Asita

Asita
The prophecy of the seer Asita, slate relief from Gandhara, 3rd/4th century AD (Rietberg Museum, Zurich; Inv. No. RVI 11)
Religious life
ReligionBuddhism
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For Seer sage in Rigaveda, see Rishi Asita.

Asita or Kaladevala or Kanhasiri was a hermit ascetic, a sage and seer, depicted in Buddhist sources as having lived in ancient India. He was a teacher and advisor of Suddhodana, the father of the Buddha, and is best known for having predicted that prince Siddhartha of Kapilavastu would either become a great chakravartin or become a supreme religious leader; Siddhartha was later known as Gautama Buddha.

The name Asita literally means 'not clinging' while Kanhasiri means 'dark splendour'. Asita is described as a tāpasa, a practitioner of asceticism.

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