On several X accounts and YouTube channels in Bengal, there is a leftist and Christian missionary narrative claiming that Bengal is "Anarya" (non-Aryan) land.
This argument is partly based on a verse in the Baudhāyana Dharmasūtra, which advises people from other states to avoid entering Bengal. However, this text also includes Punjab in this prohibition. According to leftist historians, Punjab was considered an Aryan land, so why was there such a restriction?
To understand the origins of the name "Vanga" (Bengal), we can look at the Mahabharata, where Vanga is described as the son of Rishi Dirghatamas, who ruled the land of Bengal. It is his territory.
In the Aitareya Aranyaka, we find a reference suggesting that five states abstained from participating in a certain Yajna and were thus considered to have "crossed a limit." However, this isn’t necessarily a prohibition. Other Shastric references indicate that a Brahmin from another region should perform prayaschitta (penance) if they come to Bengal for reasons other than pilgrimage (tirtha).
Now, if Bengal were truly an "Anarya" land, how could it possess tirthas? One might argue that the tirthas were added later, but the Mahabharata explicitly describes
Arjuna visiting the tirthas of Vanga. Moreover, the kingdom of King Dasharatha is said to have included Vanga.
He bathes ritually in all those tirthas and gifts more cows to the Brahmanas. All the sacred fords in the lands of Vanga and Kalinga Arjuna visits, bathing in them all and giving away great wealth in solemn daana
To further explore this, let's look at the definition of Aryavarta:
According to Manusmriti, which holds significant authority in Sanatan Dharma after the Vedas:
"ā samudrāt tu vai pūrvādā samudrācca paścimāt |
tayorevāntaraṃ giryorāryāvartaṃ vidurbudhāḥ ||"
Translation: "The country extending as far as the Eastern Ocean and as far as the Western Ocean, and lying between the same two mountains,—the learned know as ‘Āryāvarta.’" (Manusmriti 2.22)
Vishnu Smriti further defines:
> "Those countries are called barbarous (mlechha) where the system of the four castes does not exist; the others are denoted Aryavarta."
Bengal meets both of these criteria.
In the Mahabharata, Vanga is referred to as "Kshatriya-shreshtha" (the highest of the Kshatriyas).
In that same way, the best of kshatriyas also waited on Dharmaraja-the fortunate, great- souled, righteous and prosperous Munjaketu,..King Jatasura beloved by the Madras, kings Kunti and Kuninda of the Kiratas, Anga, Vanga and Pundra, Pandya, Udraja, Andhraka,
Mahabharata 2.4.018-021
The text also separately mentions the Mlechha and Yavana kingdoms.
The last point where the Mahabharata declares Bengal as the land of Vedic Aryas
The Kauravas with the Panchalas, the Salwas,
the Matsyas, the Naimishas, the Koshalas, the Kasa-paundras, the Kalingas,
the Magadhas, and the Chedis who are all highly blessed, know what
sanatana dharma is. Even the vilest ones of these countries know what
dharma is.
Mahabharata karna Parva
[In path-bheda, you will find Anga instead of Pundra, but Kishori Mohan Ganguly, Ramesh Menon, and Kaliprasanna Singha mention Pundra. Though this doesn't change the fact. Districts like Malda, Murshidabad, and Dinajpur were part of Anga. The majority of manuscripts mention Pundra.]
Now you will say it's Paundra, not Vanga.
Dear brother, Paundra is part of modern-day Bengal.
According to the Aitareya Brahmana, Paundra was the son of Rishi Vishwamitra
After all of this, some people might argue that Manusmriti 2.23 states that you need a blackbuck for a yajna; otherwise, you're not in Arya land.
For them, according to a British survey, Bengal used to have blackbuck. There are still some regions, like Medinipur, where they can be found
The British naturalist William Thomas Blanford described the range of the blackbuck in his 1891 The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon anda Burma
The statement that this antelope is not found in Lower Bengal is not quite correct ; none are found in the swampy Gangetic delta, but many exist on the plains near the coast in Midnapore (I have shot them near Contai), as they also do in Orissa.
In conclusion, the evidence from various ancient texts, including the Mahabharata, Ramayana, Vishnu Smriti, Manusmriti and others, clearly establishes Bengal as a significant part of the Arya cultural and historical landscape. The references to Vanga as an integral territory ruled by Arya kings, its inclusion in sacred texts, and its recognition as a land of tirthas and noble heritage illustrate that Bengal has long been intertwined with Arya civilization.
The Mahabharata addresses Tamralipta as a Tirtha Sthala and describes its people as great elephant warriors. The Brahma Purana or Adi Purana refers to Tamralipta as Tirtharaj, as described by Bhagwan Vishnu.
Basically Today's Bengal is = Anga+Vanga +Pundra+Sumha or Tamralipta
These are Shastra evidences, we have produced Archeological evidences that Bengal used be a Vedic land .
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