According to the religion of Hinduism Agastya is a legendary Vedic sage. It is firmly believed by many that it was sage Agastya who first introduced and popularized Vedic religion in the southern part of India. Agastya and his followers are also believed to have authored many mantras of Rig Veda. Agastya is also believed to be one greatest Seven Sages or Saptarishis. The sage Agastya was born of two deities, Mitra and Varuna of Urvashi.

There are various legends about Agastya as well. According to one of legends it is believed that once Agastya had taken shelter in the ocean and it turned out to be pretty tough for the deities to vanquish them and so they asked for help from the former. It is said that after hearing the Gods Agastya engulfed the entire ocean water and stored it within him till the demons were ultimately destroyed. It is also believed that Agastya have dedicated all the wild beats to the deity Lord Rudra or Lord Shiva. Another popular legend also states how the two demon brothers decided to kill Agastya. The two brothers had supernatural powers which when exercised could help one to change form and the other to utter the Sanjivani Mantra which could make a dead person alive. So they hatched a plan against Agastya. One of them decided to change his form to a goat, which will be fed to Agastya and then after the recitation of the Sanjivani Mantra would bring him back to life and would in turn render the stomach of the sage thus bringing his life to an end. But with his immense Vedic powers Agastya came to know about this plan from beforehand and resolved to teach them a lesson. After the meal Agastya uttered the digestion mantra, after which the other demon attempts to regain his brother`s life proved to be vain.

Agastya is also considered as the first and foremost person of Siddha and is also considered as the teacher of many other renowned saints. He is also called `short saint` or `kuru muni`. He has made significant contributions in the field of medicine and astrology. According to some scholars he is said to have lived for 5000 years. He had many disciples among them the main were Therayar, Tholkappiar and Mahavatar Babaji. Agastya muni plays a significant role in the great Indian epic, Ramayana. In the `Aranya Kanda` or the `Forest Trek` part, Lord Rama requests Sage Agastha to indicate a place in the forest to make a residence during the days of exile. He also foresees the next course of Ramayana and orients his conversation around womanhood and Sita. After that the sage informs Rama to proceed to Panchavati where Sita will be delightful of its surroundings. Agastya muni is also claimed by the Tamiliars to be the father of their purer.