King Śrīdhara

Śrīdhara was a king who lived in the Tretā Yuga. He was rich and he kept the ekapatnīvrata (the vow of devotion to one wife). His wife was Hemaprabhāvatī. Even so, he had no children. Vyāsa told him the cause, gave him remedies, and within a year the king had a son.

A king without a son

Śrīdhara was wealthy and virtuous, and he was devoted to his one wife, Hemaprabhāvatī. Still he had no child. This caused him great sorrow, because he held that the life of a man without a son is fruitless.

Vyāsa comes to the court

Vyāsa came to the king’s court. The king seated him on a golden seat with respect. Together with Hemaprabhāvatī, he washed Vyāsa’s feet and drank the pādodaka (the water that had washed the feet). Then he asked Vyāsa why he had no son.

Vyāsa answered with his full knowledge. He said:

“In your former birth you were known as Varaṭanu, the moon. Your wife was Śaṅkarī. Once, on a path, you saw the son of a person of low jāti (birth-group) drowning in water. You passed on with contempt and did not save him. The child died. You had great puṇya (merit) in other ways, and it allowed you to be born as king and queen. But this one act of unconcern is the cause of your having no son.”

The remedies

Vyāsa told the king what to do:

1. Give a pumpkin gourd, with gold, cloth and a bull.
2. Keep the putra-prāpti vow (the vow to gain a son).
3. Give the image of a fair maiden.
4. Listen to a Purāṇa.

The king did all of these. Within one year he had a son, honoured by all. Śrīdhara then became a sovereign emperor.

Sources

• Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Brahma Khaṇḍa, Chapter 5