Madhyadeśa
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By Swami Harshananda
Sometimes transliterated as: Madhyadesa, MadhyadeZa, Madhyadesha
Madhyadeśa literally means ‘the middle part of the country Bhāratavarsa’.
The purāṇas divide Bhāratavarsa, undivided India, into seven deśas or regions. They are:
- Aparānta
- Madhyadeśa
- Udīcya or Uttarāpatha
- Prācya
- Dākṣiṇātya or Dakṣiṇāpatha
- Vindhyapṛṣṭha
- Parvata
The Madhyadeśa is defined as that part of the country which is between the Himalayas and the Vindhya Mountains but to the west of Prayāga, modern Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh. It is to the east of Vinaśana, the place where the river Sarasvati disappears.
Types of People
Seventeen types of people are mentioned in the epics and the purāṇas to be residents of this region. Some of them include:
- Kuru
- Pāñcāla
- Sālva
- Jāṅgala
- Surasena
- Bodha
- Kulya
- Kirāta
- Magadha
They seem to be the names of the countries or regions in which they lived.
References
- The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore
