Yuezhi-Gurjar Migration

from Tarim Besin

Notes on Central Asian History during 200 BC and its effects on later
history, Role of Yuezhi migration in Ancient History of Central Asia,
settlement of Yuezhi after migration and various theories about
current form of Ancient Yuezhi tribe:
(Gurjar/Gujjar/Gujar/Gusar/Gusur/Khazar/Ughar/Gazar/Gusarova)

By: Adesh Katariya

Important Note

Till

now

many

researches

published

on

the

history

of

Great

Yuezhi/Gurjar tribe but scholars are not in position to clarify all

happenings in a series.

In this article, we are trying to compile all

happenings as per their timings. We also would like to clarify that the
material under this article is not a copyright matter and main motive of
this article is, to attract good scholars to discuss and research on the
great Yuezhi/Gurjar Tribe.

Adesh Katariya
( plast.adesh@gmail.com)

Early Relation of Yuezhi with Xiongnu:

Xiongnu were ancient pastoral nomadic-tribe that formed a state and confederacy locatednorth of
China in Inner Mongolia. Xiongnu Tribe referred as Barbarian of the North Mangolia. This nomadic
tribe of Mongolia depended on grazing lands for their animals with limited vegetation and agricultural
resources. Their survival dependent on the access of grazing lands for their domesticated animals. The
meat and dairy products from the animal provided thefood while skin hide provided clothing and tents
for nomads. Primarily of Bronze Age culture, they were fierce and warlike nomads and excelled in horse
riding and hit and run military strategy. Later they developed the access to the Iron Age weapons that
produces devastating effect on other neighbors. China was one of the most effected Chineese kingdoms of
the warring states to suffer from Xiongnu raids. Xiongnu must have realized that daily hunt for food
stealing is not the final solution to their problem but to find alternate sites forgrazing lands that YuehChinh had control over. The earliest known Xiongnu ruler was Touman, who reigned approximately
between 225 BCand 210 BC. He spent much of his rule over uniting the various nomadic components
living in Mongolia

Starting of Great Migration of Yuezhi (Tocharian):

First War between Xiongnu and Yuezhi:
215-214 BCE General Meng Tian of the Qin drove barbarian tribes( Xiongnu s) out from the
Ordos and he began construction of a "Great Wall."
The Grand Historian Sima Qian (Ssu-ma Ch'ien) (c.145-c.90 BCE) writes in Shi Ji 110: The
Account of the Xiongnu.
Finally Qin overthrew the other six states, and the First Emperor of the Qin dispatched Meng
Tian [Meng T'ien] to lead a force of 100,000 men north to attack the barbarians [Hu]. He seized
control of all the lands south of the Yellow River and established border defences along the
river, constructing forty-four walled district cities overlooking the river and manning them with
convict labourers transported to the border for garrison duty. He also built the Direct Road
from Jiuyuan [Chiu-yan] to Ynyang . Thus he utilized the natural mountain barriers to
establish the border defences, scooping out the valleys and constructing ramparts and building
installations at other points where they were needed. The whole line stretched over 10,000 li
from Lintao [Lin-t'ao] to Liaodong [Liao-tung] and even extended across the Yellow River and
through Yangshan [Yang Mountains] and Beijia [Pei-chia].

"At this time the Eastern Barbarians were very powerful and the Yuezhi were likewise
flourishing. The Shanyu or chieftain of the Xiongnu was named Touman. Touman, unable to
hold out against the Qin forces, had withdrawn to the far north, where he lived with his
subjects for over ten years.".After that , Xiongnu s did not return to the area till the end of Qin
Dynasty. The Xiongnu s in 209 B.C.E. sent elder prince Mote (Modu) to the Yuezhi as hostage,
and then attacked the Yuezhi to induce them into killing Mote (Modu). The Yuezhi (Yueh-chih)
people were not weak at the beginning. The Xiongnu s, in fact, needed to send in hostage to
the Yueh-chih (Yuezhi) on the contrary. The father of Xiongnu nic Chanyu Mote (Modu) had at
first planned to borrow the Yueh-chih (Yuezhi) knife in killing Mote (Modu) so that he could
have his junior son succeed him. Mote (Modu) was dispatched to Yueh-chih (Yuezhi) as a
hostage, but the Xiongnu s attacked the Yueh-chih (Yuezhi) thereafter. Up on receipt of Modu,
Touman gave him a unit of 10,000 cavalries under his command. Modu trained his men like a
special force, expert in hit and run guerrilla warfare. Mote (Modu) had barely escaped the
Yueh-chih (Yuezhi) alive.
In Shi ji 110: The Account of the Xiongnu, Sima Qian writes:
"Touman's oldest son, the heir apparent to his position, was named Maodun [Modun], but the Shanyu
also had a younger son by another consort whom he had taken later and was very fond of. He decided
that he wanted to get rid of Maodun and set up his younger son as heir instead, and he therefore sent
Maodun as hostage to the Yuezhi nation. Then, after Maodun had arrived among the Yuezhi, Touman
made a sudden attack on them. The Yuezhi were about to kill Maodun in retaliation, but he managed
to steal one of their best horses and escape, eventually making his way back home. His father, struck
by his bravery, put him in command of a force of 10,000 cavalry.

"Maodun had some arrows made that whistled in flight and used them to drill his troops in
shooting from horseback. 'Shoot wherever you see my whistling arrow strike!' he ordered,
'and anyone who fails to shoot will be cut down!' Then he went out Xiongnu ting for birds
and animals, and if any of his men failed to shoot at what he shot at, he cut them down on
the spot. After this, he shot a whitling arrow at one of his best horses. Some of his men
Xiongnu g back and did not dare shoot the horse, whereupon Maodun at once executed
them. A little later he took an arrow and shot at the horse, whereupon Maodun at once
executed them. A little later he took an arrow and shot at his favorite wife. Again some of his
men shrank back in terror and failed to discharge their arrows, and again he executed them
on the spot. Finally he went out Xiongnu ting with his men and shot a whistling arrow at one
of his father's finest horses. All his followers promptly discharged their arrows in the same
direction, and Maodun at last knew that at last they could be trusted. Accompanying his
father, the Shanyu Touman, on a Xiongnu ting expedition, he shot a whitling arrow at his
father and every one of his followers shot a whistling arrow in the same direction and shot
the Shanyu dead. Then Maodun executed his stepmother, his younger brother, and all the
high officials of the nation who refused to take orders from him, and set himself up as the
new Shanyu(in 209 B.C.). He adopted suitable policies to stabilize society and develop the

economy. Hence his country became very prosperous and strong and surpassed the Yuezhi.

Second War between Xiongnu and Yuezhi:

When the king of Eastern Hu nomads heard about Mote (Modu)'s patricide, he challenged
Mote (Modu) by sending emissary to Mote (Modu) and demanding the 'qianli-ma' ('winged
steed') and again Mote (Modu)'s wife. Mote (Modu) gave up the horse and his wife on the first
two occasions and then attacked the Dong Hu nomads when asked to secede the land between
the Xiongnu s and the Dong Hu. Mote (Modu) defeated the Dong Hu nomads and killed their
king. The Xiongnu s then defeated two other tribal states called 'Loufan' and 'Baiyang' (white
sheep) which were located between the Xiongnu s and the Chinese. (Baiyang King was recorded
to have dwelled south of the Yellow River.)
"At this time the Han forces were stalemated in battle with the armies of Xiang Yu, and China
was exhausted by warfare. Thus Maodun was able to strengthen his position, massing a force of
ver 300,000 crossbowmen." Now Modu Decided to super power in that area and subsequently
Modu launched another war against the Yuezhi, which was second war against Yuezhi. This war
took place in the 7th year of Modu era (203 B.C.). From this war, a large area of the territory
originally belonging to the Yuezhi was seized by the Xiongnu, the hegemony of the Yuezhi
started to shake, but their nation was not yet exterminated. It appears that the Yuezhi did not
yet migrate from Dunhuang.
The Xiongnu invaded Taiyuan in 200 BCE and were aided by the defected fiduciary allies; Xin
Emperor Gaozu (Shin Huangdi) personally led his forces through the snow to Pingcheng (near
modern Datong, Shanxi). In the ensuing Battle ofBaideng, Gaozu's forces were heavily
surrounded for seven days; running short of supplies, hewas forced to flee. After this defeat,
the court adviser Liu Jing convinced the emperor tocreate a peace treaty and marriage alliance
with the Xiongnu Chanyu called the Heqin agreement. By this arrangement established in 198
BCE, the Han hoped to modify the Xiongnus violent cultural values with luxury goods given as
tribute (silks, wine, and food-stuffs, ivory) and to make Modu's future children born of Huangdi
daughter, a Chinese successor and a subordinate to grandfather Huangdi. The exact amounts of
annual tribute aspromised by Emperor Gaozu- Huangdi given to the Xiongnu in the 2nd century
BC after thedefeat are unknown. The emperor was known with many names such as Gaozu,
Huangdi,shuangadi etc. Emperor Gaozu was initially set to give his only daughter to Modu, but
underthe opposition of Empress L, Gaozu (Sinn Huangdi) made a female relative, a princess
andmarried her to Modu. The offering of princess brides and tributary items scarcely satisfied
the Xiongnu King.

Third War between Xiongnu and Yuezhi and Yuezhi Migration

In the fourth year of the Han Emperor Wen Qianyuan era (176 B.C.), Modu waged the third war
against the Yuezhi. The result of this war was declared in a letter written to the Han Emperor
Wen by Modu. The Xiongnu nic Chanyu wrote to Han emperor saying that he ordered one of
his kings, Youxianwang (rightside virtuous king), to go west to strike at the Yueh-chih (Yuezhi) as
punishment for breaking peace near the Chinese border. Yuezhi certainly did not expect an
attack, so they were completely massacred. In this war, Xiongnu defeated the Yuezhi and
dominated all of what is now the modern province of Xinjiang (Sinkiang). Yuezhi King was killed
and a cup was made from his skull (The skull utensil would become Xiongnu nic legacy which
would be retrieved for employment on major celebrations. People would have to admire the
Xiongnu nic spirit to preserve this piece of work after Xiongnu dreds of years of wars, turmoil
and relocations.). The cat and mouse game between Xiongnu and Yueh-Chinh that lasted over
several generation and killed number of people and resulted into massive displacement of the
tribes from their original homeland and subsequent influx into subcontinent that was clearly
unprecedented (and partly explains How Indian Purana failed to track the Genealogy
andmigration of various rulers of tribes and clans into India.) The Yuezhi queen acted as a
regent and led her people in a further move to the west to their Big Exit the valley of the
river Ili, and forever left the fertile lands around Huanhe in Hesi. The valley of the rivers Ili and
Chu iscalled Sedmorechie today (in Russian), meaning Seven rivers (Kazakh - Zhetisu,
Jetisuw, Jetysu) but in the early Middle Ages it bore the name Argu6, Argun, Organa a
name most likely related to the Arsi (Arsan) / Yuezhi. This is a unique and fateful migration of
the majority of the Arsian / Yuezhi community.They stumble upon the valley of the rivei Ili and
after that in Sogdiana in Central Asia. Here, they founded a new kingdom, which alter grew in
the Kushan Empire. (CD-GYuE, p.13-26) But not all reach Central Asia. The son of Yueh-chih
(Yuezhi) was ordered to stay behind, One part of the Yuezhi follow him, known in Chinese
chronicles as Xiao Yuezhi or Small Yuezhi.
The defeat of the Yuezhi, submission of the Loulan (Lou-lan), the Wusun (Wu-sun), the Huzhieh
(Hu-chieh), and twenty-six states contiguous to them gave the Xiongnu (Hsiung-nu) control of
the prosperous oasis-city-states of Sinkiang as well as contact with the rulers of Ferghana and
Sogdia.4 (Ferghana was spread across what is now part of central and eastern Kyrgyzstan and
eastern Tajikistan, east of the Syr Darya (Jaxartes) River. Sogdia was centered in what is now
southeastern Uzbekistan, between the Amu Darya (Oxus) and Syr Darya (Jaxartes) Rivers.
Sogdia also included part of what is now western Kyrgistan and western Tajikistan.)
In a letter to the Han emperor Wen, Modun stated:
"With the assistance of Heaven, the talent of officers and soldiers, and the strength of horses
the wise king of the right has succeeded in destroying the Ye-chih, and in unspairingly killing
them or bringing them into submission. Lou-lan, the Wu-sun, the Hu-chieh, and other twenty-six
states contiguous to them are now part of the Hsiung-nu. All the people who draw the bow now
become one one family and the northern region has been pacified."

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