vayaḿ tu puruṣa-vyāghra
aikṣvākāḥ kṣatra-bandhavaḥ
mucukunda iti prokto
yauvanāśvātmajaḥ prabho
vayam -- we; tu -- on the other hand; purusha -- among men; vyaghra -- O tiger; aikshvakah -- descendants of Ikshvaku; kshatra -- of kshatriyas; bandhavah -- family members; mucukundah -- Mucukunda; iti -- thus; proktah -- called; yauvanasva -- of Yauvanasva (Mandhata, the son of Yuvanasva); atma-jah -- the son; prabho -- O Lord.
As for ourselves, O tiger among men, we belong to a family of fallen kshatriyas, descendants of King Ikshvaku. My name is Mucukunda, my Lord, and I am the son of Yauvanasva.
It is common in Vedic culture that a kshatriya will humbly introduce himself as kshatra-bandhu, a mere relative in a kshatriya family, or in other words a fallen kshatriya. In ancient Vedic culture, to claim a particular status on the basis of one's family relations was itself indicative of a fallen position. Kshatriyas and brahmanas should be given status according to their merit, by their qualities of work and character. When the caste system in India became degraded, people proudly claimed to be relatives of kshatriyas or brahmanas, though in the past such a claim, unaccompanied by tangible qualifications, indicated a fallen position.
