Ashvapati or Aśvapati () is the appellation of many kings in

Hindu mythology Hindu mythology is the body of myths and literature attributed to, and espoused by, the adherents of the Hindu religion, found in Hindu texts such as the Vedic literature, epics like ''Mahabharata'' and ''Ramayana'', the Puranas, and reg ...

. It means 'Lord of horses.' It was an appellation comparable to that of the knight or Ritter in Europe. According to

Ramayana The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...

, Ashvapati was king of

Kekeya Kingdom Kekeya Kingdom (also known as Kekaya, Kaikaya, Kaikeya etc.) was a kingdom mentioned in the ancient Indian epic ''Mahabharata'' among the western kingdoms of then India. The epic ''Ramayana'' mentions one of the wives of Dasharatha, the king of Ko ...

the land of fine horses. He was father of one daughter,

Kaikeyi Kaikeyi (Sanskrit: कैकेयी, IAST: Kaikeyī) is the second consort of King Dasharatha, and a queen of Ayodhya in the Hindu epic Ramayana. Out of Dasharatha's three wives, Kaikeyi exerts the most influence. Formerly the princess of Kek ...

(a queen of King

Dasharatha Dasharatha (Sanskrit: दशरथ, IAST: Daśaratha; born Nemi) was the king of the Kosala kingdom and a scion of the Suryavamsha dynasty in Hinduism. He ruled from this capital at Ayodhya. Dasharatha was the son of Aja and Indumati. He ha ...

), and seven sons. His son Yudhajeet played an important role in

. Ashvapati performed a journey in search of an answer to the imperative need of human race.

Exile Of His Wife

Due to a boon, Ashvapati was able to understand the language of the birds. However, this was accompanied by a caveat that if he ever revealed the content of bird speak to anyone, even his own mother, that he would forthwith lose his life. One day, the King and his Queen were strolling through the palace gardens when Ashvapati happened to overhear the conversation of a pair of mated swans. The conversation so amused him that he laughed heartily, instigating his wife's curiosity. Despite being aware of the fact that Ashvapati could not divulge the content of the conversation to her without losing his life, Kaikeyi's mother insisted on knowing the cause of the King's mirth. When Ashvapati realised that his wife cared little for his life or well-being, he had her banished to her parents' home.

References

*Dowson's Classical Dictionary of

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

Mythology *Buck's Ramayana Characters in the Ramayana Honorifics Men's social titles {{hindu-myth-stub