alternatehistory.com
Chapter 2
Chapter 2
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How the People of the Great Himalayan Mountains Forged a Nation – University of Oxford, 1999
***
“……What we need to understand about the Nepala Mandala around the ‘War of the Legitimization’ as the war between the Mandala and the Kosala Kingdom is that the Mandala was one of the most important states in the entire Indian Subcontinent back then considering they controlled the entire trade India had with China, which through ancient records, we know India was highly dependent on………..”
“…….The first ruler of the almost millennia long Shakya Dynasty, King Nanda Shakya tried to use diplomacy and when a second diplomat was sent by Kosala, Nanda tried to propose an alliance with Kosala to safeguard Kosalan interests. Of course quietly Nanda was raising the entire Mandala Army in case of war with Kosala, who was according to records, was a regional power in its own right…….”
“…….The King of Kosala, whose name seems to have been lost through the annals of time, was obstinate in his position. He demanded that the Mandala continue to pay his kingdom tribute. The Kings of the Mandala, more specifically the 5 Great Lower Kings of the Mandala, the King of Gourkha, the King of Makwan, the King of Pyalpa, the King of Limbuwan and King of Sudur were all reportedly outraged by the obstinate position of the Kosalan King and swore total allegiance to King Nanda in what was now perceived as an inevitable war between Kosala and the Mandala………”
“…….The famed companion of King Nanda, the Monk Rahula, the son of Lord Buddha was given full administrative command of the Mandala to handle the administrative duties of the Mandala whilst King Nanda was forced to go to war, a war by which all accounts, the man did not want…….”
“Look at it from his perspective. The man had been raised to be an oligarchic king. When he was a child, his granduncle the Lord Buddha was alive and made him a very capable ruler, both in ability and compassion. However the title of High King of the Mandala was all of a sudden thrust upon him. He was by all accounts in his mid-twenties when he became High King, which is around a third to a half of the normal lifetime of the people back then. It’s obvious that the man was stressed. He wasn’t an oligarchic king anymore, he was high king. His word was literally the law, and scriptures show he struggled with the fact, constantly asking for opinions and confirmations from his generals and Lower Kings, just like the time when he was an Oligarchic King, something that wasn’t necessary for a High King. However what made King Nanda so great is that while he didn’t want war, and the title of High King had been thrust upon him, which made him stressed out, extremely so from records, he could adapt. There is a reason why King Nanda is known as King Nanda, the Founder.” – John Cooper, Archeologist, PhD from Oxford University, batch 1989
“…….The King of Kosala, obstinately famous for his obstinate stance during this time, rejected all talks, even that of alliance and declared war on the Nepala Mandala………”
“…….However many historians argue that this declaration of war between the entire Mandala and the Kosalan Kingdom was a fit of anger and not pragmatism. No one in recent living history had ever gone to war with the Nepala Mandala for very pragmatic reasons ranging from societal, communal, economic and military perspectives……..”
“The Nepala Mandala was the regional power in the foothills of the Himalaya. They controlled the only trade route to China from India. Their economic influence is not to be underestimated. Many ancient Indian Kings knew that fighting the Mandala was signing the death warrant of their respective kingdom’s economies, which was the last thing they wanted. However the King of Kosala at the time seems to have been a man ruled by emotions, and not reason. Records show the moment the Mandala sealed all Kosalan trade through its trade route with China, the Kosalan trade values dropped and plummeted to the ground. Their coinage made virtually useless. Militarily things were about even, but even then we have a slight disadvantage to give to Kosala. The around 15,000 men that Kosala could raise were professionally trained and veteran troops which gave them an edge, however since the King of Kosala had declared war on the entirety of the Mandala, the Mandala armies outnumbered the Kosalan Army on a ratio of 2.5 to 1. Like the old saying goes ‘quantity is a quality of its own’ is very true here. Another fact is also that the Nepala Mandala society was very martial in nature. Many regard its martial traditions to be like a watered down Asian version of the Spartans. They were not as fanatic as the Spartans, but their warrior culture cannot be degraded.” – Lisa Hernandez, Economic and Military Historian, PhD in Economics from the University of London, Batch 1993.
Thus the War of Legitimization began.
Chapter 2
***
How the People of the Great Himalayan Mountains Forged a Nation – University of Oxford, 1999
***
“……What we need to understand about the Nepala Mandala around the ‘War of the Legitimization’ as the war between the Mandala and the Kosala Kingdom is that the Mandala was one of the most important states in the entire Indian Subcontinent back then considering they controlled the entire trade India had with China, which through ancient records, we know India was highly dependent on………..”
“…….The first ruler of the almost millennia long Shakya Dynasty, King Nanda Shakya tried to use diplomacy and when a second diplomat was sent by Kosala, Nanda tried to propose an alliance with Kosala to safeguard Kosalan interests. Of course quietly Nanda was raising the entire Mandala Army in case of war with Kosala, who was according to records, was a regional power in its own right…….”
“…….The King of Kosala, whose name seems to have been lost through the annals of time, was obstinate in his position. He demanded that the Mandala continue to pay his kingdom tribute. The Kings of the Mandala, more specifically the 5 Great Lower Kings of the Mandala, the King of Gourkha, the King of Makwan, the King of Pyalpa, the King of Limbuwan and King of Sudur were all reportedly outraged by the obstinate position of the Kosalan King and swore total allegiance to King Nanda in what was now perceived as an inevitable war between Kosala and the Mandala………”
“…….The famed companion of King Nanda, the Monk Rahula, the son of Lord Buddha was given full administrative command of the Mandala to handle the administrative duties of the Mandala whilst King Nanda was forced to go to war, a war by which all accounts, the man did not want…….”
“Look at it from his perspective. The man had been raised to be an oligarchic king. When he was a child, his granduncle the Lord Buddha was alive and made him a very capable ruler, both in ability and compassion. However the title of High King of the Mandala was all of a sudden thrust upon him. He was by all accounts in his mid-twenties when he became High King, which is around a third to a half of the normal lifetime of the people back then. It’s obvious that the man was stressed. He wasn’t an oligarchic king anymore, he was high king. His word was literally the law, and scriptures show he struggled with the fact, constantly asking for opinions and confirmations from his generals and Lower Kings, just like the time when he was an Oligarchic King, something that wasn’t necessary for a High King. However what made King Nanda so great is that while he didn’t want war, and the title of High King had been thrust upon him, which made him stressed out, extremely so from records, he could adapt. There is a reason why King Nanda is known as King Nanda, the Founder.” – John Cooper, Archeologist, PhD from Oxford University, batch 1989
“…….The King of Kosala, obstinately famous for his obstinate stance during this time, rejected all talks, even that of alliance and declared war on the Nepala Mandala………”
“…….However many historians argue that this declaration of war between the entire Mandala and the Kosalan Kingdom was a fit of anger and not pragmatism. No one in recent living history had ever gone to war with the Nepala Mandala for very pragmatic reasons ranging from societal, communal, economic and military perspectives……..”
“The Nepala Mandala was the regional power in the foothills of the Himalaya. They controlled the only trade route to China from India. Their economic influence is not to be underestimated. Many ancient Indian Kings knew that fighting the Mandala was signing the death warrant of their respective kingdom’s economies, which was the last thing they wanted. However the King of Kosala at the time seems to have been a man ruled by emotions, and not reason. Records show the moment the Mandala sealed all Kosalan trade through its trade route with China, the Kosalan trade values dropped and plummeted to the ground. Their coinage made virtually useless. Militarily things were about even, but even then we have a slight disadvantage to give to Kosala. The around 15,000 men that Kosala could raise were professionally trained and veteran troops which gave them an edge, however since the King of Kosala had declared war on the entirety of the Mandala, the Mandala armies outnumbered the Kosalan Army on a ratio of 2.5 to 1. Like the old saying goes ‘quantity is a quality of its own’ is very true here. Another fact is also that the Nepala Mandala society was very martial in nature. Many regard its martial traditions to be like a watered down Asian version of the Spartans. They were not as fanatic as the Spartans, but their warrior culture cannot be degraded.” – Lisa Hernandez, Economic and Military Historian, PhD in Economics from the University of London, Batch 1993.
Thus the War of Legitimization began.
- Sārthākā
- Word Count: 850