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The Vishnu Purana, translated by Horace Hayman Wilson, [1840], at sacred-texts.com


p. 444

CHAP. XVIII.

Descendants of Anu. Countries and towns named after some of them, as Anga, Banga, and others.

ANU 1, the fourth son of Yayáti, had three sons, Sabhánara, Chákshusha, and Paramekshu 2. The son of the first was Kálánara 3; his son was Śrinjaya; his son was Puranjaya; his son was Janamejaya; his son was Mahámani 4; his son was Mahámanas, who had two sons, Uśínara and Titikshu. Uśínara had five sons, Śivi, Trińa 5, Gara 6, Krimi, Dárvan 7. Śivi had four sons, Vrishadarbha, Suvíra, Kaikeya, and Madra 8. Titikshu had one son, Ushadratha 9; his son was Hema 10; his son was Sutapas; his son was Bali, on whose wife five sons were begotten by Dírghatamas, or Anga, Banga, Kalinga, Suhma, and Puńd́ra 11; and their descendants, and the five countries they inhabited, were known by the same names 12.

p. 445

The son of Anga was Pára 13; his son was Divaratha; his son was Dharmaratha 14; his son was Chitraratha; his son was Romapáda 15, also called Daśaratha, to whom, being childless, Daśaratha, the son of Aja, gave his daughter Śántá to be adopted 16. After this, Romapáda had a son named Chaturanga; his son was Prithuláksha; his son was Champa, who founded the city of Champá 17. The son of Champa was Haryyanga; his son was Bhadraratha, who had two sons, Vrihatkarman and Vrihadratha. The son of the first was Vrihadbhánu 18; his son was Vrihanmanas; his son was Jayadratha, who, by a wife who was the daughter of a Kshatriya father and Brahmani mother, had a son named Vijaya 19;

p. 446

his son was Dhriti; his son was Dhritavrata; his son was Satyakarman; his son was Adhiratha 20, who found Karna in a basket on the banks of the Ganges, where he had been exposed by his mother, Pritha. The son of Karńa was Vrishasena 21. These were the Anga kings. You shall next hear who were the descendants of Puru.


Footnotes

444:1 By some unaccountable caprice the Bráhma P. and Hari V., unsupported by any other authority, here substitute for Anu the name of Kaksheyu, a descendant of Puru, and transfer the whole series of his posterity to the house of Puru.

444:2 Paksha and Parapaksha: Váyu. Parameshu: Matsya. Paroksha: Bhágavata.

444:3 Kálánala: Váyu. Koláhala: Matsya.

444:4 Maháśála: Agni. Maháśíla: Bhágav.

444:5 Nriga: Agni. Vana: Bhágavata.

444:6 Nava: Matsya. Śama: Bhágavata.

444:7 Vrata: Agni. Suvrata: Matsya. Daksha: Bhágavata. According to the Bráhma P. and Hari V. the five sons of Uśínara were the ancestors of different tribes. Śivi was the progenitor of the Śaivas; Nriga of the Yaudheyas; Nava of the Navarásht́ras; Vrata of the Ámbasht́has; and Krimi founded the city Krimilá.

444:8 Bhadra and Bhadraka: Matsya, Agni. These sons of Śivi give name to different provinces and tribes in the west and north-west of India.

444:9 Rushadratha: Agni. Tushadratha: Matsya.

444:10 Pheńa: Agni. Sena: Matsya.

444:11 Odra, or in some copies Andhra: Bhágavata.

444:12 See p. 185. n. 3; p. 188. n. 46, 49, 50; and p. 190. n. 73. Of Suhma it may be remarked, that it is specified in the Siddhánta Kaumudí as an example of Paniní's rule; 17.3.24; by which Nagara compounded with names of countries in the east becomes Nágara, as Sauhmanágara, 'produced, &c. in a city of Suhma.' The descendants of Anu, according to the Mahábhárata were all Mlechchhas. The last named work, as well as the Váyu and Matsya Puráńas, have an absurd story of the circumstances of the birth of Dírghatamas, who was the son of Ujási or Utathya, the elder brother of Vrihaspati by Mamatá, and of his begetting Anga p. 445 and the rest. They agree in assigning descendants of all four castes to them; the Váyu stating that Bali had ### and the Matsya ascribing it to a boon given by Brahmá to Bali: 'Do thou establish the four perpetual castes.' Of these, the Brahmans are known as Báleyas: ###. The Matsya calls Bali, the son of Virochana, and 'existing for a whole Kalpa;' identifying him therefore, only in a different period and form, with the Bali of the Vámana Avatára.

445:13 Anápána: Váyu. Khanápána: Bhágavata. Adhiváhana: Agni. Dadhivahana: Matsya.

445:14 This prince is said in the Váyu to have drank the Soma juice along with Indra.

445:15 The Matsya and Agni insert a Satyaratha.

445:16 This is noticed in the Rámáyańa, in the story of the hermit Rishyaśringa, to whom Śántá was given in marriage. Her adoptive father is called in the Rámáyańa, as the is in the Agni and Matsya, Lomapáda: the meaning is the same, 'hairy foot.' Rámáyańa, IX. X. See also Prelude to the Uttara Ráma Cheritra, Hindu Theatre, I. 289.

445:17 The Bhágavata differs here from all the other authorities in omitting Champa, the founder of Champapurí, a city of which traces still remain in the vicinity of Bhagalpur, having inserted him previously amongst the descendants of Ikshwáku (see p. 373. n. 12). Champá is every where recognised as the capital of Anga, and the translators of the Rámáyańa were very wide of the truth, when they conjectured that it might be Angwa or Ava.

445:18 Vrihaddarbha: Bráhma. The Bhágavata omits the two successors of Champa, and makes Vrihadratha, Vrihatkarman, and Vrihadbhánu, sons of Prithuláksha.

445:19 The Váyu, Matsya, and Hari V. make Vijaya the brother of Jayadratha. The Bhágavata agrees with our text. The mother of Vijaya from her origin was of the Súta caste, the genealogist and charioteer. Manu, X. 47. Her son was of the same caste, children taking the caste of the mother: consequently the descendants of Vijaya, kings of Anga, were Sútas; and this explains the contemptuous application of the term Súta to Karńa, the half brother of the Páńd́us; for he, as p. 446 will presently be mentioned, was adopted into the Anga family, and succeeded to the crown.

446:20 Some variety prevails in the series of princes here, but this arises from not distinguishing the collateral lines, the descendants of Jayadratha from those of Vijaya. The Váyu and Matsya give the latter as in our text, but they agree also with the Agni and Bráhma in the successors of Jayadratha, as Drid́haratha or Vrihadratha, and Janamejaya or Viśwajit.

446:21 Súrasena: Váyu. Vikarńa: Bráhma.


Next: Chapter XIX