Anga Raja is one of the descendants of Maharaja Dhruva, who became a star after receiving the boon of Lord Vishnu. His spouse is Sunita.
When Maharaja Anga began the Ashwamedha Yagya, no matter how many times they were invited, the devatas did not arrive to take the oblations, which saddened Angaraja, who instructed his priests to investigate.
After conferring with the other priests, the chief priest explained the reason to the king. According to the priest, the devatas did not accept offerings, and the king was childless due to the sin he committed at his previous birth. When the king asked again what he should do to have children, he told him to pray to Lord Vishnu.
Soon after, the king, desperate for a son, performed a yagya to appease Vishnu. During Purnahuti, a man in white robes and a golden garland appeared in the Yagya. He was holding a pot of rice kheer. The man who gave it to the king vanished.
The king immediately gave that vessel to his consort, Sunita. The queen bowed to it and consumed the kheer in devotion. She became pregnant in a matter of days.
After nine months, Maharani Sunita became the mother of a baby boy. The royal couple appeared to have no boundaries for their happiness.
But the joy did not last long. Prince Vena was extremely cruel. He always went to the forest and hunted the animals he found, tortured people, and so on. He once attempted to kill a friend after losing a game to him. King Anga first gave him sermons and then many harsh punishments to change his son's character. But Vena remained the same.
King Anga was sleeping one night, worried about his son. For a long time, he could not sleep. The distraught king rose from his bed without making a sound, covered his head, and walked into the forest.
The following day, everyone began looking for the king. They could not find any information about King Anga, no matter how hard they looked.
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Anarchy reigned in the now-kingless kingdom. Another king needed to be installed as soon as possible. Sage Bhrigu convened an emergency meeting of ministers. Vena was crowned king after consulting with Queen Sunita. This outraged many courtiers.
Within a few days, King Vena declared with his drumrolls, "No priest shall worship God in my kingdom. The king is supreme over all. You all worship me. All religious rituals are prohibited in the state."
Thus, as soon as the king became unrighteous, the problem of thieves and demons started in the state. So the citizens started living in fear.
Even though all religious programs were prohibited in the kingdom, priests and sages continued to perform pujas and yagnas in secret locations. Aside from that, they used to schedule meetings in secret. But the empire's situation deteriorated and did not improve!
All of the sages and prime courtiers gathered and decided to give the king one last piece of advice.
They went to King Vena's court the next day and said, "A king must protect virtue. Citizens should be protected, the devatas should be pleased through Yajnas, and prosperity should be established in the state. This is your responsibility." The sages informed the king.
But the king refused to let go of his pride. "It is enough to worship me. Offer sacrifices to me instead of the gods. All of your wishes will be granted." He responded.
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| King Vena |
The enraged sages yelled, "Fool! You are unfit to be king; you must die right now." they cursed.
King Vena immediately collapsed and died. Then those sages left for their respective places without stopping there for a moment.
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Vena's mother, Sunita, was heartbroken by her son's death. On the other hand, to preserve her son's body, she kept the dead body wrapped in various grasses in a room of the palace. Many years passed like this.
Here, the sages who caused the death of Vena were bathing in the Saraswati River. Robberies have now reached a tipping point. They finished their bath and went straight to the palace, discussing how they should resume King Anga's lineage.
Thus, the sages who came to the palace saluted the royal mother, Sunita, and obtained King Vena's body.
Then he went to the riverbank, put his body in a hut, and churned Vena's thigh with special instruments while chanting mantras.
A black dwarf was born from his thigh after the process was completed. His organs were tiny. The nose was completely flat. They named him "Bahuka" and held him accountable for all similar sinful acts. Later, his tribe became known as the Nishadhas. Because of their activities such as theft and hunting, these Nishadhas began to live only in the forest and hills.
Padma Puran says that Queen Suneetha was the daughter of Mrithyu (death). so, Vena got all the cruelty and wickedness from his grandfather's genes.
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