Vishvamitra

Wisdom Teachings
Sublime Beings
The Rishis

In India, there is a family lineage (gotra) called ‘Kaushika’ that is strongly connected to the First Ray of Will. The family traces its origins back to a famous king of the Kushika dynasty named Kaushika. Kaushika was a great warrior king whom none of his contemporaries could defeat. He later became one of the greatest seers and was given the name Vishvamitra, which means ‘Friend of the Universe’.

One day, King Kaushika was with his soldiers, horses and elephants in the forest, driving wild animals back into their habitat, so they would not invade human habitats. When the king and his people became tired and hungry, they discovered the ashram of the great sage Vasishta. Vasishta welcomed them with all the honours befitting a king. In no time at all, he provided the king and his entire entourage with the finest food and every possible comfort.

The king was very surprised and wanted to know how it was possible to feed so many people at once and in such a short time in the middle of the forest. Vasishta pointed to a cow and said, “This is the cow that gives me everything I ask of her.” Kaushika said to Vasishta, “It would be much better if this cow were with me in the palace. That would be a great service to the entire nation. What great benefit can she bring you here in your ashram?”

Vasishta replied, “This cow will not come with you to your kingdom. She is only for those who seek to realise the truth and thereby become world servers.” Kaushika replied, “I am the king and you are a subject of my kingdom and must obey me! You must give me this cow.” Vasishta replied, “If this cow wants to go with you, you can take her, but if she does not want to, you will not be able to take her.”

The soldiers wanted to capture the cow but they could not approach her – arrows flew out of the cow. Even King Kaushika, who possessed some heavenly powers, was unable to grab or tie her down. He became angry and tried to kill her. He shot arrows at her, and arrows flew back from the cow. He called upon heavenly weapons and used them against the cow. But he realised that the cow was much more powerful than he was.

Kaushika asked Vasishta, “What is the matter with this cow? I want her.” The king wanted to force the sage to command the cow to come with him, but he could not achieve anything. Vasishta said, “The cow is the product of my contemplation. These powers will not come to you because they have developed from me. They remain only with me. I can use them; you cannot take them away.”

The king was surprised: “If this is really so, my royal power is nothing compared to yours. Show me how I can obtain such a cow and such a kind of energy.” Vasishta then gave him the path of meditation. The king was a person of the First Ray. He followed the directions of Vasishta. To enter into meditation, the king transferred the kingdom to his children and entered the forest. For many years, he performed very intense meditations and entered into deep contemplation. He received revelations and acquired spiritual powers. Again and again, he wanted to measure himself against Vasishta to see if he had the same powers as the sage. Vasishta just smiled: “You can try, but you will fail. Continue your meditation.”

So Kaushika continued to meditate, reaching great heights and acquiring tremendous powers. However, he could not defeat Vasishta because there was nothing in Vasishta that wanted to fight and win. Kaushika reached the point where he touched the edge of Brahman, i.e., he was about to be absorbed into a state of non-existence. Here he realised that his instinct to defeat the other was the decisive obstacle. Vasishta did not strive for power, he simply lived in the ease of beingness.

Kaushika gradually learned to use all his powers for the welfare of the whole of creation. He became a Friend of the Universe. And so the Rishis gave him the name ‘Vishvamitra’ (Vishva: universe, Mitra: friend). Previously, he had been a power-hungry and angry king. Through a long period of fiery aspiration and learning, he developed into a magnificent being. He did not become a Brahmarshi – the status of Vasishta, with whom he had always compared himself.

Ultimately, Vasishta also held him in high esteem. Vishvamitra became a great seer, a Maharshi, and he attained the favour of the cow: the expression of the divine Word. The Vedic seers say that the Divine Mother gives the Word. All of nature works together with those who know the Word. With it, we can milk everything from Nature for the benefit and well-being of other living beings. Mother Nature came to Vishvamitra in the form of a mantra, which we sing as the Gayatri mantra. With it, he gave humanity a great key to the light. Vishvamitra gave this mantra to all those who wanted to lead a pure life, physically, emotionally and mentally.

At the time when Sri Rama, an embodiment of Divine Law, lived on earth, there was a group of black magicians who always worked against the welfare of people and the ancient wisdom. They were called Rakshasas. They constantly hindered the pious rituals of the hermits and polluted the hermitages. They tried to destroy the tradition of ancient wisdom and also killed the sages. The hermits gathered and asked Vishvamitra for protection. In his contemplation, Vishvamitra could see the then 16-year-old Rama as the World Teacher who could defeat the Rakshasas, protect the hermit families and establish Divine Law.

Vishvamitra turned to the father of Rama and asked him to send Rama with him to protect the rituals of the hermits. Rama's father was afraid to let the boy fight the diabolical ones. The seer said to the king: “You see only a boy in him. Your Master, Vasishta, and I see in him a saviour of the world. The time has come for him to work. Send him with me.” Vasishta also advised the king to let Rama go with Vishvamitra. Thus the Plan unfolded.

Rama and his brother Lakshmana followed Vishvamitra. He initiated the two brothers into the secrets of divine weapons and supramental powers to subdue the Rakshasas. The brothers participated in a great assembly ritual of the Rishis in Vishvamitra's hermit village. They stayed there and guarded the ritual day and night. It was a great success, and everyone was very happy.

Vishvamitra's lineage continued in India for a very long time. In this lineage, the emphasis is on one's own efforts towards transformation. One acts in such a way that the Light has to precipitate down, and one does not wait for its grace.

In a later age, the sage Vishvamitra destroyed Krishna's family clan, the Yadavas, when a group of young people wanted to test him. They dressed a young man as a pregnant woman and asked him, seemingly reverently, to tell them whether this young woman would give birth to a boy or a girl. The seer looked at them and said: “You are so arrogant and irresponsible. Your bad behaviour has crossed the line. Therefore, this boy will give birth to a lump of iron. This will destroy your group and your families.” Vishvamitra was surprised by the words that came through him. But thus, the entire clan of Krishna, which had become corrupt, was destroyed by the power of Vishvamitra for the good of the universe.

In the lineage of Vishvamitra, the one we know in later lives as Count St. Germain also incarnated during the time of Krishna. His name at that time was Munda Kaushika. When he was 12 years old, he decided to devote his life to the science of magic. He went to northern India to enter the secret magical institutions there. He became the disciple of Chanda Kaushika, a master of magic, and underwent the very strict discipline of his school. Munda Kaushika learned very quickly because he had a strong will. At the age of 35, Munda Kaushika was a master of magical knowledge. King Kamsa of Mathura in central India engaged him as his teacher. Being engaged as a teacher was a mistake, because it meant that the teacher was subject to the goals of the student. Kamsa used his knowledge and powers against the child Krishna. But Krishna, as a master magician, was able to avert the attacks.

Repulsed by his pupil's bad behaviour, Munda Kaushika disappeared from Mathura and went to Nepal. There he continued his contemplative exercises. He was called upon to establish a school in the spirit of Charvaka thinking – which rejected the Omnipresent Being we call “God” – and to train young people in the science of magic. His ego was flattered; he fell into black magic and into a violent conflict. He became the magician Lokayata, whom Master EK describes in ‘Music of the Soul’. Through contact with Lord Krishna, he was transformed and returned to white magic.

At the school in Nepal, 3000 years before Christ, there were several who are now great initiates. Master St. Germain – as we call him today – and Master Djwhal Khul went through the third initiation there within a few weeks of each other. Both were transformed into adepts during Krishna's lifetime and accepted into the Hierarchy.

Sources used: K.P. Kumar: Asvins - The Twin Gods; Dhanishta; div. seminar notes / E. Krishnamacharya: Music of the Soul. Kulapathi Book Trust, Visakhapatnam, India. (www.aquariusbookhouse.com)