Kasyapa

A Vedic sage to whom some hymns are attributed. All authorities agree in assigning to him a large part in the work of creation. According to the Mahabharata, the Ramayana, and the Puranas, he was the son of Marichi, the son of Brahma, and he was father of Vivaswat, the father of Manu, the progenitor of mankind. The Satapatha Brahmana gives a different and not very intelligible account of his origin thus:–– "Having assumed the form of a tortoise, Prajapati created offspring. That which he created he made (akarot); hence the word kurma (tortoise). Kasyapa means tortoise; hence men say, ‘All creatures are descendants of Kasyapa.’ This tortoise is the same as Aditya." The Atharva veda says, "The self-born Kasyapa sprang from Time," and Time is often identical with Vishnu. The Mahabharata and later authorities agree in representing that Kasyapa married Aditi and twelve other daughters of Daksha. Upon Aditi he begat the Adityas, headed by Indra, and also Vivaswat, and "to Vivaswat was born the wise and mighty Manu." The Ramayana and Vishnu Purana also state that "Vishnu was born as a dwarf, the son of Aditi and Kasyapa." By his other twelve wives, he had a numerous and very diversified offspring: demons, nagas, reptiles, birds, and all kinds of living things. He was thus the father of all, and as such is sometimes called Prajapati. He is one of the seven great Rishis, and he appears as the priest of Parasurama and Ramachandra.

© "Hindu Mythology & Religion" by John Dowson. Reprinted with permission.

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