Rig Veda 10.20.9: Mandala 10, Sukta 20, Mantra 9
Sukta 10.20
- Devata
- Agni
- Rasa
- Adbhuta (wonder) and Vira (heroism)
कृष्णः श्वेतोऽरुषो यामो अस्य ब्रध्न ऋज्र उत शोणो यशस्वान् । हिरण्यरूपं जनिता जजान ॥
kṛṣṇáḥ śvetó’ruṣó yā́mo asya bradhná ṛ́jra utá śóṇo yáśasvān | híraṇyarūpaṃ jánitā jajāna ||
Schwarz, weiß und fahlrot sind seine Bahnen; dunkelbraun und gerade, auch rot, ruhmvoll. Der Erzeuger gebar die goldgestaltige Erscheinung – Agnis strahlende Offenbarung in vielen Farben.
Word by Word
- कृष्णः
- black, darkAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole विशेषण (कर्तृ-पदस्य)Root कृष्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
- श्वेतः
- white, brightAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole विशेषण (कर्तृ-पदस्य)Root श्वेत (प्रातिपदिक)
- अरुषः
- ruddy, tawnyAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole विशेषण (कर्तृ-पदस्य)Root अरुष (प्रातिपदिक)
- यामः
- course; going; (here) the ‘phase/track’Nounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole कर्तृ (समास/वाक्ये मुख्यः)Root याम (प्रातिपदिक)
- अस्य
- of him/itsPronounपुं/नपुं, षष्ठी, एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (षष्ठी-सम्बन्धः)Root इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- ब्रध्नः
- the tawny one; bright-brownAdjective (used substantively)पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole कर्तृ (यामः इत्यस्य सह-निर्देशः/विशेषणम्)Root ब्रध्न (प्रातिपदिक)
- ऋज्रः
- reddish; ruddyAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole विशेषण (कर्तृ-पदस्य)Root ऋज्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- उत
- and; alsoIndeclinableअव्ययRole समुच्चय/अन्वय (connector)Root उत (निपात)
- शोणः
- redAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole विशेषण (कर्तृ-पदस्य)Root शोण (प्रातिपदिक)
- यशस्वान्
- glorious, renownedAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole विशेषण (कर्तृ-पदस्य)Root यशस् + वत् (प्रातिपदिक: यशस्वत्)
- हिरण्यरूपम्
- having golden form; golden-shapedAdjective (accusative used as object/complement)नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्म (जजान इत्यस्य)Root हिरण्य-रूप (समास-प्रातिपदिक; कर्मधारय)
- जनिता
- begetter, progenitorAgent nounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole कर्तृ (जजान इत्यस्य)Root जन् (धातु) → जनितृ/जनिता (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; तृच्/तृन्-प्रकारः ‘begetter’)
- जजान
- has begotten; generatedVerbलिट् (परिपूर्ण/परफेक्ट), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचनRole क्रियाRoot जन् (धातु)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: कृष्णः श्वेतः अरुषः यामः अस्य ब्रध्नः ऋज्रः उत शोणः यशस्वान् । हिरण्यरूपम् जनिता जजान ॥ 1) श्वेतोऽरुषो = श्वेतः + अरुषः (विसर्ग-लोपः, ‘अ’ आरम्भेऽवग्रहः). 2) अन्यत्र स्पष्ट-सन्धिः न
- पदे ‘हिरण्यरूपम्’ इति ग्रहणम्
The meaning
Outer meaning
Agni’s courses appear in many colors—black, white, tawny, brown, straight, red, glorious. The Begetter has produced a golden-formed manifestation.
Inner meaning
The inner Fire moves through multiple states and planes of our nature, therefore it shows many ‘colors’—from obscurity (kṛṣṇa) through clarity (śveta) to the tawny/red of dynamic force (aruṣa/śoṇa). These are psychological hues: tamasic inertia, sattvic clarity, rajasic dynamism, and their refined spiritual counterparts. The ‘Begetter’ (janitā) is the creative Consciousness (or the supreme generating Power) that births in us the golden form—illumined will, a purified energy capable of carrying the sacrifice upward.
Universal truth
One divine power expresses differently according to the level it works in; spiritual practice integrates and transfigures all these modes into a single golden consciousness.
Themes
Agni epiphany, Many hues of one fire, Generation/manifestation
The seer
- Other hymns
- RV 2.1 (Agni’s births and forms; thematic), RV 3.1 (Agni’s varied forms; thematic)
Significance
The seer perceives Agni not as a single physical flame but as a many-mode power of consciousness transforming the whole nature.
The deity
- Devata
- Agni (multi-hued; golden-formed)
- Epithets
- hiraṇyarūpa (golden-formed), yaśasvān (glorious), many-colored in courses
- Related deities
- Uṣas (tawny/dawn-like ardor), Sūrya (white clarity, golden form), Indra (red victorious force)
Cosmic role
Transformer and revealer; carries offerings through different worlds; manifests as varied lights.
Inner power
Capacity to act in darkness and light alike, progressively converting all movements into luminous will.
In ritual
Where it is used
Agni praise within soma-yajña or agniṣṭoma contexts (general)
कृ॒ष्णः श्वे॒तो॑ऽरु॒षो यामो॑ अस्य ब्र॒ध्न ऋ॒ज्र उ॒त शोणो॒ यश॑स्वान् । हिर॑ण्यरूपं॒ जनि॑ता जजान ॥
कृ॒ष्णः । श्वे॒तः । अ॒रु॒षः । यामः॑ । अ॒स्य॒ । ब्र॒ध्नः । ऋ॒ज्रः । उ॒त । शोणः॑ । यश॑स्वान् । हिर॑ण्यऽरूपम् । जनि॑ता । ज॒जा॒न॒ ॥
kṛṣṇaḥ | śvetaḥ | aruṣaḥ | yāmaḥ | asya | bradhnaḥ | ṛjraḥ | uta | śoṇaḥ | yaśasvān | hiraṇya-rūpam | janitā | jajāna
Triṣṭubh (probable; descriptive triṣṭubh common for Agni)
44
4 pādas of ~11 syllables (approx.)
Enumerative and pictorial; rhythmic listing that feels like successive flashes.
Evokes vivid inner imagery; helps the meditator recognize and accept varied inner states while holding to the golden aim.
- कृष्ण (kṛṣṇa)
- Literal: black. Symbolic: obscure movement; tamas; subconscient shade
- श्वेत (śveta)
- Literal: white. Symbolic: clarity, purity; sattvic illumination
- अरुष (aruṣa)
- Literal: tawny, ruddy. Symbolic: dawn-like ardor; awakened dynamic force
- याम (yāma)
- Literal: course, going, path. Symbolic: movement of consciousness through planes/activities
- ब्रध्न (bradhna)
- Literal: brown/bright-brown; also ‘the glowing one’ in Vedic usage. Symbolic: mid-region force—vital-mental energy in transition
- ऋज्र (ṛjra)
- Literal: straight, upright. Symbolic: rectitude; right direction of will (ṛta-aligned)
- शोण (śoṇa)
- Literal: red. Symbolic: power, intensity, victorious energy
- हिरण्यरूप (hiraṇyarūpa)
- Literal: golden-formed. Symbolic: supramental/gnostic quality; luminous perfected force
- जनिता (janitā)
- Literal: begetter, progenitor. Symbolic: creative Consciousness/Divine Mother-power that manifests the inner fire
Descriptive praise: enumerates Agni’s forms/colors as he moves through different fuels/worlds; used to contemplate the many operations of the one Fire.
During stotra/śastra praising Agni’s forms; when kindling and contemplating the flame
Recitation while maintaining fire and offering; contemplation of Agni’s radiance
Use as a contemplative mantra to witness one’s shifting inner modes and call forth the ‘golden-formed’ higher will.
kṛṣṇa ‘black’ from √kṛṣ ‘draw/plough’? (lexical color term); śveta ‘white’ from √śvit/śvī ‘to be bright’ (PIE *ḱweyt- ‘white/bright’, cf. English white). aruṣa ‘reddish’ related to √ruṣ ‘shine, be red’. ṛju ‘straight’ from PIE *h₁regʷ-? (cf. Latin regere ‘straighten, rule’—semantic link via ‘straight/right’). hiraṇya ‘gold’ as brilliance; janitā from √jan ‘beget’ (PIE *ǵenh₁- ‘beget’, cf. Greek genos, Latin genus).
one power manifesting in many modes, ṛju (straightness) as right movement toward ṛta, janitā as generative source of luminous form
Guṇa-like modalities (tamas/sattva/rajas as later language; Vedic precursors); Ṛta (ṛjra—straightness); Hiraṇya (golden principle of higher light)
ṛjra (straight) signals alignment with ṛta: the right direction through all changing modes.
Golden form as truth-consciousness emerging from mixed movements.
The Begetter births luminous force out of differentiated energies; evolution toward hiraṇya consciousness.
Aurobindonian evolutionary Vedism (many planes, one divine Fire ascending).
dawn-to-day transition (implied by aruṣa/whitening)
Color-spectrum = spectrum of consciousness; golden = highest integration and illumination.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The ‘many-colored epiphany’ mythologem: Agni’s one force runs in diverse courses (yāma) through darkness, purification, and energetic redness, until the begetter brings forth the golden form—symbol of perfected luminous manifestation (satyam-ṛtam-bṛhat taking form).
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- jan (beget) reflects PIE *ǵenh₁- (genus/gene). śveta aligns with PIE *ḱweyt- ‘white/bright’ (English white). The linkage of ‘straight/right’ (ṛju) with ‘rule/rectify’ (Latin regere) illustrates an inherited conceptual nexus: rightness as straightness.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi contemplates Agni not only as ritual flame but as a single divine energy manifesting in graded hues—corresponding to stages of inner transformation. By naming the forms, the rishi ‘fixes’ them in consciousness, inviting the golden-formed perfection to be born in the human vessel.
Observe inner states without rejection; invoke Agni to transmute them into ‘golden-formed’ will.
Manipura to Ajña (transformation rising to illumination)
Inhale: witness the current ‘color’ of your state; exhale: offer it into a central flame; end with quiet retention (kumbhaka) only if natural
Witnessing + aspiration; luminous concentration
Name your present mode (dull/clear/ardent) and repeat the mantra to let Agni carry it toward straightness (ṛjra) and golden integration (hiraṇyarūpa).
Maintain crisp accenting on the color-words; let the list be articulated clearly; svara details depend on śākhā notation.
Slight micro-pauses between color descriptors to preserve meaning; keep ‘hiraṇyarūpaṃ’ as a highlighted climax phrase.
kṛṣṇaḥ: retroflex ‘ṣṇ’ cluster—do not simplify, śveto: clear ‘śv’, aruṣo/śoṇa: retroflex ‘ṣ’, cerebral ‘ṇ’ in śoṇa, hiraṇya: ‘ṇy’ palatalized, not ‘niya’
Bright, pictorial, slightly rising energy toward the final pāda
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