Dhruvasandhi

Dhruvasandhi, simply known as Dhruvasandhi, Sanskrit: ध्रुवसन्धि, Telugu: ధ్రువసంధి, Hindi: ध्रुवसंधि.

Dhruvasandhi was the king of Kośala, ruling from Ayodhyā. He belonged to the Ikshvāku line, the solar dynasty (Sūryavaṃśa). He died young when a lion killed him while he was hunting. His death began the long account of his son Sudarśana, who suffered many trials and then won back the throne.

Lineage and reign

Dhruvasandhi was a king of the great Ikshvāku line, the same solar dynasty in which Śrī Rāmacandra was later born. He ruled at Ayodhyā, also called Sāketa, as a righteous king loved by his people.

He had two queens.

• Manoramā, daughter of Vīrasena. She bore his first son, Sudarśana.
• Līlāvatī, daughter of Yudhājit, king of Ujjayinī. She bore him Śatrujit.

His death

One day Dhruvasandhi went hunting in the forest. A lion attacked and killed him. His sudden death left the throne of Kośala without a settled heir. The families of the mothers of his two sons began to struggle for power.

The aftermath

The two sons became rival claimants to the kingdom. The Parādevī herself in the end settled the conflict. His elder son Sudarśana won back the throne through the grace of the Parādevī and the power of the Kāmarāja Bīja. Under Sudarśana’s rule, ārādhanā (worship) of Devī spread through the kingdom of Kośala.

Sources

• Devī Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, Skanda 3, Chapter 14