Cremation, Caste, and Cosmogony in Karmic Traditions.

creative act in world-history – unless the European
discovery of America – has in so short a time matched
this astonishing triumph” (Wheeler 1968:64). Ronald
Inden has raised a sustainable critique of the Indological
branch of the “orientalist discourse” (Inden 2000),
challenging the inherit notion of essentialism in social
science. Indology has been a part of Orientalism whose
aim has been to prove the superiority of the West and the
Western cultures. Orientalism presents itself as
knowledge that is both different from, and superior to,
the knowledge the Orientals have of themselves, and as
such the discourse is executing powers of dominance
(Said 1979). This tradition of thought has to some extent
prevailed in the discourse, particularly regarding the
development of the classical Greece. Seeing the West
from the East reveals another picture, and the most
striking feature is the cultural similarity and mutual
exchange of ideas. I will therefore stress the need to see
the developments in the East and the West as mutually
dependent upon each other. Whatever the reasons were
for the conflicts between the Persians and the Greeks,
after Alexander’s conquest there seems to have been
tolerance and mutual respect across the religions, and
Taxila is an example par excellence of the syncretism in
both practices and material culture.
Taxila and historical sources
If one is going to discuss the ways water has been a
medium in society and cosmos through which different
interpretations have structured and enabled a discourse
or a horizon of mutual interrelatedness and exchange of
ideas despite the differences in beliefs and practices, one
has to analyse complex sites which are well excavated
and documented. Taxila is such a site where at least
Buddhism, Jainism, Brahmanism, Zoroastrianism, and
Greek religion and philosophy were prevalent.
Taxila is located in today’s Pakistan, north of Islamabad
(fig. 17.1). The town lies in the Indus Valley. In its time
it was a trade centre and a cosmopolitan town with
university and numerous religious institutions. John
Marshall conducted excavations at Taxila from 1913 to
1934 (Marshall 1951a, b, c), and he notes that at Taxila,
“there was something appealingly Greek in the
countryside itself” (Marshall 1951a:xvii). Taxila was
probably one of the earliest towns in India to come under
Greek rule for a second time (Tarn 1902:274). It covered
both the trade route upon Bactria in Afghanistan but also
a second route to central Asia by way of Kashmir. Its
location gave easy access to the Indus systems and
therefore to the Arabian Sea and alternatively to the Red
Sea and the Persian Gulf. Archaeologically, Taxila is the
most extensively excavated city-cite on the subcontinent.
The three successive urban settlements of Taxila – Bhir,
Sirkap, and Sirsukh – are stretching the history of Taxila
from the sixth century BCE to the fifth, and even the
seventh century CE. There were no less than twelve
cities alltogether, destroyed by wars and rebuilt again.
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The first four of them were located on the Bhir Mound
on which Alexander the Great took up his quarters. At
the beginning of the second century BCE the city was
shifted from the Bhir Mound to Sirkap, and by the close
of the first century CE the city was again changed from
Sirkap to Sirsukh (Marshall 1951a).
Taxila was not a polis in the Greek term (Tarn
1938:136). Most scholars have assumed that there was
an essential difference between the Greek polis and the
“oriental” city, and most often the discussions have
focused on whether or not the cities on the Indian subcontinent
could be viewed as a polis in the traditional
meaning of the word (van der Spek 1987:57). Such
discussions may reveal some insights into the processes
of cultural dynamics, but most often not. I will therefore
focus on syncretism and mutual exchange of cultural and
religious impulses by emphasising that there are no real
or “pure” cultures, but a bricolage of meanings and
different webs of significance which are woven into each
other. The main problem and obstacle is therefore the
complexity of ritual scenarios that are manifested in the
material culture. All religions change through history,
and consequently the material expressions may or may
not change in accordance with the ritual and scriptural
changes. What seems apparent from Taxila is, however,
a general tolerance for other religions and beliefs among
the inhabitants since different practices and rituals were
performed side by side by different devotees. Thus, my
aim is to approach the past by analysing parts of the
material at Taxila from a life-giving water and mortuary
perspective emphasising funeral practices and how the
different religious practices have mutually influenced
each other. The question of karma will be touched upon,
but as will be evident, without historical sources such a
topic is difficult to deal with based on excavated
material solely. Taxila is a complex site, but through an
analysis of material culture combined with a careful use
of written sources one may get a glimpse of the cultural
processes and dynamics at work.
Starting with the traditional king, the important roles of
the king in Babylonia can be summarised as such: 1) to
protect his people from devastation by war, 2) to
guarantee and provide water supply, and 3) to ensure
that the temples can carry out their important rituals
which secure the divine protection (Kuhrt 1987:30). One
may assume that these tasks were common for most
kings, including those ruling at Taxila.
Taxila was reckoned by the ancient writers to be located
a three days’ walk from the Indus (Marshall 1951a:2).
Taxila is mentioned in Ramayana, Mahabharata, and in
Buddhist and Jain literature (Marshall 1951a:11). Taxila
is, however, most famous for its conquest by Alexander
the Great in 326 BCE. Arrian writes, “Taxilês
surrendered into his hands his capital Taxila, the greatest
of all the cities between the river Indus and the
Hydaspês.