Āgnīdhra

Āgnīdhra was the eldest son of Priyavrata and his chief queen Barhishmatī. He was made king of Jambū-dvīpa, the central and most sacred of the seven island-continents (dvīpas). His nine sons each received one of the nine varshas (regions) of Jambū-dvīpa. Of these sons, Nābhi received Bhārata-varsha. Nābhi became the father of Ṛshabhadeva, and from this family came the great dharmic kings of the southern continent.

Lineage

Āgnīdhra was the eldest of the ten sons of Priyavrata and Barhishmatī. His brothers were Idhmajihva, Yajñabāhu, Mahāvīra, Hiraṇyaretas, Ghṛtakṛshṇa, Savana, Medhātithi, Vītihotra and Kavi. Three of them, Kavi, Mahāvīra and Savana, gave up the world from the very start of their lives and followed the path of the paramahaṃsa sannyāsīs (the highest renunciants). The other seven, with Āgnīdhra first among them, were given the rule of the seven great dvīpas. (Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 5th Skanda, Chapter 1)

Ruler of Jambū-dvīpa

Priyavrata shared the seven dvīpas among his seven sons, and Āgnīdhra received Jambū-dvīpa. It is the central continent, in the middle of the bhū-maṇḍala (the circle of the earth), and the cosmic mountain Meru rises around its core. Jambū-dvīpa is a hundred thousand yojanas wide. It is the most famous of all the dvīpas, because the sacred rivers flow here, the great mountains that divide the varshas stand here, and the path of dharmic life is most fully present here. (Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 5th Skanda, Chapter 1)

Tapas at Mandara and meeting Pūrvacitti

Āgnīdhra wanted children. He performed intense tapas (austerity) on the Mandara mountain, one of the four lesser peaks of Meru. He worshipped Parameśvara and hoped for sons who would be worthy rulers of the nine varshas of Jambū-dvīpa. Brahmā was pleased with his tapas and sent the celestial apsarā (divine dancer) Pūrvacitti to him.

When Pūrvacitti came to Mandara, Āgnīdhra was charmed. He made fine poetry in her praise and described her divine form in rich words: her large eyes, graceful limbs, sweet voice and matchless beauty. He compared her to the māyā of Bhagavān Vishṇu, which holds the three worlds under its spell. Pūrvacitti was touched by his devotion and his words. She agreed to stay with him for the time that Brahmā had set. (Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 5th Skanda, Chapter 2)

Nine sons and their varshas

Pūrvacitti and Āgnīdhra had nine sons:

Each of the nine sons ruled his own varsha as a righteous king. (Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 5th Skanda, Chapter 2)

Reaching Pitṛloka

After Pūrvacitti had borne the nine sons, she went back to the realm of Brahmā, from which she had come. After she left, Āgnīdhra’s mind was filled with constant memory of her beauty and of the time they had spent together. This deep attachment bore its fruit. He went to Pitṛloka, the world of the ancestors, where there are divine pleasures like those of Pūrvacitti. (Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 5th Skanda, Chapter 2)

Place in the family line

The line continues through Nābhi and Merudevī, who became the parents of Ṛshabhadeva. Ṛshabhadeva was the father of the great Bharata, from whom Bhārata-varsha takes its name. In this way, from Āgnīdhra’s rule of Jambū-dvīpa comes the whole line of dharmic kings who shaped the sacred southern continent through the ages.

Sources

• Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 5th Skanda, Chapters 1–2