Rig Veda 3.13.1: Mandala 3, Sukta 13, Mantra 1
Sukta 3.13
- Rishi
- Viśvāmitra Gāthina
- Devata
- Agni
- Chandas
- Jagatī
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Adbhuta (wonder)
प्र वो देवायाग्नये बर्हिष्ठमर्चास्मै । गमद्देवेभिरा स नो यजिष्ठो बर्हिरा सदत् ॥
prá vo devā́yāgnáye bárhiṣṭham arcā́smai | gámad devébhir ā́ sá no yájiṣṭho bárhir ā́ sadat ||
তোমালোকৰ সৰ্বোচ্চ স্তোত্ৰ অগ্নি-দেৱৰ বাবে আগবঢ়োৱা; তেওঁৰ বাবে গাওঁ। তেওঁ দেৱসকলৰ সৈতে ইয়ালৈ আহক, আৰু যজ্ঞত সৰ্বাধিক নিপুণ সেইজন আমাৰ ভিতৰৰ পবিত্ৰ বিস্তাৰ—বৰহিষত—আসন গ্ৰহণ কৰক।
Word by Word
- प्र
- forth, forwardIndeclinableupasarga (preverb)Root प्र (upasarga)
- वः
- of you; for you (pl.)Pronoungenitive pluralRole Sampradāna (beneficiary/for you) (contextual)Root युष्मद्
- देवाय
- to the godNounmasculine dative singularRole SampradānaRoot देव-
- अग्नये
- to AgniNounmasculine dative singularRole SampradānaRoot अग्नि-
- बर्हिष्ठम्
- the loftiest/most exalted (praise)Adjectiveneuter accusative singular (used adverbially as object/complement of ‘praise’)Role KarmaRoot बर्हिष्ठ- (superl. of बृहन्त्/बर्हिस्-related ‘great/lofty’ in RV usage)
- अर्च
- praise, singVerbimperative, 2nd person singular, parasmaipadaRoot अर्च्
- अस्मै
- to himPronounmasculine dative singularRole SampradānaRoot इदम् (enclitic pronoun stem asma-)
- गमत्
- let him come; may he comeVerbinjunctive/aorist (Vedic), 3rd person singular, parasmaipadaRoot गम्
- देवेभिः
- with the godsNounmasculine instrumental pluralRole Karaṇa (accompaniment/instrumental of association)Root देव-
- आ
- hither, towardIndeclinableupasarga (preverb)Root आ (upasarga)
- सः
- hePronounmasculine nominative singularRole KartāRoot तद्
- नः
- of us; for usPronoungenitive plural (Vedic enclitic; often ‘to/for us’ in sense)Role Sampradāna (contextual)Root अस्मद्
- यजिष्ठः
- most worshipful; best sacrificerAdjectivemasculine nominative singularRole Kartā (apposition to सः)Root यजिष्ठ- (superl. of यज्य/यज्-related ‘worshipping/sacrificing’)
- बर्हिः
- the sacred grass (barhis)Nounneuter accusative singularRole KarmaRoot बर्हिस्-
- आ
- onto, towardIndeclinableupasarga (preverb)Root आ (upasarga)
- सदत्
- let him sit; may he take seatVerbinjunctive/aorist (Vedic), 3rd person singular, parasmaipadaRoot सद्
Sandhi Notes
- Sandhi resolution: (1) वो॑ दे॒वाय॑ → वः + देवाय (visarga before voiced dental). (2) दे॒वाया॒ग्नये॑ → देवाय + अग्नये (ā + a → ā; external sandhi). (3) बर्हि॑ष्ठमर्चास्मै → बर्हिष्ठम् + अर्च + अस्मै (final -म् before vowel; verb + enclitic dative). (4) गम॑द्दे॒वेभि॒रा → गमत् + देवेभिः + आ (final -त् before voiced d-; instrumental plural + preverb). (5) स नो॒ → सः + नः (visarga before nasal). (6) ब॒र्हिरा स॑दत् → बर्हिः + आ + सदत् (final -ः before vowel; preverb with verb). Accent marks in the Saṃhitā are not reproduced per-pada here
- forms are given in resolved pada shape
The meaning
Outer meaning
Offer your best hymn to Agni the Divine; may he come with the gods and sit on the sacred barhis (ritual grass).
Inner meaning
The ‘highest hymn’ (barhiṣṭham arca) is the soul’s most uplifted aspiration. Agni as the divine Flame is invited to descend into the inner altar with all the supporting powers (devāḥ: faculties of light, strength, harmony). Barhis is the wide, prepared field of consciousness—inner receptivity—on which Agni can ‘sit’ and govern the sacrifice as yajīṣṭha (most perfect in the work).
Universal truth
Spiritual progress begins by offering our highest aspiration and preparing inner wideness; when the psychic fire is welcomed, the whole divine ecology of powers can act in us.
Themes
Agni invocation, Opening of sacrifice, Descent of the gods, Establishment of divine presence
The seer
- Rishi
- Viśvāmitra Gāthina
- Lineage
- Viśvāmitra (Gāthina)
- Other hymns
- RV 3.1, RV 3.2, RV 3.3, RV 3.13
Family tradition
Book 3 opens many Agni movements with strong invocation: prepare the inner field, call the divine Flame, gather the gods (powers).
Significance
Agni is the first necessity of the yoga: the awakened will that mediates between human and divine; Viśvāmitra’s Agni hymns are manuals of inner kindling and right offering.
The deity
- Devata
- Agni
- Epithets
- deva (the Divine), yajiṣṭha (most perfect in sacrifice), hotṛ (invoker/priest—implied in function)
- Related deities
- Indra, Soma, Uṣas, Mitra-Varuṇa, Bṛhaspati
Cosmic role
Mediator between worlds; carrier of offerings; awakener of gods; establisher of Ṛta in the sacrifice.
Inner power
Psychic fire / divine will that receives aspiration, purifies nature, and calls higher powers into action.
In ritual
Where it is used
Agni-prastāva/opening invocation; calling Agni to the barhis with the gods.
प्र वो॑ दे॒वाया॒ग्नये॒ बर्हि॑ष्ठमर्चास्मै । गम॑द्दे॒वेभि॒रा स नो॒ यजि॑ष्ठो ब॒र्हिरा स॑दत् ॥
प्र । वः॒ । दे॒वाय॑ । अ॒ग्नये॑ । बर्हि॑ष्ठम् । अ॒र्च॒ । अ॒स्मै॒ । गम॑त् । दे॒वेभिः॑ । आ । सः । नः॒ । यजि॑ष्ठः । ब॒र्हिः । आ । स॒द॒त् ॥
pra | vaḥ | devāya | agnaye | barhiṣṭham | arca | asmai | gamat | devebhiḥ | ā | saḥ | naḥ | yajiṣṭhaḥ | barhiḥ | ā | sadat
48
4 pādas of ~12 syllables (jagatī movement)
Flowing, expansive, ‘carrying’—suited to invocation and welcoming descent.
Creates wideness and receptivity; supports a calm but luminous calling of Agni into the heart/being.
- agnaye devāya
- Literal: to Agni the god/divine. Symbolic: To the divine Will/psychic Fire as conscious guide
- barhiṣṭham
- Literal: most barhis-like/highest (superlative). Symbolic: The loftiest offering of praise/aspiration; maximal wideness and uplift
- arca
- Literal: sing, praise. Symbolic: Articulate aspiration—mantric formation of intent
- gamat devebhiḥ
- Literal: may he come with the gods. Symbolic: Agni arrives with allied divine faculties (light, force, joy, order)
- yajiṣṭhaḥ
- Literal: most sacrificial/most skilled in yajña. Symbolic: The Flame as the most competent inner worker of transformation
- barhiḥ ā sadat
- Literal: may he sit on the barhis. Symbolic: May the Fire establish itself in our widened consciousness
Agni-invocation at the opening of offerings; calling Agni as hotṛ and bringer of the gods, establishing him on barhis (altar-seat) for proper rite and inner opening.
At the commencement of rites and whenever Agni is re-invited to preside.
Recitation with preparation of the seat (barhis), offering ghee/oblations, and inviting devatās.
Begin meditation sessions: ‘prepare the inner seat’ (quiet, widen), chant to kindle aspiration and invite supportive qualities.
Agni from √ag ‘to drive’ / √añj ‘to shine’ debated in tradition; functionally ‘fire’ as divine will. arcā from √arc ‘shine, praise’—praise as a shining utterance. barhiṣ/barhis: ritual grass-seat; inner sense ‘wideness’ (bṛh/bṛṃh ‘to grow, expand’ is semantically contiguous in Vedic poetics). yájiṣṭha superlative of yaj ‘to worship, sacrifice’ (√yaj), indicating Agni as the most competent mediator. sadat from √sad ‘sit’—divine presence established.
wideness (barhis) as inner receptivity, invocation (mantra as effective call), mediation between human and divine
Agni’s right sitting and right offering establish Ṛta in the being.
The ‘highest hymn’ aims at truth-contact rather than mere formal praise.
Descent of divine powers into prepared field; manifestation through invocation.
Vedic yoga: inner yajña as psycho-spiritual discipline; aligns with Aurobindo’s ‘psychic fire’ interpretation.
Fire = awakened will; barhis = widened receptivity/inner ground; arrival = descent of higher consciousness into the prepared nature.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The ‘Agni as summoner and seat-taker’ mythologem: Agni is invoked to arrive with the gods and sit on the barhis. Inner sense: the awakened will-flame establishes itself in widened consciousness and brings allied powers into the human field.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √yaj (sacrifice) reflects an old Indo-Iranian and broader IE ritual lexicon of offering (cf. Avestan yaz- ‘worship’). √sad ‘sit’ is PIE *sed- ‘sit’, showing inherited formulaic language for ‘seating’ a god/power in the rite.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The Rishi offers the ‘highest/widest’ hymn (barhiṣṭham) as an act of expansion; Agni reciprocates by coming with the gods and taking his seat—i.e., by making the inner field fit for right sacrifice and divine working.
Invite Agni to ‘sit’ in the heart-space as steady aspiration and purifier.
anāhata (heart) as barhis-seat; maṇipūra as supporting flame-force
Slow diaphragmatic breathing; on inhale feel wideness (barhis), on exhale offer the hymn (arca).
Receptive calm with a warm luminous center.
Before chanting, consciously ‘spread the barhis’: relax the body, widen attention; after chanting, sit and feel Agni established—steady, not excitable.
Observe udatta on vocatives and key verbs (agnáye where accented in tradition; gámad); keep svarita transitions smooth across sandhi.
Give a clear lift on ‘agnaye’ and ‘gamat’; soften into ‘ā sadat’ to convey settling.
(barhiṣṭham): clear r + h; retroflex ṣṭh cluster, (arca): ‘r’ tapped; ‘c’ as ‘ch’ (unaspirated), (gamad devebhir ā): avoid inserting extra vowels; keep sandhi fluid, (yajiṣṭhaḥ): ‘jiṣṭh’ cluster crisp; visarga light
Warm, inviting, steady; let the final ‘sadat’ land gently.
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