Rig Veda · 380 of 1027
Mandala 5: HYMN XXVI. Agni.
1.O AGNI, Holy and Divine, with splendour and thy pleasant tongue Bring hither and adore the Gods.
2.We pray thee, thou who droppest oil, bright-rayed! who lookest on the Sun, Bring the Gods hither to the feast.
3.We have enkindled thee, O Sage, bright caller of the Gods to feast. O Agni, great in Sacrifice.
4.O Agni, come with all the Gods, come to our sacrificial gift: We choose thee as Invoking Priest.
5.Bring, Agni, to the worshipper who pours the juice, heroic strength: Sit with the Gods upon the grass.
6.Victor of thousands, Agni, thou, enkindled, cherishest the laws, Laud-worthy, envoy of the Gods.
7.Set Agni Jātavedas down, the bearer of our sacred gifts, MostYouthful, God and Minister.
8.Duly proceed our sacrifice, comprising all the Gods, to-day: Strew holy grass to be their seat.
9.So may the Maruts sit thereon, the Aśvins, Mitra, Varuṇa: The Gods with all their company.
Asked of Guide
Why does the hymn call Agni the 'Invoking Priest' and 'bearer of our sacred gifts'?
The hymn names Agni
Invoking Priest
Jātavedas
bearer of our sacred gifts
because Agni functions as the ritual mediator who carries the worshipper’s offerings into the gods’ presence. It repeatedly asks Agni to “bring the Gods hither to the feast” and to “sit with the Gods upon the grass,” portraying him as the visible agent who summons deities and transports sacrificial juice and gifts.
This role matches later Vedic and Brāhmaṇa accounts that elaborate Agni’s office as the sacrificer’s mouth to the gods and as the priestly minister (see the Brāhmaṇas). The hymn’s titles assert Agni’s authority and youthful strength while fixing him at the ritual center as both invoker and carrier of offerings.
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