O Flame, put forth thy battling might for a vast enjoyment1 of bliss, may there be thy highest illumination; create a well-governed union of the Lord and his Spouse, set thy foot on the greatness of hostile powers.Sri Aurobindo
The Secret of the Veda
with Selected Hymns
The Twenty-Eighth Hymn to Agni
A Hymn of the High-Blazing Flame, King of Immortality
[The Rishi celebrates the flame of the Will high-blazing in the dawn of knowledge as the King of Immortality, the giver to the soul of its spiritual riches and felicity and of a well-governed mastery of Nature. He is the bearer of our oblation, the illumined guide of our sacrifice to its divine and universal goal.]
5.28.1
समि॑द्धो अ॒ग्निर्दि॒वि शो॒चिर॑श्रेत्प्र॒त्यङ्ङु॒षस॑मुर्वि॒या वि भा॑ति ।
एति॒ प्राची॑ वि॒श्ववा॑रा॒ नमो॑भिर्दे॒वाँ ईळा॑ना ह॒विषा॑ घृ॒ताची॑ ॥१॥
sam-iddhaḥ agniḥ divi śociḥ aśret pratyaṅ uṣasam urviyā vi bhāti
eti prācī viśva-vārā namaḥbhiḥ devān īḷānā haviṣā ghṛtācī
The Flame of Will burning high rises to his pure light in the heaven of mind; wide he extends his illumination and fronts the Dawn. She comes, moving upward, laden with all desirable things, seeking the gods with the oblation, luminous with the clarity.
5.28.2
स॒मि॒ध्यमा॑नो अ॒मृत॑स्य राजसि ह॒विष्कृ॒ण्वन्तं॑ सचसे स्व॒स्तये॑ ।
विश्वं॒ स ध॑त्ते॒ द्रवि॑णं॒ यमिन्व॑स्याति॒थ्यम॑ग्ने॒ नि च॑ धत्त॒ इत्पु॒रः ॥२॥
sam-idhyamānaḥ amṛtasya rājasi haviḥ kṛṇvantam sacase svastaye
viśvam saḥ dhatte draviṇam yam invasi ātithyam agne ni ca dhatte it puraḥ
When thou burnest high thou art king of immortality and thou cleavest to the doer of sacrifice to give him that blissful state; he to whom thou comest to be his guest, holds in himself all substance and he sets thee within in his front.
5.28.3
अग्ने॒ शर्ध॑ मह॒ते सौभ॑गाय॒ तव॑ द्यु॒म्नान्यु॑त्त॒मानि॑ सन्तु ।
सं जा॑स्प॒त्यं सु॒यम॒मा कृ॑णुष्व शत्रूय॒ताम॒भि ति॑ष्ठा॒ महां॑सि ॥३॥
agne śardha mahate saubhagāya tava dyumnāni ut-tamāni santu
sam jaḥ-patyam su-yamam ā kṛṇuṣva śatru-yatām abhi tiṣṭha mahāṃsi
O Flame, put forth thy battling might for a vast enjoyment1 of bliss, may there be thy highest illumination; create a well-governed union of the Lord and his Spouse, set thy foot on the greatness of hostile powers.
5.28.4
समि॑द्धस्य॒ प्रम॑ह॒सोऽग्ने॒ वन्दे॒ तव॒ श्रिय॑म् ।
वृ॒ष॒भो द्यु॒म्नवाँ॑ असि॒ सम॑ध्व॒रेष्वि॑ध्यसे ॥४॥
sam-iddhasya pra-mahasaḥ agne vande tava śriyam
vṛṣabhaḥ dyumna-vān asi sam adhvareṣu idhyase
I adore, O Flame, the glory of thy high-blazing mightiness. Thou art the Bull with the illuminations; thou burnest up in the march of our sacrifices.
5.28.5
समि॑द्धो अग्न आहुत दे॒वान्य॑क्षि स्वध्वर ।
त्वं हि ह॑व्य॒वाळसि॑ ॥५॥
sam-iddhaḥ agne ā-huta devān yakṣi su-adhvara
tvam hi havya-vāṭ asi
O Flame that receivest our offerings, perfect guide of the sacrifice, high-kindled offer our oblation to the godheads; for thou art the bearer of our offerings.
5.28.6
आ जु॑होता दुव॒स्यता॒ग्निं प्र॑य॒त्य॑ध्व॒रे ।
वृ॒णी॒ध्वं ह॑व्य॒वाह॑नम् ॥६॥
ā juhota duvasyata agnim pra-yati adhvare
vṛṇīdhvam havya-vāhanam
Cast the offering, serve the Will with your works2 while your sacrifice moves forward to its goal, accept the carrier of our oblation.3
1 The Vedic immortality is a vast beatitude, a large enjoyment of the divine and infinite existence reposing on a perfect union between the Soul and Nature; the soul becomes King of itself and its environment, conscious on all its planes, master of them, with Nature for its bride delivered from divisions and discords into an infinite and luminous harmony.
2 Or, set the Will to its workings.
3 This hymn closes the series addressed to Agni and forming the first twenty-eight hymns of the fifth Mandala of the Rig Veda.