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Dhammapada · narration sample

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Rig Veda · 979 of 1027

Mandala 10: HYMN CXLII. Agni.

1.WITH thee, O Agni, was this singer of the laud: he hath no other kinship, O thou Son of Strength. Thou givest blessed shelter with a triple guard. Keep the destructive lightning far away from us.

2.Thy birth who seekest food is in the falling flood, Agni: as Comrade thou winnest all living things. Our coursers and our songs shall be victorious: they of themselves advance like one who guards the herd.

3.And thou, O Agni, thou of Godlike nature, sparest the stones, while caring up the brushwood. Then are thy tracks like deserts in the corn-lands. Let us not stir to wrath thy mighty arrow.

4.O’er hills through vales devouring as thou goest, thou partest like an army fain for booty As when a barber shaves a beard, thou shavest earth when the wind blows on thy flame and fans it.

5.Apparent are his lines as he approaches the course is single, but the cars are many, When, Agni, thou, making thine arms resplendent, advancest o’er the land spread out beneath thee.

6.Now let thy strength, thy burning flames fly upward, thine energies, O Agni, as thou toilest. Gape widely, bend thee, waxing in thy vigour: let all the Vasus sit this day beside thee.

7.This is the waters’ reservoir, the great abode of gathered streams. Take thou another path than this, and as thou listest walk thereon.

8.On thy way hitherward and hence let flowery Durva grass spring up Let there be lakes with lotus blooms. These are the mansions of the flood.

Asked of Guide

Why does the hymn call Agni both a protector and a devourer of the land?

The hymn shows Agni as a double-faced force: protector who gives “blessed shelter” and brings victory, and devourer whose fire “shavest earth” and parts fields like an army. The Rishi treats these as complementary roles of the same deity, worshipping Agni’s power to both sustain (bringing lakes, Durva grass) and transform (clearing, consuming) the world.

This portrayal matches other Vedic texts where gods hold creative and destructive functions together, for example the Rig Veda’s hymns to Indra that celebrate his saving valor and his stormy, devastating force. The poem asks for guidance of Agni’s path—“Take thou another path than this”—invoking him to act beneficially while acknowledging his raw potency.

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