Rig Veda · 1013 of 1027
Mandala 10: HYMN CLXXVI. Agni.
1.WITH hymns of praise their sons have told aloud the Ṛbhus’ mighty deeds. Who, all-supporting, have enjoyed the earth as, twere a mother cow.
2.Bring forth the God with song divine, being Jātavedas hitherward, To bear our gifts at once to heaven.
3.He here, a God-devoted Priest, led forward comes to sacrifice. Like a car covered for the road, he, glowing, knows, himself, the way.
4.This Agni rescues from distress, as ’twere from the Immortal Race, A God yet mightier than strength, a God who hath been made for life.
Asked of Guide
Why does this hymn call Agni both 'Jātavedas' and a 'God-devoted Priest'?
The hymn uses Jātavedas to name Agni as the all-knowing, world-penetrating fire who bears offerings upward; line 2 asks, “Bring forth the God with song divine, being Jātavedas,” which stresses his capacity to connect earth and heaven. Calling him a “God-devoted Priest” in line 3 portrays Agni as the officiant of sacrifice, the one who carries human gifts and knows “the way” like a priest leading a ritual. This double role matches how later Vedic interpretation treats Agni in the Brāhmaṇas: he is both the divine power that receives sacrifice and the acting priest within the rite, a mediating presence rather than a distant deity.
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