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Dhammapada · narration sample

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Rig Veda · 711 of 1027

Mandala 8: HYMN XCI. Agni.

1.LORD of the house, Sage, ever young, high power of life, O Agni, God, Thou givest to thy worshipper.

2.So with our song that prays and serves, attentive, Lord of spreading light, Agni, bring hitherward the Gods.

3.For, Ever-Youthful One, with thee, best Furtherer, as our ally, We overcome, to win the spoil.

4.As Aurva Bhṛgu used, as Apnavāna used, I call the pure Agni who clothes him with the sea. 5 1 call the Sage who sounds like wind, the Might that like Parjanya roars, Agni who clothes him with the sea. 6 As Savitar’s productive Power, as him who sends down bliss, I call Agni who clothes him with the sea. 7 Hither, for powerful kirship, I call Agni, him Who prospers you, Most frequent at our solemn rites 8 That through this famed One’s power, he may stand by us even as Tvaṣṭar comes Unto the forms that must he shaped. 9 This Agni is the Lord supreme above all glories mid the Gods: May he come nigh to us with strength. 10 Here praise ye him the most renowned of all the ministering Priests, Agni, the Chief at sacrifice; 11 Piercing, with purifying flame, enkindled in our homes, most high, Swiftest to hear from far away. 12 Sage, laud the Mighty One who wins the spoil of victory like a steed, And, Mitra like, unites the folk. 13 Still turning to their aim in thee, the oblation-bearer’s sister hymns Have come to thee before the wind. 14 The waters find their place in him, for whom the threefold sacred grass Is spread unbound, unlimited. 15 The station of the Bounteous God hath, through his aid which none impair, A pleasant aspect like the Sun. 16 Blazing with splendour, Agni, God, through pious gifts of sacred oil, Bring thou the Gods and worship them. 17 The Gods as mothers brought thee forth, the Immortal Sage, O Aṅgiras, The bearer of our gifts to heaven. 18 Wise Agni, Gods established thee, the Seer, noblest messenger, As bearer of our sacred gifts. 19 No cow have I to call mine own, no axe at hand wherewith to work, Yet what is here I bring to thee. 20 O Agni, whatsoever be the fuel that we lay for thee, Be pleased therewith, Most Youthful God 21 That which the white-ant cats away, that over which the emmet crawls- May all of this be oil to thee. 22 When he enkindles Agni, man should with his heart attend the song: I with the priests have kindled him.

Asked of Guide

Why does the hymn keep calling Agni

The hymn keeps naming Agni with many epithets — Ever-Youthful One, Sage, Lord of the house, bearer of gifts — to show his many roles: purifier, messenger to the Gods, grantor of prosperity, and chief at sacrifice. Repeating images like “who clothes him with the sea” and comparisons to Savitar, Parjanya, Mitra, and Tvaṣṭar ties Agni into the whole pantheon so he can act as their proxy in the ritual.

Those repeated names also shape the worshipper’s relation to Agni: they remind the priest and household of what to invoke when offering fuel or oil and why attention matters — “When he enkindles Agni, man should with his heart attend the song.” This is the same strategy seen in other Vedic hymns, where catalogues of names assemble a deity’s functions as a practical liturgical map.

Guide is the guide inside the Gnosis app, where every book on these shelves is free to read. Guide is the part you pay for — your guide has read all of them, and answers about the passage you’re actually on. Ask your guide your own question.