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Dwarka, one of the best-studied underwater sites in India, has commanded much attraction, also because the site is considered as one of the four Dhamas (sacred place for pilgrimage) of the Hindu religion. According to ancient Sanskrit literature, the Lord Krishna founded the holy city of Dwarka, which subsequently got submerged under sea.
Since 1983 the Marine Archaeology Unit of the National
Institute of Oceanography is engaged in the offshore exploration and excavation
of the legendary city of Dwaraka in the coastal waters of Dwaraka in Gujarat..Marine
archaeological explorations off Dwarka have brought to light a large number of
stone structures, which are semicircular, rectangular and square in shape in
water depth ranging from inter tidal zone to 36 metres (120 feet).
They are randomly scattered over a vast area. Besides
these structures, a large number of varieties of stone anchors have been
noticed along the structures as well as beyond 36 m water depth. These findings
suggest that Dwarka was one of the most busy port centers during the past on
the west coast of India. The comparative study of surrounding sites indicates
that the date of the structures of Dwarka may be between Historical period and
late medieval period.
Yet the ruins below the Gulf of Cambay go back at least 9
thousand years, i.e. to the time when the area submerged under water. Many rock
like this can be found near sea. It clearly seems a man made piece of wall This
means that the city must have existed before the flooding, i.e. at least 9
thousand years ago. The explorations conducted in the Gulf of Cambay waters
revealed sandstone walls, a grid of streets and some evidence of a sea port 70
feet under water. The ruins have been proclaimed the remains of the legendary
lost city of Dwarka which, according to ancient Hindu texts, was the dwelling
place of the deity known as Krishna.
Dwaraka inundated by tsunami?
Could a tsunami have struck the coast of Gujarat to drown
the ancient city of Dwaraka? Experts and others closely associated with the
discovery of the lost city off the coast of Saurashtra don't discount this
possibility. They speak of the Mahabharata talking about the sea suddenly
engulfing the city after Lord Krishna's disappearance and Arjuna taking
Krishna's grandsons to Hastinapura.
According to the Srimad-Bhagavatam, 11th Canto, Krishna
sends a message to the people of Dwaraka. He tells them that once he leaves
this world, there would be no one on this earth to save Dwaraka. The sea would
finish Dwaraka and hence he asks the 56 crore Yaduvamsis to leave Dwaraka.
Lost City of Dwarka Found under Water
According to ancient Hindu texts Dwarka was attacked with
a flying machine Vimana. It is the description of the battle that draws the
attention of the ancient aliens theorists, as it seems to suggest it was fought
with sophisticated technology and advanced weapons, potentially even with a
craft attacking from the orbit.
The space craft commenced an attack on the city
with the use of energy weapons, which to the on-lookers resembled a discharge
of a lightning, and it was so devastating that after the attack most of the
city lay in ruins. Lord Krishna counterattacked and fired his weapons on the
ship. They looked like arrows yet they roared like a thunder and shone like
rays of the Sun when released. Until recently the very existence of the city of
Dwarka was a matter of legends. Now, that the remains have been discovered
under water, and with many clues seeming to suggest that this, indeed, is the
legendary Dwarka, dwelling place of lord Krishna, could it be that lord Krishna
and his aerial battle with king Salva were more than just a legend? The
implications of accepting the archeologists’ finds as proof that the sunken
city is indeed the legendary Dwarka would be very significant for the
understanding of what the Mahabharata is. It would no longer be merely a book
of myths and legends, but in fact, at least to some extent, a genuine account
of past events.
According to the BBC’s Tom Housden, reporting on the Cambay
find: The vast city — which is five miles long and two miles wide — is believed
to predate the oldest known remains in the subcontinent by more than 5,000
years. The site was discovered by chance last year by oceanographers from
India’s National Institute of Ocean Technology, who were conducting a survey of
pollution. Debris recovered from the site — including construction material,
pottery, sections of walls, beads, sculpture, and human bones and teeth — has
been carbon dated and found to be nearly 9,500 years old (BBC article). Even if
we don’t know what the cultural background of the people is, if it does happen
to be a city that is 9500 years old, that is older than the Sumerian
civilization by several thousand years. It is older than the Egyptian, older
than the Chinese. So it would radically affect our whole picture of the development
of urban civilization on this planet.
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