Avatsara

Greaterwell-documentedHinduVedicSouth AsiaIndian subcontinent

Avatsara (Sanskrit: अवत्सार, Avatsāra) is a Vedic rṣi (seer) attested as the author of multiple hymns of the Rigveda and as a priestly figure in Brāhmaṇa passages. He is placed in Kashyapa sage lineages and is cited in Rigvedic, Sāmavedic, Yajurvedic, and Brāhmaṇa texts where his hymns and ritual actions are invoked.

Origin

The cited textual record does not provide a mythic birth narrative for Avatsara. He is recorded in Vedic and post-Vedic lists and genealogies as a member of the Kashyapa sage family (Kashyapa pravara). Different sources and lists (e.g., the Matsya Purana and Brāhmaṇa passages) place him among Kashyapa’s sons or descendants; some variant lists and later accounts differ in exact family relationships, a discrepancy noted in the sources.

Appearance

No physical description or iconography for Avatsara is provided in the cited materials. He is attested only as a textual and authorial figure—identified as a rṣi who composes hymns in the Rigveda and whose compositions appear in the Sāmaveda and Yajurveda and are discussed in the Aitareya and Kausitaki Brāhmaṇas.

Abilities

Avatsara’s capacities, as recorded in the texts, are literary, ritual, and sacerdotal. He is credited with composing Sukta 44 of the Fifth Maṇḍala of the Rigveda and the set of eight hymns RV IX.53–IX.60 (each of four mantras, many in Gāyatrī metre); his material also appears in the Sāmaveda (SV.757, SV.1717) and is referenced in the Yajurveda (Y.V.III.i & III.xviii). Brāhmaṇa passages (Aitareya Brahmana, Kausitaki Brahmana) state that Avatsara had “reached the home of Agni and had conquered the highest world,” phrasing this as a textual claim about attainment. He is described in the sources as acting in priestly roles (the summary states he is “chief priest of the gods”) and in one passage is said to offer Agni a six-syllable oblation—“O Agni, enjoy the oblation, and was set-free”—indicating a ritual oblation formula associated with liberation or release. In his hymns he addresses Ishvara (e.g., RV IX.53.1) with epithets and asserts epistemic claims recorded in RV IX.53 and IX.60.3 about learned people extracting ancient wisdom and the Lord residing as knowledge and consciousness in educated minds.

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Community Record

Sources
  1. [1]
    Avatsara — Wikipedia. Wikipedia entry 'Avatsara'.wiki
  2. [2]
    Avatsara — Wikidata. Wikidata item Q17002566 for Avatsara.wiki
well-documented