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Southern India


From the political point of view, there would have been a multitude of dynasties spread out across the Subcontinent.

The Pandya dynasty was continuing to dominate the Tamil areas. The Tamil areas would remain starkly Hinduist, favouring the Shaivite and Vaishnavite denominations. The Pandya kingdom was known for its export of pearls.

The northern portions of the Tamil Nadu would have been ruled by the originally Sanskrit Pallava dynasty; during the last decade of the ninth century, however, they were overthrown by a local Tamil dynasty known as the Cholas. The Cholas were a zealous Shaivist Hindu dynasty, busy building temples and would later have a lasting impact on the culture of the region

Further northwards, where the eastern coast bends from a vertical to a diagonal line on the map, was the realm of Vengi Nadu, ruled by the Eastern Chalukyas. The society in this country was based around the instituton of the caste system, with Brahmins holding influential positions in government and state service, the Kshatriya (nobility) being the ruling class, then a wealthy merchant class and the shudra would be the peasants and levies. Shaivite Hinduism would be the dominant form of religion, followed by Vaishite Hinduism. There would be also Buddhist and Jainist communiites in the country; the former in decline the latter still remaining vibrant. Although both disregarded the notion of a caste system, they would ultimately accept it.

Continuing along the coast we arrive to the realm of Kalinga in Andhra Pradesh and coastal Odisha. The rulers were at first Buddhists, later converting to Shaivism. Their rule saw a conversion from Mahaynana to Vajrayana Buddhism in the region, and there were numerous Buddhist pilgrimage sites, such as Ratnagiri and Nalanda

Eastern Odisha was home to the Somavamshi dynasty; and under their rule the region saw a return from Buddhism to Brahmanism.

Now moving inland, that is, westwards, are the lands ruled by the Bana dynasty. These include the Odishan hinterland and the state of Chhatisgarh. The area has been known as Gondwana; being at the northeastern end of the Deccan plateau meant that the society in this region had remained largely tribal.

Now heading west is the vast realm ruled by the Rashtrakuta dynasty, dominating the western half of the Deccan plateau, with the Narmada River forming more-less their northern border; their area being synonymous to the combined linguistic areas of the Marathi and Kannada languages.

The Rashtrakuta dynasty were probably of native Kannada origin, although this has been debated quite recently. This is reinforced by the fact that Kannada as spoken at court, although Sanskrit would have also been used.

The realm of the Rashrakuta was home to followers of Jainism, Vaishnavaism, Shaivism, Buddhism and Christianity.

The dynasty would have practised a policy of religious tolerance; it is assumed, however, that the ruling dynasty was inclined to Jainism. The majority of their scholars were Jains, and the core region, Karnataka had a Jainist majority. Numerous Jainist temples would have been built under the dynasty.

The kings would nevertheless also invoke and worship Hindu deities. One of the largest Hindu temples was built in the Ellora caves.


Buddhism was in decline in the region, retreating to enclaves such as Balligavi and Dambal.

While the Rashtrakuta were a hereditary monarchy, succession was not from father to eldest son. The heir would be chosen according to his abilities from among the members of the dynasty.

The vast realm would grow a variety of crops. Cotton would be grown in the northernmost regions; the Konkani coast would grow betel leaves, coconuts, rice and olives. Further inland, you could get tropical wood and incense. The minerals of the Deccan plateau provided copper and diamond deposits.

The Rashtrakuta kingdom was involved in westward trade, with Mesopotamia, Mazoun, Himyar, Egypt and the Mediterranean. You could even get Italian wine in the realm.

To the south of the Rashtrakuta was the Western Ganga kingdom, in southern Karnataka. While the kings were in majority patrons of all faiths in the region, that is Jainism, Shaivism, Brahmanism and Shaivnaism, the kings themselves were Jains, and Jainism would be the preferred religion, although southern India would lack the idea of religious zeal, familiar to the monotheist religions of the Occident.

Ultimately in the southwestern corner, on the Malabar Coast, was the realm of Keralaputra ruled by the Chera dynasty. The realm participated greatly in trade with the “Yavanas” or the Mediterranean world, mainly by exporting spices. This route also resulted in the establishment of Jewish and Christian communities. It is thought that the first group of Christians in the area was convert by the apostle Thomas, after whom the St. Thomas Christians are named. This community would be included under the jurisdiction of the Church of the East, also known as the Nestorian Church.

The arrival of Apostle Thomas roughly coincided with the time of the arrival of the first Brahmins to the region, who have followed already established Buddhist and Jain monks and preachers. The followers of Dravidian religion would gradually dwindle, as they would be converted to some of the more organized religions (1)

Across the strait, the Annarudhapura kingdom would rule the island of Ceylon. The kingdom would be Buddhist, with a strong position of the clergy. The kings would sponsor the Theravada school of Buddhism, and actively stopping the spread of the Mahayana denomination. Important was also the presence of the Tooth Relic of Buddha on the island.


Within the kingdom there would have been also followers of Hinduism, facing persecution from time to time, as well as a small community of Jains

The main agricultural product would have been rice, harvested in two seasons. The kingdom would export gems, spices, pearls and elephants. Cloth would have been imported from China and Eastern India, while wine, ceramics, silk would have been the major imports.

To the west of Ceylon lies a chain of coral atolls, known as the Maldives. The population there would have followed Buddhism, mainly the Theravada branch, but were also open to Mahayana and Vajrayana influences. Moreover, there seem to have been Hindu traditions continuing to lie on on the archipelago.

The vast majority of the Dhivehi were distantly related to the Sinhala of Ceylon, however, the population of some atolls, mainly Giraavaru, shows traits similar to the Dravidian peoples of southern India.

Northern India
The peninsula of Saurashtra, also known as Kathiawar is located in the Indian state of Gujarat; with some imagination, one can say that it is a mini-India, with the tip cut off. This area has been home to numerous statelets lasting throughout the ninth century, such as the Saindhava on the western coast, the Cara in the northwest and the remnant of the Chalukyas on the southern coast.

However, the dominating force in Gujarat, but not only Gujarat, but in all of the northern India became the Gurjara Pratihara Empire. Having defeated the Pala Empire on the middle and lower Ganges River, the Gurjara-Pratihara would now dominate the entire Ganges basin.

The Ganges Basin was by then populated by Mahayana, and to a lesser extent Tantric Buddhists. The university city of Nalanda was a major centre of education and knowledge throughout the Buddhist world. The region was known to be a home to many scholars. The Hindu traditions in the Ganges valley did not vanish completely; on the contrary, the area was the places where the epics of Mahabhrata and Ramayana were composed.

The lower Brahmaputra valley, that is, the region of Assam was organized as the Kamarupa kingdom. This was the easternmnost Indo-Aryan realm, which was mostly Hindu.

Further west was the area which would later come to be known as Bhutan. Populated by the Sino-Tibetan people, this region on the Himalayan foothills would not be yet unified into a single entity. Rather there would have numerous petty states, the most prominent of them being the Kingdom of Bhumthang. While keeping true to the ancient Bon traditions, the ideas of Buddhism, mainly the Mahayana sect would spread into the region. The people of Bhutan would go on to creat new sect , such as the Nyingmapa.

Even less could be said about the developments in Nepal. It may well be presumed that the realm was also predominantly Buddhist, as were the other realms in northern India.

Now heading far westwards into the Indus (or Sindh) valley (2). In the upper regions is the region known as Punjab. The area has been a mainly Buddhist region in the antiquity, known as Gandhara. However, gradually as dynasties changed and foreign invaders would take control of the region, Hinduism began gaining the upper ground. The Kabul Shahi dynasty now ruling over the entirety of Punjab was a Hindu one; however there was still significant Buddhist presence in the region.

The lower reaches of the Indus valley came under the rule of a Hindu Brahman dynasty. While the royalty themselves practised Brahminism, the majority populace would have been Buddhists. The Buddhist culture in the Indus valley showed influences not only from Hinduism, but also from Zoroastrianism and Greek philosophy (since the Indo-Greek kingdoms in the area).

(1) Nestorian presence in Kerala will be much larger than in OTL

(2) This will be quite tricky. Lets see what can be done out of this.