He who surveys it in the highest heaven,

He surely knows—or maybe He does not!

Three thousand years later, the same dilemma continues to confront historians, archaeologists and all those who believe that the past contains important lessons for the future. To know what might have happened in the past is possible although to reproduce it in its entirety is impossible. The information gaps can be attempted to be filled with data collected through the objective use of scientific methods. With advancements in technology, we have come to know a lot more about the past than we did even two decades ago.

Archaeological sciences today comprise varied techniques and interdisciplinary collaborations such as organic residue analysis, isotope dating, pollen analysis and Lidar (light detection and ranging), these allow us to extract new information from existing archaeological findings but also enable the identification of entire habitations that have hitherto lain undiscovered right under the ground beneath our feet.

The region lying between the Ganga and Yamuna is rich in archaeological findings, indicating that the area has been populated for millennia, a fact now corroborated not by archaeology alone. Modern scientific methods are gradually becoming interdisciplinary. One such field is vegetation history and archaeobotany. The botanical history of a region can give us vital clues about the evolution of particular societies. The history of pollen found from a certain site helps us understand the changes that have occurred over time and, crucially, can tell us when people evolved from foraging to farming. In fact, pollen analysis in the Gangetic plains has revealed that farming in the region began around 5000 BCE.

Did Aryans come from outside India or were they an indigenous tribe that eventually spread to different parts of the world? The science of DNA analysis has provided evidence that shows that there were at least two big migrations into the Indian subcontinent in the last 10 millennia. But, it is unlikely that this would be accepted by those who believe the Indian Vedic culture is entirely indigenous. This constant struggle between sciences and beliefs, between reasoned and fair inquiries and efforts that set out to prove legends and myths is something that we as Indians have been grappling with ever since the Ayodhya dispute became mainstream in the late 1980s.

The discipline of archaeology finds itself helpless when it becomes a tool in the hands of vested interests. When called upon to undertake surveys to ascertain the history of a site with multiple histories such as Ayodhya or the latest, the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi, its role instantly becomes one of proving or disproving the dominant narrative. In the past, it has been the personal zeal of certain archaeologists themselves that has led to probes to discover material evidence of myths and epics. BB Lal, who retired as director general of the Archaeological Survey of India, led a post-retirement project funded by the ASI to work on the archaeology of Ramayana sites.

The science of unearthing

The role of an archaeologist is to create plausible scenarios of the past using art history, analysis of architectural elements and newer techniques. A typical archaeological excavation involves laying trenches in a site and gradually clearing it layer by layer.

It has to be remembered that in such excavations whatever is found becomes evidence only when a rigorous procedure of documentation is followed, and when the find is situated in its context i.e. the relevant strata or the layer of soil deposit.

For instance, in the ongoing matter over the Gyanvapi mosque, ASI has reportedly found certain fragments of alleged idols in a heap of debris in the vicinity of the mosque. These, the Muslim custodians say, may have been dumped there by sculptors who worked in shops in the distant past. The Hindu side refutes this. As the only official technical body, the ASI will be expected to take a stand on this. However, it is clear that as these finds have been discovered in a heap of debris and not through scientific and documented excavation these cannot ever be considered as evidence of any nature whatsoever.

Read also: Explained: Decoding ASI’s Gyanvapi mosque survey report

This brings us to a larger question: What is the role of archaeology in today’s India and is it capable of staying neutral and rigorous while conducting probes to ascertain the historicity of sites with confluent histories? Archaeology's basic and constitutive principle is historical conservation, this is present in several laws and statutes, including, in a sense, the Places of Worship Act, 1991. Even if there is incontrovertible evidence, archaeology cannot become a weapon to address imaginary or real wrongs of the past. Throughout India, beneath several religious sites including temples, it is likely that we will find evidence of other religious structures. Are we prepared to go down the path of excavating every site that is contested today or might become contested in the future? India's history is a confluence of peoples, religions, races, and languages. It is foolhardy to imagine a pristine past that belonged to a particular religion before it was sullied by invaders or interlopers. India remains a patchwork quilt and therefore any attempt to remove one patch will dissever the whole.

The ASI’s findings also point to this irrefutable fact. Take, for example, the Ashokan pillar located inside the Allahabad fort. It carries Ashokan edicts, the eulogy of Samudragupta, and another inscription of Feroz Shah Tughlaq — whose mother, Naila, was a Bhatti Rajput. The inscriptions end with a gorgeously chiselled genealogy of another emperor, Jahangir. The pillar is a testimony to the layered history of India as it encapsulates the past over three millennia, in three languages and by three different emperors. It is an object of great honour and pride as it shows the continuity of great cultures. We are a land of confluence, and any dig into our ever-elusive past will always point to this as the big picture. We must never lose sight of that.

Valay Singh is the author of Ayodhya: City of Faith, City of Discord. He is currently working on a biography of Varanasi. The views expressed are personal.