Migration of Kambojas

References to Kambojas abound in ancient literature, and this may have been just the expansion of an Indo-Iranian tribe with both Indic and Persian affinities from their homeland in the present-day Afghanistan-Pakistan region along the foothills of the Himalayas towards Bengal, along the coast to Gujarat, to Sri Lanka, and possibly further to Cambodia.

Kambojas, Sakas etc enter Indian Mainland

During second/first century BC, in their advance from their original home in Central Asia, one stream of the Kambojas, allied with the Sakas and Pahlavas had proceeded to Sindhu, Sauvira and Surastra; while the other stream allied with Yavanas appears to have moved to Punjab and Uttar Pradesh [Cf: "Along with the Sakas, the Kambojas had also entered India and spread into whole of North India, especially in Panjab and Uttar Pradesh. Mahabharata contains references to Yavanas and Kambojas having conquered Mathura (12/105/5) (See: India and the World, p 154, Dr Buddha Parkash.] [Prācīna Kamboja, jana aura janapada =: Ancient Kamboja, people and country, 1981, pp 280-300, Dr Jiyālāla Kāmboja, Dr Satyavrat Śāstrī.] [Cf: History of Indian and Eastern Architecture, 1876, p 28, James Fergusson.] .

There are important references to the warring Mleccha hordes of the Sakas, Yavanas, Kambojas, Pahlavas etc in the Bala Kanda of the Valmiki Ramayana [ (1.54.21-23; 1.55.2-3).

:taih asit samvrita bhuumih Shakaih-Yavana mishritaih || 1.54-21 || :taih taih Yavana-Kamboja barbarah ca akulii kritaah || 1-54-23 || :tasya humkaarato jatah Kamboja ravi sannibhah
:udhasah tu atha sanjatah Pahlavah shastra panayah || 1-55-2 || :yoni deshaat ca Yavanah Shakri deshat Shakah tathaa | :roma kupesu Mlecchah ca Haritah sa Kiratakah || 1-55-3 || :: (Ramayana 1.54.21-23; 1.55.2-3)] .

Indologists like Dr H. C. Raychadhury, Dr B. C. Law, Dr Satya Shrava and others see in these verses the clear glimpses of the struggles of the Hindus with the mixed invading hordes of the barbaric Sakas, Yavanas, Kambojas, Pahlavas etc from north-west. [The Śakas in India, 1981, p 12, Satya Shrava; Journal, 1920, p 175, University of Calcutta. Department of Letters; India & Russia: Linguistic & Cultural Affinity, 1982, p 100, Weer Rajendra Rishi; Indological Studies, 1950, p 32, Dr B. C. Law; Political History of India from the Accession of Parikshit to the Coronation of Bimbisara, 1923, Page iii, Hemchandra Raychaudhuri; Political History of Ancient India, 1996, p 4, Raychaudhury; Indological Studies, 1950, p 4, Dr B. C. Law.] The time frame for these struggles is second century BCE downwards. Dr Raychadhury fixes the date of the present version of the Valmiki Ramayana around/after second century CE. [Political History of Ancient India, 1996, p 3-4.]

The invading hordes of the Sakas, Yavanas, Kambojas, Pahlavas, Abhiras etc from the north-west had entered Punjab, "United Province", Sindhu, Rajasthan and Gujarat in large numbers, wrested political control of northern India from the Indo-Aryans and had established their respective kingdoms/principalities in the land of the Indo-Aryans [ Cf also: 'Numerous Hindu references show, that there was a great inflow of foreign nations into India in the centuries before and after the Christian. The incorporation of foreign nations -- the Sakas, Yavanas, Kambojas, Pahlavas & the Paradas is mentioned in the Vishnu Purana (Indian Antiquary, IV, 166; Bombay Gazetteer, 1882, p 413, Bombay (India : State), Bombay (Presidency ), Harivamsa, Vayu Purana and numerous other Puranic texts. The invading hordes referenced in the Gazetteer are the Kambojas, Sakas, Pahlavas, Yavanas etc (See: Bombay Gazett. Presidency, 1901, p 448). Mahabharata mentions the great hordes of the Sakas and Yavanas helping the the Kambojas (See: Bombay Gazett. Presidency, 1901, p 461, fn 2). There are important references to the warring Mleccha hordes of the Shakas, Yavanas, Kambojas, Pahlavas etc in the Bala Kanda of the Valmiki Ramayana (See: Ramayana 1.54.21-23; 1.55.2-3; Cf: PHAI, 1996, p 4, Dr H. C. Raychaudhury). In the Army of Nahapana (130 CE), the great Pahlava conqueror of Malwa and north Daccan, the supporting military hordes were the Kshaharatas (=Kambojas), Pahlavas, Sakas and Yavanas' (Cf: Bombay Gazett, 1901, p 461, fn 2; Journal B.B. R.A., Soc., VIII, p 236).] [Some scholars think that the Kambojians from Kabul invaded India, third and fourth centuries AD (A History of Civilization in Ancient India: Based on Sanscrit Literature, 1889, pp 24, 40; A History of Civilisation in Ancient India, 2000, p 24, Romesh Chunder Dutt - History; The British Empire Series, 1899, 297--Published by K. Paul, Trench, Trübner & co., Ltd.] .

There is also a distinct prophetic statement in the Mahabharata that the Mlechha (Barbaric) kings of the Sakas, Yavanas, Kambojas, Bahlikas, Abhiras etc will rule the earth (i.e India) unrighteously in Kaliyuga [

:viparite tada loke purvarupa.n kshayasya tat. 28. :bahavo mechchha rajanah prithivyam manujadhipa. :mithyanushasinah papa mrishavadaparayanah. 29. :Andhrah ShakAh Pulindashcha Yavanashcha naradhipah . :Kamboja Aurnikah Shudrastathabhira narottama. 30. :: (MBH 3/187/28-30)] .

According to scholars like Dr Edward Washburn Hopkins, Dr H. C. Ray Chaudhury etc, "this is too clear a statement to be ignored or explained away" [The Great Epic of India: Its Character and Origin, 1901, p 393, Dr Edward Washburn Hopkins - Mahābhārata; Materials for the Study of the Early History of the Vaishnava Sect, 1975, p 42, Dr Hemchandra Raychaudhuri - Vaishnavism; Hellenism in Ancient India, 1920, p 231, Gauranga Nath Banerjee - Hellenism; See also: Political History of Ancient India, 1996, p 4; Journal, 1920, p 176, Dept. of Letters, University of Calcutta, University of Calcutta Dept. of Letters - Buddhism.] .

(r.c. 205-171 BCE), invader of India around 180 BCE.
Obv. Draped and wearing an elephant scalp, symbol of his conquest of India.
Rev. Youthful, naked Heracles, crowning himself with right hand, with lion skin and upright club resting on his left arm. Greek

This statement, couched in the form of prophecy in true puranic style, alludes to a historical situation (second/first century BC downwards) which followed the collapse of Maurya and Sunga dynasties in North India [Cf: "After the disintegration of Mauryan empire, the insecured frontier region of north-western part of India invited several foreign invaders i.e Yavasnas, Sakas-Kambojas, Pahlavas from western and Central Asia who came in India through migrations and invasions…The Moral and social degradation in the Indian society is indicated due to foreign invasions. Mahabharata states that Andhara, Sakas, Kambojas, Pulinda, Yavans, Vahlikas, Sudras, Abhiras, Mlechchas, will rule over the land and also will be addicted to falsehood" (Ref: Social Justice: Problems & Perspectives :{Seminar Proceedings of March 5-7, 1995}, Edition 1996, P 173, Jhinkoo Yadav, Dr Suman Gupta, Chandrajeet Yadav); See also: Ancient Kamboja People and the Country, 1981, Dr J. L. Kamboj.] .

That the Kambojas, Sakas etc indeed became rulers and masters of the earth ("Aryan India") in Kaliyuga ("post Mauryan era") is also attested from the Kalki Purana where a short dialogue between the Dharma and the Kalki (king "Pramati" or Chandragupta II Vikramaditya per Dr V. S. Aggarwal) [Matsya Purana, -- A Study, pp 228-230, Dr V. S. Aggarwal.] [Note: Others, however, identify king Kali with Buddhist Maurya king Brihadratha, while king Kalki (=Pramati) is identified with Brahmanical king Pusyamitra Sunga.] , woefully deplores the forced occupation of the earth (Indian mainland) by the unrighteous rulers of the Kambojas, Sakas, Savaras, Mlecchas, Barbaras etc who are blamed to have spread adharma and chaos all around [Kalki Purana, Chapter 20/40 sqq; See also: Kalki Purana, 2004, p 58, (See pp 60, 61 also), B K Chaturvedi. See link: [http://books.google.com/books?id=yjPXRCCUvk4C&pg=PA58&dq=Kamboja+Veda&sig=JM9grO2msZnB9eI7Qah5xWJIjl0] .] .

Millitary defeats

This chaotic situation of Aryan India is said to have ended with the destruction of these Saka, Kamboja, Yavana, Parsika hordes by king Vikramaditya of Ujjaini (c. 60 BC) and the establishment of the "Vikrama era" [:ata shrivikramadityo helya nirjitakhilah| :Mlechchana Kamboja. Yavanan neechan Hunan Sabarbran|| :Tushara. Parsikaanshcha tayakatacharan vishrankhalan| :hatya bhrubhangamatreyanah bhuvo bharamavarayate|| :: (Brahata Katha, 10/1/285-86, Kshmendra).] [Kathasritsagara 18.1.76-78.] [Cf:In the Katha- Saritasagara, king Vikarmaditya is said to have destroyed all the barbarous tribes such as the Kambojas, Yavanas, Hunas, Tokharas and Persians (See: Ref: Reappraising the Gupta History, 1992, p 169, B. C. Chhabra, Sri Ram.] [Cf: Vikrama Volume, 1948, p xxv, Vikramāditya Śakāri.] [Vikramāditya of Ujjayinī: The Founder of the Vikrama Era, 1951, p 114, Rajbali Pandey.] . Around 78-102 CE, Gautamiputra Satkarni defeated the Yavanas, Sakas and Pahlavas and assumed the title of "sakayavanpallavanidusana" (destroyer of the Sakas, Yavanas and Pahlavas.)

The Kambojas in Mathura

Sufficient evidence exists that around Christian era, Yavanas, Kambojas and the Sakas had occupied the heartland of India, that is, the modern state of Uttar Pradesh

Gargi-Samhita, Yuga Purana refers, in the form of a prophecy,to the invasion of Panchala, Mathura, Saketa and Pataliputra by the "Yavanas" [

"After having conquered Saketa, the country of the Panchala and the Mathuras, the Yavanas, wicked and valliant, will reach Kusumadhvaja (Pataliputra)". (Gargi-Samhita, Yuga Purana chapter; Also see: Brhat Samhita, Bibilotheca Indica, 1965, Intro., pp. 37-38, Kern; Greeks in Bacteria and India, 1951, W. W. Taran, Apprendix.] . Though the Kambojas are not specifically mentioned in this passage, it goes without saying that the term "Yavanas" in Yuga-Purana definitely included the Kambojas and probably also the Sakas.

It is notable that after massive intrusion of India by Sakas, Kambojas, Yavanas, Pahlavas around Christian era, the term "Yavana" had also become synonymous with "Mlechcha" and was a common "designation" for all "foreign tribes" irrespective of whether they were Yavanas, Sakas, Kambojas or others [Hellinsm in Ancient India, pp. 19-20, Dr G. N. Banerjee; Williams-Monier Sanskrit-English Dictionary.] .

Passages exist in the Mahabharata, Vayu Purana [I/58/81-83, II/37/106-09.] and Matsya Purana [ MatAsya Purana 144/51-58.] which include the Kambojas among the Yavanas and designate both as "Yavanas".

There is another reason for this too. The culture of the Kambojas had been substantively altered due to their intimate contacts with the Yavanas. Both people are attested to follow common culture, social customs and manners like supporting short cropped hair [Ganapatha II.1.72; Harivamsa 14.16.] , non-entertainment of Brahmanas in their countries [Manusmriti X.43-44; Majjhima Commentary, II, p.784; cf: Ashoka's Rock Edict XIII.] and observing two varna (Arya and Dasa) social system instead of chatur-varna observed by the Indo-Aryans etc [Majjhima Nikaya 43.1.3.] . The "Yonakambojesu" expression in Ashoka's R.E XIII as well as in the Buddhist text Majjhima Nikaya [ Majjhima Nikaya V 43.1.3.] powerfully attests very close relations of the Kambojas with the Yavanas.

"Thus, it is not unusual that the Kambojas have sometimes been indiscriminately included among the Yavanas and addressed as such, in the later Sanskrit literature."

According to Dr Buddha Parkash: " "Along with the Sakas, the Kambojas had also entered India and spread into whole of North India, especially in Panjab and Uttar Pradesh. Mahabharata contains references to Yavanas and Kambojas as having conquered Mathura [ MNH 12.105.5.] ....There is also a reference to the Kambojas in the Lion Capitol inscriptions of Saka Satrap ("Kshatrapa") Rajuvula found in Mathura " " [India and the World, p 154, Dr Buddha Parkash; cf: Ancient India, 1956, p. 220, Dr R.K. Mukerjee. . for Kamboja reference in Mathura Lion Capital and also Kamboja/Kambojika connections of King Moga, Arta, Kharostas and Aiyasi.] .

Dr Jayswal writes: "Mathura was under outlandish people like the Yavanas and Kambojas... who had a special mode of fighting" " [Manu and Yajnavalkya, Dr K. P. Jayswal.] .

Prof Shashi Asthana comments: "Epic Mahabharata refers to the siege of Mathura by the Yavanas and Kambojas" [History and Archaeology of India's Contacts with Other Countries, from Earliest Times to 300 B.C., 1976, p 153, Shashi Asthana.] [See also: Indian Historical Quarterly, XXVI-2, p 124.] .

According to Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Poona: "Mahabharata reference mentions the Yavanas-Kambojas as settled in the outlying parts of Mathura city" [Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Poona, 1926, p 11, Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute - Indo-Aryan philology.] [In the 1818 census of India, an account has been reported that the Kambohs (Kambojs) who live around Mathura in the United Province (UP), were originally Kshatriyas (See: The Tribes and Castes of the North-western Provinces and Oudh, 1896, p 118, William Crooke; Tribes of Ancient India, 1977, p 99, Mamata Choudhury---Ethnology; Encyclopaedia of Indian Tribes, p 89, Shyam Singh Shashi). Very Interestingly, the Hindu texts Ashtadhyayi, Manusmriti, Mahabharata, numerous Puranas and Kautiliya’s Arthashastra etc also record that the Kambojas were Kshatriyas. The above account of census 1881 also seems to be line with the Mahabharata’s account that the Kambojas had taken control of Mathura around the commencement of Christian era. Mathura Lion Capital inscriptions also supports the Kambojas' presence in Mathura.] .

The following verse from Mahabharata composed around the beginning of Christian era strongly attests the Kambojas and Yavanas in control of Mathura:

:"tatha Yavana Kamboja Mathuram.abhitash cha ye.| :ete ashava.yuddha.kushaladasinatyasi charminah.|| 5 ||" [(MBH 12/105/5, Kumbhakonam Ed).] .

The Mathura Lion Capital discovered in 1896 from Saptarsi mound in the south-eastern part of Mathura city housed in the British Museum, London, contains an epigraph in "Kharoshthi" characters which refers, among others, to Yuvaraja "Kharaosta Kamuio" and "Aiyasi Kamuia", the chief queen of the Great Satrap ("Mahakshatrapa") Rajuvula. After fresh and thorough critical review of Mathura Lion Capital inscriptions, Dr S. Konow has arrived at results and conclusions which are different from the earlier scholars.

According to Dr Konow's findings, Rajuvula's chief queen was "Aiyasi Kamuia" who was the daughter of Yuvaraja Kharaostas, himself also a "Kamuia".

By rigorous linguistic analysis, Dr Konow has also established that name "Kamuia/Kamuio" of Lion Capital inscriptions is the Kharoshthised form of Sanskrit Kamboja, Kambojaka or Kambuja [Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum II, Vol II, Part I, p xxxvi and p 36, Dr S. Konow] [ Dr Sten Konow: "If we bear in mind that mb becomes m i.e mm in the dialect of Kharoshthi dhammapada, and that u is used for the common o in Sudasa in the Lion Capital Inscriptions, the Kamuia of the Lion Capital can very well represent a Sanskrit Kambojika"(Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum, Vol II, Part I, p xxxvi; see also p 36).] [For Kamuia = Kambojika or Kamboja, see also the following refs: Indian Culture, 1934, p 193, Indian Research Institute; Ancient Kamboja in Iran and Islam, 1971, Editor C. E. Bosworth, Edinburgh, 1971, p 66, Dr H. W. Bailey; Geographical and Economic Studies in the Mahābhārata: Upāyana Parva, 1945, p 35, Dr Moti Chandra; Journal of Bihar and Orissa Research Society, Vol XVI, 1930, Part III, IV, p 229, Dr K. P. Jayswal; Ancient India, 1956, pp 220-21, Dr R. K. Mukerjee; Comprehensive History of India, 1957, Vol II, p 270, Dr K. A. Nilakanta Sastri; India and the World, 1964, p 154, Dr Buddha Parkash; Ṛtam, p 46, by Akhila Bharatiya Sanskrit Parishad, Lucknow; Literary History of Ancient India in Relation to Its Racial and Linguistic Affiliations, 1953, pp 165, 149, 46, 37, 64 Chandra Chakraberty; Jouranl of Indian History, 1921, p 21, University of Kerala, University of Alahhabad, Department of History; Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland - 1834, p 141, Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland; Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Poona, 1926, p 11, Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute; Our Heritage, 1960, p 59, Sanskrit College (Calcutta, India), Dept. of Post-Graduate Training and Research, India) Sanskrit College (Calcutta - Indo-Aryan philology; Khroshthi Inscriptions, No 15, A3; Notes on Indo-Scythian chronology, Journal of Indian History, xii, 21; Five Phases of Indian Art, 1991, p 17, K. D. Bajpai; Indological Studies: Prof. D.C. Sircar Commemoration Volume, 1987, p 106, Prof. D.C. Sircar Commemoration Volume, Upendra Thakur, Sachindra Kumar Maity - Social Science; Female Images in the Museums of Uttar Pradesh and Their Social Background, 1978, p 162, Padma Upadhyaya; Kunst aus Indien: Von der Industalkultur im 3. Jahrtausend V. Chr. Bis zum 19. Jahrhundert n ...1960, p 9, Künstlerhaus Wien, Museum für Völkerkunde (Vienna, Austria); The Śakas in India, 1981, p 97, Satya Shrava; Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain & Ireland, 1905, p 795, Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland; Journal of Indian History - 1921, p viii, University of Kerala, University of Allahabad Department of Modern Indian History, University of Travancore; Women, Patronage, and Self-Representation in Islamic Societies, 2000, p 113, D. Fairchild Ruggles; Development of Material Culture in India, 1986, p 118, Malati Mahajan; Development of Buddhism in Uttar Pradesh, 1956, p 390, Krishna Datta Bajpai, Nalinaksha Dutt; Ancient Kamboja, People and the Country, 1981, pp 41, 306-09, Dr J. L. Kamboj, Dr Satyavart Sastri; These Kamboj People, 1979, p 141; Kambojas Through the Ages, 2005, pp 168-69, Kirpal Singh Dardi; Balocistān: Siyāsī Kashmakash, Muz̤mirāt Va Rujḥānāt, 1989, Munīr Aḥmad Marri;تاريخ قوم كمبوه: جديد تحقيق كى روشنى ميں, 1996, p 221, Yusuf Husain; Cf: Geography in Ancient Indian Inscriptions, Up to 650 A.D. , 1973, p 11, Parmanand Gupta; Enlite, 1969, v.5, Light Publications; Journal of the Epigraphical Society of India: Bhāratīya Purābhilēkha Patrikā, 1985, Epigraphical Society of India - Indic Inscriptions; etc etc.] .

See Main Article "Kamuia"

Thus, there is both literary as well as inscriptional evidence which amply attests the presence of ancient Kambojas in Mathura.

"See also": [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/India_and_Central_Asia#Migrations.2Fencroachments_of_Central_Asians_into_India] (India and Central Asia) and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yona#Invasion_of_India] (Yona)

King Moga or Maues: a Scythianised Kamboj king

Scholars are at variance regarding the ethnic background of king Moga (other variants of the name are Moa, Maua, Mauaka, Muki, Mevake, Maues etc). According to many scholars including Dr V. A. Smith, Henry Miers Elliot, H. A. Rose, Firoze Cowasji Davar, Chandra Chakravarty etc, Maues or Moga was a Parthian king [History of India, 1906, p 206, Abraham Valentine Williams Jackson, Henry Miers Elliot, Romesh Chunder Dutt, Vincent Arthur Smith, Stanley Lane-Poole, Sir William Wilson Hunter, Sir Alfred Comyn Lyall; Zeitschrift der Deutschen morgenländischen Gesellschaft, 1906, p 53, Deutsche Morgenländische Gesellschaft; Iran and India Through the Ages, 1963, p 73, Firoze Cowasji Davar; The Early History of India from 600 B.C. to the Muhammadan Conquest, 1924, p 202, Dr Vincent Arthur Smith - India; See also: Glossary of Tribes and Castes, Vol I, H. A. Rose.] . Several other scholars believe that he was a Scythian king.

However, another and later view is that king Moga or Maues belonged to Kamuia clan which fact is born out by Mathura Lion Capital Inscriptions. Arta is said to be the elder brother of king Maues [Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland - 1834, p 142 by Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland; Corpus Inscrioptionum Indicarum, Vol II, Part I, pp xxxvi, 36, S Konow; Early Inscriptions of Mathurā: A Study, 1980, p 27, Kalyani Das; Ancient India, 1956, p 220, Dr Radha Kumud Mukerjee; History of Indian Administration - 1968, p 94, Dr B. N Puri; cf: Göttingische Gelehrte Anzeigen - 1931, p 12, Akademie der Wissenschaften in Göttingen, Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften zu Göttingen, Göttingische anzeigen von gelehrten sachen; Ancient Kamboja, People and the Country, 1981, pp 306-09.] . Yuvaraja Kharaosta Kamuio was son of Arta as is attested from Kharaosta's own coins [Kshatrapasa pra Kharaostasa Artasa putrasa (i.e. "Kshatrapa Kharaosta, son of Arta").] . Princess Aiyasi Kamuia, the chief queen of Kshatrapa Rajuvula, was the daughter of this Crown prince ("Yuvaraja") Kharaosta Kamuio [See: Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland - 1834, p 141, Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland; Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland - Page 23, Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland; History of Indian Administration, 1968, p 107, Baij Nath Puri; Political and Social Movements in Ancient Panjab (from the Vedic Age Upto [sic] the Maurya Period), 1964, p 258, Dr Buddha Prakash; Indian Linguistics, 1931, p 549, Linguistic Society of India; Aspects of Ancient Indian Administration - 1979, p 58, Dilip Kumar Ganguly; History of civilizations of Central Asia - 1999, p 201, Ahmad Hasan Dani, Vadim Mikhaĭlovich Masson, János Harmatta, Boris Abramovich Litvinovskiĭ, Clifford Edmund Bosworth, Unesco; see also: (Mathura Lion Capital).] . Many scholars including Dr S. Konow recognise the names Kamuia & Kamuio (q.v) of the Mathura Lion Capital Inscriptions as the Kharoshthi/Prakritic forms of Sanskrit/Pali Kambojika or Kamboja [Corpus Inscrioptionum Indicarum, Vol II, Part I, pp xxxvi, 36, Dr. S. Konow e.g: "If we bear in mind that 'mb' becomes 'm', i.e mm in the dialect of the Kharoshthi Dhammapada and that common 'o' becomes 'u' as in Sudasa, then Kamuia may very well represent Sanskrit Kambojika" (Dr Konow); See also: Literary History of Ancient Indiain Relation to its Racial, and Linguistic Affiliations, 1952, pp 46,165, Chandra Chakravarty; Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland - 1834, p 141, by Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland; cf also: " Dr Stein Konow's recognition of Kamuia, occurring in the Lion Capital Inscription of Mathura, as = Kambojika is convincing"…See: Bihar and Orisaa Research Society, Vol XVI, 1930, part III and IV, p 229, Dr K. P. Jayswal; "Ancient Kamboja", in Iran and Islam, ed. by C. E. Bosworth, Edinburgh, 1971, pp 66, H. W. Bailey; "Ancient Kamboja, People and the Country", pp 41, 227/228, Dr J. L. Kamboj; Kambojas Through the Ages, 2005, p 90, Kirpal Singh Dardi.] . Thus, according to Dr Konow and his line of scholars, king Moga, his brother Arta, Yuvaraja Kharaostas (Kharoshtha) Kamuio, and princess Aiyasi Kamuia were all from the "Kamuiá" or Kamboja/Kambojaka or Kambuja lineage [Refs: Corpus Inscrioptionum Indicarum, Vol II, Part I, pp xxxvi, 36, S Konow: "I shall only add that if Kharoshtha and his father Arta were Kambojas, the same may have been the case with Moga, and we understand why the Kambojas are sometimes mentioned with the Sakas and Yavanas" ( Dr S Konow); Ancient India, pp 320-21, Dr R. K. Mukerjee; Journal of Indian History - 1921, p viii, by University of Kerala, University of Allahabad Department of Modern Indian History, University of Travancore; Ancient Kamboja, People and the Country, 1981, pp 41, 306-09, Dr J. L. Kamboj; These Kamboj People, 1979, p 141; Kambojas Through the Ages, 2005, pp 168-69, Kirpal Singh Dardi; India and the World, 1964, p 154, Dr Buddha Prakash; Balocistān: Siyāsī Kashmakash, Muz̤mirāt Va Rujḥānāt, 1989, p 2, Munīr Aḥmad Marrīتاريخ قوم كمبوه: جديد تحقيق كى روشنى ميں, 1996, p 221, Yusuf Husain etc.] [ Cf: "Aiyasi Kamuia, the queen of Rajula was perhaps related to king Maues" (See: The Sakas in India, 1981, p 95, Satya Shrava).] .

Some scholars insist that Moga or Maues was of Saka extractions, but there is absolutely no definitive evidence so far to link Moga to Saka ethnicity. Scholars link Moga to the Sakas merely based on his so-called Saka-sounding names like Moa, Maua, Maues, Muki or Mevake etc which are said to be variants of Scythian name 'Mauakes', 'Mauekes' or 'Mauaces' [Journal of Royal Asiatic Society, 1906, pp 208, 216, Dr F. W. Thomas. See also Op cit., pp 1022-23] [The Afghans, 2002, p 141, Willem Vogelsang - History; Bactria, The History Of A Forgotten Empire, 2002, p 106, H. G. Rawlinson - History; Political History of Ancient India, 1996, p 398, Dr H. C. Raychaudhury, Dr B. N. Mukerjee. Note: Dr J. N. Banerjea also holds similar views.] [Cf: The dynasty of Maues (Id. Sec 13, 29). The difficulty of distinguishing between Scythic (Sakas) and Iranic (Pahlavas etc) invaders in India during this period is well known. THE PROPER NAMES AFFORD THE ONLY MEANS OF MAKING A DISTINCTION BETWWEEN THEM, AND A CONSIDERATION OF THESE SUPPLIES IS NO CERTAIN GUIDE, since names derived from both sources are applied to members of the SAME FAMILIY. The reason for this confusion is admirably explained by Dr Thomas. He says (J.R.A.S., 1906, p 215): "It would seem probable that the tribes from Eastern Iran who had invaded India included adverse elements mingled indistinguishably together, so that it is not possible to assert that one dynasty is Parthian (Iranic) and the other is Saka (Scythic). A regular invasion by Parthian empire seems to be not recorded and, "a priori", highly probable. We must think rather of "inroads by the adventurers of various origins" among whom one or another, as Maues, was able to assert temporary supremacy" (See quote in: Catalogue Of The Coins Of The Andhra Dynasty, The Western Ksatrapas, The Traikutak Dynasty And , p xcix, fn 1, Dr E. J. Rapson).] . This Saka-name criteria is not a very convincing reasoning to identify king Maues as of Saka extractions.

As is well known, during few centuries preceding the Christian era, there had occurred extensive social and cultural admixture among the Kambojas and Yavanas; the Sakas and Pahlavas; and the Kambojas, Sakas, and Pahlavas. ... such that their cultures and social customs had become almost identical. The culture of Kambojas was modified as a result of their contacts, first with the Yavanas and later, it went further modification as a result of their contacts with the Sakas and Pahlavas etc [Dr D. C. Sircar, Dr J. L. Kamboj.] . This extensive social and cultural admixture due to time and space proximity had led to adoption of similar customs, dress mode, language and social manners among the various frontier peoples of north-west. While ruling over middle and lower Indus valley--Drangiana and Archosia--, both the Sakas and Pahlavas were closely associated and no wonder it is not always possible to distinguish them apart. The close association of the Sakas and Pahlavas etc in this period is demonstrable from various sources and it is highly probable that the tribes from eastern Iran invading or entering India contained diverse elements including Iranians [Dr J. L. Kamboj, Dr J. N. Banerjea.] . "It is therefore, little more than a convenient nomenclature which labels the princes of the family of Maues as Sakas and those of the family of Vonones as Pahlavas" [Dr Rapson, Dr F. W. Thompson.] . Thus, we see that the identification of Maues as Saka prince is merely a CONJECTURE and is based simply on so-called SAKA-SOUNDING names which is no conclusive evidence at all. If one accepts above argument, then how to explain surname "Kamuia" used after the names of king Moga's family members? Is "Kamuia" also attested as a clan name among the ancient Sakas/Scythians anywhere? The answer is simply no [Cf: Dr J. F. Fleet comments on this issue: "While F. W. Thomas has in one place characterized nama Maues as "SPEFICIFICALLY SCYTHIC" (J.R.A.S., 1906, pp 208, 216, Dr F. W Thomas), to his linguistic statement on page 216ff, he has attached the remark that they "are included as purely positive". His results, therefore, seem not to preclude the possibility that name Moa, Maua (Maues) and Moga may have occurred in other languages as well. Further, even if they are Scythic names and nothing else, it does not necessarily follow that the bearers of these names were always of 'Scythian nationality'; much less that they were Sakas" (J.R.A.S. 1907, p 1023-24, Dr J. F. Fleet).] .

As stated before, there is no unanimity on the ethnicity of king Moga and his family.

Scholars like Dr V. A. Smith say that he was a Parthian king [The early History of India, p 242.] [Iran and India Through the Ages, 1963, p 73, Firoze Cowasji Davar.] . H. A Rose also agrees with Dr Smith and regards king Maues as an Indo-Parthian king [Glossary of Tribes, Vol I, p 33, H. A. Rose.] . Dr Chandra Chakravarti, though accepts Kamuia as Kambojika or Kambojika, regards Moga as of Parthian ethnicity [Literary History of Ancient India in Relation to its Racial and Linguistic Affiliation, 1952, p 149, Dr Chandra Chakravarti.] . Others say that he was Saka king. Dr S. Konow and some later scholars like Dr R K. Mukerjee, Dr J.L. Kamboj, K. S. Dardi and others following Dr Konow think that king Moga belonged to the Kambojika or Kambuja ethnicity.

According to Dr Thomas, the epigraphs of Mathura Lion Capital exhibit a mixture of Saka and Persian nomenclature. This tells us that Aiyasi Kamuia and Kharaosta Kamuio were from the Persian/Iranian denominations hence more likely from Kamboja ethnicity.

" "The nomenclature of the early Sakas in India shows an admixture of Scythian, Parthian and Iranian elements. ...." " [Hist & Culture of Indian People, The Age of Imperial Unity, p 121; Ancient India, 2002, p 416, Dr V. D. Mahajan; Catalogue Of The Coins Of The Andhra Dynasty, The Western Ksatrapas, The Traikutaka Dynasty...., p xcix, fn 1, Dr E. J. Rapson; Advanced History of India, 1971, p 155, Dr K. A. Nilakanta Sastri, G Srinivasachari, etc. IMPORTANT NOTE: The term IRANIAN ELEMENTS here refers to the KAMBOJAS. See also: Ancient Kamboja, People and the Country, Dr J. L. Kamboj; The Kambojas Through the Ages, 2005, p 169, Kirpal Singh etc. ] .

Even the northern Kshatrapas are stated to be of mixed Saka/Persian ethnicities.

Dr Thomas: " "It would seem probable that the tribes from eastern Iran who had invaded India included diverse elements mingled indistinguishably together, so that, it is not possible to assert that one dynasty was Parthian while another was Saka. .." etc" [Journal of Royal Asoiatic Society, 1906, p 215; Catalogue Of The Coins Of The Andhra Dynasty, The Western Ksatrapas, The Traikutak Dynasty And , p xcix, fn 1, Dr E. J. Rapson.] .

Thus, the ethnic surnames Kamuia/Kamuio used with the names of princess Aiyasi and Yuvaraja Kharaosta (or Kharahostes) of Mathura Lion Capital inscriptions should give more than enough credibility to the view that king Moga and his family belonged to 'Kamuia' or 'Kamboja/Kambuja' clan. It is reasonable to think that the Kamboja clan of king Moga had become some what "Scythianised" in social customs, culture and mannerism due to its extensive exposure to the next-door vast community of Central Asian tribes which had followed Scythian culture. Under such a scenario, it is absolutely not unusual for the Kamboja family of king Maues or Moga to have borne names which may sound somewhat Scythian or mixture of Scythian and Parthian.

"Probably, this is the clue to king Moga's ethnic identity".

Therefore, King Maues or Moga and his family were most probably from Kambojan rather than Scythian lineage [IMPORTANT COMMENT: During the middle of third c BCE (275-230 BCE), the important frontier peoples living on north-west India i.e in east Iran (Afghanistan), as mentioned by king Ashoka, were only the Yavanas, Kambojas and the Gandharas (See: Rock Edicts No . V & XIII). The Kambojas find a mention as an important people in the lists of both these edicts. Moreover, Kautiliya's Arathashastra (XI.1.1-4), as well as Mudrarakshasa play (Act II) of Visakha Dutta, both give very high prominence to the Kambojas as a warrior clan. It is very much reasonable to argue that the Kambojas did not, all of a sudden, went out of their limeight, immediately after the collapse of Maurya empire. The Kalika Puranna (verse 20/40) refers to the war between the Buddhist king Kali (Maurya Brihadratha) and the Brahmanical king Kalika (Pusyamitra Sunga), where the Kambojas came as powerful military supporters to Brihadratha (187-180 BCE). The same Purana qualifies the Kamboja warriors as "Kambojai...bhimavikramaih", i.e. the Kambojas of terrific military prowess. And the Kambojas also figure as an important hordes who, in alliance with the Sakas, Parasikas and the Mlechchas etc, are said to have given a tough fight to Chandragupta II of Gupta dynasty (Ref: Brahata Katha, 10/1/285-86, Kshmendra). And we undoubtedly find numerous references to the Kambojas having penetrated deep into and settled in south-west India, in post-Christian times. All this amply shows that the Kambojas were indeed a force to reckon with around Christian era and, therefore, are supposed to have played an important political role in the north-west India. And king Maues' family is indeed the proof for this supposition.] .

There are some European and Indian scholars who consider the Kambojas to be a (royal) clan of the Sakas or Scythians [Ref: La vieille route de l'Inde de Bactres à Taxila, p 271, Dr A Foucher; See entry Kamboja in online "Heritage du Sanskrit Dictionnaire, sanskrit-francais", 2008, p 101, Gerard Huet, which defines Kamboja as: "clan royal [kṣatriya] Kamboja des Śakās" [http://sanskrit.inria.fr/Dico.pdf] ; See also Serge Thion: On Some Cambodian Words, Thai-Yunnan Project Newsletter (NEWSLETTER is edited by Scott Bamber and published in the Department of Anthropology, Research School of Pacific Studies; printed at Central Printery; the masthead is by Susan Wigham of Graphic Design (all of The Australian National University); Cf: Indian Culture, 1934, p 193, Indian Research Institute - India; cf: Notes on Indo-Scythian chronology, Journal of Indian History, xii, 21; Corpus Inscrioptionum Indicarum, Vol II, Part I, pp xxxvi, 36, Dr. S. Konow; Cf: History of Indian Administration, p 94, Dr B. N. Puri.] [Cf: Literary History of Ancient India in Relation to its Racial and Linguistic Affiliations, 1952, pp 37, 149, 165; The Racial History of India, 1944, p 153, Dr Chakravarty; The Peoples of Pakistan: An Ethnic History, 1971, p 64, I︠U︡riĭ Vladimirovich Gankovskiĭ - Ethnology; Report of All Asia Educational Conference (Benares, December 26-30, 1930), 1931, p 762, edited by D. P. Khattry - Education.] . If this view is accepted, it immediately blows off any mist and confusion about true ethnicity of king Moga and his family. But according to some Scholars, originally, the Kambojas may have been Aryan not Iranian/Scythian in culture [ Some Kshatriya Tribes of Ancient India, 1924, 231-251, Dr B. C. Law.] .

The Kambojas in West/Southwest India

The Kamboja hordes of the second/first century BCE have left indelible foot prints in the names of mountains, rivers, and some geographical places in western India. The "Kamb/Kambuh" river and "Kamboh/Kambo" mountain in Sindh [ Sind, p 44, M. R. Lamrick.] remind us of Sanskrit Kamboja. The "Kamboi" (ancient town/port) in Patan district, Khambhoj in district Anand, "Kambay" (port/town and Gulf) ... all in Saurashtra; "Kumbhoj/Kambhoj" (an ancient town) in Kolhapur in Maharashtra; and the "Coimbatore" city of Tamil Nadu in southern India carry unmistakable footprints of the Kambojas. There is also an ancient Kambhoj caste living near Nanded in Maharashtra (See links: [http://books.google.com/books?id=BsBEgVa804IC&pg=PA910&ots=0k-6i0b5Mn&dq=Kambhoja&sig=cjvbpQ_AE8D_1d-h0u9fvHIyziE] , [http://books.google.com/books?id=lYSd-3yL9h0C&pg=PA265&ots=aBqkEjZ6JS&dq=Kambhoja+desh+features&sig=pbU8jeev6YHSf6WV3gL-BNzfDhc] ) [This Kambhoja country of southern India as hinted at by Syed Siraj ul Hassanis, in all probability, is the colonial settlement of the migrating Kambojas, who in alliance with the Sakas, Pahlavas had entered into and spread into south-western and southern India prior to/around the beginning of Christian era.] which could be a dwindling remnant of the ancient Kambojas settled in South-west India.

As noted below, there are numerous ancient Sanskrit references which profusely affirm that the Kambojas had indeed been in occupation of territories in south-western and southern India, in the post-Christian times.

Jyotirvidhbhrana, a Sanskrit Treatise on Astrology is generally attributed to Kalidasa in its last Stenzas, ("but probably, it was authored by someone of Jaina persuasion around 7th century"). In chapter 22, verse 14, the author writes: 'He (Sahasanka) destroyed the pride of Dravidas, also the king of Lata, defeated the king of Gauda and conquered Gurjardesa, king of Dhara (westerm Malwa) and king of Kambojas and conducted him with success' [Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bombay, 1862, p 27, Asiatic Society of Bombay - Orient; Journal of the Oriental Institute, 1919, p 78, Oriental Institute (Vadodara, India) - Oriental studies.] . In chapter 20, verse 46 of Jyotirvidhbhrana, the author states: 'The people of Kamboja, Gauda, Andhraka, Malava, Surajya and Gurjaras, even to this day sing the glory of Sahasanka (alias Vikarmaditya alias Chandra Gupta II), showing with the liberality of gifts of gold' [See: J.R.A S. of Bombay (Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, Bombay Branch, p 25/26.] . These references seem to imply that once Vikarmaditya had conquered Lata, Dhara (western Malwa), Saurashtra, Gujaradesa and as well as vanquished the Sakas, Kambojas, Gurjaras intruders of Gujarat/Saurashtra/Malawa from northwest, these aliens had become his subjects for sometime and started paying tributes to the great Gupta king Vikarmaditya (Chandra Gupta II) for his great benevolent rule—---hence this Jyotirvidbhrana tradition. From this reference, it also becomes understandable that once these foreign warlike intruders had been subjugated, many of them must have joined the armed forces of the Gupta rulers in large numbers and some of them like General Bhattarka, founder of Maitraka dynasty of Gujerat, had obtained placements in key positions. This Jyotirvidhbhrana reference definitely locates the Kambojas in south-western India i.e. near Lata, Saurashtra and western Malwa somewhere.

Markendeya Purana [Chapter 57.35.] lists the Kambojas and Pahlavas ("Indo-Parthians") among the countries of "Udichya division" i.e Uttarapatha, but another chapter of the same "Markendeya Purana" also refers to other settlements of the Kambojas and Pahlavas and locates them in the south-west of India as neighbor to Sindhu, Sauvira and Anarta (north Saurashtra) countries [Markendeya 58.30-32.] [Le Monde oriental, 1941, p 94, Kirfel, Bharatavarsa Bhuvankosa, 1931, pp 25, 29, 31, Kirfel.] [Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, 1939, p 232, Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland - Middle East.] [ Encyclopaedia of Hinduism, 1997, p 2466, Dr M. R. Singh, Editor Nagendra Kumar Singh - Religion.] [Geographical Data in the Early Purāṇas: A Critical Study, 1972, p 163, Dr M. R. Singh.] .

Geographical list of Brihat Samhita of Varaha Mihira (6th century CE) specifically places the Kambojas with the Pahlavas in the south-west division ("nairrtyam dizi = southwest direction"), Sind, Saurashtra/Kathiawar, contiguous to Malwa and Dravida countries [ :" nairrtyam dizi dezah Pahlava Kamboja Sindhu Sauvirah|":"hemagiri Sindhu Kalaka Raivataka surastra Badara Dravidah||" (Brihat Samhita 14/17-19).] [Indian Antiquary, 1893, p 171, Dr J. F. Fleet; Indo-Greek numismatics, 1970, 14, Richard Bertram Whitehead.] [See also: Brihat Samhita, Journal R.A.S.N. S. V. 84; Varāhamihira's Bṛhat Saṁhitā, 1981, p 174, M. Ramakrishna Bhat; The Fundamental Unity of India, 2004, p 91, Dr Radha Kumud Mookerji.] [Indo-Aryans: Contributions Towards the Elucidation of Their Ancient and ..., 1881, p 214, Dr Rājendralāla Mitra - India.] [India Greeks, 1970, p 14. Richard Bertram Whitehead; The Metaphysic of Experience in Advaita Vedānta: A Phenomenological Approach, 1983, p 174, Debabrata Sinha, Manjari Ohala - Hindu astrology; Parsis of Ancient India, 1920, p 9,Shapurji Kavasji Hodivala, Śāpurajī Kāvasajī Hoḍīvālā - Parsees; Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain & Ireland , 1834, p 218, Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland - Asia.] .

Similarily, in his list of countries, Alberuni (973 AD --1048 AD) also assigns the Kamboja kingdom in the south-west ("Nairita") quadrant of India [Alberuni's India: An Account of the Religion, Philosophy, Literature ..., 1910, p 302, Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad Bīrūnī, Al-Bīrūnī, Trans: Eduard Sachau - Hindu Chronology; Alberuni's Indica: A Record of the Cultural History of South Asia about A.D , 1973, p 28, Dr Ahmad Hasan Dani, Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad Bīrūnī, Eduard Sachau,Hindu Civilization.] .

Arthashastra of "Barhaspatya" [Ed. F. W. Thomas, pp 20-22] refers to the Kamboja as a great country (Mahavishaya) and locates it adjacent to the Dasrana country (eastern Malwa), east of Gujarat [Indian Historical Quarterly, XXVI-2, 1950, p 127. ] . Distance between Kamboja and Dasarna country is stated to be 80 Yojna [ Barhaspatya Sutram =: Aphorisms of Brhaspati on Indian Polity -1998, p 38, Brahaspati, Balram Srivastava.] .

Vishnudharmottara Purana [Vishnudharmottara Purana I.9.6.] also includes the Kambojas in the list of Janapadas of south-west India [Geog. Data in Early Puranas, 1972, p 163, 206] .

"Raajbilaas", a medieval era text also locates a Kamboj settlement in the neighborhood of Kachcha, Sorata or Saurashtra and Gurjara countries of south-west India [

:"Sorata Gurjara Kachcha-Kamboja-Gauda rukha": (Raajbilaas 1/122).] .

Interestingly, Agni Purana locates two Kamboja settlements in India itself. ...... Kambhoja in "south-west India" and Kamboja in "southern parts of India" [ Indian Historical Quarterly, 1963, p 127; Ancient Kamboja, People and Country, 1981, p 305.] .

The Garuda Purana which was composed comparatively late, also locates a Kamboj principality/settlement in the neighborhood of Ashmaka, Pulinda, Jimuta, Narashtra, Lata and Karnata countries, and also specifically informs us that this section of Kambojas were living "in southern division of India" (dakshina.path.vasinah) [

:"pulinda ashmaka jimuta narrashtara nivasinah"
:"carnata kamboja ghata dakshinapathvasinah " (Garuda Purana 1/15/13).] .

But like "Agni Purana", some recensions of "Garuda Purana" mention two Kamboja settlements within India proper. ..."one" in south-west India and the "second" in southern India [e.g: "The people of Pulinda, Ashmaka and Jimutanya, as well Kambhojas, Karnatas and Ghatas are Dakshinapathvasi (i.e live in southern quarter); the people of Amvasthas, Dravidias, Lattas, Kambojas, Strimukhas, Sakas and Anarthas (Anartas) are Nairritis (i.e live in south-west quarter)"...See Garuda Purana, Trans: Manmatha Nath Dutt, 1908, p 148.] .

The above post-Christian Sanskrit references abundantly establish the historical fact that in wake of major events of second/first century BCE, some sections of Central Asian Kambojas in alliance with the Sakas and Pahlavas, had spread and settled into western and south-western parts of India [ For more references attesting Kamboja settlement in south-west India in post-Christian times, See also: India as Seen in the Brhatsamhitā of Varāhamihira, 1969, Dr A. M. Shastri, Reader in Ancient Indian History & Culture, Nagpur University; Le Monde oriental, 1941, p 94; Dr. Modi Memorial Volume: Papers on Indo-Iranian and Other Subjects, 1930, p 356, Sir Jivanji Jamshedji Modi); The Social History of Kamarupa, 1983, p 132, Nagendranath Vasu; cf: Bharatavarsa, Dr Kirfel, p 29, 3; cf also: The Social History of Kamarupa, 1983, p 191, Nagendranath Vasu, for Kamboja location adjoining Karnata and Lata countries in southern India.] .

The Kambojas in/around west, south-west India are also attested from inscriptions of king Sahasiva Raya of "Sangama Dynasty" (1336-1478), kings Harihara & Deva Raya of "Narasinga Dynasty" (1496-1567), and from the references of king Vishnuvardhana of "Hoiyasala Dynasty"/Mysore (of 12th c CE).

Due to the above cited literary/inscriptional evidence, some historians like Dr Aiyangar, Dr Banerjee etc have located their Kamboja in Sindhu and Gujarat [Ancient India, p 7, S. K. Aiyangar; Public Administration in Ancient India, p 56, P. N. Banerjee.] . "Obviously, their Kamboja refers to the post-Christian settlements of Kambojas in western/or south-western India and is not the original Kamboja of the Sanskrit/Pali literature.

According to "History of Ceylon", 'the Kambojas who inhabited a region bordering upper Indus, had, at one time, established themselves in a country near Sind....It was from this people that a section had migrated to Ceylone and settled in the island during pre-Christian times' [See: History of Ceylon, 1973, pp xxxi, 91, K. M. De Silva, Hem Chandra Ray. See also references quoted in the text. ] According to Dr Fergusson: "The Cambojas seem to have been a people inhabiting the country between Candahar and Cabul, who when the nomadic tide was setting eastwards, joined the crowd, and sought settlements in the more fertile countries within the Indus ( or Sind)" [See: A History of Architecture in All Countries: From the Earliest Times to the Present Day, 1876, p 28, James Fergusson - 1876 .]

Biography of "Shankara Acharya" based on his religious itineraries refers to Kambhoja located in "Saurashtra" comprising Girnar, Somnath, Prabhasa and other regions and a Kamboja located in Central Asia adjacent to Daradistan but lying "north of Kashmir". This eighth-century reference clearly attests two Kamboja settlements, one of which specifically fixed in Saurashtra [http://www.geocities.com/advaitavedant/shankarabio.htm] [For more references on Kamboja intrusion into Gujerat/Surashtra, see also: "Main Currents in the Ancient History of Gujarat, 1960, pp 1-68, Bhasker Anand Saletore, Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda Dept. of History"); Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, 1939, p 232, Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland.] .

Some historians have also invested western "Kshatrapas", especially the "Kshahrata Kshatrapas" with Kamboja ethnicity [Ancient India, III, pp 94, 125, Dr T. L. Shah.] .

The Kambojas in South India

Interestingly, Kambhoja Raja Kathalu is very popular in Andhra traditions. The story deals with the militaristic exploits of a fierce and adventurous king of the Kambojas. It probably relates to some historical brush the Andhraites might have had with the intruding hordes of the Kambojas/Pahlavis around Christian era.

Kambojas in Bengal

:Main article: Kamboja Dynasty of Bengal

A third branch of these Central Asian Kambojas seems to have migrated eastwards along the Himalayan foothills, hence their notice in the chronicles of Tibet (Kam-po-ji/Kam-po-ce) and Nepal (Kambojadesa). Fifth century CE Brahma Purana ] mentions Kambojas with Pragjyotisas and Tamraliptikas. "Sasanavamsa" ] also attests the Kambojas in/around Burma. They were probably a section of those Kambojas who figure in history of Bengal. They had made an unsuccessful bid to conquer Gauda during the reign of king Devapala. A latter attempt of Kambojas was crowned with success and they deprived the Palas of the suzerainty over Gauda and set up one of their chiefs as king [History of India, p 399, Dr V. A. Smith.] .

"Rajyapala", "Narayanapala", "Nayapala", "Dharamapala" and "Kambojanvayjen Gaudapati", also known as "Kunjarghatavarshayan", are the known Kamboja kings who ruled in north-east Bengal. Kamboja rule in north-east Bengal is attested from "Dinajpore Pillar Inscription" as well as from "Irda Tamrapatra inscriptio" found in Irda, District Balasor, Orissa, in 1931 [Edited/published by Dr N. G. Majumdar, 1934.] .

Dinajpore Pillar inscription refers to a Kamboja king who is described as Kambojanvayjen Gaudapati.. i.e. the lord of Gauda born in a Kamboja family [Indian Antiquary, I, 1872, pp 127ff, 195ff, 227 ff; Journal of Royal Society of Bengal, II, 1911, pp 615-19.] .

In the inscription, this Kamboja king is addressed as "Kunjarghataversheyan", which may be his nick-name. Irda-Tamrapatra inscription details generation after generation of kings belonging to Kamboja family. King Rajayapala, the founder father of Pala-Kamboja empire in Bengal specifically refers to himself as Kamboja.vamshatilaka.paramasaugata.maharajadhiraja.parameshvara.paramabhattaraka Rajyapala [Epigraphia Indica, XXII, 1933-34, pp 150-58.] .

"Jaganathaparkasha" composed by Pandit Sura Misra in honor of Jagana Natha born in Kamboja family ("Kamboja.kulavatansah.shri. Jagananatha iti prasidhah") refers to him as a famous king ruling in Bengal in 16th century [

:Ashesh.Kambojakula.vatansah Shri Jagana Natha iti parsidhah :Akaryad dharmanibandhmaytam dhradhipaiapayairkablai nreshe (Ref: Notices of Sanskrit MSS., Vol V, No 1790, R. L. Mitra.] [ Some Historical Aspects of the Inscriptions of Bengal: Pre-Muhammadan Epochs, 1942, p 342, Benoychandra Sen - Bengal (India); Ancient Kamboja, People and the Country, p 208, Dr J. L. Kamboj.]

This shows that the Kamboja rule in some parts of Bengal must have continued, as late as 16th century AD.

Kambojas in Sri Lanka

"Main article": Kamboja Colonists of Sri Lanka

Inscriptional and Literary Evidence

One section of north-western Kambojas appears to have reached Sri Lanka via Gujarat/Saurashtra, several centuries prior to Christian era, thus contributing to the colonization of that island and influencing the social, cultural and economical lives of its people. This is evident from six or seven ancient cave inscriptions found in Anuradhapura which strongly attest the existence of one "Kamboja Sangha (Goshatha)" [Gota-Kabojhyana.......Archaeological Survey of Ceylon, Inscription Register No 316.] and "Grand Kamboja Guilds" [Kabojhiya-Maha. Pugiyana...Archaeological Survey of Ceylon, Inscription Register No 1118.] in ancient Sinhala.

For complete list of "'Ancient Inscriptions about Kambojas in Sri Lanka, please Click: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Kambojas/removed#KAMBOJA_SRI-LANKA_CONNECTIONS]

These inscriptions are believed to belong to second century BCE (Dr S. Paranavitana).

According to scholars, there is evidence that the Kambojas who in ancient times, inhabited a region bordering upper Indus, had at one time established themselves in a country near Sind. The authors have also furnished references to the southwards migration of the Kambojas to a country near Sind [History of Ceylon, 1959, P 93, Hem Chandra Ray, K. M. De Silva, Simon Gregory Perera.] .

The "Sihalavatthu", a Pali text of about the "fourth century", also attests a group of people called the Kambojas in Rohana. The third story of this text, called Metteyya-vatthu, reveals that the Elder named Maleyya was residing in "Kamboja-gama", in the province (Janapada) of Rohana on the Island of "Tambapanni" (Sri Lanka).

"Sasanvamsa" attests one Bhikshu "Tamalinda" thera, son of Kamboja, living in ancient Sinhala. It also attests a Kamboja king Srihamsyia, who came from Kamboja and took possession of Ratanapura in south-west Sinhala [Sasanavamsa, (P.T.S), p 40, 100; Some Kshatriya Tribes, p 249/50, Dr Law.] .

The second most referenced ethnic group following the Aryan Kambojas in the ancient cave inscriptions of Anuradhapura are the (Dravidian) Damedas or Tamils. Term "Dameda" occurs in four inscriptions. Term Mileka (Mlechcha) referring to the Aborigines of the island i.e the Veddas, occurs twice. Other three terms Muridi (=Murinda?), Meraya (Maurya?) and "Jhavaka" each occurs only once.

There is "no" reference to the name Sinhala, in any of these ancient inscriptions". The first ever reference to Sinhala is noted in 4th century Dipavamsa. This proves that the Sinhala identity for the majority Sinhlese speaking Aryan population had evolved much later, down the road.

The above inscriptional and literary evidence shows that the Kamboja colonists from north-west had formed an important and pre-dominant section of ancient Sinhala society, perhaps from several centuries prior to Christian era. Therefore, they must have been the first Aryan colonists to have reached the island.

The Sinhapura of Ancient Sinhalese

Mahavamsa traditions reveal that Vijay Simha and his 700 companions, the supposed ancestors of Sinhalese Aryan population, had migrated from some "Simhapura" country located in India proper [Mahavamsa, 6/34.] .

Mahabharata attests one "Sinhapura" principality located in north-west of India. This Sinhapura figures prominently in Arjuna's "Digvijay" of north-west countries. It is stated to be located contiguous to Ursa (modern Hazara, in Kashmir).

After the Sinhapura, the Epic makes reference to Bahlikas (Panjab? or Bactrians?), Daradas and Kambojas, thus showing that the Sinhapura of Mahabharata was located in the north-west adjacent to Kambojas and Daradas of Upper Indus [Mahabharata 2/27/18-22.] .

Chetiya Jataka also locates one "Simhapura" in the west [Jataka III, p 275.] .

Hiun Tsang, seventh century Chinese visitor also attests one "Simhapura" (Sang-ho-pu-lo) on east bank of river Indus about 115 miles east of Taxila, which localizes it in upper doab of Jhelum/Chenab [Ref: Hiun Tsang, Buddhist Records of the Western World, Vol. I. Trans. Samuel Beal, 1906, pp 142-150.] .

Scholars have located this Sinhapura in upper "Salt Range", north-west of Panjab [Struggle of Empire, p 33, Classical Age, p 132.] .

Sinhala, as a personal name is also attested from two "Kharoshthi" inscriptions found from Loriyan Tangai and Taksashila in ancient Gandhara [Kharoshthi Insc., pp 87, 110, Dr. Stein Konow.] .

The appellative terms "Gamika" (=Gamini=Gramini) and "Parumaka" (=Pramukha) and the corporational terms "Puga" (=Guild/Sangha) and "Gote" (=Goshati=corporation) etc have been used specifically in reference to Kambojas in the ancient inscriptions of Sinhala. As attested by Kautiliya's Arthashastra, these republican/corporational terms were applied to political, military and commercial "Sanghas" or Guilds of the Kambojas of Uttarapatha around 4th c BCE. Thus, this evidence suggests that Vijay Simha and his 700 companions, the ancestors of the ancient Sinhalas may have been from the Kambojan/Gandharan trade group.

The 'shaved-headed tradition' about Vijay and his companions has been referred to in the Mahavamsa. This also alludes to their close connections with the north-west and especially with the shaved-headed Kambojan group.

Archeological Finds

The most famous and only known locale for lapis lazuli since ancient times was in Badakshan in north Afghanistan which has been mined for over 6000 years. The Badakshan province undoubtedly formed a part of ancient Kamboja as we have already proved above. Archeological finds of lapis lazuli (of Badakshan type) from Sri Lanka conclusively connect it to Badakshan in Afghanistan, the home of lapis lazuli.

Numerous coins, beads and the intaglios belonging to Bactria/Afghanistan have also been discovered in Sri Lanka.Apart from lapis lazuli, coins and intaglios, the contacts between Sri Lanka and the Kamboja/Gandhara/Bacteria region are further revealed by other articles of archaeological evidence from recent excavations at various sites. A fragment of a Gandhara Buddha statute in schist, (yet unpublished), was unearthed from the excavations at Jetavanarama in Anuradhapura.

All these archaeological finds conclusively establish a very close relationship between Sri Lanka and the north-west communities, especially, the Kambojans/Gandharans of Afghanistan/Central Asia.

A Merchant Lineage

In the "Amarakosha" [Amarkosha 11.6.42; 111.9.78.] , a "Sarthavaha" is described as the leader of merchants who have invested an equal amount of capital and carried on trade with outside markets and are traveling in a caravan.

It is likely that "Vijay Simha", the ancestor of the Sinhalese was the earliest one such "Sarthavaha" from the "Simhapura of the Kamboja/Gandhara group in North-west India". According to Mahavamsa traditions, Vijay and his 700 companions had landed in Sri Lanka in 543 (or 483?) BCE, on the day of Buddha's heavenly departure. This may actually refer to Vijay's commercial visit to Sri Lanka for trade with the Daemedas/Tamils in Sinhala and then permanently settling there with his 700 merchant associates. The Daemeda/Tamil groups were already settled there with whom the trade was routinely carried on from the north-west following ancient Kamboja Dvaravati Caravan route and then via the west-coast sea-route starting from Bharukachcha (Bhroach) in Gujarat.

The north-west coast of Sinhala was famous for its fine variety of motis/gems and was known as "Motimannar". The south-east coast was also known for its precious stones. The merchants from north-west Kamboja had an allurement for these specific products.

It is also significant that early Buddhist literary sources from north India refer to the northerners as being involved in trade in horses [Vinaya Pitaka, III, 6; Játaka, Vol II, 287, Fausboll.] . Evidence exists that horse merchants from Kamboja were in active trade as far as Ceylone. This trade had been going on with eastern, western and southern India as late as medieval ages. King "Devapala" (810-850 AD) of Bengal, King "Vishnuvardhana" of Hoysala (1106 - 1152 AD) of Mysore and king Vallabhadeva of Pandya kingdom (12th century AD), located in extreme southern tip of India, had powerful fleets of Kamboja horses in their cavalry.

Dr Don Martino observes: "The traders from north-west Kamboja had been conducting trade in horses with Sri Lanka following west coast of India since remote antiquity" [Epigraphia Zeylanka, Vol II, No 13, p 76.] .

Dr E. Muller also writes: "(with time) the Kambojas had adopted the Mussalman creed and used to trade all along the west coast of India from Persian Gulf down to Ceylone and probably further-east" [(Journal of Royal Asiatic Societry, XV, p 171, E. Muller.] .

More evidence exists which points to closer links of north-west Kambojas/Gandharas with the ancient Sinhalese.

Kambojas in Indochina

"Main article": Kambojas and Kambodia

Some ambitious Kamboja families from Gujarat/Saurashtra or those from Sinhala appear to have ventured into Indochina around third or fourth century CE, originally as merchants/traders, later joined by some Kshatriya Kamboja chieftain. They managed to found a small Kamboja colony north of Funan, which later grew into powerful Kamboja empire under the Varman kings. "If the European traders, located thousands of miles away could do it in eighteenth century in India, the Kamboja adventurers from Gujarat/Surastra or Sri Lanka could have done it in fifth century in nearby Indochina too." The Kambojas as traders and as ethnic community were already flourishing in Sri Lanka at this time as is evident from the archaeological evidence presented above. With one little step forward, they were in Indochina. "The ruling family of Varman kings of Cambodia proudly trace their lineage to the Kambujas or Kambojas". King Kambu (Sanskrit Kamboj), the legendary patriarch of Kambuja (Kamboja) ruling family of Cambodia was, to all probability, a warrior/scholar Kamboja chieftain from Sinhala or else from Gujarat. The tradition among north-Indian Kambojas lends adequate credibility to this view.

Several noted scholars like Dr Buddha Parkash, Dr P. C. Bagchi, Dr B. R. Chatterjee, J. Fergussan, Dr R. K. Mukerjee, Bombay Gezetteer, Dr J. L. Kamboj, Chandra Chakraberty, Daniel George Edward, Ramchandra Narayan Dandekar, V Raghavan, Mahesh Kumar Sharana and several others have accepted a direct historical and political connection between the Indian Kambojas and Kambodia. G. Coedes, an unquestioned authority on ancient Cambodian history, has also accepted the probability of this connection [Indianized States of South-East Asia, 1964, p 47.] .

One school of scholars including Dr V. A. Smith, Dr Joveau Dubreuil, Dr V. Venkayya, Dr B. L. Rice, Dr Cadambi Minakshi, G. Coedes etc is convinced that the Pallava rulers of Kanchi/Southern India were a section from the Iranian Pahlavas. The Pahlavas were a tribe closely allied to the Kambojas. Thus, some adventurous families from both the Pahlavas and the Kambojas who are attested to have settled in south-west India in post-Christian era [See: Brhat Samhita: 14/17-19; Markendeya Purana 58.30-32] may indeed have founded the Pallava dynasty of Kanchi and the Kambuja dynasty of Cambodia respectively.

References

Recommended reading

Gazetteer of the Bombay Presidency, by Bombay (India : State)", pages 491 & 498 to 500. [http://books.google.com/books?vid=0R3-R7tpEUMU6YFrCTFpb0E&id=0bkMAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA498&lpg=PA491&dq=Java+Cambodia+Kamboja&num=100 link]

ee also

* Kambojas
* Invasion of India by Scythian Tribes
* Asii
* Komedes
* Kamboja Colonists of Sri Lanka
* Kambojas and Kambodia
* Kambojas in Indian Traditions
* Etymology of Kamboja
* Pashtun
* Kamma