Indian Antiquary Vol 48

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarkar
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 288

BAN
22
BAN
Banayu-Arabia (T. N. Tarakavâchaspati's Sabdastomamahanidhi: Ramayana, Adi, ch. vi).
It was celebrated for its breed of horses (Arthasastra of Kautilya, Bk. II, Aévådhyaksha). But the ancient name of Arabia as mentioned in the Behistun inscription (JRAS. vol. XV) was Arbaya. It appears from Ragozin's Assyria that the ancient name of Armenia was van before it was called Urartu by the Assyrians. But Armenia was never celebrated for its horses. The identification of Vanàyu with Arabia appears to be conjectural (see Griffith's Ramayana, Vol. I, p. 42 note). Araba (Arabia) has been mentioned by Varahamihira who lived in the sixth century A.D., (Brihat-sa hita, XIV, 17). The Padma P. (Svarga, Adi, ch. iii) mentions the Vânâyavas (people of
Vanêyu) among the tribes of the north-western frontier of India. Banga-Bengal. “In Hindu geography,” says Dr. Francis Buchanan, " Ba ga, from
which Bengal is a corruption, is applied to only the eastern portion of the delta of the Ganges as Upabanga is to the centre of this territory, and Aiga to its western limits" (Beveridge's Buchanan Records" in the Calcuttu Review, 1894, p. 2). According to Dr. Bhau Daji, Banga was the country between the Brahmaputra and the Padma (Literary Remains of Dr. Bhau Daji). It was a country separated from Pundra, Sumha and TamraHipta at the time of the Mahabharata (Sabhi P., ch. 29). Bengal was divided into five provinces : Pundra or North Bengal : Samatata or East Bengal; Karna-suvarna or West Bengal; Tâmralipta or South Bengal; Kamarupa or Assam (Hiuen Tsiang). According to General Cunningham, the province of Bengal was divided into four separate districts after the Christian era. This division is attributed to Ballala Sena : Barendra and Baiga to the north of the Ganges, and Rada and Bagdi to the south of the river ut soe JASB., 1873, p. 211); the first two were separated by the Brahmaputra and the other two by the Jalingi branch of the Ganges. Bazendra, between the MahậnandA and Karotoya corresponds to Pundra, Banga to East Bengal, Ráda (to the west of the Bhagirathi) to Karna-su varṇa and Bagdi (Samataţa of Hiuen Tsiang and Bhâți of the Akbarnama) to South Bengal (Arch. 8. Rep., vol. XV, p. 145, and see also Gopala Bhalta's Ballåla. charitam, Pärva-khanda, v8, 6, 7). Mr. Pargiter is of opinion that Baiga must have comprised the modern districts of Murshidabad, Nadia, Jessore, parts of Rajshahi, Pabna and Faridpur ("Ancient Countries in Eastern India" in JASB., 1897, p. 85). At the time of Adisara, according to Devivara Ghataka, Bengal was divided into Ridha, Banga, Barendra and Gauda. At the time of Kebava Sena, Baiga was included in Pauņdra varddhana (see Edilpur Inscription : JASB., 1838, p. 45). The name of Bauga first occurs in the Aitareya Aranyaka of the Rig Veda. According to Sir George Birdwood, Banga originally included the districts of Burdwan and Nadia. Baiga was called Bângâlâ even in the thirteenth century (Wright's Marco Polo). For further particulars, see Bengal in Part II of this work. Dr. Rajendralala Mitra (Indo-Aryans, vol. II, ch. 13) gives lists of the PÅla and Sena kings (see also Ep. Ind., vol. 1, p. 306) (Deopard Inscriptions regarding the Senas); Ibid., vol. 11, p. 160 (Badal Pillar Inscription); Ibid., p. 347 (Vaidyadeva Inscription at Benares); JASB., 1838, p. 40 (Edilpur Inscription of Keśava Sena from Bakarganj). According to the copperplate inscription of Lakshman & Sena found in Sirajganj in the district of Pabna, it appears that the Sena kings were Kshatriyas who came from Karnata. For the ancient trade and commerce of Bengal, see Mr. W. H. Schoff's Periplus ;Bernier's Travels, p. 403 ; Tavernier's Travels, Bk. III; Mr. N. Law's article, Modern Review, 1918. See Saptagrâma and Karnasuvarna.