Harappa: Who were Indus people and how they lived?

Pashupati Seal of Indus Valley Civilisation at the National Museum, New Delhi. (Photo: Sindhustan/Prabhash K Dutta)

Prabhash K Dutta

New Delhi

The quest to establish the identity of the people who made one of the greatest civilisations on the earth along the Indian rivers from the Indus to the Saraswati (Ghaggar-Hakra) and up to the Narmada is an ongoing exercise. The fact is we don't yet know. But we know partly how they might have evolved their civilisation and how they lived based on evidence excavated in the regions of India and Pakistan.

First, let's dig their background a bit. Nothing happens without a background and context. Let's see what was there before the magnificent people of the Indus Valley Civilisation made their advent.

THE OLDER PEOPLE

These older people were not actually old. They might not have had the chance of getting old as we perceive oldness today. Most probably, they were dying young. But we are not sure. We are not sure because they did not leave behind something in the language or signs that we understand fully. We depend on materials that we find during actual digging.

The oldest archaeological evidence of human habitation in India comes from Palaeolithic Age in Soan Valley, now in Pakistan and in South India chiefly in and around Chennai. Evidence of human habitation from Paleolithic Age is also found in the Belan Valley in Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh, deserts of Didwana, and caves and rocks of Bhimbetka near Bhopal.

Mesolithic sites of human occupancy has been found in Chhotanagpur Plateau region in Central India, and also south of the Krishna, Birbhanpur in West Bengal, Timmeveli in Tamil Nadu, Bogor in Rajasthan, Langhraj in Gujarat, Bhimbetka and Adamgarh in Madhya Pradesh and Sarai Nahar Rai in Uttar Pradesh.

IMMEDIATE NEIGHBOURS IN HISTORY

Neolithic sites of humans are mostly found in the northwest region and the Deccan. Neolithic settlements at Mehargarh in Baluchistan seem to be the oldest dating around 7,000 BC. 

Humans began to domesticate animals and cultivate plants during Neolithic period. Dogs, goats and sheep were probably the first to be domesticated. Among plants, wheat and barley were the earliest cereals grown.

Neolithic people used ochre-coloured pottery. Wheel was an important invention.

Chalcolithic settlements are dated 1800-1000 BC. This period is defined by the use of copper by humans in India. Chalcolithic cultures seem to have existed over a wide area extending from the Chhotanagpur Plateau to the Upper Gangetic basin. Some of the other Chalcolithic sites are Brahmapuri near Mysorer and Navada Toli on the Narmada. But bronze tools were almost absent in India unlike Crete, Egypt and Mesopotamia.

From the Neolithic and Chalcolithic sites emerged the settlements of Harappan or Indus Valley Civilisation. This civilisation came to notice through the works of excavators such as Daya Ram Sahni, Marshall and his colleague RD Bannerji in 1920s. More excavations were carried out during 1960s under Sir Mortimer Wheeler.

Dancing Girl of Mohenjodaro at Baroda Museum. (Photo taken in 2018: Sindhustan/Prabhash K Dutta)

THE WINGS OF INDUS

Prominent sites excavated are Ropar near Chandigarh, Lothal near Ahmedabad, Kalibangan in Rajasthan, Kot Diji and Chanhu Dao in Sindh, Dholavira in Kutch district, Banawali in Hisar district and Sutkagendor near the Makran coast.

Archaeological research has established the gradual evolution of Harappan civilisation from indigenous sources. The earliest evidence of the beginning of agricultural communities comes from a place called Mehargarh near Bolan Pass. It is a Neolithic settlement estimated to have been there by 7000 BC. People of this area grew wheat and barley. They tendered sheep and goats as early as fifth millennium BC.

In the Quetta Valley at the site of Damb Sadaal, large structures with brick walls dating from the beginning of the third millennium BC have been found. These people were also using clay seals and copper objects.

In the western Indus plains, a place called Rehman Dheri has an early Indus township that was excavated. All these sites show evidence of contact with Persian Gulf towns and those of Central Asia.

The transition from pre-Harappan to the mature Harappan culture is best evidenced at Amri, to the south-east of Baluchistan. A distinctive culture appeared here at the beginning of the third millennium BC. Here, people lived in houses of stone or mud-brick. They constructed some kind of a granary. They painted animal motifs such as humped bull on their pottery.

After a series of evolving stages, it gave way to what is known as the Harappan civilisation.

BUT WHERE ACTUALLY?

The Harappan cultue was spread over the whole of Sindh, Baluchistan, almost whole of Punjab, northern Rajasthan, Kathiawar and Gujarat. It was not just confined to the Indus Valley. Scholars generally believe that the civilisation could be better represented by a Harappa-Ghaggar (Kalibangan)-Mohanjodaro axis as its heartland. 

However, they also occupied such faraway places as Shatughai in Northeast Afghanistan or Surkotada in Gujarat. They probably settled in these places for trade. These settlements possibly formed the wide trade network and gave economic independence to each Harappan region.

Recent C-14 datings indicate the period of the mature Harappan civilisation could be around 2900/2800-1800 BC.

LET'S GO WINDOW SHOPPING

Harappa

It was located on the bank of River Ravi. Harappa was the first site to have been excavated in united India. That is why this civilization was named so. It is still not known what the people of this civilization called themselves or which name they identified with. A substantial section of the Hrappan population was engaged in activities other than food production such as administration, trade, craft work and religion.

Mohenjodaro

It was located on the bank of River Indus. Mohenjodaro was the largest Harappan city. It had a population of about 35,000. It was an unusually high number for people living in one city in those times. 

Another standout feature of Mohenjodaro was that the height of its buildings was more than 75 feet. This has been found in the remains and debris of the buildings. How much more was the height of those buildings is not known.

Kalibangan

Its remains have been found the dried-up bed of River Ghaggar. It was excavated in 1960 under the guidance of BK Thapar. This area had the largest concentration of the Harappan settlements. The area has yielded evidence of early Harappan period.

Lothal

Along with Rangapur and Surkotada, Lothal was an important centre of the Harappan civilization. Remains of Harappan Lothal city have been found in the coastal flat plains of the Gulf of Cambay. This place seems to have been an outpost for sea-trade with the contemporary West Asian societies. Its excavator SS Rao claimed to have discovered a dockyard here.

Sutkagendor

It was located near the Makran coast which is near the Pakistan-Iran border. It is now a dry inhospitable plain. The town had a citadel surrounded by a stone-wall built for defence. This place was probably used for sea-route trade.

Gilgamesh Seat at the National Museum, New Delhi. (Photo taken in 2016: Sindhustan/Prabhash K Dutta)

THEY BUILT TOWNS WITH A PLAN

Each city was divided into a high citadel area and a low residential area. The citadel area had essential institutions of civil and religious life. The residential area had urban population living there. In Mohanjodaro and Harappa, the citadel was surrounded by a brick-wall. At Kalibanga, both citadel and the lower city were surrounded by a wall.

Citadel areas of different cities have been found to have some remarkable structures. For example, Mohenjodaro had the Great Bath, large granary and an assembly hall. Harappa had a number of granaries arranged in two rows of six rooms each with a central passage separating them. Kalibangan and Lothal had fire altars as their most significant discoveries.

The houses were constructed with kiln-made and also unbaked bricks but not of stones. The bathrooms and drains were invariably built with kiln-made or pucca bricks made waterproof by adding gypsum.

Their city roads met one another at 90-degree angles. They had broader main roads and narrower link roads. Their roads were broad enough to let two vehicles pass at a time with ease.

Their roads did not possibly have water-logging problem. They built a network of drains to make sure water did not log or left unattended. Their drains connected every house to main drainage system. Their roadside drains had man-hole and also hand-holes fitted with clay grills that worked as filters. These grills filtered garbage if somebody threw it deliberately or accidentally. The holes were meant for cleaning the drains allowing it carry waste water without getting choked unlike present-day municipal drains in Indian cities.

THEY GREW THEIR OWN FOOD 

The Harappan people cultivated wheat and barley, peas and dates, and sesame and mustard. The last two were used for oil. People cultivated paddy as early as 1800 BC in Lothal. Evidence of paddy cultivation has been found in Rangapur as well. The Harappans were the first people in the world to grow cotton.

They irrigated their crops. Irrigation depended on irregular flooding of the rivers of Punjab and Sindh. Evidence of canal irrigation practice has not been found.

Farmers probably used wooden plough for preparing their fields for cropping. Evidence of furrowed field has been found at Kalibangan. Wood of the plough could not have survived so long. They probably used a toothed harrow.

Burnt wheat, dates and shilajit from Indus Valley Civilisation at National Museum. (Photo taken in 2016: Sindhustan/Prabhash K Dutta)

AND BRED THEIR STOCK TOO 

Besides sheep and goat, people of this civilization domesticated humped cattle, buffaloes and elephants. Bones of camel have been found at Kalibangan. Historians believe camel could have been a rare animal for the Harappans. Evidence is limited.

Some historians believe that horse was unknown to Harappans. Some others deny this assumption pointing out to horse jaw found at Rana Ghundai, remains at Surkotada, more evidence from a superficial level in Mohenjodaro and a doubtful terracotta figurine from Lothal.

Several varieties of deer were used as game by the Harappans.

A single instance of Indian rhinoceros has been found from Amri, southeast of Baluchistan.

TRADE AND BUSINESS IN BLOOD 

Trade might have been both overland and maritime as indicated by the occurrence of small terracotta boats and above all a big brick-built dock at Lothal as excavated by SR Rao’s team.

The system of weights and measures was excellent. For weighing goods, small as well as large, perfectly made cubes of agate were employed. The weights followed a binary system in the lower denominations such as 1,2,4,8—64 and then going to 160 and beyond that in the decimal multiples of 16 such as 320, 640, 1,600, 3,200 etc.

For length measurements, strips of shell were used. These strips were non-shrinkable in heat and cold. The measurement of length was based upon a unit of foot, 37.6 cm and a unit of cubit of 51.8 to 53.6 cm.

They imported or brought from outside their region a lot of goods. Copper was brought from South India, Baluchistan and Arabia. There was a copper mine at Khetri in Rajasthan and also in Baluchistan.

Gold was brought from South India, where Kolar fields were productive till recently, Afghanistan and Persia or Iran. Silver was brought from Afghanistan and Iran.

Clay figurines made by Indus people. (Photo taken in 2018 at Baroda Museum: Sindhustan/Prabhash K Dutta)

Lapis Lazuli, a deep blue precious stone, was brought from Badakshan in Northeast Afghanistan. Turquoise (blue to green mineral) was brought from Kashmir and Iran. Jade was brought from Central Asia. Agate (variety of colours), chalcedony (multiple colours) and carnelian (brownish red) were brought from Saurashtra and other parts of West India.

The Harappans used seal and other small objects for stamping their goods, which have been found in Mesopotamian centres. Mesopotamian literature speak of merchants of Ur (a local city) as carrying on trade with foreign countries. Among these foreign countries, the most frequently mentioned are Tilmun, Magan and Meluhha.

Historians have identified Tilmun or Dilmun with the island of Bahrain in the Persian Gulf, Magan as Makan with Oman or if not, some other part of Saudi Arabia. Meluhha or Meluha is now generally believed to mean India known to Mesopotamian traders from Indus region and Saurashtra.

THEY WERE CRAFTY. WILL YOU CALL THEM ENGINEERS TOO?

Spinning and weaving cotton and wool were important craft practices in the Harappan centres. Bead-making might have been a profitable business. Beads of gold, silver, copper, faience, steatite, semi-precious stones, shells and ivory were made.

Seal-making was another flourishing craft of the time and place. Square or oblong seals of ivory, faience, steatite were common. Seals were beautifully glazed and carved with motifs of animals, birds, men and gods.

Terracotta manufacture included a large number of small figurines such as children’s toys. Some of the designs that have continued till recent times included string-climbing monkey and head-moving bull.

Bricklaying appears to have been yet another profitable venture. Harappan people used bricks on mass scaled. Their structures and roads used different types of bricks.

Pottery making was developed. Potteries were made chiefly of red clay which was turned on a fast lathe, glazed and ornamented with black bands and/or occasionally with figures of birds, animals and geometrical designs.

Metal working was highly skilled craft of the Indus people. They made fine gold jewelleries, bronze implements, copper beakers, chisels, saws and knives of different metals. They used cire perdue method (also called lost wax method of metal casting in which a molten metal is poured into a mould that has been created using a wax model) for casting bronze. The famous figurine of the dancing girl recovered from Mohenjodaro was made by this method.

Stone sculpture was rare and the craft appears to have been underdeveloped. The bearded man-head found at Mohenjodaro is, however, a famous piece of stone sculpture.

THEIR SCIENCE

The Harappans knew mining. They were also adept at manufacturing gypsum cement which was used to join stones and even metals. They knew how to make long-lasting paints and dyes. Mohenjodaro had a public bath worked by an ingenious hydraulic system..

The axes, chisels, knives, spearheads etc made of stone and bronze seem to have been produced on a mass scale at places such as Sukkur, in Sindh on the western bank of the Indus. 

THEY WERE WOMEN OF LETTERS. DID YOU ACTUALLY ASK ABOUT THEIR LITERACY RATE? 

The people of Indus Valley Civilisation knew how to write. But what they wrote is not known. Their script has not been deciphered. However, overlaps of letters on some of the potsherds found from Kalibangan show that the writing was boustrophedon, from right to the left and then from left to the write in alternate lines. It has been referred to as proto-Dravidian though their connection with Dravidian languages or scripts has not been established.

Bearded Man of Indus at Baroda Museum. (Photo taken in 2018: Sindhustan/Prabhash K Dutta)

AN ARTICLE OF FAITH, OR RELIGION? 

Not much is known about the belief system of the Indus Valley Civilisation people but they seem to have practised some form of it. Whether their belief system was organised like later religions is not known. However, there have been figurines, structures and findings that suggest they believed in some forms of gods.

Mother goddess appears to be an important deity of worship. She was possibly worshipped as a symbol of fertility. Clay figures have been found of mother goddess. In one such example, a goddess is shown growing a plant from her vagina.

Proto-Shiva could have been the most important male god. Figure resembling the traditional Pashupati Mahadeva has been found. A seated figure surrounded by various animals carved on a small stone has been found.

Numerous symbols of phallus and woman’s sex organs made of stone have been found. They might have been the objects of worship. Shakti and Shiva are often considered as the two pre-Aryan gods in the line with the theory that Aryans came to India from Central Asia and brought a new range of gods and goddesses along with a different belief system with them.

Peepal (sacred fig) appears to have been sacred and so was the bull. Peepal continues to be a sacred tree to a large number of Indians.

THEY WERE EMOTIONAL IN DEATHS FOR SURE

Evidence found in excavation suggests that some Indus Valley Civilisation people buried their dead in graves. It is evident from the discovery of a large cemetery in Harappa. Some others buried their dead ones in urn – urn-burial was practised.

They might have preferred cremation for the evidence of burials for large population over more than a thousand years during the peak of their civilisation is meagre.

The Indus people probably believed in life after death. Their graves contained household pottery, ornaments and interestingly mirrors. These items might have originally belonged to the deceased. The basic idea still continues. The family of the deceased often gives away the items that were on the body of the deceased in her final moments. These include clothes and ornaments, and at times bed in which she was breathed her last. This practice is also seen in the form of daan (gift) that is given to the priests performing funeral rituals for the deceased. All articles of daily use are given to the priests believing that these items would be of use for the deceased in the after-life.

The bodies were buried fully extended. The head of the deceased person was generally kept pointing towards the north. This practice still continues among a large number of Indian communities.

This is not all about the Indus people. But I had only this much of time today.