Doctor Saheb,
I am providing references now which shows India as a nation (a Cultural identity) know as Bharat for thousands of years.
1) VIshnu Puran Referances:
उत्तरं यत्समुद्रस्य हिमाद्रेश्चैव दक्षिणम् ।
वर्षं तद् भारतं नाम भारती यत्र संततिः ।।
he land north of the ocean and south of the Himalayas is called
Bharat, where the descendants of Bharata live.”
2) ततश्च भारतं वर्षमेतल्लोकेषुगीयते
भरताय यत: पित्रा दत्तं प्रतिष्ठिता वनम (विष्णु पुराण, २,१,३२)
This country is known as Bharatavarsha since the times the father entrusted the kingdom to the son Bharata and he himself went to the forest for ascetic practices.
This means that country was there even before Bharat whose Name changed after Bharat became the king.
Mahabharata (c. 5000 BCE)
- Uses Bharata Varsha repeatedly.
- Describes pilgrimages across the entire subcontinent.
- Kings from Gandhara to Kanyakumari attend common events.
Pan-Indian Sacred Geography (Cultural Unity)
Pilgrimage Circuit (very ancient)
- Char Dham: Badrinath, Dwarka, Puri, Rameswaram
- 12 Jyotirlingas
- 51 Shakti Peethas
Shakti Peeths are there in Current Day Pakistan and Bangladesh as well.
Adi Shankra Established 4 peets across India 2500 years ago.
Adi Shankaracharya (8th century CE)
- Established four Mathasin:
- North (Badrinath)
- South (Sringeri)
- East (Puri)
- West (Dwarka)
Foreign Sources:
Greek Sources
- Herodotus (5th century BCE) – “India” as a distinct land and people
- Megasthenes (Indica) – describes India as one civilizational entity
Chinese Pilgrims:
- Fa-Hien (5th century CE)
- Xuanzang / Hiuen Tsang (7th century CE)
They refer to:
- A single land called “Yin-Tu” / “Tianzhu”
- “Tianzhu” is a phonetic transcription of the Sanskrit word “Sindhu” / “Hindu.”Tianzhu = India (as a civilization and land)
- Shared customs, dharma, learning centers
Key Chinese Texts:
- Han Dynasty records (2nd century BCE onward)
- Buddhist scriptures translated into Chinese
- Travelogues of monks:
- Fa-Hien (法显) – 5th century CE
- Xuanzang (玄奘) – 7th century CE
They consistently use
Tianzhu to refer to:
- The entire Indian subcontinent
- Land of the Buddha
- A unified cultural–religious space
Arab–Persian Writers
- Al-Biruni (11th century):