Concept
Vasishtha
Overview
Vasishtha (Sanskrit: वसिष्ठ, lit. 'most excellent', IAST: Vasiṣṭha) 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 Vāsishtha, 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 is the family priest of the Raghu dynasty and teacher of Rama and his brothers.
Overview adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0; see the article history for authors).
Possible passages
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The circle of sacred objects cannot be determined, then, once for all. Its extent varies infinitely, according to the different religions. That is how Buddhism is a religion: in default of gods, it admits the existence of sacred things, namely, the four noble truths and the practices derived from them.[65]
Émile Durkheim, The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life
States what Vasishtha is.
The ancient teachers define _avyaktam_ as the “equilibrium of the three forces,” one of which is called _Sattva_, the second _Rajas_ and the third _Tamas_. _Tamas_, the lowest force, is that of attraction, a little higher is _Rajas_, that of repulsion, and the highest is the control of these two, _Sattva_, so that when the two forces, attraction and repulsion, are held in perfect control, or balance, by the…
Swami Vivekananda, Jnâna Yoga, Part II
States what Vasishtha is.
But, inasmuch as the impression was vanishing, the mythological idea in question was that of a 'god of the moment.' Then followed a second stage, in which a demoniacal power was associated with a particular place. Following upon these local gods came other gods, representing the guardian powers of a tribe, a vocation, or some other social group. At the third stage of development, the 'particular god' acquired a…
Wilhelm Max Wundt, Elements of Folk Psychology Outline of a Psychological History of the Development of Mankind
States what Vasishtha is.
Related ideas
- Agastya
- India
- Vedas
- Assam
- Adi Shankara
- Rama
- Mahabharata
- Dvapara Yuga
- Brahma
- Vedanta
- Sanskrit
- Advaita Vedanta
- Vyasa
- Puranas
- The Buddha
- Yoga
- Rigveda
- Pali
- Ramayana
- Dharma
- Indra
- Vishvamitra
- Rishikesh
Place in the tradition
Part of Timeline of Eastern philosophers.