Category: Great Hindu Scholar

Author – Awadhesh Sharma

Vashishth is a Vedic sage whose stories are found in the Veds, Ramayan, Mahabharat, Purans and other religious texts and literatures. Through his penance, he became a renowned sage and attained the title of Brahmarishi. His name is synonymous with most excellent, best or richest. He is one of the Saptarishis. Saptarishis are seven sages, highly extolled in Hinduism and include Atri, Bharadvaj, Gautam, Jamadagni, Kashyap, Vashishth and Vishvamitra.

Origin: A number of stories describe Vashishth’s birth with varying details. According to the Rigved, Vashishth is the son of gods Mitra and Varun and Apsara Urvashi.

In Pauranic texts, he is described as a Manasputra or mind born son of Brahma. He was produced in the beginning of the Creation. Brahma assigned him the task of performing Yagyas for the welfare of the world and also appointed him to the position of family priest of Ikshvaku dynasty kings. This dynasty is also known as the solar dynasty, in which Shree Ram was born. He accepted the priest’s role after Brahma confirmed that Vishnu would incarnate in this dynasty in the future.

Daksh, father of Sati, started his Yagya and invited all the gods except Shiv. Sati did not tolerate this affront to Shiv, her husband. She immolated herself in anger. Shiv’s supporters then destroyed the Yagya and many participants, including Vashishth. Later, Brahma recreated Vashishth to continue his roles.

One Pauranic story relates his birth to king Nimi. Vashishth was Nimi’s priest. The king intended to preform a Yagya. He approached Vashishth to direct the ceremony but the priest was busy with other engagements. Nimi did not wait for Vashishth and started the event.

On learning of Nimi’s discourteous conduct Vashishth cursed the king to die soon. Nimi also cursed him the same. Vashishth approached Brahma for protection. Brahma suggested he enter into the gods Varun and Mitra, which he did. When they saw Urvashi, Vashishth came out of them and entered into a pitcher. Later, from the pitcher, he emerged as a person.

Vashishth was married to Arundhati. She was eighth among the nine daughters of sage Kardam and his wife Devahuti.  Vashishth had a number of children with Arundhati. Their son Shakti was the father of sage Parashar and grandfather of sage Vyas, the author of the epic Mahabharat.

Writings: As a Vedic poet, he is credited with the revelation of all hymns in the seventh chapter and many hymns in other chapters of the Rigved. His hymns are dedicated to Vedic deities such as Agni, Indra, Mitra, Varun, Vishnu, Usha and others. His Rigvedic hymns also appear in other three Veds. In the Vedic texts, Vashishth acts as a Purohit of king Sudas, an ancient ruler.

Vashishth is credited with the authorship of a number of ancient and medieval period books that include The Vashishth Dharmasutra, Vashishth Samhita, Yog Vashishth, as well as Agni Puran and sections of Vishnu Puran.

The Vashishth Dharmasutra is an ancient text, one of four extant Dharmasutras. It discusses various aspects of civilised human living, social conducts, organisation of society, just administration and other issues.

Vashishth Samhita is a Yog book. It is mostly a retelling of Patanjali’s Yogsutra with some variations.

Yog Vashishth presents Vedant and Yog philosophies. It is written in the form of dialogue between Vashishth and Ram. It relates to the period when Vishvamitra had arrived at Dasharath’s court to ask for Ram. Ram had recently returned from pilgrimage and was feeling detachment from worldly affairs.

Ram appeared before the sages and dialogue occurred between Ram and Vashishth to clarify queries that arose in Ram’s mind. The idea discussed in the book is considered a foundation for Advait Vedant philosophy, which was disseminated by Adi Shankaracharya.

The Agni Puran credited to Vashishth is one of the eighteen major Purans. The extant text exists in numerous versions, some different from others. The book is divided into around 380 chapters and contains over 15,000 verses. It is named after Agni because god Agni recited it to sage Vashishth. He later recited it to Vyas, the compiler of the text.

The Vishnu Puran is another major Puran, which is partly credited to Vashishth. It is a Vaishnav Puran. The extant version of the book is divided into 126 chapters and contains around seven thousand verses. It primarily centres on Vishnu and his incarnations.

Vashishth is also described in Buddhist, Jainism and Sikh’s religious texts. Many of the legends from Sanskrit text are reproduced in Pali, Prakrit and Gurumukhi languages.

Divine cow: Vashishth is associated with the divine wish-fulfilling cow, Kamdhenu, also known as Surabhi. She surfaced during the churning of the cosmic ocean by deities and demons. Kamdhenu was given to Saptarishis. Eventually the cow came under ownership of Vashishth. She stayed in heaven. One of her daughters named Nandini lived with him on the earth, substituting her mother.

Nandini had been a cause of hostility between Vashishth and Vishvamitra. Vishvamitra was a Kshatriya king. Once he along with his army and sons visited Vashishth’s hermitage. Vashishth entertained him with lavish hospitality. Vishvamitra was surprised by the splendour of the service.

 He learnt that all arrangements were done thanks to the cow Nandini. He wished to take the cow at any price. Vashishth refused to hand over Nandini. Vishvamitra forcibly dragged the cow from her shelter.

A fight ensued and Vashishth destroyed Vishvamitra’s army and sons by humming his divine spell. Vishvamitra was defeated and left the place in shame. He travelled to the Himalaya where he prayed to lord Shiv for a long time. Shiv became pleased with his penance and granted him divine weapons on his request.

 Armed with Devastras, Vishvamitra came to Vashishth’s hermitage and used his weapons to engulf the Ashram in fire. Vashishth came out of his residence and noticed Vishvamitra causing the mayhem. He planted his Brahmadand, divine stick, on the ground. It radiated energy that distinguished the fire and destroyed all attacking weapons. Vishvamitra was forced to retreat.

Vishvamitra returned to the Himalaya again and performed severe penance for thousands of years to Brahma. He attained initially the status of Rajarishi and then Brahmarishi, like Vashishth.  After that, they eventually both reconciled.

Another story connected with Nandini relates to the birth of Bhishma. Once Dyaus and other Vasus were enjoying themselves in the forest near Vashishth’s Ashram. Dyaus’ wife persuaded her husband to steal Vashishth’s cow. Vasus, which were a kind of deities, conspired to steal the divine cow. Vashishth learnt about their plan and cursed them to be born as human.  When they pleaded with him to rethink his spell, Vashishth limited the duration of the curse to one year to all except Dyaus. He would have a long, virtuous and celibate life as a mortal.

It was Dyaus who was born to Ganga as a son of king Shantanu. He was named Devavrat and later became renowned as Bhishma. Vashishth taught him the Veds and other branches of learning when Devavrat was under guardianship of his mother Ganga.

Purohit: Vashishth was the royal priest of solar dynasty kings. He had been associated with many major events that happened in their lives.

Kalmasapada was an ancient solar dynasty king. He had developed a demonic nature and had violated a pious woman. She cursed him to die if he made contact with his wife. The king had no children to continue his lineage. He approached Vashishth to produce a son on his wife through Niyog practice. Vashishth obliged and begot a son named Ashmak on king Kalmasapada’s wife Madayanti. Ashmak later became a king.

In the Niyog system, a woman whose husband was either incapable of siring or had died without producing a child would produce a child with the help of a revered man.

One tale relates to the truthful and just solar dynasty king Harishchandra. Vashishth declared his virtues in the assembly of gods. Vishvamitra was also present there. He did not like Vashishth’s admiration for Harishchandra and decided to prove him wrong. 

Vishvamitra returned to the earth and devised deceits to deviate Harishchandra from the truth. Vashishth had gone to another region to perform his penance.  Harishchandra endured many hardships due to Vishvamitra’s actions but finally proved himself truthful to his words. Eventually, Vishvamitra accepted his own folly and defeat. When Vashishth returned and learnt about the events that transpired during his absence, he cursed Vishvamitra to be transformed into a heron.

In another story, Vashishth helped king Dilip to become a father. His wife Sudakshina was childless. Dilip was worried about the future of his kingdom due to the absence of an heir. He along with his wife approached their priest, Vashishth. Vashishth with his divine power learnt that the king had not expressed due respect to Kamdhenu during his trip to the heaven. Due to his impolite behaviour to the cow, the queen was unable to produce a baby.

Vashishth suggested the couple to please Nandini, Kamdhenu’s daughter, who lived in his hermitage. They followed Vashishth’s instructions and served the cow in all respects. Ultimately Nandini became pleased and offered them milk to drink. She also granted boons to be blessed with an illustrious son. Later the queen delivered a son who became a powerful king named Raghu.

Vashishth was capable of knowing past, present and future. The story of Indumati, wife of king Aja, also relates to this ability. Aja was the father of king Dasharath.

Once Aja and Indumati were enjoying natural beauty in their pleasure garden. At that moment Devarishi Narad flew in the sky near them. A flower from Narad’s neck garland detached and fell on the chest of Indumati.  She immediately passed away by the touch of the flower. The king was grief-stricken. When Vashishth became aware of the incident, he told him the story of Indumati’s previous life to console him.

In the previous life, she was an Apsara named Harini. Indra had sent her to destroy the penance of sage Trinabindu. After arriving at the sage’s hermitage, she started doing so. The sage recognised her and cursed her to be born as human. She pleaded with the sage, repenting her conduct. He reduced the severity of the curse, informing her that she would be freed by the touch of a flower from the sky. That Apsara was born as Indumati and she returned to heaven. The story reduced Aja’s pain.

Vashishth’s role in the Ramayan is well known to general public through Ramlila and Ramayan serials. It was Vashishth who had advised king Dasharath to perform Putrayeshti Yagya with the help of Sringi Rishi.

Vashishth performed rites of passage for Ram and his brothers. He was their Gurukul teacher and taught them spiritual and royal disciplines. He was present during their wedding ceremony in Janakpur. He accompanied Bharat to Chitrakut to bring back Ram who had started his 14-year exile. Under Vashishth’s direction Ram was installed as a king of Ayodhya after his return from the exile.

Prominence: A number of temples, hermitages and caves relating to Vashishth are located in different parts of India. His statues can be seen in Ram Durbar temples. Vashishth is depicted with white flowing beards and moustache. His hair is normally tied together and knotted on top of his head. A vertical Tilak decorates his forehead.

Vashishth’s activities are spread over many epochs starting from creation to Vedic, Ramayan, Mahabharat and Pauranic periods. Scholars suggest that the term Vashishth is a patronymic name. It also refers to schools following his ideals.

Vashishth has a permanent position in the constellation of Saptarishis or Great Bear constellation, which is a collection of seven bright stars representing seven ancient Indian sages. It is visible during a clear night in the northern sky.

Vashishth’s wife Arundhati is also acknowledged as a star and is located close to him in the sky. Both symbolise an independent and close relationship between husband and wife. In some Hindu communities, sighting Arundhati by bride and groom is a part of wedding ritual, signifying a lifelong commitment to maintain a close and free relationship between the wife and husband.

Author – Awadhesh Sharma

Swami Vivekananda was a Sanyasi, Hindu monk, who spread the Hindu philosophical doctrines overseas in the USA and Europe. He advocated working for the welfare of poor and neglected people of society. Using teachings of the Upanishads, he proclaimed to the general masses of India to arise, awake and learn to achieve one’s material and spiritual objectives.  

He was born in Kolkata on 12 January 1863, a day of Hindu festival of Makar Sankranti.  He was named Narendranath Datta at birth. Affectionately he was called Naren. Two more sons and four daughters, two of whom died at an early age, were born to his parents.

His family was renowned for philanthropy, affluence and an independent spirit. His grandfather Durgacharan Datta became a Sanyasi after the birth of his first son. Naren’s father, Vishwanath Datta, was an attorney at the Calcutta High Court. Naren’s mother, Bhuvaneshwari Devi, was a pious Hindu woman who used to tell him stories from the sacred books of Hinduism.

Naren was attracted to spiritualism from an early age and was fascinated by the stories of deities such as Shiva, Ram, Sita, Hanuman and others. He was especially drawn to wandering ascetics and donated to them whenever an opportunity appeared.

Naren was very energetic in his childhood. His mother used to call him a Shiva Gana, “soldier of Shiva”.

At the age of eight, in 1871, Naren was admitted to school. He displayed an extraordinary intelligence at school and could memorise texts easily. He also demonstrated leadership qualities during his childhood by acting kings or commanders while playing games with other children.

His family moved to Raipur in 1877 due to his father’s work. After returning to Kolkata in 1879, he was the only student to receive first division in the Presidency College entrance examination. He studied for a year in the Presidency College and then joined the Scottish Church College. It was there that he first heard of Shree Ramakrishna from the principal of the college, Mr Hastie. He completed a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1884. He studied works of famous Western philosophers as well as learnt Indian scriptures and history.

In 1880, Naren joined Brahmo Samaj, a society founded by social reformer Raja Ram Mohan Roy. He familiarised himself with the philosophy and practices of Brahmo Samaj, but his quest for spiritual awakening was not satisfied. He was looking for a person who had seen and realised God. He asked Devendranath Tagore, the spiritual leader of Brahmo Samaj, whether he had seen God in person. Devendranath answered that he had not.

About this time Naren’s father suggested him to marry as many proposals were on offer but he refused. He was interested in becoming a wandering monk and householder’s life would have been a barrier to his pursuit.

Naren first met Ramakrishna in 1881. Ramakrishna was a priest at Dakshineshwar Kali Temple. He believed that the statue of Kali is the embodiment of the devine mother Kali. He often experienced ecstasy and had become a famous mystic Guru. Many devotees had become his disciples.

Initially, Naren did not accept Ramakrishna as his spiritual teacher and was sceptical about his philosophy and practices.  Naren believed that Ramakrishna’s ecstasy and spiritual visions were simply hallucinations. However, Ramakrishna was impressed by Naren’s character, intelligence and insight. He was convinced that Naren would advance his philosophy at home and abroad.  It was Ramakrishna who answered to Naren’s query on seeing the God. Ramakrishna told Naren that he had seen the God as he saw him in person now.  On another occasion, Naren was mesmerised by Ramakrishna’s claim of being an incarnation of God, like divine incarnations of Ram and Krishna.

In 1884, Naren’s father suddenly passed away. He left his family in dire financial conditions. The responsibility for looking after the family fell on Naren. He found solace in Ramakrishna and his visits to Dakshineshwar Kali Temple became more frequent. His domestic problems were reduced with the support and guidance of friends and sympathisers.

Gradually, Naren’s interest in realising God grew. He renounced his attachments to family and possessions, and accepted Ramakrishna as his spiritual Guru. In 1885, Ramakrishna developed throat cancer. He was transferred to a garden house in Cassipore, where his disciples took care of him. Some of these disciples had renounced their families and were living as monks of Ramakrishna Order. Ramakrishna asked Naren to take care of his monk disciples after his death. Ramakrishna died on 16 August 1886. Thereafter, the responsibility to maintain the Ramakrishna Order fell on Naren.

With the help of a householder devotee of Ramakrishna, Naren hired a house in Baranagar, which became and remained a monastery of the Ramakrishna Order from 1886 to 1892. Disciples took formal initiation into monkhood and acquired new names. Naren’s monastic names were Vividishananda, Satchidananda and Vivekananda. New names were necessary to erase old identities.  The term Swami is used as a title before a monk’s name. Swamiji is an honorific address for a monk.

Naren had visited Bodh Gaya during his time with Ramakrishna. His love for wandering became very intense and he wanted to see India of ancient glory. As a monk of Ramakrishna Order, Swami Vivekananda travelled to Varanasi, Gajipur, Ayodhya, Vrindavan, Mathura and other sacred places. He also visited North India and sacred places in the Himalayas.  Everywhere, he saw poverty, disease and people living in unhygienic conditions. He blamed priests, moneylenders and landlords for their callous approach to the poor. He was disappointed with the prevailing living conditions of the general population. He noticed false practices being followed in the name of Hindu religion.

Swamiji visited territories ruled by Indian kings, assuming that they would follow rules and edicts for the welfare of the nation. He visited Rajas and Maharajas of Rajputana, West Coast and Southern India. Conditions of general masses were not better there. He held discussions with kings, ministers, priests and social reformers during his travels. He experienced immense hardship and sometimes hungers. He realised the truth in Ramakrishna’s saying that religion was not for hungry stomachs.

He had one encounter with a king, who mocked worshipping idols, the traditional way of Hindu worship. Swamiji saw a portrait of the king’s father. He asked the king’s minister to take down the portrait and spit on it. Everyone witnessing the event was stunned on his fearless call. Then Swamiji explained that the idol was a symbol of the divine, just like the photograph, and should be treated with respect.

In Kanya Kumari, Swamiji was so fascinated by seeing the rock near the shore that he swam to it and meditated there. It is now known as Vivekananda Rock Memorial. In the South, he learnt about the Parliament of Religions, which was being organised in the USA. Many people were impressed by his talent and devotion to India and encouraged him to represent Hinduism in the Parliament of Religions. The king of Khetri, who was blessed with a son thanks to his blessings during a previous meeting, met Swamiji again in the South. He arranged for his trip to America and at the king’s request, Swamiji assumed the name of Swami Vivekananda.  He left for America on 31 May 1883. On the way, he visited many countries including China, Japan, Korea and others Asian countries. He was thrilled to see the effect of Indian civilisation in those countries.

The Parliament of Religions opened on 11 September 1893. Swamiji had to go through many difficulties in gaining entrance to the Parliament of Religions as a delegate representing Hinduism. He opened his speech with an invocation of sacred Mantras dedicated to goddess Saraswati and address to audience as “My sisters and brothers of America”. His address to the audience drew a standing ovation from the delegates of the Parliament. His speech on Hinduism was well received and brought him to the attention of the press, academics and influential people.

Parliament’s President Mr Barrow said, “India, the mother of religions, was represented by Swami Vivekananda, the orange-monk who exercised the most wonderful influence over his audience”. Swamiji attracted widespread attention in the press, which called him the “cyclonic monk from India”. He visited major cities of the USA and delivered lectures on Hindu philosophy. He gathered a large number of devotees and followers and established Vedanta Centres in various cities. He also visited UK, France and other European countries. He met notable contemporay personalities in the USA and Europe.

After over three years, Swamiji returned to India in 1897. A grand reception was held in Chennai in the South. He came to Kolkata where he was recognised for his achievements overseas.  He established the Ramakrishna Mission and Math in Belur, on the western bank of River Ganga.

 He travelled extensively throughout India and worked to help the common people. He stressed the importance of religion but at the same time focussed on performing services for the poor. He used his influence gained overseas towards these activities. He criticised conversion from Hinduism to other religions and stressed on learning new skills rather than changing religion to improve their material condition.

Many of his devotees from the West followed him to India to help him with his mission of social work. Notable among them is Ms Margaret Noble, who came from England and was renamed Nivedita. She devoted her life to the welfare of Indian women. She established schools for girls. Mr and Mrs Sevier established a Ramakrishna Mission monastry at Mayavati in the Himalayas. Mr Goodwin was a companion of Swamiji. He recorded Swamiji’s speeches and teachings, which later became available as books and publications .

At the request of his western devotees, Swamiji left for Europe and America a second time in June 1899. He visited his old friends in Europe and USA, as well the Vedanta Centres established there. He delivered a number of public lectures. He returned to India by December 1900.

He wrotes books and commentries on Yoga and Vedanta Sutra. His teachings were based on Vedantas, also known as Upanishads. He advocated Advaita Vedanta, the philosophy advanced by Adi Shankaracharya. Ramakrishna united his devotion to goddess Kali with the Advaita Philosophy. A well known quote ascribed to Ramakrishna is that “All religions lead to a single supreme God”. Swami Vivekanand strived to implement his theory into practice.

Swamiji worked long hours for the welfare of common people. He delivered religious discourse as well worked to spread the teachings of Ramakrishna Mission, highlighting the importance of serving the poor people. His relentless work ethic had a debilitating effect on his health. He was suffering from asthma and diabetes. Swamiji died on 4 July 1902 at the age of 39 years.

Swami Vivekananda was and is an inspiration for Indians as well as for people of Indian origin overseas. His philanthropical work continues through the Ramakrishna Mission. His birthday is celebrated as Indian Youth Day.