Vyasa
Legendary sage credited with compiling the Mahabharata
- Known for
- Composing or compiling the Mahabharata
- Also credited with
- Dividing the Veda into four; the Puranas
- Parents (tradition)
- The sage Parashara and Satyavati
- Scribe (legend)
- The god Ganesha
- Observance
- Guru Purnima
The sage credited with the Mahabharata, who also appears in it, stepping between two Brahmashira weapons to stop them destroying the world.
What is Vyasa known for?
Vyasa, also called Krishna Dvaipayana or Veda Vyasa, is the sage Hindu tradition credits with composing or compiling the Mahabharata. He is also said to have arranged the Veda into four collections and to have authored the Puranas. A popular legend says he dictated the Mahabharata to the god Ganesha, who wrote it down.
Vyasa is a character in the epic as well as its author. He is the grandfather of both the Pandavas and the Kauravas, whose rivalry leads to the Kurukshetra war. After the war, when Ashvatthama and Arjuna both fire the Brahmashira weapon, the sages Narada and Vyasa stand between the two missiles and warn that their clash would destroy the world.
Historians regard Vyasa as a traditional author figure rather than a documented individual. Britannica describes the Mahabharata as a source for Hinduism's development between about 400 BCE and 200 CE, composed by many hands over a long period.
He is one of the two sages who intervene in the Brahmashira duel between Ashvatthama and Arjuna.
Mentioned on these pages
- Rabbit holeBrahmashira
- PersonArjuna
- PersonParikshit
Sources
- The Mahabharata, trans. Kisari Mohan Ganguli (1883–96), sacred-texts.comPrimary text
- Encyclopaedia Britannica, 'Vyasa'Reference
- Encyclopaedia Britannica, 'Mahabharata'Reference
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