Did ancient Indians and native Americans have connections ?
Earliest reference that we find about ancient India and America (pre dominantly South America) starts with Virochana, Son of famous Pralhada
Virochana
Virochana's father, was one of the most celebrated devotees of Lord Vishnu. Prahlada's unwavering devotion to Vishnu earned him divine protection and eventually led to the downfall of his tyrannical father, Hiranyakashipu, at the hands of Vishnu's Narasimha avatar. Prahlada was known for his piety and virtue, traits that would set a complex legacy for his son, Virochana.
Virochana was a learned man and a strong ruler who was keen on expanding his territory, which put him into collision course with the neighboring ruler the Deva's. For a long period Asuras under the leadership of Virochana competed with Devas under the rule of Indra for suzerainty. Tired of regular skirmishes at an advanced age . Virochana started looking for a land where he may rule with his descendants without regular conflicts with the Devas. Thus he starts with his journey to the Patalas.Guided by the ancient texts and the wisdom of his ancestors, he discovered the seven regions of Patala—Atala, Vitala, Nitala, Gabhastimat, Mahatala, Sutala, and Patala—were rich in resources and adorned with magnificent palace. So where is this Patala. In all Indian ancient texts Patalas direction has been told to go below some has understod it as below the surface of earth. But practically thats not possible but you may go below in the map considering the spherical nature of the earth.We will come back to it in some time. Now all this places were beautiful and inhabited by native people (text refer them as Danav, Nagas etc).Virochana spreads knowledge there and establishes his influence over the natives , the place was opulent in nature that's where the scriptures stops. It again comes up during the reign of his son Bali. .
Mahabali the great king.
King Bali's Journey to Patala
King Bali son of Virochana , also known as Mahabali, was a devout and powerful king from the Asura clan. He was known for his righteousness, During his time his subjects were happy, India was rich , businesses were flourishing .Again neighboring ruler Indra got insecure and requested to bind Bali before proud Bali becomes a problem.
His journey to Patala is narrated primarily in the Bhagavata Purana and the Vayu Purana. Here are the detailed accounts from these texts:
Bhagavata Purana:
- Encounter with Vamana: Bali’s journey to Patala begins with his encounter with Vamana, the dwarf avatar of Vishnu. Vamana visits Bali during a grand yagna and requests three paces of land. Bali, known for his generosity, agrees. Vamana then expands to cover the earth and heavens in two steps. For the third step, Bali offers his own head, recognizing Vamana as Vishnu.
- Banishment to Patala: Impressed by Bali’s devotion and integrity, Vishnu grants him the sovereignty of Patala (the netherworld) as a boon and protects him as his gatekeeper. Bali, with his followers, descends to Patala where he continues to rule with righteousness and devotion.
Vayu Purana:
- Description of the Descent: The Vayu Purana provides a more detailed description of the events leading to Bali’s descent. After losing his kingdom to Vamana (Vishnu), Bali is granted the realm of Patala. The text describes how Bali’s lineage and his association with various sages, like Dirghatamas, influence his journey and life in Patala.
Description of Patala
Patala, often referred to as the netherworld or the underworld, is vividly described in various Puranas. Here is a synthesis of its description from the Bhagavata Purana and the Vayu Purana:
Structure and Layout:
- Patala is depicted with several levels, each ruled by different Danavas (demons) and Nagas (serpent beings). It is a place of great beauty and wealth, often described as more opulent than the known earth.
Inhabitants:
- Nagas: The primary inhabitants of Patala are the Nagas, serpent-like beings who possess human faces. They are adorned with magnificent jewels and live in splendid palaces. The Nagas, such as Vasuki and Takshaka, are powerful and play significant roles in various mythological tales.
- Demons and Other Beings: Besides the Nagas, Patala is home to various other Asuras (demons) and mystical beings. These entities live harmoniously under the rule of virtuous kings like Bali, who maintain order and uphold dharma (righteousness) even in the netherworld.
Nature and Environment:
- Patala is depicted as a realm of extraordinary beauty with lush gardens, fragrant flowers, and flowing rivers. The light in Patala comes from the jewels and precious stones embedded in the walls and the crowns of its inhabitants, providing a luminescent glow to the entire realm.
- Despite being an underworld, Patala is not a place of suffering but a realm of pleasure and enjoyment, often exceeding the luxuries found in the heavens.
Where Patala is
now lets come back to our quest for Patala, if we go down fron Virochana or Balis home in the map which is somewhere in Kerala what happens
We reach Antarctica, obviously no one stays in Antarctica, so we move more downwards
We actually reach somewhere in south America. One thing to be noted here Indians were adept in observational astronomy, time and distance both were referenced in terms of astronomical units. So if known stars were observed while moving from Northern hemisphere to southern , their gradual disapperance will be interpreted as going to other side of the sphere or beneath the place on earth they started from.
How did he reach there from India
Purans tell Bali was bound / house arrested in Indonasia in Bali island
The Connection
The link between Mahabali and Bali Island can be traced through the spread of Hinduism from India to Southeast Asia during the early centuries of the Common Era. Indian traders, scholars, and priests played a crucial role in transmitting cultural and religious practices. This interaction is evident in Bali's adoption of Hindu traditions, rituals, and temple architecture that closely resemble those found in India.
The name "Bali" itself is thought to be derived from Mahabali, signifying the island's historical and cultural ties to Indian mythology. Balinese Hinduism still revered figures like Mahabali, integrating them into local traditions and festivities.
References
- Mahabali - Vamana Purana
- Onam Festival and Mahabali
- Hinduism in Bali
- Cultural Exchange Between India and Southeast Asia
Mahabali was ultimately unbound and allowed to leave the island of Bali and then he travelled to Patala
References to Patala are not many.
Chapter 5 Vishnu Puran : The Muni Narada, after his return from those regions to the skies, declared amongst the celestials that Patala was much more delightful than Indra's heaven.“What,” exclaimed the sage, can be compared to Patala, where the Nagas are decorated with brilliant and beautiful and pleasure-shedding jewels? Who will not delight in Patala, where the lovely daughters of the Daityas and Danavas wander about, fascinating even the most austere; where the rays of the sun diffuse light, and not heat, by day; and where the moon shines by night for illumination, not for cold; where the sons of Danu, happy in the enjoyment of delicious vainds and strong wines, know not how time passes.
Interestingly he mentions about a dazzling white mountain range named Ananta in patala with thousands of head (peaks) , Its enormous in size which can not be measured and thus called ananta. During Pralay (apocalypse) it emits venomic fire. Its comparable to Mount Kailasha "
Now after Bali island in a place in southern hemisphere largest mountain range that comes in mind is Andes
https://maps.app.goo.gl/duT7y4V4GNynUmzB7
Andes Mountain range in south America
Astonishingly there are several peaks in Peruvian Andes named Ananta
Other side of the story
Till now all the references are from Indian ancient texts, which gives vivid description of Patala and describes Nagas and Danavas to be staying there, specially Basuki who is considered as multiheaded snake man or King of snakes who possibly used a totem of multi-headed snake.Interestingly throughout south east Asia and then to Americas snakes are revered by indigenous tribes. Much later when the cholas setup a port to do business with East, they name their port as Nagapattannam.(linked to Naga or Snake) If we look among Incas and many other indigenous tribes Snake or Naga takes a very important place. Snakes specially multiheaded snakes are revered as symbol of prosperity. One such Tribe who revered snake was Aztek (ASTEK?). In Indian Epic Mahavarata there is mention of a sage Astik. When a king Janamejay was slaughtering the Naga tribes to avenge his father's murder by Naga people. Sage Astik reasoned with the king and saved Nagas. The epic tells post that Astik lead all the Nagas and left for Patala. So people of Astik started living there . Now Aztek and Astik sounds similar phonetically can we just brush it aside as coincidence.
Disappearance and Legacy
Journey to Patala the route
Now the question may arise how did they reach there, without modern ships and navigation equipment. Knowledge about currents and their pattern based on weather was also probably unknown. Only way to go about sea was following the cost lines closely To understand that lets ascertain when was this happening. This was long before Ramayana which is dated to happen between 12000 to 14000 bc so we are talking about 17000-20000 BC safely (We will discuss about timings of various events in Indian texts in another blog) . which was during the last ICE age. Earth had much more land above sea. And Sea depths were lesser in many places making them easier to cross by relatively less advanced (compared to today) wooden longboats or sail ships
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/CP_LastIce-Age_ClickOut.html
The Image is property of Visualcapitalist and all credit and copyright is with them for the above image.
Later he was let go and he started his journey to Patala. The geography of south east Asia was very different from today, Java , Sumatra and Bali all were part of a larger land mass called Sundaland. Keeping this in mind and compulsion of maritime ships of that time to move close to shore line and had to depend on winds and oceanic currents. So lets look at the oceanic currents and winds pattern to see if it was possible to Reach America from India going East
In the state of Odisa there is tradition during November called Bali yatra or the time when ancient Indian mariners went to Bali (Thanks to Sanjiv Sanyal).
If we see the sea current and wind would have propelled mariners from Eastern India to Srilanka and then from close to equator the current would have taken to Bali. For Virochana and Mahabali they didnt need to come to Srilanka, Their journey will be little South westward and then eastwardly current would have propelled them to Bali island in Indonasia. Considering it will be a distance of around 5000 km, at 25-30 Km / day it would have taken them around 6 months to reach Bali. Indian Ocean does have favourable current for 6 months in that direction.
From Indonasia crossing pacific ocean would have been very difficult if not impossible if w elk today. Only option that we can see below is from July onwards from east of Indonasia current blows towards Mekong delta and then to North America .
Taking advantage of favorable currents one can rich North America in 6-7 months, without going far away from shores even today in a sail ship.
Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=184623
More so in the Ice age.when shores were more expanded. and intertropical convergence Zone (where all the currents meets) was more southward. Thus the currents would have brought the ships to northern part of south America i.e. Peru from Sundaland through a much shorter route.
Depiction of sea voyage during last IceAge
Is there a Atlas?
Till now what we discussed is a derivation and indirect references of the route.but is there a direct reference in any of the Indian text? Yes there is In Ramyana there is a detailed route guide from Sugrivपद्म पत्र विशालाक्षम् ततो द्रक्ष्यध वानराः || ४-४०-५१
आसीनम् पर्वतस्य अग्रे सर्व भूत नमस्कृतम् |
सहस्र शिरसम् देवम् अनंतम् नील वाससम् || ४-४०-५२"
A very tall trident with a base on the face of mountain “ That pylon of palm tree is constructed as the easterly compass by celestials gods, and beyond that a completely golden mountain is there, namely the august Udaya Mountain, the Mt. Sunrise, beyond which it is all west. The pinnacles of Mt. Sunrise will be touching heavens for their height is hundred yojana-s and that divine mountain greatly glitters for it is completely golden, and it is pedestalled with suchlike glittering mountains. [4-40-54, 55]”
स्थापितः पर्वतस्य अग्रे विराजति स वेदिकः
पूर्वस्याम् दिशि निर्माणम् कृतम् तत् त्रिदशेश्वरैः |
ततः परम् हेममयः श्रीमान् उदय पर्वतः || ४-४०-५४
तस्य कोटिः दिवम् स्पृष्ट्वा शत योजनम् आयता |
जातरूपमयी दिव्या विराजति स वेदिका"
As per Ramayana this trident was created by Indra to mark the eastern boundary.
Such a Trident does exist, starting from India Via Sumatra and Java and an underwater Volcano (West Mata)and after crossing a great Ocean . In Peru this Trident is called Candelabra of Andes.
By Alex Zanuccoli - 20140809_071405-Perù_IsoleBallestas-P8096606#, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=64453468
Now are all these references and one to one mapping are mere coincidence and imagination or they are a significant chapter of Indian Maritime history which is all but forgotten.
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