Text 2]
How Parīkṣit Received the Age of Kali
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TEXT 2
स उत्तरस्य तनयामुपयेम इरावतीम् । 
  जनमेजयार्दीश्वतुरस्तस्यामुत्पादयत् सुतान् ॥ २ ॥
sa uttarasya tanayām 
  upayena irāvatīm 
  janamejayādīmś caturas 
  tasyām utpādayat sutān
saḥ—he; uttarasya—of King Uttara; tanayām—daughter; upayeme—married; irāvatīm—Irāvatī; janamejaya-ādīn—headed by Mahārāja Janamejaya; caturaḥ—four in number; tasyām—her; utpādayat—married; sutān—sons.
TRANSLATION
King Parīkṣit married the daughter of King Uttara and begot four sons headed by Mahārāja Janamejaya.
PURPORT
Mahārāja Uttara was the son of Virāṭa and maternal uncle of Mahārāja Parīkṣit. Irāvatī, being the daughter of Mahārāja Uttara, was the cousin sister of Mahārāja Parīkṣit, but cousin brothers and sisters were allowed to get married if they did not belong to the same  gotra  or family. In the Vedic system of marriage, the importance of the  gotra  or family was stressed. Arjuna also married Subhadrā, although she was his maternal cousin sister.
Janamejaya.  One of the  rājarṣi  kings and the famous son of Mahārāja Parīkṣit. His mother's name is Irāvatī, or according to some, Madravatī. Mahārāja Janamejaya begot two sons of the names Jñatanika and Sankukarṇa. He celebrated several sacrifices in the Kurukṣetra pilgrimage, and he had three younger brothers named Śrutasena, Ugrasena and Bhīmasena II. He invaded Taxsila (Ajanta), and he decided to avenge the unlawful curse upon his great father Mahārāja Parīkṣit. He performed a great sacrifice called  Sarpa yajña  to kill the race of serpents, including the Takṣaka, which had bitten his father to death. On request from many influential demigods and sages, he had to change his decision to kill the race of snakes, but despite stopping the sacrifice, he satisfied everyone concerned in the