Vedic Index of Names and Subjects v1.c3.s6.118

v1.c3.s6.118

In the later literature the Rṣis are the poets of the hymns preserved in the Saṃhitās, a Rṣi being regularly¹⁶ cited when a Vedic Saṃhitā is quoted. Moreover, the Rṣis become the representatives of a sacred past, and are regarded as holy sages, whose deeds are narrated as if they were the deeds of gods or Asuras.¹⁷ They are typified by a particular group of seven,¹⁸ mentioned four times in the Rigveda,¹⁹ several times in the later Saṃhitās,²⁰ and enumerated in the Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad²¹ as Gotama, Bharadvāja, Viśvāmitra, Jamadagni, Vasiṣṭha, Kaśyapa, and Atri. In the Rigveda itself Kutsa,²² Atri,²³ Rebha,²⁴ Agastya,²⁵ the Kuśikas,²⁶ Vasiṣṭha,²⁷ Vyaśva,²⁸ and others appear as Rṣis; and the Atharvaveda²⁹ contains a long list, including Aṅgiras, Agasti, Jamadagni, Atri, Kaśyapa, Vasiṣṭha, Bharadvāja, Gaviṣṭhira, Viśvāmitra, Kutsa, Kakṣīvant, Kaṇva, Medhātithi, Triśoka, Uśanā Kāvya, Gotama, and Mudgala.