Odisha Of Yore

Ancient Odisha’s connection with Ceylon, the modern-day Sri Lanka, ran deep. Some historians believe Vijaya, the first king of Simhala, was from Simhapura, the capital of Kalinga. When emperor Ashoka decided to send his daughter Sanghamitra…

The placid Chilika lake has been reduced to a mesh of prawn farming nets these days. In its glory days, which spanned many centuries across the pre-and early Christian era, it was an important hub of global maritime trade. Port towns around…

Kalinga was a maritime superpower. It means ancient Odias were proficient at ship-building and had sound knowledge of the seasonal winds. While contemporary and later-day literary accounts are replete with mention of the trading activities…

What did the sadhavas carry in their magnificent boats? Historical evidence suggests the cargo consisted of ivory, textiles, precious stones, rice and betel nuts among other items. Elephants from Odisha were in great demand in Sri Lanka. It…

Kalinga war, which historians place around 261 BC, was Mauryan emperor Ashoka’s only major military offensive. The reason was not his desire to acquire the ravishing commoner Karuvaki as mythology would have it, but a cool-headed strategic…

Ancient Odisha’s dominance of the sea was so overwhelming that that the Bay of Bengal came to be identified solely with Kalinga. Mahayana text Araya Manjusri Mulakalpa, believed to have been compiled in the sixth century AD, refers to Bay…