Rajasuya (Sanskrit:राजसूय,romanized: Rājasūya,lit. 'king's sacrifice') is aśrauta ritual of theVedic religion. It is ceremony that marks a consecration of a king.[1] According to thePuranas, it refers to a great sacrifice performed by aChakravarti – universal monarch, in which the tributary princes may also take part, at the time of his coronation, as a mark of his undisputed sovereignty.[2]
The rajasuya is associated with the consecration of a king[1] and is prescribed as a ritual to establish a king's sovereignty.[3] It is described in the Taittiriya corpus, including ApastambaŚrauta Sutra 18.8–25.22.[1] It involvessoma pressing, a chariot drive, the king shooting arrows from his bow, and a symbolic "cattle raid":[1] The newly anointed king seizes cattle belonging to his relative, and then gives part of his property to that relative.[4] Also included is a game of throwing dice with theAdhvaryu priest in which the king wins a cow, by which the king is enthroned and the cosmos is regenerated.[1] There is a revealing of the tale ofShunahshepa, a boy who was nearly sacrificed toVaruna on behalf of the sonless kingHarishchandra, which hints at a rejected archaic practice ofhuman sacrifice.[1]
TheShatapatha Brahmana states that therajasuya was the means by which aKshatriya may become a king, and is not suitable for Brahmanas.[5]
Historically, the rajasuya was performed by theIndo-Aryan kings, which led to the expansion of their kingdoms during theIron Age.[6] The kings ofTamilakam performed the rajasuya, attended by monarchs ofLanka;[7]Kharavela, the king ofKalinga, is described to have performed the rajasuya, despite being aJain;[8] and theSatavahana kings performed the ceremony.[9] The sacrifice was performed by kings throughout the subcontinent; records of its performance inSouth India at least date until the time of theVijayanagara Empire.[10]