Gritsamada (, ), was a Rigvedic sage. Most of Mandala II of the

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 ...

is attributed to him. He was the son of Śunahotra Āṅgirasa and the adopted son of Śunaka Bhārgava. According to Witzel, Somāhuti Bhārgava is a descendant of Gritsamada, because Somāhuti states that he is one among the Gritsamadas. However according to Jamison and Brereton he belongs to the Bhṛgu lineage of Gṛtsamada's adopted father Śunaka. The signature line of the Gritsamadas in the Rigveda was "May we speak loftily at the ritual distribution, in possession of good heroes." Gritsamada was known for connecting the deeds of

Indra Indra (; ) is the Hindu god of weather, considered the king of the Deva (Hinduism), Devas and Svarga in Hinduism. He is associated with the sky, lightning, weather, thunder, storms, rains, river flows, and war. volumes Indra is the m ...

to the actions of the ritual.

Legend

In the ''

Bṛhaddevatā The Bṛhaddevatā (), is a metrical Sanskrit language, Sanskrit work, traditionally ascribed to Shaunaka. It is an enlarged catalogue of the Rigvedic deities worshipped in the individual ''suktas'' (hymns) of the Rigveda. It also contains the myth ...

'', Gritsamada is stated to have become as large and strong as Indra through penances, which led to the daityas Dhuni and Cumiri to mistake him for such. When Gritsamada realized their hostile intentions, he praised Indra with hymns so that Indra could defeat them. According to the late medieval commentator Sayana, Gritsamada was captured by

asura Asuras () are a class of beings in Indian religions, and later Persian and Turkic mythology. They are described as power-seeking beings related to the more benevolent Devas (also known as Suras) in Hinduism. In its Buddhist context, the wor ...

s and was released on Indra's command and by his was made the son of Śunaka Bhārgava. In the ''Mahābhārata'', not

Vasishtha 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 Rigve ...

but Varishtha, curses Gritsamada to be a wild animal as a result of Gritsamada faltering in the recitation of formulae in a

sacrifice Sacrifice is an act or offering made to a deity. A sacrifice can serve as propitiation, or a sacrifice can be an offering of praise and thanksgiving. Evidence of ritual animal sacrifice has been seen at least since ancient Hebrews and Gree ...

. He cursed that he would be an animal divested of intelligence, subject to grief, ever filled with fear and that he would be an animal for ten thousand years with ten and eight hundred years in addition. However,

Śiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hinduism. Shiva is known as ''The Destroyer ...

restores him to his normal form and grants him immortality. Gritsamada later shared this story to

Yudhishthira Yudhishthira (Sanskrit: युधिष्ठिर, ud̪ʱiʂʈʰiɾᵊ IAST: ''Yudhiṣṭhira''), also known as Dharmaputra, is the eldest among the five Pandavas, and is also one of the central characters of the ancient Indian epic ''Ma ...

References

Rishis Rigveda {{Hindu-bio-stub