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Sindhu kingdom or simply Sindhu was an ancient kingdom on the Indian subcontinent. It stretched the banks of river Sindhu (Indus). It was mentioned in the epic Mahabharata and in the Harivamsa Purana, often alongside the Sauvira kingdom. It is believed that Sindhu kingdom was founded by Vrishadarbha, one of sons of Sivi. According to the Glimpses of Ancient Sindh, authored by Mirchandani,[ citation needed ] its capital was known as Vrsadarbhpura, and Tulsianis, later known as Sindhu, was located at or near the location of the present town of Mithankot (in southern Punjab, Pakistan) the inhabitants of the kingdoms were called Sindhus or Saindhavas. "Sindhu" literally means "river" and "sea". [1] According to the epic Mahabharata, Jayadratha (the husband of Duryodhana's sister) was the king of Sindhus, Sauviras and Sivis. Probably Sauvira and Sivi were two kingdoms close to the Sindhu kingdom and Jayadratha conquered them, holding them for some period of time. Sindhu and Sauvira seem to have been two warring states fighting each other.
"Sindhu" means "river" and "sea" in classical Sanskrit. The term originated from Proto-Indo-Aryan *síndʰuṣ , from Proto-Indo-Iranian *síndʰuš (possibly derived from the BMAC substrate [2] ), or possibly from sédhati (“to go, move”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱiesdʰ- (“to drive away; to go away”). The term Sindhu was used often to describe the Indus region as a whole, the early Vedic name for the Punjab, for example, was Sapta Sindhu .
Sindhu (the Bhojas, the Sindhus, the Pulindakas) is mentioned as a separate kingdom of Bharata Varsha at (6:9). [3] The Kasmiras, the Sindhu Sauviras, the Gandharas (or Gandharvas) were mentioned as kingdoms of Bharata Varsha at (6:9). Sindhu and Sauvira are mentioned as a united country at many places, including (5:19), (6:51), (6:56), (7:107), (8:40), and (11:22).
Culturally, Sindhus were mentioned as similar to the Madras as per Karna: "The Prasthalas, the Madras, the Gandharas, the Arattas, those called Khasas, the Vasatis, the Sindhus and the Sauviras are almost as blamable in their practices." (8:44) "One should always avoid the Vahikas, those impure people that are out of the pale of virtue, and that live away from the Himavat and the Ganges and Saraswati and Yamuna and Kurukshetra and the Sindhu and its five tributary rivers." (8:44)
"The Gandharas (or Gandharvas), the Sindhus, and the Sauviras fight best with their nails and lances. They are brave and endued with great strength. Their armies are capable of vanquishing all forces, The Usinaras are possessed of great strength and skilled in all kinds of weapons. The Easterners are skilled in fighting from the backs of war elephants and are conversant with all the ways of unfair fight. The Yavanas, the Kamvojas, and those that dwell around Mathura are well skilled in fighting with bare arms. The Southerners are skilled in fighting sword in hand." (12:100)
At (5:133) we find Kunti telling the story of Vidula who persuaded her son, who was the king of Sauvira but banished by the Sindhu king, to fight against the Sindhus and take back his kingdom from them: "The princess Vidula, one day, rebuked her own son, who, after his defeat by the king of the Sindhus, lay prostrate with heart depressed by despair." (5:133) "It is true, the king of the Sindhus hath many followers. They are, however, all discounted. Rejoice, O son, and make thyself happy in the possession of wealth in the company of the daughters of the Sauviras and do not, in weakness of heart, be ruled over by the daughters of the Saindhavas." (5:134) "Pierced by the wordy arrows of his mother, the son roused himself like a steed of proud mettle and achieved (defeating the Sindhus) all that his mother had pointed out." (5:136)
At (3:262) Jayadratha is mentioned as the son of Vriddhakshatra. Jayadratha is mentioned as the son of Sindhu at (1:188). Jayadratha is mentioned as of Sindhu's race at (5:142). Jayadratha is mentioned as the king of Sindhu, Sauvira and other countries at (3:265). The warriors of the Sivi, Sauvira and Sindhu tribes were under the command of Jayadratha (3:269). At (11:22) Jayadradha is mentioned as the king of Sindhu and Saivira. Apart from Dussala (1:117) (the sister of Duryodhana), Jayadradha had two other wives, one from Gandhara and the other from Kamboja (11:22).
Jayadratha is mentioned as the sole ruler, governing "the rich countries of Saivya, Sivi, Sindhu and others" at (3:265). Jayadratha "had under his sway ten kingdoms," of which Sindhu was the main kingdom (8:5). Jayadratha had also played a vital role in the battle of Kurukshetra, and was killed by Arjuna. On a particular day in the battle of Kurukshetra, due to the absence of Arjuna who was fighting elsewhere, Jayadratha was able to stop the Pandavas (except Arjuna) and helped kill Abhimanyu treacherously for Kauravas.[ citation needed ]
In the Kurukshetra War, Sindhu sided with the Kauravas under their ruler Jayadratha. (6:71), (7:10,136)
"Jayadratha of the country of the Sindhu, and the kings of the southern and the western countries and of the hilly regions, and Shakuni, the ruler of the Gandharas, and all the chiefs of the eastern and the northern regions, and the Sakas, the Kiratas, and Yavanas, the Sivis and the Vasatis with their Maharathas at the heads of their respective divisions joined the Kaurava army." (5:198) "A silver boar adorned the standard-top of the ruler of the Sindhus. Decked with golden chains, it was of the splendour of a white crystal." (7:102)
"In Bhishma's division were all the sons of Dhritarashtra, and also Sala who was a countryman of the Valhikas, and also all those Kshatriyas called Amvastas, and those called Sindhus, and those also that are called Sauviras, and the heroic dwellers of the country of the five rivers." (6:20)
"Those warriors that are opposed to Arjuna, viz., the Sauvirakas, the Sindhava-Pauravas, headed by Karna, are regarded as foremost of car-warriors." (7:108) "Many combatants belonging to the Nishadas, the Sauviras, the Valhikas, the Daradas, the Westerners, the Northerners, the Malavas, the Abhighatas, the Surasenas, the Sivis, the Vasatis, the Salwas, the Sakas, the Trigartas, the Amvashthas, and the Kekayas, similarly fell upon Arjuna." (6:118) "Bhishma protected by the warriors headed by Saindhava and by the combatants of the East and the Sauviras and the Kekayas, fought with great impetuosity." (6:52)
Arjuna's words, when Jayadratha and others together attacked and killed his son Abhimanyu, during the Kurukshetra War:
"Thou shalt in tomorrow's battle, O Kesava, behold the earth strewn by me with the heads of kings cut off by the force, of my shafts! (Tomorrow) I shall gratify all cannibals, rout the foe, gladden my friends, and crush the ruler of the Sindhus, viz. Jayadratha! A great offender, one who hath not acted like a relative, born in a sinful country, the ruler of the Sindhu, slain by me, will sadden his own. Thou shalt behold that ruler of the Sindhus, of sinful behavior, and brought up in every luxury, pierced by me with my shafts!" (7:73)
Horses belonging to Sindhu breed were used extensively in the Kurukshetra War. (7:24) "[S]teeds consisting of the best of the Kamvoja breed as also of those born in the country of the Rivers, and of those belonging to Aratta and Mahi and Sindhu, and of those of Vanayu also that were white in hue, and lastly those of hilly countries" were the different types of horse employed in this war. (6:91)
Steeds from Sindhu "were lean-fleshed, yet strong and capable of a long journey and endued with energy and strength of high breed and docility, free from inauspicious marks, with wide nostrils and swelling cheeks, free from faults as regards the ten hairy curls, [...] and fleet as the winds." (3:71)
"The river Sindhu (Indus) too is flowing with a current of fresh blood." (3:223) "The seven large rivers including the Sindhu (Indus) though flowing eastwards then flowed in opposite directions. The very directions seemed to be reversed and nothing could be distinguished. Fires blazed up everywhere and the earth trembled repeatedly." (5:84) "The spot where the Sindhu mingleth with the sea, is that tirtha of Varuna." (3:82)
In the Harivamsa Purana , the Sindhu kingdom is mentioned at (2.56.26). The Yadavas, led by Krishna, arrived there in search for a place to build the city of Dvārakā. The place was so charming, that some of the Yadavas "started enjoying the heavenly comforts in some of the places there". [4]
Abhimanyu is a warrior in the Hindu epic Mahābhārata. He was a young and valiant warrior of the Kuru lineage, born to Arjuna—the third Pandava brother—and Subhadra—the sister of the deities Krishna and Balarama. He was also one of the few individuals, along with his father, who knew the technique to enter the Chakravyuha, a powerful military formation. Abhimanyu was raised by his maternal family in Dvārakā because the Pandavas had been exiled for thirteen years by their cousins, the Kauravas. After his father's return, his marriage was arranged with Uttarā, the princess of the Matsya Kingdom.
The Kurukshetra War, also called the Mahabharata War, is a war described in the Hindu epic poem Mahabharata, arising from a dynastic struggle between two groups of cousins, the Kauravas and the Pandavas, for the throne of Hastinapura. The war is used as the context for the dialogues of the Bhagavad Gita.
Daradas were an ancient people who lived north and north-west to the Kashmir Valley. This kingdom is identified to be the Gilgit region, in the Gilgit-Baltistan region along the river Sindhu or Indus. They are often spoken along with the Kambojas. The Pandava hero Arjuna had visited this country of Daradas during his northern military campaign to collect tribute for Yudhishthira's Rajasuya sacrifice. The country of Darada has also been mentioned in the Rasa Ratna Samucchaya, a book dealing about Rasasastra
Jayadratha is the king of the Sindhu kingdom featured in the Mahabharata. He was married to Dushala, the only sister of the hundred Kaurava brothers. The son of the king Vriddhakshatra, he is killed by Arjuna. He has a son named Suratha.
Yuyudhana, better known as Satyaki, was a powerful Yadava chieftain of Narayani Sena, belonging to the Vrishni clan to which Krishna also belonged. According to the Puranas, he was the grandson of Shini of the Vrishni clan, and son of Satyaka, after whom he was named. A valiant warrior, Satyaki was devoted to Krishna and was a student of Arjuna.
Kosala is the kingdom of Rama mentioned in the Ramayana. Ayodhya was its capital, now located in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh. Rama's sons Lava and Kusha inherited parts of this kingdom. Lava ruled from the city called Shravasti and Kusa from the city called Kushavati. A colony of Kosala kings existed in Madhya Pradesh. It was called Dakshina Kosala. Rama's mother Kausalya was from this kingdom. Rama extended his influence up to the island-kingdom of Lanka situated in the Indian Ocean. He had friendly relations with the southern kingdom of Kishkindha.
Trigarta was an ancient Indo-Aryan kingdom based in the region of modern day Punjab. The focal point of its administration was situated in Jalandhar. However at its zenith it encompassed the hill territory extending from the Sutlej to the Ravi, with a secondary capital in Kangra. According to a genealogical record of the Kangra State, the first significant monarch is identified as Susarman, who is recognised for his participation in the Kurukshetra War based in the early Iron Age. It was during this period that the kingdom held Multan.
Madra kingdom was a kingdom grouped among the western kingdoms in the ancient Indian epic Mahabharata. Its capital was Sagala in the Madra region. The Kuru king Pandu's (Pāṇḍu) second wife was from Madra kingdom and was called Madri. The Pandava twins, Nakula and Sahadeva, were her sons. Madri's brother Shalya was the king of Madra. Though affectionate to the Pandavas, he was tricked to give support to Duryodhana and fought against the Pandavas during the Kurukshetra War. He was killed by Yudhishthira, the eldest Pandava. Other than the Madra kingdom with Sagala as its capital, it is believed that there was a Western Madra and a Northern Madra.
Sauvīra was an ancient kingdom of the lower Indus Valley mentioned in the Late Vedic and early Buddhist literature and the Hindu epic Mahabharata. It is often mentioned alongside the Sindhu kingdom. Its capital city was Roruka, identified with present-day Aror/Rohri in Sindh, mentioned in the Buddhist literature as a major trading center. According to the Mahabharata, Jayadratha was the king of the Sindhus, Sauviras and Sivis, having conquered Sauvira and Sivi, two kingdoms close to the Sindhu kingdom. Jayadratha was an ally of Duryodhana and the husband of Duryodhana's sister Dussala. The kingdom of Sauvira is also stated to be close to the Dwaraka and Anarta kingdoms. According to Bhagwat Puran Sauviras were once connected with Abhira.
Shivi is mentioned as a kingdom and as the name of a king in the ancient Indian epic Mahabharata. There was a king named Shivi who became famous as Shivi or the kingdom itself may be named after him. Shivi king was famous for his truthfulness. The legend about his truthfulness and compassion goes as follows: King Shivi protected a dove who was chased by a hawk, and gave flesh from his thigh, as a substitute meal to the hawk.
The Kekeya kingdom was a kingdom mentioned in the ancient Indian epic Mahabharata among the western kingdoms of then India. The epic Ramayana mentions one of the wives of Dasharatha, the king of Kosala and father of Rama, was from Kekeya kingdom and was known as Kaikeyi. Her son Bharata conquered the neighbouring kingdom of Gandhara and built the city of Takshasila. Later the sons and descendants of Bharata ruled this region from Takshasila.
Gandhāra was an ancient Indian kingdom mentioned in the Indian epics Mahabharata and Ramayana. Gandhara prince Shakuni was the root of all the conspiracies of Duryodhana against the Pandavas, which finally resulted in the Kurukshetra War. Shakuni's sister was the wife of the Kuru king Dhritarashtra and was known as Gandhari after the area of Gandhāra. Puskalavati, Takshasila (Taxila) and Purushapura (Peshawar) were cities in this Gandhara kingdom. Takshasila was founded by Rama's brother Bharata. Bharata's descendants ruled this kingdom afterwards. During the epic's period, the kingdom was ruled by Shakuni's father Suvala, Shakuni and Shakuni's son. Arjuna defeated Shakuni's son during his post-war military campaign for Yudhishthira's Aswamedha Yajna.
Sakas are described in Sanskrit sources as a Mleccha tribe grouped along with the Yavanas, Tusharas and Barbaras. There were a group of Sakas called Apa Sakas meaning water dwelling Sakas, probably living around some lake in central Asian steppes. Sakas took part in Kurukshetra War.
Kasmira or Kashmira was a kingdom identified as the Kashmir Valley along the Jhelum River of modern Jammu and Kashmir. During the epic ages this was one among the territories of the Naga race. The Kasmiras were allies of the Kuru king Duryodhana.
Kīkaṭa was an ancient Indian kingdom in what is now India, mentioned in the Vedas.
Kalinga is a kingdom described in the legendary Indian text Mahabharata. They were a warrior clan who settled in and around the historical Kalinga region, present-day Odisha and northern parts of Andhra Pradesh. According to political scientist Sudama Misra, the Kalinga janapada originally comprised the area covered by the Puri and Ganjam districts.reference-Sudama Misra (1973). Janapada state in ancient India. Bhāratīya Vidyā Prakāśana. p. 78.
Kirata kingdom in Sanskrit literature and Hindu mythology refers to any kingdom of the Kiratis, who were dwellers mostly in the Himalayas. They took part in the Kurukshetra War along with Parvatas (mountaineers) and other Himalayan tribes.
Parvata kingdom refers to the territory of a tribe known as Parvatas (mountaineers), mentioned in the epic Mahabharata. Most of the descriptions of Parvata kingdom in the epic refer to a mountainous country in the Himalayas. Tribes belonging to other mountainous regions in the north west, west and the east of the Indo-Gangetic Plain were also known as Parvatas, when used as a collective name. Parvatas took part in the Kurukshetra War. The epic also mentions a sage named Parvata who was a companion of sage Narada.
The Bahlikas were the inhabitants of a location called Bahlika, mentioned in the Atharvaveda, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Puranas, Vartikka of Katyayana, Brhatsamhita, Amarkosha, and other ancient inscriptions. Other variations of Bahlika include Bahli, Balhika, Vahlika, Valhika, Bahlava, Bahlam/Bahlim, Bahlayana, and Bahluva.
Shivi was an ancient Indo-Aryan tribe of north-western South Asia whose existence is attested during the Iron Age. The members of the Shivi tribe were called the Shivis.