Kashyapa
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Kashyapa (
Kashyapa is an ancient name, referring to many different personalities in the ancient Hindu and Buddhist texts.[3][4] The region of Kashmir in india is derived from him,[note 1] as well as numerous other Sanskrit texts and Indian scriptures.[7][8]
Name
Kashyapa means "turtle" in Sanskrit.[9] According to Michael Witzel, it is related to Avestan kasiiapa, Sogdian kyšph, Kurdish kûsî, New Persian kašaf, kaš(a)p which mean "tortoise", after which Kashaf Rūd or a river in Turkmenistan and Khorasan is named.[10] Other relations include to Tokarian B kaccāp ("brainpan"), Tokarian A kāccap ("turtle", "tortoise").[11] Frits Staal agrees that Kaśyapa means tortoise but believes that it is a non-Indo-European word.[12]
History
Kashyapa is credited with composing a few hymns in the Rigveda, mainly in Mandala IX. He and his family of students are mainly composers of hymns for Soma Pavamāna ("self-purifying Soma"), which represents a single moment in the Soma sacrifice.[13][14]
He is mentioned in verse 2.2.4 of the
Kashyapa is mentioned in other Vedas and numerous other Vedic texts. For example, in one of several cosmology-related hymns of Atharvaveda (~1000 BCE), Kashyapa is mentioned in the allegory-filled Book XIX:
Undisturbed am I, undisturbed is my soul,
undisturbed mine eye, undisturbed mine ear,
undisturbed is mine in-breathing, undisturbed mine out-breathing,
undisturbed my diffusive breath, undisturbed the whole of me.
Thereafter rose Desire in the beginning, Desire the primal seed and germ of Spirit,
O Kama dwelling with the lofty Kama, give growth of riches to the sacrificer, (...)
Prolific, thousand eyed, and undecaying, a horse with seven reins Time bears us onward,
Sages inspired with holy knowledge mount him, his chariot wheels are all the worlds of creatures.
Kala [Time] created yonder heaven, and Kala made these realms of earth,
By Kala, stirred to motion, both what is and what shall be, expand, (...)
Kala created living things and first of all Prajapati,
From Kala self-made Kasyapa, from Kala Holy Fire was born.
His name appears in Patanjali's ancient
Buddhist texts
In Buddhist Pali canonical texts such as
Kashmir
According to Christopher Snedden, the name Kashmir is a shortened form of "Kashyapa Mira", or the "lake of the sage Kashyapa". Alternatively, it may come from a Kashmiri or Sanskrit term that means "to dry up water". It could also have been derived from the term "Kashyapa Meru", which means the sacred mountains of Kashyapa.[22]
In ancient texts of Greece, linked to the expedition of Alexander, this land has been called "Kasperia",[22] possibly a contraction of "Kasyapamira".[23] The word "Kaspapyros" appears in Greek geographer Hekataois text, and as "Kaspatyros" in Herodotus who states that Skylax the Karyandian began in Kaspatyros to trace the path of Indus river from the mountains to where it drained in the sea. Kaspatyros may be same as Kaspa-pyrus or Kashyapa-pura (city of Kashyapa) in other texts.[23]
Legends in Hindu Epics and Puranas
Kashyapa is mentioned in numerous Hindu texts such as the Puranas and the Hindu Epics. The stories related to Kashyapa in different texts are widely inconsistent, and many are considered allegorical.[20][4] For example, in the Ramayana, he is married to the eight daughters of Daksha, while in the Mahabharata and Vishnu Purana he is described as married to thirteen daughters. Some of the names of the thirteen daughters Kashyapa married in the Hindu text Vishnu Purana are different from the list found in Mahabharata.[20] Some texts describe Kashyapa as the son of Marichi, ancestor of solar dynasty, a contemporary with Uttamapada the second king of Brahmavarta and who married daughters of Daksha Prajapati the son of Brahma, others mention about him marrying daughters of Daksha Prajapati the last king of Brahmavarta, 15 in male descent from Uttamapada. It may be supposed that there have existed several persons named Kashyapa all of whom are usually confounded.[4]
In some Puranas, Kashyapa is said to have drained the Kashmir valley to make it inhabitable. Some interpret this legend to parallel the legend of Buddhist Manjushri draining Nepal and Tibet, wherein the "draining" is an allegory for teaching ideas and doctrines, removing stagnant waters of ignorance and extending learning and civilization into the valley.[24] The Sindh city Multan (now in Pakistan), also called Mulasthana, has been interpreted alternatively as Kashyapapura in some stories after Kashyap.[25] Yet another interpretation has been to associate Kashyapa as River Indus in the Sindh region. However, these interpretations and the links of Multan as Kashyapapura to Kashmir have been questioned.[26]
According to the ancient legends, Kashyapa reclaimed that land from a vast lake, his school was based there, and the land was named after him.[27]
Wives and children
The Puranas and the Epics of Indian tradition mention Kashyapa and his genealogy numerous times.
Kashyapa, in the Vishnu Purana and Vayu Purana, is attributed to be the father of the
Kashyapa incarnated as Vasudeva
Kashyapa also incarnated as Vasudeva, the father of Krishna due to a curse that Brahma unleashed upon him. Once, the sage performed a yajna (a Vedic ritual) in his hermitage in order to offer oblations to the Devas for the welfare of the beings in the world. To perform the ritual, Kashyapa required offerings such as milk, ghee etc., for which he sought the help of Varuna. When Varuna manifested before him, Kashyapa requested him for a boon of limitless offerings to perform the yajna successfully. Varuna offered him a holy cow which would provide him with limitless offerings. He then told the sage that the holy cow would be taken back once the yajna was over. The yajna went on for several days, and with the presence of the holy cow, the sage never faced any obstacles.
Realizing the miraculous power of the cow, he was overcome with greed and desired to own the cow forever. He did not return the cow to Varuna even after the yajna was over. Varuna appeared in front of Kashyapa and told him that the cow was given to him as a boon, only for the yajna, and now that the yajna was over, it had to be returned as it belonged to the heaven. Kashyapa refused to part with the cow and told Varuna that whatever is offered to a Brahmana should never be sought back, and whoever does that would turn out to be a sinner.
Hence, Varuna sought the help of Brahma who appeared before the sage and told him to get rid of his greed which is capable of destroying all his virtues. Nevertheless, Kashyapa remained firm in his resolve, which enraged Brahma who cursed him, saying that he would be born on earth again as a
Attributions
Kashyapa is revered in the Hindu tradition, and numerous legends and texts composed in the medieval era are reverentially attributed to him in various Hindu traditions. Some treatises named after him or attributed to him include:
- Kashyapa Jnanakanda, or Kashyapa's book of wisdom, is a 9th-century text of the Vaishnavism tradition.[38]
- Kaśyapa dharmasutra, likely an ancient text, but now believed to be lost. The text's existence is inferred from quotes and citations by medieval Indian scholars.[39]
- Kaśyapasangīta, likely another ancient text, but now believed to be lost. A treatise on music, it is quoted by Shaivism and Advaita scholar
- Kashyapashilpa, also called Amsumad agama, Kasyapiya or Silpasastra of Kaśyapa, is a Sanskrit treatise on architecture, iconography and the decorative arts, probably completed in the 11th century.[42]
See also
- Atri
- Agastya
- Kassapa Buddha
- Japheth
- Suryavansha
- Ikshvaku dynasty
- Aditi
- Danu (Asura)
- Diti
- Mahākāśyapa
- Kāśyapīya
- House of Suren
- Vasudeva
Notes
- ^ Kasyapa is mentioned in RV 9.114.2, Atri in RV 5.78.4, Bharadvaja in RV 6.25.9, Visvamitra in RV 10.167.4, Gautama in RV 1.78.1, Jamadagni in RV 3.62.18, etc.;[5] Original Sanskrit text: ऋषे मन्त्रकृतां स्तोमैः कश्यपोद्वर्धयन्गिरः । सोमं नमस्य राजानं यो जज्ञे वीरुधां पतिरिन्द्रायेन्दो परि स्रव ॥२॥[6]
- ^ The Buddha names the following as "early sages" of Vedic verses, "Atthaka (either Astaka or Atri), Vamaka, Vamadeva, Vessamitta (Visvamitra), Yamataggi, Angirasa, Bharadvaja, Vasettha (Vashistha), Kassapa (Kashyapa) and Bhagu (Bhrigu)".[21]
References
- ISBN 978-1-4384-0695-4., Quote: "Kasyapa (Rudra),(Vedic Seer)..."
- ^ ISBN 978-0-19-283576-5.
- ISBN 9788186937679.
- ^ a b c Francis Hamilton (1819). Genealogical tables of the deities, princes, heroes, and remarkable personages of the Hindus. Asiatic Society. p. 81.
- ISBN 978-3-900271-18-3.
- ^ Rigveda 9.114.2, Wikisource
- ISBN 978-1-4384-0695-4.
- ISBN 978-0-14-341421-6.
- ISBN 9783447058148. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
- ^ Substrate Languages in Old Indo-Aryan: Rgvedic, Middle and Late Vedic, Michael Witzel, page 55
- ^ "Tocharian A dictionary - k". www.palaeolexicon.com. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
- ISBN 978-0-14-309986-4.
- ISSN 1084-7561.
- ISBN 9780199370184.
- ^ Robert Hume, The Thirteen Principal Upanishads, Chapter: Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, Oxford University Press, page 96 (verse 2.2.4)
- ISBN 978-2-86803-074-0.
- ^ Ralph Thomas Hotchkin Griffith (1896). The Hymns of the Atharvaveda. E. J. Lazarus & Company. pp. 308–311.
- ISBN 978-0-87773-980-7.
- ISBN 978-0-87169-863-6.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-14-341421-6.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-86171-979-2.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-84904-621-3.
- ^ a b John Watson McCrindle (1885). Ancient India as Described by Ptolemy. Thacker, Spink, & Company. pp. 108–109.
- ^ Samuel Beal (1869). Travels of Fah-Hian and Sung-Yun, Buddhist Pilgrims: From China to India (400 A.D. and 518 A.D.). Trübner. pp. 60 footnote 1.
- ISBN 978-0-226-34055-5.
- ISBN 90-04-09790-2.
- ^ Kashmir: REGION, INDIAN SUBCONTINENT, Encyclopædia Britannica (2008)
- ISBN 978-81-208-1324-3.
- Horace Hayman Wilson, 1840. p. 112. The daughters of Daksha who were married to Kaśyapa were Aditi, Diti, Danu, Arisjht́á, Surasá, Surabhi, Vinatá, Támrá, Krodhavaśá, Id́á, Khasá, Kadru, and Muni 19; whose progeny I will describe to you...Vishńu, Śakra, Áryaman, Dhútí, Twáshtri, Púshan, Vivaswat, Savitri, Mitra, Varuńa, Anśa, and Bhaga
- ISBN 978-81-7387090-3.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8426-0822-0.
- Horace Hayman Wilson, 1840, Quote:"Vishńu was born of Vikunthi, as Vaikuntha, along with the deities called Vaikunthas. In the present Manwantara, Vishńu was again born as Vámana, the son of Kaśyapa by Adití. With three paces he subdued the worlds, and gave them, freed from all embarrassment, to Purandara.", Footnote 4: "The Váyu describes the Rishis (...) with some inconsistency, for Kaśyapa, at least, did not appear himself until the seventh, Manwantara. (...) The Bráhma P. and Hari Vanśa have a rather different list (...)"
- ^ Vishnu Purana, HH Wilson (Translator), Chapter 7
- ISBN 978-93-86057-91-4.
- ISBN 978-81-322-1587-5.
- ISBN 978-90-77922-76-7.
- ISBN 978-1-4384-4387-4.
- ISBN 90-04-10758-4.
- ISBN 978-81-208-0056-4.
- ISBN 978-0193154643.
- ISBN 978-81-208-0284-1.
- ISBN 978-90-04-15843-6.
External links
- The Vedic "Five Tribes", DD Kosambi (1967)