The Story of Maharishi Bhrigu

Maharishi Bhrigu was a son of Prajapati Brahma (Manas-putra or mind-born child). As per the Hindu religious sources, Bhrigu brought fire (Agni) to humans from the gods. His name is mentioned in Rig-Veda with veneration, and his descendants are known as Bhargavas. Maharishi Bhrigu had three wives: Khyati, Puloma, and Kavyamata. Rishi Chavana was the son of mata Puloma, Dhata and Vidhata were two sons of mata Khyati, and Sukracharya was the son of Kavyamata (or Usanas). 

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Many, many years ago, a Maha Yagna (religious ritual) was being held on the bank of the Saraswati river. There was a large gathering of all the great sages, and they started an argument about who was the greatest among the Tri-devas, or Trimurti (Trinity). As there was no consent, Rishi Bhrigu was imposed with the task of finding out the answer. 

Another version of the same story states that Rishi Bhrigu achieved divine power through many years of austerity, meditation, and introspection. He decided to gift the benefits of his sadhana (disciplined and dedicated practise of meditation and yoga) to any one of the Tri-devas for the benefit of mankind. But his wisdom and divine strength also generated a huge ego and arrogance in his mind. 

Whatever the reason, Rishi Bhrigu first reached Brahma-lok to see his father, the creator god, Brahma. Brahma was with his consort, Devi Saraswati. Bhrigu received a very cold welcome from Brahma, who even did not ask Bhrigu to take a seat. Enraged, Bhrigu insulted Lord Brahma in a rude voice and cursed him that he would not be worshipped anymore in Bhu-lok (earth). Brahma was also enraged towards Bhrigu and was about to punish him, but Devi Saraswati stopped him and Bhrigu fled from there.

The next destination was Shiva-lok (Kailash Parvat). As Bhrigu was about to enter the abode of Lord Shiva, he was stopped by Nandi (an ardent devotee of Lord Shiva). Lord Shiva was with Devi Parvati, and there they were spending some intimate time with each other. Hence, Bhrigu had to wait for a long time. Finally, Bhrigu got the chance to meet Shiva. Mahadev was overjoyed to see him and ran over to embrace him. But Bhrigu stepped back and insulted Shiva with abusive words. Shiva also became angry because of the insolent behaviour. While they were arguing, Bhrigu cursed Shiva to be worshipped only as a Lingam (phallus form) from the day onward, . When an enraged Shiva was about to kill him with his trident, Devi Parvati stopped him from committing Brahma-hatya. Brigu fled from there as well.

At last, Bhrigu reached Vaikuntha-lok, where Lord Vishnu was lying on the Seshanag (the great serpent). Bhrigu was extremely dissatisfied to see that the supreme protector of  creation was sleeping in peace. Disgusted, Bhrigu suddenly moved forward and, forgetting his manners and respect, kicked Lord Vishnu on the right side of his chest with the left leg. Lord Vishnu got up from his sleep and saw the enraged Rishi in front of him. Lord Vishnu smiled and instead of being angry, he apologised to Bhrigu for his ignorance. He also told Bhrigu that it might have hurt Bhrigu's leg when he kicked him. As Lord Vishnu himself was about to massage the feet of Bhrigu with compassion, Bhrigu became ashamed of his own behaviour. Bhrigu apologised for his deed and was freed from his ego and arrogance. He declared that Vishnu was superior to the other two supreme deities, and he transferred the fruits of his sadhana to the deity. The foot print of Bhrigu was engraved on the chest of Lord Vishnu permanently. It is known as Shree Vatsa. 

Maha-Lakshmi, the consort of Lord Vishnu, observed the entire incident. She was extremely angry at Bhrigu for his misbehaviour towards her beloved husband. Moreover, the right chest of Vishnu was the adobe of Devi Maha-Lakshmi. Hence, she cursed Bhrigu that the Brahmins would never get her blessings in life and would spend their lives in poverty. Realising his mistakes, Bhrigu began to worship Devi Maha-Lakshmi. Appeased, Devi assured him that the Brahmins would get wealth only if they worshipped Vishnu with devotion. As Lord Vishnu did nothing to Bhrigu for his arrogant behaviour, Devi felt insulted, and decided to take birth as a human. She was born as Devi Padmavati. Lord Vishnu also took birth as Srinivasa to marry Devi Padmavati. 

Following the incident, Bhrigu started composing the Bhrigu Samhita, the earliest literary source of predictive astrology (Jyotish Vidya), so that the Brahmins could earn their livelihood as fortune tellers.