Vashishta, one of the Saptarishis and a manasputra of God Brahma, was blessed with the divine cow Kamadhenu and her offspring Nandini, who could fulfill any wish for their owners. His wife is known as Arundhati, and according to Mandala 7 of the Rigveda, Vashishta is one of the nine Prajapatis. In RV 7.33, praises are sung for Vashishta and his family for their role in the Battle of the Ten Kings. This makes him the only mortal besides Bhava to have a Rigvedic hymn dedicated to him. Additionally, he is credited with writing “Vashista Samhita,” a book on Vedic electional astrology. Several stories and folktales featuring Vashishta will be briefly discussed below.
In the Ramayana, Vashista is portrayed as Dasharatha’s court sage. He was the respected Rajpurohit of the Ikshwaku dynasty and Ram’s guru, known for his values of peace, charity, and intelligence. Vashistha had established a residential college on the banks of the Beas River, where he and his wife Arundhati taught thousands of students. Considered the Sadguru of his time, he possessed vast knowledge of gods and the universe as well as twenty “kala’s,” or divine arts. His teachings can be found in many Shlokas in the Vedas. In one instance, Vashistha called upon Kamadhenu (also known as Sabala), the cow of abundance, to provide food for a feast. This cow was Nandini, daughter of Kamadhenu, who could instantly produce enough food for an entire army. When King Kaushika (later Vishwamitra) visited Vashistha’s hermitage, he was amazed by Nandini’s power and tried to take her away by force. However, her spiritual strength proved too great for him to overcome.
