Dakṣa’s Daughters, Cosmic Lineages, and the Population of the Three Worlds
अरिष्टायास्तु गन्धर्वा: काष्ठाया द्विशफेतरा: । सुता दनोरेकषष्टिस्तेषां प्राधानिकाञ् शृणु ॥ २९ ॥ द्विमूर्धा शम्बरोऽरिष्टो हयग्रीवो विभावसु: । अयोमुख: शङ्कुशिरा: स्वर्भानु: कपिलोऽरुण: ॥ ३० ॥ पुलोमा वृषपर्वा च एकचक्रोऽनुतापन: । धूम्रकेशो विरूपाक्षो विप्रचित्तिश्च दुर्जय: ॥ ३१ ॥
ariṣṭāyās tu gandharvāḥ kāṣṭhāyā dviśaphetarāḥ sutā danor eka-ṣaṣṭis teṣāṁ prādhānikāñ śṛṇu
Du sein d’Ariṣṭā naquirent les gandharvas, et du sein de Kāṣṭhā naquirent les animaux aux sabots non fendus, tels que le cheval. Ô roi, du sein de Danu naquirent soixante et un fils; parmi eux, ces dix-huit sont les plus importants : Dvimūrdhā, Śambara, Ariṣṭa, Hayagrīva, Vibhāvasu, Ayomukha, Śaṅkuśirā, Svarbhānu, Kapila, Aruṇa, Pulomā, Vṛṣaparvā, Ekacakra, Anutāpana, Dhūmrakeśa, Virūpākṣa, Vipracitti et Durjaya.
In Canto 6, the Bhagavatam includes genealogical lists of Daitya/Dānava figures, naming prominent personalities to map the lineages that repeatedly appear in conflicts with the devas and devotees.
Śukadeva is narrating dynastic and cosmic history; these names situate later events and teachings within a coherent lineage, showing how various beings arise through karma and progeny across creation.
They train the reader to see life as part of a larger moral-cosmic order (karma and dharma), encouraging humility and steadiness while focusing one’s main aim on bhakti rather than temporary identity.