EARLY HISTORY

The valley, by reason of its fertility and other natural resources in the shape of lush green forests and extensive pastures  in its mountain-downs also attracted the foreign invaders to gain authority over the recently  emerged land.Taking Retinal as the source, Mohammad-Din Fouq and Pir Hassan Shah Khoihami have succeeded in providing a few details of kings/dynasties in chronological order who captured political power for time to time in the valley of Kashmir. The  information provided about the dynasties, though of little historical importance as  it is poor in details, cannot be brushed aside as Rajatarangini of Kalhan Pandit has omitted the names and  works of most of these rulers and dynasties.But at the same time the account as provided by the above mentioned historians needs further research as the dates mentioned do not tally with the dates given in other chronicles as also with the dates assigned to early  human settlements at Gufkral and Burzahom. In the present study, it would suffice to present the list of dynasties and kings in the same chronological order as has been provided by the authors till the period Karkota Nagas established their rule over Kashmir.

From the available scanty sources and information it  can be inferred that the intervening period between the dawn of civilization  and the begining of Karkota’s rule,Kashmir formed a part of various empires, both foreign and Indian, prominent among them being Greek, Mauryan, Kushan, Hun, etc.

The period also witnessed the revolutionary changes in man’s behaviour towards religion.Palaeolithic and Neolithic man, with his constant efforts, managed to obtain food by hunting and attempted to provide shelter to himself and his family and managed to protect himself with crude covering during different seasons of the year but was faced with anguish and helplessness at the time of diseases. floods or draughts. The behaviour  of animal and plant kingdom, during  different season of the year assumed increased interest,and made his mind inquisitive about the mysteries of nature.In his effort to  survive, he started  to show reverence to the forces of nature which threatened him with cold, hunger,darkness and other hostile elements. From the study of an engraved hunting scene on a stone slab excavated from Burzahom it appears that Sun was among the first objects which appealed to the inquisitive mind of Neolithic man in Kashmir. It did not only provide him warmth during different seasons of the year but also helped him to regulate his time while hunting in the deep and dense forests of the valley. The tradition has gone down to the ancient period of the history of Kashmir, when king Lalitaditya constructed a massive temple at Martland and dedicated it to the Sun god. Among the animals,the dog appealed to his mind as his loyalty to the master and help while hunting impressed him much.Man kept him close to himself which is testified from the finding at Burzahom where a dog was found buried along with his master.Even during the modern times we find spheroid (Bakarwal) carrying dogs with their folks and talking all the care for their  health and security.Even in present  times,it is a common feature with Kashmiri Pandits that they spare some portion out of their meals called ”Hoin Mete” for a dog and this practice on their part reminds us of the importance of a dog in man’s life.

With the passage of time man began to ponder upon the meaning of  things their origin, purpose and destiny. This gave birth to certain philosophical questions and to get their answer man devised a set of ideas which mostly centered round doing good rather than evil. Symbolic references were made to certain objects and in the course of their worship man evolved a set of beliefs and practices which became his religion.

Equally important and revolutionary were changes in the man’s behaviour towards religion in neighbouring countries.Hinduism (Vedic religion). With the passage of time had become monopoly of priestly class who endeavoured to enforce their claims to spiritual and social superiority.Certain religious practices  like sacrificial system, self mortification etc. had become part of religious practices and thereby  brought suffering and humiliation to the humanity. Voices were raised against these  social and religious evils.Budda who appeared  on the scene in 6^th century B.C led a  strong campaign against  the domestic religious practices. He laid empires on the religion or humanity and a system of practical mortality.He emphatically voiced that man is greater than religion. The message of budda ushered in a mighty revolution and shook the very foundation of society. The new message was carried by missionaries to distant lands where people hankered after love and equality. 

In Kashmir, Nagas (early settlers) who professed Shaivism offered some resistance in the beginning but had to yield before the lofty ideals of Buddhism.Some of the rites and ceremonies prescribed in Nalamatapurana were abandoned and some were mixed with the Buddhist ceremonies.

 
The first recorded reference of Buddhism enjoying royal patronage has been provided by Kalhan when he makes mention of King Surrendra, a Buddhist by faith who ruled Kashmir in IST century B.C. He built the first Vihara in the valley of Kashmir.The Succeeding years of Kashmir history, till the beginning of Karkota rule, witnessed sectarian clashes which even led to demolition of each others religious places. Kings like Ashoka, Kanishka and some Indo-Greek kings patronized Buddhism and did all for the propagation of this new faith, in the distant lands. Majhantika, a famous missionary, was deputed to Kashmir by King Ashoka and it was through his efforts that a good number of Nagas were converted to Buddhism. He developed agriculture and introduced the cultivation of saffron in the valley.   

Equally important was the contribution made by Indo-Greek kings in the propagation of Buddhism in different countries of the world. Their king Menandar, whose coins has been found in Kashmir and adjoining areas, become a zealous Buddhist after he was defeated by Naga Sena (a Buddhist saint) in a religious discussion. The event proved to be of great historical significance as this great conqueror turned to be a monk and joined the Sangha in a Buddhist Vihara, built by king himself and named after him as Milindavihara.

The rule of Indo-Greek kings is also marked with changes in the architectural and sculptural style of the old Kashmiri  temples. The  mastery and refinement of Greek craftsmen is reflected from stone images of Buddha and in the terracotta excavated from Ushkar near Baramulla in which Buddha has been potrayed with aquiline nose, the large lotus eyes and the folded drapery.

No less eventful and significant was the rule of Kushans who captured political power of north-western India after wandering in wilderness for a longtime in Central Asia.  The famous king of the Khushan dynasty namely Kanishaka has been identified as one among the three Trushka princes whom Solomon brought to Kashmir and after his departure, entrusted the government to them.Kalhan Pandit in his chronicle also refers to the presences of three Trushka rulers namely Hushka, Jushka and Kanishka but it needs further researches that whether or not the king Kanishka was one among the princes referred to above. However, the fact remains that Kashmir formed part of the Khushan empire and the three towns Jushkapure (Modern Zukur), Husukpur (Modern Hushkur) and Kanishkpur(Modern Kanishpur) are believed to have been built by Jushka, Hushka and Kanishka respectively. Coins of Hushka and Kanishka have been located in Kashmir which provide numismatic evidence about the rule  of  Kushans in Kashmir.

Rights from the dawn of civilization, Kashmir has attracted to its soil, Rishis, Avtars, Missionarie and Monarchs who have made inestimable contribution to the intellectual and emotional spheres of human life. Even in modern times,the valley is vary often called as “Pire ware”(land of Rishis and Munis). For its scenic beauty, bracing weather, lush green forests, rivers, streams, gushing springs and isolated positions, Kashmir from the times immemorial has remained chosen land for meditation.Even Lord Buddha is said to have praised the beauty of the valley and in the Samyaktavastu is “represented as saying  that Kashmir is the best land for meditation and leading to a religous life”.

In deference to the feelings of their Lord, it has always been the desire among Buddhists to visit the land, their lord had cherished.It  was in this context that Emperor Ashoka,immediately after embracing Buddhism,paid a visit to the valley along with the five thousand monks who settled here to study here to study Buddhist doctrine, in the Viagra’s built for the purpose.

Buddhist scholars and Emperors,in order to wipe out the evils that had crept in the society and to bring unanimity in thought and expression, organized conferences of Buddhist luminaries from time to time and one such conference known as Fourth Buddhist Council was held in Kashmir during the reign of Emperor Kanishka. The conference, besides Asvaghosa, Nagarjuna and Vasumitra was attended by 500 Arhats, 500 Bodhisattvas and 500 Pandits.Delibration were held for six months on all the Buddhist texts and the commentaries on them were compiled into two treaties  known as Upadesa-Sastras and Vibhasa-Sastras. Proceeding of the council were engraved on copper plates which still remain buried in a Vihara, specially constructed for the purpose. Efforts are on the to find out the site but till date no success has been registered. Secrecy and limited circulation of the copper plates was enforced by king Kanishka himself when he got them enclosed in stone boxes to be deposited in a Vihara and even restricted their study to the country only. Heiun Tsiang who visited the valley in 7^th century A.D also failed to locate the site and as such, his account on 4^th Buddhist  Council is based on secondary sources that became available  to him from different libraries.Various place names like Kundalwan,Kazalwan Kuntiluen,Kond,Ushkar, Aham Kanelwan, Budhmul etc. are speculations of various historians and archaeologists and warrant deep researches to solve this burning issue.

But at the same time, the 4^th Council enthused a new strength and vigour to Buddhism as the sacred texts of all the 18 schools of thought were given due recognition of containing the word of Buddha. It was hereafter that the missionaries, with reneved zeal, carried Buddha’s message to China, Tibet and other Central Asian States.

As already mentioned, the period prior the Karkota rule in Kashmir, was full of turmoil when priorities of rules swung from one religious community to another depending mostly upon the religion, the ruler proffessed . In the preceeding pages refrence has been made to the list of Kings in a Chronological order as provided by Mohammad Din Fouq which was considered necessary for the reason of giving continuity to the records.Barring a few minor details  of some philanthropist kings, the pages of chronicles contain names of kings and queens whose sole right to fame rests on selfish deeds and atrocities  committed on the subjects.