The Trade of India (continued)
By P. T. Srinivas Iyengar
Summary
The Trade of India (up to the 2nd century A.D.) reveals a sophisticated commercial tradition dating back to Vedic times. Vedic mantras reference traders seeking wealth and engaging in long-distance maritime trade, with ships described as having "hundred oars" and navigating "the ocean's end." Trade was integral to Vedic life, symbolized by the barter-like nature of sacrifices, where deities like Indra and Mitra were invoked for safe voyages. Evidence suggests Indian cultural and commercial influence extended to the Mitanni region (near the Euphrates) by the 15th century B.C.E., as seen in inscriptions invoking Indian deities. Two prominent Vedic traders, Brbu and Bhujyu, are highlighted for their wealth and seafaring exploits. However, the majority of ancient Indian traders were not Aryas but the Panis, who rejected the Agni cult and worshipped Vala. They were known for accumulating wealth and resisting Brahminical authority. Coastal communities in southern India, with Mediterranean racial characteristics and maritime vocabulary in Tamil (e.g., *neydal* for coast and *Paradar* for seafaring people), indicate a long-standing coastal culture and seafaring tradition. Archaeological evidence, such as Indian teak found in Ur (c. 4th millennium B.C.E.) and the term *Siadhu* (referring to Indian cloth in Accadian records), confirms early maritime trade with Mesopotamia and the Persian Gulf. Indian goods likely reached Egypt and the Mediterranean via Arabian intermediaries. Roman knowledge of monsoons (c. 47 B.C.E.) suggests earlier Indian maritime expertise, with evidence of direct trade with East Africa by the 3rd–4th millennia
Conclusion
This document reveals that India's commercial engagement from the Vedic period was not merely transactional but deeply intertwined with cultural and religious identity. The reverence for deities like Indra and the Nasatyas as protectors of trade underscores the spiritual dimension of early commerce, while the Panis' defiance of Brahmanical norms highlights the socio-religious tensions surrounding wealth accumulation. The Vedic hymns' portrayal of trade as a divine exchange and the Mitanni inscriptions' invocation of Indian deities demonstrate how commercial activity facilitated cross-cultural diffusion, embedding Indian spiritual concepts in distant lands. The duality of traders as both Aryan ritualists and non-Aryan Panis reflects the complex, stratified nature of ancient Indian society, where economic ambition coexisted with ideological conflict. These findings position India's early trade not as a peripheral economic activity but as a dynamic force shaping its civilizational ethos and international connections.