The Vishnu Purana: Book IV: Chapter XII

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CHAP. XII.

Descendants of Krosht́ri. Jyámagha's connubial affection for his wife Śaivyá: their descendants kings of Vidarbha and Chedi.

KROSHT́RI, the son of Yadu 1, had a son named Vrijinívat 2; his son was Swáhí 3; his son was Rushadru 4; his son was Chitraratha; his son was Śaśavindu, who was lord of the fourteen great gems 5; he had a hundred thousand wives and a million of sons 6. The most renowned of them were Prithuyaśas, Prithukarman, Prithujaya, Prithukírtti, Prithudána, and Prithuśravas. The son of the last of these six 7 was Tamas 8; his son was Uśanas 9, who celebrated a hundred sacrifices of the horse; his son was Śiteyus 10; his son was Rukmakavacha 11; his son was Parávrit, who lead five sons, Rukméshu, Prithurukman, Jyámagha, Pálita, and Harita 12. To this day the following verse relating to Jyámagha

is repeated: "Of all the husbands submissive to their wives, who have been or who will be, the most eminent is the king Jyámagha 13, who was the husband of Śaivyá." Śaivyá was barren; but Jyámagha was so much afraid of her, that he did not take any other wife. On one occasion the king, after a desperate conflict with elephants and horse, defeated a powerful foe, who abandoning wife, children, kin, army, treasure, and dominion, fled. When the enemy was put to flight, Jyámagha beheld a lovely princess left alone, and exclaiming, "Save me, father! Save me, brother!" as her large eyes rolled wildly with affright. The king was struck by her beauty, and penetrated with affection for her, and said to himself, "This is fortunate; I have no children, and am the husband of a sterile bride; this maiden has fallen into my hands to rear up to me posterity: I will espouse her; but first I will take her in my car, and convey her to my palace, where I must request the concurrence of the queen in these nuptials." Accordingly he took the princess into his chariot, and returned to his own capital.

When Jyámagha's approach was announced, Śaivyá came to the palace gate, attended by the ministers, the courtiers, and the citizens, to welcome the victorious monarch: but when she beheld the maiden standing on the left hand of the king, her lips swelled and slightly quivered with resentment, and she said to Jyámagha, "Who is this light-hearted damsel that is with you in the chariot?" The king unprepared with a reply,

made answer precipitately, through fear of his queen; "This is my daughter-in-law." "I have never had a son," rejoined Śaivyá, "and you have no other children. Of what son of yours then is this girl the wife?" The king disconcerted by the jealousy and anger which the words of Śaivyá displayed, made this reply to her in order to prevent further contention; "She is the young bride of the future son whom thou shalt bring forth." Hearing this, Śaivyá smiled gently, and said, "So be it;" and the king entered into his great palace.

In consequence of this conversation regarding the birth of a son having taken place in an auspicious conjunction, aspect, and season, the queen, although passed the time of women, became shortly afterwards pregnant, and bore a son. His father named him Vidarbha, and married him to the damsel he had brought home. They had three sons, Kratha, Kaiśika 14, and Romapáda 15. The son of Romapáda was Babhru 16, and his son was Dhriti 17. The son of Kaiśika was Chedi, whose descendants were called the Chaidya kings 18. The son of Kratha was Kunti 19; his son was Vrishńi 20; his son was Nirvriti 21; his son was Dasárha; his son was Vyoman; his son was Jímúta; his son was Vikriti 22; his son was Bhímaratha; his son was Navaratha 23; his son was Daśaratha 24; his son was Śakuni; his son was Karambhi; his son was Devaráta; his son was Devakshatra 25; his son was Madhu 26; his son was Anavaratha; his

son was Kuruvatsa; his son was Anuratha; his son was Puruhotra; his son was Anśu; his son was Satwata, from whom the princes of this house were termed Sátwatas. This was the progeny of Jyámagha; by listening to the account of whom, a man is purified from his sins.

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Footnotes

420:1 In the Bráhma P. and Hari V. we have two families from Krosht́ri; one which is much the same as that of the text; the other makes short work of a long story, as we shall again notice.

420:2 Vajravat: Kúrma.

420:3 Śánti: Kúrma. Swáha: Matsya. Triśanku Linga.

420:4 Vishánsu: Agni. Rishabha: Linga. Kuśika: Kúrma. Ruśeku: Bhágavata.

420:5 Or articles the best of their kind; seven animate, and seven inanimate; a wife, a priest, a general, a charioteer, a horse, an elephant, and a body of foot soldiers; or, instead of the last three, an executioner, an encomiast, a reader of the Vedas; and a chariot, an umbrella, a jewel, a sword, a shield, a banner, and a treasure.

420:6 The text states this in plain prose, but the Váyu quotes a verse which makes out but a hundred hundred or 10,000 sons.

420:7 The Matsya has the first, third, and fifth of our text, and Prithudharma, Prithukírtti, and Prithumat. The Kúrma has also six names, but makes as many successions.

420:8 Suyajna: Agni, Bráhma, Matsya. Dharma: Bhágavata.

420:9 Ushat: Bráhma, Hari V.

420:10 Śitíkshu: Agni. Śineyus: Bráhma. Purujit: Bhágavata. The Váyu has Maruta and Kambalavarhish, brothers, instead.

420:11 Considerable variety prevails here. The Bráhma and Hari V. have Marutta the Rájarshi (a gross blunder, see p. 352), Kambalavarhish, Śataprasúti, Rukmakavacha: the Agni--Marutta, Kambalavarhish, Rukmeshu: whilst the Bhágavata makes Ruchaka son of Uśanas, and father to the five princes who in the text are the grandsons of Rukmakavacha.

420:12 The Bhágavata has Rukmeshu, Rukman, Jyámagha, Prithu, and Purujit. The Váyu reads the two last names Parigha and Hari. The Bráhma and Hari V. insert Parajit as the father of the five named as in the text.

421:13 Most of the other authorities mention that the elder of the five brothers, Rukmeshu, succeeded his father in the sovereignty; and that the second, Prithurukman, remained in his brother's service. Pálita and Harita were set over Videha (Linga) or Tirhut, and Jyámagha went forth to settle where he might: according to the Váyu he conquered Madhyadeśa (the country along the Narmadá), Mekalá, and the Śuktimat mountains. So the Bráhma P. states that he established himself along the Rikshavat mountain, and dwelt in Śuktimati. He names his son, as we shall see, Vidarbha: the country so called is Berar, and amongst his descendants we have the Chaidyas or princes of Boghelkand, and Chandail, and Dasárha, more correctly perhaps Dasarńa, Chattisgher; so that this story of Jyámagha's adventures appears to allude to the first settlement of the Yádava tribes along the Narmadá, more to the south and west than before.

422:14 The Bhágavata has Kuśa; the Matsya, Kauśika: all the authorities agree in specifying three sons.

422:15 Lomapáda: Agni.

422:16 Vastu: Váyu. Kriti: Agni.

422:17 Áhuti: Váyu. Iti: Padma. Dyuti: Matsya. Bhriti: Kúrma. This latter is singular in carrying on the line of Romapáda for twelve generations farther.

422:18 The Bhágavata, however, makes the princes of Chedi continuous from Romapáda; as, Babhru, Dhriti, Uśíka, Chedi--the Chaidyas, amongst whom were Damaghosha and Śiśupála.

422:19 Kumbhi: Padma.

422:20 Dhrisht́a: Váyu. Dhrisht́i: Matsya,

422:21 Nivritti: Váyu. Nidhriti: Agni. The Bráhma makes three sons, Avanta, Daśárha, and Balivrishahan. In the Linga it is said of Dasárha that he was 'destroyer of the host of copper (faced; European?) foes.'

422:22 Vikala: Matsya.

422:23 Nararatha: Bráhma, Hari V.

422:24 Drid́haratha: Agni. Devaráta: Linga.

422:25 Soma: Linga. Devanakshatra: Padma.

422:26 There is great variety in the succeeding appellations: