Ṛṣabhadeva’s Enthronement, Exemplary Household Life, and the Birth of Bharata and the Nine Yogendras
तमनु कुशावर्त इलावर्तो ब्रह्मावर्तो मलय: केतुर्भद्रसेन इन्द्रस्पृग्विदर्भ: कीकट इति नव नवति प्रधाना: ॥ १० ॥
tam anu kuśāvarta ilāvarto brahmāvarto malayaḥ ketur bhadrasena indraspṛg vidarbhaḥ kīkaṭa iti nava navati pradhānāḥ.
After Bharata, ninety-nine more sons were born. Among them, nine elder sons—Kuśāvarta, Ilāvarta, Brahmāvarta, Malaya, Ketu, Bhadrasena, Indraspṛk, Vidarbha, and Kīkaṭa—were foremost.
The verse lists Kuśāvarta, Ilāvarta, Brahmāvarta, Malaya, Ketu, Bhadrasena, Indraspṛk, Vidarbha, and Kīkaṭa as sons, within a total of ninety-nine prominent sons.
He is describing Ṛṣabhadeva’s dynasty and the expansion of his lineage, which sets the historical and dharmic context for later narrations in the Fifth Canto.
They remind readers that Bhagavatam is a sacred history: spiritual teachings unfold within real lineages, showing how dharma and devotion are carried forward through generations.