RISHIS OF INDIA

The word rishi means the person who is travelling towards the ultimate truth-the researchers of cosmic truth.A term for an enlightened being, emphasizing psychic perception and visionary wisdom. In the Vedic age, rishis lived in forest or mountain retreats, either alone or with disciples. These rishis were great souls who were the inspired conveyers of the Vedas.A rishi can be regarded as a combination of a patriarch, a priest, a preceptor, an author of Vedic hymns, a sage, a saint, an ascetic. The Rishis were the authors of the hymns of the Rigveda. Seven particular rishis (the sapta-rishis) mentioned in the Rig Veda are said to still guide mankind from the inner worlds.

Hinduism is not a religion of mere theories. It is eminently practical. In no religion you will find such a variety of practical yoga practised and such sublime unique philosophy expounded. That is the reason why India is the only glorious land of sages, Rishis, Yogins and saints.India had ceen robbed of its materialistic and intellectual wealth but spiritual wealth cannot be robbed and can only be transmitted.India is the sacred land which has given birth to countless sages, Rishis, Yogins, saints and prophets. India is the land that has produced many Acharyas or spiritual preceptors like Sri Sankara and Sri Ramanuja; many saints like Kabir, Ramdas, Tukaram and Gauranga Mahaprabhu; many Yogins like Jnana Dev, Dattatreya and Sadasiva Brahman; and many prophets like Buddha and Nanak.
The sapta rishis are:

• Atri


• Angiras


• Kashyapa


• Bhrigu


• Vashishtha


• Vishwamitra
  

There are so many rishis in this punniya bhoomi called india.

• Bhairatha -- The Hindu sage who brought the river Ganga from heaven to earth.

• Bharadwaj --A sage of Dwaparayuga period; father of teacher Drona


• Bharata -- Sage who wrote the treatise on Indian Dance known as Natyashastra


• Brahaspati -- Name of a wise Hindu sage who accumulated tremendous knowledge


• Dadheechi Hindu sage who sacrificed his backbone so good may triumph over evil


• Dattatreya -- A sage who had elements of all three Vedic Gods (Trimuttis)


• Durvasa -- An ill tempered sage from Indian mythologies who cursed Shakuntala.


• Gowtama -- Sage of Ramayana period who cursed his wife Ahalya into becoming a stone for her infidelity.


• Jamadagni --A sage from Indian mythologies who is the father of Parashurama.


• Kamban -- South Indian Poet-sage of 11th century A.D. who wrote the masterpiece Ramayana in Tamil


• Madhvacharaya (1239-1319), Hindu sage who advocated Dvaitism, which emphasized the immutable difference between the individual soul and the supreme soul


• Manu -- The sage who set up the laws for man-woman relationship in the society


• Narad -- Hindu sage and traveler; devotee of Lord Vishnu


• Parasar --a sage who begot Vyasa though Satyavati before she married Shantanu


• Ramana Maharshi (1879-1950) --A great sage of India, who made great inroads into peace and spiritual knowledge


• Vaishampayana -- A sage, and a pupil of Vyasa who recited the story of Mahabharat at a sacrifice held by Janamejaya.


• Valmiki --Hindu sage who is believed to have composed the epic Ramayana and lot more.

Now let us focus on some rishis and know about them.

AGASTYA RISHI :

Every one of us is aware of him that he is the Hindu sage who drank the ocean empty.He is one among sapta rishis.He is the brother of sage Vashistha.He was born from a pot(amazing). Legend says that he had stopped the growth of Vindhya mountains. At the battle field he taught Rama the famous mantra "Adithya Hridaya".In southern india, he is considered as father of Siddha medicine .Agastya is also the author of Agastya Samhita. The word is also written as Agasti. A-ga means a mountain, Asti, thrower. Also a name of Shiva. Agastya is also the Indian astronomical name of the star of Canopus, is said to be the 'cleanser of waters', since its rising coincides with the calming of the waters of the Indian Ocean. Another reference is in the Mahabharata in Sauptikaparva as the teacher of Guru Drona, who gave Drona, the greatest of weapons, Brahmastra (used by both Arjuna and Ashwatthama at the end of the war).

As with all other Hindus, it was necessary for Agastya to marry and sire a son, in order to fulfill his duties to the Manus. Once he resolved upon doing this, Agastya pursued an unusual course of action: by his yogic powers, he created a female infant who possessed all the special qualities of character and personality that would be appropriate in the wife of a renunciate. Agastya arranged for the child he had created to be born the daughter of that noble king of Vidarbha. The child was named "Lopamudra" by her parents. . She was utterly intent upon exchanging the palace of her father the king for the forest-hermitage of Agastya. Lopamudra and Agastya were duly married and lived a life of extraordinary felicity. It is believed that they had two sons - Bringi & Achuthan.

One story about Agastya goes that once the demons had taken refuge in the ocean and it was difficult for the gods to vanquish them, so they went to Sage Agastya for help. Then, after hearing the gods, the sage drank the entire ocean water and held it within him until the demons were destroyed. After the demons were destroyed, Devtas requested him to save the sea animals who were dying because of lack of water. At Devtas request Agathiya munivar released all the water as urine and that is why the sea water became salty.Another legend is about how Sage Agastya saved the earth from imbalance. Mount Meru, a mountain in the Vindhya Range, felt that the Sun should not go from East to West without its permission, so it grew and grew and grew, till the sun could not pass. The devas were worried and approached Sage Agastya to help them. Sage Agastya, and his family traveled to South India, via mount Meru. On their way, Sage Agastya requested the mountain not to grow any further, until his return. Mount Meru humbly agreed. After passing through the mountain, sage Agastya told his wife that they will never go back north of mount Meru.

• agastya is considered the father of Tamizh Mozhi (Tamil Language)


• In southern india, he is considered as father of Siddha medicine .He is considered the guru of many other Siddhas. He is also called Kurumuni, meaning short (kuru) saint (muni). He made contributions to the field of Medicine and Astrology - especially Nadi astrology

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. He also claims the distinction of being the author of the majority portion of the Mandala 3 of the Rig-Veda. Rishi Vishwamitra was born as 'Kaushika' and was the great-grandson of a great sage king, known as Kusha.After undergoing intense meditation and severe asceticism, he was bestowed with the title of Brahmarishi by LordBrahma himself. He was given the name of 'Vishwamitra' (friend of all). It is said that Sage Vishwamitra created a parallel heaven, known as Trishanku Swarga, for King Trishanku. It is also believed that in the great epic Ramayana, Vishvamitra was born as Lakshmana, the brother of Lord Rama. He gave his brothers the knowledge of the Devastras (celestial weaponry), trained them in advanced religion and taught them how to kill powerful demons.

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 Vishvamitra.

Gayatri Mantra

Vishwamitra was the author of the revered great Mantra - The Gayatri Mantra. It is a mantra cum prayer and is found in all the three Vedas; Rig, Yajur and Sama Veda. Vedas clearly state that anyone can chant this Mantra, and gain its benefits. Gayatri Mantra:

Om Bhur Bhuva Svah,

Tat Savitur Varenyam.
Bhargo Devasya Dhimahi
Dhiyo yo nah prachodayat

Meaning:

We meditate on the glory of the Creator;
Who is worthy of Worship,
Who is the source of knowledge,
Who is the bright light,
May he illuminate our intellect.

Gayatri Mantra is so called because it liberates one who chants it.

MAHARSHI BHRIGU

Maharshi Bhrigu was one of the Manasputras (born by a wish) of Lord Brahma. He was married to Khyati, the daughter of Daksha. Two sons, Dhata and Vidhata and a daughter Shri were born to them. Maharshi Bhrigu is also called Prajapati (creator) as he was created by Lord Brahma to help him in the process of creation of the universe. His daughter Shri, was married to none other than Lord Vishnu (Narayana). Maharshi Bhrigu had accomplished many Yagyas and had helped others to accomplish them. With his powers, he fulfilled the wishes of people for begetting sons. During the two months of Shravana and Bhadrapaksha, he made the chariot of the Sun God as his abode. We get this description in all the Puranas.
A famous incident in his life has been described below:
Once, sages from different places had gathered on the banks of the Saraswati river. A debate started among them as to who was the greatest among the three; Lord Brahma, Lord Vishnu or Lord Mahesh. When they were unable to come to any conclusion, they chose Bhrigu as their representative to personally test all the three deities and to decide as to who is the greatest. His first visit was at Lord Brahma's abode. Bhrigu neither bowed in reverence nor greeted Him. Brahma felt insulted but did not lose his temper. After that, Bhrigu went to 'Kailash Parvata' to meet Lord Shiva. Seeing Bhrigu approaching, Lord Shiva wanted to embrace him. But Bhrigu who wanted to test his greatness, replied sarcastically: "Since you don't follow the right course, I will not accept your respect and service". Hearing Bhrigu's words, Lord Shiva lost his temper and ran after him with his 'Trishula' (trident). At last Parvati intervened and requested Lord Shiva to spare Bhrigu. Ultimately, Bhrigu went to Vaikunthloka to see Lord Vishnu. Lord Vishnu was relaxing at that moment. Maharshi Bhrigu kicked Lord Vishnu on his chest. Lord Vishnu woke up as a result of the blow, bowed in reverence and said: "O Lord, be seated, I was not aware of your arrival, hence I could not welcome you. Forgive me! Your feet must be in pain as my chest is hard as 'Vajra' (mace)". Saying this, Lord Vishnu started pressing his legs and further said: "O Brahmin, you have been most gracious to me, as the soil of your feet would remain on my chest forever." After his return, Bhrigu narrated the whole story to the assembly of the sages. Everyone concluded that it was Lord Vishnu who was the greatest among the trinity and only He is entitled to be worshipped by devotees as He loves virtuosity.