Ambhi

Author:Laxman Burdak, IFS (R)

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Ambhi (Hindi:आम्भी, Ambhika, Greek: Omphis) was king of king of Gandhara with capital at Taxila, near the modern city of Attock, Pakistan, at the time of Alexander the Great's expedition to India.

Variants

• Omphis (Anabasis by Arrian, p. 247.)
• Ambhiyas
• Ambhasor

Relations with Alexander the Great

He appears to have been on hostile terms with his neighbour, Porus, who held the territories east of the Hydaspes. It was probably with a view to strengthening himself against this foe that he sent an embassy to Alexander, while the latter was still in Sogdiana, with offers of assistance and support, perhaps in return for money. Alexander was unnerved by the sight of Ambhi's forces on his first descent into India in 327 BCE and ordered his own forces to form up. Ambhi hastened to relieve Alexander of his apprehension and met him with valuable presents, placing himself and all his forces at his disposal. Alexander not only returned Ambhi his title and the gifts but he also presented him with a wardrobe of "Persian robes, gold and silver ornaments, 30 horses and 1000 talents in gold". Alexander was emboldened to divide his forces, and Ambhi assisted Hephaestion and Perdiccas in constructing a bridge over the Indus where it bends at Hund (Fox 1973), supplied their troops with provisions, and received Alexander himself, and his whole army, in his capital city of Taxila, with every demonstration of friendship and the most liberal hospitality.

On the subsequent advance of the Macedonian king, Taxiles accompanied him with a force of 5000 men and took part in the battle of the Hydaspes River. After that victory he was sent by Alexander in pursuit of Porus, to whom he was charged to offer favourable terms, but narrowly escaped losing his life at the hands of his old enemy. Subsequently, however, the two rivals were reconciled by the personal mediation of Alexander; and Taxiles, after having contributed zealously to the equipment of the fleet on the Hydaspes, was entrusted by the king with the government of the whole territory between that river and the Indus. A considerable accession of power was granted him after the death of Philip, son of Machatas; and he was allowed to retain his authority at the death of Alexander himself (323 BC), as well as in the subsequent partition of the provinces at Triparadisus, 321 BC.

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Buddha Prakash mentions ....To the east of the Indus, in eastern Gandhara, the Ambhiyas, who had developed a school of political thought also, as we learn from the Arthashastra, had created a flourishing state. T. Ganapati Sastrin, the famous editor of the Arthashastra, suggests that Ambhi, 'The son of Ambhasor water' i. e., the Ganges, can be understood as the name of Bhisma, the celebrated hero and teacher of the Mahabharata. (Sanskrit Introduction to Vol. III of the Trivandrum edition of the Arthashstra, p. 2). Should this suggestion be correct, we would see in the Ambhiyas a school of political thought which derives its doctrine from the famous teacher Bhisma, whose views are found in some sections of the Santiparvan and also elsewhere in the

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[p.73]: Mahabharata. They must have had their centre at Takshashila, modern Taxila in the Rawalpindi district, which had grown as a reputed seat of learning. Basing their policy on a sound doctrine, they developed a prosperous state between the Indus and the Jhelum, as can be gathered from the presents made by their scion Ambhi to Alexander, mentioned above. But they were bent on, preserving their independence at all costs against the expansionist ambitions of formidable neighbours and, for that purpose, did not scruple to knuckle down to a foreign invader to seek his help against them.

Ambhi deposed by Chandragupta Maurya

Later Ambhi was deposed and killed by Chandragupta Maurya, the emperor of the Mauryan Empire who annexed Taxila. Later Taxila became the capital of the northern province of the Mauryan Empire.

आम्भी गांधार गोत्र का जाट

दलीप सिंह अहलावत के अनुसार आम्भी गांधार गोत्र का जाट था जिसका राज्य पूर्वी गांधार पर था जिसकी राजधानी तक्षशिला थी। यह राज्य सिन्धु नदी तथा जेहलम नदी के मध्यवर्ती क्षेत्र पर था। राजा आम्भी की अपने पड़ौसी राजा पुरु (पोरस) से शत्रुता थी। जब सिकन्दर 326 ई० पू० में सिन्ध नदी तक पहुंचा तो आम्भी ने डरकर उससे मित्रता कर ली। दूसरा कारण यह भी बताया जाता है कि राजा पोरस से शत्रुता के कारण वह सिकन्दर से मिल गया। राजा आम्भी ने सिन्ध नदी पर अटकनगर से कुछ ऊपर ओहिन्द नामक स्थान पर नौकाओं का पुल बनवाकर सिकन्दर की सेना को नदी पार करने की सहायता दी थी। (जाटों का उत्कर्ष, पृ० 384, लेखक योगेन्द्रपाल शास्त्री)। सिकन्दर ने कुछ दिन आम्भी के राज्य में आराम करके आगे को कूच किया। इससे आगे राजा पुरु-पोरस का शक्तिशाली राज्य था।

References

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