Encyclopedia for Epics of Ancient India A - B - C - D - E - G - H - I - J - K - L - M - N - P - R - S - T - U - V - Y

Bharadvaja

BHARADVAJA. [Source: Dowson's Classical Dictionary of Hindu Mythology] A Rishi to whom many Vedic hymns are attributed. He was the son of Brihaspati and father of Drona, the preceptor of the Pandavas. The Taittiriya Brahmana says that "he lived through three lives" (Probably meaning a life of great length), and that " he became immortal and ascended to the heavenly world, to union with the sun."

In the Mahabharata he is represented as living at Hardwar; in the Ramayana he received. Rama and Sita in his hermitage at Prayaga, which was then and afterwards much celebrated.

According to some of the Puranas and the Harivansa, he became by gift or adoption the son of King Bharata, and an absurd story is told about his birth to account for his name: His mother, the wife of Utathya, was pregnant by her husband and by Brihaspati, Dirghatamas, the son by her husband, kicked his half-brother out of the womb before his time, when Brihaspati said to his mother, `Bharadwajam,' `Cherish this child of two fathers.'

Modern Languages MLLL-4993. Indian Epics. Laura Gibbs, Ph.D. The textual material made available at this website is licensed under a Creative Commons License. You must give the original author credit. You may not use this work for commercial purposes. If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under a license identical to this one. No claims are made regarding the status of images used at this website; if you own the copyright privileges to any of these images and believe your copyright privileges have been violated, please contact the webmaster. Page last updated: October 16, 2007 12:22 PM