Asmaka was a kingdom among the 16
MahajanapadasMahajanapadas , literally "Great realms," were Ancient Indian kingdoms or countries...
mentioned in the Buddhist texts. All other kingdoms were in the north, from
VangaThe vangas are a group of little-known small to medium-sized passerine birds restricted to Madagascar. Their relationship with other passerine groups is uncertain, but they seem most closely related to several other enigmatic African groups, such as helmetshrikes...
to
GandharaSee also Gandhara Gandhāra is the name of an ancient kingdom , located in northern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan. Gandhara was located mainly in the vale of Peshawar, the Potohar plateau and on the Kabul River...
. Some believes that Asmaka was a colony of the
KambojasThe Kambojas were a Kshatriya tribe of Iron Age India, frequently mentioned in Sanskrit and Pali literature. The earliest mention of the name Kamboja is in the Vamsa Brahmana...
, and its earlier name was Aswaka. The epic
MahabharataThe Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India, the other being the . The epic is part of the Hindu itihāsa , and forms an important part of Hindu mythology....
mentions that the king of the name
Asmaka was the adopted son of Saudasa alias Kalmashapada a king of
KosalaKosala Proper or Uttara Kosala is the kingdom of the celebrated personality of Treta Yuga, Raghava Rama. Ayodhya was its capital, presently in Faizabad district, Uttar Pradesh. Rama's sons Lava and Kusa inherited parts of this kingdom. Lava ruled from the city called Sravasti and Kusa from the city...
and an
IkshwakuIkshwakus were a dynasty of rulers of ancient India, which branched out from the Solar Dynasty. They ruled from the Kosala Kingdom with Ayodhya as their capital. The two Indian epics, viz. Ramayana and Mahabharata have numerous mentions of this dynasty. The most famous among all the Ikshwaku kings...
ruler.
Madayanti, the wife of Saudasa, commanded by her husband to raise offspring went unto Rishi Vasishtha.
Asmaka was a kingdom among the 16
MahajanapadasMahajanapadas , literally "Great realms," were Ancient Indian kingdoms or countries...
mentioned in the Buddhist texts. All other kingdoms were in the north, from
VangaThe vangas are a group of little-known small to medium-sized passerine birds restricted to Madagascar. Their relationship with other passerine groups is uncertain, but they seem most closely related to several other enigmatic African groups, such as helmetshrikes...
to
GandharaSee also Gandhara Gandhāra is the name of an ancient kingdom , located in northern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan. Gandhara was located mainly in the vale of Peshawar, the Potohar plateau and on the Kabul River...
. Some believes that Asmaka was a colony of the
KambojasThe Kambojas were a Kshatriya tribe of Iron Age India, frequently mentioned in Sanskrit and Pali literature. The earliest mention of the name Kamboja is in the Vamsa Brahmana...
, and its earlier name was Aswaka. The epic
MahabharataThe Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India, the other being the . The epic is part of the Hindu itihāsa , and forms an important part of Hindu mythology....
mentions that the king of the name
Asmaka was the adopted son of Saudasa alias Kalmashapada a king of
KosalaKosala Proper or Uttara Kosala is the kingdom of the celebrated personality of Treta Yuga, Raghava Rama. Ayodhya was its capital, presently in Faizabad district, Uttar Pradesh. Rama's sons Lava and Kusa inherited parts of this kingdom. Lava ruled from the city called Sravasti and Kusa from the city...
and an
IkshwakuIkshwakus were a dynasty of rulers of ancient India, which branched out from the Solar Dynasty. They ruled from the Kosala Kingdom with Ayodhya as their capital. The two Indian epics, viz. Ramayana and Mahabharata have numerous mentions of this dynasty. The most famous among all the Ikshwaku kings...
ruler.
Asmaka the adopted son of Saudasa
Madayanti, the wife of Saudasa, commanded by her husband to raise offspring went unto Rishi Vasishtha. And on going in unto him, the handsome Madayanti obtained a son named Asmaka. (1,122).
This history is repeated at (1,197), where it adds that the queen bore the embryo in her womb for a long time. She being impatient upon her pregnancy, hit her stomach by stone (
Asma, in
SanskritSanskrit is a historical Indo-Aryan language, one of the liturgical languages of Hinduism and Buddhism, and one of the 22 official languages of India. It is also declared as a classical language by the government of India....
), hence the son thus born was named Asmaka. He became a great king and founded the city of
Paudanya.
On Pandava Side
Asmakas were mentioned to be on the side of Pandavas, with
DhristadyumnaDhrishtadyumna , also known as Draupada, was the son of Drupada and brother of Draupadi and Shikhandi in the epic Mahābhārata...
, at (7.83)
On Kaurava Side
Borne by his well-broken steeds
AbhimanyuAbhimanyu )is a tragic hero in the Hindu epic, the Mahābhārata. He is the son of Arjuna and Subhadra, the half-sister of Lord Krishna. He is an unparalleled archer and is considered to be greater than his father in prowess with the bow and arrow...
quickly checked the
son of Asmaka. Staying before him, the handsome son of Asmaka pierced him with ten shafts and addressing him, said, ‘Wait, Wait.’ Abhimanyu then, with ten shafts, cut off the former’s steeds and charioteer and standard and two arms and bow and head, and caused them to fall down on the earth, smiling the while. After the heroic ruler of the Asmakas had thus been slain by the son of Subhadra, the whole of his force wavered and began to fly away from the field. (7,35)
Karna's conquests
DhritarashtraIn the Mahābhārata Dhritarashtra was the son born to Vichitravirya's first wife Ambika. He was fathered by Vyasa. This blind king of Hastinapura was father to a hundred children by his wife Gandhari . These children came to be known as the Kauravas...
talks of
KarnaKarna is one of the central characters in the epic Mahābhārata from ancient India. Karna is considered to be the greatest warrior of Mahābhārata by authorities including Krishna and Bhishma, as stated in the original text by Maharishi Ved Vyasa . He was the son of Surya and Kunti...
having conquered the mighty foes----the
GandharaSee also Gandhara Gandhāra is the name of an ancient kingdom , located in northern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan. Gandhara was located mainly in the vale of Peshawar, the Potohar plateau and on the Kabul River...
s, the
MadraMadra or Madraka is the name of an ancient region and its inhabitants, located in the north-west division of the ancient Indian sub-continent.-Uttaramadra division:...
kas, the Matsyas, the Trigartas, the Tanganas, the Khasas, the Pancalas, the Videhas, the Kulindas, the Kasi-kosalas, the Suhmas, the Angas, the Nishadhas, the Pundras, the Kichakas, the Vatsas, the Kalingas, the Taralas, the Asmakas, and the
RishikasRshikas were an ancient tribe living in the northern division of ancient India. They find references in the Mahabharata, Ramayana, Brhat Samhita, Markendeya Purana etc. Ashtadhyayi of Panini does not mention the Rishikas, but Mahabhasya of Patanjali does make reference to this people. Mahabharata...
(i.e south-western Rishikas located in
MaharashtraMaharashtra is a state located on the western coast of India. Maharashtra is a part of Western India. It is India's third largest state by area and second largest by population....
) (8.8) and numerous other tribes including the
KaikeyasKekayas or Kaikeyas were an ancient people attested to have been living in north-western Punjab -- between Gandhara and Beas river since remote antiquity. They were the descendants of the Kshatriyas of the Kekaya Janapada hence called Kekayas or Kaikeyas...
,
KambojasThe Kambojas were a Kshatriya tribe of Iron Age India, frequently mentioned in Sanskrit and Pali literature. The earliest mention of the name Kamboja is in the Vamsa Brahmana...
, Ambasthas and Videhas etc (8.9).
Asmaka Sumantu, a sage
Asmaka Sumantu was a sage among the sages who assembled in
KurukshetraKurukshetra is a district in Haryana state of India. Known as a holy place; Kurukshetra earns its name from King Kuru, the ancestor of Kauravas and Pandavas. What makes it really important is the theory that this was where the Kurukshetra war of the Mahabharata was fought and the Bhagavad Gita...
, during the last days of
KuruThe Kuru kingdom was ruled by the Kuru clan of kings. The Pandavas and Kauravas were Kurus. Other than these Kurus of India, there was another kingdom called Uttara Kurus to the north of Himalayas. The Kuru kingdom of India lay between Saraswati River and river Ganga...
hero
BhishmaBhishma is one of the strongest characters of the Mahabharata. He was the grandfather of both the Pandavas and the Kauravas. An unparalleled archer, he once vanquished the mighty Parasurama.-Birth:...
. (12,47)