Lunar Dynasty
Encyclopedia
Hindu mythology
Hindu religious literature is the large body of traditional narratives related to Hinduism, notably as contained in Sanskrit literature, such as the Sanskrit epics and the Puranas. As such, it is a subset of Nepali and Indian culture...
, the Lunar Dynasty (चंद्रवंशी, सोमवंशी, Somvansh, Chandravansh) is one of the three principal houses of the Kshatriya
Kshatriya
*For the Bollywood film of the same name see Kshatriya Kshatriya or Kashtriya, meaning warrior, is one of the four varnas in Hinduism...
varna, or warrior–ruling caste. This legendary dynasty was descended from the moon (soma or chandra), while the other principal houses, the Solar Dynasty (Suryavanshi) claims descent from the sun (surya) and the Agnivanshi claim to have been born to the fire-god Agni
Agni
Agni is a Hindu deity, one of the most important of the Vedic gods. He is the god of fire and the acceptor of sacrifices. The sacrifices made to Agni go to the deities because Agni is a messenger from and to the other gods...
, with the term vansh referring to descent. Within these family trees sub-branches such as Bharatvansh
Bharatas
Bhāratas are an Aryan tribe mentioned in the Rigveda, especially in Mandala 3 attributed to the Bharata sage Vishvamitra. In the "river hymn" RV 3.33, the entire Bharata tribe is described as crossing a river. Bharatá is also used as a name of Agni Bhāratas are an Aryan tribe mentioned in the...
, Yaduvansh, Puruvansh, Kuruvansh, Pandavansh and others emerged, each named after a prominent progenitor of the line. Throughout history, various South Asian communities have claimed descent from Chandra through these lineages.
The legendary capital of the Lunar Dynasty was Pratisthana, said to be founded by Ila
Ila
ILA or Ila may refer to:* MV Ila, ship in service 1947-52Places:* Ila, Georgia, community in United States* Ila, Trondheim, borough in Norway* Ila, Nigeria, townPersonal names:...
, or by the first Lunar prince, Pururaves, son of Budha
Budha
In Hindu mythology, Budha is the name for the planet Mercury, a son of Chandra with Tara or Rohini. He is also the god of merchandise and protector of Merchants....
, who was the son of Chandra
Chandra
In Hinduism, Chandra is a lunar deity and a Graha. Chandra is also identified with the Vedic Lunar deity Soma . The Soma name refers particularly to the juice of sap in the plants and thus makes the Moon the lord of plants and vegetation. He is described as young, beautiful, fair; two-armed and...
.
Legendary origin
According to the Bhavishya PuranaBhavishya Purana
The Bhavishya Purana is one of the eighteen major Hindu Puranas. It is written in Sanskrit and attributed to Rishi Vyasa, the compiler of the Vedas. The title Bhavishya Purana signifies a work that contains prophecies regarding the future...
legend, of contested date, the origin of the Lunar Dynasty began with Brahma in the Treta Yuga
Treta Yuga
Treta Yuga is the second out of four yugas, or ages of mankind, in the religion of Hinduism, and follows the Satya Yuga of perfect morality and precedes the Dvapara Yuga. The most famous events in this yuga were Lord Vishnu's fifth, sixth and seventh incarnations as Vamana, Parashurama and...
(second era). Brahma
Brahma
Brahma is the Hindu god of creation and one of the Trimurti, the others being Vishnu and Shiva. According to the Brahma Purana, he is the father of Mānu, and from Mānu all human beings are descended. In the Ramayana and the...
produced Manasputra ("mind born son") Atri
Atri
This article is about the sage named Attri. See also the gotra named Atri. For the Italian city, see Atri, AbruzzoIn Hinduism, Attri or Atri is a legendary bard and scholar and was one of 9 Prajapatis, and a son of Brahma, said to be ancestor of some Brahmin, Prajapatis, kshatriya and Vaishya...
, who produced Chandra (the moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
god) from his eyes. In the third part of Treta Yuga
Treta Yuga
Treta Yuga is the second out of four yugas, or ages of mankind, in the religion of Hinduism, and follows the Satya Yuga of perfect morality and precedes the Dvapara Yuga. The most famous events in this yuga were Lord Vishnu's fifth, sixth and seventh incarnations as Vamana, Parashurama and...
, Indra
Indra
' or is the King of the demi-gods or Devas and Lord of Heaven or Svargaloka in Hindu mythology. He is also the God of War, Storms, and Rainfall.Indra is one of the chief deities in the Rigveda...
sent Chandra, Rohini's husband, to Prithvi (Earth). His capital was Prayag and was a devout worshiper of Vishnu
Vishnu
Vishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
and Shiva
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
. He performed one-hundred Yagyas
Yajna
In Hinduism, yajna is a ritual of sacrifice derived from the practice of Vedic times. It is performed to please the gods or to attain certain wishes...
(oblations) to please the god Mahamaya. He ruled for 18,000 years and then ascended to heaven leaving behind his son Budha.
Yaduvanshi lineage
Of the many branches of the Chandravansh line that has been briefly enumerated, the Yaduvanshi lineage is a major branch. This branch is an offshoot of the Bharatvansh which started with the eldest son of Yayati, Yadu. All his descendants are known as Yadav
Yadav
Yādav refers to an umbrella group of traditionally non-elite pastoral communities, or castes, in India and Nepal which since the nineteenth and twentieth centuries has claimed descent from the mythological King Yadu as a part of a movement of social and political resurgence.The term 'Yadav' now...
as of Yaduvansh, meaning descendants of Yadu. Another son of Yayati, Puru
Puru
The Purus were a tribe, or a confederation of tribes, mentioned many times in the Rigveda, formed around 3180 BCE. RV 7.96.2 locates them at the banks of the Sarasvati River. There were several factions of Purus, one being the Bharatas...
started the Puruvansh who were the progenitors of the Kuru and Pandava
Pandava
In the Hindu epic Mahābhārata, the Pandava are the five acknowledged sons of Pandu , by his two wives Kunti and Madri. Their names are Yudhisthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva. Although, Karna is told by Lord Krishna that according to the laws and ethics he is the first son of Kunti making...
line of Chandravanshi line of Kshatriyas. Based on the writings of Puranas
Puranas
The Puranas are a genre of important Hindu, Jain and Buddhist religious texts, notably consisting of narratives of the history of the universe from creation to destruction, genealogies of kings, heroes, sages, and demigods, and descriptions of Hindu cosmology, philosophy, and geography.Puranas...
, the Itihaasa Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
and the Raghuvamsa
Raghuvamsa
Raghuwamsa or Raghu race is a legendary lineage of warrior kings tracing its ancestry to the Hindu solar deity Surya. Kalidasa's famous work, Raghuvaṃśa depicts the legend of this race. The progenitor of the lineage was Raghu, son of the emperor Dileepa. Raghu was father of Aja, and thus...
, Lord Krishna was born into the Yadava branch and is considered an ancestor by Yadav
Yadav
Yādav refers to an umbrella group of traditionally non-elite pastoral communities, or castes, in India and Nepal which since the nineteenth and twentieth centuries has claimed descent from the mythological King Yadu as a part of a movement of social and political resurgence.The term 'Yadav' now...
Kshatriya
Kshatriya
*For the Bollywood film of the same name see Kshatriya Kshatriya or Kashtriya, meaning warrior, is one of the four varnas in Hinduism...
s. During the Mahabharat, Chandravansh was only associated with Yadavas and Shoorsainis. The Bhati, Chandela
Chandela
The Chandela is a Rajput clan found in North India. A section of the Chandelas ruled much of the Bundelkhand region of central India for long periods between the 10th and the 13th centuries AD. The Chandela dynasty is famous in Indian history for King Vidyadhar, who repulsed the attacks of Mahmud...
who built Khajuraho
Khajuraho
The Khajuraho Group of Monuments in Khajuraho , a town in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, located in Chhatarpur District, about southeast of New Delhi, are one of the most popular tourist destinations in India. Khajuraho has the largest group of medieval Hindu and Jain temples, famous for...
) and Jadaun/Jadeja clans claim that they are Chandravansis. Several Indian castes such as the Saini
Saini
Saini is a Rajput descent caste of India. Sainis, also known as Shoorsaini in Puranic literature, are now found by their original name only in Punjab and in the neighboring states of Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh...
s of Punjab and contiguous regions, The Yaduvanshis (aka Shoorsainis), and the Seuna Yadavas of Devagiri claim descent from the Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
God Krishna
Krishna
Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
.
Groups claiming Lunar origin
- Ahir
- BanapharBanapharBanaphar is the name of a clan that claims to belong to the Yaduvanshi lineage of Rajput.According to Alf Hiltebeitel Like Krishna, Udal is susceptible to "mean caste" slurs and slights because of his combined Rajput and Ahir background.-History and origin:Their traditional seat of power was...
- BhatiBhatiBhati is one of the largest tribes of the Gujjars& Rajput. They claim descent from Krishna as an avatar of Vishnu, and thus identify themselves as a Chandravanshi Kshatriya clan. The Bhati trace their history to the desert principality of Jaisalmer in Rajasthan, in the border villages of Bikaner...
- BundelaBundelaThe Bundelas are a Rajput clan of Chattari lineage who ruled several states in central India, in Bundelkhand region from the 16th century.The Bundelas are the most prominent Rajputs hailing from Central India...
- ChandelChandelChandela may refer to* Chandela, a Rajput clan in India* Chandel district, a district in Manipur, India* Suresh Chandel, Indian politician...
- DhangarDhangarThe Dhangar caste is primarily located in the Indian state of Maharashtra...
- Haihaya
- JadaunJadaunThe Jadaun are a clan of Chandravanshi Rajputs found in North India and Pakistan.-Origins:...
- JadejaJadejaJadeja belong to the Yaduvanshi rajputs or Chandravanshi rajputs. They are one of the 36 royal dynasties of old tracing their origins to Lord Krishna...
- JadhavJadhavJadhav is the name of a Maratha clan located largely in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, and other regions of north-western India.- Origin :...
- Janjua
- Pal-PaliPal-PaliPal or Pala is the name of a Kshatriya Clan. As the name suggests its power, Pal means Protector.Pala Dynasty is also supposed to originate from this ethic group...
- SainiSainiSaini is a Rajput descent caste of India. Sainis, also known as Shoorsaini in Puranic literature, are now found by their original name only in Punjab and in the neighboring states of Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh...
- SavjiSavji“Savji” or “Somavanshi Sahastrarjun Kshatriyas” are people who belong to the Kshatriya community within the Hindu caste system in India. They claim their linage to legendary puranic king Sri Sahasrārjuna also called Kartavirya Arjuna or Sahastrabahu of the Haihaya vansha...
- SulehriaSulehriaThe Suleria are a clan of Chandravanshi Rajputs. The Sikh and Hindu Sulehria live in India. The Muslim Sulehria are considered a clan of Muslim Rajputs and nearly all live in Pakistan...
- Tomara
- YadavYadavYādav refers to an umbrella group of traditionally non-elite pastoral communities, or castes, in India and Nepal which since the nineteenth and twentieth centuries has claimed descent from the mythological King Yadu as a part of a movement of social and political resurgence.The term 'Yadav' now...