Rig Veda · 993 of 1027
Mandala 10: HYMN CLVI. Agni.
1.LET songs of ours speed Agni forth like a fleet courser in the race, And we will win each prize through him.
2.Agni the dart whereby we gain kine for ourselves with help from thee,— That send us for the gain of wealth.
3.O Agni, bring us wealth secure, vast wealth in horses and in kine: Oil thou the socket, turn the wheel.
4.O Agni, thou hast made the Sun, Eternal Star, to mount the sky, Bestowing light on living men.
5.Thou, Agni, art the people’s light, best, dearest, seated in thy shrine: Watch for the singer, give him life.
Asked of Guide
Why does the hymn call Agni both a dart and a maker of the Sun?
The hymn treats Agni as a mediator of worldly gain and cosmic order: “the dart whereby we gain kine” names him as the immediate agent who brings wealth and sacrificial success, while “thou hast made the Sun” credits him with enabling the cosmos’ light. The poem links practical prosperity and cosmic light through the same divine function, showing Agni’s role across scales from household prosperity to the eternal star’s rising.
This pairing echoes other Vedic texts where Agni carries offerings and transmits sacrifice to gods, as explained in the Brhad-aranyaka and later Brahmanas that describe Agni as both messenger and cosmic fire. The hymn asks Agni to act in both capacities—secure our wealth and “bestow light on living men”—so worship knits social well-being to cosmic continuity.
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