Swaveda
Indian history, plainly written.
A short daily post on Indian history — archaeology, genetics, historical linguistics, and the texts. Plus side-by-side translations of public-domain primary works. Plain language; no chest-thumping in either direction.
Plain language
Aimed at any curious reader, not the seminar room. Sanskrit / Pali / Tamil terms get a gloss on first use.
Tradition ≠ evidence
“The Mahabharata describes…” and “the Mahabharata war happened in…” are different sentences, and we don’t silently merge them.
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Latest articles
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The Intaglios of Pattanam: What Gemstone Stratigraphy Tells Us About Early Chera Ports
Recent stratigraphic excavations of Mediterranean-style intaglios and raw debitage at Pattanam challenge the old narrative of Roman-dominated trade networks in the Indian Ocean.
Rohan Bhattacharya · Sep 25, 2026
The Ancestors of the Biobank: How 'Stairway Plot v3' Scales Up the Search for Ancient Indian Population Bottlenecks
A new computational tool solves the math problem of analyzing massive genomic datasets without relying on rigid historical models, pinpointing the timing of ancient South Asian population bottlenecks.
Dr. Anil Patel · Sep 25, 2026
The Carnelian of Sanjan: What Early Medieval Kiln Stratigraphy and Waste Flakes Reveal About Gujarat’s Bead Exports
Excavations at the early medieval port of Sanjan reveal stratified bead-making waste and kiln layers, providing physical proof of Gujarat's historic maritime trade with West Asia.
Rohan Bhattacharya · Sep 24, 2026
The Stambha in Stone: What Epigraphic Grammar and Sanchi’s Pillars Reveal About Early Indian Sacred Space
An analysis of early Indian epigraphy and archaeology tracing the shift from temporary wooden sacrificial posts to permanent stone columns, correcting common social media misattributions of Sanchi's monuments.
Meera Iyer · Sep 24, 2026
The Cotton of the Indus: What the Silver Vase of Mohenjo-daro Reveals About the World’s Oldest Dyed Textile
How a tiny scrap of purple-red fabric preserved on a prehistoric silver jar reveals the sophisticated chemical knowledge of the Bronze Age Indus Civilization.
Kavya Sharma · Sep 23, 2026
Recent translations
All texts →Sanskrit
Arthashastra
Chapter 150 · Book 15, Chapter 1: Paragraphical Divisions of This Treatise
Updated Jul 26, 2026
Sanskrit
Arthashastra
Chapter 149 · Book 14, Chapter 4: Remedies against the Injuries of One's Own Army
Updated Jul 26, 2026
Sanskrit
Arthashastra
Chapter 148 · Book 14, Chapter 3: The Application of Medicines and Mantras
Updated Jul 26, 2026
A note on tone
Swaveda is curious, careful, and dry. There’s no civilizational chest-thumping in either direction here — no “Vedic India invented everything,” no “everything came from outside.” If we get something wrong, tell us. We fix it visibly, with a dated note.