Tribes in Ancient India c63.7

c63.7

The *Matsyapurāṇa* (Chap. 43) traces the origin of the Avantis to the Haihaya dynasty of which Kārttavīryārjuna was the most glorious ruler, and adds that Avanti was the name borne by one of the sons of this monarch. The *Liṅgapurāṇa* states that out of the hundred sons of Kārttavīryārjuna, five, namely Śūra, Śūrasena, Dṛṣṭa, Kṛṣṇa and Yayudhvaja, ruled Avanti and acquired great renown. The *Viṣṇu-Dharmottara Mahāpurāṇa* (Chap. IX) and the *Padmapurāṇa* (*Svarga Khaṇḍa*, Chap. III) speak of Avanti as one of the *mahājanapadas* or chief provinces of ancient India. The *Skandapurāṇa* has a whole section, the Āvantyakhaṇḍa, dealing with the sacred sites and places of pilgrimage in the country of the Avantis. It is stated (Chap. 43) that the god Mahādeva, after he had destroyed the demon Tripura, visited Avantipura, which came to be known as Ujjayinī in honour of his victory. This Purāṇa in the section of Ayodhyā-māhātmya (Chap. I) relates that saints of Ujjayinī, the Avanti capital, came to Kurukṣetra with their disciples to attend the sacrifice of Rāma.