Shandilya was a revered Vedic sage traditionally regarded as a grandson of Kashyapa (through Devala) and therefore belonging to the larger Kashyapa family tree, yet founding an independent and highly respected gotra. He is most famous for the teaching recorded in the Chandogya Upanishad (3.14), known as the Shandilya Vidya, which presents one of the earliest and clearest statements of the identity of the individual self (Atman) with the ultimate reality (Brahman). This teaching became foundational for later Vedanta philosophy.
Shandilya is also associated with the Shandilya Upanishad (a Yoga Upanishad attached to the Atharvaveda) and, in some traditions, with early formulations of bhakti. The Shandilya gotra is especially prominent among Saraswat and other North Indian Brahmin communities and also appears in other castes. Its standard pravara is Shandilya–Asita–Devala. The gotra is affiliated primarily with the Samaveda (Kauthuma shakha) and is sometimes linked with the designation Chhandogya or Chhandog Brahmins.
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Name of a revered sage credited with an early Upanishadic teaching on the nature of the self (atman).
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.