ambhi

10:32:00
                 

                 The Indian campaign of Alexander-the Great in 326 B.C. has a lot of historical importance. This battle (Battle of Hydaspes) fills itself with great importance. According to the Greek records, In his conquest of occupying Asia, Alexander reached Hindukush mountains (in the present-day Pakistan) and made an alliance with Ambhi, king of Taxila and their combined force defeated the Purushottama (Porus) in the battle. Though he won the battle, impressed by the king, Alexander returned the kingdom. However, these dossiers beg serious doubts against the Alexander's campaign to India.


Warnings about Indian strength

                 With the desire to occupy India, Alexander started to march towards the same after the Persian war. He was warned by Persians that many great rulers got mixed in the mud reaching the gates of India. They told him about Cyrus, one of the greatest Persian kings ever died in the hands of Indians far before the time of Alexander. Assyrian queen Semiramis was a bit lucky and just made home with 20 soldiers while she went with 400,000 highly trained warriors. However, this didn't fear Alexander. He just liked to break the record by crushing India.
                  Later, when Alexander tried to invade India, he found the real strength in the words of the Persians. Later, he wrote to his mother that 

I am involved in the land of a ‘Leonine’ (lion-like) and brave people, where every foot of the ground is like a wall of steel, confronting my soldier. You have brought only one Alexander into the world, but every mother in this land has brought an Alexander in the world.”


Here are some proofs that Alexander could not invade India


Why should Alexander reward Porus?

                 According to the records of Greek history, Alexander returned Porus his kingdom though he had won the war. A simple logic here. Alexander spent 1000 talents (25,000 kilograms of gold) to Ambhi for defeating Porus. If he had spent such a large amount, why would he offer back the kingdom he won to the defeated knowing that on doing so, they would not have enough gold to return to their home? Moreover, Porus was mentioned as a very noble king. And so, why would any noble king accept that offer? 

There was a mention about Porus that

"Wounded in his shoulder, standing over 2 m (6 ft 7 in) tall, but still on his feet, he was asked by Alexander how he wished to be treated. "Treat me, Alexander, the way a King treats another King" Porus said."

The above lines show that he was indeed noble and heroic.

The deadly battle

                 Of all the wars fought by Alexander, the war with India is considered as the best. The fact that the Greek army didn't celebrate after their win over the battle of Persia but had a huge commemoration after the battle of Hydaspes (Jhelum) reveals the fact that the army just survived the battle. There was no doubt that the Macedonians were frightened by the sight of Indian war elephants.

Diodorus wrote that  

"Upon this the elephants, applying to good use their prodigious size and strength, killed some of the enemy by trampling under their feet, and crushing their armour and their bones, while upon other they inflicted a terrible death, for they first lifted them aloft with their trunks, which they and twisted round their bodies and then dashed them down with great violence to the ground. Many others they deprived in a moment of life by goring then through and through with their tusks"


Bucefalus

                 Alexander's beloved horse Buccafalus was killed in the battle by one of the sons of Porus while crossing the banks of Jhelum. History says that Alexander is too fond of his horse. If so, why would he spare the kingdom which was responsible for the death of his own horse?

Illogical excuse

                 It is said that Alexander returned to his home because his soldiers requested him to do so as they were tired of being waging themselves in constant wars. However, this seems to be highly falsified version. Macedonians had a system of rotation. Old soldiers were sent back with gold and slaves replaced constantly by the new ones. So, this excuse seems highly pointless.


Conclusion:

                Alexander did not invade India because he feared of mighty empires such as Ganderites and Praesii ready with eighty thousand horsemen, two hundred thousand footmen, eight thousand chariots, and six thousand fighting elephants. 

               As the records were written by Alexander's men, they wrote in favor of him. Many facts were manipulated by them leaving a lot of loopholes. It is absolutely true that one or the other day, truth 



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Love

10:32:00


                    LOVE is a sweet poison. The same love which makes you feel as if you are the happiest person in the world could make you the saddest one. It is very hard to describe it even. Perhaps, it is the invisible bond which binds the entire world and absolutely, there is no doubt that it is the language of the living. 


Here are some quotes which I had written about love.

  • On the path of roses, I will walk on the thorns so that you can walk on the petals. Will you walk with me?

  • Do you know why moon shines? It shines just because it's your shadow.

  • When I missed you, no one gave me company except the clouds which cried along with me. But, I realized that rainy season is temporary. So, I learnt how to hide pain under my smile, how to hide anger under my smile, but in that process, I      forgot how to smile.

  • I am ready to sparkle my tears to sprout the seeds of happiness in your  heart.

  • I stand before the breeze of hope so that they could dry down my tears. Oh! Why am I crying too much? The breeze must be strong to control this. Tears are gifted only to valuable persons. So, is it why I am dropping these many? I wish you could return me. Until then, I will wait for you in the dawn of hopes.

  • When your tears make a river, I will become a bridge so that you can cross it without the drench(of problems).

  • Like or dislike me, but don't ignore me.

  • When you observe the distant sky, you feel as if the Earth and the Sky touching. It's ever an illusion. I thought that I could reach you at the clouds. So, I had constructed a ladder with all my hopes. When I reached the clouds, I still couldn't find you (as you are far above the clouds (sky)). But, I didn't get frustrated. Now, I started to build my ladder with love with the aspiration to reach you as my love is infinity(So, as sky).

  • Always keep smiling. Don't forget that those smiles are oxygen to a person who cares you more than anyone in the world.

  • I don't want to give my heart to anyone, even you, as it is completely filled with you.

  • I am angry upon you as you left no space for me even in my own heart!!!!!

  • The most beautiful melodies I have listened are your words. When can I listen them again?



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black death

10:31:00
The Black Death
                 For 3 horrific years (1347-1350), the black death has taken man to the brink of an apocalypse. It was a world without hope seemingly abandoned by God. It was believed that it was the punishment given by the almighty to wipe off his creation and people started to believe that the day of last judgement has come. In a world seemingly abandoned by God, cities were filled with this black death and graveyards were choked with corpses. Peasants, doctors, priests- none was exception to this worst catastrophe. The world had seen the deaths of 25 million people during that time. Nearly, half of the population of Europe was wiped off. 

The Black Death

The Map showing the spread of Plague


                 In the mid 14th century, Europe was not a dark continent so often lampooned by the history. It was the center for most sophisticated and attractive cultures and development. Italy was like a paradise for the merchants.Many cities like Florence and Venice were filled with the traders, merchants, doctors, with the rich and poor alike. With the astounding population of 100,000, Florence acted as a magnet attracting people from all corners of Europe but none expected that it would attract a disease that would fill cries in their lives.

                 In the midst of 1347 Autumn, the black death was welcomed to city by the sailor men who had trade with the eastern Asia. They transported the pestilence to different parts of Italy. At first, the citizens had no idea about the scale of horror this would produce but later, it shattered the European community- society, religion, family and Feudalism. Italy was the front-line for the bewildering epidemic. What were the reasons for this black death?

                 The reasons for the origination of this horrific epidemic is unknown but the disease spread to Europe from the Mongols. They used the affected corpses as weapons resulting in spread of disease to their opponents. Thus, the floating corpses might have caught the glimpse of the European sailors and thus transported death. For example, if a person caught the disease, it would spread to all other family members, friends, acquaintances resulting in irrevocable damage. 

People became sick with flu added fever and began vomiting. In their necks, armpits and groin, pus filled swellings started to develop and on the skin, purple and black blotches were developed due to internal hemorrhaging. Within a week or two, death followed them with pneumonia like flooding.

                 In 2-3 months, 20% of the population turned to be corpses.With all their knowledge applied, the doctors failed to save the lives of people. People then hoped that only the efforts of Church and Clergymen could save them. It was of no use. Religion was no shield to the epidemic.The Clergymen who dared to administer the last rites of the person often fell prey for the same. none could escape from this rule call of death.

                Entire society was crashed. Brother abandoned brother, sister their siblings, and mostly wife their husband. What more worse was that the parents refused to see intend to their sick children as if they hadn't been theirs.Bewildered and terrified, people started to shun everyone they knew. Morals vanished and people behaved as if it would be best to behave as they like. As the bones of the society fractured, the rhythms of the medieval began to unravel. Harvest stopped, bread was not baked, corpses were no removed and indeed life halted for months. Venice witnessed 90,000 deaths and Florence half of its population. In Sienna, near the old Gothic Cathedral, victims were thrown into the huge trenches which were the foundations of old city wall. Remarkably, they are still today.

                 The disease followed the roots of the trade and thus had devastated millions of lives of Europeans. In 1348, the disease reached France. It triggered ethnic hatred on a horrifying scale. It started to empty cities. In Avenue, Pope preached that praying God is the only way to save thyself. But the death toll was so high that people started to disbelieve church. Out of nothing, extremists started to appear. They were known as the flatulence and they directly challenged the authority of the Church.They marched themselves into different places whipping themselves with brutal attitudes. They made to people think that suffering is the only way to escape the disease and they were successful in drawing people. Ironically, this flatulence was successful in exporting the pestilence to other parts. In a few months, the city turned to be a ghost town. Consequently, the blame of spreading this plague was put on Jews in an attempt to destroy Christianity and then many Jew families were burnt alive. 

                 In 1348, it entered England through the ports of Southampton and Bristol. The low class was first to be affected by this. In a due course, it had changed their lives. In 1349, as the availability of labor became hard due to the black death, laborers could get the wages as they wished. King Edward Commissions were laid to impose fines on those who demand high wages, but the laws of supply and demand proved to be too strong. The black death was forcing economic and social change in an unwilling ruling class uplifting low class at the same time destabilizing the entire political system. By the end of 1350, this black death ended.

                 This black death was expressed in painting and poetry. People encouraged themselves to be engaged in the horrors of death and decay. Skeletons became the most common part of the medieval art. 


The Medieval art characterized by Skeletons
showing that death was inevitable

                
                   After the end, there was a huge outpouring creativity in the fields of art, architecture, science that celebrated the spirit of the man. It was the worst century to be lived as a part of the world. Medieval Europeans didn't lose nerve though they suffered 25 outbreaks after the black death in the next 300 years. Slowly, a new inspiring story of human survival was emerging from the brink of apocalypse to the hope for humanity have been germinated from despair.



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