Vashist (Sanskrit: वसिष्ठ, Thai: Vasit. in Hindu mythology is one of the Saptarishis (Seven Great Sages Rishi) in the seventh, i.e the present Manvantara,[1] and the Rajpurohit / Rajguru of the Suryavansha or Solar Dynasty. He was the mānasaputra ("mind son") of Brahma. He had in his possession the divine cow Kamadhenu, and Nandini her child, who could grant anything to their owners. Arundhati is the name of the wife of Vashista.
Vashista one of 9 Prajapatis is credited as the chief author of Mandala 7 of the Rigveda. Vashista and his family are glorified in RV 7.33, extolling their role in the Battle of the Ten Kings, making him the only mortal besides Bhava to have a Rigvedic hymn dedicated to him. Another treatise attributed by him is "Vashista Samhita" - a book on Vedic system of electional astrology.
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Vashista is featured in many tales and folklore, a few of which are briefly described below. In the Ramayana Vashista appears as the court sage of king Dasharatha.
Sage Vashista was Ram's guru and the Rajpurohit of Ikshwaku dynasty. He was a peace-loving, selfless, intelligent and great Rishi. He had established Gurukula (residential college) on the banks of the river beas, where he and his wife Arundhati were taking care of thousands of students.
Vashista was the Sadguru of his time, possessing 20 "kala's" (divine arts) and had complete knowledge of the whole cosmos and the god. Many of his Shlokas are found in Vedas as well.
Vashista possessed a cow named Kamadhenu or Nandini who could instantly produce food enough for a whole army. The king Kaushika (later called Vishwamitra), who visited Vashista's hermitage, was very impressed with the cow and tried to take it away from Vashista by force, but Kamadhenu/Nandini's spiritual power was too great for him.
After being unable to conquer Kamadhenu/Nandini, Vishwamitra decided to acquire power himself through penance like Vashista. He gained much power and many divine weapons from Shiva. Once again he attempted to conquer Kamadhenu/Nandini. But even the divine weapons he acquired could not defeat the power of Kamadhenu/Nandini.
Vishwamitra finally decided to become a Brahmarishi himself, he renounced all his possessions and luxury and led the life of a simple forest ascetic.
King Dileepa or Dilip was a king of the Raghuvamsha dynasty. He had a wife named Sudakshina, but they had no children. For this reason, Dileepa visited the sage Vashista in his ashram, and asked him for his advice. Vashista replied that they should serve the cow Nandini, child of Kamadhenu, and perhaps if Nandini was happy with their service, she would bless them with a child. So, according to Vashista, Dileepa served Nandini every day, and attended to her every need for twenty-one days. On the twenty-first day, a lion attacks Nandini. Dileepa immediately draws his bow and tries to shoot the lion. But he finds that his arm is paralysed and cannot move. He reasons that the lion must have some sort of divine power. As if to confirm this, the lion started to speak to him. It said that Dileepa had no chance of saving the cow because the cow was the lion's chosen meal. The lion tells Dileepa to return to Vashista's ashram. Dileepa replies by asking if the lion would let Nandini go if he offered himself in Nandini's place. The lion agreed and Dileepa sacrificed his life for the cow. But then the lion mysteriously disappeared. Nandini explained that the lion was just an illusion to test Dileepa. Because Dileepa was truly selfless, Nandini granted him a son.
Yoga Vashista is a religious text that was narrated by sage Vashista, one of the teachers of Rama, and written by Valmiki.
Prince Rama returns from touring the country and becomes utterly disillusioned after experiencing the apparent reality of the world. This worries his father, King Dasaratha. The King expresses his concern to Sage Vashista, upon his arrival. Sage Vashista consoles the king by telling him that Rama's dispassion (vairagya) is a sign that the prince is now ready for spiritual enlightenment. He says that Rama has begun understanding profound spiritual truths, which is the cause of his confusion and he just needs confirmation. Sage Vashista asks king Dasaratha to summon Rama. Then, in the court of king Dasaratha, the sage begins the discourse to Rama which lasts for several days. The answer to Rama's questions forms the entire scripture that is Yoga Vashista.
Brahmrishi Vashista had an Ashram in Ayodhya that was spread over 40 acres (160,000 m2) of land. Today all that remains of it is a small ashram in about one fourth of an acre of land. The ashram has within it a well that is believed to be the source of the river Saryu. Brahmarishi Vashista was the Guru of the Solar Dynasty. The King at that time was King Ishvaku who was the king of Ayodhya. He was a noble king and thought of the well being of his subjects. He approached Sage Vashista telling him that the land had no water and requested him to do something to let the kingdom have adequate water. Sage Vashista performed a special prayer and the river Saryu is said to have started flowing from this well. Saryu is also known as Ishvaki and Vashisti. It is said that the well is connected underground with the river. Many spiritual people who visit this ashram find an enormous spiritual energy around this well. Some believe that this is one of the better spiritual tirth's in Bharat (India).
There is also another ashram past Rishikesh on the way to Kaudiyal on the Devprayag route that is known as Vashista Guha Ashram. The ashram itself is located on the banks of the River Ganges and it is a very beautiful place. It has a cave with a Shiv Ling in it. The head of the ashram there is a monk of South Indian origin by the name of Swami Chetananda. There is also another small cave to the side facing the river.
A copper item representing a human head styled in the manner described for the Rigvedic Vashista has been dated to around 3700 B.C. in three western universities using among other tests carbon 14 tests, spectrographic analysis, X-ray dispersal analysis and metallography.[2] This indicates that some Rigvedic customs were already known at a very early time. The head was not found in an archaeological context, as it was rescued from being melted down in Delhi.
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