Divine Beings
Gautama
गौतम
The Ascetic of Rigid Vows
Who was Gautama?
Gautama (गौतम): The Ascetic of Rigid Vows, one of the divine beings in the Mahabharata. One of the primeval Rishis who went with Brihaspati and Bharadwaja to ask the Grandsire what the world is made of, and the preceptor who held his disciple Utanka so long that a hundred years passed before a white hair told the pupil he had grown old.
Quick Facts
| Sanskrit name | गौतम |
|---|---|
| Title / Epithet | The Ascetic of Rigid Vows |
| Faction | Divine Beings |
| Key traits | Compassionate, Stubborn, Austere, Discerning |
| Notable relationships | Wife: Ahalya, Disciple: Utanka, Tester & Adversary: Indra |
| Featured in | 7 stories |
About Gautama
One of the primeval Rishis who went with Brihaspati and Bharadwaja to ask the Grandsire what the world is made of, and the preceptor who held his disciple Utanka so long that a hundred years passed before a white hair told the pupil he had grown old. He is best remembered for the orphaned elephant calf he raised as a son: when Indra in a king's shape dragged it away, Gautama refused cows, gold and gems and argued the god through every region of the afterlife until he was recognised.
In Their Words
Keep your kine and your gold. What have Brahmanas to do with wealth? Give me back my son.
Gautama
Traits
- Compassionate
- Stubborn
- Austere
- Discerning
Story Appearances
Stories Featuring Gautama
5 further tales on this site name Gautama, in canonical reading order.
- The Twins in the HeathIndra's dancer, a sage's dropped bow, and the children a king carried home
- The Ones Who Would Not Turn BackThe city walks out with its kings, and a sage answers the weeping
- The Princes the Earth HidWhat was left of the Kshatriyas after the axe
- The Wind Answers the Thousand-Armed KingKartavirya boasts, and an invisible voice begins to argue
- The Eight Who Questioned BrahmaThe ladder from the Unmanifest down to a body
Character Arc
- The CalfNurses a motherless elephant until it grows huge
- The ArgumentFollows the thief through heaven after heaven
- The RecognitionSees the god beneath the borrowed crown
Key Relationships
Places in Gautama's Story
Drawn from the stories Gautama appears in.
Related Characters
Others counted among the Divine Beings.