Yuvānāśva

Yuvānāśva was a king of the Ikṣvāku solar dynasty. He was the father of the great emperor Māndhātā. The Mahābhārata tells how Yuvānāśva, who wished for a son, drank the consecrated water meant for his wife. He became pregnant and gave birth to Māndhātā himself.

The ritual for a son

Yuvānāśva was a righteous king, but he had no son, and this grieved him deeply. He engaged ṛṣis (seers) to perform the puṃsavana, a special ritual to bless his wife with a son. The ṛṣis filled a vessel with water and consecrated it with powerful mantras. They left it in the ritual chamber overnight. The queen was to receive it in the morning. This is told in the Vana Parva, Chapter 126 of the Mahābhārata.

The king drinks the water

During the night Yuvānāśva woke in great thirst. He went into the ritual chamber in the dark. He could not see what he was drinking, and he drank from the vessel of consecrated water that was meant for his wife.

The power of the mantra worked within the king himself, and he became pregnant. When the time came, the child came out from his left side. Yuvānāśva survived.

Indra nurses the child

Indra came and nursed the child. He placed his own index finger in the boy’s mouth. He gave the child the name Māndhātā. Māndhātā grew to be the greatest world-conqueror of his age.

Sources

• Mahābhārata, Vana Parva, Chapter 126
• Mahābhārata, Śānti Parva, Āpaddharma Parva, Chapter 159