Puranic India

The chronology of the Puranic Indian subcontinent varies with historians. Hence, keeping it aside, this post shall discuss the various regions, countries and clans that existed during this era. 

Uttarpatha / Udichya (उत्तरपथ)

Starting from the entire undivided Punjab region, which was known as Panchananda. This would consist of clans such as Kekaya, Madraka, Gandhara, Prasthala and Ambashtha. As we go towards the southwest, we reach Marudesa indicating the Thar desert in today's Rajasthan. The clans of Sindhu (also the river), Sauvira, Abhira, Daseraka, Kala Toyaka and Sudra could be contained within these boundaries. Some of the ancient known towns of this region would be:

• Sivapura
• Jalandhara (Jalandhar)
• Sakala (today, Sialkot in Pakistan)
• Pushkalavati (near modern-day Peshawar)
• Vimandavya

The Uttarpatha was based on the fertile land of Punjab that consisted of rivers such as Vitasta (Jhelum), Chandrabhaga (Chenab), Devika, Iravati (Ravi) and Vipasa (Beas). The Sindhu River (Indus) marked its westernmost boundary, bordering clans such as Kakudman in today's Afghanistan. 

Madhya Desa (मध्य देश)

Interestingly, this region would consist more of today's Uttar Pradesh region than central India. Kingdoms and clans such as Brahmavarta, Kuru, Panchala, Kosala, Kunti, Salva, Matsya, Kashi, Patachara, Bhulinga and lastly, Avanti existed here. Important towns are as follows:

• Avanti or Ujjayini (Ujjain)
• Tandulikasrama
• Ambara 
• Kurukshetra
• Vinasana (considered as the point where ancient river Sarasvati disappears, near today's Ganganagar, Rajasthan)
• Maya (Haridwar)
• Indraprastha (Delhi)
• Sambhalagrama
• Ahicchatra (near modern-day Bareilly, UP)
• Mathura
• Govardhana
• Kanyakubja (Kannauj, UP)
• Kampilya (Kampil, in Farukkhabad, UP)
• Sravasti
• Ayodhya
• Naimisa (near Sitapur, UP)
• Pratisthana (Jhusi, Prayagraj, UP)
• Prayag (Prayagraj or Allahabad)
• Kashi (Varanasi)
• Chitrakut 
• Katanjara
• Asvatirtha (near Kannauj, UP)
• Kaushambi
• Srangaverapura (Shringverpur, Prayagraj, UP)
• Sthanesvara (Thanesar, Kurukshetra district, Haryana)
• Dasapura 

The lost river of Sarasvati is said to have flown in this region parallelly to Drishadvati river in northern Rajasthan closely meeting the Yamuna at Renuka (in today's Sirmaur district of Himachal Pradesh). Near Kashi, the three rivers of Ganga, Yamuna and Gomati would merge to form a Sangama (different from that of Prayagraj). The tributaries of Yamuna - Parnasa, Charmanavati (Chambal), Nirvindhya (today's Parbati River, MP-Rajasthan) and Vetravati (Betwa) would flow into central India. To the east of Ganga, rivers of Iravati (West Rapti river, flowing through UP and Nepal), Gomati and Sarayu would form the eastern borders. According to Hindu mythology, the epics of Lord Rama, Lord Krishna and Lord Shiva all existed in Madhya Desa. 

Vindhyaprastha (विंध्यप्रस्थ)

This region would consist of today's Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Odisha regions that consisted of kingdoms such as Vaidisa, Tumbavana, Uttamarna, Mahisaka, Mekala, Naisadha, Vitihodra, Tundikera, Paurika, Dasarna, Malada, Munda, Dakshina Kosala, Utkala, Odra, Tosala and Karusa. Major towns would be as follows:

• Mahismati
• Tripura
• Vidisa (Vidisha, MP)
• Sripurusottama (Puri, Odisha)
• Ekamra / Ekambhaka (Bhubaneshwar)
• Viriatirtha
• Jvalesvara (in Anuppur district, MP)
• Amarkantaka (Amarkantak, Anuppur district, MP)
• Bhrgutirtha
• Omkarna / Amarasa / Mahalaya

The river Narmada or Reva would make the central boundary separating Vindhyaprastha from Dakshinapatha. As we go towards the centre, rivers such as Dasarna, Tamasa, Suktimati, Vindhya and Sona forms the basin. Towards the far east, rivers such as Mahanadi, Brahmani and Vaitarani forms a delta which is today's Mahanadi River Delta, Odisha. 

Dakshinatya / Dakshinapatha (दक्षिणपथ)

Starting from the Vidarbha and Marathwada regions of Maharashtra, Dakshinapatha would go all the way to the southernmost tip of India. Clans and kingdoms such as Kerala, Pandyas, Cholas, Dravida, Karnata, Kumari, Musika, Kola, Vanavasika, Kuntala, Ishika, Tilanga, Kalakalika, Andhra, Kalinga, Dandaka, Bhoja, Vidarbha, Sabara, Maharashtra, Abhira, Asmaka, Maulaka, Bhoga Vardhana, Pulinda and Atavya consisted this region. Important towns are as follows: 

• Pratisthana (Paithan, Aurangabad district, Maharashtra)
• Bhojakata (near Amaravati district, Maharashtra)
• Ramagiriasrama 
• Saptagodavaritirtha
• Vanavasi (Banavasi, in Uttara Kananda district, Karnataka)
• Sriparvata / Srisailam (in Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh)
• Kanchi (Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu)
• Anantavanam 
• Kumari (Kannyakumari, Tamil Nadu)
• Sriranga
• Ramesvaram (Rameshwaram)
• Setubandha (Rama Setu, Ramanathapuram district, Tamil Nadu)

In the Maharashtra region, rivers such as Tapi, Payosni (Purna), Varada (Wardha), Venva and Godavari would fill the basin. This region also consisted of the great Dandaka forest and Mahendra mountain range that would contain smaller rivers such as Langalini, Vamsadhara (Banshadhara), and  Rsikuiya (Rushikulya), all part of today's coastal Andhra Pradesh. Going further south in the Deccan plateau, rivers like Krsna (Krishna), Krsnaveni, Tungabhadra and Bhimarathi (Bhima) would connect the eastern coast with the Sahya (Sahyadri) mountain range. Further south into the Tamil heartland would flow rivers such as Ksiranadi (Palar), Kaveri, Kitamala (Vaigai), Utpalavati (Vaippur) and Tamraparni (Chittar). 

Pragya / Purvadesha (पूर्वदेश)

This would consist of the eastern boundaries of the subcontinent stretching from Bihar to Assam. Clans and kingdoms such as Malla, Gonarda, Gaya, Magadha, Mudgaraka, Anga, Pundra, Malada, Brahmottara, Vanga, Pravanga, Matanga, Suhma, Tamraliptaka, Mallavartaka, Bahirgiri, Gaudadesa, Pragjyotisa, Bhargava and Bhallaha existed in this country. Important towns and pilgrimage centres that existed here are:

• Mithila
• Rajagriha
• Gaya
• Champa / Champapuri (in Bhagalpur district, Bihar)
• Pundranagara (Mahasthangarh, Bogra district, Bangladesh)
• Tamralipta / Tamralipti (in Midnapore district, West Bengal)
• Attahasa (in Birbhum district, West Bengal)
• Baidyanatha (in Deoghar district, Jharkhand)
• Mandara (in Banka district, Jharkhand)
• Visnupada (in Gaya district, Bihar)
• Kamakhya (in Guwahati, Assam)
• Pragjyotisapura (Guwahati)

Some ancient scriptures show the Sunderbans submerged with a single large island called Gangasagarasangama forming the Ganga River delta. Rivers such as Jahnavi, Nischira (Tista), Tritiya (Jamuna, in Bangladesh), Lauhitya (Brahmaputra), Kausiki and Kumari would flow into it from the Bengal-Assam regions. 

Aparanta / Paschaddesa (अपरंत / पासचाड़ देश)

The western coast of India consisting of Gujarat and the Konkan region of Maharashtra and the state of Goa would make up Aparanta. The clans and kingdoms were Kacchiya, Anarta, Saurashtra, Bharukaccha, Maheya, Anupa, Uttara Narmada, Tapeya, Malivana, Nasikya, Surparaka, Talikata, Tapasa, Sirala, Konkana and Karaskara. The towns existing were: 

• Dvaravati / Dvaraka (Dwarka, in Devbhoomi Dwarka district, Gujarat)
• Prabhasa / Somanatha (in Gir Somnath district, Gujarat)
• Vamanatirtha
• Raivatakatirtha (in Junagarh district, Gujarat)
• Arbuda
• Sagara
• Bharukachha (Bharuch)
• Bhrgutirtha (in Bharuch)
• Jamdagnya
• Bharabhuti
• Kayavardhana
• Ankola
• Surparaka (Nalasopara, Palghar district, Maharashtra)
• Ramatirtha
• Nasikya (Nashik)
• Triambaka (in Nashik)
• Kusavarta (in Nashik)
• Karavatirtha
• Pundarikapura
• Kolavana
• Gokarna (in Uttara Kannada district, Karnataka)

Today's Gujarat region and that time's territory of Pariyatra would lie on the riverbed of Girikarnika / Chandrika, Vrtraghni, Mahi and Narmada. Another river with the name Saraswati (which still exists) converges at a port called Sagara (possibly near Siddhpur, Patan district of Gujarat). 

Himavat / Himadri / Himalaya (हिमावत / हिमाद्रि / हिमालय)

Going back to the northernmost mountains, the highest in the world, the Himalayas consisted of various ancient shrines and pilgrimage sites. The kingdom of Gandhamadana (today part of Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh) and Kirata marks the easternmost boundary of it while the western part consisted of kingdoms such as Atreya, Bharadvaja, Tomara, Khasa and Tangana. These are all part of today's Nepal, Bhutan and Tibet region and the Indian states of Uttarakhand and Sikkim. The ancient sites are as follows: 

• Jalandarapitha
• Nanditirtha
• Gangobhedo
• Renuka
• Kedara (Kedarnath)
• Badarikasrama (Badarinatha)
• Kailasa
• Tunganatha (in Rudraprayag district, Uttarakhand)
• Kubjamraka
• Gangadvara
• Kartikeyatirtha
• Salagrama (Saligram, Nepal)
• Pasupatitirtha (Pashupatinath, Nepal)
• Kalikasangama

Uttara Parvatashreya (उत्तर पर्वतश्रेय)

The region consisting of Kashmir and opening towards west and north in the Gilgit-Baltistan region and crossing the Hindukush into the Pamirs was an abode to various mountainous kingdoms. Huna, Talagana, Kamboja, Alimadra, Aparita, Aupaga, Yona, Kuhuku, Nirahara, Darva, Darada, Malava, Hamsamarga, Kichaka, Trigarta, Kasmira, Kuluta and Satadruja would consist what is today the trisection of Hindukush, Karakoram and Pamirs. 

The controversy of timelines

The seven holiest places (Tirtha) mentioned in the Puranas are Avanti (Ujjain), Mathura, Kashi (Varanasi), Ayodhya, Kanchi (Kanchipuram), Dvaravati (Dwarka) and Maya (Haridwar). If really timelines are to be talked about, one angle would be to consider what Puranic historians say that pushes back this chronology to some 7000 - 3000 BC, the era between Mahabharata and Ramayana existed. But that would predate the Indus Valley Civilisation which existed only 5000 years ago according to archaeologists. The clash of timelines also dwells on the subject of warfare and usage of horses in them, which according to Puranas existed in their timeline, but western archaeologists points in the direction of domesticating horses a mere 3500 years ago. The clash is to not examined here but to give both perspectives. What the western world term as 'mythology' can be classified under the history of the subcontinent? The discovery of massive stone structures buried deep under the sea near modern-day Dwaraka has opened the pandora's box to a possible civilisation of the ancient Dwarka kingdom, the home of Lord Krishna. These ruins go back to some 9000 years ago, according to one source, but still, the search for concrete evidence continues. 

Here's a map of the Puranic Indian subcontinent.