Dharmanetra

THE LIVING ARCHIVE

About Dharmanetra

The family belongs to Yadu’s descendants through Sahasrajit and Shatajit. Dharmanetra stands immediately after Haihaya, while the succession after him runs through Kunti, Sahanji and Mahishmat. These relationships identify him more securely than the meaning of his name alone could do.

AT A GLANCE

Identity & Context

Identity: King
Form: Haihaya Dynasty
Tradition: Puranic Royal Genealogy

Family & Relationships

ParentHaihaya
Haihaya is the parent of Dharmanetra in this account.
ChildKunti
Dharmanetra is the parent of Kunti in this account.

IN THE TRADITION

Recorded Context

Family and Wider Context

The chapter gives the ancestry before expanding into Kartavirya Arjuna’s story. That later king is Kritavirya’s son and receives a thousand arms, victory and royal protection through Dattatreya’s favor. He captures Ravana at Mahishmati and eventually falls to Parashurama. Dharmanetra supplies an earlier link in the family that leads to those events, rather than being their participant.

ROLE & ESSENCE

Attributes & Significance

Dharmanetra belongs near the beginning of a family that later becomes famous through Kartavirya. He is separated from that ruler by Kunti, Sahanji, Mahishmat, Bhadrasena, Durdama, Dhanaka and Kritavirya. The name Haihaya consequently describes a continuing house across many generations.

Role

Dharmanetra is the son of Haihaya and the father of Kunti in the early Haihaya succession. He connects the dynasty’s eponymous ancestor with the later line of kings leading toward Kartavirya Arjuna.

TRADITION & MEANING

Traditions & Interpretations

This genealogy follows the Vishnu Purana’s succession. Dharmanetra’s son Kunti is a male Haihaya king, distinct from Pritha, the mother of the Pandavas who is also called Kunti.