134-594: Muir Central College in Prayagraj (formerly Allahabad) in northern India was a college of higher education founded by William Muir in 1872. It had a separate existence to 1921, when as a result of the Allahabad University Act it was merged into University of Allahabad . The buildings (1872–1886) were a design by the British architect William Emerson . Initially the college was affiliated with
268-538: A Mimamsa scholar, "thinks of the Veda as something to be trained and mastered to be put into practical ritual use", noticing that "it is not the meaning of the mantras that is most essential [...] but rather the perfect mastering of their sound form." According to Galewicz, Sayana saw the purpose ( artha ) of the Veda as the " artha of carrying out sacrifice", giving precedence to the Yajurveda . For Sayana, whether
402-464: A common noun means "knowledge". The term in some contexts, such as hymn 10.93.11 of the Rigveda , means "obtaining or finding wealth, property", while in some others it means "a bunch of grass together" as in a broom or for ritual fire . The term "Vedic texts" is used in two distinct meanings: The corpus of Vedic Sanskrit texts includes: While production of Brahmanas and Aranyakas ceased with
536-525: A date between 1319 CE and 1575 CE, and most of these refer to the month Magha. According to Krishnaswamy and Ghosh, these dates are likely related to the Magh Mela pilgrimage at Prayag, as recommended in the ancient Hindu texts. In papers published about 1979, John Irwin – a scholar of Indian Art History and Archaeology, concurred with Krishnaswamy and Ghosh that the Allahabad pillar was never moved and
670-693: A different course in distant past than now. The original path of river Ganges at the Prayaga confluence had settlements dating from the 8th century BCE onwards. According to Karel Werner – an Indologist known for his studies on religion particularly Buddhism, the Irwin papers "showed conclusively that the pillar did not originate at Kaushambi", but had been at Prayaga from pre-Buddhist times. The 7th-century Buddhist Chinese traveller Xuanzang (Hiuen Tsang) in Fascicle V of Dà Táng Xīyù Jì ( Great Tang Records on
804-459: A failed attempt to seize Agra's treasury, he came to Allahabad and seized its treasury while setting himself up as a virtually independent ruler. In May 1602, he had his name read in Friday prayers and his name minted on coins in Allahabad. After reconciliation with Akbar, Salim returned to Allahabad, where he stayed before returning in 1604. After capturing Jaunpur in 1624, Prince Khurram ordered
938-427: A fort. According to William Pinch, Akbar's motive may have been twofold. One, the armed fort secured the control of fertile Doab region. Second, it greatly increased his visibility and power to the non-Muslims who gathered here for pilgrimage from distant places and who constituted the majority of his subjects. Later, he declared Ilahabas as a capital of one of the twelve divisions ( subahs ). According to Richard Burn,
1072-467: A great city in Allahabad. 'Abd al-Qadir Bada'uni and Nizamuddin Ahmad mention that Akbar laid the foundations of an Imperial City there which he called Ilahabas . Abul Fazal in his Ain-i-Akbari states, "For a long time his (Akbar's) desire was to found a great city in the town of Piyag (Allahabad) where the rivers Ganges and Jamuna join... On 13th November 1583 (1st Azar 991 H.) he (Akbar) reached
1206-507: A hot, dry summer, a cool, dry winter and a hot, humid monsoon. Summer lasts from March to September with daily highs reaching up to 48 °C in the dry summer (from March to May) and up to 40 °C in the hot and extremely humid monsoon season (from June to September). The monsoon begins in June, and lasts until August; high humidity levels prevail well into September. Winter runs from December to February, with temperatures rarely dropping to
1340-461: A household name when he hurled a bomb at a European club. In Alfred Park in 1931, Chandrashekhar Azad died when surrounded by British police. The Nehru family homes, Anand Bhavan and Swaraj Bhavan , were centres of Indian National Congress activity. During the years before independence, Allahabad was home to thousands of satyagrahis led by Purushottam Das Tandon , Bishambhar Nath Pande , Narayan Dutt Tiwari and others. The first seeds of
1474-622: A number of older Veda manuscripts in Nepal that are dated from the 11th century onwards. The Vedas, Vedic rituals and its ancillary sciences called the Vedangas , were part of the curriculum at ancient universities such as at Taxila , Nalanda and Vikramashila . According to Deshpande, "the tradition of the Sanskrit grammarians also contributed significantly to the preservation and interpretation of Vedic texts." Yāska (4th c. BCE ) wrote
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#17327825132431608-404: A paper published in 1935, they state that the pillar was always at its current location based on the inscription dates on the pillar, lack of textual evidence for the move in records left by Muslim historians and the difficulty in moving the massive pillar. Further, like Cunningham, they noted that many smaller inscriptions were added on the pillar over time. Quite many of these inscriptions include
1742-511: A particular area, or kingdom. Each school followed its own canon. Multiple recensions (revisions) are known for each of the Vedas. Thus, states Witzel as well as Renou, in the 2nd millennium BCE, there was likely no canon of one broadly accepted Vedic texts, no Vedic “Scripture”, but only a canon of various texts accepted by each school. Some of these texts have survived, most lost or yet to be found. Rigveda that survives in modern times, for example,
1876-567: A police headquarters and a public-service commission in Allahabad, making the city an administrative centre. They truncated the Delhi region of the state, merging it with Punjab and moving the capital of the North-Western Provinces to Allahabad (where it remained for 20 years). In January 1858, Earl Canning departed Calcutta for Allahabad. That year he read Queen Victoria's proclamation , transferring control of India from
2010-459: A population density of 4,200/km (11,000/sq mi). Natives of Uttar Pradesh form the majority of Prayagraj's population. With regards to Houseless Census in Prayagraj, total 5,672 families live on footpaths or without any roof cover, this is approximately 0.38 percent of the total population of Prayagraj district. The sex ratio of Prayagraj is 901 females per 1000 males and child sex ratio of
2144-875: A region spanning the Indian subcontinent, Persia and the European area, and some greater details are found in the Vedic era texts such as the Grhya Sūtras. Only one version of the Rigveda is known to have survived into the modern era. Several different versions of the Sama Veda and the Atharva Veda are known, and many different versions of the Yajur Veda have been found in different parts of South Asia. The texts of
2278-441: A single god , agnosticism , and monistic beliefs where "there is an absolute reality that goes beyond the gods and that includes or transcends everything that exists." Indra , Agni , and Yama were popular subjects of worship by polytheist organizations. Each of the four Vedas were shared by the numerous schools, but revised, interpolated and adapted locally, in and after the Vedic period, giving rise to various recensions of
2412-484: A town existed before Allahabad was founded. He adds that after Mahmud of Ghazni captured Asní near Fatehpur , he couldn't have crossed into Bundelkhand without visiting Allahabad had there been a city worth plundering. He further adds that its capture should have been heard when Muhammad of Ghor captured Benares. However, Ghori's historians never noticed it. Akbarnama mentions that the Mughal emperor Akbar founded
2546-506: Is Abhilasha Gupta , whereas the current municipal commissioner is Avinash Singh. Prayagraj was declared to have metropolitan status in October 2006. The metropolitan area is referred to in the 2011 Indian census and other official documents as Allhabad Urban Agglomeration. It consists of Prayagraj Municipal Corporation, three census towns (the cantonment, Arail Uparhar, and Chak Babura Alimabad), and 17 Outer Growth (OG) areas listed in
2680-433: Is 893 girls per 1000 boys, lower than the national average. Hindi, the official state language, is the dominant language in Prayagraj. Urdu and other languages are spoken by a sizeable minority. Hindus form the majority of Prayagraj's population; Muslims compose a large minority. According to provisional results of the 2011 national census, Hinduism is majority religion in Prayagraj city with 76.03 percent followers. Islam
2814-521: Is 90.21 percent and female literacy 82.17 percent. For 2001 census same figure stood at 75.81 and 46.38. As per census 2011, total 1,080,808 people are literate in Prayagraj of which males and females are 612,257 and 468,551 respectively. Among 35 major Indian cities , Prayagraj reported the highest rate of violations of special and local laws to the National Crime Records Bureau . Prayagraj division, comprising four districts,
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#17327825132432948-550: Is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh . It is the administrative headquarters of the Prayagraj district , the most populous district in the state and 13th most populous district in India and the Prayagraj division . The city is the judicial capital of Uttar Pradesh with the Allahabad High Court being the highest judicial body in the state. As of 2011, Prayagraj is the seventh most populous city in
3082-457: Is a part, is on the western Indus-Gangetic Plain region. The doab (including the Terai ) is responsible for the city's unique flora and fauna. Since the arrival of humans, nearly half of the city's vertebrates have become extinct. Others are endangered or have had their range severely reduced. Associated changes in habitat and the introduction of reptiles , snakes and other mammals led to
3216-540: Is also mentioned in the Hindu epic Ramayana , a place with the legendary Ashram of sage Bharadwaj . Inscription evidence from the famed Ashoka edicts containing Allahabad Pillar – also referred to as the Prayaga Bull pillar – adds to the confusion about the antiquity of this city. Excavations have revealed Northern Black Polished Ware dating to 600–700 BCE. According to Dilip Kumar Chakrabarti , "... there
3350-468: Is attested to by the preservation of the most ancient Indian religious text, the Rigveda , as redacted into a single text during the Brahmana period, without any variant readings within that school. The Vedas were orally transmitted by memorization, and were written down only after 500 BCE, All printed editions of the Vedas that survive in the modern times are likely the version existing in about
3484-409: Is currently divided into 80 wards, with one member (or corporator) elected from each ward to form the municipal committee. The head of the corporation is the mayor, but, the executive and administration of the corporation are the responsibility of the municipal commissioner, who is an Uttar Pradesh government -appointed Provincial Civil Service officer of high seniority. The current mayor of Prayagraj
3618-637: Is derived from the root vid- "to know". This is reconstructed as being derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *weyd- , meaning "see" or "know". The noun is from Proto-Indo-European *weydos , cognate to Greek (ϝ)εἶδος "aspect", "form" . This is not to be confused with the homonymous 1st and 3rd person singular perfect tense véda , cognate to Greek (ϝ)οἶδα ( (w)oida ) "I know". Root cognates are Greek ἰδέα , English wit , Latin videō "I see", Russian ве́дать ( védat' ) "to know", etc. The Sanskrit term veda as
3752-439: Is followed by artha - bodha , perception of their meaning." Mukherjee explains that the Vedic knowledge was first perceived by the rishis and munis . Only the perfect language of the Vedas, as in contrast to ordinary speech, can reveal these truths, which were preserved by committing them to memory. According to Mukherjee, while these truths are imparted to the student by the memorized texts, "the realization of Truth " and
3886-448: Is headed by the divisional commissioner of Prayagraj, who is an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of high seniority, the commissioner is the head of local government institutions (including municipal corporations ) in the division, is in charge of infrastructure development in his division, and is also responsible for maintaining law and order in the division. The district magistrate and collector of Prayagraj reports to
4020-465: Is in only one extremely well preserved school of Śåkalya, from a region called Videha , in modern north Bihar , south of Nepal . The Vedic canon in its entirety consists of texts from all the various Vedic schools taken together. There were Vedic schools that believed in polytheism in which numerous gods had different natural functions, henotheistic beliefs where only one god was worshipped but others were thought to exist, monotheistic beliefs in
4154-539: Is north of the city, Bhadohi is east, Rewa is south, Chitrakoot (earlier Banda) is west, and Kaushambi , which was until recently a part of Allahabad (Prayagraj), is North-West. Prayagraj has a humid subtropical climate common to cities in the plains of North India, designated Cwa in the Köppen climate classification . The annual mean temperature is 26.1 °C (79.0 °F); monthly mean temperatures are 18–29 °C (64–84 °F). Prayagraj has three seasons:
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4288-471: Is nothing to suggest that modern Prayag (i e. modern Allahabad) was an ancient city. Yet it is inconceivable that one of the holiest places of Hinduism, Prayag or the confluence of the Ganga and Yamuna should be without a major ancient city." Chakrabarti suggests that the city of Jhusi , opposite the confluence, must have been the "ancient settlement of Prayag". Archaeological surveys since the 1950s has revealed
4422-514: Is remembered"). This indigenous system of categorization was adopted by Max Müller and, while it is subject to some debate, it is still widely used. As Axel Michaels explains: These classifications are often not tenable for linguistic and formal reasons: There is not only one collection at any one time, but rather several handed down in separate Vedic schools; Upanişads [...] are sometimes not to be distinguished from Āraṇyakas [...]; Brāhmaṇas contain older strata of language attributed to
4556-533: Is the Vedic period itself, where incipient lists divide the Vedic texts into three (trayī) or four branches: Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva. Each Veda has been subclassified into four major text types – the Samhitas (mantras and benedictions), the Aranyakas (text on rituals, ceremonies such as newborn baby's rites of passage, coming of age, marriages, retirement and cremation, sacrifices and symbolic sacrifices),
4690-469: Is the meeting place of Ganges, the Yamuna and mythical Saraswati River, which according to Hindu legends, wells up from underground. A place of religious importance and the site for historic Prayag Kumbh Mela held every 12 years, over the years it has also been the site of immersion of ashes of several national leaders, including Mahatma Gandhi in 1948. The main ghat in Prayagraj is Saraswati Ghat , on
4824-422: Is the second most practised religion in the city with approximately 21.94 percent following it. Christianity is followed by 0.68 percent, Jainism by 0.10 percent, Sikhism by 0.28 percent and Buddhism by 0.28 percent. Around 0.02 percent stated 'Other Religion', approximately 0.90 percent stated 'No Particular Religion'. Prayagraj's literacy rate at 86.50 percent is the highest in the region. Male literacy
4958-585: Is well placed geographically and culturally. Geographically part of the Ganga-Yamuna Doab (at the mouth of the Yamuna), culturally it is the terminus of the Indian west. The Indian Standard Time longitude (25.15°N 82.58°E) is near the city. According to a United Nations Development Programme report, Prayagraj is in a "low damage risk" wind and cyclone zone. In common with the rest of the doab , its soil and water are primarily alluvial . Pratapgarh
5092-861: Is −0.7 °C (31 °F) on 26 December 1961. Rain from the Bay of Bengal or the Arabian Sea branches of the southwest monsoon falls on Allahabad from June to September, supplying the city with most of its annual rainfall of 1,027 mm (40 in). The highest monthly rainfall total, 333 mm (13 in), occurs in August. The city receives 2,961 hours of sunshine per year, with maximum sunlight in May. Allahabad has been ranked 20th best “National Clean Air City” (under Category 1 >10L Population cities) in India according to 'Swachh Vayu Survekshan 2024 Results' The Ganga-Jamuna Doab, of which Prayagraj
5226-481: The Saṃhitās ; there are various dialects and locally prominent traditions of the Vedic schools. Nevertheless, it is advisable to stick to the division adopted by Max Müller because it follows the Indian tradition, conveys the historical sequence fairly accurately, and underlies the current editions, translations, and monographs on Vedic literature." Among the widely known śrutis include the Vedas and their embedded texts –
5360-527: The Nirukta , which reflects the concerns about the loss of meaning of the mantras, while Pāṇinis (4th c. BCE) Aṣṭādhyāyī is the most important surviving text of the Vyākaraṇa traditions. Mimamsa scholar Sayanas (14th c. CE) major Vedartha Prakasha is a rare commentary on the Vedas, which is also referred to by contemporary scholars. Yaska and Sayana, reflecting an ancient understanding, state that
5494-471: The ex-officio chairperson of PDA, whereas a vice chairperson, a government-appointed IAS officer , looks after the daily matters of the authority. The current chairperson of PDA is Bhanu Chandra Goswami. The Prayagraj Nagar Nigam, also called Prayagraj Municipal Corporation , oversees the city's civic infrastructure. The corporation originated in 1864 as the Municipal Board of Allahabad, when
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5628-576: The Akshayavat tree. The name, however, predates him, with Ilahabas and Ilahabad mentioned on coins minted in the city since Akbar's rule, the latter name became predominant after the emperor's death. It has also been thought to not have been named after Allah but ilaha (the gods). Shaligram Shrivastav claimed in Prayag Pradip that the name was deliberately given by Akbar to be construed as both Hindu ("ilaha") and Muslim ("Allah"). Over
5762-608: The Brahmanas (commentaries on rituals, ceremonies and sacrifices), and the Upanishads (text discussing meditation, philosophy and spiritual knowledge). The Upasanas (short ritual worship-related sections) are considered by some scholars as the fifth part. Witzel notes that the rituals, rites and ceremonies described in these ancient texts reconstruct to a large degree the Indo-European marriage rituals observed in
5896-790: The East India Company to the British Crown (beginning the British Raj ), in Minto Park . In 1877 the provinces of Agra and Awadh were merged to form the United Provinces , with Allahabad its capital until 1920. The 1888 session of the Indian National Congress was held in the city, and by the turn of the 20th century, Allahabad was a revolutionary centre. Nityanand Chatterji became
6030-469: The Grand Trunk Road . It also potentially offered sizeable revenues to the company. Initial revenue settlements began in 1803. Allahabad was a participant in the 1857 Indian Mutiny , when Maulvi Liaquat Ali unfurled the banner of revolt. During the rebellion, Allahabad, with a number of European troops, was the scene of a massacre. After the mutiny, the British established a high court,
6164-544: The Mughal emperor Akbar founded a great city in Allahabad. Abd al-Qadir Badayuni and Nizamuddin Ahmad mention that Akbar laid the foundations of an imperial city there which was called Ilahabas or Ilahabad . In the early 17th century, Allahabad was a provincial capital in the Mughal Empire under the reign of Jahangir . In 1833, it became the seat of the Ceded and Conquered Provinces region before its capital
6298-729: The Pakistani nation were sown in Allahabad: on 29 December 1930, Allama Muhammad Iqbal 's presidential address to the All-India Muslim League proposed a separate Muslim state for the Muslim-majority regions of India. Prayagraj's elevation is over 90 m (295 ft) above sea level. The old part of the city, at the south of Prayagraj Junction railway station, consists of neighbourhoods like Chowk, Johnstongunj , Dariyabad , Khuldabad and many more. In
6432-601: The Prayag Kumbh Mela and the Indira Marathon . Although the city's economy was built on tourism, most of its income now derives from real estate and financial services. The location at the confluence of Ganges and Yamuna rivers has been known in ancient times as Prayāga, which means "place of a sacrifice" in Sanskrit ( pra-, "fore-" + yāj- , "to sacrifice"). It was believed that god Brahma performed
6566-516: The Samhitas , the Upanishads , the Brahmanas and the Aranyakas . The well-known smṛtis include Bhagavad Gita , Bhagavata Purana and the epics Ramayana and Mahabharata , amongst others. Hindus consider the Vedas to be apauruṣeyā , which means "not of a man, superhuman" and "impersonal, authorless". The Vedas, for orthodox Indian theologians, are considered revelations seen by ancient sages after intense meditation, and texts that have been more carefully preserved since ancient times. In
6700-610: The Treaty of Allahabad signed by Lord Robert Clive , Mughal emperor Shah Alam II , and Awadh's Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula . The combined forces of Bengal's Nawab Mir Qasim , Shuja and Shah Alam were defeated by the English at Buxar in October 1764 and at Kora in May 1765. Alam, who was abandoned by Shuja after the defeats, surrendered to the English and was lodged at the fort, as they captured Allahabad, Benares and Chunar in his name. The territories of Allahabad and Kora were given to
6834-615: The University of Calcutta . According to historian Avril Powell, certain debates between Saiyid Ahmed Khan , the founder of Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College in Aligarh, and William Muir led to the founding of Muir Central College. Whereas the universities at Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras (the first in India) had classes taught in English, "Muir College opened in 1872 with three departments of equal standing, teaching respectively through
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#17327825132436968-730: The Upanishads (texts discussing meditation , philosophy and spiritual knowledge). Some scholars add a fifth category – the Upāsanās (worship). The texts of the Upanishads discuss ideas akin to the heterodox sramana traditions. The Samhitas and Brahmanas describe daily rituals and are generally meant for the Brahmacharya and Gr̥hastha stages of the Chaturashrama system, while the Aranyakas and Upanishads are meant for
7102-519: The Vānaprastha and Sannyasa stages, respectively. Vedas are śruti ("what is heard"), distinguishing them from other religious texts, which are called smr̥ti ("what is remembered"). Hindus consider the Vedas to be apauruṣeya , which means "not of a man, superhuman" and "impersonal, authorless", revelations of sacred sounds and texts heard by ancient sages after intense meditation. The Vedas have been orally transmitted since
7236-812: The Yogi Adityanath -led government officially changed the name of the city to Prayagraj. The earliest mention of Prayāga and the associated pilgrimage is found in Rigveda Pariśiṣṭa (supplement to the Rigveda , c. 1200–1000 BCE). It is also mentioned in the Pali canons of Buddhism , such as in section 1.7 of Majjhima Nikaya ( c. 500 BCE ), wherein the Buddha states that bathing in Payaga (Skt: Prayaga) cannot wash away cruel and evil deeds, rather
7370-415: The divisional commissioner . The current commissioner is Ashish Kumar Goel. Prayagraj district administration is headed by the district magistrate and collector (DM) of Prayagraj, who is an IAS officer . The DM is in charge of property records and revenue collection for the central government and oversees the elections held in the district. The DM is also responsible for maintaining law and order in
7504-461: The sangam and nearby wetlands. The 2011 census reported a population of 1,112,544 in the 82 km (32 sq mi) area governed by Prayagraj Municipal Corporation, corresponding to a density of 13,600/km (35,000/sq mi). In January 2020, the boundaries of Prayagraj Municipal Corporation were expanded to 365 km (141 sq mi); according to the 2011 census, 1,536,218 people lived within those boundaries; this corresponds to
7638-499: The Ŗik (words) without understanding their inner meaning or essence, the knowledge of dharma and Parabrahman . Mukherjee concludes that in the Rigvedic education of the mantras "the contemplation and comprehension of their meaning was considered as more important and vital to education than their mere mechanical repetition and correct pronunciation." Mookei refers to Sayana as stating that "the mastery of texts, akshara-praptī ,
7772-536: The "correct tradition" ( sampradaya ) has as much authority as the written Shastra", explaining that the tradition "bears the authority to clarify and provide direction in the application of knowledge". The emphasis in this transmission is on the "proper articulation and pronunciation of the Vedic sounds", as prescribed in the Shiksha , the Vedanga (Vedic study) of sound as uttered in a Vedic recitation, mastering
7906-527: The 14th century BCE, the only epigraphic record of Indo-Aryan contemporary to the Rigvedic period. He gives 150 BCE ( Patañjali ) as a terminus ante quem for all Vedic Sanskrit literature, and 1200 BCE (the early Iron Age ) as terminus post quem for the Atharvaveda. The Vedas were orally transmitted since their composition in the Vedic period for several millennia. The authoritative transmission of
8040-419: The 16th century CE. The canonical division of the Vedas is fourfold ( turīya ) viz., Of these, the first three were the principal original division, also called " trayī vidyā "; that is, "the triple science" of reciting hymns (Rigveda), performing sacrifices (Yajurveda), and chanting songs (Samaveda). The Rig Veda most likely was composed between c. 1500 BCE and 1200 BCE. Witzel notes that it
8174-503: The 2nd millennium BCE with the help of elaborate mnemonic techniques . The mantras, the oldest part of the Vedas, are recited in the modern age for their phonology rather than the semantics , and are considered to be "primordial rhythms of creation", preceding the forms to which they refer. By reciting them the cosmos is regenerated, "by enlivening and nourishing the forms of creation at their base." The various Indian philosophies and Hindu sects have taken differing positions on
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#17327825132438308-621: The Brahmin communities considered study to be a "process of understanding". A literary tradition is traceable in post-Vedic times, after the rise of Buddhism in the Maurya period , perhaps earliest in the Kanva recension of the Yajurveda about the 1st century BCE; however oral tradition of transmission remained active. Jack Goody has argued for an earlier literary tradition, concluding that
8442-442: The Grand Place of Almsgiving. According to Xuanzang's travelogue, the confluence is to the east of this "great city" and the site where alms are distributed every day. Kama MacLean – an Indologist who has published articles on the Kumbh Mela predominantly based on the colonial archives and English-language media, states based on emails from other scholars and a more recent interpretation of the 7th-century Xuanzang memoir, that Prayag
8576-410: The Hindu Epic Mahabharata , the creation of Vedas is credited to Brahma . The Vedic hymns themselves assert that they were skillfully created by Rishis (sages), after inspired creativity, just as a carpenter builds a chariot. The oldest part of the Rig Veda Samhita was orally composed in north-western India ( Punjab ) between c. 1500 and 1200 BCE, while book 10 of the Rig Veda, and
8710-399: The Hindus. He further stated that the pillar origins were undoubtedly pre-Ashokan based on the new evidence from the archaeological and geological surveys of the triveni site (Prayaga), the major and minor inscriptions as well as textual evidence, taken together. Archaeological and geological surveys done since the 1950s, states Irwin, have revealed that the rivers – particularly Ganges – had
8844-416: The IPS or the Provincial Police Service . Each of the several police circles is headed by a circle officer (CO) in the rank of deputy superintendent of police . The development of infrastructure in the city is overseen by the Prayagraj Development Authority (PDA), which comes under the Department of Housing and Urban Planning of Uttar Pradesh government . The divisional commissioner of Prayagraj acts as
8978-433: The Lucknow Municipal Act was passed by the Government of India . In 1867, the Civil Lines and the city were amalgamated for municipal purposes. The Cantonment was counted as part of the city in censuses until the 1931 Indian census , when it was started to be counted as a separate census town . The Municipal Board became Municipal Corporation in 1959. Allahabad Cantonment has a cantonment board. The city of Prayagraj
9112-406: The Muir College was able to prove itself a valuable half-way house situated rather precariously between the near monopoly of English in Calcutta University and the uniqueness of the new Punjab University’s fully fledged Oriental Department." "By the late 1880s the Muir Central College examination results marked it as north India’s most academically successful college outside Calcutta. It would remain
9246-448: The Prayagraj Police Zone and Prayagraj Police Range, Prayagraj Zone is headed by an additional director general -rank Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, and the Prayagraj Range is headed inspector general -rank IPS officer. The district police is headed by a senior superintendent of police (SSP), who is an IPS officer, and is assisted by eight superintendents of police or additional superintendents of police for city, either from
9380-509: The Upanishads discuss ideas akin to the heterodox sramana -traditions. Nasadiya Sukta (Hymn of non-Eternity): Who really knows? Who can here proclaim it? Whence, whence this creation sprang? Gods came later, after the creation of this universe. Who then knows whence it has arisen? Whether God's will created it, or whether He was mute; Only He who is its overseer in highest heaven knows, He only knows, or perhaps He does not know. — Rig Veda 10.129.6–7 The Rigveda Samhita
9514-444: The Upanishads. This has inspired later Hindu scholars such as Adi Shankara to classify each Veda into karma-kanda (कर्म खण्ड, action/sacrificial ritual-related sections, the Samhitas and Brahmanas ); and jnana-kanda (ज्ञान खण्ड, knowledge/spirituality-related sections, mainly the Upanishads'). Vedas are śruti ("what is heard"), distinguishing them from other religious texts, which are called smṛti ("what
9648-454: The Veda can be interpreted in three ways, giving "the truth about gods , dharma and parabrahman ." The pūrva-kāņda (or karma-kanda ), the part of the Veda dealing with ritual, gives knowledge of dharma , "which brings us satisfaction." The uttara-kanda (or jnana-kanda ), the part of the Veda dealing with the knowledge of the absolute, gives knowledge of Parabrahma , "which fulfills all of our desires." According to Holdrege, for
9782-429: The Vedas bear hallmarks of a literate culture along with oral transmission, but Goody's views have been strongly criticised by Falk, Lopez Jr,. and Staal, though they have also found some support. The Vedas were written down only after 500 BCE, but only the orally transmitted texts are regarded as authoritative, given the emphasis on the exact pronunciation of the sounds. Witzel suggests that attempts to write down
9916-450: The Vedas is by an oral tradition in a sampradaya from father to son or from teacher ( guru ) to student ( shishya ), believed to be initiated by the Vedic rishis who heard the primordial sounds . Only this tradition, embodied by a living teacher, can teach the correct pronunciation of the sounds and explain hidden meanings, in a way the "dead and entombed manuscript" cannot do. As Leela Prasad states, "According to Shankara ,
10050-480: The Vedas. Schools of Indian philosophy that acknowledge the importance or primal authority of the Vedas comprise Hindu philosophy specifically and are together classified as the six "orthodox" ( āstika ) schools. However, śramaṇa traditions, such as Charvaka , Ajivika , Buddhism , and Jainism , which did not regard the Vedas as authoritative, are referred to as "heterodox" or "non-orthodox" ( nāstika ) schools. The Sanskrit word véda "knowledge, wisdom"
10184-414: The Vedic texts towards the end of 1st millennium BCE were unsuccessful, resulting in smriti rules explicitly forbidding the writing down of the Vedas. Due to the ephemeral nature of the manuscript material (birch bark or palm leaves), surviving manuscripts rarely surpass an age of a few hundred years. The Sampurnanand Sanskrit University has a Rigveda manuscript from the 14th century; however, there are
10318-606: The Western Regions ) explicitly mentions Prayaga as both a country and a "great city" where the Yamuna river meets Ganges river. He states that the great city has hundreds of " deva temples" and to the south of the city are two Buddhist institutions (a stupa built by Ashoka and a monastery). His 644 CE memoir also mentions the Hindu bathing rituals at the junction of the rivers, where people fast near it and then bathe believing that this washes away their sins. Wealthy people and kings come to this "great city" to give away alms at
10452-457: The advent of writing in the early first millennium CE. According to Staal , criticising the Goody -Watt hypothesis "according to which literacy is more reliable than orality", this tradition of oral transmission "is closely related to Indian forms of science" and "by far the more remarkable" than the relatively recent tradition of written transmission. While according to Mookerji, understanding
10586-497: The alms-giving practice is recommended by the "records at this temple". Rongxi adds that the population of Prayaga was predominantly heretics (non-Buddhists, Hindus), and affirms that Prayaga attracted festivities of deva -worshipping heretics and also the orthodox Buddhists. Xuanzang also describes a ritual-suicide practice at Prayaga, then concludes it is absurd. He mentions a tree with "evil spirits" that stands before another deva temple. People commit suicide by jumping from it in
10720-488: The alphabet as a mnemotechnical device , "matching physical movements (such as nodding the head) with particular sounds and chanting in a group" and visualizing sounds by using mudras (hand signs). This provided an additional visual confirmation, and also an alternate means to check the reading integrity by the audience, in addition to the audible means. Houben and Rath note that a strong "memory culture" existed in ancient India when texts were transmitted orally, before
10854-451: The auspicious pilgrimage to Tirth Raj Prayag. Saphal scripsit. – Translated by Alexander Cunningham (1879) These dates correspond to about 1575 CE, and confirm the importance and the name Prayag. According to Cunningham, this pillar was brought to Allahabad from Kaushambi by a Muslim Sultan, and that in some later century before Akbar, the old city of Prayag had been deserted. Other scholars, such as Krishnaswamy and Ghosh disagree. In
10988-488: The banks of Yamuna. Stairs from three sides descend to the green water of the Yamuna. Above it is a park which is always covered with green grass. There are also facilities for boating here. There are also routes to reach Triveni Sangam by boat from here. Apart from this, there are more than 100 raw ghats in Prayagraj. Prayagraj is in the southern part of Uttar Pradesh, at the confluence of the Ganges and Yamuna. The region
11122-459: The belief that they will go to heaven. According to Ariel Glucklich – a scholar of Hinduism and Anthropology of Religion, the Xuanzang memoir mentions both the superstitious devotional suicide and narrates a story of how a Brahmin of a more ancient era tried to put an end to this practice. Alexander Cunningham believed the tree described by Xuanzang was the Akshayavat tree. It still existed at
11256-567: The city are doves , peacocks , junglefowl , black partridge , house sparrows , songbirds , blue jays , parakeets , quails , bulbuls , and comb ducks . Large numbers of Deer are found in the Trans Yamuna area of Prayagraj. India's first conservation reserve for blackbuck is being created in Prayagraj's Meja Forest Division. Other animals in the state include reptiles such as lizards , cobras , kraits , and gharials . During winter, large numbers of Siberian birds are reported in
11390-451: The city. Prayagraj lies close to Triveni Sangam , the "three-river confluence" of the Ganges , Yamuna , and the mythical Sarasvati . It plays a central role in Hindu scriptures . The city finds its earliest reference as one of the world's oldest known cities in Hindu texts and has been venerated as the holy city of Prayāga in the ancient Vedas . Prayagraj was also known as Kosambi in
11524-400: The confluence. Prayagraj ( Sanskrit : Prayāgarāja ), meaning "the king among the five prayāgas ", is used as a term of respect to indicate that this confluence is the most splendid one of the five sacred confluencies in India. The Mughal emperor Akbar visited the region in 1575 and was so impressed by the strategic location of the site that he ordered a fort be constructed. The fort
11658-410: The cosmos is regenerated, "by enlivening and nourishing the forms of creation at their base. As long as the purity of the sounds is preserved, the recitation of the mantras will be efficacious, irrespective of whether their discursive meaning is understood by human beings." Frazier further notes that "later Vedic texts sought deeper understanding of the reasons the rituals worked", which indicates that
11792-448: The district. The DM is assisted by a chief development officer; five additional district magistrates for finance/revenue, city, rural administration, land acquisition and civil supply; one chief revenue officer; one city magistrate; and three additional city magistrates. The district has eight tehsils viz. Sadar, Soraon, Phulpur, Handia, Karchhana, Bara, Meja and Kuraon, each headed by a sub-divisional magistrate . City comes under
11926-861: The emperor after the treaty was signed in 1765. Shah Alam spent six years in the Allahabad fort and after the takeover of Delhi by the Marathas, left for his capital in 1771 under their protection. He was escorted by Mahadaji Shinde and left Allahabad in May 1771 and in January 1772 reached Delhi. Upon realising the Maratha intent of territorial encroachment, however, Shah Alam ordered his general Najaf Khan to drive them out. Tukoji Rao Holkar and Visaji Krushna Biniwale in return attacked Delhi and defeated his forces in 1772. The Marathas were granted an imperial sanad for Kora and Allahabad. They turned their attention to Oudh to gain these two territories. Shuja
12060-600: The end of the Vedic period, additional Upanishads were composed after the end of the Vedic period. The Brahmanas , Aranyakas , and Upanishads , among other things, interpret and discuss the Samhitas in philosophical and metaphorical ways to explore abstract concepts such as the Absolute ( Brahman ), and the soul or the self ( Atman ), introducing Vedanta philosophy, one of the major trends of later Hinduism . In other parts, they show evolution of ideas, such as from actual sacrifice to symbolic sacrifice, and of spirituality in
12194-476: The exponents of karma-kandha the Veda is to be "inscribed in the minds and hearts of men" by memorization and recitation, while for the exponents of the jnana-kanda and meditation the Vedas express a transcendental reality which can be approached with mystical means. Holdrege notes that in Vedic learning "priority has been given to recitation over interpretation" of the Samhitas. Galewicz states that Sayana,
12328-532: The extinction of bird species, including large birds such as eagles . The Allahabad Museum , one of four national museums in India, is documenting the flora and fauna of the Ganges and the Yamuna. To protect the rich aquatic biodiversity of river Ganges from escalating anthropogenic pressures, development of a Turtle sanctuary in Prayagraj along with a River Biodiversity Park at Sangam have been approved under Namami Gange programme. The most common birds found in
12462-455: The fort to the British in 1798. Lord Wellesley after threatening to annex the entire Awadh, concluded a treaty with Saadat on abolishing the independent Awadhi army, imposing a larger subsidiary force and annexing Rohilkhand , Gorakhpur and the Doab in 1801. Acquired in 1801, Allahabad, aside from its importance as a pilgrimage centre, was a stepping stone to the agrarian track upcountry and
12596-407: The foundation of the city at a place of the confluence of Ganges and Jumna which was a very sacred site of Hindus, then gives 1574 and 1584 as the year of its founding, and that it was named "Ilahabas". The next generation of Mughal rulers started calling it Illahabad, and finally, the British started calling it "Allahabad" for ease of pronunciation. Akbar was impressed by its strategic location for
12730-534: The four kinds of mantras into four Samhitas (Collections). The Vedas are among the oldest sacred texts . The bulk of the Rigveda Samhita was composed in the northwestern region (Punjab) of the Indian subcontinent , most likely between c. 1500 and 1200 BCE, although a wider approximation of c. 1700–1100 BCE has also been given. The other three Samhitas are considered to date from
12864-420: The freezing point. The daily average maximum temperature is about 22 °C (72 °F) and the minimum about 9 °C (48 °F). Prayagraj never receives snow, but, experiences dense winter fog due to numerous wood fires, coal fires, and open burning of rubbish—resulting in substantial traffic and travel delays. Its highest recorded temperature is 48.9 °C (120.0 °F) on 9 June 2019, and its lowest
12998-489: The highest levels of air pollution worldwide, with the 2016 update of the World Health Organization 's Global Urban Ambient Air Pollution Database finding Prayagraj to have the third highest mean concentration of "PM2.5" (<2.5 μm diameter) particulate matter in the ambient air among all the 2972 cities tested (after Zabol and Gwalior ). The Triveni Sangam (place where three rivers meet)
13132-473: The king of pilgrimage sites ( Tirtha Raj ). Other early accounts of the significance of Prayag to Hinduism is found in the various versions of the Prayaga Mahatmya , dated to the late 1st-millennium CE. These Purana-genre Sanskrit texts describe Prayag as a place "bustling with pilgrims, priests, vendors, beggars, guides" and local citizens busy along the confluence of the rivers ( sangam ). Prayaga
13266-589: The knowledge of paramatman as revealed to the rishis is the real aim of Vedic learning, and not the mere recitation of texts. The supreme knowledge of the Absolute, para Brahman - jnana , the knowledge of rta and satya , can be obtained by taking vows of silence and obedience sense-restraint, dhyana , the practice of tapas (austerities), and discussing the Vedanta . The four Vedas were transmitted in various śākhā s (branches, schools). Each school likely represented an ancient community of
13400-621: The late Vedic period , named by the Kuru rulers of Hastinapur , who developed it as their capital. Kosambi was one of the greatest cities in India from the late Vedic period until the end of the Maurya Empire , with occupation continuing until the Gupta Empire . Since then, the city has been a political, cultural and administrative centre of the Doab region. Akbarnama mentions that
13534-445: The mantras had meaning depended on the context of their practical usage. This conception of the Veda, as a repertoire to be mastered and performed, takes precedence over the internal meaning or "autonomous message of the hymns." Most Śrauta rituals are not performed in the modern era, and those that are, are rare. Mukherjee notes that the Rigveda, and Sayana's commentary, contain passages criticizing as fruitless mere recitation of
13668-502: The meaning ( vedarthajnana or artha - bodha ) of the words of the Vedas was part of the Vedic learning , Holdrege and other Indologists have noted that in the transmission of the Samhitas , the emphasis is on the phonology of the sounds ( śabda ) and not on the meaning ( artha ) of the mantras. Already at the end of the Vedic period their original meaning had become obscure for "ordinary people", and niruktas , etymological compendia, were developed to preserve and clarify
13802-525: The meaning of the mantras, in contrast to the number of commentaries on the Brahmanas and Upanishads, but states that the lack of emphasis on the "discursive meaning does not necessarily imply that they are meaningless". In the Brahmanical perspective, the sounds have their own meaning, mantras are considered as "primordial rhythms of creation", preceding the forms to which they refer. By reciting them
13936-674: The nerve centre of Allahabad University until 1922, academically, socially, politically and on the games field, its 'Muir hostel', added in 1911, contributing to an espirit de corps that was to prove long-lasting." In 1922 Allahabad University merged with Muir Central College and English became the standard medium. The Calcutta University Calendar, 1888,1889,1890 Atul Krishna Ghosh Medalist 1887 MA English Muir Central College, CU Atul Krishna Ghosh, Muir Alumni, Principal Maharajah Mohindra College Patiala 1888-1907 Prayagraj Prayagraj ( / ˈ p r eɪ ə ˌ ɡ r ɑː dʒ , ˈ p r aɪ ə -/ ; ISO : Prayāgarāja ), formerly Allahabad
14070-556: The north of the Railway Station, the new city consists of neighbourhoods like Lukergunj , Civil Lines , Georgetown , Tagoretown , Allahpur , Ashok Nagar , Mumfordgunj , Bharadwaj Puram and others which are relatively new and were built during the British rule . Civil Lines is the central business district of the city and is famous for its urban setting, gridiron plan roads and high rise buildings. Built in 1857, it
14204-598: The original meaning of many Sanskrit words. According to Staal, as referenced by Holdrege, though the mantras may have a discursive meaning, when the mantras are recited in the Vedic rituals "they are disengaged from their original context and are employed in ways that have little or nothing to do with their meaning". The words of the mantras are "themselves sacred", and "do not constitute linguistic utterances ". Instead, as Klostermaier notes, in their application in Vedic rituals they become magical sounds, "means to an end". Holdrege notes that there are scarce commentaries on
14338-522: The other Samhitas were composed between 1200 and 900 BCE more eastward, between the Yamuna and the Ganges rivers, the heartland of Aryavarta and the Kuru Kingdom ( c. 1200 – c. 900 BCE ). The "circum-Vedic" texts, as well as the redaction of the Samhitas, date to c. 1000 –500 BCE. According to tradition, Vyasa is the compiler of the Vedas, who arranged
14472-505: The presence of human settlements near the sangam since c. 800 BCE. Along with Ashoka's Brahmi script inscription from the 3rd century BCE, the pillar has a Samudragupta inscription, as well as a Magha Mela inscription of Birbal of Akbar's era. It states, In the Samvat year 1632, Saka 1493, in Magha, the 5th of the waning moon, on Monday, Gangadas's son Maharaja Birbal made
14606-459: The rivers. The historian Dr. D. B. Dubey states that it appears that between this period, the sandy plain was washed away by the Ganges, to an extent that the temple and tree seen by the Chinese traveller too was washed away, with the river later changing its course to the east and the confluence shifting to the place where Akbar laid the foundations of his fort. Henry Miers Elliot believed that
14740-458: The sacred Vedas included up to eleven forms of recitation of the same text. The texts were subsequently "proof-read" by comparing the different recited versions. Forms of recitation included the jaṭā-pāṭha (literally "mesh recitation") in which every two adjacent words in the text were first recited in their original order, then repeated in the reverse order, and finally repeated in the original order. That these methods have been effective,
14874-524: The siege of Allahabad. The siege was however, lifted after Parviz and Mahabat Khan came to assist the garrison. During the Mughal war of succession, the commandant of the fort who had joined Shah Shuja made an agreement with Aurangzeb 's officers and surrendered it to Khan Dauran on 12 January 1659. The fort was coveted by the East India Company for the same reasons Akbar built it. British troops were first stationed at Allahabad fort in 1765 as part of
15008-579: The state after Varanasi . Located in southern Uttar Pradesh, the city covers 365 km (141 sq mi). Although the city and its surrounding area are governed by several municipalities, a large portion of Prayagraj district is governed by the Prayagraj Municipal Corporation. The city is home to colleges, research institutions and many central and state government offices, including High court of Uttar Pradesh. Prayagraj has hosted cultural and sporting events, including
15142-465: The state, thirteenth in Northern India and thirty-sixth in India, with an estimated population of 1.53 million in the city. In 2011, it was ranked the world's 40th fastest-growing city. The city, in 2016, was also ranked the third most liveable urban agglomeration in the state (after Noida and Lucknow ) and sixteenth in the country. Hindi is the most widely spoken language in
15276-439: The suffix "–bas" was deemed to "savouring too much of Hinduism" and therefore the name was changed to Ilahabad by Shah Jahan . This evolved into the two variant colonial-era spellings of Ilahabad (Hindi: इलाहाबाद) and Allahabad. According to Maclean, these variant spellings have a political basis, as "Ilaha–" means "the gods" for Hindus, while Allah is the term for God to Muslims. After Prince Salim 's coup against Akbar and
15410-544: The table below. Vedas Divisions Sama vedic Yajur vedic Atharva vedic Vaishnava puranas Shaiva puranas Shakta puranas The Vedas ( / ˈ v eɪ d ə z / or / ˈ v iː d ə z / ; Sanskrit : वेदः , romanized : Vēdaḥ , lit. 'knowledge'), sometimes collectively called the Veda , are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India . Composed in Vedic Sanskrit ,
15544-484: The text. Some texts were revised into the modern era, raising significant debate on parts of the text which are believed to have been corrupted at a later date. The Vedas each have an Index or Anukramani , the principal work of this kind being the general Index or Sarvānukramaṇī . Prodigious energy was expended by ancient Indian culture in ensuring that these texts were transmitted from generation to generation with inordinate fidelity. For example, memorization of
15678-407: The texts "literally forward and backward in fully acoustic fashion". Houben and Rath note that the Vedic textual tradition cannot simply be characterized as oral, "since it also depends significantly on a memory culture". The Vedas were preserved with precision with the help of elaborate mnemonic techniques , such as memorizing the texts in eleven different modes of recitation ( pathas ), using
15812-586: The texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism . There are four Vedas: the Rigveda , the Yajurveda , the Samaveda and the Atharvaveda . Each Veda has four subdivisions – the Samhitas ( mantras and benedictions ), the Brahmanas (commentaries on and explanation of rituals, ceremonies and sacrifices – Yajñas ), the Aranyakas (text on rituals, ceremonies, sacrifices and symbolic-sacrifices), and
15946-537: The time of Al-Biruni who calls it as "Prayaga", located at the confluence of Ganga and Yamuna. The historic literature of Hinduism and Buddhism before the Mughal emperor Akbar use the term Prayag, and never use the term Allahabad or its variants. Its history before the Mughal Emperor Akbar is unclear. In contrast to the account of Xuanzang, the Muslim historians place the tree at the confluence of
16080-526: The time of the Kuru Kingdom , approximately c. 1200–900 BCE. The "circum-Vedic" texts, as well as the redaction of the Samhitas, date to c. 1000 –500 BCE, resulting in a Vedic period , spanning the mid 2nd to mid 1st millennium BCE, or the Late Bronze Age and the Iron Age . The Vedic period reaches its peak only after the composition of the mantra texts, with the establishment of
16214-569: The various shakhas all over Northern India which annotated the mantra samhitas with Brahmana discussions of their meaning, and reaches its end in the age of Buddha and Panini and the rise of the Mahajanapadas (archaeologically, Northern Black Polished Ware ). Michael Witzel gives a time span of c. 1500 to c. 500 –400 BCE. Witzel makes special reference to the Near Eastern Mitanni material of
16348-401: The vernaculars, the 'oriental' classics and English." There was Maulawi Zaka Allah, Professor of Vernacular Science and Literature, who taught Arabic, Persian, Urdu and mathematics. One of the students' favorites was Aditya Ram Bhattacharya, professor of Sanskrit. Arthur Reid was professor of law from 1883 to 1895, and Homersham Cox came to teach mathematics in 1891. "For its first 15 years
16482-416: The very first sacrifice ( yāga, yajna ) in this place. The word prayāga has been traditionally used to mean "a confluence of rivers". For Allahabad, it denoted the physical meeting point of the rivers Ganges and Yamuna in the city. An ancient tradition has it that a third river, invisible Sarasvati, also meets there with the two. Today, Triveni Sangam (or simply Sangam) is a more frequently used name for
16616-524: The virtuous one should be pure in heart and fair in action. The Mahabharata ( c. 400 BCE –300 CE) mentions a bathing pilgrimage at Prayag as a means of prāyaścitta (atonement, penance) for past mistakes and guilt. In Tirthayatra Parva , before the great war, the epic states "the one who observes firm [ethical] vows, having bathed at Prayaga during Magha, O best of the Bharatas, becomes spotless and reaches heaven." In Anushasana parva , after
16750-526: The war, the epic elaborates this bathing pilgrimage as "geographical tirtha" that must be combined with manasa-tirtha (tirtha of the heart) whereby one lives by values such as truth, charity, self-control, patience and others. Prayāga is mentioned in the Agni Purana and other Puranas with various legends, including being one of the places where Brahma attended a yajna (homa), and the confluence of river Ganges, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati site as
16884-537: The wished spot and laid the foundations of the city and planned four forts." Abul Fazal adds, "Ilahabad anciently called Prayag was distinguished by His Imperial Majesty [Akbar] by the former name". The role of Akbar in founding the Ilahabad – later called Allahabad – fort and city is mentioned by ʽAbd al-Qadir Badayuni as well. Nizamuddin Ahmad gives two different dates for Allahabad's foundation, in different sections of Tabaqat-i-Akbari . He states that Akbar laid
17018-517: The years, a number of attempts were made by the BJP -led governments of Uttar Pradesh to rename Allahabad to Prayagraj. In 1992, the planned rename was shelved when the chief minister, Kalyan Singh , was forced to resign following the Babri Masjid demolition . 2001 saw another attempt led by the government of Rajnath Singh which remained unfulfilled. The rename finally succeeded in October 2018 when
17152-468: Was also an important site in 7th-century India of a Buddhist festival. She states that Xuanzang festivities at Prayag featured a Buddha statue and involved alms giving, consistent with Buddhist practices. According to Li Rongxi – a scholar credited with a recent and complete translation of a critical version of the Dà Táng Xīyù Jì , Xuanzang mentions that the site of the alms-giving is a deva temple, and
17286-408: Was always at the confluence of the rivers Ganges and Yamuna. According to Irwin, an analysis of the minor inscriptions and ancient scribblings on the pillar first observed by Cunningham, also noted by Krishnaswamy and Ghosh, reveals that these included years and months, and the latter "always turns out to be Magha, which also gives it name to the Magh Mela ", the Prayaga bathing pilgrimage festival of
17420-453: Was constructed by 1584 and called Ilahabas or "Abode of Allah", later changed to Allahabad under Shah Jahan . Speculations regarding its name, however, exist. Because of the surrounding people calling it Alhabas , has led to some people holding the view that it was named after Alha from Alha's story . James Forbes ' account of the early 1800s claims that it was renamed Allahabad or "Abode of God" by Jahangir after he failed to destroy
17554-524: Was however, unwilling to give them up and made appeals to the English and the Marathas did not fare well at the Battle of Ramghat. In August and September 1773, Warren Hastings met Shuja and concluded a treaty, under which Kora and Allahabad were ceded to the Nawab for a payment of 50 lakh rupees. Saadat Ali Khan II , after being made the Nawab by John Shore , entered into a treaty with the company and gave
17688-654: Was known in antiquity first as the Kuru, then as the Vats country. To the southwest is Bundelkhand , to the east and southeast is Baghelkhand , to the north and northeast is Awadh and to the west is the lower doab (of which Prayagraj is part). The city is divided by a railway line running east–west. South of the railway is the Old Chowk area, and the British-built Civil Lines is north of it. Prayagraj
17822-439: Was moved to Agra in 1835. Allahabad became the capital of the North-Western Provinces in 1858 and was the capital of India for a day. The city was the capital of the United Provinces from 1902 to 1920 and remained at the forefront of national importance during the struggle for Indian independence . Prayagraj is one of the international tourism destinations, securing the second position in terms of tourist arrivals in
17956-526: Was the largest town-planning project carried out in India before the establishment of New Delhi . Prayagraj has many buildings featuring Indo-Islamic and Indo-Saracenic architecture . Although several buildings from the colonial period have been declared "heritage structures", others are deteriorating. Famous landmarks of the city are Allahabad Museum , New Yamuna Bridge , Allahabad University , Triveni Sangam, All Saints Cathedral , Anand Bhavan , Chandrashekhar Azad Park etc. The city experiences one of
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