O Agni, thou divine hotṛ! The great priest among the immortals! It is written in the eternal laws that thou alone art worthy to perform the ultimate sacrifice. The offerings of all creatures—mortals and gods alike—must pass through thy sacred hands ere they can reach the throne of the Almighty.

When the Ṛṣis and the gods commenced the first sacrifice in times immemorial, they selected thee, O Fire, to be their priest. They said: "Agni, thou art pure. Thou art wise. Thou art incorruptible. Thou art the one who shall stand between ourselves and the great mystery. Thou shall receive our offerings and present them in the place where all things converge."

And thou hast not failed in this trust, O Divine One! Throughout all the ages, from the first dawn of creation unto this very moment, thou hast faithfully performed thy sacred duties. Generation after generation of mortals hath kindled thee. Thousands upon thousands of sacrifices hath thou received and transformed and carried upward.

The hotṛ priest doth emulate thee in all his works, O Agni. He standeth as a mediator between the mortal and the divine. He speaketh the sacred words. He performeth the ritual with precision and reverence. He poureth the libations and maketh the offerings. But in all this, he is merely the instrument through which thou workest. It is thy power that giveth meaning to his actions.

Therefore is thy station most exalted! Therefore do all creatures bow before thee! Thou art the true priest, the true mediator, the true transformer of the crude into the sacred. No god is greater than thou in this function, O Agni!

Grant us the wisdom to honor thee as thou deservest! Grant us the insight to perceive thy work in all the sacrifices of the world! Make us worthy instruments through which thy sacred fire may work! Let our lives become offerings upon thy altar, O Divine Priest!