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SAGE ANGIRAS
Angiras
is one of the Saptarishis or Seven Great Sages of the first Manvantara. The
sage Bharadwaja is from his lineage. The people in the lineage use Angirasa or
Angir as their last name.
Along
with sage Atharvan, Augirasa composed most of the Atharva Veda. He is also the
author of several hymns of the Rig Veda too. The hymns of the Atharvaveda are
called Angirasas. The decendents of Angiras are said to be responsible for the
sacrifices performed as per the instructions given in the Atharvaveda.
Through
his tapas, Rishi Angiras came to be known as Angira meaning to “shining like
fire.” It comes from the same root as Agni, for which deity the name is used as
an epithet. Agni in time takes over Varuna’s role as the King of Pitris or fathers.
Agni here is the son of Angiras, one of the seven Rishis as well as one of the
ten Prajapati or progenitors of mankind. Angiras is supposed to have been
associated with Bhrigu in introducing fire worship or Yagna. Buddhist texts
refer to Lord Buddha to be the descendent of Angiras. According to Vinaya
Pitaka Buddha pays respects to Angiras along with other Saptarishis whom he
considered to represent the pure Vedas. According to Satapatha Brahmana, the
Angirasas and the Adityas are said to have descended from Prajapati and that
they strove together for the priority in ascending to heaven. He is said to be
the religious preceptor of the natives of different planets.
Birth
and Parentage (Different Versions)
Here
are the different versions of Angirasa’s origin or birth
Ø He is one
of the ten Manasaputras of Lord Brahma.
Ø He is
born of the semen of Lord Brahma gave to the cinder of fire.
Ø Agneya,
the daughter of Agni and Agnayi is considered to be the mother of Angiras.
Ø Another
version says that he was born from the mouth of Brahma.
Ø He is the
son of Maharsi Angira and is known as Brhaspati, the priest of the demigods.
Ø In
another place it is said that Angirasa Munis father was Ulmuka and mother
Puskarani and is the Grandchild of Chaksusa Manu and Nadvala.
Ø In the
Rigveda, Agni is sometimes referred to as Angiras or as a descendant of
Angiras.
In
the process of creation, Lord Brahma first created the Prajapatis and later
created another son from his intellect, a “Manasa putra” named Angirasa. He is
one of the ten Manasaputras of Lord Brahma. Brahma granted him great divine
glow (Tejas) enough to fill the three universes. Angirasa meditated for several
years and the Tejas he got by birth had multiplied infinitely. He attained many
divine qualities, powers and riches, and control over many worlds. But he was
oblivious of all the attainments and thus attained the state of “Brahmarshi.”
It
is said that he is still performing austerity and chanting the holy name of the
Lord at a place known as Alakananda on the bank of the Ganges.
FAMILY
Angirasa’s
wives were Svadha, Smriti (the daughter of Daksha), Sati, and Shraddha
(Daughter of Kardama Muni). Even King Marutta is said to have handed over his
only daughter in marriage to Sage Angirasa. Svadha was said to have accepted
all the Pitas as her sons and Sati accepted the Atharva-agirasa Veda as her
son. Shraddha bore him daughters who were named Sinivali, Kuhu, Raka and
Anumati; and two sons named Utathya and Brihaspati. Surupa bore him three sons:
Utathya, Samvartana and Brihaspati.
(I
wonder if they are the same people?)
“Symbolically,
Angiras’ daughters are the Pratyangirasa Richas, the thirty five verses
addressed to presiding divinities.”
List
of Angirasa’s Children
|
Sons
|
Daughters
|
|
Brihat
Keerti (Utadhya)
|
Bhanumati
|
|
Brihat
Jyoti (Samvarta)
|
Raka
|
|
Brihat
Brahma
|
Cinee
Vali
|
|
Brihan
Manas
|
Ekaneka
|
|
Brihan
Mantra
|
Archishamati
|
|
Brihat
Bhanu
|
Mahishmati
|
|
Brihaspati
|
Mahamati
|
Titbits:
According to a legend Rishi Angirasa’s son, Samvarta is still in his physical
body and living as a wandering naked monk in Varanasi as an enlightened soul He
acts like a lunatic and shuns the company of humans. He curses and throws
stones at people who try to see him. But if anybody perseveres and longs to see
him, he blesses them with liberation
STORIES
OF SAGE ANGIRASA
Rathirtara
In
Bhagavata Purana, Rathirtara, a kshatriya was childless. King Ambarisha had
three sons, named Virupa, Ketuman, and Sambhu. The son of Virupa was
Prasadasva, and his son was Rathitara. Rathitara had no sons, and therefore he
requested sage Angirasa to beget sons for him by impregnating his wife. As per
his request Angirasa begot sons from Rathitara’s wife. All these sons were born
with brahminical prowess. When the sons were born, they became the dynasty of
Angirasa Rishi and also of Rathitara. Because of this the Puranas hold that the
Angirasas were of two tribes, one coming from Angiras line and another through
the Kshtriya woman.
Choladevi
There
is this story of Queen Choladevi, whose husband was blessed by Goddess Lakshmi.
The queen did not recognize the goddess when she came to her in disguise and
for that reason the queen was cursed and was given the head of a sow (Female
boar). She sought refuge of sage Angiras, who taught her the secret of the
Mahalakshmi vrata, through which she restored to her mortal form. The story
emphasizes the importance of tantric worship.
Saunaka
Mundaka
Upanishad talks about a householder by the name Saunaka who on his way home
with firewood has a encounter with Sage Angirasa whom approaches reverentially
and questions him about the secret of the whole universe. Sage Angirasa goes on
to explain to him the two different kinds of knowledge:
The
lower knowledge he states are the sciences, hymns, rituals, grammar, poetry
astrology etc.
The
higher knowledge is that which leads a man to that which never dies. The
Indestructible.
He
explains with the story of two birds who are sitting on the tree. One seems
satisfied sitting on the lower branch and other choses to be on the higher one.
The
bird on the lower branch enjoys the fruits that are easily accessible while the
bird sitting on the higher branch just watches it. In time the bird on the
lower branch gets frustrated of everything and feels low, and he looks up o the
bird on the top branch that seems calm and at peace. Thus he goes to the higher
branch and realizes that the bird is just true to himself. Knowing relieves him
of his grief and he realizes that the Self was real, and ego only creates
problems.
King
Chitraketu
There
once lived a King named Chitraketu who had many wives but none of them bore him
a child. One day Rishi Angirasa visited him. The King welcomed him and honored
him. Seeing that the King was very unhappy, Angiraa Rishi asked him the reason
of his unhappiness. He told him of his problem of being childless. The sage
foresees that the king was not destined for a child. The kings requests and
beseeches the sage to help him get a child, a son in particular.
The
sage tried to convince him that no one can be really happy in this world just
by having a son or daughter, a wife or wealth; and age will catch up one day
and at death one goes away with nothing. He further explained that surrendering
to the Lord is the only way to true happiness.
But
the King had only one thing on his mind, a son. The sage finally relented, but
he forewarned of the king and told him he will be the cause happiness and
distress too. So he blessed the sweet rice and asked the king to give it to one
of his wives. He gave it to his eldest and most beautiful wife, named Kritdyuti
and soon a beautiful son was born to them.
When
the prince was five years old, the other Queens started to feel jealous,
because they felt that since the birth of the son, the King did not care for them
as much. They conspired to do away with the prince.
Queen
Kritdyuti thought that her son was in deep sleep, she was unaware that he was
dead, killed by the jealous queens. When she sent the nurse to fetch the prince
and the nurse realized that the prince was dead. She wailed in lamentation and
hearing her, the queen immediately came and saw her dead son. The queen fell to
the ground unconscious. Everyone grieved and cried, and also the queens shed
crocodile tears.
King
Chitraketu was totally devastated by the news and behaved like a mad man. The
couple were inconsolable. Around that time Sage Angirasa entered with Sage
Narada and kept asking everyone as to what the matter was. Nobody really paid
attention to them, they were totally lost and engrossed in their grief. Finally
he got the answer from someone.
Angiraa
Rishi told the king and others present there that all those who are born will
have to die one day. This is the circle of life. And he tried to console him,
and Sage Narada initiated him to Vedic Mantra. Sage Narada by the poweress in
him brought back the departed soul and asked the soul to speak. The dead soul
explained that once dead the soul has no connection to the body and explained
the philosophy to the King and the King was enlightened and was able to break
away from the mirage of reality and bondage.
|
Vala Asura
|
It
is said that, in the beginning of time, Maharishi Angiras, at the order of the
Sanat kumaras, built the cave in Kailash mountains which was later chosen by
Lord Shiva as his residence.
In
the Rigveda, Indra releases the cows that were imprisoned by a demon (Vala) or
in some version, multiple demons (the Panis) and gifts them to the Angirasas.
Demigod
Vidyadhara was very proud of his looks and taunted at the ugly features of the
great sage Angira. He was cursed by the great sage for his pride to assume the
form of a serpent. But this curse turned out to be a blessing for Vidhyadhara.
As he tells the Lord that had he not assumed the body of a serpent and he would
not have been kicked by Krishna and thus freed from the materialistic world.
Once
he is also said to have cursed Indra, who turned into a hog on the earth. Such
is the power of the attraction of Maya that Indra was unwilling to return to
heaven. Even a hog does not wish to part with its earthly possessions.
THE
ANGIRASAS
When
we look through the scriptures we often come across the names Angira or
Angirasa. Looks like the names Angirasas were applied generically to several
individuals. Angirasa quite often is referred to as Brihaspati, guru of the
Devas. The Angirasa rishi(s) are often known as the ones who discovered the
light and made the sun shine. The Angirasas were not merely the human fathers
but are also portrayed as heavenly seers, sons of the gods, sons of heaven and
heroes etc. Sometimes they often sound symbolic. They are sometimes portrayed
as the sons of Agni, as its different forms and powers. It often times appears
as the name of Agni himself, while Indra is said to become Angirasa, Brihaspati
is also called Angiras or Angirasa, and not to forget even Ashwins were
addressed collectively as Angirasa. It is also said that Angiras was the name
of a son of Agneya, Agni’s daughter. Angiras is also used in the Veda as an
epithet in connection with Dawn and Cows. Probably the Angirasa Rishis are the
flame-powers of Agni and the Bhrigus the solar powers of Surya. Angirasa in the
Veda is not merely a name of a certain person or family, but also as word with
deeper meaning and symbolism. In short these Rishis have become symbols of
spiritual experiences.
Angirasa,
was also regarded as one of the original sages and the discovery of Agni, the
sacred fire, is attributed to him. But elsewhere it is attributed to Bhrigu.
The Angirasa are powers of Agni who share manifold function. It would almost
seem that Agni himself is the sage, the most luminous of the Angirasas. On the
other hand, the description seems to be more appropriate to Brihaspati.
According
to some myths, the Angiris (or Angiras) are a group of celestial beings who are
descendants of the Fire God Agni and the Goddess Agneya, and responsible for
watching over humans performing Yagna (sacrifices) and protecting the
sacrificial fires.
ATHARVA
Atharva
means a purohita or a priest.
Atharvan
was a legendary Vedic sage who along with Angiras authored the Atharvaveda. He
is also said to have first instituted the fire-sacrifice or yagna. Sometimes he
is also known to be one of the Saptarishi. His decendents are known as the
Atharvanas. Atharva married Chitti (Shanti) daughter of Kardama rishi and to
him was born the great sage Dadhichi. He was referred to as a member of the
Bhrigu clan.
According
to Mundaka Upnisad etc, he was also the Manasputra of Brahma, his eldest son.
It is said that Brahma, the creator of the universe, and the protector of the
worlds, spoke knowledge of the Supreme, the first of all kinds of knowledge, to
his eldest son, Atharva. Vedic Atharvan is sometimes associated with an Avestan
priest. Atharvan means fire priest, and still a common name in India and Iran.
Atharvan is the person (man) who discovered the fire. Viswamitra read about it
and in the Rig Veda and he introduced the Adhimantha (rubbing Arani sticks
together) to start the Yagna fire.
Atharvaveda
contains mantras, a mixture of prose and poetry, by which one can ward off ill
energies and can be assured about the destruction of one’s enemies. It has
references to deities not mentioned in the other vedic literature and has
mantras addressed to fierce spirits. Today known to us today as “mantrikam.”
ANGIRAS
AND BHRIGUS
Angirasas
were excellent poets and maintained high idealism, soaring beyond human
aspirations with an intense desire to go beyond human limitations. The
Angirasas adopted the yajna and soma practices from the Bhrigus. The Angirasas
compiled their almanac with reference to star bearing the name of their
preceptor Brihaspathi. Bhrigus were known as the Atharvanas—the high priests
who worship fire.
Angarisas
personified the gods and lend them a form. This created a disagreement with the
Bhrigus and that started a rift between the two groups. The Bhrigus on the west
of the Sindhu asserted their method of worship was ideal and right and their
gods were more ancient. On the other side Angirasas believed that the younger gods
were more dynamic, powerful, and more responsive to prayers. Each group tended
to look down on the other. The parting of Sages Bhrigu and Angirasa ways came
about mainly because of the stand each took on issues such as: monotheism,
worship of God through formless medium, use of icons in worship, and above all,
on the question of the status to be accorded to the old god Varuna.
Bhrigu
was the son of Varuna and in the early Vedic age Varuna was a revered God, but
later on the treatment meted out to him, the watering down the laws of Varuna
offended the Bhrigu clan greatly. As a result of this rift the Atharva Veda,
which was also known as the Bhrigu-Angirasa Samhita, was split into two books:
the Bhargava Veda (the Veda of the Bhrigus) and Angirasa Veda (the Veda of the
Angirasa). What we have in hand today in India of the Atharva Veda is the
Angirasa Veda, which in fact is only the one-half of the original text. The
other half the Bhargava Veda is lost.
Here
I have to add a new knowledge that came to me while reading about the
Angirasas.
ZARATHUSTRA
OR ZOROASTER
The
traditions of Iran believe that Ratu (Rishi) Zarathustra descended from a long
line of sage-kings (Raja-rishi). Zoroaster was born into the priestly family of
the Spitamids, and his ancestor Spitama is mentioned several times in the
Gathas. His father’s name was Poroschasp, a noble man, and his mother’s was
Dughdova. With his wife, Huvovi he had three sons, Isat Vastar, Uruvat-Nara,
and Hvare Ciϑra; three daughters, Freni, Pourucista,
and Triti. He was enlightened by Ahura Mazda at the age of 30 years. He
probably lived in north-east of Iran or northern Afghanistan sometime between
1700 and 1300 BCE.
Zarathustra
was not only a great prophet but was also a great reformer. He did not discard
or ignore the Vedic religion, instead he brought in reforms and lent it a
definite sense of direction. In a way, the religion of Zarathustra is closer to
the Vedic religion than is the Buddhism. Ahura Mazda became widely accepted in
preference to the earlier name of Varuna.
In
the Gathas, Zoroaster sees the human condition as the mental struggle between
aša (truth) and druj (lie). The Gathas contain allusions to personal events,
triumph over obstacles, marriage of his daughter and so on. In the texts of the
Younger Avesta (composed many centuries after the Gathas), Zoroaster is
depicted wrestling with the daevas and is tempted by Angra Mainyu to renounce
his thinking.
There
was a decisive split between the Aryan-Vedic peoples of northern India and the
Aryan-Avestan peoples of Iran, seen in both the Avesta and the Rig Veda.
Ahura
Mazda is the Avestan name for the creator and sole God of Zoroastrianism, the
old Iranian religion predating Islam. The literal meaning of the word Ahura is
light and Mazda is wisdom. Zoroastrianism revolves around three basic
tenets—Good Thoughts, Good Words and Good Deeds.
The
Zend Avesta, some claim is indeed the Bhargava Veda which is the missing Book
of the Bhrigu-Angirasa Samhita. J. M. Chatterji observes that the language of
the Avesta and the language of the Vedas are so close that we cannot ignore,
and it probably shared common linguistic foundation. Here are a few examples.
|
The
Sanskrit terms
|
The
Avesta equivalent
|
|
aham
(‘I’)
|
ajem
|
|
jihva
(tongue)
|
hijva
|
|
sapta
(seven)
|
hapta
|
|
hima
(snow)
|
zyma
|
|
yajna
(sacrifice ritual)
|
yasna
|
In
addition we have the following few other examples
·
The
Avestan term Spitatama = shukla meaning white associated with Bhrigu
·
Vahishta
in the Avesta: Vahishtem Thwa Vahishta yem;
·
Zoatar
is hotar = priest officiating at the yajna
·
Atharvan
meaning fire priest
Zarathustra
was a Vedic sage in the line of Bhrigu and Vashista; and the Gathas resemble in
tenor and spirit the forceful hymns sung in praise of Varuna by sage Vashista
in the Atharva Veda. HD Griswold, in his book The Religion of the Rig Veda,
points out that each can be said to be a commentary on the other and Avesta
cannot be studied without some basic Sanskrit.
Bloomfield
in his Hymns of the Atharva-Veda declared: “It seems to me an almost unimaginable
feat of skepticism to doubt the original identity of Varuna and Mazda.” Nichol
Manicol also observed that “the evidence that identifies Varuna with Mazda is
too strong to be rejected.”
Scholars
such as Christian Bartholomae and Arthur Emanuel Christensen noted that the
linguistic aspect of the old Avestan language of the Gathas (which are
attributed to the founder himself) was very close to the Sanskrit of the
Rigveda, proving the date to be 2nd century BCE. Therefore, we can conclude
that the Gathas and Rigveda belong to the same Era. The linguist, Professor T.
Burrow of Oxford University found strong similarities between language of
Avesta and Vedic Sanskrit.
“The
coincidence between the Avesta and the Rig-Veda is so striking that the two languages
cannot have been long separated before they arrived at their present
condition.” (Cambridge History of India)
This
was the twist I did not expect. When I started on Sage Angirasa and Atharva, I
was not sure as to how to go about it as I hardly knew anything about them
except a couple of names that appear to recur. Never in my wildest thought did
I imagine Zoroaster as being part of the vedic religion. I was quite surprised
and was happy to learn a bit more than what I knew.
Guruji. A. Sivaguru Swamy
Whatsapp Skype IMO 9963334337 Facetime 9346346956
Skype – sivaguruswamy29
45/2, Opp.Railway Station, Sirkali Tq, Vaitheeswaran Koil,
Naagai Dist, Tamilnadu–609 117
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