We have heard of the golden city of Lanka. Where did Ravan get his gold from? Was Ramayana the story of Aryans in search of gold?
Gold is, after all, a recurring theme in the epic. A golden plough is used by Janaka in the field where he finds Sita. Sita loves the golden deer that she forces Ram to chase. When abducted, Sita drops her golden jewellery, leaving a trail of gold for Ram to follow.
And, of course, Hanuman discovers that Ravan’s island-city is made of gold. It was built by Ravan’s brother Kubera, the king of treasures, master of metal and gems.
We assume metal was easily available in ancient India. But the truth is metal was a precious commodity in ancient times, and a major trade commodity that led to the vast trading networks of the Bronze Age from Egypt through Persia to Indus river valleys.
In the ancient world dominated by Mesopotamia, copper came from the west (Turkey) and tin from the east (Central Asia), which allowed the smelting of bronze. Harappan cities had mostly copper vessels and few bronze vessels. Arsenic was mostly used rather than tin, indicating that the latter was a rare commodity. The discovery of tin in Central Asia probably sparked the rise of the Oxus civilisation, which perhaps eclipsed Harappan cities by 2000 BCE.
In Rig Veda, dated to 1500 BCE, there is a reference to ‘ayas’ (metal), which means copper. But Atharva Veda, dated to 1000 BCE, refers to ‘Krishna ayas’ indicating iron. Many tribes in ancient India had figured out how to extract iron. Aryans thus brought horses from Eurasia, but sought the iron of tribes in the east, in the Gangetic plains.
With an iron axe, it was possible to clear dense forests. With an iron plough, it was easier to establish fields. This led to the rise of cities in the Gangetic plains by 500 BCE. The top trade commodities at this time were cotton, iron (sourced from eastern India), gold and silver (obtained from Central Asia and beyond).
In the east, in later times, we hear of asuras like Gaya, who was so great that in his rule no one died. So, the gods tricked him to lie on the ground and performed yagna on his body. His bones turned into metal. Gaya’s path links Bihar to Odisha.
The availability of iron, and later steel, in Bihar, and elephants, enabled the rise of India’s first empire — the Magadha empire. Gold and silver, much sought by all, was not available locally. Its quest led to the search for the famous city of yakshas and rakshasas.
Originating in Jharkhand and flowing through Odisha is a river called Subarnarekha (a streak of gold). When the river water is filtered, you get gold. This is the oldest source of gold in India. South of the Subarnarekha flows the Mahanadi, which originates in Chhattisgarh. On its banks is the city of Subarnapur (golden city) where people worship Lankeswari.
This region is known for its Sal trees, a tree that as per the oldest manuscripts of Valmiki Ramayan was found in Ravan’s Lanka. No Sal tree grows in south India, certainly not in Sri Lanka. So, could western Odisha, or the jungles of Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh, full of tribal communities, be the original Lanka, city of gold, where Ram encountered vanars and rakshasas?
The local tribes are convinced that they descended from Ravan’s ancestor, Paulatsya, and in Chhattisgarh we find many statues of Ravan raised by local communities. This was the land of gold. Was it sought by Aryans of the Gangetic plains? Did it inspire the Ramayana? It certainly inspired Ashoka, the Mauryan, to invade Kalinga 2,300 years ago.
Devdutt Pattanaik is an Indian physician turned leadership consultant, mythologist, author and communicator whose works focus largely on the areas of myth, religion, mythology, and management.
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