Hastinapura

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Hastinapura (Sanskrit: हस्‍तिनापुर) (Hastinapur in Hindi) is the capital of the kingdom of the Kauravas, belonging to the Kuru dynasty of kings. The throne of this city was the prize over which the Kurukshetra War of the epic Mahabharata was fought. All incidents in the epic Mahabharata have taken place in this city of Hastinapura. The first reference to Hastinapur in Hindu mythology comes as the capital of Emperor Bharata.

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[edit] Present day location

In the present day Hastinapura is a small town in the Doab region of Uttar Pradesh, called Hastinapur, 37 km from Meerut and 120km from Delhi. Geographical Details : Situated at 29 degree 09'31.50 degree North & 77 degree 59'19.46" East. Hastinapur is 120 KM North-East of Delhi on Delhi-Meerut-Bijnore Highway. You need to take a turn to Bijnore highway from Meerut from where Hastinapur is approx 39 KM away. Road is good & clean (average speed is 50 KM/hour) & green with trees and agricultural farms both sides. Hastinapur is a small town. Population is aprox. 20,000. Regular buses are available from 7 AM to 9 PM from Meerut which is the nearest Railway station (42km). Nearest Airport: New Delhi. (120 km)

[edit] Brief history

Historical Details : Hastinapura = Hastin (elephent) + pura (city) = city named after the elephants. History of this place begins from the period of Mahabharata. It is also described as Gajpur, Hastinapur, Nagpur, Asandivat, Brahmasthal, Shanti Nagar and Kunjarpur etc in Shashtras. Grandson of Samrat Ashok, king Samprati has built many temples here during his empire. The ancient temple & the stoops are not present today since this city has come across through many ups & downs. Hastinapur city was located on the eariler course of the of holy river Ganga.

Excavation at Hastinapur was carried out in early 1950s, by B.B. Lal, of the Archaeological Survey of India. Although the main aim of this excavation, mentioned by Lal himself, "was to find out the stratigraphic position of the Painted Grey Ware with reference to other known ceramic industries of the early historical period"1, Lal could not resist attempting a correlation between Mahabharata, the text, and the material remains that he uncovered at Hastinapur. This exercise led him to historicize some of the traditions mentioned in the text, as well as link the appearance of the Painted Grey Ware with the arrival of the "Aryans" in upper Ganga basin areas.

Bharata's Lineage: - Rulers of Hastinapura as per epic Mahabharata:

[edit] Places to stay

Dharamshala: Dharmashalas are managed by Shwetambar Trust consist of 400 rooms in it with the facility of Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner. 100 delux and 300 general rooms are provided by the Digambar Mandir Trust. Another dharmashala of 38 delux rooms is available. Food is provided as per the intimation. GUEST HOUSE: Guest house is a beautiful Banglow in the forest surrounded by the green trees. It is managed by Forest Department. It is vary close to the office of Forest Ranger situatued in the town.

[edit] Places to visit

[edit] Jain temples

Acharya (teacher) of Kharatargatchh Shri Jinchandrasuriji has described 4 stoops (pillars) at the time of his visit in VS 1627. Muni Shri Soubhagya Vijayji has visited this place in 18th century of VS and described about three stoops (pillars). The Shwetambar temple is renovated recently & the re-establishment (pratishtha) took place on Margshirsh Shukla 10 of VS 2021. Re-establishment (pratishtha) of Digambar temple took place in VS 1863. Digambar Jain Bada Mandir and Old Pandeshwer Temple was renovated by Gurjar king Nain Singh. Old Pandeshwer Temple: Its an old temple of Lord Shiva, situted in the ruins of old Hastinapur.

[edit] Hastinapur National Park

(Best Time:October to February)

Dense forest of Hastinapur lies astride the canal. It is rich in faunal wealth because of the various types of ecological niches existing in the reserve. The main groups occur are mammals, birds, reptiles (snakes and lizards), amphibians (frogs & toads) butterflies and fishes, and chiefly the invertebrate groups are, the Scorpions, Centipedes, Odonata (dragon & damselflies), Hymenoptera (wasps, bees, etc.) Isoptera (termites) and Lepidoptera which comprises more than 60 species. Our National Bird Peacock is found here in abundance. Other inhabitants include the sloth bear, jackal, wild pig and the lesser cats- fishing cat, leopard cat, jungle cat, monkeys and civet.

Hastinapur has also an abundance of birds. Water reserve near river Ganga is one of the major wintering areas for large numbers of aquatic birds from Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, China and Siberia. Over 230 species of birds are known to have made the National Park their home. Some 364 species of birds, including the rare Siberian Crane, have been recorded in the park.The sanctuary hosts a small wintering population of the rare Siberian Cranes. Last year most of the birds here as an alternate avenue to Bharatpur's Keoladeo National Park. Other species include the ruddy shelducks, gulls, northern shovelers, northern pintails, coots, garganey, tufted ducks and common pochard. There are spectacular painted storks, black and white necked storks, sarus cranes and varied night birds of prey, ranging from the great Indian horned owl to the jungle owlet, Colorful woodpeckers, barbets, kingfishers, minivets, bee eaters and bulbuls flit through the forest canopy.

The antiquity of the present location of Hastinapur is testified by the existence of ancient Shiva-lingas worshipped by the venerable Best of Munis, Sage Ved Vyas, by the Pandavas, by Draupadi, and Guru Dronacharya. Presence of the township of Parikshitgarh, close by at a distance of 10 miles, further solidifies the definite geographical location of Hastinapur. The town of Parikshitgarh is named after the grandson of Arjuna, who became king of Hastinapur when the five brothers renounced the world and went into the Himalayas. Both the towns are similarly located on small hillocks which were the original fortresses at these locations. A massive inundation about 3000 yrs ago during a great flood in the Ganges totally drowned the cities and left them choked with silt upto roof level. 1 B.B. Lal, ' Excavation at Hastinapur and other explorations in the Upper Ganga and Sutlej Basins 1950-52', Ancient India, No. 10&11, 1954 & 1955, ASI, New Delhi.

The Mahabharata by Krishna Dwaipayana Vyasa
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