Agastya in the Tamil Land (Classic Reprint)

No tradition is so widespread throughout the length and breadth of the Tamil country as that I ntroduction. i i concernmg sage Agastya and his numerous exploits. Of all the mythic, semi-historic and historic personages of the A iyan annals, who have figured inS outh Indian History, Agastya has occupied the foremost place and secured the largest homage of the cultured and the masses alike. He meets us from the very start of A ryan History, being a composer of certain hymns of the earliest of the Vedas, the Rg Veda. Still he seems to have been not included amongst the seven holy sages, the PrajdpatiS for the progenitors of the human race. These were Gotama, Bharadwaja, Viswamitra Jamadagni, Vasistha, Kasyapa and A tri. Even later Puranas, like the Vdyu and the Visnu, wM ch have amplified the list of the primitive sages by including Bhrgu and Daksa, have only quietly passed Agastya over. This circumstance may lend some colour of support to the doubt whether Agastya is not after all the sage of a later day. However that be, posterity has made ample amends for this omission by raising him to a still higher position and assigning him a place among theS tars. The Star Canopus, which sheds its brilliance in theS outhern heavens, is believed to be none other than the austere Sage A gastya, the semi-divine benefactor of the human race, who has been thus honoured by a grateful posterity.
(Typographical errors above are due to OCR software and don't occur in the book.)

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Forgotten Books is a publisher of historical writings, such as: Philosophy, Classics, Science, Religion, History, Folklore and Mythology.

Forgotten Books' Classic Reprint Series utilizes the latest technology to regenerate facsimiles of historically important writings. Careful attention has been made to accurately preserve the original format of each page whilst digitally enhancing the aged text.