Rig Veda · 372 of 1027
Mandala 5: HYMN XVIII. Agni.
1.AT dawn let Agni, much-beloved guest of the house, be glorified; Immortal who delights in all oblations brought by mortal men.
2.For Dvita who receives through wealth of native strength maimed offerings, Thy praiser even gains at once the Soma-drops, Immortal Gods!
3.Nobles, with song I call that car of yours that shines with lengthened life, For, God who givest steeds! that car hither and thither goes unharmed.
4.They who have varied ways of thought, who guard the lauds within their lips, And strew the grass before the light, have decked themselves with high renown.
5.Immortal Agni, give the chiefs, heroes who institute the rite, Heroes’ illustrious, lofty fame, who at the synod met for praise presented me with fifty steeds.
Asked of Guide
Why does this hymn ask Agni for horses and a shining car when it praises offerings at dawn?
The hymn treats Agni as the household guest and ritual vehicle through which gifts reach the gods, so asking for horses and a shining car names the rewards tied to Agni’s favor: “that car of yours that shines with lengthened life” and the fifty steeds offered by chiefs. The horses and car are symbolic of prosperity, status, and the lifegiving motion of sacrifice — Agni carries offerings onward and returns blessings in concrete wealth and fame.
This is consistent with other Vedic hymns that link sacrificial exchange to worldly and ritual power, as in Rig Veda Mandala 1 where gifts to Agni bring cattle, fame, and long life. Naming tangible rewards makes the ritual’s stakes plain and binds the community’s generosity to visible social goods.
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