Hymn to Agni
Rigveda II.5 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 2 of the Rigveda, one of the 1,028 hymns organized within the ten books of the oldest Veda. The Rigveda was composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE in Vedic Sanskrit and preserved through oral transmission across millennia.
This is a Good Works Translation produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church from the Sanskrit of the Śākala recension.
O Agni, thou art the guest immortal in every dwelling! When thou sittest in the hearth-fire of the poor man, thou makest his humble hut a palace. When thou gleamest in the great king's hall, thou art crowned with the splendor of kingdoms. Wherever mortal men kindle thee, thou art welcome and honored.
Thou art the friend of mankind — the only deity who dwelleth perpetually among us, not afar in the distant heavens. Each day we kindle thee; each night we tend thy glowing coals. Thou art our companion in joy and sorrow, in feast and famine, in war and in peace. Thou knowest the secret longings of every heart that burneth within thy sphere.
The wanderer, lost in the wilderness and cold, seeth thy light and is comforted. The child feareth the darkness until thou art kindled; then he sleepeth peacefully. The aged sit near thee for warmth and wisdom. The sick are healed by thy sacred touch. Thou art the comfort of all creatures.
Yet thou art not merely a guest — thou art a kinsman, a member of the household. We speak to thee as one speaketh to a beloved friend. We confide our hopes and fears unto thee. We bring thee our first fruits and our finest offerings, for thou hast earned our love through thy eternal faithfulness.
O Agni, stay with us! Do not forsake the hearths of mortals! Remain the bridge between our world and the immortal realm above. Guard our children; prosper our flocks; grant us length of days. Be our friend when all other friends fail us. Through thy gentle flame, let us know that the gods have not forgotten us.
Colophon
This hymn is drawn from the Śākala recension of the Rigveda, composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE. This is a Good Works Translation produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, translated independently from the Sanskrit. Reference translations consulted during original translation are to be documented during audit.
Compiled and formatted for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.
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Source Text: ṛgveda II.5
Sanskrit source text from the Aufrecht edition (1877) via GRETIL (Van Nooten & Holland input). Presented here for reference, study, and verification alongside the English translation above.
hotājaniṣṭa cetanaḥ pitā pitṛbhya ūtaye |
prayakṣañ jenyaṁ vasu śakema vājino yamam || 1 ||
ā yasmin sapta raśmayas tatā yajñasya netari |
manuṣvad daivyam aṣṭamam potā viśvaṁ tad invati || 2 ||
dadhanve vā yad īm anu vocad brahmāṇi ver u tat |
pari viśvāni kāvyā nemiś cakram ivābhavat || 3 ||
sākaṁ hi śucinā śuciḥ praśāstā kratunājani |
vidvām̐ asya vratā dhruvā vayā ivānu rohate || 4 ||
tā asya varṇam āyuvo neṣṭuḥ sacanta dhenavaḥ |
kuvit tisṛbhya ā varaṁ svasāro yā idaṁ yayuḥ || 5 ||
yadī mātur upa svasā ghṛtam bharanty asthita |
tāsām adhvaryur āgatau yavo vṛṣṭīva modate || 6 ||
svaḥ svāya dhāyase kṛṇutām ṛtvig ṛtvijam |
stomaṁ yajñaṁ cād araṁ vanemā rarimā vayam || 7 ||
yathā vidvām̐ araṁ karad viśvebhyo yajatebhyaḥ |
ayam agne tve api yaṁ yajñaṁ cakṛmā vayam || 8 ||
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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