Those who are familiar with the Book of Esther, the sacred text of the Jewish holiday of Purim, know that it starts with something like, "And it was in the days of Ahasueres, he was Ahasueres, who ruled from Hoadoo (India) to Kush, one hundred and twenty-seven states." We know, of course, a fair amount about ancient India, but we're about to learn a lot more about Kush.