archeological evidence from that area. The foundation of the Aryan Invasion theory is based on the assumption that the Aryans did not enter the Indus valley until after 1500 BC therefore making the Indus Valley civilization pre-Aryan. The scholars of the 19th century also assumed that the early Aryans were a very primitive people not capable of a complex society, ignoring the facts that show a quite sophisticated civilization.
There are a number of reasons to question the Aryan Invasion theory. Part of the standing theory is that the primitive Aryan nomads crossed the mountains and defeated the far more advanced Indus Valley civilization with their chariots, iron weapons, and superior battle tactics. In Indus Valley sites during early excavations, no iron or chariots were found. After more excavations, evidence of horses was found in the Indus Valley before the so-called "Aryan invasion." Stamps with chariot wheels on them were also found. The assumption that the Aryans were an Iron Age culture is not necessarily correct because the word "ayas" was interpreted as iron, but can also mean copper, bronze, and other metals. The assumptions made to prove this theory are very questionable based on what we know today.
The Vedic holy writings, called "Rig Veda," have many useful passages that contradict the Aryan Invasion theory. The theory that this article puts forward is that the war between light and dark mentioned in Vedic writings, previously interpreted as war between light and dark-skinned people, is not a literal war but a poetic, spiritual war. In addition, artifacts have been found in Indus Valley sites that are from the Vedic religion. This article comes to the conclusion that the Vedic were an ethnic group that came to the Indus Valley from another river valley in India. The Indus Valley people blended with the Aryans. The Aryans still considered themselves to be an Indo-Aryan people, and they gradually took power sometime before 1500 BC. After the Aryan people took power, the Aryan invasion theory says that there were not any empires during this early Vedic reign. However, in a list of the Vedic kings, they talk about a kingdom from sea to sea including Nepal, Afghanistan, and some of India. The coming of the Aryans may have been as early as 6000 BC where they settled on the Saraswati River, then a large river south of the Indus. The Aryan invasion may have been only a migration of a people searching for a new home.
Western scientists who developed the theory of the Aryan Invasion had preconceived ideas that discredited the Vedic/Hindu civilization. They may have wanted to keep the Indian people submissive and passive. The theory made the Hindu culture feel worthless and useless. British rule benefited because this theory divided northern and southern India. This theory should be questioned by the Hindu scholars and all others that believe it. For Hindus to believe in this theory would be degrading themselves. The previous belief that Aryans invaded the Indus Valley is not as widely believed as it used to be and with this added information it should be on even weaker ground.