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correlates well with the place for Ashtapad. It was recognized that a deep trench surrounds the Dharma King Norsang -probable Ashtapad site. The satellite data was also utilized in planning the last two field expeditions.
High resolution satellite images obtained from Geo Eye- IKONOS Data were evaluated by Shashikant Sharma in October 2009 and he prepared a 3D model of the region such that one can navigate and walk through the terrain using computer mouse.
The last field expedition was conducted under the leadership of Dr. Bellezza, a senior research fellow in Archaeology of Tibetan studies, from University of Virginia, USA, whose contribution is well known about the Zhang Zhung culture of Tibet. The readers can find interesting articles on Ancient Tibet and his report of the third Kailash Mansarovar field expedition.
All these three field expeditions have been conducted over the last five years and a large amount of data has been collected and analyzed. However, the results of the study are still inconclusive in confirming any archaeological signatures of Jainism or finding any Jainism artifacts that may confirm the presence of Ashtapad Maha Tirth in this region. Additional detailed study and field work will be required to continue this work. The Ashtapad Research International Foundation has also prepared a proposal to invite collaboration from scientific community and governmental agencies to assist in continuing this work further. The scientific community could assist in the archaeological, anthropological and philological methodologies and other possible multi-disciplinary scientific studies that could be conducted for this purpose and subsequently implement a research plan. The probable site can be visited by team of scientists, archaeologists, geologists and other experts to examine the probable sites and discern a most probable location on the basis of process of elimination. The research also should include studies of Bon-Po religion. Assistance from international institutions and help from the Chinese and Indian government and other institutions may also be necessary. Discovery of the archaeological site may also be helpful in shedding light on hypothesis that Tibet had a significant contribution to civilization and highlight the contribution of Rushabhdev who taught Asi, Masi, and Krishi to human beings as per Jain scriptures.
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Mayur Desai & Ajit Kumar Shah
