इक्ष्वाकूणां हि सर्वेषां राजा भवति पूर्वजः।
पूर्वजे नावरः पुत्रो ज्येष्ठो राज्येऽभिषिच्यते॥
ikṣvākūṇāṁ hi sarveṣāṁ rājā bhavati pūrvajaḥ
pūrvaje nāvaraḥ putro jyeṣṭho rājye ’bhiṣicyate
ikṣvākūṇām hi = of Ikṣvāku; sarveṣām = among every descendant; rājā = the king; bhavati = becomes; pūrvajaḥ = the eldest son; pūrvaje = in the presence of the eldest son; na = is not [coronated]; avaraḥ = a younger; putraḥ = son; jyeṣṭhaḥ = the eldest [alone]; rājye = to rule the kingdom; abhiṣicyate = is coronated.
“Among every descendant of Ikṣvāku, the eldest son becomes the king. In the presence of the eldest son, a younger son is not [coronated]. The eldest [alone] is coronated to rule the kingdom.1
1 This is called śiṣṭācāra or “the behavior of the learned.” It is one thing to come up with ideas on carrying out the instructions of the scriptures and another thing to examine how the predecessor authorities had carried out those instructions in such a manner that they attained their cherished results. This principle is very much applicable in the process of bhakti-yoga. How the predecessor ācāryas understood, practiced and propagated the various aspects of bhakti-yoga on the basis of scriptural authority must be taken into consideration to attain success in bhakti-vicāra, bhakti-ācāra and bhakti-pracāra. Indeed, the fourth item of sādhana-bhakti is sādhu-vartmānuvartanam which refers to following the path successfully trodden by the predecessor saintly authorities. See Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu (1.2.74, 100-102).