NORTH-EAST INDIA IN THE ANCIENT INDIAN LITERARY IMAGINATION: FROM THE VEDIC AGE TO THE CLASSICAL PERIOD

Abstract:
In the trajectory of Sanskritization, or the propagation of Hinduism across the Indian subcontinent, the North-Eastern territories were incorporated into this transformative progression. The indigenous rulers and their populace were assimilated into the framework of Hinduism through the sponsorship of monarchs and the institutionalized 'Agrahara' mechanism. The tribal deities were subsequently depicted as integral manifestations of Shiva, Vishnu, and Shakti veneration within the Puranic Hindu epoch. To integrate the inhabitants into the principal current of Indian civilization, Puranas were formulated and linked to the two monumental epics, Ramayana and Mahabharata. Allusions to North-East India are likewise encountered in other ancient Indian canonical compositions and within Buddhist scriptures in connection with political, societal, and economic affiliations. Although abundant primary sources pertaining to ancient North-East India remain comparatively scarce relative to other territories of India, these Indian literary testimonies illuminate the prevailing circumstances of that era. These evidences remain inadequate for a comprehensive historical reconstruction; nevertheless, they furnish substantial information, associations, and the geopolitical positioning of North-East India during that specific epoch.

Keywords: North-East India, Sanskritization, Canonical Literature, Epics