What is "shashigupta"

Shashigupta ( Arrian Sisikottos; Curtius Sisocostus; ) was an historical personage of considerable eminence hailing from the Paropamisadaen region i.e. region lying between Hindukush and Indus. His name appears twice in Arrian's Anabasis and once in Historiae Alexendri Magni by Curtius. The name Shashigupta literally means "moon-protected"---the " Shashi" part of the name being equivalent to Chandra (the moon). Though many scholars write that Shashigupta was a ruler of some frontier hill state south of Hindukush, it is however, more appropriate to call him a military adventurer or a corporation leader coming from the warlike background of the fierce Kshatriya clan of the Ashvakas from Massaga or Aornos (Pir-Sir) or some other adjacent territory of the Ashvakas. No ancient evidence is available which attests Shashigupta's royal background prior to his appointment by Alexander as ruler of the Ashvakas of the Aornos country. Scholars are also at variance on the identity of Shashigupta. While some identify him with Chandragupta Maurya, the others say that Shashigupta and Chandragupta are two distinct historical personages—one from the north-west and the other from eastern India. There is also a third school of scholars who tend to connect both Shashigupta as well as Chandragupta to north-west frontiers and relate them both to two separate branches of the Ashvakas. Scholars like Dr J. C. Vidyalankara identify Shashigupta as a chieftain from the Kamboja land.