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Legends About Agni

Agni Dev Lies to Bhrigu, Birth of Chyavan, Bhrigu Curses Agni Dev
This incident happened at Bhrigu's Aashram. Bhrigu Jee had a wife named Pulomaa. She was first given to Pulomaa named Daitya, later she was married to Bhrigu Jee. So Daitya Pulomaa was always searching for an opportunity to get her. According to Padm Puraan, 4/3, once Bhrigu went to forest and his wife was alone in the Aashram. Pulomaa Daitya came there and enquired about Bhrigu's wife from the Rishi who were living in the Aashram, but they showed their ignorance. So he came to Bhrigu's hut and asked Agni Dev about her. Agni Dev could not have lied, so he told him about her.

Pulomaa took her forcefully and started going away from the Aashram. Pulomaa was pregnant at that time. She got frightened and her fetus fell from her womb. Seeing this Pulomaa ran away from there. When Bhrigu came back he named that child "Chyavan" because he got "Chyut" (fallen) from its place; and cursed Agni Dev that "you will be eating everything even the dirtiest things." Hearing this Agni asked for his forgiveness and showed his helplessness. Then Bhrigu said - "All right, even if you will eat everything, you will not become impure."

Seetaa Curses Agni Dev at Gayaa
Agni was said to be selective in burning things. He used to burn only good things. Once Raam was advised to do Shraaddh of His father Dasharath, so when Raam, Lakshman and Seetaa were in exile, they came to Gayaa and decided to do Dasharath's Shraaddh. Raam and Lakshman went to procure things for the Shraaddh. The time was passing, and Seetaa found that the Muhoort for performing Shraaddh was passing, so the priest asked Seetaa to perform Shraaddh. Seetaa did so and Dasharath came there in human from to accept the offerings. He asked Seetaa to give offering since he was hungry, he could not wait for Raam to bring the Shraaddh materials.

Keeping Phaalgunee river, Cow, Fire god and Maalatee flower as witnessed she offered things kept in having no alternative. When Raam and Lakshman came back they performed the Shraaddh ceremony, but Dasharath did not appear. He was surprised to see this. Later He came to know that Seetaa had already performed the Shraaddh. He did not believe that Seetaa gave offering and Dasharath had accepted it. To assure Raam Seetaa called for the witnesses - Agni Dev, Phaalgunee River, a cow and Maalatee flower. All other testified that Seetaa performed the Shraaddh and Dasharath came in person to accept the offering from Seetaa except Agni Dev. Agni kept quiet, it appeared fearing not to oppose Shree Raam. At this Seetaa cursed Agni - "In future he will eat everything with out discrimination." From that time it is believed Agni consume all good and bad things!! However his position as witness is still continued, since Seetaa did not curse on this aspect.

The above two stories look similar in curse - both Bhrigu and Seetaa cursed Agni the same curse - that Agni Dev should burn everything, good and bad alike. How did it happen that two people at two different times cursed him the same?

Indra Curses Agni Dev and Vaayu Dev
This story comes in Padm Puraan, 1/14. There lived Kaalakeya named Raakshas in Sat Yug. They always wanted to fight. Once they, along with Vritraasur, attacked Devtaa and took their Lok. So Devtaa went to Brahmaa Jee for his advice. He advised them to go to Dadheechi and ask for his bones, so that they could kill him. Indra went to Dadheechi took his bones, killed Vritraasur and succeeded in taking back their Lok. But many Raakshas still escaped and hid in the sea. But they were still troubling Braahman, Rishi and other people. They came out of the sea in the night and hid in the day time.

So Indra asked Agni Dev and Vaayu Dev to kill those Raakshas wherever they find them. Ahgni Dev and Vaayu Dev killed many Raakshas but many of them hid in the ocean. Agni Dev and Vaayu Dev thought, since these coward have hidden in the ocean, they cannot harm us"; so they came back. But when Indra heard this he became angry that why didn't they kill them all. They pleaded - "If we had churned the ocean we could kill many innocent animals also in it, and that is not the Dharm." And Agni Dev told that he could not kill them in the water of ocean. Indra got very angry at this and said - "One, you have disobeyed me and second, you are teaching me Dharm? Earth is a good place to discuss all this, so go and born on Prithvi. And O Agni, you will drink ocean there." So they became the sons of Mitra and Varun from Urvashee Apsaraa.

Once Mitra and Varun were going somewhere that they saw Urvashee Apsaraa. Seeing her their semen fell. They carefully kept it in a pitcher. From the same pitcher were born these Agastya and Vashishth Rishi. Agastya being the incarnation of Agni Dev and Vashishth Jee being the incarnation of Vaayu Dev. Because of Nimi's Shaap the first Vashishth (Brahmaa's son) had left his body and then took rebirth from the pot as Agni Dev's incarnation. He appeared first from the pot and Agastya Jee appeared later from that pitcher.

Agni Dev Gets Stomach Upset
This story come in MBH, G-3-Youth/15. Once there was a king named Shwetakee who performed many many Yagya and so many Yagya that even Braahman got tired. They asked the King to go to Rudra and asked him to assist him to do Yagya. The King got angry but still he went to Rudra and requested him to assist him to do Yagya. Rudra said - "This is a job of a Braahman, so I will not do it, but my part is on Prithvi, he will assist you to do this Yagya. He is Durvaasaa Muni." Shwetakee went to Durvaasaa Muni and requested him to do that Yagya, but with a condition that in addition to observance of Brahmcharya, he should offer Ghee Aahuti continuously for 12 years. The King got agreed and Durvaasaa Muni completed his Yagya.

So at that time Agni Dev drank Ghee continuously for 12 years. This made his stomach upset. He lost his color and became pale. He lost his appetite and became weak. So Agni Dev went to Brahmaa Jee and he assured him - "You have become like this because of drinking Ghee continuously, but now the time has come that you would become healthy naturally. Once you burnt the Khaandav forest at the request of Devtaa, now has become the home of enemies of devtaa. When you would eat the fat of those creatures you will become all right. You go there and eat that forest with its creatures." So Agni Dev came to Khaandav forest and with the help of Vaayu Dev started blazing the fire there, but all the time Indra rained heavily and Agni Dev had to leave it. Agni Dev told his saga to Brahmaa Jee. Brahmaa jee sent him to Krishn and Arjun. he came to Arjun and Arjun and krishn helped him to consume the forest and its creatures, thus making him well.

 

 

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Created by Sushma Gupta on 5/27/03
Contact: sushmajee@yahoo.com
Updated on 06/15/13