Hymn to Agni
Rigveda IV.4 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 4 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 fire of vengeance! Thou scourge of the rākṣasas! Thou burnest away evil as the sun burneth away the night. The demons tremble at thy name. The dark powers flee before thy blazing face. Thou art the warrior of the gods, the guardian of the law, the destroyer of lies.
The rākṣasas plot in darkness, but thy light findeth them. They hide in the forest, in the mountain caves, beneath the earth itself—yet thy flames reach everywhere. Thou art faster than their flight. Thou art hotter than their malice. When they scheme against the righteous man, thou comest roaring down upon them like an avalanche of fire.
O Agni, thy anger is just! Thy rage is holy! When the sorcerer casteth his evil spell, thou burnest through the magic. When the enemy rakṣasa raiseth his club against the innocent, thou metetest out swift punishment. Thy flames are the sword of dharma. Thy heat is the righteous wrath of heaven.
We invoke thy protection, O fire! Ward us from the enemies that prowl in the darkness. Burn away the curses that have been laid upon us. Consume the arrows of the sorcerer before they strike. Let thy wall of flame surround our home, our cattle, our children. Let no demon dare approach the place where thou dwellest.
The rākṣasas are many, and their hunger is great. But thou, O Agni, art mightier still. One spark of thy fire, and a thousand demons perish. Thou needest not a weapon—thy very being is war. Thy smoke is poison to the powers of darkness. Thy embers are stones that strike them down. Be our warrior, O Agni. Be our protector. Be our terrible, beautiful, avenging flame.
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 IV.4
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.
kṛṇuṣva pājaḥ prasitiṁ na pṛthvīṁ yāhi rājevāmavām̐ ibhena |
tṛṣvīm anu prasitiṁ drūṇāno 'stāsi vidhya rakṣasas tapiṣṭhaiḥ || 1 ||
tava bhramāsa āśuyā patanty anu spṛśa dhṛṣatā śośucānaḥ |
tapūṁṣy agne juhvā pataṁgān asaṁdito vi sṛja viṣvag ulkāḥ || 2 ||
prati spaśo vi sṛja tūrṇitamo bhavā pāyur viśo asyā adabdhaḥ |
yo no dūre aghaśaṁso yo anty agne mākiṣ ṭe vyathir ā dadharṣīt || 3 ||
ud agne tiṣṭha praty ā tanuṣva ny a1mitrām̐ oṣatāt tigmahete |
yo no arātiṁ samidhāna cakre nīcā taṁ dhakṣy atasaṁ na śuṣkam || 4 ||
ūrdhvo bhava prati vidhyādhy asmad āviṣ kṛṇuṣva daivyāny agne |
ava sthirā tanuhi yātujūnāṁ jāmim ajāmim pra mṛṇīhi śatrūn || 5 ||
sa te jānāti sumatiṁ yaviṣṭha ya īvate brahmaṇe gātum airat |
viśvāny asmai sudināni rāyo dyumnāny aryo vi duro abhi dyaut || 6 ||
sed agne astu subhagaḥ sudānur yas tvā nityena haviṣā ya ukthaiḥ |
piprīṣati sva āyuṣi duroṇe viśved asmai sudinā sāsad iṣṭiḥ || 7 ||
arcāmi te sumatiṁ ghoṣy arvāk saṁ te vāvātā jaratām iyaṁ gīḥ |
svaśvās tvā surathā marjayemāsme kṣatrāṇi dhārayer anu dyūn || 8 ||
iha tvā bhūry ā cared upa tman doṣāvastar dīdivāṁsam anu dyūn |
krīḻantas tvā sumanasaḥ sapemābhi dyumnā tasthivāṁso janānām || 9 ||
yas tvā svaśvaḥ suhiraṇyo agna upayāti vasumatā rathena |
tasya trātā bhavasi tasya sakhā yas ta ātithyam ānuṣag jujoṣat || 10 ||
maho rujāmi bandhutā vacobhis tan mā pitur gotamād anv iyāya |
tvaṁ no asya vacasaś cikiddhi hotar yaviṣṭha sukrato damūnāḥ || 11 ||
asvapnajas taraṇayaḥ suśevā atandrāso 'vṛkā aśramiṣṭhāḥ |
te pāyavaḥ sadhryañco niṣadyāgne tava naḥ pāntv amūra || 12 ||
ye pāyavo māmateyaṁ te agne paśyanto andhaṁ duritād arakṣan |
rarakṣa tān sukṛto viśvavedā dipsanta id ripavo nāha debhuḥ || 13 ||
tvayā vayaṁ sadhanya1s tvotās tava praṇīty aśyāma vājān |
ubhā śaṁsā sūdaya satyatāte 'nuṣṭhuyā kṛṇuhy ahrayāṇa || 14 ||
ayā te agne samidhā vidhema prati stomaṁ śasyamānaṁ gṛbhāya |
dahāśaso rakṣasaḥ pāhy a1smān druho nido mitramaho avadyāt || 15 ||
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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