O Apām Napāt, Child of the Waters! O thou mysterious one, hidden in the depths, concealed in the very heart of rivers and springs. Who is thy father? What is thy origin? Thou art born of waters, yet art not water thyself. Thou art the fire that dwelleth in the waters, the sacred hidden spark, the secret conflagration.

How dost thou dwell in the ocean, which would quench all ordinary flame? How dost thou move through the clouds without perishing? What sacred nature is thine that neither water nor wind can extinguish thee? Thou art the inexplicable, the wondrous one, the keeper of mysteries.

We see thee in the lightning that cracks the sky above the thunder-clouds. We see thee in the glow of the firefly that dances above the marsh at dusk. Thou art present in the altar-fire, yet also in the waters that flow through the sacred enclosure. Thou art both and neither, paradox and revelation.

O Son of the Waters, we kindle thy earthly counterpart in this very place. We feed the fire with butter and with sacred words. We pour the Soma at thy altar. Yet we know that the greatest fire burns within waters unseen, within the depths that no mortal eye can fathom.

Grant us thy hidden wisdom. Illumine our understanding as thou shinest in the darkness of the waters. Let us see as thou seest. Let us know the secrets thou knowest. Teach us the way of the hidden fire — that which burneth without consuming, that which giveth light and heat yet remaineth eternal and imperishable.

O Apām Napāt, mysterious child, hidden treasure, sacred flame within the waters — accept our worship. Reveal to us thy nature. Guard the hidden fires of our hearts. Let us learn the way of secret power, that is gentle yet inexorable, that is flame yet water, that is presence yet concealment.