Tribes in Ancient India c70.8

c70.8

In the *Kauṣītaki Upaniṣad*,³ the Matsyas are mentioned along with other tribes, viz. the Uśīnaras, Kuru-Pañcālas, and Kāśī-Videhas. In the *Gopatha Brāhmaṇa*, they are connected with the Śālvas, a Kṣatriya tribe in their neighbourhood, and mentioned along with other well-known Kṣatriya tribes of the Vedic period, such as the Kuru-Pañcālas, Aṅga-Magadhas, Kāśī-Kośalas and Vaśa-Uśīnaras.⁴ The relation of the Matsyas with the Śālvas is also attested by the *Mahābhārata*. King Suśarmā of the Trigarttas, addressing Duryodhana, says: ‘We have been defeated more than once by the Matsyas and Śālvas (*Matsya-Śālveyakaiḥ*).’⁵ Evidently the Śālvas were neighbours of the Matsyas and their allies in Vedic and Epic times. In the *Padmapurāṇa* (Chap. 3) and the *Viṣṇudharmottara Mahāpurāṇa* (Chap. 9), Matsya is mentioned as one of the *Janapadas* of Bhāratavarṣa.