Hymns to the Mystic Fire

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RV III.1.1-12

Viswamitra's hymn to Agni.

1) O divine Strength, bear me up, thou who hast made me strong to bear in the knowledge the Soma for life's sacrifice; brightening towards the gods I yoke to them my settled being and tranquillise it; cleave, O Agni, to my body.

वक्षि Sayana. कामयस्व- but elsewhere [वह]
अद्रिं    Sayana    ग्रावाणं युंजे । अभिषवणाय युनज्मि ।
शमाये    Sayana    शाम्यामि च । तथा च मंत्रातरं । ऋतेन देवः सविता शमायते । ऋग् ८.८६.५। यद्वा स्तौमि । शशमानो जरतीति स्तुतिकर्मसु पाठात् । तथा च मंत्रांतरं । सो अग्न ईजे शशमे च मर्तः । But these can be otherwise interpreted, "By truth the god Savitri attains calm", "tranquillising his heart he adores or desires", "That mortal, O Agni, sacrifices & becomes calm."

तन्वं. Say. शरीरं । यद्दा कर्माणि तन्वंतं मां ।

2) We have turned towards the supreme our sacrifice, may our expression increase! By fuel of his burning, by worship of submission they have set Agni to his workings, they have declared in the heaven of mind the perceptions of the seers and for the strong desiring soul they yearn towards their farther journey.

प्रांचं प्रकर्षेण गच्छंतं । But प्रांचं is परांचं supreme—पराच, परांच् belonging or tending to the supreme.

नमसा दुवस्यन् । हविषा .. अस्मदीयाः परिचरेयुः but he says देवाः शशासुः ।

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दिवः । द्युलोकादागत्य । I take it as rather a genitive of vague & general locality.

गृत्साय । गृणातेरिदं रूपं । स्तोतव्यायाग्नये । or from गृध् + स, cf वत्स.

गातुम् । स्तोतुं .. सतोतार इच्छंति च ।

3) With his containing brain, with his pure discernings he established the divine Beatitude, from his birth the good friend of earth and heaven; Agni the gods found revealed in the waters of being, in the working of the sisters.

पूतदक्षः । शुद्धबलः ।
मयः । सुखं ।
दर्शतं । दर्शनीयं ।
स्वसृणां । सरणशीलानां नदीनामप्स्वंतर्गूढं स्थितमपसि यज्ञवहनरुपे कर्मणि ।

This is one of Sayana's impossible pedantic clumsinesses; the dissociation of अपसि from स्वस्रृणां & the addition of स्वस्रृणाम् as a sort of afterthought far away from the words with which it is connected & separated from them by a parenthetical अपसि is not only impossible to any sound literary style, but needless, when a simple & straightforward construction & rendering make excellent sense. It is equally needless and pedantic to take स्वस्रृणाम् as सरणशीलानाम् when the metaphor of the Sisters, स्वसृ, जामि for the seven rivers pervades the Veda.

4) The seven great goddesses increased him in his rich enjoyings, white of purity in his birth, red of action in his growing; as on a child that is born the powers of Life worked at him, the gods in his very birth increased the body of Agni.

शिशुं न । यथा जातं शिशुमश्वा वडवा अभ्यारुः । अभिगच्छंति तथा नद्य उत्पन्नमग्निमभिजग्मुः ।
जनिमन् । जन्मन्युदके वा ।
वपुष्यन् । वपुर्दीप्तिमकुर्वन् ।

I see no reason for taking janiman in the sense of water, when the whole talk is about Agni's birth, जनुषा, जज्ञानं, जातं, or वपुस् = light, when the whole talk is about the growth of a child that is born. अवर्धयन्—महित्वा, वपुष्यन्, अंगैराततन्वान् ।

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5) With his limbs of brightness he extended this kingdom of Life purifying the will in it by the pure powers of ideal knowledge, wearing light like a robe he throughout the being of the waters holds in his embrace powers that are wide and void of defect and limitation.

आततन्वान् । व्याप्नुवन् ।
कतुं । कर्मणां कर्तारं यजमानं ।
कविभिः । कांतप्रज्ञैः स्तोतव्यैर्वा तेजोभिः ।
परि. Say. takes with वसानः and constructs आयुर (त्रं) श्रियः संपदश्च मिमीते ।
मिमीते । करोति ।
अपाम् । अपस्यतां कर्मवताम् ।

6) He went all about the great goddesses of heaven (or the rivers of heaven) and lo! they devoured not neither were they overpowered, they were not clothed, neither were they naked; the seven Words of Life, eternal, young, daughters of one womb, held in our world that single Birth.

अनदतीरदब्धाः । अग्निरपां शोषकः तं चापः शमयंति तद्रुभयमिह नास्तीत्युक्तं ।
दिवो यह्वीः । अंतरिक्षस्यापत्यभूताः ।
अवसानाः । वस्त्रमनाच्छादयंत्यः वस्त्रस्थानीयस्य जलस्य विद्यमानत्वात् । अत एवानग्नाः । सनाः सनातन्यो युवतयो नित्यतरुण्यः । नित्यवृद्धा इत्यर्थः ।
सयोनीः । समानमंतरिक्षं स्थानं यासाम् ।

7) At once wide extended & gathered in masses, wearing universal shapes, they stood here in the womb of richness, in the flowing stream of sweetnesses, his cows of plenty, and were nourished; equal & vast were the two mothers of that Lord of bounty.

घृतस्य योनौ । उदकस्य गर्भस्थानेऽंतरिक्षे ।
स्तीर्णाः संहतः । पुंजीभूताः सर्वत्र प्रसूता अस्याग्ने रश्मयः ।
मधूनाम् । उदकानाम् ।
धेनवः । सर्वेषां प्रीणयित्र्य आपः ।
दस्मस्य । दर्शनीयस्य

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8) O Son of force, thou bearest them up and shinedst wide abroad holding many bodies of brightness and rapture; streams of honey & richness come dripping out wherever the Mighty One has been greatened by divine knowledge.

बभ्राणः । सर्वैर्धार्यमाणः ।
रभसा । वेगवंति ।
काव्येन । स्तोत्रेण ।
मधुनो घृतस्य । अत्यंतं मधुरस्योदकस्य धाराः । यदा यजमानस्तोत्रेणाग्निस्तुष्टो भवति तदानीं वृष्टिर्भवतीत्यर्थः ।

9) From his birth he knew the fullness of the father also, wide he poured out his streams, wide his rivers; with comrades beneficent, with the great goddesses of heaven he knew him though moving in the hidden places and himself became not hidden.

पितुर् । अंतरिक्षस्य ।
ऊधर् । ऊधः स्थानीयं जलप्रदेशं ।
धेना । माध्यामिका वाचः ।
सखिभिः । सखिभूतैर्वायुभिः ।
चरंतं । एनमग्निं ।
न गुहा बभूव । गुहा चित् गुहायां स्थितः कोऽपि प्राप्तुं समर्थो नाभवत् ।

10) He bore the child of his father and his creator (or and of his mother); he was one and drank of the fullness of many; the two powers of our human being had the pure one, the strong master for their common husband and friend; them protect.

गर्भं । वृष्टिद्वारा गर्भभूतं लोकमोषध्यादिकं ।
बभ्रे । बिभर्ति ।
पूर्वीर् । बह्वीः .. ओषधीरधयत् भक्षयति ।
वृष्णे । वर्षित्रे ।
मनुष्ये । मनुष्येभ्यो हिते ।

11) In the unobstructed vast he grew to greatness, many waters victoriously increased Agni; in the womb of truth he lay down, he made it his home, Agni in the working of the consorts and sisters.

यशसो । यशोऽन्नं तद्वत्यः ।

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ऋतस्य । उदकस्य ।
अपसि । पयसि ।
दमूना । दांतमनाः ।

12) As one on his summit, bearing up all in the coming together of the mighty sisters, he becomes the impulse to vision in the giver of the nectar; straight are his lustres; this is the creator who made to appear on high the daughters of light, child of the waters, Agni most strong, the Master.

नृतमो । नेतृतमो ।
यह्वो । महान् ।
समिथे । संग्रामे महतीनां स्वसेनानां भर्ता ।
दिदृक्षेयः । सर्वैर्दर्शनीयः ।
भाऋजीकः । स्वदीप्त्या प्रकाशमानः ।
उस्रिया । अपः ।

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