Apnavana was a seer of the Vedic period. His name appears twice in Rig Veda (IV.7.1; VIII 102.4). He is associated with the Bhrigus to whose family he belonged. His family has been credited with the introduction of Agni-worship. No further information is available about this seer in Vedic literature.
However, puranic tradition gives some information about his
personality. He was the son of Maharishi Cyavana, born of his second wife
Arushi, daughter of Manu. Apnavana was married to Ruchi, the daughter of King
Nahusha, and from her he had a son called Richika. The Bhrigus were the family
gurus of the Haihayas. At the time of Apnavana, Mahishmat was the king of the
Haihayas, and he founded a city called Mahishmat after his own name.
The predecessors of Mahishmat were very religious and had
great respect for the Bhrigus. But Mahishmat was very arrogant and cruel towards
his subjects. Apnavana, his family guru, could not bear to see him transgressing
religious rules and committing atrocities. One day he went to Mahishmat and
advised him to change his ways. He reminded him of his forefathers who had
ruled the land with great affection for their subjects and wanted to follow the
path of dharma. Instead of following his guru’s advice, Mahishmat became enraged
and abused him. From then onwards, the Bhrigus became agagonistic to the Haihayas.
When Richika, son of Apnavana, came of age, he decided to leave the city of
Mahishmati and settle down in Kannauja in Madhyadesha.