Vasishtha

In Hindu mythology, one of the Seven
Sages whose names mark exogamous
clan “lineages” (gotra; in exogamous
groups members must marry outside
the group); the others are Gautama,
Bharadvaja, Kashyapa, Bhrgu, Atri, and
Vishvamitra. All brahmins are believed
to be descended from these seven sages,
with each family taking the name of its
progenitor as its gotra name. In modern
times, these gotra divisions are still
important, since marriage within the
gotra is forbidden. After her marriage,
the new bride adopts her husband’s
gotra as part of her new identity.
In the Ramayana, the earlier of the
two great Hindu epics, Vasishtha is a
very powerful sage who is the guru to
the kings of the Solar dynasty, including
King Dasharatha and his son, Rama.
Vasishtha is also famous for his longstanding feud with the sage
Vishvamitra, which causes numerous
confrontations. The feud’s genesis is
ultimately rooted in the difference in
status between kshatriyas and brahmins. Vishvamitra is a king who stops
with a host of retainers at the forest
ashram of the brahmin Vasishtha. Upon
asking for food, Vishvamitra is amazed
at the ability of Vasishtha’s cow, the
Kamadhenu, to provide food for everyone. Vishvamitra first tries to buy the
Kamadhenu, then tries to take it by
force, but his minions are defeated by
the magic powers generated by
Vasishtha’s tapas (ascetic practices).
Vishvamitra finally admits defeat and
begins to do ascetic practices to generate power of his own. Two of their
most celebrated clashes are over King
Trishanku and his son, Harishchandra;
in each case the real issue is the mutual
antipathy of these two sages. See also
marriage prohibitions.