Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 124
Pitṛ-śrāddha-haviḥ-phala-nirdeśa
Offerings for Ancestors and Their Stated Results
जग्राह वै भृगुं पूर्वमपत्यं सूर्यवर्चसम् । ईश्वरो$ज्लिरिसं चाग्नेरपत्यार्थमकल्पयत्
jagrāha vai bhṛguṃ pūrvam apatyaṃ sūryavarcasaṃ | īśvaro 'ṅgirasaṃ cāgner apatya-artham akalpayat ||
Vasiṣṭha said: The Lord first accepted Bhṛgu—radiant like the sun—as his own son. Then that same Lord appointed Aṅgiras to be the offspring of Agni, for the purpose of progeny.
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
That progeny and lineage are portrayed as part of a purposeful cosmic arrangement: the Lord ‘accepts’ and ‘appoints’ beings into specific familial roles to sustain continuity and dharma, emphasizing order over randomness.
Vasiṣṭha narrates a sequence of divine decisions: first Bhṛgu is taken/accepted as a son by the Lord; then Aṅgiras is designated as Agni’s offspring, explicitly ‘for the sake of progeny,’ indicating an intentional structuring of genealogies.