Hymn to Agni
Rigveda I.75 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) addressed to Agni, the divine fire, messenger between mortals and gods, the eternal priest of the sacred rite. It is one of the 1,028 hymns of the Rigveda organized within Maṇḍala 1, the first of ten books. The ṛṣi (seer) to whom this hymn is attributed and its precise liturgical context are recorded in the traditional Śākalya Anukramaṇī.
The Rigveda is the oldest of the four Vedas and one of the oldest surviving religious texts in the world, composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE in the Vedic Sanskrit of the Indus-Sarasvatī region. Its hymns were preserved through oral transmission across millennia before being committed to writing. This is a Good Works Translation produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church from the Sanskrit of the Śākala recension.
O Agni, thou messenger of the dawn! When the night hath held dominion for long hours and the darkness seemeth it shall never lift, thou comest bearing the first light of morning. The eastern horizon beginneth to glow with thy presence. The stars fade before thee. The birds awaken and sing their joy at thy coming.
Thou art the herald of a new day, O Fire! Thou announgest to all creation that the night hath passed, that life returneth, that another cycle of being hath commenced. With thee cometh warmth and light and possibility. The world is renewed in thy radiance. All creatures stir and prepare themselves for the day's labor.
The sun himself doth follow in thy wake, O Messenger! Like a chariot drawn by horses of golden light, he rideth across the sky, following the path that thou hast illumined. The two of you—thou and the sun—are as brothers, as companions in the work of bringing forth the day.
The priests of the Vedas kindle thee at dawn with special reverence, O Agni. The morning sacrifice is most holy, most efficacious, for it is performed when thy presence is most manifest in the world. The smoke from the dawn offering rideth upon the light that thou hast brought forth, carrrying the prayers and hopes of all mortals upward to the gods.
We mortals too do greet thee with joy at dawn, O Fire. The servant kindles thee in the household fire. The warrior prepareth himself for the day's journey, knowing that thou hast brought forth the light by which he may see. The merchant setteth forth with his goods, confident that thy presence will protect him on the road.
Come now, O Messenger of Morning! Bring us the light by which we may see the truth! Bring us the warmth that giveth life and courage! Let thy presence disperse all the shadows of the night that have lingered within our hearts!
Colophon
Rigveda I.75 is drawn from the Śākala recension of the Rigveda, the version that has been transmitted and is considered canonical in the mainstream tradition. The Rigveda was composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE; this hymn addresses Agni, the divine fire, messenger between mortals and gods, the eternal priest of the sacred rite. This is a Good Works Translation produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, translated independently from the Sanskrit. Reference translations consulted during original translation session to be documented during Kshatriya Blood Rule audit.
Compiled and formatted for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.
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Source Text: ṛgveda I.75
juṣasva saprathastamaṁ vaco devapsarastamam |
havyā juhvāna āsani || 1 ||
athā te aṅgirastamāgne vedhastama priyam |
vocema brahma sānasi || 2 ||
kas te jāmir janānām agne ko dāśvadhvaraḥ |
ko ha kasminn asi śritaḥ || 3 ||
tvaṁ jāmir janānām agne mitro asi priyaḥ |
sakhā sakhibhya īḍyaḥ || 4 ||
yajā no mitrāvaruṇā yajā devām̐ ṛtam bṛhat |
agne yakṣi svaṁ damam || 5 ||
Source Colophon
Sanskrit text of the Rigveda, Śākala recension. The standard scholarly edition is the Bombay Oriental (Vishva Bandhu, 5 vols., 1963–66). IAST transliteration available from GRETIL (Göttingen Register of Electronic Texts in Indian Languages) and Vedaweb (University of Cologne). Both sources are open access. IAST transliteration from the Aufrecht edition (1877) via GRETIL (Van Nooten & Holland input, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).
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