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An Introduction To Charak Samhitokta Rishi Maitreya and Evaluation of His Contribution

To Ayurveda

Prof. Dr. Subhash Waghe ¹

¹Dept. of Rog Nidan, SAM College of Ayurvedic Sciences, Raisen (MP) – 464 551

Corresponding Author: Prof. Dr. Subhash Waghe

ORCID ID: 0009-0006-2776-5549

Article Info: Article Received on : 09/05/2026

Article Reviewed on: 25/06/2026

Article Published on : 15/07/2026

Cite this article as: - Waghe, S. (2026). An Introduction To Charak Samhitokta Rishi Maitreya and Evaluation of His Contribution

To Ayurveda. International Journal of Diagnostics And Research, 3(4), 118–124. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21373775

Abstract

The reference of sage Maitreya apart from Ayurveda is found in ancient Indological literature such as

Vishnu Purana, Bhagwat Purana and Mahabharata. He was known for his wisdom in philosophy.

Cosmology and devotion. He was the elder son of King Divodas’s eldest son. He turned out be monk. In

his dialogue with Vidura, sage Maitreya explained the origin of mind form cosmic principles. He also

narrated the influence of trigunas such as Satva, Raja and Tama. He also described the evolution of the

universe and the human body. Maharshi Maitreya learnt Vedas (Rigveda, Yajurveda, Samaveda,

Atharvaveda), Vedangas [Shiksha (Phonetics), Kalpa (Ritual canon), Vyakarana (Grammer), Nirukta

(Etymology), Chhandas (meter), Jyotisha (Astrology)] and Dharma Shastras/ Smritis from sage Parashara.

Rishi Maitreya is the creator of ‘Maitreyani Upanishada’. In this Upanishada, he had given the account of

Brahmavidya in the form of dialogue between lord Bramha and Balakhilya rishis. Maharishi Maitreya was

present in the conclave of rishis conducted beneath the mountains of Himalayas, some 5000 years ago.

This not only shows his interest in the medical science but also put him as the caring person for the

sufferings of mankind. Hence, it becomes essential to explore the life of sage Maitreya to know about his

contribution to the Ayurveda.

Keywords: Maitreyani Upanishada, Brahma-vidya,

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became Brahmin and his decedents were referred as

‘Maudgalya. The son of Mudgal was Indrasena and

his son was Vindhyashwa who married to Menaka.

From this union they had heterogenic twin in the

form of male child called Divodasa and female

child called Ahalya who later married to sage

Gautama. Divodas’s eldest son was Mitrayu and

youngest was Maitreya. They turned out to be Yati

(monk). They are Kshatriya ansha yukta Bhrigu

Vanshi (persons belonging to Bhrigu lineage having

traits of warrior caste).^{[2] [3]}

Introduction :

The reference of sage Maitreya apart from

Ayurveda is found in ancient Indological literature

such as Vishnu Purana, Bhagwat Purana and

Mahabharata. He was known for his wisdom in

philosophy. Cosmology and devotion. He was the

elder son of King Divodas’s eldest son. Rishi

Maitreya is the creator of ‘Maitreyani Upanishada’.

In this Upanishada, he had given the account of

Brahmavidya in the form of dialogue between lord

Bramha and Balakhilya rishis. There is a reference

to acharya Maitreya in Charaka Sutrasthana chapter

ten. In this chapter acharya Maitreya had asked a

doubt to the Atreya Punarwasu that what is the

reason that some patients despite getting the best

treatment, nursing care, good doctor and being

mentally strong, succumbs and why some patient

despite not getting any of the above or little care get

cured. In his dialogue with Vidura, sage Maitreya

explained the origin of mind form cosmic

principles. He also narrated the influence of

trigunas such as Satva, Raja and Tama. He also

described the evolution of the universe and the

human body. Maharishi Maitreya was present in the

conclave of rishis conducted beneath the mountains

of Himalayas, some 5000 years ago.^[1]

Maharshi Maitreya’s Education and Teacher:

Maharshi

Maitreya

learnt

Vedas

(Rigveda,

Yajurveda, Samaveda, Atharvaveda), Vedangas

[Shiksha

(Phonetics),

(Grammer),

Kalpa

(Ritual

canon),

Vyakarana

Nirukta

(Etymology),

Chhandas (meter), Jyotisha (Astrology)] and

Dharma Shastras/ Smritis from sage Parashara.^[4]

Maitreya’s Conversation with Lord Mahadeva:

Once Maharshi Maitreya went to mountain

Kailasha to consult lord Mahadeva. He asked lord

Mahadeva to give him knowledge about Param

Tatva (Ultimate Principle). Lord Mahadeva said

that body is temple and the sole residing in it is the

Shiva Parmatma. Considering Jivatma (Individual

sole) as Brahma is what gaining the true

knowledge. Accepting Adwaita (sole and God is

one) concept is true Bhiksha-vrutti (earning bread

by begging) and that is Sanyasa (withdrawal from

everything) also. Those who is devoid of any desire

should accept Sanyasa.

Material & Method:

Literary method of research is followed in this

article. All the available Ayurvedic and Indological

literature is explored to find the maximum

information about the sage Maitreya.

Sanyasi should not worship the God idols made up

of stone or metals as it forces them to take birth

again. They should worship the sole in the heart

only.^[5]

Review Of Literature:

Maitreya’s Family Tree

As per Matsya Purana, In the lineage of

Ajameedha, king Mudgala was born who later

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muni Maitreya there. Maitreya said that Vyasa is

Maitreya’s Conversation with Vidura:

The Chaturtha Skandha (fourth section) of

Shreemad Bhagwat Purana is the conversation

between the mahamati Vidura and the sage

Maitreya. Vidura was the minister of famous

ancient Hasteenapur state (present day Meratha

district of Uttar Pradesh State of India). He was the

prime minister of king Dhritarastra. In this

conversation sage Maitrya told Vidura about the

lineage Swayambhuv Manu and other rishis, Yagya

conducted by the Daksha and its destruction by lord

Shankara, story of king Uttanpada and Dhruva,

Boon of Kubera to Dhruva, Story of king Anga,

Vena and his son Pruthu, King Puranjana, and

Prachetas.^[6]

the son of his teacher and does not see any

difference between Jivatma (individual sole) and

Parmatma (cosmic sole). Vyasa said that he

received

more

than

enough

welcome

and

admiration. As per Vyasa, Vedas are of the view

that one should not keep enmity with anyone,

always speak truth and keep on donating. Vyas

further said to muni Maitreya that it is good

practice to offer food to the guest and you have

given me food and water when I was hungry and

thirsty. Vyasa further said that on account of this

donation muni Maitreya will get desired happiness.

The persons who are engaged in Dana (donation),

Yagya (oblation) and Tapasya (penance) are the

real follower of noble path. Muni Maitreya said that

on pacifying the Brahmanas, gods and ancestors

(Pitaras) get contended. The Brahmin who is born

in pure family, who is engaged in learning and

teaching and who observes penance is always

worthy of worship. At this point Maharshi Vyasa

says to the muni Maitreya that he is young,

intelligent, scientist, kind hearted, follower of Vrata

and born in good family. Donation and penance

clean all the sins.^[8]

Maitreya’s Conversation With Duryodhana:

Once Maharshi Maitreya went to Kuru pradesha

(geographical area between modern day Uttar

pradesha and Haryana state of India) and met

Yudhishthira in Kamyaka forest. Later he came to

Hasteenapura and met king Dhritarashtra. Maitreya

said to Dhritarashtra that it does not appear good

that his son Duryodhana played dice in front of

seniors like Bheeshma. Later Maitreya said to

Duryodhana that do not keep rivalry with Pandavas.

They are much powerful and Vasudeva Shrikrishna

is also with them. But Duryodhana neglected the

kind advice of Maharshi Maitreya and instead show

disrespect towards him. Angry with this behaviour

of Duryodhana, muni Maitreya cursed Duryodhana

that he will soon face the war and Bheema will

break his thigh with his mace.^[7]

Maitreya And Vishnu Purana:

Vishnu Purana is the conversation between

Maharshi Maitreya and Maharshi Parashara in

which sage Maitreya had asked several intelligent

questions to the Maharshi Parashara about the

evolution and disintegration of the universe, about

various incarnations of the Gods and rishis,

education and class system and regarding history of

various kings and their lineages.^[9]

Conversation Between Maitreya And Vyasa:

Once upon a time Krishna Dwaipayan Vyasa along

with lord Shrikrishna went to Varanasi and met

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universal sole (Jivatma) is without any oddity but

Maitreya And Bhagwat Purana:

The fourth Skandha (4^thpart) of Shreemad Bhagwat

Purana is entirely described by sage Maitreya. In

this part he had described the lineage of first king

Manu, the story of Sati and Daksha Yagya, story of

Dhruva and his family tree, story of king Pruthu

Vena and his family tree, story of king Puranjana

and lord Vishnu’s blessings to Prachetas.^[10]

gets vitiated on becoming the individual sole

(Bhutatma) because of factors like greed, anger,

fear, jealousy, ungratefulness, will to earn wealth,

will to possess the materialistic things and the

subjects of pleasing sensations etc. Getting beaten

by these ill factors, the individual soul keeps on

changing the bodies to balance the deeds of past

life. To avoid this, one should control the mind and

align it with the universal energy of the God.

Balakhilya Rishis got pacified with this answer of

the lord Bramha.^[11]

Maitreya As Propagator of Brahmavidya:

Rishi Maitreya is the creator of ‘Maitreyani

Upanishada’. In this Upanishada, he had given the

account of Brahmavidya in the form of dialogue

between lord Bramha and Balakhilya rishis.

Contribution To Ayurveda:

Balakhilya Rishis, out of curiosity asked lord

Bramha about the principle that runs the body and

make it lively. To this query of Balakhilya Rishis,

lord Bramha replied that, it is the eternal soul runs

the body and make it lively. On this, Balakhilya

Rishis, again questioned the lorda Bramha that how

even when it is not desired, how the soul gets

stabilized in the body and how it instigates the

body. To this query of Balakhilya Rishis, lord

Bramha replied that, the universal soul (Jivatma)

with its fraction (Bhutatma) keeps on entering the

body making it lively and inspiring it to become

functional. This soul in body is called as ‘Purusha

or Kshetragya (observer)’. The soul resides in heart

and receives information through the sensory motor

organs. Although it is actionless but appears to be

the initiator of the action (Karta). On this,

Balakhilya Rishis, again questioned the lord

Bramha that why the soul gets trapped in the

auspicious or inauspicious deeds and moves in

different species (yonis). To this query of

Balakhilya Rishis, lord Bramha replied that, pure

Maharishi Maitreya was present in the conclave of

rishis conducted beneath the mountains of

Himalayas, some 5000 years ago. Also, there is a

reference

to

acharya

Maitreya

in

Charaka

Sutrasthana chapter ten. In this chapter acharya

Maitreya had asked a doubt to the Atreya

Punarwasu that what is the reason that some

patients despite getting the best treatment, nursing

care, good doctor and being mentally strong,

succumbs and why some patient despite not getting

any of the above or little care get cured. It is like

pouring little water in waterless ditch or lake full of

water or throwing some clay in flowing river to

stop it. Some patients do get health on treatment or

death in spite of the treatment. Some patients

become healthy without getting any treatment or

become dead. Hence, it appears that treatment

hardly makes any difference.^[12]As he was present

in the famous conference that held almost 5000

years ago beneath the mountain Himalaya in which

sages discussed about the diseases in society. In

this conference, all the sages unanimously selected

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sage Bharadwaja as their leader to bring Ayurveda

from the God king Indra. After bringing the

knowledge of Ayurveda from the Indra, sage

Bhardwaja taught it to all the Rishis and Munis

present in the first conference as mentioned by

acharya Charaka. Hence, it is likely that as like

other rishis, sage Maitreya may have created his

own treatise on Ayurveda which is not available

today.

Maitreya explained the origin of mind form cosmic

principles on the basis of Sankhya philosophy. He

also narrated the influence of trigunas such as

Satva, Raja and Tama. He also described the

evolution of the universe and the human body.

Maharshi

Maitreya

learnt

Vedas

(Rigveda,

Yajurveda, Samaveda, Atharvaveda), Vedangas

[Shiksha

(Phonetics),

(Grammer),

Kalpa

(Ritual

canon),

Vyakarana

Nirukta

(Etymology),

Chhandas (meter), Jyotisha (Astrology)] and

Dharma Shastras/ Smritis from sage Parashara.

Rishi Maitreya is the creator of ‘Maitreyani

Upanishada’. In this Upanishada, he had given the

account of Brahma-vidya in the form of dialogue

between lord Bramha and Balakhilya rishis.

Maitreya had asked a doubt to the Atreya

Punarwasu that what is the reason that some

patients despite getting the best treatment, nursing

care, good doctor and being mentally strong,

succumbs and why some patient despite not getting

any of the above or little care get cured.

Observation:

Rishi Maitreya in Nutshell

01 Lineage

Bhrigu Vansha

great Mudgala

Great

02

grandfather

Great Grand Father

Grand Father

Father

Indrasena

03

04

05

06

07

08

Vindhyashwa

Divodasa

Brother

Mitrayu

Teacher

Parashara

Literary

Vishnu Puran

Bhagwat Puran

contribution

Contemporary sages

Conclusion:

Krishna

Dwaipayan

09

10

Sage Maitreya was present in the conclave of rishis

conducted beneath the mountains of Himalayas,

some 7000 years ago and learnt the wisdom of

Vyasa

Contemporary

personalities

Duryodhana,

Shrikrishna, Bhishma

Ayurveda

from

rishi

Bhardwaja.

He

also

participated in the ancient symposiums that took

place from time to time organized by different

school of medicines in ancient time. Vishnu Purana

is the conversation between Maharshi Maitreya and

Maharshi Parashara. The fourth section of Bhagwat

Purana is attributed to the sage Maitreya in which

he answered the queries of highly intelligent person

called Vidura. Sage Maitrya also authored the book

called ‘Maitreyani Upanishada’ in which he had

Discussion:

The reference of sage Maitreya apart from

Ayurveda is found in ancient Indological literature

such as Vishnu Purana, Bhagwat Purana and

Mahabharata. He was known for his wisdom in

philosophy. Cosmology and devotion. He was the

elder son of King Divodas’s eldest son. He turned

out be monk. In his dialogue with Vidura, sage

Copyright @ : - Dr.Subhash Waghe Inter. J.Digno. and Research IJDRMSID0137 |ISSN :2584-2757

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text with Hindi translation, published by

given the account of Brahma-vidya in the form of

dialogue between lord Bramha and Balakhilya

rishis. His views regarding treatment, patient care

and outcome are quoted in famous Ayurvedic book

Charka Samhita. He had exchange of thoughts with

famous Ayurvedic teacher Atreya Punarwasu.

Hence, sage Maitreya is proved to be one of the

important scholars in the ancient tradition of

Ayurvedic rishis and Maharshis.

Gita press Gorakhpur, 273005, 1990, Pg. 1

5. Shriram Sharma Acharya (editor), 108

Upanishada, Maitreyu Upanishada of sage

Maitreya,

2^nd

Chapter,

first

edition,

published by Yug Nirman Yojana Vistar

Trust, Mathura (India) -281003, 2019, pg.

248 – 250

References:

6. Ramnarayandatta Shastri Pandeya (editor

and translator), Shreemad Bhagwat Puran

of Krishna Dwaipayan Vyasa, Chaturtha

Skandha, Chapter 16-26, 61^streprint edition,

1. Harishchandra

Kushwah

(commentator)

Charak Samhita of Agnivesha redacted by

Dridhbala and Charak Sutrasthana 1/19-31,

reprint

edition

2016,

published

by

Sanskrit

text

with

Hindi

translation,

Chaukhamba Orientalia, Varanasi – 221001,

published by Gita press Gorakhpur, 273005,

2010, pg. 321-463

pg. 8

2. Munilal Gupta (editor and translator),

Matsya Puran of Krishna Dwaipayan

Vyasa, Chapter 50, Verse no. 1-15, 36^th

reprint edition, Sanskrit text with hindi

7. Ramnarayandatta Shastri Pandeya (editor

and translator), Mahabharata, Vana and

Kirmirvadh Parva Chapter 10, Verse no. 11-

34, 17^threprint edition, Sanskrit text with

Hindi translation, published by Gita press

Gorakhpur, 273005, 2016, pg. 47-49

translation,

published

by

Gita

press

Gorakhpur, 273005, 2008, Pg. 191

3. Ramnarayandatta Shastri Pandeya (editor

and translator), Shreemad Bhagwat

8. Ramnarayandatta Shastri Pandeya (editor

and translator), Mahabharata, Anushasan

and Danadharma Parva Chapter 120, 121

and 122, 17^threprint edition, Sanskrit text

with Hindi translation, published by Gita

press Gorakhpur, 273005, 2016, pg. 505-

510

Purana, Navam Skandaha, Chapter 21

Verse No. 30-36 and 22 Verse No. 1-3, 65^th

reprint edition, Sanskrit text with Hindi

translation,

published

by

Gita

Press

Gorakhpur, 273005, 2009, pg. 83-85

4. Munilal Gupta (editor and translator),

Vishnu Puran of Krishna Dwaipayan

Vyasa, 1/1/2-3, 36^threprint edition, Sanskrit

9. Munilal Gupta (editor and translator),

Vishnu Puran of Krishna Dwaipayan

Copyright @ : - Dr.Subhash Waghe Inter. J.Digno. and Research IJDRMSID0137 |ISSN :2584-2757

123

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INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DIAGNOSTICS AND RESEARCH [ISSN No.: 2584-2757]

Vyasa, 1/1/2-3, 36^threprint edition 1990,

Sanskrit

text

with

Hindi

translation,

published by Gita press Gorakhpur, 273005,

Pg. 1&

10. Ramnarayandatta Shastri Pandeya (editor

and translator), Shreemad Bhagwat Puran

of Krishna Dwaipayan Vyasa, 4^thSkandha,

61^streprint edition, Sanskrit text with Hindi

translation,

published

by

Gita

press

Gorakhpur, 273005, 2010, pg. 321-460

11. Shriram Sharma Acharya (editor), 108

Upanishada, Maitrayani Upanishada of

sage Maitreya, 2^ndto 4^thPrapathaka, first

edition, published by Yug Nirman Yojana

Vistar Trust, Mathura (India) -281003,

2019, pg. 384 – 391

12. Harishchandra

Kushwah

(commentator)

Charak Samhita of Agnivesha redacted by

Dridhbala and Charak Sutrasthana, Chapter

10, Verse no. 4, reprint edition 2016,

published

by

Chaukhamba

Orientalia,

Varanasi – 221001, pg. 146

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