Hymn to Agni
Rigveda V.23 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 5 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.
We pour the ghee into thy flames, O Agni! The butter flows like liquid gold. It burneth bright and clear, sending forth a fragrance that delighteth the gods. The sweet smoke riseth upward in spiraling columns, visible to the immortals in their distant realms.
This ghee is the finest substance that the earth produceth. We have gathered it from the herds that we have tended and nurtured through the seasons. It representeth the fruit of our labors, the wealth that we have earned through righteous work. We offer it now not from duty, but from gladness of heart.
O Agni, accept this gift with favor! Let thy flames consume it swiftly and without hesitation. Draw it up into thy breast; make it part of thy eternal radiance. In receiving our offering, thou reciprocatest in kind. We give thee earthly wealth; thou givest us heavenly blessing. We give thee sustenance; thou givest us strength.
The ghee burneth without producing ash or residue. It is pure transformation—the earthly butter becometh immortal flame. What was the flesh of cattle becometh the very substance of light itself. This is the great mystery of the sacrifice: the lowest thing becometh the highest; the temporal becometh eternal.
We sing as we pour the butter. Our voices join with the crackling of the flames. The sound of the ritual ascendeth to the heavens, where the gods bend down their ears to hear us. They are pleased by our devotion. They are moved by the purity of our intent.
O Agni, accept our ghee, our chants, and our humble gratitude. Let this offering bind us more closely to thee. Let our homes be forever marked with thy sacred blessing. Let the butter we offer today return to us a thousandfold in prosperity, health, and contentment. So be it, O mighty 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 V.23
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.
agne sahantam ā bhara dyumnasya prāsahā rayim |
viśvā yaś carṣaṇīr abhy ā3sā vājeṣu sāsahat || 1 ||
tam agne pṛtanāṣahaṁ rayiṁ sahasva ā bhara |
tvaṁ hi satyo adbhuto dātā vājasya gomataḥ || 2 ||
viśve hi tvā sajoṣaso janāso vṛktabarhiṣaḥ |
hotāraṁ sadmasu priyaṁ vyanti vāryā puru || 3 ||
sa hi ṣmā viśvacarṣaṇir abhimāti saho dadhe |
agna eṣu kṣayeṣv ā revan naḥ śukra dīdihi dyumat pāvaka dīdihi || 4 ||
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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