Mandhatra ( sa, मान्धातृ, ), also rendered Mandhatri, is a king of the Suryavamsha dynasty in

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

. He is the son of Yuvanashva, as cited in the

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...

. He marries Bindumati, the daughter of

Yadava The Yadava (literally, descended from Yadu) were an ancient Indian people who believed to be descended from Yadu, a legendary king of Chandravamsha lineage. The community was formed of various clans, being the Abhira, Andhaka, Vrishni, and Sat ...

king Shashabindu. According to the

Puranas Purana (; sa, , '; literally meaning "ancient, old"Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature (1995 Edition), Article on Puranas, , page 915) is a vast genre of Indian literature about a wide range of topics, particularly about legends an ...

, he has three sons, Purukutsa,

Ambarisha In Hindu mythology, Ambarisha ( sa, अम्बरीषः, ) is an Ikshvaku king, and the son of Mandhata.Pargiter, F.E. (1972) 922 ''Ancient Indian Historical Tradition'', Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, p.92. He is believed to have conquered t ...

, and

Muchukunda In Hindu history, Muchukunda (), the son of King Mandhata, and brother of Ambarisha, is an Ikshvaku ( Suryavamsha) king. Battle with the asuras Once, in a battle, the devas were defeated by the asuras. Tormented by arrows, they sought help from ...

. He is well known for his benevolence and generosity. The hymn 134 of the '' tenth mandala'' of the

Rigveda The ''Rigveda'' or ''Rig Veda'' ( ', from ' "praise" and ' "knowledge") is an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (''sūktas''). It is one of the four sacred canonical Hindu texts (''śruti'') known as the Vedas. Only one Sh ...

is attributed to him.

Legend

Birth

Mandhatra's legend is cited in the Vana Parva, Drona Parva, and the Shanti Parva of the Mahabharata. King Yuvanashva of

Ayodhya Ayodhya (; ) is a city situated on the banks of holy river Saryu in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Ayodhya, also known as Sāketa, Saketa, is an ancient city of India, the birthplace of Rama and ...

once went on a hunting expedition, and in the afternoon, he became wracked with thirst. He came across the site of a

yajna Yajna ( sa, यज्ञ, yajña, translit-std=IAST, sacrifice, devotion, worship, offering) refers in Hinduism to any ritual done in front of a sacred fire, often with mantras.SG Nigal (1986), Axiological Approach to the Vedas, Northern Book ...

, and drank the sacred sacrificial butter that he observed, upon which he conceived. The

Ashvin Ashvin or Ashwin or Ashwan (; bn, আশ্বিন; hi, आश्विन; or, ଆଶ୍ୱିନ; Malay/ Indonesian: ''Aswin''; Thai: ''Asawin''), also known as Aswayuja, is the seventh month of the lunisolar Hindu calendar, the solar ...

twins extracted the child from the king's womb. Even as the deities wondered how they would sustain the child,

Indra Indra (; Sanskrit: इन्द्र) is the king of the devas (god-like deities) and Svarga (heaven) in Hindu mythology. He is associated with the sky, lightning, weather, thunder, storms, rains, river flows, and war. volumes/ref> I ...

produced some nectar from his fingers, which the child consumed. Drawing his strength from the hand of Indra, Mandhatra grew immensely powerful.

Conquests

By mere willpower, he conquered the entire earth in one day. He proceeded to vanquish the kings Marutta of Ushiraviga, Asita, the Druhyu king Angara, Nriga, Brihadratha of Anga, Suna, Jaya, Janamejaya, Sudhanvan, Gaya of Kanyakubja, Angara's son Gandhara, and several others in battle. Mandhatra conquered

Patala In Indian religions, Patala (Sanskrit: पाताल, IAST: pātāla, lit. ''that which is below the feet''), denotes the subterranean realms of the universe – which are located under the earthly dimension. Patala is often translated as un ...

Bhuloka In esoteric cosmology, a plane is conceived as a subtle state, level, or region of reality, each plane corresponding to some type, kind, or category of being. The concept may be found in religious and esoteric teachings—''e.g.'' Vedanta (Ad ...

, and half of

Svarga Svarga (), also known as Indraloka and Svargaloka, is the celestial abode of the devas in Hinduism. Svarga is one of the seven higher lokas ( esoteric planes) in Hindu cosmology. Svarga is often translated as heaven, though it is regarded to b ...

, and became the ruler of the three worlds. The Mahabharata states that Mandhatra, the King of Ayodhya, gave away colossal statues of Rohita fish, entirely made up of pure gold and spanning several kilometres to the Brahmanas as a charity. He also gave away 10,000 padmas (10

quintillion Two naming scales for large numbers have been used in English and other European languages since the early modern era: the long and short scales. Most English variants use the short scale today, but the long scale remains dominant in many non-E ...

) of cows of the best breed to the Brahmanas during his sacrifices. Mandhatra performed a hundred

ashvamedha The Ashvamedha ( sa, अश्वमेध, aśvamedha, translit-std=IAST) was a horse sacrifice ritual followed by the Śrauta tradition of Vedic religion. It was used by ancient Indian kings to prove their imperial sovereignty: a horse accomp ...

yajnas and a hundred

rajasuya Rajasuya () is a Śrauta ritual of the Vedic religion. It is ceremony that marks a consecration of a king. According to the Puranas, it refers to a great sacrifice performed by a Chakravarti - universal monarch, in which the tributary princes may ...

yajnas. Mandhatra was also known as Yauvanashvin (son of Yuvanashwa) and Trassadasyu (one who was feared by the wicked). He once fought

Ravana Ravana (; , , ) is a rakshasa king of the island of Lanka, and the chief antagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana'' and its adaptations. In the ''Ramayana'', Ravana is described to be the eldest son of sage Vishrava and rakshasi Kaikesi. He a ...

, the King of Lanka in a duel, but it ended in a stalemate. Mandhatra married the Chandravamsha princess, Bindumati, daughter of Shashabindu, King of the

Yadavas The Yadava (literally, descended from Yadu) were an ancient Indian people who believed to be descended from Yadu, a legendary king of Chandravamsha lineage. The community was formed of various clans, being the Abhira, Andhaka, Vrishni, and S ...

. The couple had three sons and fifty daughters. His sons Purukutsa,

, and

were equally illustrious. Mandhatra's daughters fell in love with the handsome ascetic Saubhari and married him. Mandhatra's eldest son, Susandhi, succeeded him.

Death

As Mandhatra grew old, his hubris grew, and he desired to entirely conquer

, the heavenly regions ruled by Indra. Indra was perturbed by this and told Mandhatra that he had not completely conquered the earth. Indra told Mandhatra that the

asura Asuras (Sanskrit: असुर) are a class of beings in Indian religions, Indic religions. They are described as power-seeking clans related to the more benevolent Deva (Hinduism), Devas (also known as Suras) in Hinduism. In its Buddhism, Buddhi ...

Lavana, the son of Madhu and Kumbhinesi, the sister of

, the king of

Lanka Lanka (, ) is the name given in Hindu epics to the island fortress capital of the legendary asura king Ravana in the epics of the ''Ramayana'' and the ''Mahabharata''. The fortress was situated on a plateau between three mountain peaks known ...

were not a subject to his rule. A Mandhatra invaded Madhupuri, the city of

Lavanasura Lavanasura () is an asura in Hinduism. He is slain by Shatrughna, the youngest brother of Rama, in the Hindu epic Ramayana. Legend During Rama's reign, while peace prevailed in most places, Lavanasura continued to torment the innocent and destroy ...

. Lavana possessed a divine trident given to his father King Madhu by

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

. As long as he had the trident, nobody could vanquish Lavana in battle. Lavana wielded the trident and burnt Mandhatra and his forces, reducing them to ashes in an instant. Lavana was later slain by

Shatrughna ''Shatrughna'' ( sa, text=शत्रुघ्न, translit=śatrughna, lit=killer of enemies) is a prince of Ayodhya, King of Madhupura and Vidisha, and a brother of Prince Rama in the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is also known as ''Ripudaman' ...

, a descendant of Mandhatra.

Notes

References

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{{HinduMythology Characters in Hindu mythology Solar dynasty