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Ancient
India : The Great Indian Kings |
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The Great Indian Kings
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Vikramaditya
An ideal king who was as wise as he was brave and strong.
He did not want kingship, but when the people needed him,
became king. Matchless in war and matchless in forgiveness,
an excellent ruler, he won the hearts of his people.
Vikramaditya - The Creator of an Era About 850 years ago
the 'Chalukya- Vikrama Era' was in vogue in Karnataka.
Vikramaditya the Sixth came to the throne on the 26th
of February 1077A.D. The Chalukya-Vikrama Era commenced
from that date. This shows his power and greatness. He
defeated a number of kings and proved his valour. Can
we respect a person as a great man, just because he is
physically very strong or because he has an army and is
powerful? Surely we cannot. The giants are said to have
been very strong. All were afraid of them, but no one
respected them. People hated them. One should have the
wisdom to use one's strength for the benefit of others.
A horse may be swift as the wind, but he needs reins to
control him. In the same way power needs wisdom. Vikramaditya
was both valiant and able. In spite of constant wars during
his reign, the subjects lived without fear. His motto
was to rule solely for the welfare of the people. In addition
to this he was generous and noble. He treated a king,
Jagaddeva by name, with such affection and grace that
Jagaddeva gave up his kingdom andcame away to Vikramaditya's
court. Vikramaditya the Sixth was second to none in valor.
Many kingdoms were under his thumb but he used his might
to help the good and punish the wicked. In every way he
was worthy to give an era his name.
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Harischandra
With his vow to remain truthful at all times, Harischandra
successfully faced the rigorous challenge posed by Vishwamitra.
Though a king. He sacrificed everything he had at the
attar of truth, including his Kingdom, and even his
life and son. He took so lowly a job as that of the
guard at burning ground; even in the case of his own
son he demanded the prescribed fee for cremation, which
his wife had no means of paying. On an order from the
king, Harischandra even prepared to behead his own wife.
Harischandra's character is indelibly etched in the
mind of Hindus.
The story of Harischandra is of perennial interest.
The story will last for as long a time as the value
of truth lasts. It illumines our life. It was this story
which helped Yudhishtira to get over his adversities.
Again, it was this story which showed the path of truth
to Gandhiji. This story occurs in the Vedas and also
in the Puranas, in poetry and in drama. It took its
origin in the Vedas, flowed through the Puranas, ran
into cascades of poetry, and has continued to enrich
the life of our people. |
Ashoka
The Wheel which adorns the flag of free India has kept
his memory green. Lord of a vast empire, after a great
victory sick of violence and took an oath never to fight
again.He was an Ideal ruler.
"All men are my children. I am like a father to them.
As every father desires the good and the happiness of
his children, I wish that all men should be happy always."
These are the words of an emperor who lived two thousand
and three hundred years ago. We see in history how even
mere chieftains grew arrogant and used their powers
selfishly and unjustly. But the emperor who said the
above words ruled over the greater part of India. He
had the power of life and death over millions of his
subjects. Is it surprising that free India remembers
him with admiration? This emperor was Ashoka (also called
‘Devanampriya Priyadarshi’). The wheel in the abacus
of the pillar which he erected as a memorial at Saranath
now adorns the national flag of free India. --- Ashoka |
Shivaji
The hero who escaped from the prison of the Mughal Emperor
himself, to become the ruler of a kingdom devoted to
Dharma and the service of the people. As a boy he dedicated
himself to Hindu Dharma. He matched cunning against
cunning, courage against courage; he was one of the
wisest rulers as he was one of the greatest generals.
A small boy is seated on the throne, of curse, on a
small throne bound hand and the village Patel. He had
dishonoured a helpless widow; it was he is duty to protect
such persons. Indeed he was a wicked Patel. In his limitless
pride he did not even think that a small boy would have
the courage to hold an inquiry. Yet the young prince
subjected this Patel, who proudly sported a thick moustache,
to a proper judicial trial. It was clear that the Patel
had done wrong. In a stern and majestic tone the young
prince announced the judgement: both the hands and the
feet of the Patel were to be cut off. All present were
stunned at the firm devotion of the prince to justice.
Not only were they wondering struck but also pleased
beyond measure. The townsfolk began to say to one another:
Ah! Look! How devoted to justice our young prince is
He is not in the least afraid of the wicked people.
He metes out fit punishment to all that do wrong. He
is kind and loving towards the poor, the downfallen
and the wretched. He is ever determined to help them
and to protect them. What is more, he regards all women
as mothers. Surely when he grows up into manhood, not
only.
will he save our land but also will uphold our Dharma.
Therefor let us all stand by him.Don’t you wish
to know who this young prince was? He was none other
than Shivaji. At the time of this incident he was just
fourteen. His small kingdomcomprised the few small villages
that skirted the township of Poona. His father was Shivaji
who served as general under the Sultan of Bijapur. The
father knew only too well the nature of his son. He
felt joyous when he thought of the fearless lion-like
disposition of his son, which would never let him, bow
down to any foreigner. How the father became aware of
this fearless nature of his son is itself and interesting
story.On a certain occasion Shahaji took his son to
the court of the Sultan of Bijapur.
Shivaji was then not even twelve years of age. Shahaji
touched the ground thrice and saluted the Sultan. He
asked his son to do the same thing. But…Shivaji
only retreated a few steps. He stood erect with his
head unbent. His dazzling eyes seemed to carry with
them his determination that he would not bow down to
a foreign ruler. He walked back from the court with
a lion-like gait and bearing.Till then no one had dared
to behave in that manner at the court of the Sultan
of Bijapur. All were wonder-struck at the boldness of
the young boy.Did such acts of the son enrage Shahaji?
They did i not. On the contrary he was mightily pleased
at heart. He had not been fortunate enough to be an
independent ruler. He sent his son to Poona, blessing
him that at least he might become an independent ruler.You
may ask. How did Shivaji acquire all these noble virtues
courage, heroism, love for the motherland and love of
Dharma? Even when he was a little child his mother Jijabai
used to tell him stories of heroes, of saints and sages
who appear in the Ramayana, the Mahabharatha and the
Puranas. As Shivaji listened to these tales of heroism
and Dharmic deeds, he grew more and more eager to be
like Rama or Krishna, Bheema or Arjuna. He was further
blessed in that he had for his teacher and guides such
a great man as Dadaji Kondadev was. He was also inspired
by the memories of the glorious empire of the Vijayanagara
Kings in Karnataka. |
Kharvela
A great king of Kalinga who ruled twenty- one centuries
ago. Coming to the throne when the state was in distress,
he brought confidence and self-respect to the people.
And he refused to join hands with a foreign army against
an Indian prince.
This incident took place, long, long ago, about 2300
years ago. Kalinga and Magadha were two powerful states.
These neighboring states were at constant war with each
other for nearly a century. Kalinga had suffered defeat
and was waiting for the right time to teach Magadha
a lesson. War had broken out again between them. Just
at that time the King of Kalinga learnt disturbing news,
a Greek King had come from beyond India and was marching
towards Magadha. The Magadha had defeated and humiliated
the Kalingas a hundred years before. Suppose the King
of Kalinga had welcomed this attack; suppose he had
thought - 'Let this new enemy defeat the King of Magadha,
my desire for revenge will be satisfied' – that would
have been natural. He could have thought: 'These people
of Magadha insulted us a hundred years ago; let them
suffer now.' But the King of Kalinga thought differently.
'This enemy who is now attacking Magadha is an outsider;
he comes here to loot. He is as much my enemy as of
Magadha.' Those who had been at war for over a century
joined hands in this hour of great danger. The outsider
who had come to plunder was driven away. If only the
later kings of India had shown the foresight and wisdom
which the King of Kalinga showed twenty-three centuries
ago; if only they had sunk their differences when the
Muslims and the British attacked our country ; if only
they had fought unitedly shoulder to shoulder, considering
themselves as sons of the same soil ; India need not
have suffered in slavery. The king who had acted with
such farsightedness and wisdom even in those early days
was King Kharavela. |
Dileepa
An illustrions king of the solar dynasty; an ancestor
of Sri Rama. Though renowned for his valor, Dileepa
tended the celestial cow Nandini like a cowherd. In
an ultimate act of piety, he offered himself as food
to a lion to protect Nandini, and thus proved his worthiness
in a test posed by Nandini herself. After covering himself
with glory, he gave up the kingdom and spent his last
years in meditation in forest,setting a noble ideal.
Please leave the cow. You can eat my own body, and feel
satisfied. Being a friend, do accede to my request."
An Emperor known for his valor thus begged of a lion.
How strange! Being so valiant, why did he not kill the
lion? Further more, instead of living in grandeur and
happiness like a king of kings, why give his body to
the lion for the sake of a cow? Isn't it strange? Yet,
how good and dignified does it show the Emperor to be!
His is a very interesting story. |
Hakka-Bukka
Hakka was the first ruler of the famous kingdom of Vijayanagar,
and Bukka, his brother, the second ruler. They opposed
the mighty Sultan of Delhi and brought unity and freedom
to south India. They were great not only as warriors
but also as rulers.
Hakka and Bukka were the first kings of the Vijayanagar
Empire. To them goes the credit of protecting our religion,
culture, literature and fine arts when they were in
danger. They also established the rule of Dharma. Their
real names were Harihara and Bukkaraya. But the people
affectionately called them Hakka (orHukka) and Bukka,
and those names stuck to them. Those names are found
even in one of the inscriptions. Three dynasties ruled
over the Vijayanagar Empire. The first of them was theSangama
Dynasty. Harihara and Bukkaraya were the first two kings
of that dynasty. Harihara founded the Vijayanagar kingdom
and Bukkaraya stretched it into an empire. Hakka and
Bukka are remembered for their heroic achievement. First
of all we should know the conditions in our country
at that time. Only then we can understand how difficult
and how great was the achievement of Hakka and Bukka.
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