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Vishvamitra
Vishvamitra (, ) is one of the most venerated rishis or sages of ancient India. Vishvamitra is one of the seven Brahmarshi. According to Hindu tradition, he is stated to have written most of the Mandala 3 of the Rigveda, including the Gayatri Mantra (3.62.10). The Puranas mention that only 24 rishis since antiquity have understood the whole meaning of —and thus wielded the whole power of — the Gayatri Mantra. Vishvamitra is supposed to have been the first, and Yajnavalkya the last. Before renouncing his kingdom and royal status, Brahmarishi Vishvamitra was a king, and thus he retained the title of Rajarshi, or 'royal sage'. Textual background Historically, Viśvāmitra Gāthina was a Rigvedic rishi who was the chief author of Mandala 3 of the Rigveda. Viśvāmitra was taught by Jamadagni Bhārgava. He was the purohita of the Bharata tribal king Sudās, until he was replaced by Vasiṣṭha. He aided the Bharatas in crossing the Vipāśa and Śutudrī rivers (mod ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vasiṣṭha
Vasishtha (, ) is one of the oldest and revered Vedic rishis or sages, and one of the Saptarishis (seven great Rishis). Vasishtha is credited as the chief author of Mandala 7 of the ''Rigveda''. Vasishtha and his family are mentioned in Rigvedic verse 10.167.4, other Rigvedic mandalas and in many Vedic texts. His ideas have been influential and he was called the first sage of the Vedanta school of Hindu philosophy by Adi Shankara. The ''Yoga Vasistha, Yoga Vasishtha'', ''Vasishtha Samhita'', as well as some versions of the ''Agni Purana'' and ''Vishnu Purana'' are attributed to him. He is the subject of many stories, such as him being in possession of the divine cow Kamadhenu and Nandini her child, who could grant anything to their owners. He is famous in Hindu stories for his legendary conflicts with sage Vishvamitra. In the Ramayana, he was the family priest of the Raghu dynasty and teacher of Rama and his brothers. Etymology Vasishtha is also spelled as ' and is Sanskrit fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shunahshepa
Shunahshepa () is a legendary sage mentioned in Hindu mythology. A number of passages in ''Rigveda'' are attributed to him. He was adopted by the sage Vishvamitra, and given the new name Devarata. His name is also transliterated as Cunahcepa, Cunahçepa, Sunahsephas, Sunahshepa, and Shunashepa. He was first mentioned in Mandala 1, Hymn 24 of the Rigveda as a devotee of the god Varuna. According to a legend, Shunahshepa was chosen to be sacrificed in a ritual, but was saved after praying to the Rigvedic deities. The earliest extant text to mention this legend is '' Aitareya Brahmana'' (7.13-18) of ''Rigveda''. The story is repeated in the '' Balakanda'' (1.61) of Valmiki's ''Ramayana'' with some variations. Several other texts borrow the story: these include ''Sankhyana Srauta Sutra'', ''Baudhayana Shrauta Sutra'', the Puranas, and the works of Chandrakirti among others. Legend Aitareya Brahmana King Harishchandra of the Ikshvaku dynasty had 100 wives, but no son. On ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shakuntala
Shakuntala () is a heroine in ancient Indian literature, best known for her portrayal in the ancient Sanskrit play '' Abhijnanashakuntalam'' (The Recognition of Shakuntala), written by the classical poet Kalidasa in the 4th or 5th century AD. Her story, however, originates in the Hindu epic, the ''Mahabharata'' (c. 400 BC - 400 AD), where she appears in the ''Adi Parva'' ("The Book of Beginnings"). In both narratives, Shakuntala is the daughter of the sage Vishwamitra and the celestial nymph Menaka. Abandoned at birth, she is raised by the sage Kanva in a forest hermitage. She later falls in love with King Dushyanta and becomes the mother of Bharata, a celebrated emperor of India. In the ''Mahabharata'', Shakuntala and Dushyanta secretly get married through the gandharva tradition (love marriage) and consummate their marriage in her forest hermitage. When she later approaches him with their son Bharata, he hesitates to acknowledge them. Shakuntala rebukes him forcefully ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saptarshi
The Saptarshi ( ) are the seven seers of ancient India who are extolled in the Vedas, and other Hindu literature such as the Skanda Purana. The Vedic Samhitas never enumerate these rishis by name, although later Vedic texts such as the Brahmanas and Upanisads do, so these constellations are easily recognizable. Hindu sacred text An early prototype of the "Saptarishi" concept may stem from the six families associated with the six "Family Books" in the Rigveda Samhita (Mandalas 2–7 in ascending order: Gṛtsamāda, Viśvāmitra, Vāmadeva, Atri, Bharadvaja, Vasiṣṭha). While not a "Family Book", Mandala 8 is mostly attributed to Kaṇva, who could be considered the 7th prototypical Saptarishi. The earliest formal list of the seven rishis is given by Jaiminiya Brahmana 2.218–221: Agastya, Atri, Bhardwaja, Gautama, Jamadagni, Vashistha, and Vishvamitra followed by Brihadaranyaka Upanisad 2.2.6 with a slightly different list: Atri, Bharadvaja, Gautama, J ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amavasu Dynasty
The Amavasu dynasty () refers to a cadet branch of the Lunar dynasty ( Chandravamsha) featured in Hindu literature. This dynasty is named after Amavasu, the youngest son of Pururavas, the first monarch of the Lunar dynasty, and the apsara Urvashi. Genealogy Amavasu was the youngest son of Pururavas and Urvashi. He was also called Vijaya.His son was Kanyakubja, regarded to be the founder of Kannauj. His descendants are also believed to have founded Gaya (Bihar). Some of the most notable descendants of Amavasu include Sage Vishvamitra and Vasu. # Amavasu # Kanyakubja # Vishvajit # Bhima # Nagnajit # Kanchanaprabha # Suhotra # Jahnu # Sunaha # Ajaka # Balakashva # Kusha # Kushanabha, Kushamba, Amurtarajas, and Uparichara Vasu. # Amurtarajasa (son of Amurtarajas) and Gadhi (the son of Kushanabha who succeeded his father in Kanyakubja). # Gaya (the son of Amrutaryasa, who is regarded founded Gaya which is now in Bihar) and Vishvaratha/ Kaushika ( Vishvamitra), th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sushruta
Suśruta (, ) is the listed author of the '' Suśruta Saṃhiāa'' (''Suśruta's Compendium''), considered to be one of the most important surviving ancient treatises on medicine. It is also considered a foundational text of Ayurveda. The treatise addresses all aspects of general medicine, including diet, surgery, nosology, anatomy, developmental biology, therapeutics, toxicology, pediatrics and other subjects. The inclusion of particularly impressive and historically important chapters on surgery has wrongly led some to believe that this is the work's primary focus. The treatise consists of 186 chapters. The ''Compendium of Suśruta'' locates its author in Varanasi, India. Authorship The printed editions of the work normally contain the phrase "as Lord Dhanvantari declared" (Sanskrit ''यथोवाच भगवान्धन्वन्तरिः'') at the start of each chapter, framing the work as Dhanvantari's discourse. However, the earliest manuscripts of the wo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rama
Rama (; , , ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the seventh and one of the most popular avatars of Vishnu. In Rama-centric Hindu traditions, he is considered the Supreme Being. Also considered as the ideal man (''maryāda'' ''puruṣottama''), Rama is the male protagonist of the Hindu epic '' Ramayana''. His birth is celebrated every year on Rama Navami, which falls on the ninth day of the bright half ( Shukla Paksha) of the lunar cycle of Chaitra (March–April), the first month in the Hindu calendar. According to the ''Ramayana'', Rama was born to Dasaratha and his first wife Kausalya in Ayodhya, the capital of the Kingdom of Kosala. His siblings included Lakshmana, Bharata, and Shatrughna. He married Sita. Born in a royal family, Rama's life is described in the Hindu texts as one challenged by unexpected changes, such as an exile into impoverished and difficult circumstances, and challenges of ethical questions and moral dilemmas. The most not ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jamadagni
Jamadagni () is a sage in Hindu literature. He is regarded in Hindu tradition to be one of the Saptarishi (Seven Vedic sages) in the 7th, and the current age of Manvantara.Avalon, Arthur ( Sir John Woodroffe) (1913, reprint 1972) (tr.) ''Tantra of the Great Liberation (Mahāanirvāna Tantra)'', New York: Dover Publications, , p. xli: The Rishi are seers who know, and by their knowledge are the makers of shastra and "see" all mantras. The word comes from the root rish ''Ri''sh''ati-prāpnoti sarvvang mantrang jnānena pashyati sangsārapārangvā'', etc. The seven great Rishi or saptarshi of the first manvantara are Marichi, Atri, Angiras, Pulaha, Kratu, Pulastya, and Vashishtha. In other manvantara there are other ''sapta-rshi''. In the present manvantara the seven are Kashyapa, ''Atri, Vashishtha, Vishvamitra, Gautama, Jamdagnini, Bharadvaja''. To the Rishi the Vedas were revealed. Vyasa taught the Rigveda so revealed to Paila, the Yajurveda to Vaishampayana, the Samaveda t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rigveda
The ''Rigveda'' or ''Rig Veda'' (, , from wikt:ऋच्, ऋच्, "praise" and wikt:वेद, वेद, "knowledge") is an ancient Indian Miscellany, collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (''sūktas''). It is one of the four sacred canonical Hindu texts (''śruti'') known as the Vedas. Only one Shakha of the many survive today, namely the Shakala Shakha, Śakalya Shakha. Much of the contents contained in the remaining Shakhas are now lost or are not available in the public forum. The ''Rigveda'' is the oldest known Vedic Sanskrit text. Its early layers are among the oldest extant texts in any Indo-European language. Most scholars believe that the sounds and texts of the ''Rigveda'' have been orally transmitted with precision since the 2nd millennium BCE, through Indian mathematics#Styles of memorisation, methods of memorisation of exceptional complexity, rigour and fidelity, though the dates are not confirmed and remain contentious till concrete evidence surfaces. Philolog ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rajarshi
Rajarshi () is a title in Hinduism and Hindu mythology, referring to a sage who hails from a royal background. Description A rajarshi may be described to be a king (raja) who adopted a path of devotion, thereby becoming a royal sage (rishi). A rajarshi does not have to leave the kingship to become rishi'','' as in the example of Vishvamitra (who later becomes a '' Brahmarishi''), but could attain the status of a sage through self-realisation during his reign. A rajarshi still performs the duties of their kshatriya class, and remain similar to most rishis, maharishis, and brahmarishis descendants in their level of spiritual knowledge. Another example of Rajarshi is King Janaka, who is said to have attained self-Knowledge from the ascetic sage Astavakra. They belong to the four types of rishis mentioned in Hinduism and Vedas. # Rajarshi # Maharishi # Brahmarshi # Devarishi Literature In the Ramayana, Brahma proclaims Vishvamitra to be a rajarshi in response to the sag ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Madhuchhanda
Madhuchchhanda (), also known as Madhushchandas Vaishvamitra, is a sage mentioned in Hindu literature. A number of hymns in ''Rigveda'' are composed by him. He is one of the sons of the sage Vishvamitra. Madhuchchhanda is regarded to have had a mastery over Vedic literature and was also a great singer. Literature Rigveda Madhuchhanda was the maker of the hymn to the god of fire, Agni, with which the Rigveda begins. He is attributed as the author of the first ten hymns in the Mandala 1 of Rigveda The ''Rigveda'' or ''Rig Veda'' (, , from wikt:ऋच्, ऋच्, "praise" and wikt:वेद, वेद, "knowledge") is an ancient Indian Miscellany, collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (''sūktas''). It is one of the four sacred canoni .... References {{reflist Sages in the Ramayana Rishis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gādhi
Gādhi (), also known as Gāthin, is a sage in Hinduism, best known for being the father of Vishvamitra. His father, Kaushika (known as Kushanabha in later mythology), was a Rigvedic rishi and the author of two hymns in Mandala 3 of the Rigveda. In later Hindu texts, he is described to be the king of Mahodayapuram, and also the father of Satyavati, the wife of Rcika. Literature Rigveda In the Rigveda Book 1 Hymn 10, it is said that Indra incarnated as the son of Kausika, who was Gadhi's father. Venerating Gadhi is said to bring, "Prolong our life anew, and cause the seer to win a thousand gifts". Mahabharata In the Shanti Parva of the Mahabharata, Kaushika began a penance for a son who would be equal to Indra and could not be killed by others. Pleased with his tapas, Indra is regarded to have been born as Kushika's son, Gadhi. He was a great monarch and had a son named Visvamitra. Shiva Purana In the Shiva Purana, when the Visvedevas arrive at Kailash, Shiva, reques ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
