Vashishtha

Quick Facts

About Vashishtha

One of the greatest of rishis, keeper of the wish-granting cow Nandini. His curse upon the eight Vasus for stealing her doomed them to mortal birth - the eighth becoming Bhishma.

In Their Words

For the theft of Nandini, be born among men - and you who led, remain longest.

Vashishtha

Traits

• serene
• mighty in austerity
• just

Story Appearances

• Shantanu and the River GoddessThe curse behind Bhishma's birth❧ 24 min

Stories Featuring Vashishtha

36 further tales on this site name Vashishtha, in canonical reading order.

• The King Who Became a SageVishvamitra's Long AscentAdi Parva ‧ 10 min
• The Apsara Sent to Break a SageMenaka's fear, and the child left on the MaliniAdi Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Widow at the FireA curse spoken before the flames took her, and the heir it forcedAdi Parva ‧ 17 min
• Ganga Beyond the RiverThe mother who shaped BhishmaAdi Parva
• The Curse of the Eight VasusHeaven's theft, earth's long sentenceAdi Parva
• The Sacrifice That Was StoppedA son's fire, put out by the men it was lit forAdi Parva
• The King Who Hung Between WorldsTrishanku and the New HeavenVana Parva ‧ 10 min
• The Court of Sages at the Dvaita LakeAn exile that filled up with brahmanas instead of soldiersVana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Queen Who Put God on TrialA bird on a string, and a child breaking its toysVana Parva ‧ 18 min
• Damayanti Alone in the ForestHalf a garment, a hunter, and a road out through strangersVana Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Map of the WorldsA priest naming the four quarters of the cosmos from a mountain shoulderVana Parva ‧ 17 min
• Devasena and the Husband Not Yet BornA rescue on the Manasa hills and a promise the gods had to invent someone to keepVana Parva ‧ 16 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 River With Seven NamesWherever she was called, she cameShalya Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Pupil Who Could Not LearnYears in a teacher's house, and nothing to show for themShalya Parva ‧ 19 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
• Saraswati, the Vanishing RiverThe river of sages that hides in the sandShalya Parva
• The Day the Rod VanishedWhat happened to the world when Chastisement disappearedShanti Parva ‧ 20 min
• The Rishi Born From a WordVyasa tells his disciples who he was before he was VyasaShanti Parva ‧ 16 min
• Does Consciousness SurviveYudhishthira asks whether anyone is left awake in the emancipate state, and Bhishma answers out of the Sankhya of KapilaShanti Parva ‧ 22 min
• Vasishtha and Karala JanakaThe count of what a person is made ofShanti Parva
• The Three Born of the FireBhrigu, Angiras and Kavi rise from a libation, and three gods claim themAnushasana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Savitri Mantra of SalutationsBhishma gives Yudhishthira the roll of names to be said at dawnAnushasana Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Names That Cleanse SinAsked what destroys sin, Bhishma answers with a litany of gods, rivers, mountains, sages and kingsAnushasana Parva ‧ 15 min
• The Three Sages Who Saved the GodsAgastya burns the Danavas, Vashishtha brings down the Sarayu, and Atri becomes the moon and the sunAnushasana Parva ‧ 13 min
• The Mysteries of Religion, Part OneThe deities, the Pitris and the Rishis each give up a duty whose reason is secretAnushasana Parva ‧ 24 min
• The Two Bowls of RiceHow a mother's swap made a brahmana of one line and a warrior of the otherAnushasana Parva ‧ 17 min
• The Wind Answers the Thousand-Armed KingKartavirya boasts, and an invisible voice begins to argueAnushasana Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Theft of the Lotus StalksSeven Sages, a King's Gold, and an Oath That Blessed the ThiefAnushasana Parva
• The Battle No One Else Can FightKrishna names the enemies still living in Yudhishthira's fleshAshvamedhika Parva ‧ 16 min
• The Fires Inside the BodyA wife asks what her husband's stillness is worthAshvamedhika Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Eight Who Questioned BrahmaThe ladder from the Unmanifest down to a bodyAshvamedhika Parva ‧ 21 min
• The Earrings of MadayantiA pupil grown old, and a bargain with a man-eating kingAshvamedhika Parva ‧ 19 min

Places in Vashishtha's Story

Drawn from the stories Vashishtha appears in.

• Hastinapurहस्तिनापुर
• Banks of the Gangaगङ्गा तट
• Naimisharanyaनैमिषारण्य
• Himavatहिमवत्
• Kosalaकोसल
• Hermitage of Vashishthaवशिष्ठ आश्रम
• Videha (Mithila)विदेह
• Saraswatiसरस्वती
• Vinashanaविनशन
• Kurukshetraकुरुक्षेत्र
• Forest Hermitageवन आश्रम
• Amaravatiअमरावती

Related Characters

Others counted among the Sages & Others.

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