Kusha
Son of Rama and Sita
Lava's twin brother, named after sacred kusha grass. He later ruled from Kushavati and carried the solar dynasty forward after Rama.
- Sanskrit/Telugu name: కుశుడు
- Also known as: Kusha Kumara
- Weapons: Bow and arrows
- Symbols: Kusha grass, Veena
Story
Kusha was the twin brother of Lava, born to Sita in Valmiki's peaceful forest ashram. In one sweet telling, his very birth is magical: Sita once took baby Lava with her, and Valmiki, thinking the child had gone missing, lovingly created a second identical baby from a blade of sacred kusha grass - and Sita, delighted, raised them both as twins! Like his brother, Kusha grew up a master of the bow and of music, and together the twins sang Valmiki's Ramayana in Rama's own court, melting the heart of the father they had never met. After Rama's time on earth ended, the kingdom was divided between the brothers - Kusha ruled the southern part from a city called Kushavati, and in many tellings he later ruled Ayodhya itself, continuing the great Ikshvaku line. Ancient royal families traced themselves back to him. When you see kusha grass - darbha - in a priest's hand at a Telugu puja, you're seeing the sacred grass this prince was named for.
Fun fact
The darbha grass that priests hold at every puja is kusha grass - the same sacred grass from which, in one telling, Valmiki magically made this prince.
Family and connections
- Sibling: Lava (twin)