Vedavyāsa — The Compiler of the Vedas
Vyāsa (Sanskrit: व्यास — 'the one who arranged/spread out') — formally Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana Vyāsa, also called Vedavyāsa — is the legendary sage credited with the monumental organization of India's sacred literature. His principal achievements:
- Division of the Vedas into four saṃhitās (Ṛg, Sāma, Yajur, Atharva) — making them accessible to different classes of priests
- Authorship of Brahma Sūtras — the canonical systematization of Upaniṣadic teaching that forms one leg of the Prasthāna-trayam
- Composition of the Mahābhārata — including the Bhagavad Gīṭā
- Composition of 18 Purāṇas — including the Bhāgavata Purāṇa (considered his greatest work)
Vyāsa in Sri Vaishnava Theology
Rāmānuja's entire Śrī Bhāṣyam is a commentary on Vyāsa's Brahma Sūtras. Āḷavandhār had vowed to honor Vyāsa (by writing a commentary on the Brahma Sūtras) — a vow fulfilled by Rāmānuja.
Vyāsa is considered a nitya-sūri or at least a specially empowered ṛṣi (seer) whose compilation work was guided by divine inspiration. The Bhāgavata Purāṇa describes Vyāsa as directly instructed by Nārada Muni (himself a nityasūri) to compose the Bhāgavatam.