An Ikshvaku king who served the cow Nandini to obtain a son.
Accounts of this vary across texts and traditions. This entry primarily follows Puranic tradition, with other tellings (Valmiki Ramayana (Bala Kanda genealogy), Kalidasa's Raghuvamsha) noted where relevant.
Introduction
Dilipa is a king of Ayodhya and the father of Raghu, best known from Kalidasa's Raghuvamsha.
Family
The cow Nandini
In the Raghuvamsha, Dilipa and his wife Sudakshina had no children. Vasishtha told them to serve his cow Nandini. Dilipa followed the cow for twenty-one days, and even offered his own life when a lion attacked her. The cow blessed them, and Raghu was born.
This entry is independently written for myVamsam using the sources listed above.
Where traditions differ, this entry identifies the relevant tradition rather than presenting one account as universally established fact.