Parashara was a great sage of the Vashistha lineage, the son of Shakti and the grandson of Vashistha himself. He is traditionally regarded as the father of Vyasa (Krishna Dvaipayana), the compiler of the Vedas and the author of the Mahabharata. Parashara is credited with the authorship of the Vishnu Purana (one of the earliest and most authoritative of the eighteen Mahapuranas), the Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra (a foundational text of Vedic astrology), and the Parashara Smriti (a dharma text).
The Parashara gotra is therefore a direct branch of the ancient Vashistha family. Its standard pravara is Vashistha–Shaktya–Parashara. Because of Parashara’s immense literary and scientific contributions, the gotra carries a strong association with scriptural scholarship, Purana tradition, and Jyotisha. It remains an important Brahmin lineage in many parts of India.
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Name of a revered sage, traditionally remembered as the father of Ved Vyasa, who is credited with compiling the Vedas and composing the Mahabharata.
No. Gotra and surname are separate systems. Families with many different surnames, across many regions and communities, can share the same gotra, and families with the same surname can belong to different gotras.
Many communities traditionally avoid marriage between people of the same gotra, based on the idea that they share a common patrilineal ancestor. Exact customs vary widely by community and region.