War in Ancient India c4.s6.t7.15

c4.s6.t7.15

Again, the king who became conqueror of all India was entitled to the distinction of being called a Samrāṭ. In the Purāṇic period the great Kārtavīrya Arjuna of the Haihaya clan spread his arms throughout the ancient Indian continent and earned the title of Samrāṭ. The same principle of glory and distinction underlay the performance of the sacrifices, Aśvamedha and Rājasūya, which were intended only for the members of the Kṣatriya community. Sometimes these yajñas were made by a prince in the evening of his life, after he had attained a ripe age when he could no more bear arms effectively and was about to retire to a life of peace and prayer, leaving the responsibilities of the kingdom to his successor, invariably the eldest son. Dāśarathi Rāma and the Pāṇḍava Yudhiṣṭhira engaged in such sacrifices after the historic battles in which they took leading and glorious parts. Coming nearer home, we find Śenguṭṭuvan performing a Vedic sacrifice after his return from the north where he defeated all the northern monarchs.