RISHI BHARADWAJ

Rishi Bharadwaj

Bharadwaja was one of the greatest Hindu sages (Maharshis) descendant of rishi Angirasa, whose accomplishments are detailed in the Puranas. He is one of the Saptarshis (Seven Great Sages Rishi) in the present Manvantara; with others being Atri, Vashishtha, Vishvamitra, Gautama, Jamadagni, Kashyapa.The tamil speaking brahmins say '' Bharadwaja '', the sanskrit name also Bharadwaja but the telugu, kannada and some north indian brahmins say the same gotra as '' bharadwajasa ''. Hence both names are same.

Bhardwaj Maharishi was a sage of the Vedic times. He was the son of Brihaspati. He attained extraordinary scholarship. He had the great power of meditation. He is also the author of Ayurveda. His Ashram still exists at the holy Prayag (Allahabad).Maharishi Bharadwaj was the son of Devarishi Brihaspati. Devarishi Brihaspati was the son of Maharishi Angiras. These 3 Rishis are called the Traya, Three, Rishis of the Bharadwaja Gotra. Guru Dronacharya, the royal guru to Kauravas and Pandavas in the epic Mahabharat was the son of sage Bharadwaj. He was a master of advanced military arts, including the Devastras.

He married Suseela and had a son called Garga.

His son Dronacharya was born as a result of his attraction to an Apsara Ghrtaci. He trained Drona in use of weapons. Drona also learnt the use of weapons from Agnivesha, Parasurama’s student and from Parasurama himself. Drona then went on to teach the weaponry to the Kauravas and Pandavas. Drona has a son called Aswatthama who could wield weapons but not withdraw them as he had insufficient self control.

Bharadwaja had a daughter called Devavarnini. Yajnavalkya, the author of the Satapatha Brahmana was a descendant of Bharadwaja.The second wife of Yajnavalkya Katyayani, was the daughter of Bharadwaja.

His achievements and contributions:
Bharadwaja’s Vedic mantras were placed in the sixth Mandala of the Rig Veda by Veda Vyasa
Dharmasutra and Srautasutra were written by Bharadwaja. The manuscript of the latter was in Pandu script and is available with the Visvavidyalaya of Mumbai.He was a grammarian. As per the Rktantra, pratisakhya of the samaveda, Brahma taught grammar to Brhaspati who taught it to Indra, who in turn taught it to Bharadwaja. Panini, Rkpratisakhya and Taittiriya have quoted and discussed Bharadwaja on grammar.

Kautilya (Chanakya) has quoted Bharadwaja on politics in his treatise Kautilya Arthasastra.
Dhvanta Pramapaka Yantra : Spectromer of Bharadwaja Maharshi.Chanakya quotes Bharadwaja in the Kautilya Arthasastra

He had an unquenchable thirst for the knowledge of the Vedas and in addition to his studies, meditated on Indra for long life for more knowledge. He also meditated upon Siva and Parvathi for more Vedic knowledge. He was a disciple of Gauthama Maharshi as well as of Valmiki. He was a first hand witness to the incident of the Krauncha birds, where Valmiki uttered his first sloka. He was egoless. He spent a major part of his life spreading Vedic knowledge as per a command of Indra’s.

Among all the seven gotras Bharadvaja is the largest chain. Bharadvāja gotra has more than 1400 branches.

In Ramayaṇa, Sri Rama along with Sita and Lakṣmaṇa went on exile on own for the maintaining the dharma/words of his father. Rama along with them went through many forest regions starting from crossing Ganga river with help of Guhan, head clansman and a friend of Rama's father Daśaratha. As he traveled he visited many Rishi's Ashrams and met many rishis and sages including Agastya, Gautama and Bharadvāja. Sri Rama and others rested in Bharadvajas ashrama when they were crossing Prayag and accepted his offerings as great sages knew that Sri Rama is incarnation of Maha Vishnu  Sita devi is goddess Lakshmi and Lakshmana  is none other than Sesa  Naga.

BRAHMARISHI BRIGU

Bhrigu maharishi

Bhrigu was one of the Prajapatis. He was the son of Lord Brahma, originator of this world. Maha Rishi Bhrigu knew all the Vedas, Shastra and also he was a great Mantra gyata (familiar) of all times. Maharishi Bhrigu had two wives Mata Khyati and Mata Pulauma. His son Shukra (Venus) was the Guru of Demons. Daksha Prajapati had not invited Shiva for the Yagya that he had organized. Sati, consort of Shiva and daughter of Daksha went for the yagya without invitation. There she saw her husband Shiva being insulted and in anger burnt herself. Then, Virabhadra, a member of Shiva’s group destroyed the yagya. Maharshi Bhrigu was also present there. He pleaded Shiva for protection and Shiva assured him for his safety. During the war between Devtas and Demons, Bhrigu had fought from the side of the devtas. Bhrigu had the knowledge of Sanjeevani Vidya (the act of restoring a dead man to life) also. According to one more story, when Vishnu did not protect Bhrigu’s yagya from the demons, angry Bhrigu cursed him to take rebirths ten times. Lord Vishnu’s famous ten incarnations are the result of this curse.

According to one more story, in ancient times, many great sages gathered at the bank of river Saraswati to participate in Maha yagya organized at that time. Maharishi Bhrigu was also present there. All the great saints and sages could not decide that out of Tridev Lord Vishnu, Brahma and Mahesh who is superior and whom should they offer Pradhanta (Master) of that yagya. With the consent of all the great saints present there, it was decided that Maharishi Bhrigu will test and decide who superior amonst the Tridev was.

Upon being entrusted with the task Maharishi decided to test Brahmaji first. He went on to see Brahmaji in Brahmalok. On reaching Brahmalok Maharishi displayed utter disrespect to Lord Brahma. Lord Brahma got angry and wanted to punish Maharishi but Mata Saraswati, wife of Lord Brahma saved Maharishi from his anger. Angry with disrespect, Bhrigu cursed Brahmaji that no one will worship Brahma.

Maharishi Bhrigu then decided to visit Lord Shiva (Mahesh) at Kailash Parvat. On reaching Kailash Parvat, Nandi stopped him from going inside because at that time, Shiva and Parvati were sporting fun. Then, angry Bhrigu cursed Shiva that the shape of his body would be believed to be the shape of a phallus.

Then in order to test Lord Vishnu, Maharishi reached Vaikunth Dham. He entered the Dham without Lord Vishnu's permission and saw that, Lord was resting at that time. Maharishi asked him to wakeup, but Lord was in deep sleep. On seeing no reaction from Lord, Maharishi hit Lord Vishnu on his chest (that strike by Maharishi Bhrigu left a foot print on Lord's chest and that foot print is known as "Shri Vats" till date).

Lord Vishnu got up after the strike and realized what has happened. On realizing that Maharishi had hit him with his foot, Lord asked him, “Maharishi, are you hurt in your foot? My chest is strong but your foot is not so strong". Seeing the decorum of Lord Vishnu, Bhrigu was pleased and declared him superior amongst the Tridev. According to Hindu mythology, goddess of wealth and wife of Lord Vishnu, Mata Laxmi also witnessed the whole incident, as she was also present in the Dham at that time. She could not tolerate disrespect displayed by Maharishi Bhrigu towards Lord Vishnu and cursed him that henceforth I will never visit Brahmins and they will all live in absence of wealth.

On hearing this curse from Mata Laxmi, Maharishi told her, his very purpose of visiting the Vaikunth Dham. On hearing this, Mata Laxmi calmed down and told Maharishi, that her curse will definitely haunt Brahmins but whenever any Brahmin will worship Lord Vishnu, he will be liberated from my curse.

It is after this incident that Maharishi Bhrigu decided to write famous book of astrology "Bhrigusamhita", with the blessings of Lord Ganesha and Mata Saraswati, to help Brahmins earn their living. Maharishi Bhrigu collected nos. of birth charts, wrote their predictions for full life and compiled them together to be known as Bhrigusamhita today. Bhrigusamhita was destroyed in Banaras University but few pages of the book are still available in Hoshiarpur city in Punjab. Bhrigusamhita was the very important and first book of its kind in the field of astrology.


When Brahmājī was performing a great sacrifice on behalf of Varuṇa, Maharṣi Bhṛgu was born from the sacrificial fire. He was a great sage, and his very dear wife was Pulomā. He could travel in space like Durvāsā, Nārada and others, and he used to visit all the planets of the universe. Before the Battle of Kurukṣetra, he tried to stop the battle. Sometimes he instructed Bhāradvāja Muni about astronomical evolution, and he is the author of the great Bhṛgu-saḿhitā, the great astrological calculation. He explained how air, fire, water and earth are generated from ether. He explained how the air in the stomach works and regulates the intestines. As a great philosopher, he logically established the eternity of the living entity (Mahābhārata). He was also a great anthropologist, and the theory of evolution was long ago explained by him. He was a scientific propounder of the four divisions and orders of human society known as the varṇāśrama institution. He converted the kṣatriya king Vītahavya into a brāhmaṇa.

BRAHMARISHI MARICHI

Marichi – One of the Greatest Sages

Marichi, also popularly known as Rishi Marichi or Mareechi or Marishi, is one of the greats seven sages known as Saptarishis and is regarded as son of Brahma. Marichi is also regarded as one of the ten Prajapatis created by Brahma as the ruler of the people. He is considered as one of the most important and iconic characters in Hinduism and is revered by devotees and worshippers all over the world.

Legends

Legends state that Brahma needed assistance of some responsible persons who could help him with the creation of the universe. Brahma then created ten Prajapatis from his Mana i.e., mind. The ten sons of Brahma were also called “Manasputras” which in Sanskrit translates to “sons born from mind” and Marichi was one of them.

According to the Hindu epic Mahabharata, Krishna declared himself as one of the Maruts and identifies himself as Marichi.A very famous legend associated with Mariachi states that once he went out to a forest in order to gather some wood and flowers. He returned home and was very tired. He told his wife Dharmavrata to wash his feet. At the same time when Dharmavrata was washing Marichi’s feet, Brahma came there. Dharmavrata was confused as to whether she should attend to her father in law Brahma or finish washing her husband’s feet first. She decided to attend to Brahma first and this enraged Marichi. He cursed her that she would be converted into a stone and would remain like that forever. Marichi was such a powerful sage that even Brahma could not undo the curse. Dharmavrata then in the form of a stone, meditated and prayed to Vishnu for a very long time. Vishnu was pleased by her prayers and asked her for a boon. She asked him to remove the curse of Marichi but even Vishnu could not help her. However, he gave her the boon that the gods will be with her forever and that her stone form will be a sacred and powerful form. The same stone is believed to be present in Gaya, Bihar.

Beliefs and Significance

Marichi is considered to be one of the stars of the Great Bear constellation. There are many yogic poses called Marichyasana which are named after Marichi and are practiced even today. Mariachi symbolizes great power, wisdom, and the cosmic force of creation.

The life of Marichi is known more by the account of his descendants, notably by the works of sage Kasyapa. Marichi is then married to Kala and gave birth to Kashyap (Kashyap is also sometimes acknowledged as a Prajapati, who has inherited the right of creation from his father).

Krishna in the Bhagavad-Gita says, "Of the Ādityas I am Vishnu, of lights I am the radiant sun, of the Maruts I am Marici, and among the stars I am the moon."

RISHI ANGIRASA

RISHI ANGIRASA

Angiras is a Vedic rishi (or sage) who, along with sage Atharvan, is credited to have formulated ("heard") most of the fourth Veda called Atharvaveda. He is also mentioned in the other three Vedas. Sometimes he is reckoned as one of the Seven Great Sages, or saptarishis of the first Manvantara, with others being, Marichi, Atri, Pulaha, Kratu, Pulastya, and Vashishtha .Bharadwaja maharshis was his descendant. .
His wife is Surupa and his sons are Utatya, Samvartana and Brihaspati. He is one of the ten Manasaputras (wish-born-son) of Lord Brahma.

Other accounts say that he married smrithy, the daughter of Daksha.The name Angirasas is applied generically to several Puranic individuals and things; a class of Pitris, the ancestors of man according to Hindu Vedic writings, and probably descended from the sage Angiras.

Angirasa in Rigveda

In the Rigveda, Agni is sometimes referred to as Angiras or as a descendant of Angiras.Several Puranic individuals and things have been referred to as Angirasa. It is also referred to the class of Pitris and decedents of Angirasa. The mention of Angirasa in various scriptures is also noteworthy. As mentioned in the Rig-Veda, Angirasa is the one to whom Indra presents all the cows after freeing them from the captivation of demon (Vala) or several demons (the Panis).

Brahma to Angirasa

Brahma to him “O Angirasa, you are my third “manasa putra” (the one born out of divine intellect). My creation is multiplying with several worlds and species. Humans and other species are growing in numbers and generations. And welfare of this creation is your purpose. Your mission is to come to me whenever I remember or recall you and fulfill my word from time to time. Whatever I design as your duty for the welfare the creation, you must do. You must now go on a very long and unbroken penance and bequeath its fruit to the welfare of all beings in the creation. You must remain so till I order you again, to take up family life (Grihasta Ashrama)”. Angirasa then replied, “You are the reason for my birth and of all this creation. And therefore, you are my almighty Lord. You create us with infinite and unconditional love. You are all knowing. You are omnipotent. You created me with a purpose in mind. Though you do not need anybody’s assistance, you are asking me to do this penance. I shall consider it as your grace and opportunity to serve you. I will obey your every word”, and went on to perform intense penance.

Angirasa penance

Angirasa turned his senses inwards and meditated on Para-Brahman, the creator of the creator, for several years. The great Tejas he got by birth had multiplied infinitely by his penance. He attained many divine qualities, powers, and riches, and control over many worlds. But he was oblivious of all the worldly attainments and did not stop his penance. Due to this penance he became one with the Para-Brahman and thus attained the state of “Brahmarshi”. He had visions of many Vedic Mantras and brought them to this earthly world. He is credited as being the source of great number of Vedic Hymns and mantras and also believed to have introduced fire-worship along with sage Bhrigu.[3] The whole creation was blessed by the wisdom from his word.

Angirasa’s lineage

Upon Brahma’s desire Angirasa begot seven sons: Brihat Keerti (a.k.a. Utathya), Brihat Jyoti (a.k.a. Samvarta), Brihat Brahma, Brihan Manas, Brihan Mantra, Brihat Bhanu, Brihaspati. He also had seven daughters: Bhanumati, Raka, Cinee Vali, Ekaneka, Archishamati, Mahishmati, Mahamati. It’s in the lore that Samvarta is still in his physical body and is living as a wandering naked monk in Varanasi and small forests around it in a state of total “Vairagya” and absolute union with “Para Brahman”. He is of intense nature. He is known to shun the company of humans and would curse and throw stones at people who try to see him. But if anybody perseveres and gets his darshan, he would bless them with liberation. All of the sages in his lineage are known to have “Angirasa” or “Angir” as their last name. Sage “Ayaasa” was born in this lineage and attained great fame after he envisioned new Vedic Mantras.

BRAHMARISHI ATRI

Brahmarishi Atri

Brahmarshi Atri is the seer of the fifth mandala(book) of the Rigveda. He had many sons, including Dattatreya, Durvasa who are the incarnations of the Divine Trinity Vishnu, Shiva respectively. The trimurti channeled through Brahmarsi Atri when they granted boons to his wife Devi Anusuya for helping the Sun to rise in the east everyday. Soma is called Chandratreya or Chandratre and Durvasa is Krishnatreya or Krishnatre. Soma in Hinduism, referred to Moon-God. Somatreya(Chandra) established the Someshwara Jyotirlinga, used to overcome all kinds of passion. Dattatreya, as the incarnation of Vishnu, has the power to cause any species to continue.


He is among the Saptarshi Mandala(seven luminous or eternal sages in the sky) symbolized by the Great Bear(or "Ursa Major" in Latin) and the seven stars around it, named Megrez in Arabic(the root of the tail). The star is also considered as δ(Delta) or the 4th star in the Great Bear constellation. Saptarshi, among several meanings, are described as "The seven solar rays"(Sapta-rishayaha) by the Rishi Yaska. Collectively, they are also called Pitarah, the Fathers.

Atri, who was born from Brahma's eyes and the Vishnu-Dharma, is said to rule the other stars of the Great Bear identifying Kratu with the star α Dubhe; Pulaha with β Merak; Pulastya with γ Phecda; Atri with δ Megrez; Angiras with ε Alioth; Vasishtha with ζ Mizar; Bhrigu with η Alkaid. According to the Puranic stories, Brahma went into deep meditation for several thousands of years, at the termination of which a drop of water fell from his eyes which took the form of the sage, Atri.

Prominence of the δ Megrez-Atri is signified by its position in the constellation rather than the magnitude of brightness. In that it can be observed that δ of the Great Bear, or Big Dipper, is the central star having on both sides three stars each. Symbolically, it holds both sides together by providing the point of focus.

Atri Gotra is from the lineage of Brahmarshi Atri and Anasuya Devi. Anasuya is the daughter of Kardama Prajapati. Brahmarshi Atri is the seer of the fifth mandala (book) of the Rigveda. He is the Manasa Putra of Lord Brahma and was created to help Lord Brahma in the act of creation. He had many sons, including Soma, Datta, and Durvasa, who are the incarnations of the Divine Trinity Brahma, Vishnu, and Rudra (Siva) respectively. The Trinity channeled through Brahmarshi Atri when they granted boons to his wife Devi Anasuya for helping the Sun to rise in the east every day. Let us recall that story now.

Atri and AUM:

He is among the three main seers who propounded the sacred thread (after Brihaspati) which has three strands symbolishing Creation (Brahma and the letter A), sustainability (Vishnu and the letter U) and Dissolution (Shiva {m} and the latter M). Together these three strands show the vow that a Brahmin takes to recite and adhere to Aum. The first of three threads is provided for the Brahma vrata (promise of the Brahmin) and is related to Bhu loka (earth plane). The second set of three threads is given after marriage and is related to the Bhuva loka (solar system) while the third set of three threads Deeksha (initiation) and is related to svarga loka (heavens).

Story of Sati Sumati and Sati Anasuya

There was a great pativrata named Sumati, who served her husband with great devotion. He was afflicted by leprosy and was unable to walk. However, one day he saw a beautiful courtesan and desire arose in his mind (alas, that is the problem with all sadhakas). He asked his wife to intercede on his behalf with the courtesan and take him there to fulfill his desire. Being a pativrata, she went to the courtesan and conveyed her husband’s desire and requested the courtesan to accept his request. Knowing that Sumati is a great pativrata and refusing her request would not be in her interest (the courtesans were well read and were God fearing in those days, though compelled to lead a profession that may not be to their liking), she agreed to satisfy his desire for one night.

Since he had no legs to walk, Sumati carried him in a basket on her shoulders and set out from her house after it became dark. Since it was a nil moon night, and she was going through a route away from the city lights, it was pitch dark and she could not see or hear the great sage Mandavya who was impaled but was silent in meditation. The leg of Sumati’s husband brushed the body of the sage causing him a lot of pain and the sage cursed that the person will die at sunrise. The husband and Sumati were greatly affected by this and returned home without completing the purpose of the ill-fated journey! A deeper meaning given to me by grace of Datta is that when the sun of jnana arises in the mind, all desires will die!

Sumati, being a great pativrata willed that the sun should not rise in the eastern sky so that the curse of sage Mandavya will not come to fruition. Needless to say, all the worlds were thrown into a big turmoil and the Gods went to Lord Brahma. He asked them to approach Anasuya and they rushed to her. Being a pativrata herself, she looked at her lord sage Atri. He asked her to accede to the request of the gods and help the worlds. So, they all came to Sumati, who was sitting with the head of her husband in her lap. When Sumati saw them, she was surprised and paid her respects to Anasuya and others. Anasuya requested Sumati to lift her injunction against sunrise and help the world and assured Sumati that she will bring her husband back to life with her pativrata powers. Sumati agreed and allowed Sun to rise in the eastern sky. Anasuya also brought back life to the husband of Sumati. All gods were very pleased and praised Anasuya and Sumati for their pativratya.

Sage Atri and His great Tapas

When sage Atri did great tapas on the Para Brahma, the fire / heat of the tapas became unbearable to the whole world and Lord Brahma had to accept it and gave it a form of a man. He also gave a boon to sage Atri that at the right time a son would be born to him. As he continued the tapas, the Trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Siva (Rudra) appeared before the sage. To his question, they replied that they were all equal with different roles and pleased with his great penance they promised to be born as his children.

Soma is called Chandratreya or Chandratre, and Durvasa is Krishnatreya or Krishnatre. Somatreya (Chandra) established the Someshwara Jyotirlinga, used to overcome all kinds of passion. Soma, as the incarnation of Brahma, has the power to cause any species to continue survival.

Soma (Chandra) and Durvasa gave their powers to Datta (Amsa of Vishnu) and went for Tapas etc. Datta, or Dattatreya as He prefers to be known thus carries all the powers and attributes of the Trinity and thus the Nirguna Para Brahma Tatwa and became a Guru and continues even now.
Sage Atri is the first among the Sapta Rishi (seven luminous or eternal sages in the sky) symbolized by the great bear (Ursa Major) and the seven stars around it.

Sage Atri punishes Indra

Once when he was in need of some money, he approached Prithu Chakravarthy for help. Prithu agreed to help the rishi but in turn requested him to help with the Aswamedha Yaga that he was taking up. He asked sage Atri to help his son who was appointed as guardian for the yaga aswa. Indra wanted to cause interruption to the yaga presumably to prevent Prithu from getting more powerful. So, he came disguised and stole the yaga aswa and was carrying it away in the sky. Prithu’s son asked sage Atri whether he should kill him with his arrows.

Sage Atri saw what Indra was doing and wanted to teach him a lesson and so advised that whoever is causing obstacles to the yaga deserves punishment and killing that person or injuring him is allowed by dharma. He indicated that the person was none other than Indra but no one is above dharma. So, the son of Prithu shot an arrow at Indra and Indra was badly hurt. Indra left the horse but again stole it and became invisible. Atri made Indra visible by absorbing Indra’s powers (like a black body absorbs radiation) and Prithu’s son punished him again!

The yaga was completed successfully and the emperor praised Atri to the sky. Sage Gautama, who was present (and is a very great sage himself) felt jealous (or pretended to be so!) and when sage Atri returned the compliments to Emperor Prithu praising him as Chandra and Indra, sage Gautama objected saying that it is against dharma. Atri maharshi responded that he did not do anything wrong and asked the assembly to pass their ruling on this tricky matter. The assembly of learned sages could not decide and they in turn submitted the question to Sanatkumara, another manasa putra of Brahma. He confirmed that since a king or emperor cannot become so without an amsa of Vishnu in him, Atri did not err in equating the king to Indra. All sages including Gautama accepted this ruling.
It is quite probable that sage Gautama wanted to bring out the subtleties of dharma through this incident and of course it is possible for the greatest soul also to momentarily succumb to the internal enemies. For us, the morals of the story are important.

Sage Atri helps Surya and Chandra

Once upon a time, there was a fierce war between devas and danavas (it is a never ending war in our own mind) and Surya and Chandra lost their tejas (effulgence, energy) due to Rahu and Ketu. They approached sage Atri and prayed for his help. He restored their energies so that they can carry out their duties. He also gave them a boon that in future, they would not be adversely affected (except during the brief periods of eclipse?). It just shows the enormous powers that sage Atri had because of his tapas. Let us bow to Him and request His help in regaining our own glory and realize our true nature.

Sage Atri in Mahabharatha

Atri Maharshi had a close connection with Mahabharatha. Drona was made the head of the Kaurava army after Bhisma's fall. Dronacharya fought ferociously and the number of wounded and the dead soldiers was thousands .Their cry of pain rented the skies, blood flowed on the battle field. Dead bodies got piled up and provided a feast for the birds of prey. In this carnage which went beyond all human estimation, Drona stood like a mad hero of demonic proportion.

Sage Atri was very much worried of this because if Drona continued this ,he would cause destruction and human misery beyond hellish proportions. Atri came to the battle field along with six of his companions. It was at this time Dharmaraya had shouted at the instance of Sri Krishna saying that Ashwathama was killed and this put Drona off completely. He lost all hope in his life. He became mad with anger and this sent danger signal all around. Sage Atri felt sad for him and talked to him in a friendly manner consoling him, Dear friend, all along you have done everything against Dharma .This war you are engaged in is the best proof. It is enough and stop it. Stop this carnage. You are a good man. This act is not in tune with your status. You are a scholar of Vedanta par excellence. You have been a Brahman and you have got to practice dhrama .This cruel act does not befit you. Give up your weapons, fix your mind in our glorious Sanathana Dharma. I am sorry that you have wielded the most terrible brahmastra! That too on the innocent soldiers! Put an end to your meaningless killing. When Atri said that Dronachariya decided to give up his arms and stop killing. He drove away his anger jealousy and sense of revenge and his heart became pure. He sat in a yogic posture and started to meditate amidst the cries of pain, killing, flow of blood on the battle field. What a great change!! He concentrated on lord Vishnu and closed his eyes and never opened them again. He then left his body and started his journey towards the lord. If Atri had not come Drona would have destroyed the battle field. Hence Sage Atri's kind nature helped to save many men.

Sage Atri in Ramayana

Sri Rama, the son of Dasaratha, visited Atri Maharishi's Ashram during his fourteen years of stay in the forest. It was Atri who showed the way to Dandakaranya after showering his hospitality on him. At his suggestion, Sita requested and learnt the innermost secrets of Pativarata Dharma from Anasuya mata. It is not that Sita was not aware of them but in an avatar, the Divine behave as if they are normal people and especially in Ramayana, Sri Rama and Sri Sita showed that it is entirely possible to be divine and yet lead a normal life as per the human values. Let us bow to Sri Sita, Sri Rama, Sri Lakshmana, Sage Atri and Anasuya Mata.

Sage Atri in Vedas

Attri Maharishi is considered to be one of the great discoverers of sacred Mantras of Hinduism. In his family line there were a few other seers of mantras namely: Shaavaashva, Avishtir, and Purvaatithi. There were also other great Rishis in that line: Mudgala, Uddaalaki, Shaakalaayani, Chaandogya, etc.

Attri-samhita and Attri-smriti are two works attributed to Attri.

Till the present day, a number of Brahmin families have this sage's name at the head of their lineage, which indicates that he or his descendents tutored that whole lineage.

Anasuya

Anusuya, was the wife of an ancient Indian rishi (sage) named Atri, in Hindu mythology. In the Ramayana, she appears living with her husband in a small hermitage in the southern periphery of the forest of Chitrakuta. She was very pious, and always practiced austerities and devotion. This allowed her to attain miraculous powers.

When Sita and Rama visited her during their exile, Anusuya was very attentive to them and gave Sita an ointment which could maintain her beauty forever.She was mother of Dattatreya, the sage-avatar of Trimurti Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, the irascible sage Durvasa, avatar of Shiva and Chandraatri, avatar of Brahma. She is also mother of Chandra Dev Moon. She was the daughter of Sage Kardama and his wife Devahuti. Sage Kapila was her brother and teacher. She is extolled as Sati Anusuya - Anusuya, the chaste wife.

Anasuya is made up of two parts: An and Asuya. An is a negative prefix and Asuya means jealousy. Hence, Anasuya could be translated into English as "one who is free from jealousy or envy."

The story of Anusuya's family is mentioned in Bhagavata Purana Skanda III. Sage Kardama married Devahuti, daughter of Swayambhu Manu, and had nine daughters, including Anusuya, each one of whom married various Saptarishis, and one son avatar Kapila

The sage Narada praised Anusuya in his hymns and verses, making the wives of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva jealous. They requested their husbands go and tempt her away from her husband, breaking her pativrata. The Divine Trinity went to Anusuya as guests when Atri was not at home, and asked her to serve them lunch in the nude. She agreed, but first splashed them each with enchanted water, turning them into small children. The three goddesses waited for their husbands to return, and when they didn’t, traveled to Anusuya’s cottage to find them transformed. The goddesses repented, and at the request of Anusuya, the three Gods agreed to be born as her sons. According to one version, the gods merged turning into Anasuya's three headed son Dattatreya.

Sati Anusuya Ashram

Sati Anusuya ashram is in Chitrakuta, located further upstreams the Mandakini River, 16 km from the town, set amidst thick forests that round to the melody of birdsong all day. It was here that sage Atri, his wife Anusuya and their three sons ( who were the three incarnations of Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh), lived and are said to have meditated.

Valmiki describes in the epic Ramayana that at one time there was no rain in Chitrakuta for ten years. There was a severe famine and nothing was left to eat or drink for animals and birds. Sati Anusuya performed hard and intensive austerities and got the river Mandakini down on earth. This led to the greenery and forests to grow which removed the sufferings of all sages and the animals.

Sati Anusuya ashrama at present is a very peaceful place where various streams from the hills converge and form the Mandakini River. It is said that Rama along with Sita had visited this place to meet Maharishi Atri and Sati Anusuya. It is here Sati Anusuya explained to Sita the grandeur and importance of satitva. The dense forests of Dandaka start from this place. It was ruled by Ravana. Ravana had appointed strong rakshasas like Khara and Viradha as its rulers. The place was infected by the terror of rakshasas.

Sage Atri and Mata Anusuya Ashram in South India

The both great sages Atri maharishi and Anusuya devi lived together in Suchindram near Kanyakumari located 13 km. from Kanyakumari in Tamilnadu.

BRAHMARISHI VISHWAMITRA

Rishi Vishwamitra

Rishi Vishwamitra is considered to be one of the most revered rishis (sages) of the ancient India. As per the holy Puranas, there have been only 24 Rishis in India who have the Gayatri Mantra. It is believed that Sage Vishwamitra is the first saint of the 24 saints, and Sage Yajnavalkya the last. He also claims the distinction of being the author of the majority portion of the Mandala 3 of the Rig-Veda. The story of Vishwamitra is narrated in the Balakanda of Valmiki Ramayana. The Mahabharata adds that Vishvamitra's relationship with Menaka resulted in a daughter, Shakuntala whose story is narrated in the Adi Parva of the Mahabharata. Vishwamitra was a king in ancient India, also called Kaushika ("the descendant of Kusha"). He was a valiant warrior and the great-grandson of a great king named Kusha. The Valmiki Ramayana, prose 51 of Bala Kanda, starts the legend of Vishwamitra thus, "There was a king named Kusha (not to be confused with Kusha, son of Rama), a brainchild of Prajapati (Brahma), and Kusha's son was the powerful and verily righteous Kushanaabha. One who is highly renowned by the name Gaadhi was the son of Kushanaabha, and Gaadhi's son is this great-saint of great resplendence, Vishwamitra. Vishwamitra ruled the earth, and this great-resplendent king ruled the kingdom for many thousands of years." His story also appears in various Puranas, however they show variations from the Ramayana. The Vishnu Purana and Harivamsha chapter 27 (dynasty of Amaavasu) of Mahabharatha narrates the birth of Vishwamitra. According to Vishnu Purana, kushika married a damsel belonging to Puru-kutsa (later called as Shatamarshana lineage - descendents of Ikshvaku king Trasadasyu) dynasty and had a son by name Gadhi who had a daughter named Satyavati(not to be confused with Satyavati of Mahabharata). Satyavati was married to an old Brahman known as Richika who was foremost among the race of Bhrigu. Richika desired a son having the qualities of a Brahman, and so he gave Satyavati a sacrificial offering (charu) which he had prepared to achieve this objective. He also gave Satyavati's mother another charu to make her conceive a son with the character of a Kshatriya at her request. But Satyavati's mother privately asked Satyavati to exchange her charu with her. This resulted in Satyavati's mother giving birth to Vishwamitra, the son of a Kshatriya Gadhi with the qualities of a Brahman; and Satyavati gave birth to Jamadagni, the father of Parasurama, a Brahman with qualities of a Kshatriya.

Kaushika seeks to attain the same spiritual power as Vasishta, to become his equal, a brahmarishi. He undertakes a fierce penance for one thousand years, after which Brahma names him a Rajarishi, or royal sage. After another long penance of ten thousand years, Brahma names him a rishi, thus leaving his royal lineage permanently. At this point, Indra, the king of Swarga attempts to test the tapasvin by sending Menaka, an apsara to seduce him. Kaushik then lives with Menaka for 10 years. They have a baby girl Shakuntala. Kaushik becomes angry as Menaka had destroyed his years of meditation and thus he cursed her that she won't possess her beauty, of which she was proud, in next birth. And hence in the next birth she became a monkey and mother of Hanuman, Anjani. Kaushika now goes to the banks of the river Kaushiki, which is the spirit of his own sister. After many thousands of years of penance, Brahma names him maharishi, but also tells him that he hasn't become a jitendriya yet, lacking control over his passions. This is brought to light to Kaushika when he angrily curses Rambha, an apsara sent by Indra to seduce Kaushika again, to become a stone for a thousand years. After cursing Rambha, Kaushika goes to the highest mountain of the Himalayas to perform an even more severe tapasya for over a thousand years. He ceases to eat, and reduces his breathing to a bare minimum. He is tested again by Indra, who comes as a poor Brahmin begging for food just as Kaushika is ready to break a fast of many years by eating some rice. Kaushika instantly gives his food away to Indra and resumes his meditation. Kaushika also finally masters his passions, refusing to be provoked by any of Indra's testing and seductive interferences. At the penultimate culmination of a multi-thousand year journey, Kaushika's yogic power is at a peak. At this point, Lord Brahma, at the head of the Devas led by Indra, names Kaushika a brahmarishi, and names him Vishwamitra, or Friend of All for his unlimited compassion. He is also embraced by Vasishta, and their enmity is instantly ended. As a former king, and one over as vast a realm as he had been, Vishwamitra was known to retain a regal and often haughty bearing. He was known for his high temper and often cursed people in his anger, thereby depleting his yogic powers obtained by much penance. People feared his temper and prayed that their actions might not get misconstrued by the touchy sage. However, as a former king, Vishwamitra also possessed great compassion for all beings. Having taken pity on Trishanku, he willingly exhausted all the punya he gained from his tapas, to enable him to ascend to the heavens. Following his attainment of the status of brahmarishi, he was known to use the power of his tapas to help anyone who was in need, whatever the cost to himself
Vedic seer of scientific spirituality, Rishi Vishwamitra, was engrossed in a very special and super experiment those days. For last few years he had completely gone into seclusion. He had almost stopped speaking as well. He would use his voice only for very essential recitation of mantras on only some especially important occasions; for all other needs he would simply make do with gestures and signs. With the warmth and energy of the super-experiment that he was conducting, every bit and particle of the ashram had begun to glow and effuse the same. Maharshi Vishwamitra had spent his entire life in conducting innumerable spiritual experiments of sadhana and tapa. The sixty-two suktas of the third mandal of Rig Veda are the testimonies of these experiments. The tenth mantra of the sixty second sukta of the third mandal of Rig Veda is very renowned Gayatri Mahamantra. With this Gayatri mantra, its seer Vishwamitra, who was a superbly evolved sage with great supernatural powers, and who had a perfect understanding of subtleties of more than a thousand different sadhanas of this mantra, had earned a very wide recognition and fame.


Maharshi Vishwamitra

But to him what was dear was service to society and not fame and recognition. Only because he had completely dedicated himself to activities beneficial for the world, he had heard the name of Vishwamitra (meaning friend of the world). Earlier he used to be the mighty – King Kaushika  but since the time he realized the grandeur of spiritual energy and prowess attained by through spiritual disciplines during his association with Brahmarshi Vasishtha, he renounced his kingdom and all his worldly responsibilities and devoted himself to spiritual experiments. Now even Brahmarshi Vasishtha would not tire of singing paeans of his great penance and social service. That is why he had encouraged and persuaded King Dashrath to send Sri Ram and Lakshman in the service of Maharshi Vishwamitra. At that time too Maharshi Vishwamitra was conducting some important experiments, but that several years ago. Now King Dashrath was no more. Sri Ram with his wife Mata Sita and brother Lakshman was living in Chitrakut forest. Brahmarshi Vasishtha was giving protection and guidance to Prince Bharat in Ayodhya.

Here Rishi Vishwamitra had initiated a novel experiment in his famous ashram. Before launching the experiment he had called upon his disciple Jabali, son Madhuchchhanda, and grand son Jeta and Aghamarshan and told them that challenges they were facing now very much more daunting and serious than the earlier ones. The focus was no more on terror perpetrated by the likes of Marich, Subahu and Tadka (demons who had been killed by Ram-Lakshman under the guidance of Vishwamitra earlier) or the protection and security of particular region, but that the existence of the whole world was in danger this time. All the demonic powers were carrying out deadly and destructive experiments everywhere. All of them needed to be defeated together. Not only that to create the right circumstances for ushering in Satyug in future, large-scale changes will have to be brought about in the entire animate and inanimate Nature. This would happen only when kundalini (the dormant vitality) of the entire world got awakened.

“Awakening of world kundalini” – these words amazed and excited not only young Jeta and Aghamashan but also the more matured Maduchchhanda and Jabali. Both of them had intimately associated with Maharshi in all his experiments over a very long time. Maharshi disregarded their wonder and excitement and contributed, “For this we need to agitate, stir up and alter using the power of the sun, kundalini of the earth which exists in the form of geomagnetic flows between its North and South poles. What is essential for this is collecting and harnessing of huge amounts of Sun’s subtle power and then channelizing and transmitting it. This is an extremely difficult task but not impossible. For this purpose, I will use Savitri aspect of this great science of Gayatri.”

“That would mean a coordinated use of the left oriented Brahmastra, Brahmashiras and Pashupat of Gayatri and may be much more than that…!” – This thought arose in minds of Jabali and Madhuchchhanda almost simultaneously. Their thought vibrations touched somewhere the inner consciousness of the Maharshi. He spoke,”You are right. For protection of the entire creation I shall definitely launch this greatest scientific experiment. All the bases for harmonizing inner consciousness with Sun’s consciousness would be created by this only. Savitri is universal. It would cast its influence over the entire world and over all the living beings. This would diminish the Tamsik element and enhance the Sattwic element everywhere in the world. This would result in pleasant changes in the inner beings of all creatures as well as the environment. Destructive powers would be destroyed and creative powers would be reinvigorated.”

“What will we have to do, O Great One?” asked all those present to ascertain their duties. In reply Maharshi said,”You will have to perform your duties with great resolve in these difficult times. Jabali will act as my personal assistant for this tough task. Madhuchchhanda would maintain subtle contact with Brahmarshi Vasishtha who is doing tapa at Ayodhya, with Brahmarshi Atri who is doing tapa at Chitrakut and with Maharshi Agastya who is performing his deep penance at Vedpuri in far south, and would keep providing me with their guidance and indications from time to time. Brahmarshi Vasishtha is currently preparing a group of 100 great sadhaks who would facilitate in the world the descent of the atmosphere of Satyug and Savitri power. Brahmarshi Atri, who is at Chitrakut, has responsibility to make Sri Ram, Sita and Lakshman capable of holding and assimilating the great power of this experiment. The next person in this sequence is Maharshi Agastya who would create several extraordinary and divine weapons using the power generated by Savitri experiment and provide them to Sri Ram at appropriate time. All these activities will be carried out at the same level simultaneously. Though we all will be with each other at the level of consciousness, but due to our involvement in our individual experiments, once in a while this contact may get lost. So Madhuchchhanda will have to be ready to maintain this contact. Jeta and Aghamarshan will support their father in this task. My divine vision tells me that this great sadhana of Savitri would definitely become successful and the circumstances of Satyug would be created and propagated on the earth.”

History is testimony that due to this super-experiment of Savitri, Kingdom of Sri Ram could get established and the rule of Age of Truth could be ushered in

BRAHMARISHI VASHISHTAR

BRAHMARISHI VASHISHTAR

The Saptarishi (from saptarṣi, a Sanskrit dvigu meaning "seven sages") are the seven rishis who are extolled at many places in the Vedas and Hindu literature. The Vedic Samhitas never enumerate these rishis by name, though later Vedic texts such as the Brahmanas and Upanisads do so. They are regarded in the Vedas as the patriarchs of the Vedic religion.

The earliest list of the Seven Rishis is given by Jaiminiya Brahmana 2.218-221: Agastya, Atri, Bhardwaja, Gautam, Jamadagni, Vashista and Visvamitra

VASHISHTAR - Introduction

Vashishta (Sanskrit: वशिष्ठ, वसिष्ठ, Thai: Vasit) is one of the Saptarishis (Seven Great Sages Rishi) in the seventh, i.e. the present Manvantara,Vashista is a manasputra of God 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.

Tales featuring Vashista

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.

The tale of Vashistha

Sage Vashistha 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.
Vashistha 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.
Vashistha summons Kamadhenu alias Sabala, the cow of abundance, to provide for a feast
Vashista possessed a cow named Nandini daughter of Kamadhenu who could instantly produce food enough for a whole army. The king Kaushika (later called Vishwamitra), who visited Vashistha's hermitage, was very impressed with the cow and tried to take it away from Vashistha by force, but Kamadhenu/Nandini's spiritual power was too great for him.
After being unable to conquer Nandini, Vishwamitra decided to acquire power himself through penance like Vashistha. 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.

The tale of King Dileepa

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 Vashistha in his ashram, and asked him for his advice. Vashistha 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 Vashistha, 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 Vashistha'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.

Arundhati and Vashishtha pair of stars

In traditional Indian astronomy, pair of Alcor and Mizar in constellation Ursa Major is known as Vashishtha and Arundhati Mizar is known as Vasistha and Alcor is known as Arundhati in traditional Indian astronomy.The pair is considered to symbolize marriage (Vashishtha and Arundhati were a married couple) and, in some Hindu communities, priests conducting a wedding ceremony allude to or point out the constellation as a symbol of the closeness marriage brings to a couple.

Vashista Ashram

Brahmrishi Vashistha 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 Vashistha was the Guru of the Suryavamsha. 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 Vashistha performed a special prayer and the river Saryu is said to have started flowing from this well. Sarayu 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 Kaudiyala on the Devprayag route that is known as Vashistha Guha Ashram. The ashram itself is located on the banks of the River Ganges and it is a very beautiful place. It has a wonderful long cave with a large dark Shivaling installed at the end inside. The head of the ashram is a Sanyasi monk of South Indian origin by the name of Swami Chaitanyanandji. There is also another cave smaller to the side facing the river called 'Arundhati's Cave', also known as 'the Jesus Cave', since the 1930's when Papa Ramdasji had mentioned in his book about his vision of Lord Jesus there.

Vasistha In Buddhism

In the Buddhist Vinaya Pitaka of the Mahavagga (I.245) section the Buddha pays respect to Vasistha by declaring that the Veda in its true form was declared to the Vedic rishis "Atthako, Vâmako, Vâmadevo, Vessâmitto, Yamataggi, Angiraso, Bhâradvâjo, Vâsettho, Kassapo, and Bhagu" and because that true Veda was altered by some priests he refused to pay homage to the altered version.

Vashista head

A copper item representing a human head styled in the manner described for the Rigvedic Vashistha 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.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.

‘Thiruvathittakudi’ now as ‘Thittakudi’

             
The Yamuna river is one among the most sacred of the rivers that run in Bharata or India from ancient times. Praised to be on par with Yamuna and hence known as ‘Thenyamunai’ (Southern-Yamuna)and also as the ‘Vellhar’ river. Situated on the northern-banks of this holy-river is the Venerated-place known as ‘Thittakudi’. Since the holy venerated Saint,Sage and ‘Brahmarishi’ and the son of the Creator Lord Brahma,’Vashista’ who in chaste-Tamil is known as ‘Vathitta’ munivar lived here,this place is known as ‘Thiruvathittakudi’. The venerated now in its shortened-form is known as ‘Thittakudi’. This place is 13 kilometers east of ‘Tholludhoor’ near Trichy on National Highway – 45. It also lies 12 kilometers west of ‘Pennadam’ which lies on the Villupuram – Trichy railway-line. There also frequent bus-services from Virudhachallam to Thittakudi.

In ancient-times,Lord Brahma’s son Vashista Munivar stayed here in the Tiger-forest that existed then and performed penance. He married the Virtuous-lady Arundhati and together led a pure dharmic-life here.
The heavenly blessed-cow ‘Kamadhenu’ who could provide anything that one wished for,appeared here from heaven and grew up here in Vashista’s ashram. One day as it was grazing in the forests,its hoof it struck a termite-hill and on seeing blood oozing out from it, swooned and fainted! Later,to stem the flow of blood,it stood and secreted copious amount of its own milk upon the termite-hill. Upon realizing this,Vashista went there and noticed that the termite-hill indeed concealed a ‘Suyambulingam’ ( Linga that originated by itself). He requested Kamadhenu to build a temple over the Linga. Kamadhenu immediately did as per his request. This indeed is the present day ‘Karpagraham’ or the Sanctum-Santorium that is enscombed within the Temple. On the outer-side of the Nataraja-Temple and on the upper-reaches there now exists a small sculptured-statue showing Kamadhenu secreting its divine-milk over the Siva-Linga.                                                                                                            
Vashista Munivar performed pujas for the Siva-Linga for a very long time and attained divine-wisdom. During that time Lord Rama’s ancestor the Emperor Manu came here,prayed and got the grace and blessings of Vashista and further requested that he alone should kindly consent to be the ‘Kula-Guru’ (family-Guru or Master) for his ‘Surya-Vamsam’ or the ‘Solar-dynasty’. The Sage graciously accepted to the request. Upon the Sage’s request,the Emperor’s soldiers,cut down the trees and cleared the dense tiger-forest and built a new city at the place. This place is now indeed ‘Thiruvathittakudi’ or ‘Thittakudi’ as it is presently known.
All the foremost ‘Rishis’ who were well versed in the Vedas and Agamas,came over here and settled here. Many a king,prince and learned-person came here to study the Vedas and the other ‘Kalai’ known as the “64 arts” or “64 branches of knowledge” which included
stronomy,astrology,painting,sculpting,engineering,dance,music and sports like archery,sword-fencing,horse-riding,wrestling etc.,. The whole surrounding area constantly reveberated  with the sound-vibrations of the Vedic-mantras chanted day and night by the pupil and Teacher! Since ‘Vidhaya’ or knowledge was taught here,it also became known as ‘Vidhyayaranyapuram’. The Emperor Manu further did a splendid job by extending the work done by Kamadhenu upon the request of Vashista. He built four walls,three ‘Gopurams’ (towers) which greatly pleased the Lord and thereupon The Most Gracious Vaidyanatha Swamy and Most Gracious Asanambigai Amman appeared before Manu and blessed him. The Emperor appealed to the Lord that the “Needhi-Nool” (“book of Justice”) written by him should be followed by the all the beings of the ’14 worlds’ ( there are “7 upper worlds” and “7 lower worlds” (our solar-system is the 7th one known as ‘bhulogam’ or ‘bhuloka’ in the “upper-worlds”, hosting “18 ganangal” or “18 heavenly-hosts” which include ‘Devas’ – Angels; ‘Asuras’ – Titans; Kinnarvas & Ghandarvas – celestial dancers and bards or musicians; man etc.,).  The Lord kindly and graciously accepted and thus was born the present day ‘Manuneedhi-nool’ which is still practiced and followed.
 Sage Vashista stayed here and by praying to The Most Gracious Vaidyanathar and Asanambigai and by performing penance here for a very long time,came to be widely known as ‘Rajarishi’ or the “King of Rishis”. He attained Kamadhenu the divine-cow and was the Kula-Guru of Emperor Manu,Dasaratha and Lord Rama. He also attained the divine-wisdom to write the exalted –text known as ‘Jnana Vashistam’. He explained the texts to Lord Rama which is considered to provide a higher wisdom to even that of the Bhagavad Gita!      

SODHE

SODHE MUTT

Sravanam keerthanam vishnoho Smaranam Paadasevanam

Archanam vandanam Dasyam Sakyam Atma Nivedanam

The place is the headquarters of the Sodhe Matha, one of the eight Ashta mathas established by Sri Madhvacharya the famous Dvaita philosopher. The matha at Sodhe village was set up by Swami Sri Vadhiraja.

The Brindavana of Swami Vadiraja Thirtha can be found at Sodhe. The main deities worshiped at the Sodhe matha are Lord Bhuvaraha and Lord Hayagriva. Sri Bhutha Raja is also worshiped there. 

Brief Description of Sri Vadiraja Pancha Brindavan:

South East direction of the main Brindavana has Matsya-Koorma-Varaha Sannidhi.

South West direction of the main Brindavana has Narasimha-Vamana Sannidhi.

North West direction of the main Brindavana has Parashurama-Sri Rama Sannidhi.

North East direction of the main Brindavana has Krishna-Buddha-Kalki Sannidhi.

 The entire Brindavanas over and above the dashavatara sannidhis have Sri Chaturmukha Brahma, Sri Maheshvara, Sri Vishnu as well as Sri Mukhya Prana presence.

The main Brindavana has Sri Vadiraja, Sri Hayagreeva and Sri Bho Varaha sannidhi's making this one of the most and sacred place for gaining Sri Hari Bhakti and getting peace and ridding oneself of unknown and known diseases and other problems in life....

The VADIRAJATHEERTHA of this Mutt started worshipping the idol of Bhuvaraha. Gifted by Sri Madhvacharya. The idol is known for its remarkable iconography with Bhuudeevi on one thigh and the other leg supporting on the hood of serpent. Along with Bhuvaraha idol of the personal god of Vadiraja namely Hayagriya is also worshipped. Sri Hayagriva is the presiding deity of knowledge and accordingly the idol has in hand the mudra of knowledge, book, rosary and conch. The 35th pontiff in the lineage Sri Vishvottama Tirtha Swamiji is the present head of the Mutt.

Sri Trivikrama Temple:

The garbhagudi of this temple is actually a chariot made of stone. Sri Bhûta Raja carried this temple for Sri Vâdiraja Tîrtha from Badarikâshrama, the abode of Veda Vyâsa. When he was flying south with the temple in his hand, he had to fight some demons. He used one of the wheels on the chariot to kill a demon. That's why the Sri Trivikrama temple's garbhagudi still has only 3 wheels with a fourth missing.

It is said that during his visit to Badari, Vadiraja had met with Acharya Madhva and Vedavyasa. He had expressed his desire to establish a grand temple to Lord Trivikrama and had requested them to provide him with a suitable icon.

Arasappa Nayaka had one long standing desire – to set up a major temple in Sode. When he expressed his desire to Vadiraja, he told him that this was his desire too and asked him to make the necessary arrangements for the construction of the temple.

As the temple started approaching its final shape people were wondering where the icon was. Vadiraja assured them “This is not a regular icon that needs to go through the normal process of consecration. It is already being personally worshipped by Acharya Madhva. So the only consecration needed is to perform the maha pooja in Svadi. Our Lord Trivikrama will come in his own special chariot”.

He then sent Bhuta raja to Badari to fetch the icon. When Bhuta raja was on his way back with the icon in a chariot he was attacked by some demons. He used one of the wheels of the chariot to fight and defeat them. He reached Sode in time for the maha pooja with everything intact except for one missing wheel on the chariot. Even today one can see just 3 wheels on the chariot in Sri Trivikrama temple’s garbhagudi.It is said that when the temple was being constructed there was a small mishap and one of the stone pillars was about to fall down.

The mason who was working on it was very scared and instinctively uttered an oath invoking the name of Vadiraja and asked the pillar to stop falling. The pillar stopped in midair, thus revealing the power of Vadiraja’s name. Later Vadiraja came there and moved the pillar to its proper location.

SRI BHUTA RAJA

Sri Bhûta-râja is the "bhâvî" Rudra, or the future Rudra, just as Sri Vâdirâja Tîrtha is the "bhâvî" Samîra. He is a deity called `Ugra-tapa', for "the one of ferocious austerities." He, Bhûta-râja a.k.a Ugra-tapa, is worshipped in a manner similar to Shiva, but is not considered Shiva himself.

Sri Bhûta-râja is said to serve Sri Vâdirâja Tîrtha as a watchman, among other things; he guards a corner of the Dhavala-Ganga tank at Sode. This corner is known as "Bhûtarâjara-koNe" or "Bhûta-râja's corner" and one is not to venture into it. 

Doing so is punishable by death, as many have discovered to their cost over hundreds of years. While the water is seemingly calm, anyone who swims there is pulled down by Bhûta-râja and drowns. However, only a purposeful miscreant can get there in the first place, since the steps lead from the opposite side, and one can get to that side only by diving from a height or swimming from the opposite side.

 One of the best and Great avatara of Sri Hari is that of Sri Rama who was born in Tetra Yuga, the next Yuga after Satya Yuga. Sri Rama's main task was Ravana Samhara and eradicate the evil powers on this earth. When Sri Rama killed Ravana He automatically became eligible for BrahmaHatya dosha (Killing of a Brahmana). Here we need to understand that since Sri Hari is supreme (Sarvothama) there is no kind of dosha or badness in HIM or in any of HIS avataras. It is for the betterment of the future generations that an act of such a thing is orchestraed for the benifit of mankind. 

Sri Rama wanted to get rid of this dosha and when He sought opinions from learned people a learned but arrogant Brahmana came over and told Sri Rama that he would accept Sri Rama's Dosha.... Immediately this Brahmana became a Brahma Rakshasa and after HIS lifetime till Kaliyuga He was born as a pious Brahmana and enjoyed all the material benefits. All this was due to the grace of Sri Hari... 

This Brahmana was born in Kaliyuga at the time of Sri Vadiraja as Narayna and he learnt all the vedas, sastras from Sri Vadiraja. When a person become knowledged or rich he acquires ahankara automatically. It is only a handfull of people who remain modest and not boast of achievements. Narayana was no exception. He was full of arrogance, ahankara and disrespectful towards others. 

He would insult learned people whoever visited Sri Vadiraja and if they were not able to answer his questions he would make fun of these. Even though knowing all this Sri Vadiraja would keep quite and this in turn increased this Brahmana's bad behaviour.

 Sri Vyasaraja one day on a Dwadasi came to have lunch with Sri Vadiraja. Sri Vadiraja was preparing to do His puja... On coming to know of Sri Vyasarajas arrival, Sri Vadiraja immediately had bath and leaving His puja joined Sri Vyasaraja for the parane (lunch). He was aware of the fact that His puja was pending. After lunch and seeing off Sri Vyasaraja, Sri Vadiraja went to a lonely place and He removed all what He had eaten and did His puja and other daily obligations. After this He had His lunch (parane). Narayana coming to know of this started making fun of Sri Vadiraja as well as Sri Vyasaraja. This was it, the patience of Sri Vadiraja ended and He cursed Narayanachar to become a Brahma Rakshasa. 

When Narayanachar pleaded with Sri Vadiraja, HE told him that the day the question "AA-KAA-MAA-VAI KONASNAHATAH..." will be answered he would be rid of the curse. Accordingly this Brahma Rakshasa made a small forest near Hampi his home. He would ask everyone who would pass through the forest this question... "AA-KAA-MAA-VAI KONASNAHATAH..." ? When they were unable to decipher and answer the question he would kill them and eat them away... 

In the due course of time when Sri Vadiraja was passing by the place, Brahma Rakshasa asked HIM the same question. Sri Vadiraja answered it as "Randa Putra Twam Na Syataha ..." Question : "AA-KAA-MAA-VAI KONASNAHATAH..." (Who does not bathe in Ashada - Karthika - Maagha - Vaishaka ?) Answer : "Randa Putra Twam Na Syataha .." (The son of Raande does not do bathe in these months!!!)

 Immediately the Brahma Rakshasa became his normal self as Narayanachar.... Even after all this Narayana was not able to shed his ahankara and he challenged Sri Vadiraja for a Vada Vivada (Arguments). He lost and as per the understanding Narayana had to become Sri Vadiraja's Dasa. Sri Vadiraja blessed Him as his foremost and favourite deciple "BHOOTARAJA". Since then Narayanachar became "Sri Bhootaraja", One who will protect good and pious people and punish the wicked. 

Since he was a Ahankara personified and Ahankara is a Guna and Sri Rudra being the presiding diety, When Sri Vadiraja become Mukhya Prana in the next Kalpa after Sri Mukhya Prana has been elevated to the four-faced Brahma, Sri Bhoota Raja will become Sri Rudra in the next Kalpa.... Sri Vadiraja - Vadiraja - Vadiraja - Pahiman Sri Vadiraja - Vadiraja - Vadiraja - Rakshamam Sri Bhootaraja - Bhootaraja - Bhootaraja - Pahiman Sri Bhootaraja - Bhootaraja - Bhootaraja - Rakshaman.

 SRI VADIRAJATEERTHARU

Sri Vadirajateertha  traditionally 1480 - 1600, a Haridasa, was a Shivalli Tulu Brahmin and native

of the village of Hoovinakare, near Kumbashi in Kundapura taluk, Udipi district in Karnataka state.

His parents were Ramacharya and Gauri. He is considered amongst the highest saints in the Madhva 

hierarchy, next only to Srimad Ananda Tîrtha and Sri Jayateertha. He also studied under Vyasarayaru.

 He is regarded as an incarnation of Latavya (In His previous janma, He was a messenger of Princess

 Rukhmini to Lord Krishna. He is regarded as the incarnation of Latavya a great Tapasvi. ) and hence

popularly known as "BHAVISAMEERA" which means he will come to Vayu Devara Padavi or title in future.

In the Hindu year sharvari (1480 AD) Sri Vagisha tirtha visited a village called Huvvinakere 25 miles North of Udupi. He met a pious but poor and childless couple, Ramabhatta and Gowri devi. They begged him to bless them so that they could have children. He did so, but imposed one condition, the first male child would have to be handed over to the maTha for upbringing.

When the couple hesitated to accept this offer, he made it easy for them by imposing a seemingly easy condition – if the child were to be born inside the house, they could keep it, but if birth happened outside the house then they would have to hand it over. They agreed to it wholeheartedly.

In due course, by the grace of God, Gowri devi became pregnant and the couple was ecstatic. They remembered their agreement and took exta care. Gowri was not allowed to leave the house. Since their house was nothing but a small hut surrounded by a small paddy field, Ramabhatta could easily tend to his work in the field while being available for any requirement in the house. Nine months passed and childbirth was imminent.


On sadhana dvadashi day, Ramabhatta was having his food and Gowri was performing tulasi-pooja in the backyard. She suddenly saw some cows entering the field and destroying the crops. Since this was their only source of livelihood she was very perturbed; she immediately took up a stick and entered the fields with the intention of chasing the cows away, totally forgetting the agreement.

In her excitement she moved quite a distance from the house and suddenly developed labor pains. She could not return home and had to deliver the child in the field itself. Thus divine will prevailed inspite of all human efforts to the contrary !!

Shri vAgIsha tIrtha was informed about the birth of the child. He sent a golden plate and asked the parents to bring the child in that plate to the maTha. It is said that the baby never touched the ground until it reached the maTha.

Sri VAgIsha tIrtha pointed out to the happy parents several auspicious attributes in the baby and predicted that it would one day become a very great sanyAsi. He fed the baby milk that had been offered to the deity and asked the parents to name the boy as BhUvara (some say VarahAchArya). He sent them home with the baby and asked them to bring it back after a few years.

The paddy field where Gowri gave birth to Sri VAdirAja is called as "Gowri Gadde". Now there is a small temple in that spot.

He became a Sanyasi at the young age of 8. The pre-sanyasa name given to Sri Vadiraja was Bhuvaraha. He worshipped Lord Vishnu in the form of Hayagriva.

It was Sri Vadirajateertha who changed the Paryaya system of Udupi to two years from the earlier practice of 2 months. This extension of each individual Paryaya enabled the Swamis to travel far and wide and spread the message of Madhva tradition. Another of Sri Vadirajateertha's achievements is that he lived a life of 120 years and performed Lord Krishna's Paryaya at Udupi 5 times. He is the first Sanyasi who entered the Vrindavana (his own TOMB) alive after worshipping that for nearly 3 years. The only other saint to have followed similar way of leaving this materialistic world is Sri Raghavendra Swamy of Mantralaya.

In an age that knew great Sanskrit scholars and intellects, Sri Vadirajateertha who himself was a great scholar, was able to accommodate the needs of the less scholarly, taking the haridasa tradition to the masses by translating many important works into the Kannada language. He was able to explain sophisticated concepts in the form of simple stotras. About the saint, Dr. B.N.K. Sharma writes "In this respect, his work marks a new and necessary phase in the history of Dvaita literature and breathes the spirit of a new age which produced other popular exponents of Madhva-Siddhânta, both in Sanakrit and in  Kannada".

Vadirajateertharu used to offer daily prasadam to Lord Hayagriva by holding the prasadam on his head. Lord Hayagriva is said to appear in the form of a horse and eat the prasadam by kneeling on Vadirajateertha's shoulders.

After worship of his favourite diety ,sri hayagreeva,he would closet himself in a room with a plate full of cooked bengal gram and Jagerry ( Hayagriva - also called muddy ) held over his head. Hayavadana would emanate from the idol , come in the form of a pure white horse, put its fore legs on his shoulders and eat the Neiveedya , leaving a small portion as prasada for the Rajaru .Some people doubted , if this was true and wanted to test the same. Poison was mixed to the food and the Yati offered it without knowing the fact. Hayagreeva gulped the whole lot that day without leaving a morsal on the plate, assumed a greenish color all over the body and stood aside in a morose mood. After discussion by yati with God Vadiraja Gulla, a type of Brinjal was cooked and offered to the Lord and the green color vanished leaving a streak of green at the neck reminding posterity of this miraculous incident.

There are so many incidents that took place about his Mahma and these columns are not sufficient to explain in detail. His association with great Sri Vysarayaru , Sri Kanakadasaru , Sri Beluru Vaikuntadasaru , Sri Purandara Dasaru , Sri Vijayeendra thirtharu , had great impact on Madhwa philosophy. He made several reforms at the Udipi mutt . He was Chatushasti Kalavida.

In the year 1600 Sarvari year Phalguna Bahula thritiya, a great Vadiraja terminated his divine mission on this mundane plane and entered the Brindavanam with life and body . He was taken in a golden car to heaven .His spirit is still in that Brindavan , and even today his mrithikas are taken from the Brindavanam and seem to have mysterious powers and miraculous healing effect of all ailments of body and mind.

Sode has become a Tapovana and thousands of devotees throng at His shine and get blessed according to their Bhakti.

Thus Sri Vadiraja occupies an elevated place in Dwaita Siddhanta. By his divine abilities of body and mind he had endeared himself to the layman and learned .

He lived for 120years and saw five Paryayas .The mortal coil of Sri Vadiraja might have vanished into the stone Brindavanam at Sode, but his Spirit is still living in our midst guiding us through our dark days by the luster scintillating from his immortal works

His robe and pâduka-s:

After the covering stones of Sri Vâdirâja's Brindavana were placed, some of his disciples started crying for being unable to physically see their Guru. Sri Vâdirâja Tîrtha, who had entered the brndâvana wearing his robe and pâduka-s (wooden sandals), threw off the same from "Pushpaka Vimâna" (flying vehicle) for his sad desciples. Even today, on the Âradhana day Sri Vâdirâja's robe and pâduka-s are displayed for devotees.

Vadirajateertharu brindavana is installed in Sodhe temple near Sirsi in Karnataka. The temple also has a pond Dhavalaganga which is very sacred and pilgrims take bath in this pond. The pond has four corners and is available for pilgrims only at 2 corners. One corner of the pond is prohibited since it is believed that Lord Bhutaraja uses that corner of the pond even now. The temple has a tradition wherein every devotee visiting the temple needs to offer coconuts to Lord Bhutaraja

In Sode, along with Sri Vâdirâja Tîrtha's brndâvana, there are four others forming a square, with Sri Vâdirâja Tîrtha's, the largest of the five, at its geometric center. The five brndâvana-s are described by Sri Vâdirâja Tîrtha himself in the Svapna-vrndâvana-âkhyâna thus:

I (Sri Vâdirâja Tîrtha), chatur-mukha-Brahma, Vâyu, Vishnu, and Shiva; these reside there, as in Shweta-dvîpa. So, the latter four are the ones who inhabit the other four brndâvana-s.

However, somewhere else in the Svapna-vrndâvana-âkhyâna, it is also said that all 33,000 Crore (3.3 * 10^11) devatâs have been ordered by Lord Hayagrîva to reside in Sri Vâdirâja Tîrtha's own brndâvana; that is one more reason why one who worships him does not need worship anyone else (nA.anyad.hdaivam naiva jAne na jAne -- refer previous page, "More on Sri Vâdirâja Tîrtha").

There is a big jackfruit tree in Sode, under which Sri Vâdirâja Tîrtha used to teach his disciples. Once, a severe bolt of lightning struck this tree. Sri Vâdirâja Tîrtha, the Bhâvi Samîra, gave life to this tree. This tree is still alive in Swadi; the MaTha uses its fruit for Sri Hayagrîva naivedya.

On the way to Sode from Sirsi there is a small village called Hulekal, which has a brindâvana of Sri Vyâsa Tîrtha. This is the only place where one can find Sri Vyâsa Tîrtha's brndâvana other than the original one in Nava Vrindâvana.

During his visit to Tirumala hills, he ascended the hill and covered the entire route, to and fro not by walking, lest he would desecrate the place, but on all fours with his knees and hands, The hill looked as if it was full of Saligramas. The Saligram garland worn by Srinivasa was a humble offering made by Sri Vadirajar.

He visited Vijayanagar empire reigned by Venkatapathyraya and in the Sabha he was given the title Prasangabharana Thirtha ( Jewel of a Speaker). During his stay at Poona, he wrote Rukminisha Vijaya which excelled all the compositions of Kalidasa and others.
His philosophical commentaries were Sudha Tippani, Tatwaprakshika Tippani , Bhagavadgita Tippani , Mahabharata Tatparyanirnayatika and Tantrasara Teeka.
Independent works were Guruvrata Deepika , Prameya sangraha , Yuktimallika , Sarasa Bharati Vilasa , Pashadamatha Khandana.

Other works were Ekadashi Nirnaya , Sankalpa Paddati , Geography , Upanyasa Ratnamala , and other stotras in Sanskrit.
Kannada works were, Tatparya Nirnaya ,Vaikunta Varnane, Gundakriya , Swapna Pada , Suladhigalu , Lakshmi Shobhanepada , Bhramaragita and hundreds of Krithis in Kannada. He wrote in Tulu language also.
His master piece is Yuktimallika. It is philosophical treatise, critical study of Bramha sutras .divived in 5 parts in 16 chapters .