Chapter 1: A Journey through the Solar Dynasty

 From where to Start?

As you read the introduction, This blog is about the history of Ayodhya and the different dynasties involved in the construction of the Shri Rama Janmabhoomi Temple, Ayodhya.

Lord Rama belonged to the Solar or 'Suryavansam' dynasty. The founder of this dynasty was Lord Ikshkavu. 

Ikshkavu

Origin of Ikshkavu

In Hinduism, There are four major Vedas namely Rigveda, Samaveda, Yajurveda and Atharvaveda. In the Rigveda, There is a concept of 'Manu'. Manus are said to be the progenitor of Humanity. They are referred as the first king and the first lawgiver. Manu has a major significance in Hinduism. There are 14 types of Manu. 

The current Manu who survived the great flood, was the Vaivasvata Manu. He was the son of 'Surya' or the sun God. He survived the flood and saved humanity. It is same as the story of Noah's Ark in the Bible.

He was the progenitor of Solar Dynasty and established the Kosala kingdom for his son, Ikshkavu. He also built the capital, the beautiful city of Ayodhya.

Mention in scriptures

Lord Ikshkavu was the first king of Ayodhya. He has a mention in holy scriptures of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.

In the Ramayana, he is described as the ancestor of Lord Rama. In the great epic Mahabharata, His dynasty is mentioned as one of the most powerful and influential lineages in ancient India.

Several Puranas like Vishnu Purana and the Bhagwat Purana also have the mention of Ikshkavu.

Some Buddhist sources also mention King Ikshkavu as it is believed Gautam Buddha himself was born in Ikshkavu Lineage.

What's Next?

Many kings came to rule after king Ikshkavu. After Him, the Kingdom of Kosala was ruled by King Vikukshi. 

There is an Interesting story of king Vikukshi.

Once, Lord Ikshkavu organized a holy sacrifice. He asked his son, Vikukshi to Bring a Rabbit. While bringing the rabbit, Vikukshi ate a part of the Rabbit as he was very hungry. Their family priest, Vashishtha denied the rabbit to ofer in the sacrifice as it was already consumed by Vikukshi. After this, Lord Ikshkavu got angry on his son and banished him from the kingdom. Still after Ikshvaku's  death, he returned back to the Kingdom and ruled.

The Solar Dynasty

The solar Dynasty was a mighty dynasty  and was very powerful. Their kings did their jobs excellently and made this kingdom very peaceful and powerful.

After Vikukshi, there were many other kings,

Kakutstha, Anenas,Prithu and Trishanku

After them, A king came to rule the Kingdom. He was famous for his truthfullness. He sacrifised everything but he never lied in his entire life. He was the King Harishchandra I.

After him, the kings Satyavratha and Bhagiratha came to rule the Kingdom.

Bhagiratha was a great king. He, with his incredible devotion, made Ganga river came to Earth.

Now finally, the successor of King Bhagiratha was King Raghu. He was the founder of the Raghu Lineage or the Raghuvansham.

After Raghu it was finally king Ajj and his successor was king Dasaratha. Dasaratha was a great ruler who extended his kingdom of Kosala. His successor was lord Rama who finnaly defeated the Mighty Ravana, the King of Lanka. And with this, his successors Luv and Kush were considered the last rulers of this kingdom as they left Ayodhya and established another kingdoms. They built the Shri Rama Janmbhoomi Temple as a tribute to their Father.

 Luv moved on to The North-Western side of the Subcontinent  and established the Kingdom of Lahore. Kush ruled in Ayodhya for some time, But later moved on towards the north-western region and ruled in the kingdom which is possibly known as Kushavati which is present day Kasur in Pakistan.

After Kush, his son Atithi ruled in Ayodhya. After him many kings ruled:

Nishadha

Nala

Nabha

Pundarika

Kshemadhanva

Devanika

Ahinagu

Paripatra

Dala

Chhala

Uktha

Vajranabha

Shankhana

Vyusha

Vishvasaha

Hiranyanabha – A famous king known for his spiritual wisdom, also mentioned in some Vedic texts

Pushya

Dhruvasandhi

Sudarsana

Agnivarna

Shighra

Maru – He is believed to be alive in Kalki Yuga and will revive the Ikshvaku dynasty when Kalki Avatar appears.

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Source: Chat gpt, Rigveda