Hymns to the Mystic Fire

Riks of Madhuchchhandas

Translation and Notes: I.1.1-5

अग्निमीळे पुरोहितं यज्ञस्य देवमृत्विजम् ।
होतारं रत्नघातमम् ॥१॥

Agnimīḷe purohitam yajṇ̃asya devamṛtvijam,
hotāram ratnadhātamam.

Rik 1) ईळे (īḷe): to praise, in the ritualistic sense; but as a secondary root of ई (i) ईळ् (īḷ) meant to seek, go towards, attain, desire, adore, pray, ask for (cf. मातरमन्न्मैट्ट, mataramannamaiṭṭa, III. 48. 3). The former senses have been lost and only "to desire", "pray" or "ask for" are left in later Sanskrit; but the other senses must have existed, as the idea of desiring, asking is never a primary sense of any root, but derived figuratively from the physical sense "to go, seek, approach". We may therefore render ईळे (īḷe), either "seek", "desire", "adore" or "pray to".

पुरोहितम् (purohitam): Sayana—"Purohita", or else "placed in the front of the sacrifice as the āhavanīya fire". The Purohita of the Veda is the representative power in the sacrifice who stands in front of the consciousness and the action and conducts it. This is always the force of the "placing in front" which is so common an idea in the hymns. Normally, this place belongs to Agni who leads the sacrifice.

देवम् (devam): Sayana—दानादिगुणयुक्तम् (dānādiguṇayuktam). Sayana's dealing with the word Deva is peculiar. Sometimes he renders it simply "god", sometimes he gives it some root values, दान (dāna), देवन (devana), sometimes he makes it mean the priest. There is not a single passage in the Veda where the ordinary sense "god", "divine being" does not give a clear and sufficient and the best sense. No doubt, the Vedic poets never left out of sight its root meaning: the gods are the Shining Ones, the Lords of Light as are the Dasyus the Dark or Black Ones, the sons of Darkness.

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ऋत्विजम् (ṛtvijam): "He who sacrifices at the right season" is the outward or ritualistic sense; but ऋतु (ṛtu), in the Veda, as we shall see, is the order of the truth, its arranged law, time, circumstance. Agni is the representative priest who sacrifices according to the law, order, season of the Ritam.

होतरम् (hotāram): Sayana—"because he utters the Mantra" and he quotes अहं होता स्तौमि (aham hotā staumi); but he renders it sometimes आह्वाता (āhvātā), sometimes होमनिष्पादक: (homaniṣpādakaḥ), sometimes gives us the choice. Undoubtedly, होता (hotā) is the priest of the oblation, who gives the offering, हु (hu) to offer, and not हू (hū) to call. The hymn was an attendant circumstance of the offering, therefore the invocation or praise might also fall to the part of the होता (hotā); but in the system of the Rig-veda the proper name for the reciter of the Mantra is ब्रह्मा (brahmā). Agni is the होतृ (hotṛ), Brihaspati the ब्रह्मा (brahmā).

रत्न (ratna): Sayana—यागफलरूपाणां रत्नानामतिशयेन धारयितारं पोषयितारं वा (yāgaphalarūpāṇām ratnānāmatiśayena dhārayitāram poṣayitāram vā). धा (dhā) to hold and to nourish (cf. धात्री, dhātrī, nurse). But in other passages he takes रत्नं=रमणीयं धनं (ratnam=ramaṇīyam dhanam) which shows that he took it to mean literally "that which is delightful" and made it=wealth, as he makes द्युम्न (dyumna)=that which is shining, and renders it "wealth". We need not follow him. रत्नं (ratnam) means "delight" or Ananda (cf. रम्, रति:, रण्, रण्व, राध्, रञज्, ram, ratiḥ, raṇ, raṇva, rādh, rañj, etc.), just as द्युम्नम् (dyumnam) means "light". धा (dhā) is to hold or else to place.

Translation: RITUALISTIC

I praise Agni, the Purohita¹ of the sacrifice, the god,² the Ritwik, the Hota who holds very much wealth.

Translation: PSYCHOLOGICAL

I seek the God-Will, the Priest set in front of our sacrifice, the divine offerer who sacrifices in the order of the truth, who disposes utterly the delight.

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अग्निः पुर्वेभिऋषिभिरीडयो नूतनैरुत ।
स देवाँ एह वक्षति ॥२॥

Agniḥ pūrvebhirṛṣibhirīḍyo nūtanairuta,
sa devān eha vakṣati.

Rik 2) ऋषि: (ṛṣiḥ): lit. "seeker, attainer", so "knower", from ऋष् (ṛṣ) to go. इह देवान् (iha devān): the divine powers into the mortal life and mortal being. वक्षति (vakṣati)=वह्+स+ति (vah+sa+ti). This स (sa) seems to have been either frequentative in force, "he constantly or habitually bears", or intensive, "he entirely bears", or desiderative, "he wills or intends to bear". From the latter sense we have the use of स् (s) for the future, cf. नी (nī), नेष्यामि (neṣyāmi), Gr. luō, I loose, lusō, I shall loose, and English, I will go, where the desiderative "will=wish, intend" has acquired the sense of a simple future.

Translation:

The God-Will is desirable as to the ancient sages, so to the new, for it is he that bringeth here the gods.

अग्निना रयिमश्नवत् पोषमेव दिवेदिवे ।
यशसं वीरवत्तमम् ॥३॥

Agninā rayimaśnavat poṣameva divedive,
yaśasam vīravattamam.

Rik 3) अश्नवत् (aśnavat): Sayana—प्राप्नोति (prāpnoti), but the form gives a certain semi-imperative sense or the idea of a rule of action or law of occurrence. "He shall attain." अश् (aś) to possess, have, obtain, enjoy; Greek echō, I have.

यशसं (yaśasam): Sayana—दानादिना यशोयुक्तं (dānādinā yaśoyuktam), so "famous"; but "a famous and men-fullest wealth" seems an absurd way of talking. यश् (yaś) is literally to go, strive towards, attain; here it means success, fame; also from another sense "to shine"="splendour"; it is connected in sense with या (yā), यत्

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(yat), यस् (yas). We have in the Veda रयि (rayi), wealth or felicity, often described as expansive, pervading, breaking down obstacles on the way. There is therefore no inappropriateness or violence in rendering it "enjoyment that attains" or "victorious riches".

वीरवत्तमम् (vīravattamam): Sayana—अतिशयेन पुत्रभृत्यादिवीरपुरुषोपेतम् (atiśayena putrabhṛtyādivīrapuruṣopetam). It is absurd to take वीर=पुत्र (vīra=putra) as Sayana does; it means "men, heroes, strengths" and is often the equivalent of नृ (nṛ) which is never used for servants in the Rig-veda.

रयिम् (rayim): There are two words, रयि (rayi) from रि (ri) to go and रयि (rayi) from रि (ri) to attain, enjoy. The latter means "enjoyment" or the things enjoyed, "felicity, prosperity, riches". The former sense is found in the Upanishad where रयि (rayi), movement or matter is opposed to प्राण (prāṇa), life.

Translation: RITUALISTIC

By Agni one attains a wealth daily increasing, famous and most full of men.

Translation: PSYCHOLOGICAL

By the God-Will one shall enjoy a felicity that shall increase day by day, victorious, fullest of hero-powers.

अग्ने यं यज्ञमध्वरं विश्वतः परिभूरसि ।
स इद् देवेषु गच्छति ॥४॥

Agne yam yajñamadhvaram viśvataḥ paribhūrasi,
sa id deveṣu gacchati.

Rik 4) अध्वरम् (adhvaram): Sayana—हिंसारहितम् (hiṁsārahitam), because it is not destroyed by the Rakshasas, from अ (a) privative+dhvara (ध्वृ, dhvṛ to hurt). But अध्वर (adhvara) is used by itself to mean sacrifice and it is quite impossible that the word "unhurt" used by itself can have come to mean sacrifice. It must

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express some essential quality of the sacrifice or it could not thus have been singled out. It is a notable fact that अध्वर (adhvara) is continually used for the sacrifice when there is a question of the sacrifice travelling or moving on the path towards the gods, as here. I therefore take अध्वर (adhvara) from an original root अध् (adh) to move and connect it with अध्वन् (adhvan), path; it means the moving or travelling sacrifice, the sacrifice regarded as a pilgrimage of the soul or its gifts towards the gods.

Translation: RITUALISTIC

O Agni, the unhurt sacrifice that thou encompassest on all sides, that goes to the gods.

Translation: PSYCHOLOGICAL

O God-Will, whatsoever sacrifice in the path thou encompassest with thy being on every side, that indeed arrives to the gods.

अग्निर्होता कविक्रतुः सत्यश्चित्रश्रवस्तमः ।
देवो देवेभिरा गमत् ॥५॥

Agnirhotā kavikratuḥ satyaścitraśravastamaḥ,
devo devebhirā gamat.

Rik 5) कविक्रतु: (kavikratuḥ): Sayana takes कवि (kavi) here=क्रान्त (krānta) and क्रतु: (kratuḥ)=either knowledge or work. It means then the priest whose work or whose knowledge moves. But there is absolutely no reason to take कवि (kavi) in any other than its natural and invariable sense. कवि (kavi) is the seer, the one who has the divine or supramental knowledge. क्रतु (kratu): from कृ (kṛ) or rather old root क्र (kra) to divide, to do, make, shape, work. From the sense "divide" comes that of the discerning mind, Sayana's प्रज्ञान (prajñana); cf. Greek kritos, judge etc.; and this is the sense of karuthi in Tamil which means mind. But from the sense "to do" क्रतु (kratu) means (1)

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work, (2) power of work, strength, cf. Greek kratos, strength, (3) will or working force of the mind. For this last sense cf. Isha Upanishad क्रतो कृतम् स्मर (krato kṛtam smara) where the collocation क्रतो कृतम् (krato kṛtam) shows that that power of the mind is meant which conducts or dictates the work or action. Agni is the divine Seer-Will that works with the perfect supramental knowledge.

सत्य: (satyaḥ): Sayana explains "true in its fruits"; but the collocation of "seer-will" and श्रवस् (śravas), inspired knowledge, indicates rather the sense "true in his being" and therefore "true in knowledge", श्रवस् (śravas), and "in will" क्रतु: (kratuḥ). श्रवस् (śravas) is the supramental knowledge called the Truth, ॠतम् (ṛtam), the Vijnana of the Upanishads. कविक्रतु: (kavikratuḥ) means having the will that is full of that knowledge, the vijñānamaya will, the divine ajñāna, सत्य: (satyaḥ) means "vijñānamaya in his substance".

चित्रश्रवस्तम:(citraśravastamaḥ): Sayana—'having most varied kinds of fame',—an insipid and meaningless epithet for a god. श्रवस् (śravas) is used like श्रुति (śruti) to indicate the inspired hymn; it must therefore be capable of meaning inspired knowledge. There are two kinds of supramental knowledge, दृष्टि (dṛṣṭi) and श्रुति (śruti), sight and hearing, revelation and inspiration, but श्रवस् (śravas) is usually used to indicate the knowledge gained by the supramental faculties.

Translation: RITUALISTIC

Agni, the priest, who sets in motion the knowledge (or work), true in his fruit, very varied in his fame, may he come with the gods.

Translation: PSYCHOLOGICAL

The God-Will, Priest of our offering, true in his being, with the will of the seer, with richest variety of inspired knowledge, may he come to us divine with the powers divine.

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