Hymn 642: Fill & Download for Free

Achilles was described as being blond in Homers Illiad. So was King Menelaus of Sparta.Blond also seems to be the most common hair color among the Greeks laying siege to Troy in the Iliad.Many of the Greek Gods and Goddesses are also described as ‘golden-haired’.• Demeter is described as “the blonde Demeter” in The Iliad (Song V: 500) and in Hymn to Demeter (I: 302), based on the mysteries of Eleusis. It is generally considered a matriarchal and telluric goddess from the East and of the pre-Indo-European peoples of Greece. However, here we should be inclined to think that, at best, she was a Europeanized goddess by the Greeks, integrated into their pantheon. The very name of Demeter comes from Dea Mater (Mother Goddess) and therefore would, in a sense, be the counterpart of Deus Pater—Zeus Pater or Jupiter, Dyaus Piter.• Persephone, daughter of Demeter, is described as “white-armed” by Hesiod (Theogony: 913).• Athena, the daughter of Zeus, goddess of wisdom, insight, cunning and strategic warfare in The Iliad, is described no more no less than a total of 57 times as “blue-eyed” (in some variations, “green-eyed”), and in The Odyssey a comparable number of times. Pindar referred to her as xanthus and glaukopis, meaning “blonde, blue-eyed.” Hesiod is content to call her “of green eyes” in his Theogony (15, 573, 587, 890 and 924), as well as Alcaeus and Simonides; while the Roman Ovid, in his Metamorphoses, which tells the perdition of Arachne, calls the goddess “manly and blond maiden.”• Hera, the heavenly wife of Zeus, is called “white-armed” by Hesiod (Theogony, 315), while Homer called her “of snowy arms” and “white-armed goddess” at least thirteen times in The Iliad (I: 55, 195, 208, 572. 595, III 121, V: 775, 784; VIII: 350, 381, 484; XV: 78, 130).• Zephyrus, the progenitor of Eros along with Iris, is described by Alcaeus (VII-VI centuries BCE) as “golden hair Zephyr” (Hymn to Eros, fragment V, 327).• Eros, the god of eroticism, considered “the most terrible of the gods,” is described by an unknown, archaic Greek author as “golden-haired Eros.”• Apollo as it was conceived by the very Greek sculptors. We are talking about a Nordic-white racial type slightly Armenized. Along with Athena, he was the most worshiped god throughout Greece, and particularly loved in Sparta.Apollo is described by Alcaeus as “fair-haired Phoebus.” Phoebus is Apollo. On the other hand, Alcman of Sparta, Simonides (paean to Delos, 84), and an anonymous author, call Apollo “of golden hair,” while another epithet of his by Góngora—a Spanish author of the Renaissance but based on classic literary evidence—is “blond archpoet.” The famous Sappho of Lesbos speaks of “golden-haired Phoebus” in her hymn to Artemis.• The god Rhadamanthus, son of Zeus and Europa, is described as blond in The Odyssey, and Strabo calls him “the blond Rhadamanthus” in his Geographica (Book III, 11-13).• Dionysus is called by Hesiod “golden-haired” (Theogony 947).• Hecate, goddess of the wilderness and also of the Parthians, is described by an unknown Greek poet as “golden-haired Hecate, daughter of Zeus.”• Artemis (illustration), the sister of Apollo is described by Sappho and Anacreon (Hymn to Artemis) as “blond daughter of Zeus.”• The goddess Thetis, mother of Achilles, is called by Hesiod “of silver feet” (Theogony 1007), and by Homer “of silvery feet” (Iliad, I: 538, 556, IX : 410; XVI : 574, XVIII : 369, 381, XIV:89). Needless to say that a brown-skinned woman cannot have silvery feet: this is an attribute of extremely pale women.• The Eunice and Hipponoe mermaids are described as “rosy-armed” by Hesiod (Theogony, ll. 240-264).• Aphrodite, daughter of Zeus, goddess of love, beauty and female eroticism, is always described as a blonde. Its conventional title is almost always “Golden Aphrodite.” Ibycus (in Ode to Polycrates) calls Aphrodite “Cypris of blond hair.” Aphrodite held the title of Cypris (Lady of Cyprus) because the Greeks believed she was born in Cyprus, where she was particularly revered. In Hesiod’s Theogony she is called “golden Aphrodite” (824, 962, 975, 1006 and 1015) and “very golden Aphrodite” (980). In Homer’s Iliad we have “Aura Aphrodite” (IX: 389), and in The Odyssey as “golden haired.”• The Graces were described by Ibycus as “green-eyed” (fragment papery, PMG 288).• Helen, considered the most beautiful woman ever and an indirect cause of the Trojan War, was described by Stesichorus, Sappho (first book of poems, Alexandrian compilation) and Ibycus as “the blonde Helen” (Ode to Polycrates).• King Menelaus of Sparta, absolute model of a noble warrior, brother of Agamemnon and legitimate husband of Helen is many times called “the blond Menelaus” both in The Iliad (a minimum of fourteen times, III: 284, IV: 183, 210, X: 240, XI: 125; XVII: 6, 18, 113, 124, 578, 673, 684, XXIII: 293, 438) and The Odyssey. Peisander described him as xanthokómes, mégas en glaukómmatos, meaning “blond of big blue eyes.” In Greek mythology, Menelaus is one of the few heroes who achieved immortality in the Islands of the Blessed.• Cassandra, the daughter of Agamemnon and sister of Orestes, is described by Philoxenus of Cythera with “golden curls,” and by Ibycus as “green-eyed Cassandra.”• Meleager is described as “the blond Meleager” by Homer (Iliad, II: 642), and in his ArgonauticaApollonius of Rhodes also describes him as blond.• Patroclus, the teacher, and friend of Achilles is described as blond by Dion of Prusa.• Heracles is described as strongly built and of curly blond hair, among others, by Apollonius of Rhodes in Argonautica.• Achilles, considered the greatest warrior of the past, present, and future, is described as blond by Homer in the Iliad when he is about to attack Agamemnon and, to avoid it, the goddess Athena retains him “and seized the son of Peleus by his yellow hair” (I:197).• The Greek hero Ajax (Aias in the Iliad) is described as blond.• Hector, the Trojan hero, is described as swarthy in the Iliad.• Odysseus, king of Ithaca, Achaean hero at Troy and protagonist of Homer’s Odyssey, is generally considered as swarthy. However, this can be tempered. Although he is described as white-skinned and “dark bearded” in The Odyssey, his hair ishyakinthos, i.e., color of hyacinths. Traditionally this color was translated as “brown” but it was also said that the hyacinths grown in Greece were of a red variety. If true, that would make Odysseus red-haired.• Odysseus, in any case, differs from the Greek hero prototype: tall, slender and blond. It was described as lower than Agamemnon but with broader shoulders and chest “like a ram” according to Priam, king of Troy. This could more likely be a physical type of a Red Nordid than a typical white Nordid Greek hero. It should also be mentioned that Homer used so frequently to call “blonds” his heroes that, in two lapses, he described Odysseus’ hair as Xanthos in The Odyssey.• Laertes, the father of Odysseus, was blond according to Homer’s Odyssey.• Penelope, Odysseus’ wife, and queen of Ithaca was blonde in Homer’s Odyssey.• Telemachus, son of Odysseus and Penelope, was blond in Homer’s Odyssey.• Briseis, the favorite slave in the harem of Achilles—captured in one of his raids, and treated like a queen in golden captivity—was “golden-haired.”• Agamede, daughter of Augeas and wife of Mulius, was “the blonde Agamede” according to Homer (Iliad, XI: 740).• In his Argonautica Apollonius of Rhodes describes Jason and all the Argonauts as blond. The Argonauts were a männerbund: a confederation of warriors which gathered early Greek heroes, many direct children of the gods who laid the foundations of the legends and fathered the later heroes, often with divine mediation. They took their name from Argos, the ship they were traveling and did their Viking-style landings.• “…blonde Lacedaemonians… of golden hair” (Bacchylides, talking about the young Spartans).• Dicaearchus described Theban women as “blonde.”

DNA evidence says they are approximately 335.1 times more likely to be blackWhat most people don't realize is that Egypt was conquered by the Arabs in 642 AD. That is more than 3000 years after the Great Pyramids were built (c. 2600 BC).You can start by checking out this interview.DR. CHEIKH ANTA DIOP: The African Origins Of Humanity - The Historical And Scientific Evidence!Egypt was black, and proof American cover up of that factModern Egyptians do not descend from Ancient EgyptiansBesides, the ancient Egyptians left us a lot of family photos.ImhotepKing TutCompareThis is Queen NefertitiThe Egyptians looked like this around the time of the building of the pyramids. Notice the fros.Ancient Egyptian tomb figurines and a birthing cow, Dates to the early Middle Kingdom, c. 2000 BC, picture taken by Keith Schengili-Roberts in Jan 2007.Opening the Mouth CeremonyNubian Kemsit circa 700BCStatue of Roy Chanting the Solar Hymn Written on His StelaPeriod: New KingdomDynasty: Dynasty 18Reign: reign of Amenhotep IIDate: ca. 1427–1400 B.C.ANCIENT EGYPTIAN FUNERALS, TOMBS AND TOMB ARTEvidence of alcoholic beverages has also been found dating from 3150 BC in ancient EgyptRelief portrait of Akhenaten in the typical Amarna period style.The Art of Amarna: Akhenaten and his life under the SunAncient Egyptian statue with Negro featuresHead of Amenhotep III, New Kingdom, Dynasty 18, reign of Amenhotep III, ca. 1390–1352 B.C.Head of Tutankhamun, New Kingdom, Dynasty 18, reign of Tutankhamun, ca. 1336–1327 B.C.Head of Queen Tiye, New Kingdom, Dynasty 18, ca. 1388–1340 B.C.Head of Amenmesse, New Kingdom, Dynasty 19, reign of Amenmesse, ca. 1203–1200 B.C.Osirid figure of Merneptah, New Kingdom, Dynasty 19, reign of Merneptah, ca. 1213–1203 B.C.Mentuhotep II - Pharaoh of the 11th dynasty who reigned for 51 years.DNA Evidence (BONUS)DNATribes, a genomics company that specializes in tracing individuals’ ancestry to certain global populations has recently subjected the published STRs profiles (DNA samples) of Pharaoh Tutankhamen and family to analysis. They report that the closest living relatives of the mummies are sub-Saharan Africans, especially those from Southern Africa and the Great Lakes region.The company also tested the STR profiles of Ramesses III and found that among present-day populations, Ramesses’ autosomal STR profile is most frequently found in the African Great Lakes region, where it is approximately 335.1 times as frequent as in the world as a whole.Sources:ORIGIN OF THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS by Cheikh Anta DiopBantu Origins of Ancient Egyptians10 Arguments That Prove Ancient Egyptians Were Black - Atlanta BlackstarAmazon.com: The African Origin of Civilization: Myth or Reality (9781556520723): Cheikh Anta Diop, Mercer Cook: BooksBreaking the Mirror of Heaven: The Conspiracy to Suppress the Voice of Ancient Egypt: Robert Bauval, Ahmed Osman: 9781591431565: Amazon.com: BooksImhotep the African: Architect of the Cosmos: Robert Bauval, Thomas Brophy: 9781938875007: Amazon.com: BooksThe Myth of Genesis and Exodus and the Exclusion of Their African Origins: Yosef Ben-Jochannan: 9780933121768: Amazon.com: Books42 Principles of Maat 2000 years before Ten CommandmentsA time line of Ancient Egyptian historyA time line of Ancient Egyptian history

Who is your favorite Indian Kings?Well, everyone of us can have our own individual favorite Indian king of choice.But, one should be aware that this mainland India, all the native Indian Kings, royal dynasts and people at large dearly remember two greatest Kings from the turn of Current Era..And these two greatest Indian Kings were'Maha Raja Vikramaditya or Raja Vikramarka' - who has initiated 'Vikram Samvat Hindu Calendar system starting from 57 BCE (2019 is 2076th year of Vikram Samvat)and'Maha Raja Gautamiputra Satakarni or Shalivahana Satakarni' of Andhra Satavahana Dynasty who has initiated 'Shalivahan Samvat' Hindu Calendar system starting from 78 AD (2019 is 1941st year of 'Shalivahana Samvatsaram')These two kings are being dearly remembered even today for their great efforts to keep the foreign Greek Invaders and their Indo-Scythian feudators of western Kshatrapa clan Bhumaka and his son Nahapana'. Those were the times that Indian mainland suddenly become leaderless after the vacuum created by collapse of mighty Mauryan Empire and thus opening up northwestern frontier porous for foreign invaders.Apart from these two kings, i am here with also mentioning some of my favorite native Indian Kings/dynasty for their exemplary achievements or contributions in a chronological order.(So, I request the visitors of this post to read with patience to appreciate several great native Indian Kings, Empires/Dynasties from the turn of Current Era).Maha Raja VikramadityaMaha Raja Vikramaditya (1st century BCE) - Started Vikrama Samvat (57 BCE) lived during 101 BCE to 19 CEAt the turn of the century, the situation was grave with the fact that Indo-Greek armies were invading with the help of western Kshatrapa Bhumaka from northwestern frontier (Indo-Scythian) who happened to be a feudator for Greeks. The situation was such that ‘Bhumaka’ made significant incursions to capture Ujjain and Mathura.Under such circumstances, Vikramaditya rose to the occasion to stop Bhumaka to throw him back to Kathiawar.Maha Raja Gautamiputra SatakarniMaha Raja Gautamiputra Satakarni (62 - 86 AD reign), an Andhra Satavahana Emperor who started Shalivahan Samvat from 78 ADIt has to be told that the efforts of Vikramarka were unfinished, as Bhumaka's son and another strong feudator of Greeks, Nahapana (reign 24 - 70 AD) strikes back to take back not only Ujjaini but even crosses Narmada to take over Satavahana lands of Pratishtana and Nashik and pushing them to their original lands Kotilingala and Amarvati-Dhanya Katakam.Then arrives another greatest Satavahana king 'Gautamiputra Sri Satakarni' who leads to unite several smaller kings to take on Nahapana in his own Saurashtra kingdom in a fierce battle to defeat him and kills him. As per the eulogy inscription of 'Nasika Prasasti', the Satavahana king conquested a total of 32 kingdoms to establish a vast kingdom consisting of entire south, central, eastern India and north western frontiers of Gujarat and Rajputana.After these conquests, he has initiated 'Shalivahan Samvatsara' Calendar system from 78 AD which was being followed even in present times in MH, AP-TS and KA (their base kingdom of Asmaka-Andhraka-Asika-Mulaka-Kuntala). Remember, Satavahana military campaign was so effective that Indo-Greeks never came invading into the Indian mainland again after 1st century AD.Apart from these two greatest Kings, there are several other favorite Kings of native Indian origin for their qualities, achievements.Rudradaman IRudradaman I (130 - 150 AD), was being credited for one of the earliest re-appearance of an inscription in Sanskrit on the very same rock Boulder having Emperor Asoka edicts of Junagadh in Saurashtra. This Kardamaka king is the grandson of King Chastana (78–130 AD), who has ruled from Ujjaini (believed to have been appointed by Satavahana) while Pratishtanapura or Paithan continued to be under direct rule of Satavahana Pulomavi). This was further supported by the fact that the daughter of Rudradaman I was married to Vashishtiputra Satakarni (2nd son of Gautamiputra Satakarni) (inscriptional evidences was recovered from ‘Kanheri caves' of Mumbai Borivali National Park).Rudradaman I quickly expanded his Kingdom out of Malwa into entire Narmada valley, Saurashtra-Kutch, Sindhu-Sauvira (Sindh-Multan), Marwar and Kukura (eastern Rajputana) initially and later he even conquested Satavahana lands of Paithan, Sopara-Aparanta. He brought most needed stability and prosperity in the entire northwestern and central frontiers through 2nd Century AD as per his Junagadh inscription.Asoka rock edict Junagadh.jpgGupta Dynasty (late 3rd Century - 543 AD)Gupta Empire that spanned for 4 centuries, the period was called as 'Golden age or Swarna Yuga' for the Indian mainland by many historians. The dynasty was founded by the king Sri Gupta with most notable rulers were being Chandragupta I, Samudra Gupta, Chandragupta II, Skanda Gupta who have ruled entire north of Vindhyas from Kambhoja-Parasika, Hunas and Saurashtra in the west to Kamarupa desa in east (also they were believed to have made brief conquests along the east coast till Kanchipuram during the time of Pallava king Vishnugopa).The Gupta Empire reign was remembered for its extraordinary contributions to art, culture, literature and Science (especially during reign of Chandragupta II and Samudra Gupta) - scholars like Varahamihira and Aryabhatta (who is believed to have conceptualized 'Zero') have postulated the theory of that Earth revolves around the Sun, the constellar distances, how solar and lunar eclipse occur. Their royal courts used to have maintained 'Nine Gems or Nava Ratna 's ‘ of lierature (again marked highest Sanskrit literature revival) including the most famous Kalidasa. Even the 'Sushruta Samhita' that mentions major concepts of Ayurvedic medicine with innovative chapters on Surgery dates back to the Gupta period. They have patronized universities like Nalanda and Taxila (Takshshila). The Indian numerical system with positional base 10 was also has its origins from Gupta period. Even the ‘Vatsayana Kamasutras' Sanskrit literary work on human sexual behavior and 'Chess or Chadarangam' were believed to be the legacies of Gupta's. They were even credited with the architectural legacy of Sanchi temple, Mahabodhi temple of Bodhgaya, the Dashavatara temple of Deogarh (MahaVishnu temple).https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4e/Mahabodhitemple.jpgEven the concept of 'Chaturanga Bala' having four military divisions of 'Infantry, Cavalry, Elephantry and Chariotry' were believed to be from Gupta's period. Inspite of being north Indian dynasty, two of their Queens were from Naga kingdom of Kadamba’s and their daughter was offered in marriage to Vakataka ruler Rudrasena II of Deccan.Thus, Gupta Empire was a period of Safety, Peace, stability and Prosperity keeping Prussian and Central Asian (Hunas) kingdoms at bay thus their period was called as Golden age perioid (mid 3rd century AD to early 6th century).However, like any other Empire, their clout started declining by late 5th century because of invasions from Hunas and rise of strong Aulikura dynasty king Yashodharman of Malwa (who was successful in even defeating Hunas and evicting them out of India) and competition from Vakataka dynasty kings of Deccan.Harshavardhana (606-647 AD).jpg - Harshavardhana (606–647 AD)The brief instability of north and northwestern frontiers in late 5th century to mid 6th century AD because of invasions of Hunas, has been effectively dealt with the rise of a new Pushyabhuti Vardhana dynasty based out of Sthanesvar (Thanesar, Haryana). The first major king Prabhakara Vardhana responsible for bringing peace and stability in the entire northwestern frontiers by completely pushing back Huna invaders and uniting confederacy of several smaller kingdoms of northwestern and central india. The Vardhana dynasty has reached it's peak during the reign of Emperor Harsha Vardhana (606 -647 AD) that has spread entire north India from borders of Punjab-Sindh-RJ-GJ to Kamarupa in far east. Vardhana's held marital relations with Maukhari kings of Kannauj. During the time Harsha Vardhana they were ruling from both Kannauj (in present UP) and Thanesar. Having Conquered whole north India, Harsha Vardhana tried expanding his Kingdom into southern India by crossing Vindhyas , but unaware of rise of a new powerful Deccan dynasty of Chalukya's , has been effectively halted by Pulakeshi II in a fierce battle on the banks of Narmada around 618–619 AD. This battle saw a treaty between Harshavardhana and Chalukya Pulakeshi II to observe Narmada river as the designated border between Vardhana Empire and Chalukya Empire. Inspite of this setback, Harshavardhana rule saw peace, stability and prosperity in the entire north India till 647 AD.Chalukya Pulakeshi II (610-640 AD) .jpgThe mention of Harshavardhana automatically attracts attention of Chalukyas of Vatapi (Badami) and it's exalted kings. The first famous Chalukya king was definitely Mangalesha (592 - 610 AD) who made significant conquests into Narmada valley by subjugating the Kalachuris of Mahishmati and also taking control of Navasarika and BhruguKaccha of present southern Gujarat. Then Pulakeshi II (son of 2nd king Kirtivarma) took Chalukya throne in 610 AD by throwing of his uncle Mangalesha.The biggest achievement for which Pulakeshi II (610 - 642/643 AD) got into fame in history comes from the fact of his victory over Harsha Vardhan in a fiercest battle on the banks of Narmada. The victories on the banks of Narmada facilitated Chalukyas establishing a confederacy of their own in Malwa land, Chalukyas of Lata (BhruguKaccha or Bharuch) and Navasarika (present Navasari) as mentioned in his famous 'Aihole Inscription' that the kingdom expanded from banks of Krishna river to Godavari and upto banks of Narmada valley.Pulakeshini II - Aihole_inscription_of_Ravi_Kirti.jpgPallava Narasimha Varma I (630-668 AD).jpegNow having mentioned Pulakeshi II, also attracts immediate attention of Pallava Narasimha Varma I. Even though Pallava kingdom came into establishment as an Independent status (around 235 AD) from being feudators of Andhra Satavahana's, they really rose to glory from the times of Mahendra Varma I (600 - 630 AD). The famous Unesco heritage site of rock-cut temples and Pagodas of Mahabalipuram or Mahamallapuram have started coming into existence from the time of Mahendra Varma I of Pallava kingdom with their capital in Kanchipuram (which they captured from Chola's) have ruled a big kingdom in both southern Andhra (Bellary on KA border to Bezawada or Vijayawada on the eastern river Krishna borders till entire northern Tamilnadu (Chola lands). Pallavas were at loggerheads with Kadambas of Banavasi (present northern & western KA) and with Kalabhras from the inception.Rise of Chalukyas has seen continuation of Kadamba rivalry with Pallavas wherein they briefly laid seize of Pallava lands during the time of Mahendra Varma I.Rock-cut temple of Mahabalipuram or MahamallapuramBut the advent of formidable Narasimha Varma (630 - 668 AD) of Pallava kingdom took a lasting revenge when he unleashed a fiercest battle on Vatapi and killed Pulakeshi II in the battle in 642/643 AD. It was believed that Pallava's laid a seize over Vatapi or Badami for more than 13 years. For the kind of achievements, Narasimha Varma I was famously known as per his Telugu Biruda or honorary title of 'Maha Malla or Great Wrestler'. During his reign he commissioned the Rock-cut temple & Pagodas of Mahabalipuram (which was also known as Mahamallapuram (present Mamallapuram).The death of Pulakeshi II saw Chalukya kingdom to go into anarchy initially followed by slow decline when one of their feudators Dantidurga from Achlapur or Elichapur (present Ellora in MH) initiated another Kannada speaking Rashtrakuta Dynasty (753 - 982 AD).Amoghavarsha (814-878 AD).jpgRashtrakuta Dynasty rose to fame when kingdom expanded from banks of Kaveri to beyond Narmada into Gangetic plains in a three-way conflict during the times of Dhruva Dharavaraha (780 - 793 AD) and his son Govinda III (793 - 814 AD) with Nagabhatta II of Pratihara Dynasty king and Dharmapala of Pala kings for control over Kannauj - when Rashtrakuta's during their peak ruled from Kanyakumari to Kanyakubja/Kannauj.This vast Empire has seen the greatest emperor of not only of its own but also a longest 64 year monarchical reign for any king or Emperor in India in Amoghvarsha I (814 - 878 AD). I am sure nobody must have heard/read about this great emperor who has ruled most of present India for most of the 9th century AD. His rule was mostly peaceful after early consolidating conquests. Amoghavarsha I maintained matrimonial diplomacy with western Ganga's, Kalachuris, Vengi Chalukyas and Pallava's (which helped them to keep Chera, Pandya and Chola's subjugated). During his reign, the capital has been shifted from Mayurakhand (present Bidar district) to Manyakheta (in Bagalkot district) which remained the capital till the end . Sanjan inscription of Amoghavarsha I mentions that rulers of Vanga, Anga, Magadha, Malwa and Vengi have remained loyal feudators.Amoghavarsha I was also a great scholar of both Kannada and Sanskrit (several Bilingual inscriptions in Kannada-Sanskrit were dedicated to him). He greatly patronized Kannada during his reign which has seen Golden period (while Vengi Chalukya's patronized Telugu and Pallava's Tamil). Being a Scholar himself he authored a literary work 'Kavirajamarga' in Kannada, which has become a guide book for future poets and scholars. Another Sanskrit work 'Prasnottara Ratnamalika' from his time was believed to be from 'Sri Adi Sankaracharya'.Mihira Bhoj (836–885 AD) of Gurjara-Pratihara dynastyThe death of Harshavardhana in 648 AD followed by weak Vardhana king lineage of Kannauj has lead to decline of vast Vardhana Empire that has ruled entire north India.The decline of Vardhana Empire saw the birth of another most important Empire of Pratihara's (Gurjara-Pratihara Dynasty) initiated by Nagabhatta I (730 - 756 AD) of Mandsaur - who has quickly expanded kingdom eastward into Malwa by conquering Ujjaini and as far as Gwalior and southward till port of Bharuch. Their initial capital was Avanti or Ujjaini.The word 'Pratihara(I) in Sanskrit means 'door keeper or Guard doing a protecting duty'. They truly lived upto their name by effectively protecting the north-western frontiers from invading Arab Caliphate campaigns (712 - 740 AD) into Sindh and Saurashtra-Kutch and Kangra valley of Kashmir-Himachal. Initial Arab Caliphate invasions under Qasim (712 - 715 AD got some success when they annexed Sindh region in present Pakistan. After this, his successor Junayd (723 - 730 AD) sent a three way Caliphate military campaigns into mainland India into Saurashtra-Kutch, Mewar-Malwa and into Kangra valley. They had initial success in Kutch-Saurashtra against Kacchelas of Kutch, looted and damaged Somnath and subdued Maitrakas of Vallabhi (present Bhavnagar) and in Mewar land they subdued Bhattis of Jaisalmer, Gurjaras of Bhinmal, Guhilots of Mewar, Mauryas of Chittor and Gurjaras of Nandipur. These two Caliphate campaigns have reached upto Navsari and were stopped by Chalukya king Vijayaditya’s army led by his brother Jayasimha Varma. They even annexed Vallabhi into Chalukya confederacy for the first time during these campaigns. The third campaign into Punjab-Kangra valley was also stopped in Punjab by King of Kashmir Lalitaditya Muktapida.The other campaign reached outskirts of Ujjain, when Nagabhatta I army repulsed and pushed them back to retreat. Nagabhatta I has made a confederacy of Gurjara-Pratiharas feudators (of Bhinmal, Nandipur, Bhattis of Jaisalmer and Guhilots of Mewar) took on Arab Caliphate armies of Junaid and Tamin and pushed them beyond Indus river around 738 AD.Had it not the case that these Indian native who rose upto the occassion to expel the Arab Caliphate, Muslim invadors rule would have started off in the early 8th century AD itself instead of early 11th century invasions by Mohammad Ghazni. Yes, we all Indians should be proud of these kings and obviously they have to be our favorite kings as well.The other important kings of this Empire were Nagabhatta II (800 - 833 AD), Mihira Bhoja I (836 - 885 AD) and Mahendrapala I (885 - 910 AD). During the time of Mihira Bhoja and his successor Mahendrapala I, the Pratihara Empire stretching from Sindh in Western border to Bengal in the east (and from Himalayas in North to areas past Narmada in South of Vindhyas). This expansion has triggered a tripartite power struggle with Rashtrakuta's and Pala kings in 9th-10th centuries.Raja Raja Chola (985–1014 AD)The next great Empire from south which has made conquests into north India was Chola dynasty (3rd century BCE to 1 st century AD and 850 AD to 1279 AD). Even though revival of Imperial Chola dynasty started in middle of 9th century AD with Vijalalaya Chola (850 - 870 AD), here the period of great Raja Raja Chola I - greatest Rajendra Chola I - Rajadhiraja Chola - Rajendra Chola II was mainly taken for consideration when these great Chola dynasty kings made great conquests.After 9th century revival of Chola dynasty, during the time of Parantaka II (or Sundara Chola - 957 - 970 AD) was a crucial period - as the Pallava dynasty has come to an end, so was the Rashtrakutas were almost declining and Western Chalukya's were gaining ground. During this Parantaka II , Cholas have already started gaining ground against Pandyan's, Rashtrakuta land. These were the times when the vast empire of Rashtrakutas was fast declining with both Pratiharas of north and Pala dynasty of Bengal (Vanga Desh) regaining ground while 'Mahamud of Ghazni (Ghajnavid empire) has started coming to get established in Persia which later started expanding eastward into major Indian subcontinent (including present Afghanistan, Pakistan).Raja Raja Chola I (also known as Arulmozhi Varman/thevar) (reign 985 - 1014 AD) was the third child of Parantaka II after first child and crown prince Aditya Karikalan and his sister. When this crown prince was assassinated in a mysterious way, Parantaka made his brother Uttama Chola as king. Raja Raja Chola I took over the reign in 985 AD after the death of king Uttama Chola.As a first thing Raja Raja Chola I as king created a powerful army and a strong fleet of Navy in the initial years of reign. In 991 AD his army crossed the ocean in ships to attack the Sinhalese king Mahinda V to capture northern SriLanka and destroyed the capital Anuradhapura. As per Thiruvalangadu copper-plate inscriptions, Cholas made the city of Polonnaruwa as Capital and Raja Raja Chola I built a Siva temple in Polonnaruwa to commemorate the victory over the northern SriLanka (during his son Rajendra Chola regime he captured entire island in 1017 AD, but their reign was ended by SriLankan king Vijayabahu I by 1070 AD).In 994 AD, Raja Raja Chola I destroyed the naval fleet of Chera king Bhaskara Ravi Varman Thiruvadi in Kandalur war and he defeated the Pandya king Amarabhujanga and captured the port of Virinam.May be for the first time in the history of India, Raja Raja Chola I has chosen to use Naval ships in army Conquests in an Unique, Innovative and Effective manner. While doing this he further greatly strengthened his Fleet.After conquests over Chera's and Pandyas, Raja Raja Chola I assumed the title of Mummudi Chola (a title used by Tamil kings to commemorate rule over all three major Tamilakam kingdoms of Chera, Pandya and Chola mainland's).In 998 AD, Raja Raja Chola I captured Rashtrakuta-western Chalukya regions of Gangapadi, Nolambapadi and Tadigaipadi of present KA region. He even annexed Hoyasala regions who were Vassals of western Chalukya's. In 1001 AD he defeated Eastern Vengi Chalukya Jaya Choda Bhima and installed his choice Saktivarman as king of Vengi. Here sensing the strength of Chalukya's of Vengi, he took a strategic call to offer his daughter Kundavai in marriage to next Viceroy of Vengi prince Vimaladitya, an act which was proved to be very fruitful not only for future conquests but to ensure future descendents of not only Vengi but also for Chola throne much later.With the combined army strength of Chola and Vengi Chalukya's, he took up next conquest of invading and taking control of Kalinga kingdom.One another major conquest of Raja Raja Chola I was the naval conquest of the islands of Maldives. The Chola dynasts controlled the area around of Bay of Bengal with Nagapattinam as the main port for their naval fleet and strengthened them for future conquests.The greatness Raja Raja Chola I also appears in many contributiins to art, culture, religion and architecture. One such contribution during his period was construction of Brihadeeswara temple, Thanjavur dedicated to Lord Shiva in 1010 AD which is still standing magnificently (an Unesco heritage site, which celebrated Millennial commemoration recently in year 2010). It is one of the largest temples of in India and is one of grand examples for Dravidian temple architecture (which has been maintained by several dynasts like Cholas, Chera's, Thanjavur Telugu Nayaka kings and Thanjavur Maratha's and accordingly temple inscriptions appearing in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Sanskrit). Thanjavur being a cultural, religious and Political capital for Raja Raja Chola I. The architectural design wonder is such that the tower viman doesn't cast shadow at noon during anytime of year.Brihadeeswara temple Thanjavur (commissioned in 1010 during reign of Raja Raja Chola I)He also did great service to by facilitating the collation of works of hymns on Siva by various great Saint poets like Sambandar, Appar, Sundararajan and Manikyavasagar.Rajendra Chola I (1014 - 1044 AD) who succeeded his father Raja Raja Chola I was also considered as one of the greatest Emperor's of India. During his reign he expanded Chola Empire to the northern banks of Ganga river by defeating and conquesting king Mahipala of Pala kingdom and king Gauda of Bihar in 1019 AD. It was believed that Chola's matrimonial relation with Eastern Chalukya's of Vengi has greatly helped in their north Indian conquests.Rajendra Chola I (1014 - 1044 AD)To commemorate his northern conquests he assumed the title 'GangaiKondaChola - conquerer of kingdoms near Ganga's and established new capital of ‘Gangaikonda Cholapuram' where he also constructed a replica of Thanjavur Brihadeeswara temple over here.In the early years of his reign, Cholas made great conquests of lands of Rashtrakutas (Badami or Vatapi, Manyakheta), Kadamba Bhatkal, later western Chalukyan lands of Basavkalyan, Kolhapur and Pandyan lands (making Pandyan's their feudators).The greatest conquests of Rajendra Chola I included conquering Sri Lanka, Maldives, and he successfully invaded the territories of Srivijaya in Malaysia, Southern Thailand and Indonesia in South East Asia. The Cholas exacted tribute from Thailand and the Khmer kingdom of Cambodia. These conquests of Cholas make them an Uniquely Greatest Empire (lot of Indians were unaware of these Naval based Chola Conquests). It was believed that East Asian conquests were both through naval sea routes and also through land routes (few regiments of army that crossed Ganges further believed to have continued their land route conquest by entering into East Bengal).Raja Raja Narendra (1022–1061 AD), eastern Chalukya kingRajaraja Narendra Chalukya is a Vengi Eastern Chalukya king and a contemporary of Rajendra Chola. Imperial Chola's had both marital and political relations with Vengi Chalukyas. Rajaraja Chola got her daughter Kundavai married to Vengi prince Vimaladitya. Vengi Chalukyas have been believed to have played a crucial role in conquest of Odisha and Bengal and East Asian conquests of Chola Dynasty.Rajaraja Narendra chalukya is son of Vimaladitya, who has builded Rajamahendravaram or Rajahmundry and his period was famous for the social and cultural heritage. His son Rajendra Chalukya or Kulottunga Chola I (son of Rajaraja Narendra and Ammanaga Devi, daughter of Rajendra Chola I) went on to conquest Indonesia before becoming the crown prince of Chola Empire.Telugu literature has attained cultural peaks during Rajaraja Narendra when his royal court poet Nannayya Bhattaraka translated Sanskrit Vyasa Mahabharatham into Telugu Andhra Mahabharatamu.Raja Bhoja' (1010 - 1055 AD)Raja Bhoja was an Indian king from the Paramara Dynasty who ruled from capital Dhara nagara (modern Dhar in western Malwa region). At its zenith, the kingdom extended from Chittor in the north to upper Konkan in the south and from Sabarmati river in the west to Vidisha in the eastern Malwa land. He conquests heavily into Chalukyan lands. Many of the hill forts of present MH, such as Deogarh fort, Pratapgarh and Panhalgad forts (kaha ki Bhoja Raj aur kaha ki Ganguteli) were constructed during the time of Raja Bhoja. In fact when Mohammad Ghaznavid on his flash looting trail of North India including rich Somnath temple, it is Bhoja (mentioned as Paramara Deva) who led a confederacy of Paramara kings against Ghajanavid. Sensing the trouble, Ghazni chose to retreat through most difficult terrain of Kutch.He is best known as a patron of arts, literature and Science, with himself a Polymath and an author of many literary works in Sanskrit such as Bhujabala Bhima, Champu -Ramayana, Samarangana Sutradhara (a treatise of architecture and iconography) and Raja-Mrigankarana (a treatise of Chemistry, extraction of metals from ores.Prithviraj Chouhan (1178 - 1192 AD)Prithvi Raja III or more popularly known Prithviraj Chauhan was one of the important kings of Chahamana Dynasty (684 - 1194 AD) originally based out Shakambhari (or Sambhar of present Rajasthan). Chahamana kings were vassals of Pratihara Empire. After the decline of Pratihara Dynasty, Chahamana Simharaja (944 - 971 AD) attained independent Maharajadhipati title and during the time of Ajaya Raja II (1120 - 1135 AD), the capital has been moved to Ajayameru (present Ajmer) in the early 12th century. The Dynasty reached its zenith during the time of Vigraha Raja IV (1150 - 1164 AD) when this kingdom ruled and controlled much of the present Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi and some parts of MP-UP.During the reign of Prithviraj, he made significant conquests into Chandela kingdom, Chaulukyas Gujarat, Paramara of Abu. As per another legend he did not agree the supremacy of Kannauj king Jayachandra and refuses to attend his Rajasuya. And It is believed that Jayachandra's daughter Samyogita (or Samyukta) fell in love with Prithviraj after hearing his heroic exploits and expresses her interest to marry him. However, Jayachandra announces her Swayamvar without inviting Prithviraj. But Prithviraj marches into Kannauj with hundred warriors and elopes princess Samyogita and escapes to Delhi. It was believed that after their marriage he became infatuated with his new wife ignoring not only the affairs of Kingdom and advances and consolidations made by Mohammad Ghori of Ghurid Dynasty into Multan, Peshavar, Sindh-Punjab after crossing the Indus River.During 1190–91 AD, Ghurid army invades and captures Tabarhindah (present Bhathinda) and learning about this development, Prithviraj marches with forces along with his feudator Govinda Raja of Delhi. Prithviraj's army encounters Muhammad of Ghor at Tarain and decisively defeats Ghurid and injured Ghori was forced to retreat. For this Victory Prithviraj Chauhan was considered very important in history.However, it looks that Prithviraj treated this battle of Tarain as merely a frontier territorial fight as it was believed that he made little preparations for any future clash with Ghori. Meanwhile, Ghori returns to avenge his defeat with a well equipped army of 1.2 lakh soldiers, Cavalry and archers and marches via Multan, Lahore aided by Vijayaraja of Jammu. Prithviraj inspite of no allies (because of his wars on neighbours), managed to gather much larger army to counter Ghurids.It was believed that when they again met for the 2nd battle of Tarain, Ghori initially agrees for a truce from Prithviraj, while he divides his army into four divisions to make an early dawn attack and then plays a ploy of retreating and lures Prithviraj to make a chase. In the meantime, he gets much bigger army from Ghazna and launches a sudden fierce reverse attack to defeat the Chahamana army and chases Prthviraj to capture him near Sarasvati fort (probably modern Sirsa). Sources suggest that Ghori initially made Prithviraj his Vassal of Ajmer but got him killed for treason following Prithviraj rebellion and later installed Chahamana prince Govinda Raja on the throne of Ajmer.Sri Krishna Deva Raya (1509 - 1529 AD) of Vijayanagara EmpireKrishna Devaraya was the greatest Emperor of Vijayanagara Empire (1336 - 1646 AD). Krishna Devaraya belongs Yaduvamshi Turuvasa (Tuluva) dynast to rise to the throne after Sangama and Saluva Dynasty kings. He is the third successor king of the Tuluva lineage after his father Narasa Nayaka and his half brother Vira Narasimha Raya. His father and two immediate ancestors have worked as army commanders for Saluva lineage rulers of Chandragiri samsthanam near Tirupati in AP as per the Saluva chronicle 'Saluvabhyudayam' by royal court poet of Chandragiri 'Rajnatha Dindima'.Sri Krishna Devaraya (SKD) become dominant Hindu dynasty king who ruled over entire southern peninsular India by defeating the Sultans of Bijapur, Golconda. As per the chronicles of Mughal Emperor Babur, SKD of Vijayanagara Empire was rated as the most powerful Hindu ruler in entire peninsular India that was mostly dominated by Muslim rulers from 14th to 18th century. During his reign he defeated Sultan's of Bijapur, Golconda and he annexed back Raichur doab after killing Yusuf Adil Khan. During his reign he also made conquests in to Kalinga lands of Gajapati kingdom of Odhra -Katakam.Inspite of being a warlord king, he himself was an accomplished poet who was credited with his own literary works in Sanskrit, Telugu and Kannada. He gave royal patronage to many poets of Sanskrit, Telugu, Kannada and Tamil.However, it is a historical fact that he had Specially Patronized Telugu with Telugu Ashtadiggaja Poets (Allasani Peddanna, Nandi Thimmanna, Madayyagari Mallanna, Dhurjati, Ayyalaraju Ramabhadrudu, Pingali Surana, Ramarajabhushanudu, Tenali Ramakrishna) in his Bhuvana vijayam (literary court) which has been dominated by Andhra (Telugu) - Samskrta sahityam. For the kind of royal patronage given to Telugu literate he has been given a title of 'Andhra Bhoja'. He himself has done a literary work in Telugu called 'Amuktamalyada' the story of the devotee Goda Devi or Andal and her lord Sri Ranganatha'.Copper Statues of Emperor Sri Krishna Devaraya, Queens Tirumala Devi and Chinnama Devi at Tirumala temple in Andhra Pradesh.His rule and Vijayanagara was considered as 'Swarnayuga or Utopian Hindu rule' comparable to Gupta Empire and Bhoja rule of North India - which has given peace, stability and prosperity for a period of 4 centuries giving major support to reconstruction of Hindu temple architecture (that were ransacked by Malik Kafur in his southern conquests, patronizing arts and literature in various languages like Sanskrit and all major south Indian languages. The prosperity and wealth creation has peaked to such a level that it is believed that traders used to sell gold, diamonds and gemstone on the streets of Vijayanagara like vegetables that got famously being described as ' Rayalaseema is Ratanala seema' (land of Rayala is 'land of Gems, diamonds and Gold'.Maharana Pratap (Singh) (1572 - 1597 AD)Pratap Singh I popularly known as Maharana Pratap was the 13th king of Mewar of Sisodia Rajput Dynasty (1326 - 1955 AD) .The bloody seize of Chittorgarh by Akbar's Mughal army in 1568 AD led to the loss of fertile eastern belt of Mewar to Mughals. However, the rest of the hilly wooded kingdom was still under the control of Rana's of Mewar. The Mughal emperor wanted to have a stable route for Gujarat's conquests through Mewar. And Akbar sends series of envoys entreating the Rana to become a Mughal Vassal like many other Rajput kingdoms of the region. However, when Maharana Pratap refused to comply, it triggered to 'The Battle of Haldighati on 18 June 1576′ between Maharana Pratap and Akbar's forces led by Man Singh I of Amer.Maharana Pratap resisted Mughal army of 10 thousand soldiers led by Man Singh with meagre force 3 thousand cavalry and 400 Bhil archers at the narrow mountain pass of Haldighati near Gogunda (modern Rajsamand in RJ) for a fiercest battle for more than 3 hours wherein 1600 casualties of his men (against 100 of Mughals) and another 350 wounded by end of the day and the wounded Rana manages to escape with the rest of the force into woody Hills.From Mughals side, Haldighati was proved to be a futile battle inspite of victory as they were unable to capture Maharana Pratap or any of his close royal family members in Udaipur. As Mughals focus shifted to north-western frontiers, Rana and his army came out of hiding to recapture the lost regions of his dominion.After 1579 AD, following rebellions in Bengal-Bihar and incursiions by Mirza Hakim into the Punjab, Maharana made conquests into Mughal post at Dewair or Dawer in 1582. Following disturbances in north-west in 1585 AD, Akbar moved back to Lahore for next 12 years - Maharana Pratap recovers whole of western Mewar including Kumbhalgarh, Udaipur, Rajasamand and also goes on to build a new capital at Chavand near modern Dungarpur.As per Historian Satish Chandra “the defiance of Maharana Pratap against mighty Mughals, almost alone and unaided by other Rajput kingdoms constitute a glorious saga of Rajput valour and the spirit of self sacrifice for cherished principles. His methods of guerrilla warfare in the hilly terrain were believed to have become an inspiration for Shivaji Maharaj in the following times”Yes, every Indian should be proud of this great king and must be agreeing with me as your favourite king as well.Shivaji Maharaj (1674 - 1680 AD), founder of Maratha EmpireMaratha Empire (or confederacy of Maratha's) was another great and unique Hindu Empire that rose to fame from south of Vindhyas in the most inhospitable periods dominated by various foreign Muslim Kingdoms rule in India.In order to understand the significance of Maratha Empire, one need understand the extent of Mughal empire during the times Akbar and Aurangazeb (17th Century AD). And how by end of 18th century AD, the map of present India changed suggests the greatness of conquests of Maratha's.Definitely, Shivaji Maharaj was the greatest king and initiator of this Empire. He was born to Shahaji Bhonsle (an army general of Adil Shah of Bijapur) and Jijabai on third day after Phalgun Purnami (full moon of Holi, 19 Feb 1630) at Shivaneri fort of Junnar. Unlike his father, he resisted loyalty to Nizamshahi's started building up his own loyal army mastering the guerrilla warfare and military strategies in the hilly terrain of Sahyadri to trouble not only Adil Shah of Bijapur but also Mughals.In a long struggle for Hindavi Samrajya, his first major victory came when Shivaji killed Afzal Khan (army general of Adil Shah) and defeated Bijapur army in a decisive battle at Pratapgad fort (near to present Mahabaleshwar) on 10 November 1659. After long journey of putting up with Aurangazeb and keeping Adil Shah at bay, Maratha's constructed Raigad fort and Shivaji's Coronation happened in 1674 and within no time they made major conquests of Khandesh, Satara-Kolhapur, Bijapur and down south Vellore fort, Gingee fort (which was held by Ekoji I who later made Thanjavur his capital).Peshwa Baji Rao I Ballal (1720 - 1740 AD)There are two legacies for the Maratha Empire, the legacy of Shivaji Maharaj and his descendants and Legacy of Peshwas (Prime ministers) post the legacy of Shahu ji Maharaj from 1707 AD. The next greatest of the Maratha Empire came in the form of Peshwa Baji Rao I Ballal, whose reign lasted for 20 years from 1720 to 1740 AD.The reign of Baji Rao I was so great wherein he never lost a single war, who has consolidated entire Deccan and for the first time expanded kingdom beyond Narmada valley into Malwa, Gujarat, Bundelkhand-Indore-Nagpur. In 1737, Maratha armies crossed Yamuna and attacked Delhi for first time made major conquests in North India.In later days they made a Confederacy of Maratha Empire with many of their major generals made to confederacy of Peshwas like Indore, Gwalior, Nagapur, Baroda etc,.Maratha's were responsible for ending the Mughal Empire in India and also many regimes of Nizam Shahi in Deccan.As described above all these native Indian Kings of par excellence who served this 'Bharata Varsha or mainland India' and all of them were my favorite Indian native kings from the turn of Current Era (There may be many more great regional kings whom I might have missed).Thanking you for reading the post with patience.Edit: (14Oct2019)The idea of this answer is to highlight my favorite Kings and for this i chose from the turn of Current Era. Another point is to highlight some of kings about whom we never read in our history school /college books.As one can observe, the answer is already lengthy and they are still many more famous kings of India be it Chandragupta Maurya, Pushyamitra Sunga, Satakarni I, King Hala, Kharavela of Kalinga, YagnaSri Satakarni, Pandyan, Cheran kings, Kings of Kadamba, Chedi kings, Eastern Gangas (Kalinga & Gajapathis), western Gangas, Lalitaditya Muktipida, Akbar-Shah Jahan, Kakatiya and Gajapathi kings, Rani Rudrama Devi', Kithuru Rani Chennamma, Rani Jhansi Lakshmi Bai, Rani Ahilyabai Holkar, Mysore Wodeyar kings,Tipu Sultan, Marthanda Varma - Raja Ravi Varma, Banda Singh Bahadur & Mahrarja Ranjith singh (Sikh empire), Pala dynasty, Ahom dynasty, Vakataka-Vishnukundina-Andhra Ikshvakus, Telugu Nayaka Kings of Madurai, Tanjavore, and many more.And it is difficult to cover everyone.Appreciate if anyone contribute brief description as part of response of above mentioned kings if they also happened to be your favorite too.Thank youSrinivas