Rig Veda · 69 of 1027
Mandala 1: HYMN LXIX. Agni.
1.BRIGHT, splendid, like Dawn’s lover, he hath filled the two joined worlds as with the light of heaven. When born, with might thou hast encompassed them: Father of Gods, and yet their Son wast thou.
2.Agni, the Sage, the humble, who discerns like the cow’s udder, the sweet taste of food, Like a bliss-giver to be drawn to men, sits gracious in the middle of the house.
3.Born in the dwelling like a lovely son, pleased, like a strong steed, he bears on the folk. What time the men and I, with heroes, call, may Agni then gain all through Godlike power.
4.None breaks these holy laws of thine when thou hast granted audience to these chieftains here. This is thy boast, thou smotest with thy peers, and joined with heroes dravest off disgrace.
5.Like the Dawn’s lover, spreading light, well-known as hued like morn, may he remember me. They, bearing of themselves, unbar the doors: they all ascend to the fair place of heaven.
Asked of Guide
Why does the hymn call Agni both 'Father of Gods' and 'their Son'?
The hymn names Agni “Father of Gods, and yet their Son wast thou” to show his role as both origin and household presence: he is the cosmic source that fathers divine order while also arising within the home as the sacrificial fire. The line ties Agni’s universal power to his immediate function—he “sits gracious in the middle of the house” and carries offerings upward, making the domestic fire the bridge between mortals and gods.
This dual description echoes other Rig Veda passages where a deity spans cosmic and local spheres; see Mandala 1 hymns that portray Agni as both priest and primordial power. The poem’s image—born in the dwelling, “like a lovely son”—keeps the theology concrete: cosmic parentage expressed through the intimate act of tending flame.
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