Sri Aurobindo
The Secret of the Veda
with Selected Hymns
The Nineteenth Hymn to Agni
A Hymn of the Revealing Ray and Conquering Will
[That epiphany of the soul is sung in which all the coverings of its higher states are penetrated and open to the divine light. It is the opening of the whole third plane of our existence which was before as a fortified city with its gates closed to the soul embodied in Matter. By this new action of the Divine Force the mental and physical consciousness are wedded to the high supramental which was till now separated from them and the life-force blazing in its works with the heat of the divine Sun is harmonised with the play of the sun-ray of the divine knowledge.]
5.19.1
अ॒भ्य॑व॒स्थाः प्र जा॑यन्ते॒ प्र व॒व्रेर्व॒व्रिश्चि॑केत ।
उ॒पस्थे॑ मा॒तुर्वि च॑ष्टे ॥१॥
abhi ava-sthāḥ pra jāyante pra vavreḥ vavriḥ ciketa
upa-sthe mātuḥ vi caṣṭe
State upon state is born, covering upon covering opens to consciousness of knowledge; in the lap of its Mother1 the soul sees.2
5.19.2
जु॒हु॒रे वि चि॒तय॒न्तोऽनि॑मिषं नृ॒म्णं पा॑न्ति ।
आ दृ॒ळ्हां पुरं॑ विविशुः ॥२॥
juhure vi citayantaḥ ani-miṣam nṛmṇam pānti
ā dṛḷhām puram viviśuḥ
Awakened to an embracing knowledge men cast in thee the offering, they guard a sleepless manhood, they enter into the fortified city.
5.19.3
आ श्वै॑त्रे॒यस्य॑ ज॒न्तवो॑ द्यु॒मद्व॑र्धन्त कृ॒ष्टयः॑ ।
नि॒ष्कग्री॑वो बृ॒हदु॑क्थ ए॒ना मध्वा॒ न वा॑ज॒युः ॥३॥
ā śvaitreyasya jantavaḥ dyu-mat vardhanta kṛṣṭayaḥ
niṣka-grīvaḥ bṛhat-ukthaḥ enā madhvā na vāja-yuḥ
Men who are born in the world and labour at the work increase the luminous state of the son of the white-shining Mother,3 he wears the golden necklace,4 he utters the vast word; with that and with the honey wine of delight he becomes a seeker of the plenitude.
5.19.4
प्रि॒यं दु॒ग्धं न काम्य॒मजा॑मि जा॒म्योः सचा॑ ।
घ॒र्मो न वाज॑जठ॒रोऽद॑ब्ध॒: शश्व॑तो॒ दभः॑ ॥४॥
priyam dugdham na kāmyam ajāmi jāmyoḥ sacā
gharmaḥ na vāja-jaṭharaḥ adabdhaḥ śaśvataḥ dabhaḥ
He is as the delightful and desirable yield of the Mother,5 he is that which being without a fellow6 yet dwells with the two companions, he is the heat of the Light and the belly of the plenitude, he is the eternal unconquerable who tramples all things under his feet.
5.19.5
क्रीळ॑न्नो रश्म॒ आ भु॑व॒: सं भस्म॑ना वा॒युना॒ वेवि॑दानः ।
ता अ॑स्य सन्धृ॒षजो॒ न ति॒ग्माः सुसं॑शिता व॒क्ष्यो॑ वक्षणे॒स्थाः ॥५॥
krīḷan naḥ raśme ā bhuvaḥ sam bhasmanā vāyunā vevidānaḥ
tāḥ asya san dhṛṣajaḥ na tigmāḥ su-saṃśitāḥ vakṣyaḥ vakṣaṇe-sthāḥ
O Ray, be born in us and dwell there at play harmonising thy knowledge with the blazing life-god.7 May these flames of the will that bear our works be violent and keen and sharpened to a perfect intensity and firmly founded in the Bearer of all things.
1 Aditi, the infinite consciousness, Mother of all things.
2 With the all-embracing vision of the supramental infinite consciousness.
3 Aditi; her dark state or black form is Diti, mother of the powers of Darkness.
4 Of the rays of the divine Sun of Truth.
5 The milk of the Cow, Aditi.
6 The all-creating and self-sufficing Supermind high and remote and separated in our consciousness from the mental and physical planes; yet it is really there behind their action and reaction upon each other and in the liberated state of man the separation is abolished.
7 Vayu.