Vedic Index of Names and Subjects v1.c3.s12.349

v1.c3.s12.349

Gotama is mentioned several times in the Rigveda,¹ but never in such a way as to denote personal authorship of any hymn.² It seems clear that he was closely connected with the Aṅgirases, for the Gotamas frequently refer to Aṅgiras.³ That he bore the patronymic Rāhūgaṇa is rendered probable by one hymn of the Rigveda,⁴ and is assumed in the Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa,⁵ where he appears as the Purohita, or domestic priest, of Māthava Videgha, and as a bearer of Vedic civilization. He is also mentioned in the same Brāhmaṇa⁶ as a contemporary of Janaka of Videha, and Yājñavalkya, and as the author of a Stoma.⁷ He occurs, moreover, in two passages of the Atharvaveda.⁸