Gadheya Vs Viswamithra [Coup On Indian Epics – 11]

Let us return to Ramayanam again. The saint Viswamithra went to King Dasaratha to request him to send Sri Rama along with him to the forest to protect his Yagnam. In fact, he was king Gadheya before he took ‘Sanyasam’. He had known the operation of many weapons and he gave his powers of weapons which he acquired with his own effort such as ‘Thapasu’ to Sri Rama for the sake of world peace and prosperous.

Such capacitive ViswaMitra requested King Dasaratha to sent, Sri Rama with him. Vasishta Maharishi remarked this, when King Dasaradha feared to send Sri Rama to kill the demons and to protect the Yagna.


When Dasaratha was ready to accompany Viswamithra, instead of Rama, Maharishi Vasishta said “Oh! King! Don’t doubt the capacity of Viswamitra and Sri Rama. Viswamitra could kill the demons with a single curse. In spite of this, he is requesting you to send Sri Rama with him. His wish might be other. He wants to coach and train up Sri Rama. Send your son, along with him as if you are sending him to marriage instead of to forest. Being your family and race teacher, I’m advising you.”

Because of this Vasishta Maharishi, Viswamitra had given up his Kingdom of Gadheya and he went to forest to do penance. Once, being king, Gadheya had gone to forest for hunting the animals. In those days, hunting the animals was the part of king’s duty, because the number of wild animals and wideness of the forest was much than the population of people and their residential areas.

So that the wild animals used to damage the public life by attacking on lives and crops in fields. That’s why kings should go to forests along with their army to hunt the animals. But now hunting of the animals is crime because now increased popularity of people is attacking on the lives of wild animals and on the forests.

While returning from hunting, the king Gadheya had visited Vasishta Maharishi’s Ashram. With the help of the cow Kapila, the daughter of Kamadhenu, Vasishta Maharishi had given a big feast to the King and his army. Gadheya felt wonder about it. He wanted to have the cow, but Vasishta rejected his desire.

He forced to take the cow but failed. By the way, he could understand that the strength of king was less than that of a saint or Maharishi. He left his kingdom and started penance. In spite of this incident, Vasishta Maharishi didn’t have any agony on Gadheya i.e. Viswamitra. And more over both Vasistha and Viswamitra respect each other. That was their achievement over the emotions, and arishadwargas. All the famed people and characters in our epics stood for such balance of mind and led people to be in such path.


Leaving all this good of Viswamitra, these coup makers and their supporters used to refer Menaka’s relation with Viswamitra in movies like Yama Gola, Yama Donga etc. in jokes in cartoons. The background story is as follows. Being Gadheya, when he started penance to acquire the strength of a saint like Visishta Maharishi, he failed minimum thrice in that trail.

Depends upon their concentration in penance, they will get powers and strength and such saints were used to call as Muni, Rushi, Maharishi, Mahamuni,Rajarshi and Brahmarshi etc names. Vasishta Maharishi was famous as Brahmarshi. Gadheya wanted to become equivalent to him.

In that process, he became friend to this universe, so that he was called by name Vaswa Mitra. He was the man who behind the story of Satya HarithsChandra, one of the fore fathers of Sri Rama in Ramayanam. Viswamitra’s role is valuable in Sri Rama’s life. His grandson Bharatha was the one of the fore fathers of Pandavas in Mahabharatam such that he was long living man as per Hindu epics.

As I above said, during the time of penance, he failed to keep up his concentration without disturbance, minimum thrice.

In one trail, the beauty of Menaka, the divine woman sent by Devendra, the king of heaven to disturb his penance, influenced him. He loved her, spent with her. After she became pregnant, he could realize his deviation from his target and left her, gone to Himalayas. Menaka had given birth to Sakunthalaand she brought up by Kanva Maharishi.

Sri Kali Dasu in Sanskrit fabricated the basic story of Sakunthala in most poetic and dramatic way in Abhignana Sakunthalam. On this episode, the cine people, the coup makers, made ‘Masala’ i.e. purposeful mixture, by leaving the greatness of ViswaMitra and by leaving his well wishing towards the peace and prosperity of this universe.