Maurya dynasty linked to Pashupatinath temple?

Kathmandu: Nepalese and British archaeologists are trying to find a link between Maurya dynasty of India from third century BC, and Pashupatinath Temple of Nepal, which is believed to date back to the fifth century BC.

Various coins, artefacts and water tanks were unearthed during an excavation carried out jointly by Pashupati Area Development Trust (PADT), the authority that manages the Pashupatinath Temple, and UK's Durhan University.

"During the first phase of excavation which started last year, we have unearthed a 25-metre-long and 5-metre-deep water tank, which is supposed to supply drinking water to the city during 7th century AD," said Kosh Prasad Acharya, executive director, PADT.

"We have also recovered a copper a coin with the inscription of 'Pashupatinath', sealed clay and clay potteries in the area, he said speaking at an interaction programme here.

These suggest that there was a well-managed town spreading some half a square kilometer area at that time, he added. Geophysical studies with modern scientific technology was used for the first time in conducting the archaeological studies in Pashupatinath temple area.

Prof Robin Coningham, who has been involved in the archaeological studies said that there is the possibility of Maurya period linkage to the Pashupatinath temple situated in the eastern part of Kathmandu city along the bank of Bagmati River "We have found similar kind of water tank, about 30 metre in length and 30 metre in breadth in Tilaurakot in southern Nepal during a recent excavations", Coningham pointed out. A team of experts from Durham University has recently conducted separate studies at Maya Devi Temple in Lumbini, the birth place of Siddhartha Gautam, and Tilaurakot, situated near Lumbini.

"We have found timber structure beneath the brick walls in Lumbini and Tilaurakot dating back to several centuries before the Christian Era," he pointed out.