Shloka 3

Ikṣvāku Dynasty Terminus at Sumitra and the Kali-yuga Horizon

Devanagari script

इक्ष्वाकूणाम् अयं वंशः सुमित्रान्तो भविष्यति यतस् तं प्राप्य राजानं स संस्थां प्राप्स्यते कलौ

Transliteration

ikṣvākūṇām ayaṃ vaṃśaḥ sumitrānto bhaviṣyati yatas taṃ prāpya rājānaṃ sa saṃsthāṃ prāpsyate kalau

Translation

This royal lineage of the Ikṣvākus will come to its terminus in Sumitra; for when that king is reached, the dynasty will meet its cessation in the age of Kali.

Word by Word

• इक्ष्वाकूणाम्: of the Ikṣvākus
• इक्ष्वाकूणाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इक्ष्वाकु (प्रातिपदिक; वंश-नाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचन

• अयम्: this
• अयम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• वंशः: dynasty
• वंशः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वंश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• सुमित्रान्तः: ending with Sumitrā
• सुमित्रान्तः: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सुमित्रा (प्रातिपदिक) + अन्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (सुमित्रायाः अन्तः/सुमित्रा-पर्यन्तः)

• भविष्यति: will be
• भविष्यति: Kriya (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √भू (धातु)
• Form: लृट्-लकार (Future/भविष्यत्), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd/प्रथम), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• यतः: from whom/thereafter
• यतः: Hetu/Relation (Cause/Link—हेतु/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (सम्बन्ध/हेतु-वाचक), अर्थः—‘यतः’ = from whom/wherefrom/thereafter (contextual)

• तम्: him
• तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• प्राप्य: having reached
• प्राप्य: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √आप् (धातु) + प्र (उपसर्ग)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund), पूर्वकालिक

• राजानम्: the king
• राजानम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• संस्थाम्: cessation/end
• संस्थाम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संस्था (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• प्राप्स्यते: will attain
• प्राप्स्यते: Kriya (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √आप् (धातु) + प्र (उपसर्ग)
• Form: लृट्-लकार (Future), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

• कलौ: in Kali age
• कलौ: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कलि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; कालाधिकरण

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Terminal point of the Ikṣvāku (Solar) dynasty in Kali-yuga

Teaching: Genealogical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Even the venerable Solar dynasty, famed in dharma narratives, is time-bound and reaches an end in Kali-yuga.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Treat heritage and status as instruments for dharma, not as permanent identity; invest in lasting virtues and devotion.

Vishishtadvaita: Temporal orders (dynasties) endure only by Bhagavān’s support; their finitude highlights dependence (śeṣatva) on the Supreme.

Dynasty & Genealogy

Vamsha: Surya

Key Kings: Ikṣvāku, Sumitra

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Characters & Entities

• Ikṣvāku dynasty (Sūrya-vaṃśa)
• King Sumitra

FAQs

What is the significance of ending a royal genealogy with Kali-yuga in the Vishnu Purana?

The verse uses the approach of Kali-yuga to mark a historical and moral turning point where established dynastic continuity and dharmic kingship are said to diminish, so genealogies reach a narrated closure.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the flow of dynasties in relation to time-cycles?

Parāśara frames royal succession as moving within yuga-time: dynasties rise and conclude according to cosmic chronology, and Kali-yuga is presented as a phase in which many lineages lose stability and come to an end.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context of dynastic decline?

Even as dynasties end in Kali, the Purāṇic worldview implies Vishnu’s sovereignty over time (kāla) and order (ṛta): political change occurs within a divinely governed cosmic cycle, not outside it.