Arundhati

Quick Facts

About Arundhati

Wife of Vasishtha and the epic's standing measure of a devoted wife. Left behind at Vadarapachana when the seven rishis went to Himavat, she cooked jujubes for a disguised Mahadeva through a twelve-year drought without eating, and the god declared her merit greater than all their gathered penances.

In Their Words

I stand always at my husband's side and hold the earth jointly with him.

Arundhati

Traits

• Chaste
• Patient
• Devoted
• Blessed

Story Appearances

• The Maiden Who Cooked the JujubesThe wife whose twelve-year fast made the tirtha
• The Theft of the Lotus StalksOne of the party questioned by Yatudhani

Stories Featuring Arundhati

7 further tales on this site name Arundhati, in canonical reading order.

• Kunti's BlessingA mother-in-law names seven wives, a throne nobody owns yet, and a son not yet bornAdi Parva ‧ 12 min
• Swaha and the Six DisguisesThe wives who were punished for a child that was never theirsVana Parva ‧ 20 min
• Sakamvari and the Ford of GoldThe goddess who fed the sages on herbs, and the tirtha where Vishnu knelt to RudraVana Parva ‧ 21 min
• Garuda's Map of the WorldThe four directions described from a bird's backUdyoga Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Signs Before the WarWhat Vyasa saw in the sky, the cattle and the birth-roomsBhishma Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Lords of the Waters and the TreasuresBalarama walks the Sarasvati past the fords where Varuna, Kubera, Indra and Surya won what they holdShalya Parva ‧ 18 min
• The Mysteries of Religion, Part TwoLomasa, Arundhati, the night-wanderers and the elephants of the quarters give up the last of their secretsAnushasana Parva ‧ 18 min

Character Arc

1. 1The Long CookingTwelve years pass like a single day over the jujubes
2. 2The BoonShe asks that the spot become a tirtha rather than anything for herself
3. 3The NameShe explains that she is called Arundhati because she obstructs nothing

Key Relationships

• Wife➝Vashishtha
• Blessed by➝Shiva
• Companion➝Atri

Places in Arundhati's Story

Drawn from the stories Arundhati appears in.

• Hastinapurहस्तिनापुर
• Kurukshetraकुरुक्षेत्र
• The Oceanसमुद्र
• Badarikashramaबदरिकाश्रम
• Mount Kailasaकैलास
• Himavatहिमवत्
• Vaitaraniवैतरणी
• Mount Mandaraमन्दर पर्वत
• Kamyaka Forestकाम्यक वन
• Forest Hermitageवन आश्रम
• Saraswatiसरस्वती
• Alakaअलका

Related Characters

Others counted among the Sages & Others.

• ✦Sage Kanva
• ◎Eklavya
• ★Shukracharya
• ♛Vrishaparva
• ♛Yadu
• ✧Princess Amba