Unknown but less More than 6,666 | ||
 | ||
Result Decisive Trtsu-Bharata victory Similar Battle of Sholinghur, Battle of Deeg, Battle of Porto Novo, Battle of Argaon, Battle of Ambur | ||
Battle of the ten kings
The Battle of the Ten Kings (dāśarājñá) is a battle alluded to in the Rigveda (Book 7, hymns 18, 33 and 83.4-8), the ancient Indian sacred collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns. The battle took place during the middle or main Rigvedic period, near the Ravi River in Punjab. It was a battle between the Puru Vedic Aryan tribal kingdoms of the Bharatas, allied with other tribes of the north west India, guided by the royal sage Vishvamitra, and the Trtsu-Bharata (Puru) king Sudas, who defeats other Vedic tribes.
Contents
- Battle of the ten kings
- Battle of the ten kings original song phenil buch ft adam kim
- Belligerents
- Background
- Adaptations and retellings
- References
Battle of the ten kings original song phenil buch ft adam kim
Belligerents
The Trtsu are the tribe led by king Sudas. Sudas himself is included in the "ten kings", as the Trtsus are said to be surrounded by ten kings in 7.33.5. But it is not made explicit how this number is supposed to be broken down: if of the tribes mentioned in 7.18, the Turvasas, Yaksuss (pun for Yadu), Matsyas, Bhrgus, Druhyus, Pakthas, Bhalanas, Alinas, Shivas and Visanins are counted, the full number is reached, leaving the Anavas (7.18.14), the Ajas and Sigrus (7.18.19) and the "21 men of both Vaikarna tribes" (7.18.11) without a king, and implying that Bheda (7.18.19, also mentioned 7.33.3 and 7.83.4, the main leader slain by Sudas), Shimyu (7.18.5), and Kavasa (7.18.12) are the names of individual kings. The Bharatas are named among the enemies in 7.33 but not in 7.18.
Background
The situation leading up to the battle is described in 7.18.6: The Turvasas and Yaksus (Yadu), together with the Matsya tribe (punned upon by the rishi by comparing them to hungry fish (matsya) flocking together) appear and ally themselves with the Bhrigus and the Druhyus.
Adaptations and retellings
According to Erdosy, the Battle of Ten Kings provided a prototype for the epic Mahabharata, an idea which Hiltebeitel calls a "particularly baffling fancy."
Ashok Banker has penned a book Ten Kings: Dasarajna, which retells the fictional account of the epic battle.
