Tribes in Ancient India c77.218

c77.218

**Khasas** The Khasas are described in one place of the *Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa* (LVII, 56) as ‘*parvatāśrayiṇaḥ*’ or dwelling along the mountains, and in another place as located in the middle of the tortoise along with the Śalvas, Nīpas, Śakas, Śūrasenas, etc. (LVIII, 6). Epic tradition as contained in the *Mahābhārata* brands them as a rude half-civilised tribe along with the Śakas, Daradas, etc. (*Sabhāparvan*, LI, 1859), while the *Harivaṃśa* records the reason why they were considered as such. It says that the people were once defeated and degraded by King Sagara (XIV, 784) and were hence regarded as Mlecchas (XCV, 6440-1). Manu also says that they were originally Kṣatriyas, but were later on degraded by the lapse of sacred rites and the absence of Brāhmaṇas in their midst (X, 43-4). The *Sabhāparvan* of the *Mahābhārata* places the people near the river Śailoda between the Meru and Mandāra mountains (LI, 1858-9). If the river Śailoda is the same as Śailodaka of the *Matsyapurāṇa* (CXX, 19-23), then the Khasas seem to have originally settled somewhere in Tibet or further north-west. Much later, in historical times, the Khasas are mentioned with some other tribes in the inscriptions of the Pālas and Senas of Bengal in such a way as to suggest that they enlisted themselves as mercenary troops in the army of the kings of those dynasties.