The Sanskrit terms Saptarṣi and Saptaṛṣi and Saptariṣi can be transliterated into English as Saptarsi or Saptarshi or Saptarishi or Saptarisi, using the IAST transliteration scheme (?).

In Hinduism

Purana and Itihasa (epic history)

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: The Purana Index

1a) Saptaṛṣi (सप्तऋषि).—The sons of Brahmā who bear the Gaṅgā in their locks; with the constellations traversing Maghas, commenced the Kali age; when they move to Pūrvāṣāḍha, there began the reign of Nanda;¹ separate for every epoch; cursed by Maheśvara were born in Janaloka, and born in Cākṣuṣa epoch during the Vāruṇa sacrifice.² Kuṇḍam of, near Agastya's hermitage;³ look on the first Prajāpati emerging out of Ekārṇava;⁴ residents of Brahmakṣetra.⁵

• 1) Bhāgavata-purāṇa V. 17. 3; XII. 2. 27-33.
• 2) Brahmāṇḍa-purāṇa II. 36. 18; 23. 38; 26. 30; III. 1. 13.
• 3) Ib. III. 5. 80; 13. 62; 35. 43.
• 4) Ib. I. 1. 185.
• 5) Vā: 59: 105-106.

1b) The seven sages born on the earth in Dvāpara; conquered death by foregoing desire for progeny; were followed in the path of Ūrdhvaretasas by 88,000 others; all immortals decline after the deluge;¹ their permanent abode in front of Dhruva;² a lakh of yojanas above Śanaiścara;³ lived with Magha during the age of Parīkṣit;⁴ their one year = 3030 years of our reckoning;⁵ gave out śrautadharma at the commencement of the Tretāyugam;⁶ remembered by Indra they went to Umā and Śiva and got their marriage celebrated; they tested Umā's firmness in her love in different ways and found her not wanting at all.⁷

• 1) Matsya-purāṇa 124. 106-11.
• 2) Brahmāṇḍa-purāṇa II. 21. 168; 24. 122; 29. 17, 45; IV. 2. 134. Matsya-purāṇa 4. 37: 128. 74. Viṣṇu-purāṇa II: 9. 10.
• 3) Vāyu-purāṇa 53. 97: 101. 134: Viṣṇu-purāṇa II. 7. 9.
• 4) Matsya-purāṇa 273. 39, 44.
• 5) Ib. 142. 13. Vāyu-purāṇa 57. 18.
• 6) Matsya-purāṇa 142. 40-41; Br: II. 32. 34, 42, 91-4; 35. 103, 184, 189.
• 7) Matsya-purāṇa 154. 311-41.

context information

The Purana (पुराण, purāṇas) refers to Sanskrit literature preserving ancient India’s vast cultural history, including historical legends, religious ceremonies, various arts and sciences. The eighteen mahapuranas total over 400,000 shlokas (metrical couplets) and date to at least several centuries BCE.

Jyotisha (astronomy and astrology)

Source: Wisdom Library: Brihat Samhita by Varahamihira

Saptarṣi (सप्तर्षि) or Saptamuni refers to the “seven sages”, according to the Bṛhatsaṃhitā (chapter 12), an encyclopedic Sanskrit work written by Varāhamihira mainly focusing on the science of ancient Indian astronomy astronomy (Jyotiṣa).—Accordingly, “I shall now expound about the movements of the Seven Ṛṣis (Saptarṣi) [i.e., saptamuni—saptabhir munibhiḥ], through whom the northern region shines as though bedecked with a pearl necklace, like a maiden with a smiling countenance wearing a garland of white lotuses. Or by the direction of her lord—the Pole-Star (Seven Ṛṣis), the northern maiden (quarter) appears to dance round as the Seven Ṛṣis move in their course. I begin to treat of these stars adopting the views of Vṛddha Garga”.

context information

Jyotisha (ज्योतिष, jyotiṣa or jyotish) refers to ‘astronomy’ or “Vedic astrology” and represents the fifth of the six Vedangas (additional sciences to be studied along with the Vedas). Jyotisha concerns itself with the study and prediction of the movements of celestial bodies, in order to calculate the auspicious time for rituals and ceremonies.

General definition (in Hinduism)

Source: WikiPedia: Hinduism

The Saptarishi (from saptarṣi, "seven sages") are the seven rishis who are extolled at many places in the Vedas and Hindu literature. The Vedic Samhitas never enumerate these rishis by name, though later Vedic texts such as the Brahmanas and Upanisads do so. They are regarded in the Vedas as the patriarchs of the Vedic religion.

The earliest list of the Seven Rishis is given by Jaiminiya Brahmana 2.218-221:

1. Vashista,
2. Bharadvaja,
3. Jamadagni,
4. Gautama,
5. Atri,
6. Visvamitra, and
7. Agastya,

followed by Brihadaranyaka Upanisad 2.2.6 with a slightly different list:

1. Gautama and
2. Bharadvāja,
3. Viśvāmitra and
4. Jamadagni,
5. Vashiṣṭha and
6. Kaśyapa, and
7. Atri,
8. Brighu.

The late Gopatha Brāhmana 1.2.8 has

1. Vashiṣṭa,
2. Viśvāmitra,
3. Jamadagni,
4. Gautama,
5. Bharadvāja,
6. Gungu,
7. Agastya,
8. Vrighu and
9. Kaśyapa.

In post-Vedic texts, different lists appear; some of these rishis were recognized as the 'mind born sons' (Sanskrit: manasa putra) of Brahma, the representation of the Supreme Being as Creator. Other representations are Mahesha or Shiva as the Destroyer and Vishnu as the Preserver. Since these seven rishis were also among the primary eight rishis, who were considered to be the ancestors of the Gotras of Brahmins, the birth of these rishis was mythicized.

Source: Apam Napat: Indian Mythology

SaptaRishis, are the seven great sages in Indian Mythology. They have attained a semi-immortal status, that of an exceedingly long life span due to their Yogic power and by the power of their penance.

The sages are

1. Vasishta the preceptor of Ishvahu clan,
2. Marichi,
3. Angirasa,
4. Atri,
5. Pualsthya,
6. Pulaaha
7. and Krathu.

The all revolve around Dhruva, the pole star.

They are said to be the constellation Ursa Major (Big dipper). Arundhati, the wife of Vasishta accompanies him in this constellation. Some of these sages appear in many stories, while the others have very few references in Indian mythology. Some of the other occur very often in these stories, even though they are not part of the SaptaRishis.

Some of these Rishis (Sages) are:

1. Agastya,
2. Vishwamitra,
3. Bharadwaja,
4. Kanva,
5. Bhrigu,
6. Gautama,
7. and Durvasa.

However, according to the Satapatha-brahmana the seven sages are

1. Gautama,
2. Vishwamitra,
3. Jamadagni,
4. Vasishta,
5. Kashyapa
6. and Atri.

Biology (plants and animals)

Source: Google Books: CRC World Dictionary (Regional names)

Saptarshi in India is the name of a plant defined with Plumbago zeylanica in various botanical sources. This page contains potential references in Ayurveda, modern medicine, and other folk traditions or local practices It has the synonym Plumbago rosea L. (among others).

Example references for further research on medicinal uses or toxicity (see latin names for full list):

· Prodr. Fl. SW. Afr. (1967)
· Flora of Tropical East Africa, Plumbaginaceae (1976)
· Taxon (1979)
· FBI (1882)
· Fontqueria (1987)
· Species Plantarum (1753)

If you are looking for specific details regarding Saptarshi, for example diet and recipes, extract dosage, chemical composition, side effects, health benefits, pregnancy safety, have a look at these references.

context information

This sections includes definitions from the five kingdoms of living things: Animals, Plants, Fungi, Protists and Monera. It will include both the official binomial nomenclature (scientific names usually in Latin) as well as regional spellings and variants.

Languages of India and abroad

Marathi-English dictionary

Source: DDSA: The Molesworth Marathi and English Dictionary

saptaṛṣi (सप्तऋषि).—m pl (S) The seven saints of the Brahmarshi order, contemporary with each Manu. The names of the several series differ; the names of the saints of the present Manwantara are kaśyapa, atri, bharadvāja, viśvāmitra, gautama, jamadagni, vaśiṣṭha, or, according to other authority, marīci, atri, aṅgirasa, pulasti or styā, pulaha, kratu, vaśiṣṭha. These form, in astronomy, the asterism of Ursa major.

--- OR ---

saptarṣi (सप्तर्षि).—m pl S The same with saptaṛṣi.

Source: DDSA: The Aryabhusan school dictionary, Marathi-English

saptaṛṣi (सप्तऋषि).—m plu The seven saints of the brahmarṣi order. (In astronomy.) The as- terism of Ursa major.

context information

Marathi is an Indo-European language having over 70 million native speakers people in (predominantly) Maharashtra India. Marathi, like many other Indo-Aryan languages, evolved from early forms of Prakrit, which itself is a subset of Sanskrit, one of the most ancient languages of the world.

Sanskrit dictionary

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English Dictionary

Saptarṣi (सप्तर्षि).—m. Plu.

(-rṣayaḥ) 1. The constellation Ursa Major, the seven stars of which are the seven great saints, viz:—Marichi, Atri, Angiras, Pulastya, Pulaha, Kratu, and Vasisht'Ha. 2. The seven sages themselves. E. sapta seven, and ṛṣi a sage.

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Benfey Sanskrit-English Dictionary

Saptarṣi (सप्तर्षि).—i. e. saptan-ṛṣi, m. pl. 1. The seven Ṛṣis or great saints, Marīci, Atri, etc. 2. The constellation Ursa major.

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Cappeller Sanskrit-English Dictionary

Saptarṣi (सप्तर्षि).—[masculine] [plural] the seven sages or the seven stars of the Great Bear.

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary

1) Saptarṣi (सप्तर्षि):—[=sapta-ṛṣi] [from sapta > saptan] m. [plural] = saptarṣi, [Ṛg-veda; Śatapatha-brāhmaṇa] etc.

2) [v.s. ...] Name of the authors of the hymn, [Ṛg-veda ix, 107; Anukramaṇikā]

3) [=sapta-rṣi] [from sapta > saptan] m [plural]. (ta-ṛṣi) the 7 Ṛṣis q.v.

4) [v.s. ...] (in [astronomy]) the 7 stars of the constellation Ursa Major (-pūtā dik, ‘the northern quarter of the sky’)

5) [v.s. ...] sg. one of the 7 Ṛṣis, [Mahābhārata]

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Yates Sanskrit-English Dictionary

Saptarṣi (सप्तर्षि):—(rṣiyaḥ) 1. m. Ursa major, its seven stars having the names of seven sages.

[Sanskrit to German]

Saptarshi in German

context information

Sanskrit, also spelled संस्कृतम् (saṃskṛtam), is an ancient language of India commonly seen as the grandmother of the Indo-European language family (even English!). Closely allied with Prakrit and Pali, Sanskrit is more exhaustive in both grammar and terms and has the most extensive collection of literature in the world, greatly surpassing its sister-languages Greek and Latin.

Kannada-English dictionary

Source: Alar: Kannada-English corpus

Saptaṛṣi (ಸಪ್ತಋಷಿ):—

1) [noun] = ಸಪ್ತರ್ಷಿಮಂಡಲ [saptarshimamdala].

2) [noun] (used in pl. with -ಗಳು [galu]) the seven celebrated sages - Marīci, Atri, Aŋgīrasa, Pulastya, Pulaha, Kratu and Vasiṣṭha.

--- OR ---

Saptarṣi (ಸಪ್ತರ್ಷಿ):—[noun] = ಸಪ್ತಋಷಿ [saptarishi].

context information

Kannada is a Dravidian language (as opposed to the Indo-European language family) mainly spoken in the southwestern region of India.

Tamil dictionary

Source: DDSA: University of Madras: Tamil Lexicon

Saptariṣi (ஸப்தரிஷி) noun < saptarṣi. The seven sages. See சத்தரிஷிகள். [satharishigal.]

context information

Tamil is an ancient language of India from the Dravidian family spoken by roughly 250 million people mainly in southern India and Sri Lanka.

See also (Relevant definitions)

Partial matches: Rishi, Sapta.

Starts with: Saptarshicara, Saptarshija, Saptarshika, Saptarshikunda, Saptarshiloka, Saptarshimamdala, Saptarshimant, Saptarshimat, Saptarshimata, Saptarshina, Saptarshis, Saptarshisamaja, Saptarshisamvat, Saptarshishvaramahatmya, Saptarshismriti, Saptarshismritisamgraha, Saptarshistotra, Saptarshita, Saptarshivat.

Full-text (+152): Saptarshita, Atinaman, Atri, Saptarshicara, Saptarshimat, Saptarshismriti, Saptarshismritisamgraha, Saptarshimata, Saptarshistotra, Saptarshiloka, Saptarshija, Saptarshikunda, Nishcara, Saptarshishvaramahatmya, Saptarshivat, Nishprakampa, Saptarshisamvat, Nishcyavana, Nirmoha, Nirutsuka.

Relevant text

Search found 27 books and stories containing Saptarshi, Sapdarishi, Sapdharishi, Sapta-rishi, Sapta-rshi, Sapta-ṛṣi, Sapta-rsi, Sapta-rṣi, Saptarishi, Saptariṣi, Saptarisi, Saptarṣi, Saptaṛṣi, Saptarsi, Saptharishi; (plurals include: Saptarshis, Sapdarishis, Sapdharishis, rishis, rshis, ṛṣis, rsis, rṣis, Saptarishis, Saptariṣis, Saptarisis, Saptarṣis, Saptaṛṣis, Saptarsis, Saptharishis). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:

The Brahmanda Purana (by G.V. Tagare)

Chapter 1 - Birth of seven sages (saptarṣi): Race of Bhṛgu and Aṅgiras < [Section 3 - Upodghāta-pāda]

Chapter 74 - Royal Dynasties < [Section 3 - Upodghāta-pāda]

Chapter 11 - The creation of Sages (saptarṣi) < [Section 2 - Anuṣaṅga-pāda]

+ 7 more chapters / show preview

The Garuda Purana (by Manmatha Nath Dutt)

Chapter LXXXVII - Enumeration of the names of fourteen Manus and of the Devas and Saptarsis < [Agastya Samhita]

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Triveni Journal

The Hindus and the Skies < [September 1943]

The Morals of Kalidas < [July – September, 2007]

The Artist and the Hill-window < [March 1944]

+ 4 more chapters / show preview

Puranic encyclopaedia (by Vettam Mani)

Story of Grahas

Story of Vālmīki

Story of Manvantara

+ 21 more chapters / show preview

Brihat Samhita (by N. Chidambaram Iyer)

Chapter 13 - On the constellation of Saptarṣi (seven Ṛṣis or Sages)

Chapter 47 - Motley Miscellany (mayūracitraka)

Chapter 48 - Royal bath (puṣyasnāna)

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The Vishnu Purana (abridged)

Some Astronomy < [Second Section]

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Click here for all 27 books

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