Savaraa

Savaraa struggles on behalf of the Bhratas, against their cousins. This reminds us of the Paurava stretch, where ten sons (cepu and brothers) prevailed over their cousins (in the loka vaa) and Matinra underwent a Sarasvat exile (in the prose). Savaraa and Matinra are also linked by their parents’ names: ‘ka’ (‘Bear’), labelling Matinra’s father in the prose vaa, recurs in the loka vaa to label Savaraa’s father (the ‘extra’ king after ajamha) and in the prose vaa to label one of Savaraa’s possible mothers (k).6 in the Paurava dispute the junior branch eventually prevailed, but in Savaraa’s case the apparently senior branch prevails.7 By mentioning a battle against ten armies (akauhis) in connection with Savaraa, Vaiapyana presents a victory of ten junior-line kings in both cases (although against Savaraa this victory is short-lived). Parallels with the dispute between dhtarra’s sons and Pu’s are also evident, although in that dispute the junior line prevails, with seven armies against eleven, and the battle is after the exile.