In the beginning, after the cosmic dissolution (pralaya), only the unmanifested Brahman existed — infinite, formless, and beyond time. From that stillness, the Creator, Brahmā, was born on the lotus that emerged from the navel of Viṣṇu (who is considered the manifestation of Brahman, the source of everything).

Kardama Prajāpati was one of the mind-born sons (mānasaputra) of Brahmā, the Creator, born from his shadow (chāyā), intellect, or thought — depending on the Purāṇic version.

After King Sagara’s sixty thousand sons were reduced to ashes by the fiery gaze of Sage Kapila, the once-glorious Solar Dynasty was plunged into despair.

In the cosmology of the Purāṇas, Kapila (Sanskrit: कपिल, “the Tawny One”) is no ordinary sage — he is often considered the fifth incarnation of Lord Viṣṇu, born to restore tattva-jñāna, or the true knowledge of reality.

The Ikṣvāku dynasty, descending from the first Manu, Vaivasvata Manu, was known as the Sūryavaṃśa—the Solar Dynasty—because its kings traced their lineage to Vivasvān, the Sun-god.

Vaivasvata Manu, also called Śrāddhadeva, is the seventh Manu, son of Vivasvān (Sūrya, the Sun God) and his wife Saṃjñā, daughter of Tvaṣṭṛ (the celestial craftsman). His name, Vaivasvata, literally means “son of Vivasvān.”

The Ikshvaku dynasty, known in Sanskrit as Ikṣvāku-vaṃśa or Sūrya-vaṃśa (“Lineage of the Sun”), represents the oldest and most illustrious royal family in the sacred history of Bhārata (India).