Ancient sages or Rishis (ऋषी) and Locations of their hermitages (आश्रम)

Question

Since ancient times India is known as the land of sages and their valuable teachings. The great sages of India devoted their lives towards the enlightenment of mankind. They have occupied special place in Hinduism. The names of some of them are given below.

Vasishtha (योग वशिष्ठ) , Agastya (अगस्त्य) , Adi Shankaracharya (आदि शंकराचार्य) , Valmiki (वाल्मिकी) , Ved Vyas ( व्यास) etc. These sages or Rishis were living life in their Hermitages (आश्रम).

I want to know , the ancient locations of the Hermitages. I.e. where were they located. ? Are there any mentioning in Scriptures about this.?

(Not particularly all locations , some of it will also do)

Answer 1

Durvasa Rishi ashram was supposed to have been near Mathura on the banks of Yamuna. Source: here.

One of the ashrams of Rishi Vishwamitra, Kapila Muni and Dadhichi Rishi was on the left banks of river Prachi (of Prachi Mahatmya) nearby Puri in Odisha.

Source: http://odisha.gov.in/e-magazine/Orissareview/2012/July/engpdf/71-83.pdf

Rishyashringa ashram was near modern day Sringeri in Karnataka. (source wiki)

Matanga Muni ashram which he shared with apsara Urvashi is also being identified on banks of Prachi river near Cuttack, Odisha. Source is above pdf document.

Am trying to get extracts from the related scriptures and post shortly.

Answer 2

Ayodhya's tirtha-sthala (holy spots) like the exact location of Shree Rama janma-bhoomi, Rishi Lomasha ashrama (hermitage), Vasishtha-kunda, Brihaspati-kunda, etc. which are mentioned in ancient scriptures all exist in present-day Ayodhya [Ref: Skanda Purana 2.8.1-10].

God Rama killed Tadaka and they reached Rishi Vishwamitra's Siddhashrama, at present-day Buksar in Bihar [Valmiki Ramayana 1.26-30; ramyatra.com].

In Videha, Rishi Gautama had set his wife Ahalya to stone due to an event from the past. This is present-day Ahalya uddhara sthana in Ahiyari South in Bihar state [Valmiki Ramayana 1.48; ramyatra.com]. There is another Gautama ashrama nearby [Google maps].

During their exile, God Rama, Sita and Lakshmana reach Rishi Bharadwaja’s ashrama (hermitage) at Prayaga where River Ganga meets River Yamuna, present-day Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh state [Valmiki Ramayana 2.54].

From Chitrakoot, God Rama, Sita and Lakshmana visit the nearby ashrama of Rishi Atri and Anasuyadevi [Valmiki Ramayana 2.117].

God Rama then goes south to the banks of River Godavari [Valmiki Ramayana 3.11-13]. Folklore believes this to be Parnasala in present-day Telangana state near the temple town of Bhadrachalam which is also called Dakshina Ayodhya.

Ravana had molested Rishi Kushadhwaja’s daughter Vedavati in Naimisha-vana near Kurukshetra in present-day Harayana state [Ref: Ramayana 7.17].

Rishi Matanga’s ashrama was at Rishyamukha hills, present-day Hampi in Karnataka state.

Valmiki had done severe tapasya (penances) at Mahakala-vana near present-day Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh state and become Rishi Valmiki [Ref: Skanda Purana 5.1.24, 7.1.278].

Lakshmana took a pregnant Sita in a chariot from Ayodhya up to the banks of River Ganga. They then took a boat to cross over to reach the ashrama where Valmiki and many ascetic families lived [Ramayana 7.56-59]. This is present-day Bithoor near Kanpur, where she delivered her twins. As per folklore, there are other Valmiki ashrama too, identified in present-day Amritsar in Punjab state; Valmikinagar on the Bihar state border with Nepal; Tapovan Hill near Vaidyanath jyotir-linga temple in Deoghar in Jharkhand state; and Thiruvanmiyur in Chennai in Tamil Nadu state.

Rishi Garga’s ashrama were at present-day Patteeswaram village in Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu state and Dunagiri in Almora district of Uttarakhand state. He suggested a name for God Krishna in Gokul.

Rishi Durvasa's ashrama was on the banks of River Yamuna in Vraja-bhoomi [Gopalatapani Upanishad].

Rishi Sandipani’s ashrama was near Mahakala-vana in Avanti in present-day Ujjain of Madhya Pradesh state [Skanda Purana 5.1.27; Bhagavata Purana 10.45.31].

Rishi Vyasa’s forest ashrama was at Naimisha-vana near Kurukshetra in present-day Haryana state [Mahabharata 15.19].

[Source: 'Essence of the Fifth Veda' by Gaurang Damani pages 3-5, 9, 11, 16, 29, 62, 82, 94, 98, 213].