Gautama Maharishi

Maharishi Gautama
Maharishi Gautam Mata Ahalya Temple, Pushkar
Religion	Hinduism
Honors	one of the Saptarishis (Seven Great Sages Rishi)
Brahmagiri Mountain

Gautama Maharishi (Sanskrit: महर्षिः गौतम) is one of the Saptarṣis (Seven Great Sages Ṛṣis of the current Manvantara (seventh). He was one of the Maharishis of Vedic times, known to have been the discoverer of Mantras -- 'Mantra-drashtā', in Sanskrit. The Rig Veda has several suktas (Sanskrit: 'hymns') that go with his name. The Vedic sage Gautama is credited with authoring many hymns in Mandala 1.

He was the son of Rahugana, belonging to the line of Angiras. The Devi Bhagavatam says that the river Godavari is so named because of its association with Gotama. He had two sons by name Vamadeva and Nodhas, both themselves discoverers of Mantras. There is a hymn called Bhadra in the Sama Veda which again is ascribed to Gotama Maharishi.

His wife is Ahalya, herself the 'mind born daughter' (Sanskrit: manasa putri) of Creator Brahma. The Puranas speak of the story wherein it is described how Gotama won the hand of Ahalya by circumambulating the divine cow in order to fulfill the stipulation of Brahma that whoever first goes round the whole Earth will win the hand of Ahalya. The 'chief priest' (Sanskrit: Purohita) of King Janaka of Mithila, by name Shatananda, was the son of Gotama and Ahalya. Gotama's sixty-year-long penance is mentioned in the Shanti Parva of the Mahabharata. The Narada purana describes the story of the 12-year famine during which Gotama fed all the Rishis and saved them.