Shloka 1
Adhyaya 74 — King Svarashtra, the Deer-Queen’s Curse, and the Rise of Tamasa Manu
इति श्रीमार्कण्डेयपुराणे औत्तममन्वन्तरे त्रिसप्ततितमोऽध्यायः चतुःसप्ततितमोऽध्यायः—७४ ।
मार्कण्डेय उवाच ।
राजाभूद्विख्यातः स्वराष्ट्रो नाम वीर्यवान् ।
अनेकयज्ञकृत् प्राज्ञः संग्रामेष्वपराजितः ॥
iti śrīmārkaṇḍeyapurāṇe auttamamanvantare trisaptatitamo 'dhyāyaḥ catuḥ saptatitamo 'dhyāyaḥ- 74 / mārkaṇḍeya uvāca rājābhūd vikhyātaḥ svarāṣṭro nāma vīryavān / anekayajñakṛt prājñaḥ saṃgrāmeṣv aparājitaḥ
Ainsi, dans le Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa, au sein de l’Auttama Manvantara, s’achève le soixante-treizième chapitre; le soixante-quatorzième commence. Mārkaṇḍeya dit : Il y eut un roi renommé nommé Svarāṣṭra, puissant par sa vaillance—ayant accompli de nombreux sacrifices, sage et invaincu dans les combats.
FAQs
The Purāṇa introduces the king through markers of rājarṣi-ideal: valor restrained by wisdom, and public religion through yajña. Fame is grounded not in conquest alone but in dharmic governance and sacrificial responsibility.
Vaṃśānucarita (accounts of kings and exemplary rulers) situated within Manvantara (since the chapter is explicitly placed in the Auttama Manvantara).
The king’s ‘many sacrifices’ can be read as harmonizing the microcosm (kingdom) with the macrocosm (cosmic order). Being ‘unconquered’ symbolizes inner sovereignty—steadfastness in dharma amid conflict.