Archive 2324

Frontiers of Anthropology

This blog is to encorporate discussions on Lost Continents, Catastrophism, The origin of Modern Humans and the Out of Africa theory, Genetics and Human Diversity, The Origin and Spread of Civilization and Cultural Diffusion across the face of the Globe.

Deluge of Atlantis

Deluge of Atlantis

Sunday, November 10, 2013

The Aryans Did Not Do It 3

Here is a statement by way of refutation but it I still not clear o several points which are important if not crucial. Because of this I shall be making a statement of my own as a follow-up blog entry:

Evidence of nuclear explosion in ancient India ?

Evidence of nuclear explosion in ancient India ?

Time and again, I have been pestered with this link, as a definite proof of some nuclear explosion in ancient India. Well, as dumb as it may sound, some people actually believe this kind of mindless story, without even batting an eyelid (Not that batting an eyelid is necessary in the process of believing).
The crux of the matter is that, some people are claiming that the Indians, during the time of the Indus Valley Civilization (3000-1500 BCE), had nuclear weapons, and proof of the fact is in the radioactive skeletal remains at Mohenjo-Daro itself. Apparently, a reference to an incidence in The Mahabharata, an ancient Indian text, looks too similar to be anything else, other than a nuclear explosion. Since it is impossible to imagine such events with such vividness, it thus automatically transpires that the narration was nothing but an eyewitness account of a nuclear explosion.
Apparently some other tangible proofs of ancient nuclear India exist too. Remains at Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa are, we are given to believe, highly radioactive. Radioactivity, of such high proportion, as has been allegedly recorded at the archeological sites, can’t come into existence right out of the blue. Coupled with the fact that these two civilizations came to an abrupt end, which in it self is a mystery, the nuclear explosion, apparently, fits quite snuggly.
Lets examine, if there is any evidence to the above conclusions.
What is the source ?

Site after site, relentlessly narrate the above story, basically copy/pasting each other, but fail to give any reference to original news article. There is no mention of a press release, or something similar, by the Government of India or Pakistan or Britain. This huge event i.e. unearthing of such a radioactive skeleton, which has the potential of turning our history book right on its head, is not even mentioned in any archeological web sites like ASI, or Mohenjodaro.net or Harappa.com, or even the myriad Hindu propaganda web sites. (Some of these Hindu apologist sites do claim that the vedic India was nuclear, but, thankfully, do not point at the ruins of Indus Valley civilization as evidence. They have their own reasons, of course.)
Unless, for some unknown reason, there is a huge conspiracy to cover up, this story is absolutely bunk and that too, a sloppy one.
The Fountainhead :
The original link does not give any indication of its source. A quick googling, however, revealed the source. One such source is Rense.com.

This file shared with KeelyNet courtesy of Bryant Stavely.
Excerpt from the World Island Review, January 1992

Apparently, the story was broken to the world by World Island Review and was fist referenced by KeelyNet, in January 1992. Strangely the story is no longer available on KeelyNet. Also, the World Island Review, in all likelihood is fake.
Now let me get this straight. No legitimate archaeological site, whether Government owned or privately run, mentions anything about this incidence and the only magazine or site, which claims to be the source, does not even exist.
It has already begun to stink. But wait, there is more.

Skeletal Remains :

When excavations of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro reached the street level, they discovered skeletons scattered about the cities, many holding hands and sprawling in the streets as if some instant, horrible doom had taken place. People were just lying, unburied, in the streets of the city.

A casual reading will give the impression, that the sites at Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa were littered with skeletons and these lay unburied in such manner, that would suggest of an instant annihilation of an entire city.

Why did the bodies not decay or get eaten by wild animals? Furthermore, there is no apparent cause of a physically violent death.

Again, a casual reading will give the impression, that the “bodies” that were found, did not decay as one would normally expect to, and that the deaths were due to some physical violence, the cause of which is mysterious.
The total number of skeletons found at the main site of Mohenjo-Daro, during the initial archeological digging during 1922-1931, was, just 37. Let me quote Prof. G.F.Dales from his “The Mythical Massacre at Mohenjo-Daro“. (He was of course debunking the myth of Aryan invasion, much to the joy of Hindu apologists).

Nine years of extensive excavations at Mohenjo-daro (1922-31) – a city of three miles in circuit – yielded the total of some 37 skeletons, or parts thereof, that can be attributed with some certainty to the period of the Indus civilizations. Some of these were found in contorted positions and that suggest anything but orderly burials. Many are either disarticulated or incomplete….Where are the burned fortresses, the arrow heads, weapons, pieces of armor, the smashed chariots and bodies of the invaders and defenders? Despite the extensive excavations at the largest Harappan sites, there is not a single bit of evidence that can be brought forth as unconditional proof of an armed conquest and the destruction on the supposed scale of the Aryan Invasion.

Later excavation unearthed more skeletal remains in other Indus valley ruins like Harappa, Dholavira, Lothal etc., which numbered, more than 300. [I am not sure of the exact number.]
It is an absolute lie that bodies littered the streets of these ruins. There isn’t a shred of evidence of an instantaneous mass death, as evidenced in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Some of these skeletons were actually buried at different ground level, pointing to different periods of time. In case of an instantaneous death, it is impossible to happen. There isn’t any evidence of any major war or invasion.
Frankly, I could not make any head or tail of that 2nd quote. Is it at all possible, to find any “body”, as in corpse, in any form, other than as decayed skeleton, after over a couple of thousand years ? In fact the skeletal remains, did decay, and is one reason why only some 300 odd skeletons were recovered, where as the cities are believed to have accommodated close to a million people during their heyday. [The left image below is of a Mohenjo-daro man and to the right is a female.]

Nuclear Explosion ?

Historian Kisari Mohan Ganguli says that “Indian sacred writings” are full of such descriptions, which sound like an atomic blast as experienced in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

I will talk about “historian” Kisari Mohan Ganguli a little later. But first about this nuclear explosion. Well, if it indeed was a nuclear explosion, then it must be of a kind, that we don’t of know yet.

Here’s how Mohenjo-Daro looks today after a couple of thousand years after the alleged explosion and all the while remaining covered with sand and soil in a very dry area of the globe. [Image to the left is the great bath at Mohenjo-daro and to the right is the college buildings]

Hiroshima after nuclear explosion

The image to the left is how Hiroshima looked, after the actual explosion. Notice the difference. In case of the archeological remains of Mohenjo-Daro, the city is remarkably intact, except of course corrosion, and rampant vandalism. Hiroshima on the other hand is practically leveled to the ground. True, that more than half of Hiroshima was made of wood, nevertheless, is it possible for primitive brick structures to remain erect, the way it is found in Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa, after a nuclear blast ? The other possibility is that the bomb used, killed only biological things and left the infrastructure intact. But that’s the stuff that science fiction is made up of.
Besides, when there was no major battle, or conflict, or invasion – at least there is no archeological proof of it – why would anybody even detonate a nuclear warhead, assuming that this detonation actually happened. Absence of proof of conflict, itself, removes the likelihood of a nuclear explosion.
Could the explanation be that of an experiment gone awry ? But that is as preposterous as the idea of possession of nuclear warhead. If at all, these people were able to build a nuclear warhead, where are the archeological remains of the reactors, or the labs, or the nuclear waste ?
Nuclear Radiation ?

At one site, Soviet scholars found a skeleton which had a radioactive level 50 times greater than normal.

and…

These skeletons are among the most radioactive ever found, on par with those at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Radioactivity may actually remain for over a few billions of years, depending on the presenceof the amount of radioisotopes. Normal radioactive exposure is considered as 300 millirems, at sea level, but permissible limit for an adult is 5000 millirems over the normal. 50 times normal would mean 15,000 millirems, which is fairly high. However, current background nuclear radiation in Hiroshima and Nagasaki is just as normal as entire Globe. This level was reached in just 60 odd years. If a blast of the nature experienced in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, was responsible for such annihilation, how is it possible for the skeleton to remain so much radioactive, even after a couple of thousand years ?

Who is Kisari Mohan Ganguli ?

Historian Kisari Mohan Ganguli says that “Indian sacred writings” are full of such descriptions, which sound like an atomic blast as experienced in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He says references mention fighting sky chariots and final weapons. “The passage tells of combat where explosions of final weapons decimate entire armies, causing crowds of warriors with steeds and elephants and weapons to be carried away as if they were dry leaves of trees,” says Ganguli.
“Instead of mushroom clouds, the writer describes a perpendicular explosion with its billowing smoke clouds as consecutive openings of giant parasols. There are comments about the contamination of food and people’s hair falling out.

I can’t say, if Mr Kisari Mohan Ganguli, actually Babu Kisari Mohan Ganguli, was a historian or not, but I can tell with absolute certainty, that he did interpret The Mahabharata into English. But there is a catch. The interpretation was done between 1883 and 1896, a good 50 odd years before the first atom bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, and a good 90 odd years before the interview was included in the apparently fake news mag or site.
The above quote will give the impression that Mr Kisari Mohan Ganguli, actually gave the interview to that mag/ site. But that is impossible. Also, his references to Hiroshima and Nagasaki are also very unlikely. It is possible, he was not even alive when the bombings took place. However, it is highly unlikely that he would misquote from his own translation. In the entire Mahabharata, translated by him, there is no mention of “parasol” or anything that resembles a “parasol”.
Who is Francis Taylor ?
There is no archeologist named Francis Taylor, [Google Scholar search]accept for an amateur English gentleman, as is clear from the first link. However, he is more concerned with local archeology and there is no evidence, at least on line, that he has ever visited the archeological sites of Mohenjo-Daro or Harappa. There is, rather was, another Francis Taylor, who was the museum curator, but he died in 1957.

Misquoting The Mahabharata:
This part is not from the original link that I am reviewing. However, I come across these quotes ever so often, that I feel like saying something, particularly, since these quotes are used as evidence of some nuclear explosion during the Vedic period. From Rense.com

“A single projectile charged with all the power in the Universe…An incandescent column of smoke and flame as bright as 10,000 suns, rose in all its splendor…it was an unknown weapon, an iron thunderbolt, a gigantic messenger of death which reduced to ashes an entire race.”
“The corpses were so burned as to be unrecognizable. Their hair and nails fell out, pottery broke without any apparent cause, and the birds turned white.”
“After a few hours, all foodstuffs were infected. To escape from this fire, the soldiers threw themselves into the river.”

Well, guess what. The quotes don’t appear in The Mahabharata at all. Search for your self. The Mahabharata at SacredText.com is the one translated by Mr Kisari Mohan Ganguli, the same “historian” referenced in the original story, and is the only publicly available translation of The Mahabharata.
Closest you will ever come to that quote is as below:

Endeavoured to be deceived by those wicked ones, those ascetics, with eyes red in wrath, looked at each other and uttered those words. Having said so they then proceeded to see Keshava. The slayer of Madhu, informed of what had taken place, summoned all the Vrishnis and told them of it. Possessed of great intelligence and fully acquainted with what the end of his race would be, he simply said that that which was destined would surely happen. Hrishikesa having said so, entered his mansion. The Lord of the universe did not wish to ordain otherwise. When the next day came, Samva actually brought forth an iron bolt through which all the individuals in the race of the Vrishnis and the Andhakas became consumed into ashes. Indeed, for the destruction of the Vrishnis and the Andhakas, Samva brought forth, through that curse, a fierce iron bolt that looked like a gigantic messenger of death. The fact was duly reported to the king. In great distress of mind, the king (Ugrasena) caused that iron bolt to be reduced into fine powder. Men were employed, O king, to cast that powder into the sea. At the command of Ahuka, of Janarddana, of Rama, and of the high-souled Vabhru, it was, again, proclaimed throughout the city that from that day, among all the Vrishnis and the Andhakas no one should manufacture wines and intoxicating spirits of any kind, and that whoever would secretly manufacture wines and spirits should be impaled alive with all his kinsmen. Through fear of the king, and knowing that it was the command of Rama also of unimpeachable deeds, all the citizens bound themselves by a rule and abstained from manufacturing wines and spirits.

Does not even come close to the description of a nuclear explosion.

Other radioactive cities:

Radiation still so intense, the area is highly dangerous. A heavy layer of radioactive ash in Rajasthan, India, covers a three-square mile area, ten miles west of Jodhpur. Scientists are investigating the site, where a housing development was being built. For some time it has been established that there is a very high rate of birth defects and cancer in the area under construction. The levels of radiation there have registered so high on investigators’ gauges that the Indian government has now cordoned off the region.
Scientists have unearthed an ancient city where evidence shows an atomic blast dating back thousands of years, from 8,000 to 12,000 years, destroyed most of the buildings and probably a half-million people. One researcher estimates that the nuclear bomb used was about the size of the ones dropped on Japan in 1945.

Ancient cities, roughly connected to the Indus valley civilization, are actually been discovered, rather unearthed in Rajasthan, by ASI. And it is true that the region actually has high level of radiation, although ASI does not mention of any archeological site to be radioactive. The reason of such radioactivity is entirely different than what is been suggested. Indian Nuclear Project/ Power plant/ Testing sites/ nuclear waste dumping sites, are all located in those areas of Rajasthan. This might help understanding.

This is a story told to Surendra Gadekar. One day in Narora a worker with a geiger counter went to take tea in the canteen. His geiger counter suddenly went crazy. On investigating he found that the radioactivity was coming from the fire used for preparing the tea. Further investigation led to the discovery that the wood being burnt had originally been used for scaffolding inside the plant, and had got contaminated and hence should have been stored as low-level waste. Instead it had been sold to a contractor, who had fortunately sold it back to the canteen: hence this sordid practice of how the establishment deals with its waste was detected.

If the centralized bureaucracy of Maurya Kings two thousand years ago had discovered nuclear power, we in India and Pakistan would probably still be spending half our current national budget storing and caring for or repairing the damage done by atomic wastes.

I studied medicine in Calcutta. But even there I had never seen so many patients with tumors in a single day. On talking to these people in Tamlao I found that almost all the symptoms had appeared after five or more years of the reactor’s commissioning.

I have already discussed why, after thousand of year of its detonation, an atomic bomb, “about the size of the ones dropped on Japan in 1945” can’t possibly be the reason behind any radioactivity in an area.

Lonar crater is hardly a mystery anymore. Here’s the HTML version of a PDF file, which is not downloadable, at the moment.

In 1973, based on the work done by K. Fredriksson of [Smithsonian Institution], Washington DC, D.J. Milton of US Geological Survey, California in collaboration with A. Dube and MS Balasundaram of Geological Survey of India impact origin of Lonar crater was established. They discovered breccia with shatter cones and material containing maskelynite. Maskelynite formation requires very high pressure almost 4 lakh times the average atmospheric pressure on the Earth. And this is created only during hypervelocity impact…Thus impact origin of Lonar crater was proved.

All rational persons follow a rule of thumb. If something is too good to be true, then, in all likelihood, it is not true. A little skepticism is actually a sign of a healthy mind. Unfortunately, for some people, with a giant gullible bone, anything that shines, is gold.

Posted by Dale Drinnon at 12:09 PM