Bharadwaja

Bharadwaja
An early 19th century painting showing Bharadwaja
Children	Drona, Katyayani
Parents	Bṛhaspati (father) Utathya (mother)

Bharadwaja, also referred to as Bharadvaja (Sanskrit: भरद्वाज, IAST: Bharadvāja) or Bharadvaja Barhaspatya, is one of the revered Vedic sages (rishi) in Hinduism. He and his family of students are considered the authors of the sixth book of the Rigveda.

He is one of the Saptaṛṣis (seven great sages or Maharṣis).

His full name in Vedic texts is Bharadvaja Barhaspatya, the last name referring to his father and Vedic sage Brihaspati. His mother was Utathya. He is one of the seven rishis mentioned four times in the Rigveda as well as in the Shatapatha Brahmana, thereafter revered in the Mahabharata and the Puranas. In later Puranic legends, he is stated to be the son of Vedic sage Atri.

In Buddhist Pali canonical texts such as Digha Nikaya, Tevijja Sutta describes a discussion between the Buddha and Vedic scholars of his time. The Buddha names ten rishis, calls them "early sages" and makers of ancient verses that have been collected and chanted in his era, and among those ten rishis is Bharadvaja.

The ancient Hindu medical treatise Charaka Samhita attributes Bharadvaja learning medical sciences from god Indra, after pleading that "poor health was disrupting the ability of human beings from pursuing their spiritual journey", and then Indra provides both the method and specifics of medical knowledge.

The word Bharadvaja is a compound Sanskrit from "bhara(d) and vaja(m)", which together mean "bringing about nourishment". His name is also spelled as Telugu: భరద్వాజ.

Bharadvaja and his famiy of students are the authors of the sixth mandala of the Rigveda, one of the "family books" in this text. He and his students are also the attributed authors of other Rigvedic hymns such as 10.87, 10.152 and 10.155. Bharadvaja and his famiy of students were the traditional poets of king Marutta of the Vedic era, in the Hindu texts.