Parikshita
Encyclopedia : P : PA : PAR : Parikshita
Parikshita is in the Mahabharata epic the successor of Yudhisthira to the throne of Hastinapura.
Alternate spellings of his name are Pariksita, Pariksit and Parikshit. His name is a common Hindu name across India today.
He was also referred to as the King of the Kurus.
Birth
Parikshita is the son of Uttara, the Matsya princess and Abhimanyu, the Vrishni son of Arjuna. He is born only after the end of the war.
Uttara is carrying their son in her womb when Abhimanyu is mercilessly and unfairly slain by the Kauravas. Later, Ashwathama attempts to kill the unborn child and his mother by directing the brahmastra towards her tent off the battlefields. She is saved by Lord Krishna, who was also the maternal uncle of his father Abhimanyu (Arjuna's wife Subhadra was the sister of Lord Krishna and mother of Abhimanyu).
Prophecy of Life
The chief priest Dhaumya predicts to king Yudhisthira after Parikshita's birth that he will be a great devotee of the Supreme Lord Vishnu, and since he was saved by the Lord Krishna, he will be known as Vishnurata (One who is always protected by the Lord).
Dhaumya Rishi predicts that Parikshita would be ever-devoted to virtue, religious principles and the truth and would be a wise monarch, exactly as Ikshvaku and Rama of Ayodhya. He would be as exemplary a warrior as Arjuna, his own grandfather, and would expand the fame of his family.
He is given the name Parikshita as he would search and test for the Supreme Lord, whom he had witnessed as an unborn child, across the world and within every human being.
King of Hastinapura
Upon the commencement of the Kali yuga, the dark age of sin, and the departure of Krishna Avatara from the world, the five Pandava brothers retire. Young Parikshita is duly invested as king, with Kripa as his counselor. He performed three aswamedha yajnas under the guidance of Kripa.
Last Years
Parikshita was cursed by a sage's on to die after snake bite. On hearing this, the king forswore the throne for his son Janamejaya and spent his last days listening to the discourses of Sage Sukadeva on Bhagwat. As prophecised, Snake king Takshaka bit Parikshita leading to his death.See also
| The Mahabharata by Vyasa | |
|---|---|
| Characters | |
| Kuru Dynasty | Others |
| Santanu | Ganga | Bhishma | Satyavati | Chitrāngada | Vichitravirya | Ambika | Ambalika | Vidura | Dhritarashtra | Gandhari | Shakuni | Subhadra | Pandu | Kunti | Madri | Yudhisthira | Bhima | Arjuna | Nakula | Sahadeva | Duryodhana | Dushasana | Yuyutsu | Dushala | Draupadi | Hidimbi | Ghatotkacha | Ahilawati | Uttara | Ulupi | Chitrāngadā | Amba > Barbarika | Babruvahana |Iravan | Abhimanyu | Parikshita | Virata | Kripa | Drona | Ashwatthama | Ekalavya | Kritavarma | Jarasandha | Satyaki | Mayasura | Durvasa | Sanjaya | Janamejaya | Vyasa | Karna | Jayadratha | Krishna | Balarama | Drupada | Hidimba | Dhristadyumna | Shalya | Adhiratha | Shikhandi |
| Other | |
| Pandava | Kaurava | Hastinapura | Indraprastha | Kurukshetra war | Bhagavad Gita | |
- redirect
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.