Hatak, हाटक or Harataka is a state mentioned in some translations of the

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kuru ...

, one of the two major

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

epics of ancient India in

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

. The epic, which narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins culminating in the

Kurukshetra War The Kurukshetra War (), also called the Mahabharata War, is a war described in the Hindu Indian epic poetry, epic poem ''Mahabharata'', arising from a dynastic struggle between two groups of cousins, the Kauravas and the Pandavas, for the thr ...

, mentions Hataka as a northern land conquered by

Arjuna Arjuna (, , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, �ɾd͡ʒun̪ə is one of the central characters of the ancient Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. He is the third of the five Pandava brothers, and is widely regarded as the most important and renowned among them. ...

, a

Pandava The Pandavas (Sanskrit: पाण्डव, aɳɖɐʋᵊ IAST: Pāṇḍava) is a group name referring to the five legendary brothers, Yudhishtira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula, and Sahadeva, who are central figures of the Hindu epic ''Mahabhara ...

prince and one of the major protagonists of the

. According to a translation by

Kisari Mohan Ganguli Kisari Mohan Ganguli (also K. M. Ganguli) was an Indian translator known for being the first to provide a complete translation of the Sanskrit epic Mahabharata in English. His translation was published as ''The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana V ...

, it is stated that the state is inhabited by

Yaksha The Yakshas (, , ) in Mythology are a broad class of nature spirits, usually benevolent, but sometimes mischievous or capricious, connected with water, fertility, trees, the forest, treasure and wilderness. They appear in Hindu, Jain and Bud ...

s (Guhyaka), a class of nature spirits in the epic. *At the time of the Mahabharata,

conquered the north land (had conquered or was conquering?) in the context – "तं जित्वा हाटकं नाम देशं गुह्मकरक्षितम्, पाकशासनिरव्यग्रः सहसैन्यः सभसदत्।" *It is possible that the location of the poet

Kālidāsa Kālidāsa (, "Servant of Kali (god), Kali"; 4th–5th century CE) was a Classical Sanskrit author who is often considered ancient India's greatest poet and playwright. His plays and poetry are primarily based on Hindu Puranas and philosophy. ...

Meghadūta ''Meghadūta'' (, literally ''Cloud Messenger'') is a lyric poem written by Kālidāsa (c. 4th–5th century CE), considered to be one of the greatest Sanskrit poets. It describes how a '' yakṣa'' (or nature spirit), who had been banished by ...

' and the 'Alka' will be located near Hataka. *Hataka was stated to be near Mansarovar( Lake Manasa) – "सरोमानसामासाद्यहाटकानभितः प्रभु, गंधर्वरक्षितं देशमजयत् पंडवस्ततः". In Mahajanapada Period (600–325 BC),

Kambojas The Kambojas were a southeastern Iranian peoples, Iranian people who inhabited the northeastern most part of the territory populated by Iranian tribes, which bordered the Indian subcontinent, Indian lands. They only appear in Indo-Aryan langua ...

(Sanskrit:- कम्बोज)(Assamese/Banglaকম্বোজ), which is a Mahajanapadas, Capital was Hataka.

Aitihasik Sthanavali

According to the 1969 book Aitihasik Sthanavali by Vijayendra Kumar Mathur, the following was the info given about the kingdom. *The current state of Hataka was nearby Mansarovar and Kailash in Tibet, inhabited by Yakshas and Gandharva. *In the opinion of Mr. C. V. Law, Hataka is the current

Attock Attock ( Punjabi, ), formerly known as Campbellpur (Punjabi, ), is a city in Punjab, Pakistan, not far from the country's capital Islamabad. It is the headquarters of the Attock District and is 36th largest city in the Punjab and 61st largest c ...

city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. *According to N.L. De, Hataka is the name of

Huna Kingdom Hunas were a tribe close to Himalayas that, because of limited interaction with Indian kingdoms, were mentioned in the epic Mahabharata. They belonged to the Xinjiang province of China, east of Jammu-Kashmir. However, they were nomadic people who ...

References

{{reflist Yaksha kingdom