WHO Was THE ACTUAL VICTOR IN THE BATTLE OF JHELUM?

 

WHO Was THE ACTUAL VICTOR IN THE BATTLE OF JHELUM?

                        The way the battle of Jhelum came to its close does not reflect  that Maharaja Porus was defeated in the conventional sense of the word.  Historical records show that Maharaja Porus did not flee from the battle field, although he was severely wounded, had lost a lot of blood, was almost unconscious and before that his soldiers had fought very bravely and killed a number of Alexander’s soldiers and generals. 

And when Alexander and Porus stood face to face and Alexander asked Porus  how he would like to be treated, he did not say that he should be treated as one who had lost the battle or had become a slave of the invader or  prisoner of war. Instead he boldly said he should be treated “as a king treats another king”. This  means he was still free and was the ruler of his kingdom.  The battle had not really  ended in Alexander’s victory. 

The very fact that Alexander got influenced by the majestic personality of Porus and his personal bravery of a very high order as well as the courage and the fighting spirit of his soldiers indicates that Maharaja Porus was not a loser.  Alexander released him and returned his kingdom to him.  So where was the victory of Alexander?

According to Plutarch Alexander not only restored to Porus his kingdom but also made him his ally. 

What did Alexander do later on is insignificant.  He is reported to have founded two Greek habitats in the dominions of Porus.  One of these was named Nikia and was supposed to celebrate his victory. The other was called Bucephalus and was aimed at commemorating the death of his most faithful horse whose name was also Bucephalus.

Modern writers  hold  that war in those days was a sort of Dharmayuddha for Hindu Kshtriyas.

One contention is that if Alexander had defeated Porus, why did he retreat?

The history of ancient Punjab which is now being rewritten  does not out rightly give Alexander the credit of victory over Porus.

Readers who believe that Greek and European writers are naturally pro-Alexander suggest that we should not accept their verdict that Alexander really defeated Porus.

One political thinker calls the historical version of the Battle of Jhelum as “the triumph of the organized West against the chaotic East.”

 

Some other views also deny the claim that Alexander won the said battle.  They rather state that Porus defeated the heartless Alexander and compelled him to go back to his native country because  he  had found in Porus  a  stronger adversary who had  killed thousands of his soldiers and also made him a humbler warrior.

Before we close, we repeat our verdict that  Maharaja Porus was not defeated; he did not accept  defeat; remained occupant of his whole kingdom; and became a proud alley of Alexander who no longer behaved like an adversary.