भारतीय इतिहास के ६ स्वर्णिम पृष्ठ (वीर सावरकर - विदेशी आक्रान्ताओं पर विजय गाथा)

science and got lessons in the art of governance, warfare and strictly observed the rules of discipline prevalent there. 21. By some strange coincidence, just when Alexander was marching at the head of his army into India, after reducing Taxila, a brilliant youth, who, a little later, was destined to carve a glorious page in the history of India, was learning the sciences of war and politics in the same University of Taxila. He was called Chandragupta. The old teacher who was well-versed in different lores of the time, and was also an astute politician, and was giving lessons in politics and national revolutionary activities to this splendid youth under the portals of the same University, was Chanakya. 22. But in the confusion wrought by this invasion of Alexander, these two exceptionally gifted personalities had not yet attracted public attention in themselves. Both of them had been watching very closely the movements of Alexander's vast forces. Alexander had, as it were, put all the crowns and coronets of kings, and kings of kings and of all the small rav's and kaval's into a metlting pot and forged a single crown to proclaim himself the Emperor of India; while the old sage, Acharya Chanakya, was secretly planning an easy transfer of that covetable crown to his young disciple's head by means of a coup d'etat. War with Porus 23. The king of Taxila, Ambuj or Ambhi had, as already stated, bowed down to the Greek might without fighting a single battle, and, therefore, everybody began to jeer at his treacherous act, as it humiliated the braver spirits. In order to counteract it, the neighbouring Indian monarchies and republics decided to force a bitter struggle on the Greeks. It is really unfortunate that these various independent Indian states did not think of making it a common cause, or perhaps had no time to do it. As soon as he reached Taxila, Alexander, without any loss of time, sent ultimatum to all the neighbouring Indian states, demanding unconditional surrender, and when Taxila's very next neighbour, King Porus, ignored his ultimatum and took up the challenge, the Greek captain-general marched on him. 24. King Porus mainly depended on his war chariots and elephants, whereas the Greeks relied upon their cavalry brigades. The river Vitasta (Jhelum) separated the two armies. All of a sudden, even before the two armies joined battle, torrential rains overflowing the river with high floods began to assail them all round. Alexander searched high and low and in a few days, found to the north, a place where the river was fordable. With