Hymn to Agni
Rigveda VI.16 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 6 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.
I.
Agni, the flame-tongue, the god of gift and worship,
Most worthy of all praise, most radiant among the deities—
Come thou to us this day, as of old thou camest
To the forefathers gathered round the hearth-fire's gleam.
II.
Thou, who art kindler of all mortal fortune,
Who dost receive the sacrificial oil and butter,
Grant unto us the wealth of cattle and of children,
The brave sons who shall stand when foes draw nigh.
III.
By thee do men offer unto the gods their portions,
Thou art the tongue whereby the gift ascendeth to the heavens,
O bearer of the sacred flame, grant us long life,
Grant us the sight of many dawns, O radiant one.
IV.
The wise men know thee as the path to riches,
As he who gateth both the mortal and immortal worlds,
Shine forth for us in battle, in the gathering of peoples,
That we may win the victory and the glorious prize.
V.
O Agni, thou alone dost make the weak man mighty,
The poor man rich, the fearful-hearted brave,
Accept our gifts, accept the soma poured in worship,
And grant us strength to overcome all that opposeth us.
VI.
Bright god, whom all the deities do honor,
The first-invoked, the keeper of the flame eternal,
Guard thou our homes, protect us in the darkness,
And lead us safe unto the world of boundless light.
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 VI.16
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.
tvam agne yajñānāṁ hotā viśveṣāṁ hitaḥ |
devebhir mānuṣe jane || 1 ||
sa no mandrābhir adhvare jihvābhir yajā mahaḥ |
ā devān vakṣi yakṣi ca || 2 ||
vetthā hi vedho adhvanaḥ pathaś ca devāñjasā |
agne yajñeṣu sukrato || 3 ||
tvām īḻe adha dvitā bharato vājibhiḥ śunam |
īje yajñeṣu yajñiyam || 4 ||
tvam imā vāryā puru divodāsāya sunvate |
bharadvājāya dāśuṣe || 5 ||
tvaṁ dūto amartya ā vahā daivyaṁ janam |
śṛṇvan viprasya suṣṭutim || 6 ||
tvām agne svādhyo3 martāso devavītaye |
yajñeṣu devam īḻate || 7 ||
tava pra yakṣi saṁdṛśam uta kratuṁ sudānavaḥ |
viśve juṣanta kāminaḥ || 8 ||
tvaṁ hotā manurhito vahnir āsā viduṣṭaraḥ |
agne yakṣi divo viśaḥ || 9 ||
agna ā yāhi vītaye gṛṇāno havyadātaye |
ni hotā satsi barhiṣi || 10 ||
taṁ tvā samidbhir aṅgiro ghṛtena vardhayāmasi |
bṛhac chocā yaviṣṭhya || 11 ||
sa naḥ pṛthu śravāyyam acchā deva vivāsasi |
bṛhad agne suvīryam || 12 ||
tvām agne puṣkarād adhy atharvā nir amanthata |
mūrdhno viśvasya vāghataḥ || 13 ||
tam u tvā dadhyaṅṅ ṛṣiḥ putra īdhe atharvaṇaḥ |
vṛtrahaṇam puraṁdaram || 14 ||
tam u tvā pāthyo vṛṣā sam īdhe dasyuhantamam |
dhanaṁjayaṁ raṇe-raṇe || 15 ||
ehy ū ṣu bravāṇi te 'gna itthetarā giraḥ |
ebhir vardhāsa indubhiḥ || 16 ||
yatra kva ca te mano dakṣaṁ dadhasa uttaram |
tatrā sadaḥ kṛṇavase || 17 ||
nahi te pūrtam akṣipad bhuvan nemānāṁ vaso |
athā duvo vanavase || 18 ||
āgnir agāmi bhārato vṛtrahā purucetanaḥ |
divodāsasya satpatiḥ || 19 ||
sa hi viśvāti pārthivā rayiṁ dāśan mahitvanā |
vanvann avāto astṛtaḥ || 20 ||
sa pratnavan navīyasāgne dyumnena saṁyatā |
bṛhat tatantha bhānunā || 21 ||
pra vaḥ sakhāyo agnaye stomaṁ yajñaṁ ca dhṛṣṇuyā |
arca gāya ca vedhase || 22 ||
sa hi yo mānuṣā yugā sīdad dhotā kavikratuḥ |
dūtaś ca havyavāhanaḥ || 23 ||
tā rājānā śucivratādityān mārutaṁ gaṇam |
vaso yakṣīha rodasī || 24 ||
vasvī te agne saṁdṛṣṭir iṣayate martyāya |
ūrjo napād amṛtasya || 25 ||
kratvā dā astu śreṣṭho 'dya tvā vanvan surekṇāḥ |
marta ānāśa suvṛktim || 26 ||
te te agne tvotā iṣayanto viśvam āyuḥ |
taranto aryo arātīr vanvanto aryo arātīḥ || 27 ||
agnis tigmena śociṣā yāsad viśvaṁ ny a1triṇam |
agnir no vanate rayim || 28 ||
suvīraṁ rayim ā bhara jātavedo vicarṣaṇe |
jahi rakṣāṁsi sukrato || 29 ||
tvaṁ naḥ pāhy aṁhaso jātavedo aghāyataḥ |
rakṣā ṇo brahmaṇas kave || 30 ||
yo no agne dureva ā marto vadhāya dāśati |
tasmān naḥ pāhy aṁhasaḥ || 31 ||
tvaṁ taṁ deva jihvayā pari bādhasva duṣkṛtam |
marto yo no jighāṁsati || 32 ||
bharadvājāya saprathaḥ śarma yaccha sahantya |
agne vareṇyaṁ vasu || 33 ||
agnir vṛtrāṇi jaṅghanad draviṇasyur vipanyayā |
samiddhaḥ śukra āhutaḥ || 34 ||
garbhe mātuḥ pituṣ pitā vididyutāno akṣare |
sīdann ṛtasya yonim ā || 35 ||
brahma prajāvad ā bhara jātavedo vicarṣaṇe |
agne yad dīdayad divi || 36 ||
upa tvā raṇvasaṁdṛśam prayasvantaḥ sahaskṛta |
agne sasṛjmahe giraḥ || 37 ||
upa cchāyām iva ghṛṇer aganma śarma te vayam |
agne hiraṇyasaṁdṛśaḥ || 38 ||
ya ugra iva śaryahā tigmaśṛṅgo na vaṁsagaḥ |
agne puro rurojitha || 39 ||
ā yaṁ haste na khādinaṁ śiśuṁ jātaṁ na bibhrati |
viśām agniṁ svadhvaram || 40 ||
pra devaṁ devavītaye bharatā vasuvittamam |
ā sve yonau ni ṣīdatu || 41 ||
ā jātaṁ jātavedasi priyaṁ śiśītātithim |
syona ā gṛhapatim || 42 ||
agne yukṣvā hi ye tavāśvāso deva sādhavaḥ |
araṁ vahanti manyave || 43 ||
acchā no yāhy ā vahābhi prayāṁsi vītaye |
ā devān somapītaye || 44 ||
ud agne bhārata dyumad ajasreṇa davidyutat |
śocā vi bhāhy ajara || 45 ||
vītī yo devam marto duvasyed agnim īḻītādhvare haviṣmān |
hotāraṁ satyayajaṁ rodasyor uttānahasto namasā vivāset || 46 ||
ā te agna ṛcā havir hṛdā taṣṭam bharāmasi |
te te bhavantūkṣaṇa ṛṣabhāso vaśā uta || 47 ||
agniṁ devāso agriyam indhate vṛtrahantamam |
yenā vasūny ābhṛtā tṛḻhā rakṣāṁsi vājinā || 48 ||
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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