Pratardana () is a king of the

Chandravamsha The Lunar dynasty ( IAST: Candravaṃśa) is a legendary principal house of the Kshatriyas varna, or warrior–ruling caste mentioned in the ancient Indian texts. This legendary dynasty was said to be descended from moon-related deities (''S ...

(Lunar dynasty) featured in

Hindu literature Hindu texts are manuscripts and voluminous historical literature which are related to any of the diverse traditions within Hinduism. A few of these texts are shared across these traditions and they are broadly considered Hindu scriptures. These ...

. He is also called Dyuman, Shatrujit, Vatsa, Rithadhvaja, and Kuvalayashva. He is the son of King

Divodasa Divodāsa ("heaven's servant") is a king in the Rigveda (celebrated for his liberality and protected by Indra and the Ashvins in the Rigveda, RV 1.112.14; 1.116.18), the son of Vadhryashva RV 6.61.5. Further, the Mandala 9 of Rigveda mention ...

of Kashi and Madhavi, the daughter of King

Yayati Yayāti ( sa, ययाति, translit=Yayāti), is a king in Hindu tradition. He is described to be a Chandravamsha king. He is regarded to be the progenitor of the races of the Yadavas and the Pandavas. He is considered in some texts t ...

. He is the father of Ashtaka.

Legend

Ramayana

Pratardana is depicted as an ally of

Rama Rama (; ), Ram, Raman or Ramar, also known as Ramachandra (; , ), is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular '' avatars'' of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Bein ...

in the

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 ...

, and is described to have been praised by the

avatara Avatar (, ; ), is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means "descent". It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, goddess or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appearanc ...

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" withi ...

for assisting Bharata in the arrangements of his coronation ceremony. A tale based in the narrative of the Ramayana states that once, Pratardana made preparations to travel to

Ayodhya Ayodhya (; ) is a city situated on the banks of holy river Saryu in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Ayodhya, also known as Saketa, is an ancient city of India, the birthplace of Rama and setting of the great epic Ramayana. Ayodhya wa ...

to pay his respects to King

. He encountered Sage

Narada Narada ( sa, नारद, ), or Narada Muni, is a sage divinity, famous in Hindu traditions as a travelling musician and storyteller, who carries news and enlightening wisdom. He is one of mind-created children of Brahma, the creator god. He ...

during this journey. Narada made the king promise that he would not offer obeisance to Sage Vishvamitra at Rama's court. Pratardana acted accordingly when he arrived at the court. Vishvamitra grew furious at the lack of respect shown to him, and complained to Rama. Angered, Rama removed three arrows from his quiver and vowed to take the life of the king of Kashi before sunset. Terrified of the consequences, Pratardana sought the protection of Narada, who directed him to Anjana, the mother of

Hanuman Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine '' vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and on ...

. Anjana requested her son to help the king. Hanuman flew Pratardana to the banks of the river

Sarayu The Sarayu is a river that originates at a ridge south of Nanda Kot mountain in Bageshwar district in Uttarakhand, India. It flows through Kapkot, Bageshwar, and Seraghat towns before discharging into the Sharda River at Pancheshwar at the I ...

, and told him to wade waist-deep into the water and remain there, repeating Rama's name. Afterwards, he flew to Rama, and made a supplication: Any person who chanted the name of Rama would be protected by him, and no power in the universe, even

God In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...

himself, would be able to harm such a person. Rama readily granted this. Thus, even as Rama fired his three arrows at Pratardana from his palace, he was saved by Hanuman due to the fact that he chanted Rama's name. When the king continued to chant the name of Rama in the presence of Vishvamitra, the sage was impressed by his piety and relieved Rama of his vow.

Mahabharata

At the ashvamedha (horse-sacrifice consecration) ceremony of Ashtaka, Pratardana, along with his fellow kings Vasumanas and Sivi, asked the divine sage

which of them would have to depart from their reward of stay at Svarga (heaven of the

devas Devas may refer to: * Devas Club, a club in south London * Anthony Devas (1911–1958), British portrait painter * Charles Stanton Devas (1848–1906), political economist * Jocelyn Devas (died 1886), founder of the Devas Club * Devas (band), ...

) first after their demise. Narada told them that Ashtaka would have to depart first due to his pride, and when enquired once more, stated that Pratardana would be the second. When enquired, the sage stated that he had once lived at the abode of Pratardana for a time, and regaled an incident in which a

Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (gur ...

sought a horse from the king while the two were riding upon a chariot. The king wished to give the man a horse after he had returned from his journey, but the latter insisted that he offered him one right then and there. Pratardana granted the Brahmin the horse that had been yoked on the right-hand wheel of his vehicle. Soon, a few more Brahmins appeared to seek the rest of the king's horses. While the king granted the men his horses and began to pull the chariot forward manually, he made a disparaging comment against them after they had left. Narada stated that this was the reason why he would leave Svarga second.

References

External links

* The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa Translated into English Prose'', Bharata Press, Calcutta (1883–1896)''
The Dynasties of The sons of King Pururava
{{Authority control Characters in the Ramayana Lunar dynasty Characters in the Mahabharata