KUŚADHVAJA I A brahmin, son of Bṛhaspati. Penniless and poor, the brahmin once sought the help of King Sālva. The miserly king did not give him anything. Thereafter he began worshipping Bhagavatī with the object of making some money. While meditating upon Bhagavatī a girl emerged out of his mouth. She was named Devavatī. When she came of age an asura called Śambhu desired to marry her; but Kuśadhvaja did not agree to the proposal. Enraged at the refusal Śambhu killed Kuśadhvaja while the latter was asleep one night. But Devavatī cursed and reduced the asura into ashes. Then she took herself to penance to secure Mahāviṣṇu as her husband when Rāvaṇa happened to come there, and he tried to make her his wife. But, she repelled all his attempts at which he caught hold of her by the hair. She escaped by cutting her hair. She then immolated herself in burning fire. It was this Devavatī, who was, in her next life, born as Sītā, daughter of King Janaka
[Uttara Rāmāyaṇa] .
KUŚADHVAJA II Brother of King Janaka, father of Sītā. He lived on the banks of the river Ikṣumatī.
[Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa, Bālakāṇḍa, Canto 70] . See under JANAKA I.
KUŚADHVAJA III A King. The following story about him is quoted from the Skanda Purāṇa. Kuśadhvaja was a monkey in his former birth, and as he had then performed the auspicious action of swinging Śiva in a cradle throughout day and night, in the next birth he was born as King Kuśadhvaja. One day the King abducted the daughter of the Sage Agniveśa when she was bathing. The Sage cursed the King into the form of a vulture. He was promised redemption from the curse that he would regain his human form on the day on which he helped Indradyumna.