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A rishi (Sanskrit ऋषि: ṛṣi)(lit. seer) is a Hindu "saint" or "sage" and in its most strict canonical sense denotes 'a Vedic sage, to whom Vedic hymns were originally revealed' (also called kavi, meaning "poet").

Etymology

Traditionally, this word has been derived from the root 'rsh' which is actually not one but two separate verbs in Sanskrit grammar. All traditional Sanskrit grammarians (cf. Commentary on Un�di-Sutra, iv, 119) derive this word from the second root which means (1) 'to go, move' (- Dhatup�th of P�nini,xxviii). V. S. Apte V. S. Apte (Sanskrit-Hindi Kosh, 1890, reprint 1997 by Motil�l Ban�rasid�s Publishers Pvt Ltd, Bungalow Road, Jaw�har Nagar, Delhi-7) gives this particular meaning and derivation, and Monier-Williamscf.Monier-Williams's SED, p.226 also gives the same, with some qualification.

Another form of this root means (2) 'to flow, to move near by flowing', which seems to be related to the first meaning. Secondary meanings are (3) 'to push, thrust', or (4) to kill, which are not related to rishi. All the meanings and derivations cited above are based upon Sanskrit English Dictionary of Monier-Williamscf. Monier-Williams's SED, p.226 .

Monier-Williams quotes T�r�n�tha who compiled the world's greatest (Sanskrit-to-Sanskrit) dictionary named V�chaspatyam: "rishati jn�nena sams�ra-p�ram" (i.e., one who reaches beyond this mundane world by means of spiritual knowledge). Monier-Williams also conjectures that the root 'drish' (to see) might have given rise to an obsolete root 'rish' meaning 'to see', although no Sanskrit grammarian including P�nini supported such a meaning.

This word's PIE (Proto Indo-European) etymology is unknown. It has an Avestan cognate É™rəšiÅ¡ (Yasna 31.5) "an ecstatic" (see also Yurodivy, Vates). Monier-Williams tentatively suggests derivation from drÅ› "to see"[1]. A suggestion referenced by Julius Pokorny connects the word to a PIE root *h₃er-s meaning "rise, protrude", in the sense of "excellent, egregious". Manfred Mayrhofer in his Etymological Dictionary prefers a connection to either ṛṣ "pour, flow" (PIE *h₁ers), or to ras "yell".

Monier-Williams quotes Hebrew form 'arsan' (a sage, a man old in wisdom) and 'arrach' (old, ancient, aged) as related to rishi. Since Hebrew is a non-IE language, the meaning 'sage' may be supposed to be the most archaic meaning of the unknown PIE etymon of rishi. In Sanskrit, forms of root 'rish' become 'arsh-' in many words, e.g., arsh. Vedic, Avestic, Hebrew etc ., show rish- or arsh- in the root, hence the PIE etymon was certainly very near to these forms structurally, and PIE meaning must have contained the meaning 'sage' as well.

Seer of the Vedas

In the Vedas, the word denotes a singer of sacred hymns, an inspired poet or sage, or any person who alone or with others invokes the deities in rhythmical speech or song of a sacred character. In particular, it refers to the authors of the hymns of the Rigveda. Later generations regarded the Rishis as patriarchal sages or saints, occupying the same position in India history as the heroes and patriarchs of other countries, constituting a peculiar class of beings in the early mythical system, as distinct from Asuras, Devas and mere mortal men. The patriarchical structure is evident in the gotra names of Vedic sages as well. But in later period, we have two different sets of patriarchical saptarshis (Sapta-rishis or seven rishis)( cf. Mah�bh�rata-xii)Cf. D. D. Kosambi.

The main rishis recorded in the Rigveda-Anukramanis include Gritsamada, Vishvamitra, Vamadeva, Atri, Angiras, Bharadvaja, Vasishta, Agastya.

Seven Rishis (the Saptarshi) are often mentioned in the Brahmanas and later works as typical representatives of the character and spirit of the pre-historic or mythical period; in Shatapatha Brahmana 14.5.2.6, their names are Gautama, Bharadvaja, Vishvamitra, Jamadagni, Vasishtha, Kashyapa, and Atri. In Mahabharata 12, on the other hand, Marici, Atri, Angiras, Pulaha, Kratu, Pulastya and Vasishtha. The Mah�bh�rata list explicitly refers to the saptarshis of the first manvantara(cf. SED by Monier-Williams) and not to those of the

resent manvantara. It implies that each manvantara had a unique set of saptarshi. In Harivamsha-417-ff,names of Rishis of each manvantara is enumerated. Daksha,Bhrigu and NÄ�rada were also added to saptarshis in the list of patriarchical riá¹£is in Ä€shvalÄ�yana-Shrauta-Sutra, these ten being principal patriarchs created by the first Manu (SvÄ�yambhuva Manu) for producing everyone else. In addition to the Saptará¹£i, there are other classifications of sages. In descending order of precedence, they are Brahmarshi , Maharshi, Rajarshi. Devará¹£i, Paramrá¹£i, Shrutará¹£i and Kvndará¹£i are added in Manusmriti iv-94 and xi-236 and in two dramas of KÄ�lidasa. Chaturvarga-ChintÄ�mani of HemÄ�dri puts 'riá¹£i' at the seventh place in the eight-fold division of BrÄ�hmanas. Amarkosha Cf. Amarkosha (2.7.41-42) (a famous Sanskrit lexicon compiled by a colleague of KÄ�lidasa named Amarsimha at the court of VikramÄ�ditya Chandragupta according to tradition) mentions seven types of riá¹£is : Shrutarshi, KÄ�ndarshi, Paramarshi, Maharshi, RÄ�jarshi, Brahmarshi and Devarshi. Amarkosha strictly distinguishes Rishi from other types of sages, such as sanyÄ�si, bhiká¹£u, parivrÄ�jaka, tapasvi, muni, brahmachÄ�ri, yati,etc, and gives only one synonym for 'riá¹£i': satyavachÄ�h (one who speaks truth). Other sages might falter, but a riá¹£i was believed to speak truth only, because he had reached the Higher World (of Truth, of God) according to the Sanskrit etymology of the term 'riá¹£i'.

In Hindu astronomy, the Saptará¹£i form the constellation of Ursa Major (e. g. RV 10.82.2 and 10.109.4 ; AV 60.40.1.), which are distinct from Dhruva (Polaris).

Notes

References

• Apte, Vaman Shivram (1965), The Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary (Fourth Revised and Enlarged ed.), New Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 81-208-0567-4.
• Apte, Vaman Shivram (1966), Sanskrit-Hindi Koá¹£a (Reprint 1997 ed.), New Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.
• Monier-Williams, Monier (1899), A Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, <http://www.ibiblio.org/sripedia/ebooks/mw/>.
• ÅšÄ�stri, Hargovinda (1978), Amarkoá¹£a with Hindi commentary, VÄ�rÄ�nasi: ChowkhambÄ� Sanskrit Series Office
• Kosambi, D. D. (1956), An Introduction to the Study of Indian History (Second ed.), Bombay: Popular Prakashan Pvt Ltd,35c Tardeo Road,Popular Press Bldg,Bombay-400034

See also

• Apaurusheyatva
• Vedas
• Hindu sages

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia