This chapter explains how historians reconstruct early history using literary sources (books) and archaeological sources (burials and skeletons). It focuses mainly on the Rigveda and burial practices, especially megalithic burials.

Burial Practices and What They Reveal

Family Burial Spots

• Some burial chambers contain more than one skeleton, indicating family burials
• A hole in the chamber wall allowed repeated use
• Burial sites were often marked with stones

Objects Found in Burials

• People were buried with pots, tools, ornaments, food, and water
• The number and quality of objects depended on the status of the deceased
• Black and Red Ware pottery was commonly found

📌 Inference: Burials help us understand social status, beliefs about afterlife, and family structure.

Megaliths: Stone Markers of the Dead

• Megaliths literally mean big stones
• Used to mark burial sites
• Found mainly in the Deccan and Kashmir
• Some megaliths are above ground, others underground

📌 Timeline: Megalith building began about 3000 years ago.

Special Burial at Inamgaon

• Inamgaon settlement dates between 3600–2700 years ago
• Adults were generally buried in the ground
• A special burial shows a man buried in a large four-legged clay jar
• Burials were made with head towards the north
• Food and water vessels were placed with the dead

📌 Significance: Indicates ritual practices and belief in life after death

Skeleton Studies

• Study of bones helps identify gender and age
• Pelvic (hip) bone of females is wider than males
• Helps historians understand health, diet, and population

The Rigveda as a Literary Source

About the Rigveda

• Oldest Veda, composed about 3500 years ago (c. 1500 BC)
• Written in Vedic Sanskrit
• Contains over 1000 hymns (Suktas)
• Initially not written, but passed orally — called Shruti

📌 Printed for the first time less than 200 years ago

Transmission of Vedic Knowledge

• Students memorised hymns with great accuracy
• Teachers ensured correct pronunciation
• Knowledge passed from generation to generation orally

Life Described in the Rigveda

Battles and Assemblies

• Battles were fought mainly for land and cattle
• People met in assemblies to discuss war and peace
• Wealth was distributed among:
  • Leaders (Rajas)
  • Priests (Brahmins)
  • People

Society in the Rigveda

• Society divided mainly into:
  • Brahmins – priests
  • Rajas – leaders
• Community referred to as jana or vish
• Hymn composers called themselves Aryas
• Opponents called Dasas/Dasyus

Yajnas and Rituals

• Yajnas (sacrificial rituals) were performed
• Prayers for cattle, children, and horses
• Indicates importance of pastoral economy

Languages and Linguistic Evidence

Indo-European Languages

• Sanskrit shows similarities with Latin, English, German
• Hindi, Kashmiri, Sindhi also belong to this family

Other Language Families

• Dravidian: Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam
• Austro-Asiatic: Languages of Jharkhand and Central India

Writing in Other Civilisations

• Earliest Chinese writing found about 3500 years ago
• Written on animal bones (oracle bones)
• Chinese did not know iron at that time

Important Terms to Remember

Timeline of Key Events