In this article, we shall discuss the location of Mathura. In part one of this article, we have already tried to establish that the Mitsrayim of the Bible was located at Chanu Daro in Sind.
In this part, we shall try to establish that the Mathura of Lord Krishna was also located at the same site as Chanu Daro. Therefore, Chanu Daro was the center from which Lord Krishna on the one side went westward to Israel at the end of his life, and on the other hand, his descendants went eastward.
‘Mathura in Bhagwat Purana’
In the story of ‘Bhagwat Purana’ Mahatmya Khand, ‘Vajranabha’, great-grandson of Krishna, was ruling over Mathura. He lamented that he was ruling over a deserted area. He did not know where the population of this area had gone. Upon this, Sage ‘Shandilya’ said to him, “Here alone is that Braj land where Krishna continues to take place secretly. You settle many villages here and give them names per Krishna’s doings. You correctly identify the places of the Lord’s doings by my blessing.”
‘Vajranabha’ re-identified the places associated with Lord Krishna at Mathura because it says you correctly identify the places of the Lord’s doings. So, what is the need to identify areas of the Lord’s doing? If the Lord’s doing were very well known, after all, Krishna was not an ordinary soul. And if Krishna has done so many things in Mathura, like killing Kamsa, and there were palaces and other things, how come everything became deserted and no one knew where Mathura was?
Location of Mathura
As per my study, the Mathura which ‘Vajranabha’ was lamenting about was located in Uttar Pradesh and the original Mathura was located somewhere in Sind. The key to this suggestion is the flow of the river. It is well established that Mathura was located on the banks of the Yamuna. Now the Yamuna used to earlier flow westward from Yamuna Nagar and it was known as Chautang, then Ghaggar, then Hakra, and finally, it used to go into the Rann of Kutch. But sometime between 2000 and 1500 BCE, the Yamuna changed its course and it started to move south from Yamuna Nagar, then turned eastward from Agra and finally joined the Ganga at Prayagraj. So, the Yamuna shifted from west to east. It is only logical that Mathura, which was located on the banks of the Yamuna, would also be shifted from the west to the east. Otherwise, one should have no Mathura either at Chanu Daro or in Uttar Pradesh.
Shift in the course of Yamuna
We have two Yamuna, one going to the west and one to the east. But we cannot have two Mathura because Lord Krishna lived at one Mathura, and that is to be located either on the western river or on the eastern river.
Geologist Valdiya in his study showed how the Yamuna changed its course near Yamuna Nagar and as a result, the Yamuna flowing on the west became a series of ponds. Near Hanumangarh we can see that this is a huge river that has converted into a series of ponds. Proof of this shifting of the Yamuna is available in no less than the ‘Bhagwat Purana’ in 10th Skand and chapter 39. It is narrated that at one time Kamsa wanted to kill Krishna and Balram, so he sent Akroor to Gokul to bring the two brothers to Mathura so that he could have them killed. As Krishna and Balram were traveling with Akroor, they stopped at one place and the ‘Bhagwat Purana’ says that Akroor took a dip in the pond of the Yamuna. Now the question is, how could the Yamuna become a pond? The Yamuna could become a pond only when it stopped flowing. This is exactly what happened to the west-flowing Yamuna in 1500 BCE, as we have explained. So, the two things match. Yamuna started to flow towards the east. The western stream of the Yamuna was converted into a series of ponds, like the one that we have seen at Hanumangarh and Akroor took a dip in one of those ponds.
Archaeological evidence
Now, we will see the archaeological evidence. Vinay Kumar Gupta has undertaken a detailed study of the archaeological sites near Mathura. He writes that charcoal samples from ‘Goshna’ have been dated to 2150 BCE. These are the earliest known dates from anywhere near the ‘Braj’. However, evidence of structures is only available from the Shunga and Kushan periods towards the end of the first millennium BCE. Now, what this means is that nomads used to wander, and they used to stop someplace. They used to burn some wood, and those charcoal samples were found. But habitation of a city like Mathura requires that you have to make cities of structured houses, streets, and palaces. What Gupta is saying is that evidence for such habitation is not available till the Shunga and Kushan period, which is about 200 to 300 years before Christ. So, the question is, if there is no archaeological evidence at the current Mathura in Uttar Pradesh, how can we say that this place was the original Mathura of Lord Krishna?
On the other hand. As we had mentioned, Chanu Daro was a city that survived till about 1500 BCE, and in the Illustrated London News of 1928, there is a beautiful picture of the items that were produced in Chanu Daro. And this includes axes and spears. Chanu Daro was a manufacturing hub and it was manufacturing metal implements for the Indus Valley.
Conclusion
So, the point is that both from the archaeological standpoint and the geographical standpoint, we find that the Mathura of Uttar Pradesh did not have archaeological evidence at 1500 BCE. It also does not have Yamuna flowing near it at 1500 BCE. On the other hand, at the site of Chanu Daro, we have archaeological evidence as well as the Yamuna flowing. Therefore, we should think about whether the original Mathura of Lord Krishna was located at Chanu Daro rather than the present Mathura.
I want to make it clear that moving Lord Krishna from modern-day Mathura to Chanu Daro does not lessen his majesty or significance. We should be able to present proof from archaeology and other fields if we need to persuade people that Lord Krishna was a real person who once lived on Earth, and Chanu Daro has such evidence. Thus, Lord Krishna’s majesty can only be enhanced if we can substantiate his earthly deeds with archaeological proof.
As we have shown in the previous part of this article, Mitsrayim was also located at Chanu Daro. So please read both parts and provide us with your critical comments so that we can come to the truth of where Lord Krishna’s Mathura was located.
Hindi Article: https://www.ekishwar.in/was-krishnas-mathura-located-in-sindh/
See full Video: https://youtu.be/CbC9ldEKc2U
Spotify Link: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/bharat-jjj/episodes/Was-Lord-Krishnas-Mathura-located-in-Sindh-e2p8o87