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Since the discovery of Megalithic burial by Babington in 1823 at Kerala, hundreds of Megalithic burials were explored and excavated all over India. The northern part of Tamil Nadu, the Middle Cauvery Basin is very rich in archaeological vestiges dating from various periods. Burial with superstructure in the form of Cairn-Circle or Dolmen was a common feature dating from the Iron Age to the Historical period and are collectively referred to as Megalithic Burial in India. In order to understand the spatial pattern and the effect of geography and geology of an area on the Megalithic burial practice, the taluk of Pennagaram was selected. This paper primarily focuses upon the finding from ten newly discovered Megalithic burial sites from Pennagaram taluk, which forms part of the Middle Cauvery Basin. It is based primarily on field study. An understanding of the spatial pattern and the reasons why Megalithic builders of this region selected the place where the present burials are noticed was arrived at with the aid of Google map, GIS map and Geological map.

Keywords: Megaliths, Cairn Circle, Cist, Pennagaram

Marriage has a value of positive and negative degrees depending upon the individual sex. The ‘birth’ of a living organism has always represented a positive value or a value always greater than zero. Death in the sense appears only as a negative value. If we denote the above three as elements – marriage, birth and death - we find that ‘genealogy’ is structured and controlled by them. The present paper is an attempt discuss this matter analogically.

Keywords: Genealogy, Marriage, Death, Birth, Time and Space

The Dhvaja (flag, banner or standard) is one of the important and significant symbols from ancient India. It is commonly known as an Indradhvaja or triangular headed standard’ which can be seen on various ancient Indian coins such as those of Ujjain, S?tav?hana, ?u?ga, Kurara, Era?, Mitra etc. Some sculptures from Bharhut and Sanchi have depictions of Dhvaja. Also this symbol can be seen on Jain Ay?gapa??as, in the Udaygiri-Khandgiri caves. We also find references to Dhvaja in ancient literature like Bharata-N??ya??stra, Br?hat-Sa?hit?, Samar??ga?as?tradh?ra. It is proposed to trace the history and depiction of Dhvaja symbol in literature and art forms and to explore the relationship between the unidentified symbols from Ay?gapa??a and Dhvajas.

Keywords: dhvaja, Indradhvaja, ketu, ay?gapa??a, bhadr?sana

The Dev? Sarasvat? is primarily worshipped to bestow knowledge upon her seekers. However, though her association with knowledge is the most pronounced, there are other facets to her character which have in most part remained unexplored. Her journey from a riverine deity to the one who blesses her devotees with wisdom, has been chronicled in various researches, hence the purview of this present paper is definitely not to address those issues. What it shall strive to explore is a particular aspect of Sarasvat?, her serpentine connection, which though have been hinted at various sources, does not feature in any of the works on Sarasvat?. Hence this present paper shall try to raise questions on this aspect and try to work out the connection between serpents and Sarasvat?. Interestingly myths about serpent power abound in all ancient cultures, how far lies the possibility of Sarasvat? imbibing this power is what this paper shall try to address by juxtaposing it with tales and legends from other ancient civilizations.

Keywords: Sarasvat?, serpent, Rg Veda, Atharva Veda, wisdom, healer

Baolis or step-wells are a water storage technique of the historical period and a unique example of subterranean architecture that can generally be seen in India, Pakistan and also in Bangladesh. Research shows that baolis or the stepwells were used not only for water conservation, but also for social and religious gatherings, and relaxation in the hot summer months. In Bangladesh, this kind of architecture is not very common and did not get enough attention from the scholars. Only four baolis were documented previously by several scholars. A new baoli was discovered in North Bengal during archaeological explorations by the primary author which is the fifth addition of this kind in Bangladesh. All the baolis of Bangladesh, except one, are situated in North Bengal, and related to the Natha Sect of Hinduism. It is proposed to discuss this newly detected fifth baoli and the adjacent temples of the Vaisnava Gosai.

Keywords: Baoli, step-well, Natha sect.

Anthropologists define foragers as people who depend largely on wild resources by way of hunting and gathering for their food. Ember and Ember (1995: 232) suggested that the recent hunter-gatherers typically get their food more from gathering and fishing than from hunting. The tool-kits of the Khangkhui Cave No. 3 include both stone and bone artifacts. These artifacts might be used in foraging for their subsistence. The faunal remains that might be hunted by the Khangkhui cave people include cervus, sus, bobide, lizard and wild fowls. The majority of the stone tools are made of limestone quarried from the cave itself. Besides the stone tools, they made tools out of bone probably of the hunted games by using grooving-splitting / snapping, and pressure flaking techniques. Exploring the probability of using bone as raw material for making tools is the indicator of the emergence of human modernity, and then the Khangkhui cave man might belong to the modern human species arrived from East Asia through the land bridge made during the late Plaeistocene along the island of Southeast Asia. It is proposed to discuss these bone tools.

Keywords: Khangkhui cave, bone artifacts, faunal remains, grooving-splitting/snapping, pressure flaking techniques, Late Pleistocene.

This paper explores the historical roots of the worship of Durga and the changing iconography of the Devi in the form of Mahish?mardhini, especially in Bengal, where the annual Durga Puja is increasingly marked by experimentation with both the idol and its surrounding enhancement in artistic forms. This recent development is situated in the sense of the deity’s historical origins and evolution and its iconography has been traced since the 5th century CE. The aim of this article is to trace the history of modern Durga worship as practiced in Bengal and its socio-cultural influence on contemporary society. Durga as Mahish?mardhini (slayer of Mahish?sura) is an ancient deity. The 5th century CE Sanskrit text, De?vi Mah?tmy?m, contains the story of Durga, briefly including her various forms, exploits, as well as her iconography. By the 8th century CE, the Mahish?mardhini cult was known throughout the Indian subcontinent as evidenced by architectural remains from Afghanistan to Tamil Nadu. Today, she is still popular throughout India but particularly loved and revered in Bengal as an annual four-day autumn festival, the Durga Puja.

Keyword: Mahish?mardhini, Mahish?sur, De?vi Mah?tmy?, Shaktism

The temples of Sibsagar district, of Assam are centres of a rich sculptural heritage with countless images of divinities, celestial beings, myths and legends. Resplendently reliefs carved in stone, terracotta, stucco or wood are found here. These temples, built under the patronage of the Ahom kings, who established their kingdom in the region by the 13th century, follow a similar trend of associating religion in art forms. However, in Sibsagar or medieval Rangpur which was the capital city of the Ahom rulers, low relief motifs of fascinating foliages, creepers, geometric designs, local flora and fauna can be found profusely. Reliefs from the Puranas, scenes from daily life activities, contemporary manners of the nobility and the common people, hunting and war scenes have been carved along with the religious sculptures. This paper makes an attempt to provide an overview of the secular sculptures of the erstwhile Sibsagar district of Assam.

Keywords: Relief sculptures, patronage, fauna, floral motifs.

John Witherspoon is America’s forgotten founder. While much attention has been showered on American colonial history, America has not fully acknowledged the debt that owes to John Witherspoon. The paper proposes to discuss how Witherspoon’s ideas had a major impact on American national character and on the political, educational and religious thought of the era. It expounds on how his Common Sense Realism (CSR) framework resolved conflicts and set standards for the emergent nation. The exploration of how the CSR model helped Witherspoon reach a principled compromise can not only offer valuable lessons for modern America but for leaders the world over.