FROM 1918 to 1922 Rakhal Das Banerji of the archaeological department of India was scouring the countryside of Sindh and Punjab in search of any remains of Alexander's passage through those part ;. But he could not find any --- although it is known that the Greek invader had buried some over-size arms in India, to make the future generations think that the Greek soldiers were some kind of over-size supermen. Rakhal did, however, find scores of big and small ancient mounds, all of which turned out to be Buddhist. The biggest of them, with a Buddhist stupa on top, is the one now known as Mohenjo- daro, near Larkana.
It is, however, not the mound (daro) of ``Mohan'', Lord Krishna. In Sindhi it is known as ``Mooanjo-daro'', the ``mound of the dead''. Tradition held that there were lots of people buried inside the mound. A little excavation, however, revealed that there were hardly any bodies there. Instead, a whole great city came to light. Indeed it is not just one city but at least seven cities, built one over the other! From the stupa one can look east and clearly see the Sindhu as a silvery ribbon in the distance. Every year the Sindhu brings masses of alluvial soil. Every hundred years the surrounding area rises by seven inches. The seven cities of Mooanjo-daro, with an aggregate height of seventy feet, therefore, represent some twelve thousand years of history.
The whole city is built of burnt bricks. And that not only shows that their civilization was highly developed, but also proves that there were huge forests, supplying quantities of firewood.
And that in turn means Sindh then used to have heavy rainfall. Indeed the tigers, the rhinos, and the elephants on the ancient seals reflect a rich forest life.
In the ancient archaeological sites abroad, the emphasis is an gods and kings. There are big temples and lavish palaces. But this city was obviously a republic --- and a pretty egalitarian republic at that. While there are no palaces, all houses are Pucca (well built) --- and equipped with all the conveniences. The streets are broad and straight --- and the houses are well ventilated. Every house has a well of its own --- and a cistern, taking waste -water out into the central drainage system. The wonder of wonders, all the drains are covered. And since there was no lime in the area to use as cement, the bricks were so made and fitted into each other that no cementing as such was necessary!
The whole thing thrilled modern city planners. Said ]S. S. Townroe, a British housing expert, at the end of World War II: ``Buried cities in the Indus Valley at least 5000 years old, when excavated, showed they were well planned and drained. Every large house had a bathroom. The old Vedic treatises afford striking proof of the knowledge and commonsense of the early people of India in regulating their building development and wisdom in their municipal administration. When we think of the great urban civilization in the Indus Valley 5000 years ago, we gain humility in facing the issues of today. From India we can learn both patience and wisdom in dealing with the redevelopment of our bombed-out cities in Europe and North Africa and the Far East in the years to come.''
Of the only two figures found, one is that of a dancing girl, and another the bust of a man in orange apparel painted with a floral design.
Here was a huge and prosperous port-city with international commerce; but it was so secure and peaceful that no arms were found. The thick wall, which was first believed to be the rampart of a fort, was later found to be a section of a public store-house. Said Sir Mortimer Wheeler, archaeologist: ``It served both as a state bank and treasury.''
Aldous Huxley, the philosopher, was so impressed by the peaceful character of Mooan-jo-daro that he wrote: ``The civilization of the Indus Valley was as rich and elaborate as those of Sumer and Egypt. But it was a civilization that knew nothing of war. No weapons have been found in its buried cities, nor any trace of fortification. This fact is of the highest significance. It proves that it is possible for men to enjoy the advantages of a complex urban civilization without having to pay for them by periodical mass-murders.''
And it was unarmed, not because there was nothing to defend in the city. For it was a rich city with international commerce. Indeed Sir John Marshall, then director-general of the archeological department, noted: ``The old ornaments are so well finished and so highly polished that they might have come out of a Bond Street jeweller rather than from a prehistoric house of 5000 years ago.''
This city needed no arms because it was secure in its own law, order and justice. Here was a fine great city which had no use for arms but which made many toys for its beloved children. Some of these were still whistling and rattling when dug up!
At first some westerners tried to prove that this Sindh city had been sacked by ``Aryans''. But evidence soon turned up to show that this city itself was as ``Aryan'' as any site in Bharat- varsh. Here are Shiva Pashupatinath and Kali, the worship of linga and peepal. And in front of the temple, topped by the stupa, is the huge tank for ceremonial bathing by pilgrims.
The invasion-destruction theory was further knocked down by anthropologists who found that the Mooanjo-daro people had the same long-headed skulls as the Sindhis of today. Obviously the invaders had been too few to change the native character of Sindh.
Next only to the Pyramids and the Great Wall of China, Mooanjo-daro is the greatest man-made wonder of the world. Indeed it is so much alive that ``the mound of the dead'' is quite a misnomer for it. Until we decipher its script and find out its original name, a more appropriate appellation for it would be ``Amar Sindh Daro'' (the ``Mound of Immortal Sindh''). It is the most sacred spot in Sindh. Here is a place of pilgrimage for all mankind.