Lost Cities of the Ancient Indus Valley Civilization - Full Documentary

A festival honoring the gods takes place here daily. This ancient Hindu tradition has been passed down for 3,000 years. These devout Hindu followers bathe in the Ganges River and drink the water, believing that this will bring them closer to the gods. India was home to one of the earliest and greatest civilizations on earth. The people of the Indus civilization already engaged in international trade that spanned the Pacific Ocean 4,500 years ago. They have an advanced economy and political system in addition to a flourishing culture. Called the land of the holy men, India is located in the southwestern part of the Asian continent. India's landmass is 3.28 million square kilometers, making it 15 times larger than the entire Korean peninsula. Thus India is called a subcontinent. But the history of this large subcontinent was a tumultuous one. Alexander the Great, Timur, and Britain all invaded India at different times in history. The India-Pakistan border is located in the northwestern part of India. A particular spectacle unfolds here every day. This is the India-Pakistan border closing ceremony. In a display of pride and aggressiveness by both Indians and Pakistanis, soldiers will strut energetically amidst chanting crowds. The division of India and Pakistan is a rather recent occurrence in the long history of the Indian subcontinent. After India declared independence from British rule in 1947, the country was partitioned along religious lines, Hindu and Muslim. In order to reach the birthplace of the Indus Valley civilization, one must cross the India-Pakistan border. Harappa is a small train station in Pakistan's Punjab province. At first glance, Harappa station looks like any other train station in Pakistan. But it should be noted that it was built 90 years ago, and it is inextricably linked to the Indus Valley civilization due to its location. In 1910, the British rulers enlisted tens of thousands of Indians to build a modern railroad system in the country. To reinforce the foundation for the tracks, they used bricks from nearby ruins. The British studied these ancient bricks and made an astonishing discovery. They unearthed the ruins of the ancient city of Harappa. Scholars of the early 20th century did not believe that there were other early human civilizations besides ancient Greece and ancient Rome. However, Harappa was a vast city that boasted an intricate canal system. Serving as the Director General of the Archaeological Survey in India, John Marshall wrote about his discovery to European academics in 1921. In 1924, John Marshall, he was the one who made that astonishing announcement that Harappan civilization that he had discovered there was at least 2,500 years old. Now that was a big surprise. Big surprise for all those people who first thought that Harappan civilization and Indian civilization could not have been as old as the West Asian or any other civilization, as the Mesopotamian civilization or the Egyptian civilization or even as the Cretan civilization. They were all surprised. Ancient relics give clues to the way of life in ancient civilizations. The Harappa excavation site revealed many details about the ancestors of Indians. Pottery, stone beaded necklaces and even a miniature ox driven cart were discovered. The alphabet system invented by these people was also a startling discovery. The existence of a unique alphabet system proved that they were an advanced society. The place had a highly developed organizational structure and supported a large population. The city's economy was advanced while the inhabitants used an alphabet system. During the time when Egyptians were building the pyramids, this area was a flourishing city. Many children's toys were found in the city ruins, such as a circular maze, chessboard, dice and marbles of various sizes. Long ago, children played with marbles or mazes made out of clay outdoors. Adult men were likely to have worked in the market or tilled the farmland, and women were also kept busy doing household chores. The people of Harappa probably enjoyed a prosperous life. And this prosperity was made possible by the mighty Indus River. The Indus River basin was home to the Indus Valley Civilization. The river source originates from the Tibetan Himalayas and extends for 2,900 kilometers to flow into the Arabian Sea. The annual flow of the river is twice the amount of the Nile River, and it is a critical lifeline to millions of Indians today. Fish is plentiful in the river, providing a livelihood for fishermen. But the river brings many more benefits than just abundant fish. The silt deposited by the Indus creates a rich and fertile soil. This boosts the yields of the farmland. Even though Pakistan's Punjab province has a semi-arid climate, it is the country's largest agricultural output thanks to the Indus River. Without the Indus River, the farmers would be unable to grow watermelons, cucumbers and squash that require large amounts of water. Local farmers call the Indus the mother river. Long ago, the river basin area probably produced a surplus of crops for farmers, who would have traded it for other goods. In ancient times, there were no elaborate road networks, so the river was the best way to transport cargo. Since the river was shallow, the people of the Indus Valley built flat-bottom boats, which they used to ferry goods for hundreds of kilometers. Buyers and sellers would converge around places where boats would dock. This is how towns and cities sprouted along the river. So it has always been the case that the ancient civilizations emerged and flourished along the side of the river. Moreover, it was so important for them to keep in touch with other people at that time. So the transportation and source of communication has been perhaps only the rivers. That is why most of the civilizations flourish on the banks of the river. Let us see the area 4,500 years ago, or 2,500 BCE. Two major rivers existed in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, the Indus River and the Gagarhakra River. Harappa is in the upper area of the river, while the Mohenjo-Daro is further down in the middle section. And Dholavira is located at the mouth of the Gagarhakra River. These large cities were surrounded by about 2,000 towns and villages. Located 600 kilometers south of Harappa, Mohenjo-Daro is the largest settlement of the Indus Valley civilization. Just the excavated area of the ruins is 2.5 square kilometers, and the central road in the city center had a width of 11 meters, which is enough for carts to pass through. Maze-like alleys course through 10-meter-high mud walls. Experts estimate that the city had a population of 200,000 people. Excavation work on Mohenjo-Daro began in 1922. Indian archaeologists and an army of 1,200 workers dug up this buried ancient city. Streets are very straight, cutting at 90 degrees. Small lanes bisecting them, making them rectangular blocks, like you have Islamabad, beautifully organized city. So it gives you, makes you easy to go through, and convenience for the life. That's why people give such an importance to the planning. After Mohenjo-Daro was revealed, two city sections were noticed. One section encompassed the temple and public bath. The other section was the residential area that lied just 150 meters away. So what kind of city environment did the inhabitants live in? The alleys were patterned like a go-board and evenly spaced. The front doors of the dwellings led right into the alleys. Once inside, there was a large living room and a courtyard, in which families did their cooking or made handicrafts. The dwelling's well stood out. More than 700 small wells like this have been found in Mohenjo-Daro. Wastewater from the courtyard would tumble down this open drain and then flow into the drainage canal, which would expel the water out of the city. The citadel section was built on higher ground that was 18 meters taller than the residential area. The public bathhouse and temple were prominent structures. Scores of people could bathe here at the same time. Tar was coated on the pool's bottom to make it waterproof. Priests and ordinary people would have walked down these steps to soak themselves in the pool of water. There was a drain at the bottom of the pool that could empty the water without requiring any heavy work. This area has distinct wet and dry seasons that would have compelled the people to worship water. They believed that water was a gift from the gods. So after a person bathed, he or she would walk through the interior corridor made of mud walls to reach the temple with reverence. This artifact depicts either a priest or a king and contains several clues. The bearded sculpture featured large lips. Its headband ornament was made from bronze. Draped over its shoulder was a coat with trefoil patterns, which were perhaps a symbol of the stars or a special day for gods. In order for a civilization to develop, there must be enough food production and a large population to consume it. Food storage, trade and the transportation of goods must be active. The Indus River supports these activities, and it continues to do so to this day. These expansive green plains extend as far as the eye can see. Many villagers continue to live in the same traditions as the ancient inhabitants of the Mahindra Dharam. They still build dwellings with mud bricks or mortar. Little has changed in the way they make bricks. Using their hands, they take a piece of mud from the pile, sprinkle it with fine sand, stick it into a rectangular mold and then take it out of the mold. The bricks are spaced evenly to prevent them from sticking to one another. They are sun-dried and baked at outdoor ovens. Rice husks are burned to heat the bricks for three days, at a relatively constant temperature of 800 degrees Celsius. When the baking process is finished, the bricks will make a tin-like noise. Just like the ones in the Mahindra Dharam ruins. Not only are bricks made using these ancient methods, but jars are also made this way. Made in the traditional way, these jars are called painted pottery. The jars have animal and plant drawings on them in red, white and black colors. We have been making these for 4,000 to 5,000 years. So people rely on the Indus River for fish and silt for their farmland, bricks and even jars. At the National Museum in Delhi, the capital of India, there are many Indus Valley artifacts on display. Many carnelian necklaces are found in the museum exhibits. Carnelian is a semi-precious stone found in India's Gujarat state. It is ground to give it a shiny luster. Women wore hip ornaments, necklaces and bracelets made from carnelian. These seals were quite novel discoveries, as they held important clues to the Indus Valley civilization. More than 4,000 seals made of mud or soft talc were found in the Indus Valley. Inscriptions or drawings of people and animals were commonly depicted on these Indus Valley seals. The unicorn was the most common theme on them. It could be deduced that the seals were printed on plates and other objects to denote ownership by the owner of the seal. And similar seals have also been found in the Mesopotamian civilization ruins in Iraq. Not only were similar animals depicted, but even the inscriptions and symbols were identical. What implications does this have? There were two overland routes. There was one overseas route. Trade is clearly established on the basis of archaeological finds and Mesopotamian literary records between Mesopotamia and Harappan civilization. And also between Harappan civilization and some of the Iranian civilization. And on the basis of hump bull motif, carnelian beads, acetate vessels. Which means that objects of Mesopotamian origin being found in Harappan and objects of Harappan origin being found in Mesopotamia clearly testify to the fact that there was trade. 4,500 years ago, it was likely that large boats sailed from the Indus River to the Arabian Sea. About 5 million people inhabited the banks of the Indus River, clustered in over 2,000 towns and villages. The goods they made were traded with other lands. Mesopotamia was the main trading place. Even though trade between the two civilizations was small, the land route linked the two. As trade volume grew, sea routes were established. Numerous trading cities sprung up along the route and the Mohenjo-daro was the most prominent city. Mohenjo-daro was the Manhattan of its time. Goods were bountiful in the streets and laborers toiled to carry them. Merchants made deals in tall buildings. There was drinkable water accessible everywhere at any time. But these ruins are all that remain of this once flourishing ancient civilization. The city suddenly vanished around 1800 BCE. No weapons were found in the ruins, making it unlikely that a war brought upon its collapse. There are no signs of destruction or fire damage. Then what caused the city's downfall? A river valley is the best possible location for a civilization or a city to exist. So when you find that a river has changed its course because of tectonic shifts, then obviously the city does not exist there. It ceases to exist. So tectonic movements, floods from the rivers, natural disasters, these are some of the causes which have been held responsible for the decline of the urban civilization. The Indian subcontinent has distinct climate patterns. Clouds full of moisture are pushed northward, where they meet the cold Himalayas that result in heavy rains. This causes the monsoon season. Monsoons begin every July, and it is considered as a gift of prosperity from the gods among Indians and Pakistanis. In 1800 BCE, however, the monsoon was weaker and changed the course of the river, directly impacting the fall of the civilization. Evidence of this occurrence remains today. There were 2,000 small towns and villages along the Indus River and the Gagarkhakra River in ancient times. But there is one ancient city that we have not highlighted yet. It is Dholavira, and it lies in the lower reaches of the Gagarkhakra River. India's Gujarat state receives annual precipitation of less than 400 mm, making it an extremely dry region. Hence most people make a living as cattle herders. How did an ancient civilization flourish in such a land without any arable land? Dholavira is the most recent discovery among Indus Valley's civilization ruins. Approaching the ruins, there are buildings made from stone masonry. This is the North Gate, the largest among the four city gates. Due to erosion over thousands of years, it is hard to discern the outline of the city. Unlike the brick buildings in Harappa and Mahenjodaro, here the buildings are made of stone and the dwellings have circular shapes. Its sewer system is elaborate like Mahenjodaro's. Like the system in Harappa and Mahenjodaro, wastewater from dwellings are channeled through waterways and pipes, dumped outside the city. There is one unique feature of Dholavira that is not found in other archaeological sites. The place is completely enclosed within stone walls that are 15 meters tall. This is an ancient reservoir. During the rainy season, some water will fill the reservoir and then evaporate during hot days. Evidence of this can be seen on the reservoir's bottom. Why were the inhabitants compelled to build a reservoir? After extensive excavation, 17 reservoirs were discovered. But how were the reservoirs filled to the brim with water in this dry region? Just a two-kilometer distance from Dholavira, there is clear evidence that the inhabitants of Dholavira that water once flowed through this barren land. The riverbed is as dry as the parched thorn bush. On closer inspection of the area, man-made rocks appear. This was an ancient dam. Long ago, there was a river here, and people built a dam to create a reservoir. The reservoir water was transported to Dholavira's center through man-made canals. It would fill the ancillary reservoirs, starting from the east to the west. Water was plentiful in the desert city of Dholavira all year round as it became a city of water. But around 1800 BCE, the Ghaggarhakra River suddenly dried up, and Dholavira could not escape the same fate. Now, this Saraswati is a mythical river, but many people try and identify it with the Ghaggarhakra River, which crosses through several states of India. Now, this river also dried up, and the civilizations which were located near the Ghaggarhakra Valley, in the Ghaggarhakra Valley, near the Ghaggarhakra River, those cities also disappeared. The Ghaggarhakra River spawned a civilization and directly caused its downfall. A large marsh was formed in the place where the river disappeared. This wetland paradise for birds comprises 20,000 square kilometers. The shores where the river once flowed into the Arabian Sea also changed radically. Pools of ocean water accumulated on the flat shores, evaporating under the 50 degree Celsius heat in the summer. They became salt fields. This sudden transformation of their environment probably shocked the inhabitants of Dholavira. Before the river dried up, Dholavira was a beautiful island where fresh water and salt water mixed. After the Ghaggarhakra River dried up, however, the ocean waves from the Arabian Sea deposited sand and pebbles, and then the mouth of the Ghaggarhakra River became a lake. When temperatures climbed, the lake evaporated. Now, the lake bed is indistinguishable. Once, this place was populated with hundreds of thousands of people. Today, only several hundreds of people live in the Dholavira village. The large well on the outskirts supports the village. The width of the well alone is 4.1 meters. To the villagers of Dholavira, this well is their lifeline. Therefore, they make sure not to waste the water. Their livelihoods depend on water, and its significance cannot be overstated. Even today, water is at the core of their cultural roots. So, naturally, the people worship water. Once, a river as wide as the ocean existed here. But in the present, it has dried up. As the hot weather continued unabated, the Ghaggarhakra River vanished, creating a crisis for the inhabitants of Dholavira. In this desperate situation, the people were likely to have prayed for rain in their holy temples. But their gods did not grant their prayers. The monsoon stopped coming in July, and the land became parched. Without rain, the river ceased to exist, making it impossible for Dholavira, the city of water, to carry on trade with other cities. It meant the collapse of the city. Dholavira's gloomy fate was made even worse. Around 1500 BCE, when Dholavira was steadily in decline, Aryan tribes from Central Asia invaded the city. To flee this threat, the descendants of the Indus Valley civilization were forced to migrate eastward. Krins were Central Asian nomads who became early adopters of iron technology. They claimed they were civilized people and began to invade the Indus Valley on horseback. The marauding tribes probably brought great suffering to the people of Harappa, Mahenjodaro, Dholavira, on similar magnitude of the long droughts. Aryans became the rulers of India, but a power struggle quickly emerged, erupting into an internecine tribal war that went on for a long period. The accounts of this struggle were recorded in the Mahabharata, and the epic tales of the heroes reached mythical proportions to become the foundation of Hinduism. The myths that originated from the Indus Valley were merged into Hinduism and became known as myths connected to the Ganges. In the present day, 90% of Indians are Hindu followers. Indians believe that the Ganges is a mythical river and they revere it as the Mother River. As the largest Hindu holy city, Varanasi is located on the banks of the Ganges in the northeastern region of India. Every day, thousands of people visit the banks of the Ganges to bathe in the water. Indians believe that they can cleanse their impure spirits in this holy river. According to Hindu texts, the Ganges flow down from the heavens along the hair of a god. Therefore, Hindu followers believe that the Ganges is linked to the heavens and they can also join the heavenly world after death if they keep their souls pure. Having one's ashes scattered in the Ganges upon death is considered a great blessing among Indians. Ganges and Indus River flow in different directions hundreds of miles apart from each other. But they share the same historical roots originating from the Indus Valley civilization. 4,500 years ago, the world's largest city was located in the Indus Valley. The city's outskirts encompassed 2,000 towns and villages that altogether comprised the same area as France. During a time of long peace, they were prosperous. Later on in history, this early civilization suffered from natural disasters and invaders. After a prolonged period of suffering, they resettled around the Ganges. Today, rivers are a symbol of India's ancient culture and history that are closely embedded in the lives of Indians. The country takes great pride in the splendor of the Indus Valley civilization.