Ancient Indian Historical Tradition c18.6

c18.6

The next group of synchronisms is that in which Viśvāmitra and his nephew Jamadagni are the central figures. King Kṛtavīrya of the Haihayas had the Bhārgavas as his priests and enriched them. His successors tried to recover the wealth, but the Bhārgavas resisted. The Haihayas maltreated them, and the Bhārgavas fled to other countries for safety.¹ Gādhi or Gāthi was then king of Kānyakubja and had a daughter Satyavatī. The Bhārgava rishi Ṛcika Aurva, son of Ūrva, married her and had a son Jamadagni, and about the same time Gādhi had a son² Viśvaratha.³ Viśvaratha, after succeeding to the kingdom,⁴ relinquished it, placed his family in a hermitage near Ayodhyā⁵ and gave himself up to austerities for twelve years, after which he became a brahman with the name Viśvāmitra. He returned and succoured prince Satyavrata Triśaṅku⁶ of Ayodhyā who had befriended his family, and restored him to the throne, overcoming the opposition of the then Vasiṣṭha,⁷ whose personal name was Devarāj.⁸ Jamadagni married Kāmalī Reṇukā, daughter of Reṇu, a minor king belonging to the Ikṣvāku race, and their son was Rāma Jāmadagnya.⁹ Triśaṅku was succeeded by his son Hariścandra, who had a son Rohita, and Viśvāmitra and Jamadagni attended as priests at the sacrifice at which Śunaḥśepa was substituted for Rohita.¹⁰ Kṛtavīrya was succeeded by his son Arjuna Kārtavīrya, who was a great king (p. 41). After a long reign he had dissension with Jamadagni, his sons killed Jamadagni, and Rāma killed him.¹ Here then we have these synchronisms:—