Hymn to Agni
Rigveda VII.10 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 7 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.
The sacred fire hath been kindled! The offering hath been made! The hymn hath been sung! O Agni, accept this prayer from the lips of the Vasiṣṭha singers!
The wood crackles; the flames leap upward; the smoke riseth to the heavens. All the preparation hath been completed; all the ritual requirements have been fulfilled. The moment of communion between mortals and gods hath arrived.
O Agni, carry our voices to the heavens! Let all the gods hear us! Let them know that we remember them; let them know that we honor them; let them know that we are faithful to the covenant that bindeth us together.
Come, O divine powers! Descend upon our altar! Partake of our offering! Accept our praise! Grant us thy blessings! Make us worthy of thy favor!
Indra, mighty king of gods, hear us! Bring thy strength to our battles! Mitra, just judge of heaven, hear us! Bring thy wisdom to our councils! Varuna, lord of waters, hear us! Bring thy blessings to our fields!
All ye gods who dwell in the celestial realms, hear the cry of mortals below! We are small; we are frail; we are brief-lived. Yet we reach out to you with devotion and faith. Accept our offering; grant us thy protection; make us prosperous and strong!
O Agni, thou hast kindled now; thou burnest bright! The ceremony is complete; the communion hath been achieved. The gods have heard us; the blessings are flowing down. Our prayers have reached the heavens; our offerings have been accepted.
Let peace dwell in our hearts! Let joy fill our homes! Let prosperity grace our lands! Let all that we do be blessed by the grace of the gods!
O Agni, greatest and mightiest of all, accept our eternal gratitude! Remain with us always! Guard us, protect us, and bless us! Forever shall we sing thy praises; forever shall we kindle thy sacred flame! Accept this hymn, O radiant one! Receive our love and devotion! Be our friend, our guardian, and our guide into all the ages to come!
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 VII.10
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.
uṣo na jāraḥ pṛthu pājo aśred davidyutad dīdyac chośucānaḥ |
vṛṣā hariḥ śucir ā bhāti bhāsā dhiyo hinvāna uśatīr ajīgaḥ || 1 ||
sva1r ṇa vastor uṣasām aroci yajñaṁ tanvānā uśijo na manma |
agnir janmāni deva ā vi vidvān dravad dūto devayāvā vaniṣṭhaḥ || 2 ||
acchā giro matayo devayantīr agniṁ yanti draviṇam bhikṣamāṇāḥ |
susaṁdṛśaṁ supratīkaṁ svañcaṁ havyavāham aratim mānuṣāṇām || 3 ||
indraṁ no agne vasubhiḥ sajoṣā rudraṁ rudrebhir ā vahā bṛhantam |
ādityebhir aditiṁ viśvajanyām bṛhaspatim ṛkvabhir viśvavāram || 4 ||
mandraṁ hotāram uśijo yaviṣṭham agniṁ viśa īḻate adhvareṣu |
sa hi kṣapāvām̐ abhavad rayīṇām atandro dūto yajathāya devān || 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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