Raghuvaṃśa (dynasty)
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Raghuvanshi/Raghuwanshi (Sanskrit: रघुवंशी) is an Indian dynasty. Raghuvanshi is believed to be a lineage of kings tracing its ancestry to Surya[citation needed]. Raghuvanshi kings like Mandhata, Harishchandra, Sagar, Bhagirath, Dilipa, Raghu, Aja, Dasaratha and Rama.
The clan founder was Vivasvan or Vaivaswat Manu who was also known as Arka-tanaya or son of Arka (Surya), is supposed to have lived coeval with the origin of the world. The name Vivaswan literally means "master of the rays"; the sun, or sun-god. The first historically significant king of this dynasty was Vivaswan's grandson Ikshvaku, so the dynasty is also known as the Ikshvaku dynasty.[1] Raja Prithu was son of Ikshvaku. Because of the greatness of Raja Prithu, whole world was known as Prithvi ("Earth").
Kalidasa's famous work, Raghuvansh (Sanskrit: रघुवंश, Raghuvaṃśa) narrates the epic of the Raghuvanshi in 19 sargas (cantos).[2]
Notables
Several legendary kings came from the Raghuvansh line:
- Mandhata, who is said to have ruled the entire earth during the Vedic era, and defeated the Indra-head of Devtas.
- Harishchandra, the king of Ayodhya, believed to be an exemplar of honesty
- Sagara, a king who was tricked by Indra into a conflict with the sage Kapila, leading to the death of his 60,000 sons, the descent of the Ganges to earth, and his sons' revival
- Dilīpa, said to be the most righteous and chivalrous emperors of the Ikshvaku dynasty
References
- ^ Ikshaku tribe The Mahabharata translated by Kisari Mohan Ganguli (1883 -1896), Book 3: Vana Parva: Tirtha-yatra Parva: Section CVI, p. 228 'There was born in the family of the Ikshaku tribe, a ruler of the earth named Sagara, endued with beauty, and strength...".
- ^ Raghuvaṃśa of Kālidāsa - Edited with extracts & notes etc by Narayan Ram Acharya Kavyatirtha, Chaukhambha Publishers, Varanasi, 2nd ed (2002), Appendix 2
- A Handbook of Rajput[clarification needed][where?]