How Agni Became Auspicious

The great Rishi Saunak and his students had once gathered at the Naimisharanya at the beginning of the Kali Yuga to save themselves from the effects of this age. Here, Ugrasrava Sauti, the great Sage and son of Sage Lomharshana, came to meet them. He surprised them with stories of King Janamejaya's strange Swarpa Yagna and the strangest tales he heard from Maharshi Krishna Dwaipayana Vyas Dev there, at this strangest of events. The eager Rishis asked Sauti about the story of Bhrigu and Agni.

Bhrigu was a powerful Rishi. His wife was Puloma, the Daughter of Daksha Prajapati and granddaughter of Brahma. One day, when his wife was pregnant, he left her in the darkness of the awaiting dawn to go for a dip in the holy Ganges far away. She was alone in the hut when a Rakshasa attacked her. Scared and alone, Puloma cried helplessly for aid. Her beauty had mesmerised the animals who wanted to marry her by force. The demon leader took her into the hut and shut the door. But inside the hut, to her rescue stood Agni Dev. Agni Dev was married to her sister, Swaha. Puloma prayed for his help.

" Let go of the sacred woman, you Demon." Agni roared in anger. Sensing danger, the Rakshas set Puloma free. But he was intelligent.

" Pravu Agni Dev, you are the most truthful in the whole Arya Varta. God, answer my prayers." He pleaded. Agni wanted to hear what this demon had to say.

" Long ago, Puloma was promised to me by her father. Her father proposed marriage, and I accepted it. But then Bhrigu came, and Daksh found him more worthy of her. Without letting me know, her marriage was organised for him. I have searched the lands for her. Tell me, O truthful Lord, does she not belong to me?"

Puloma was shocked at this development, and Agni Dev was in a dilemma. He knew the truth, but saying it would mean Puloma being kidnapped. The demon would probably kill her child, and Bhrigu's anger would destroy the world. Thinking carefully, Agni chose his words wisely, " Rakshas, it is true that you were proposed marriage and she is yours actually, but she was not married to you before marrying Bhrigu Maharishi. She took the Seven Vows with him and hence is his wife legally. Please leave her in peace."

Angered, the demon took a violent shape and scared Agni. He forcefully ran away with Puloma to hide her in a cave. Suddenly, light filled the cave, and Puloma was in deep pain. A beautiful baby boy appeared from her womb. His appearance was godly, his radiance spectacular. The Demon came to kill the child. A scared Puloma wailed. But as soon as the baby boy set his eyes on the demon, the demon turned to ashes. Puloma realised her boy was no ordinary baby; he was God-sent to save his mother. Puloma returned with the baby to her hut.

But guilt filled her heart. Another man had touched her. She feared Bhrigu's anger and rejection. A few hours later, Bhrigu came back and saw a baby on his wife's lap. His happiness knew no bounds as he held his son. But Puloma seemed sad and aloof. After Bhrigu forced her to talk, she cried out, spilling whatever had happened to her while he was gone. Bhrigu got angry and cursed Agni, " You will remain Hungry forever, nothing will satisfy your hunger, and you will destroy forests, villages, animals and birds. They will fear you like a demon."

Chyavana

Agni was surprised and scared. This way, his flames would destroy the world. He went to Brahma and pleaded, " My Lord, I have never lied in my life, yet I suffer this curse. You teach people that lies lead to curses and hell. But if people hear that I got cursed for being truthful, then they will stop speaking the truth, My Lord." Brahma added a boon to Agni's curse. "Your touch will free the soul of sin, it will purify all, and no Puja or Yagna will be complete without it. " Happy, Agni went back to stay on earth. He purified all and helped the Pandavas burn down the Nagas at Khandavprastha.

Bhrigu understood his son was no ordinary human, meant to be a sage; he went to Narayana for advice. Narayana told him, " Name your son Chyavana. He will be a learned man. He will create a medicine called Chyawanprash, which will be powerful enough to oppose Lord Indra's Vajra. He will create history." Grateful, Bhrigu returned home.

|| Mahabharat Vaani Amrit Saman||

|| Kahe suno Vyas Dev aur Kasiram||

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The Indian Subcontinent is a diverse mix of cultures, religions and traditions that make up its value system. The moment we discuss the early Indian subcontinent and its religions, long before Buddhism or Jainism came into existence or the Abrahamic religions were introduced on the western coasts by travellers and traders, long before any invasion proved any sign of forced conversion, a layman’s idea of the Indian Subcontinent is that of a single unified culture. Historically speaking, that is far from the truth. The Indian Subcontinent, since the evidence of early civilisation has been found in its river banks, like that in Bhirrana or Mehrgarh, dating back to around 6000 BCE, has never had one unifying belief through its geographic boundaries. The terms Hindu, Hindustan and many others come originally from attributed to primary sources of the Ancient West Asian civilisation. But our history starts much earlier than that. And where there is society and civilisation, there is bound to ...

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