Pūrvacitti
Pūrvacitti is an apsarā (a celestial dancer) whom Brahmā sent to Mount Mandara. She went to Āgnīdhra, the son of Priyavrata, who was doing tapas (austerity) because he longed for sons.
Pūrvacitti bore Āgnīdhra nine sons. Each became the first king of one of the nine varṣas (regions) of Jambū-dvīpa. The kings of the Jambū-dvīpa line come down through her.
Arrival at Mandara
Priyavrata had made his son Āgnīdhra the ruler of Jambū-dvīpa. Āgnīdhra did tapas on the slopes of Mount Mandara. He wanted sons who would be worthy to rule after him. Brahmā answered his wish and sent Pūrvacitti to him. When she arrived, the plain āśrama (hermitage) on the mountain became a place of beauty and divine fragrance. The Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa tells this in the 5th Skanda, Chapter 2.
Āgnīdhra praises her beauty
Āgnīdhra saw Pūrvacitti and was full of wonder. He praised her form in rich, ornate language.
- He said her eyes were so lovely that the deer on the mountain looked up in amazement, thinking they were being watched.
- He said her walk was so graceful that the earth seemed honoured by her footsteps.
- He said her voice was so sweet that the birds fell silent to listen.
- He said her beauty was like the very māyā (power of illusion) of Bhagavān Viṣṇu, which holds the whole world in its spell.
He asked her: “Who are you? What is your purpose? You fill even the hearts of the ṛṣis (seers) here with longing. What more will you do to the hearts of ordinary people?”
Nine sons
Pūrvacitti was pleased with Āgnīdhra’s devotion and his poetic praise. She stayed with him for the time that Brahmā had set. Nine sons were born from their union. Each became the first king of one of the nine varṣas of Jambū-dvīpa.
| Son | Varṣa |
|---|---|
| Nābhi | Bhārata-varṣa |
| Kiṃpuruṣa | Kiṃpuruṣa-varṣa |
| Harivarṣa | Harivarṣa |
| Ilāvṛta | Ilāvṛta-varṣa |
| Ramyaka | Ramyaka-varṣa |
| Hiraṇmaya | Hiraṇmaya-varṣa |
| Kuru | Kuru-varṣa |
| Bhadrāśva | Bhadrāśva-varṣa |
| Ketumāla | Ketumāla-varṣa |
Return to Brahmā’s realm
After she bore the nine sons, Pūrvacitti went back to the realm of Brahmā, from which she had come. Her leaving filled Āgnīdhra with longing, and he thought of her all the time. Because of this attachment, after his death he went to Pitṛloka (the world of the ancestors). It is a realm of divine enjoyments, like the pleasure he had known with Pūrvacitti. He did not go to a higher spiritual realm.
Place in the lineage
Of the nine sons, Nābhi received Bhārata-varṣa. He holds the most distinguished place in the Purāṇic tradition. Nābhi became the father of Ṛṣabhadeva, an avatāra (descent) of Bhagavān Viṣṇu. Through Ṛṣabhadeva came Bharata Cakravartī, from whom Bhārata-varṣa takes its name.
Sources
- Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 5th Skanda, Chapter 2