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Parikshit (परीक्षित्, ) was a Kuru king who reigned during the Middle Vedic period (12th-10th centuries BCE). Along with his son and successor, Janamejaya, he played a decisive role in the consolidation of the Kuru state, the arrangement of Vedic hymns into collections, and the development of the orthodox srauta ritual, transforming the Kuru realm into the dominant political and cultural center of northern Iron Age India. He also appears as a figure in later legends and traditions. According to the legendary accounts in Mahabharata and the Puranas, he succeeded his grand uncle Yudhishthira to the throne of Hastinapura. "Listen to the good praise of the King belonging to all people, who, (like) a god, is above men, (listen to the praise) of Parikṣit! - ‘Parikṣit has just now made us peaceful dwelling; darkness has just now run to its dwelling.’ The Kuru householder, preparing (grains) for milling, speaks (thus) with his wife. — ‘What shall I bring you, sour milk, the mantha [a barley/milk drink?' the wife keeps asking in the Realm of King Pariksit. — By itself, the ripe barley bends heavily (iva) over the deep track of the path. The dynasty thrives auspiciously in the Realm of King Parikṣit.” Parikshit is eulogised in a hymn of the Atharvaveda (XX.127.7-10) as a great Kuru king (Kauravya), whose realm flowed with milk and honey and people lived happily in his kingdom. He is mentioned as the raja vishvajanina (universal king). According to the Mahabharata, Parikshit married princess Madravati of the Madra Kingdom, reigned for 60 years, and died. It is believed that his son, Janamejaya, succeeded the throne. Only one Parikshit is mentioned in Vedic literature; however, post-Vedic literature (Mahabharata and Puranas) seems to indicate the existence of two kings by this name –– one who lived before the Kurukshetra War, an ancestor to the Pandavas, and one who lived later as a descendant of the Pandavas. Historian H. C.

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