Vedic Index of Names and Subjects v2.c4.s8.766

v2.c4.s8.766

Śaunaka, ‘descendant of Śunaka,’ is a common patronymic. It is applied to Indrota¹ and Svaidāyana.² A Śaunaka appears as a teacher of Rauhiṇāyana in the Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad.³ A Śaunaka-yajña, or Śaunaka sacrifice, occurs in the Kauṣītaki Brāhmaṇa.⁴ In the Chāndogya Upaniṣad⁵ Atidhanvan Śaunaka appears as a teacher. That Upaniṣad⁶ and the Jaiminīya Upaniṣad Brāhmaṇa⁷ mention a Śaunaka Kāpeya who was a contemporary of Abhipratārin Kākṣaseni, whose Purohita Śaunaka was according to another passage⁸ of the latter Upaniṣad. In the Sūtras, the Bṛhaddevatā, etc., a Śaunaka appears as a great authority on grammatical, ritual, and other matters.⁹