Shandilya ( IAST: Śāṇḍilya) is a

Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests ( purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers ( ...

gotra In Hindu culture, the term gotra (Sanskrit: गोत्र) is considered to be equivalent to lineage. It broadly refers to people who are descendants in an unbroken male line from a common male ancestor or patriline. Generally, the gotra ...

, named after the Rishi Shandilya, specifying that individuals of the gotra have Shandilya as one of their patrilineal ancestors. Shandilya Rishi and was the progenitor of the Śāṇḍilya gotra, which is also the highest Brahmin gotras. The name derives from the Sanskrit words Śaṇ, and Dilam, thus meaning Full Moon, therefore implying Śāṇḍilya to be the priest of the Moon God This gotra has three pravar, they are Sandilya, Asit and Deval. The Ved of this gotra is Samveda. This gotra is one of the eight highest gotra in Brahmins. Sandilya gotra is the largest gotra in

Maithil Brahmins Maithil Brahmins are a Hindu Brahmin community from the Mithila region of the Indian subcontinent that comprises Tirhut, Darbhanga, Kosi, Purnia, Munger, Bhagalpur; Bokaro in Jharkhand and Santhal Pargana divisions of India and some adj ...

. There are 44 mool (origin) of Sandilya gotra in Maithil Brahmins.

References

Gotras Brahmin communities {{Hinduism-stub