Rig Veda Sukta 6
Mandala 7Sukta 67 Mantras

Sukta 6

Sukta 7.6

Rishi

Vasiṣṭha (Vāsiṣṭha tradition for Maṇḍala 7)

Chandas

Triṣṭubh (probable; not explicitly provided in input)

Dieser Hymnus preist Agni als die souveräne „Asura-Kraft“ (herrische geistige Macht), die im heiligen Holz entzündet wird und als Inspirator und Beschützer des Volkes hervortritt. Agni wird dafür gerühmt, die Wesen aus westwärts gerichteter Finsternis zum Osten des Lichts zu wenden, innere und äußere Widersacher zu bezwingen und Reichtümer aus den kosmischen Tiefen an Himmel und Erde zu verteilen.

Recitation with translationRig Veda 7.6

In this hymn

Addressed to

  • Agnias sovereign asura-power, Indra referenced as comparison

    Agni is the fire-principle: the kindled god in the wood, the household and altar flame, the radiant power likened in might to Indra, and the sovereign lord (īśāna) who leads from darkness to light.

Mantras

Mantra 1

प्र सम्राजो असुरस्य प्रशस्तिं पुंसः कृष्टीनामनुमाद्यस्य । इन्द्रस्येव प्र तवसस्कृतानि वन्दे दारुं वन्दमानो विवक्मि ॥

Vortrage ich den Lobpreis des Samrāj, des Asura — das preiswürdige Entzücken der Völker. Wie Indras mächtige Taten verkünde ich die Werke des Starken; ich verehre das heilige Holz, und verehrend spreche ich es aus.

Mantra 2

कविं केतुं धासिं भानुमद्रेर्हिन्वन्ति शं राज्यं रोदस्योः । पुरंदरस्य गीर्भिरा विवासेऽग्नेर्व्रतानि पूर्व्या महानि ॥

Sie treiben den kavi, den Seher — das Zeichen, die Stütze, die strahlende Flamme, aus dem Stein geboren — hin zum heilvollen Königtum der beiden Welten. Mit meinen Liedern verehre ich den Burgenbrecher; ich erwecke Agnis uralte, große Gelübde (vratá).

Mantra 3

न्यक्रतून्ग्रथिनो मृध्रवाचः पणीँरश्रद्धाँ अवृधाँ अयज्ञान् । प्रप्र तान्दस्यूँरग्निर्विवाय पूर्वश्चकारापराँ अयज्यून् ॥

Agni drückt nieder und treibt hinweg die Willenlosen, die Knotenverstrickten, die Schiefredenden — die Paṇis ohne Glauben, ohne Gedeihen, ohne Opfer. Voran, immer voran jagt er die Dasyus; die Früheren macht er zu den Ersten, die Späteren — die Nicht-Opfernden — wirft er zurück.

Mantra 4

यो अपाचीने तमसि मदन्तीः प्राचीश्चकार नृतमः शचीभिः । तमीशानं वस्वो अग्निं गृणीषेऽनानतं दमयन्तं पृतन्यून् ॥

Der, der mit seinen Kräften (śácī) die, die im westwärts gerichteten Dunkel schwelgen, nach Osten wendet — der Männlichste in seinen Taten. Diesen Herrscher, Agni, den Herrn der Güter (vásu), preise ich: unbezwingbar, die Kämpfer zähmend.

Mantra 5

यो देह्यो अनमयद्वधस्नैर्यो अर्यपत्नीरुषसश्चकार । स निरुध्या नहुषो यह्वो अग्निर्विशश्चक्रे बलिहृतः सहोभिः ॥

Der, der den Bedürftigen mit tötenden Kräften heilte; der die Uṣas (Dämmerungen) zu Gattinnen des Ārya, des edlen Strebens, machte. Jener weit ausschreitende Agni, das Widerwärtige zurückhaltend, machte durch seine Mächte die Völker zu Trägern der Opfergabe.

Mantra 6

यस्य शर्मन्नुप विश्वे जनास एवैस्तस्थुः सुमतिं भिक्षमाणाः । वैश्वानरो वरमा रोदस्योराग्निः ससाद पित्रोरुपस्थम् ॥

Unter seinem schützenden Frieden stehen alle Völker, um rechte Gesinnung bittend. Vaiśvānara-Agni hat seinen erwählten Sitz zwischen den beiden Welten eingenommen und sich in den weiten Schoß seiner Eltern — Himmel und Erde — gesetzt.

Mantra 7

आ देवो ददे बुध्न्या वसूनि वैश्वानर उदिता सूर्यस्य । आ समुद्रादवरादा परस्मादाग्निर्ददे दिव आ पृथिव्याः ॥

Der Göttliche gibt die tief gegründeten Reichtümer; Vaiśvānara gibt vom Aufgang der Sonne her. Aus dem unteren Ozean und aus dem ferneren Jenseits gibt Agni — vom Himmel bis zur Erde.

Inside Sukta 6

How it unfolds

  1. Where it opens

    The poet begins by proclaiming Agni’s sovereignty and praising the ‘asura’ lord-power, explicitly reverencing the sacred wood that bears the hidden fire (7.6.1).

  2. Development

    Agni’s might is unfolded as both cosmic and ethical: he redirects beings from westward darkness toward the east of light, and he stands as īśāna, unconquered, disciplining adversarial forces (7.6.4).

  3. Climax

    Agni is revealed as Vaiśvānara aligned with the sun’s rising, the universal giver who reaches into the deep foundations and draws forth riches and supports (7.6.7).

  4. Where it settles

    The hymn settles into confidence in Agni’s all-encompassing beneficence—his gifts spanning from the oceans and beyond, from heaven down to earth—assuring order, prosperity, and protection.

The deity: Agni

  • Cosmic functionMediator between humans and gods through sacrifice, illuminator who establishes the eastward order of dawn/light, and distributor of prosperity across the worlds—from oceanic depths to the heights of heaven and down to earth.
  • Inner significanceThe awakened will and discernment (inner fire) that converts inertia and confusion into clarity, disciplines combative impulses, and becomes the steady center of aspiration and right action.

The seer

  • VasiṣṭhaVāsiṣṭha (Vasiṣṭha gotra; chief seer-family of Maṇḍala 7) · Foremost among the Seven Ṛṣis, paradigmatic priest-seer of the Bharatas/Tr̥tsus, renowned for Agni- and Varuṇa-centered vision, ritual mastery, and the ethical-spiritual depth of Maṇḍala 7.

Famous verses

pra samrājo asurasya praśastim
Verse 7.6.1Sets the theological frame: Agni as samrāj and ‘asura’ power, and the crucial ritual image of bowing to the wood that conceals and releases the fire.Read verse 7.6.1 →
यो अपाचीने तमसि मदन्तीः प्राचीश्चकार नृतमः शचीभिः । तमीशानं वस्वो अग्निं गृणीषेऽनानतं दमयन्तं पृतन्यून् ॥
Verse 7.6.4Highlights Agni’s transformative and moral force—turning from darkness to light and subduing hostile ‘fighters,’ a key Vasiṣṭha theme of inner and outer order.Read verse 7.6.4 →
vaiśvānara uditā sūryasya
Verse 7.6.7Concluding revelation of Agni as Vaiśvānara, the cosmic distributor of riches from depth to height, integrating solar, oceanic, and terrestrial imagery into one beneficent power.Read verse 7.6.7 →

Attributes of the deity

  • Samrāj (sovereign ruler)
  • Asura-power (lordly might in the older Vedic sense)
  • Īśāna (master, ruler)
  • Vaiśvānara (universal fire tied to solar rising)
  • Unconquered and protective
  • Bestower of vasūni (riches, supports)
  • Transformer: darkness-to-light, disorder-to-order

Also by this seer

  • Primary authorship tradition of Rig Veda Maṇḍala 7 (many Agni, Indra, Varuṇa hymns)
  • Vasiṣṭha-associated prayers and stotras preserved in later Vedic and Smārta ritual memory
  • Foundational lineage for the Vāsiṣṭha gotra and its śrauta/ṛṣi-paramparā references

The rite, step by step

  • Prepare the vedi/altar space and establish ritual purity (ācamanā, pavitrī-karaṇa as per tradition).
  • Arrange and honor the araṇis or fuel-wood; mentally ‘bow to the wood’ as the womb of Agni (echoing 7.6.1).
  • Kindle Agni (ādhāna/agnipraṇayana context or daily gṛhya kindling) and stabilize the flame with measured fuel.
  • Recite the hymn (or selected mantras) as stuti while facing the fire; contemplate Agni as īśāna and Vaiśvānara.
  • Offer oblations with svāhā (as applicable), requesting turning from darkness to light and the taming of hostile impulses (7.6.4).
  • Conclude with a prayer for ‘vasūni’—supports and prosperity from all directions and levels of the cosmos (7.6.7).

Offerings

  • Samidh (sacred fuel-wood)
  • Ghṛta (ghee) oblations
  • Optional: puroḍāśa or simple anna offering in domestic practice
  • Optional: soma-related context in śrauta settings (as per broader maṇḍala usage)

Frequently Asked Questions

In early Vedic usage, “asura” can mean a lordly, sovereign power—not a demon. Here it emphasizes Agni’s commanding spiritual might and rulership (samrāj/īśāna).

It honors the fuel-wood (samidh/dāru) as the vessel that holds the hidden fire. Ritually, it points to kindling; symbolically, it suggests awakening divine light within material life.

Kindle the inner and outer fire: Agni leads from darkness to clarity, disciplines conflict, and brings support and prosperity from every level of the world.

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