Vedic Index of Names and Subjects v1.c3.s21.4

v1.c3.s21.4

Paktha is the name of a people in the Rigveda,¹ where they appear as one of the tribes that opposed² the Tṛtsu-Bharatas in the Dāśarājña, or ‘battle of the ten kings.’ Zimmer³ compares them with the tribe of Πάκτυες and their country Πακτυική, mentioned as in the north-west of India by Herodotus,⁴ and with the modern Pakhthūn in Eastern Afghanistan, holding that they were a northern tribe; this is probable, since the Bharatas seem to have occupied the Madhyadeśa, or ‘Middle Land.’ In three passages of the Rigveda⁵ a Paktha is referred to as a protégé of the Aśvins. The second connects him with Trasadasyu, whose tribe, the Pūrus, were aided by the Pakthas in their unsuccessful onslaught on Sudās. In the third passage he seems specified as Tūrvāyaṇa, and appears as an opponent of Cyavāna.⁶ Probably, therefore, Paktha in all cases denotes the king of the Paktha people.