Rig Veda 2.41.19: Mandala 2, Sukta 41, Mantra 19
Sukta 2.41
- Rishi
- Gṛtsamada
- Devata
- Agni
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Shanta (peace)
प्रेतां यज्ञस्य शम्भुवा युवामिदा वृणीमहे । अग्निं च हव्यवाहनम् ॥
prétāṁ yajñásya śambhúvā yuvā́m idā́ vṛṇīmahe | agníṁ ca havya-vā́hanam ||
Avancez vers le sacrifice comme les deux puissances de paix et de bien‑être; vous deux, nous vous choisissons aujourd’hui : Idā, la juste inspiration, et Agni, le porteur de l’offrande.
Word by Word
- प्रेताम्
- (you two) go forth / proceedVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यमपुरुष, द्विवचन; परस्मैपदRole (क्रिया)Root प्र-इ (धातु √इ ‘गमन’) → प्रेत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक) अथवा ‘प्र-इ’ का आदेशात्मक रूप (द्विवचन)
- यज्ञस्य
- of the sacrificeNounपुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (genitive relation)Root यज्ञ (प्रातिपदिक)
- शम्भुवा
- as the two beneficent onesNoun/Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, द्विवचन (वैदिक रूप: -आ = -ाभ्याम्)Role करण (instrumental: ‘as/with beneficent (ones)’)Root शम्भु (प्रातिपदिक; ‘कल्याण-कर्ता/हितकारी’)
- युवाम्
- you twoPronounद्वितीया, द्विवचनRole कर्म (object of वृणीमहे)Root युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- इदा
- here / nowIndeclinableअव्ययRole अधिकारण (काल/देश-निर्देश) / क्रियाविशेषणRoot इद्/इदम् (वैदिक अव्यय ‘इह/अत्र/इदानीम्’ अर्थे)
- वृणीमहे
- we choose / we invokeVerbलट्, उत्तमपुरुष, बहुवचन; आत्मनेपदRole (क्रिया)Root वृ (धातु √वृ ‘वरणे/चयन’)
- अग्निम्
- AgniNounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्म (object, coordinated with हव्यवाहनम्)Root अग्नि (प्रातिपदिक)
- च
- andIndeclinableअव्ययRole समुच्चय (coordination)Root च
- हव्यवाहनम्
- the oblation-bearerNoun/Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्म (Agni as ‘the oblation-carrier’)Root हव्य-वाहन (समास; हव्य ‘हवनीय द्रव्य’ + वाहन ‘वहन्/वाहक’)
Sandhi Notes
- मन्त्रपाठ: “प्रेतां यज्ञस्य शम्भुवा युवामिदा वृणीमहे । अग्निं च हव्यवाहनम् ॥”। संधि-विच्छेद: युवाम् + इदा → युवामिदा (म् + इ = मि)।
- ‘शम्भुवा’ वैदिक तृतीया-द्विवचन रूप है (क्लासिकल -ाभ्याम् के स्थान पर -आ)। ‘प्रेताम्’ लोट् मध्यम-द्विवचन (प्र-√इ) के रूप में ग्रहणीय।
The meaning
Outer meaning
A call to proceed with the sacrifice bringing well-being; the seer chooses (invokes) two: Agni, the carrier of the offering, and the paired power implied by the dual—commonly Iḍā (right inspiration) in closing formulas.
Inner meaning
The inner yajña must ‘go forward’ (pretām): progress of sadhana. The two powers of śambhu (peace and welfare) are (1) Agni—the awakened will and aspiration that carries offerings upward, and (2) Iḍā—the right inspiration/illumined intuition that gives the correct form and direction to the offering. When will (Agni) and inspiration (Iḍā) move together, the sacrifice advances without crookedness: action is guided by truth and sustained by ardent force.
Universal truth
Spiritual progress requires both the fire of will and the light of right inspiration; together they carry our self-giving toward wholeness and well-being.
Themes
Agni as carrier, Choosing divine powers, Well-being in sacrifice, Ritual progression
The seer
- Rishi
- Gṛtsamada (Bhārgava)
- Lineage
- Bhṛgu/Bhārgava
- Other hymns
- RV 2.1 (Agni as priest and leader), RV 2.41.17–21 (closing invocations around Sarasvatī, Agni, Heaven-Earth, and the assembly)
Family tradition
Bhārgava emphasis on Agni as the indispensable inner priest; closing sequences often invoke harmonizing supports for the rite.
Significance
The seer teaches integration: inspiration (Iḍā) must accompany will (Agni) for the sacrifice to be ‘śambhu’—beneficent and whole.
The deity
- Devata
- Agni (with Iḍā implied by the dual)
- Epithets
- Havyavāhana (carrier of offerings), Śambhu (beneficent—contextual shared epithet)
- Related deities
- Sarasvatī (inspiration), Bṛhaspati (word-lord), Viśve Devāḥ (receivers of offerings)
Cosmic role
Agni mediates between human and divine, carrying offerings; Iḍā provides the correct inspired formulation and right direction of the rite.
Inner power
Agni: ardent will, purification, upward aspiration. Iḍā: right inspiration, intuitive discernment, harmonious formation of thought/speech.
In ritual
Where it is used
Concluding/transition formula within an iṣṭi or Soma rite; invocation to proceed with yajña under beneficent powers
प्रेतां॑ य॒ज्ञस्य॑ श॒म्भुवा॑ यु॒वामिदा वृ॑णीमहे । अ॒ग्निं च॑ हव्य॒वाह॑नम् ॥
प्र । इ॒ता॒म् । य॒ज्ञस्य॑ । श॒म्ऽभुवा॑ । यु॒वाम् । इत् । आ । वृ॒णी॒म॒हे॒ । अ॒ग्निम् । च॒ । ह॒व्य॒ऽवाह॑नम् ॥
pra | itām | yajñasya | śam-bhuvā | yuvām | it | ā | vṛṇīmahe | agnim | ca | havya-vāhanam
44
4 × 11 (with possible catalexis/irregularity in transmitted text segments)
Marching, directive rhythm suited to ‘go forth’ and ‘we choose’.
Energizes will and decisiveness; creates a sense of forward spiritual momentum.
- प्रेताम् (pretām)
- Literal: go forth, proceed (dual). Symbolic: let the inner practice advance; forward movement of consciousness
- यज्ञस्य (yajñasya)
- Literal: of the sacrifice. Symbolic: of the inner offering—self-consecration of works, thoughts, and life
- शम्भुवा (śambhuvā)
- Literal: bringing peace/well-being (dual). Symbolic: harmonizing powers that make the path safe and integrative
- वृणीमहे (vṛṇīmahe)
- Literal: we choose, we invoke. Symbolic: deliberate selection of inner faculties aligned to truth
- अग्निम् (agnim)
- Literal: fire. Symbolic: divine will/aspiration; the inner priest
- हव्यवाहनम् (havyavāhanam)
- Literal: carrier of the offering. Symbolic: the force that lifts and transforms the offering into higher consciousness
Selection and commissioning of the forward-moving powers that conduct the sacrifice—Agni as carrier and Idā as inspired articulation/portion—typical of Soma-yajña transitions and seating of deities.
At a transition point—setting the rite in motion or sealing its right movement
Selection/invocation (varaṇa) of officiating powers; kindling/affirming Agni’s role
Before meditation or work: invoke will (Agni) and right inspiration (Iḍā) so action proceeds peacefully and effectively.
śambhū (śam-bhū) ‘well-being causing’ from śam ‘peace, ease, auspiciousness’ + √bhū ‘to be/become’ → that which brings felicitous becoming. vṛṇīmahe from √vṛ ‘choose’ (PIE *wel- ‘to choose/wish’ often compared). havya ‘to be invoked/offered’ from √hū ‘call/offer’; vāhana from √vah ‘carry’ (PIE *weǵʰ- ‘carry, convey’; cf. Latin vehere). Idā (not explicitly in text but implied by yuvām in this verse’s traditional pairing in this hymn section) is the power of inspired offering/intuition in the rite.
Yajña as inner process, Śam (peace/wholeness), Vahni principle (carrying/conveying to higher planes)
Right advance of yajña implies alignment with ṛta; Iḍā symbolizes right form, Agni right force.
Choosing the true supports prevents distortion and waste of energy.
Progress of creation through coordinated will and knowledge.
Integral Yoga reading: aspiration + intuitive guidance as twin necessities for transformation.
Fire = will that transforms; ‘going forth’ = release from inertia and obstruction.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The mythologem of ‘conduction of the sacrifice’: Agni as the bearer who carries offerings to the gods, paired with a second guiding power (Idā in the ritual imagination) to ensure auspicious movement. Innerly: the will-fire and the intuitive inspiration together advance the soul’s offering.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- vāhana/√vah ‘carry’ corresponds to PIE *weǵʰ- (Latin vehere, English ‘way’ is different root but ‘vehicle’ is via Latin). √bhū ‘become’ is PIE *bʰuH- (English ‘be’). These preserve a very old IE sacrificial grammar: ‘becoming’ and ‘carrying’ as core ritual verbs.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The r̥ṣi actively ‘chooses’ (vṛṇīmahe) the divine agencies—indicating cooperative agency rather than passive worship. The devatā is commissioned to act for śam (integral well-being) in the yajña, i.e., to make the inner work safe and fruitful.
Unite aspiration (fire in the heart) with right intuitive prompting (clear sense of what to offer and how).
anāhata (Agni as heart-fire)
short preparatory kapalabhāti (mild) or 3 deep breaths; on exhale, mentally ‘pretām’—release forward
active, collected readiness (tapas with calm)
Begin practice by lighting the inner fire (resolve) and then listening for Iḍā—quiet, exact guidance. Offer one clear element (thought, desire, fear) into Agni; proceed stepwise.
Keep a decisive udatta lift on action verbs (‘pretām’, ‘vṛṇīmahe’) and on ‘agnim’.
Deliver ‘pretām’ as an initiating command; make ‘havyavāhanam’ weighty and sustained at the end.
(pre-tām): long ā held, (śam-bhu-vā): clear nasal ‘m’ before bh, (vṛ-ṇī-ma-he): vocalic ṛ; retroflex ṇ; long ī, (havya-vā-ha-nam): ‘vy’ conjunct light; long ā
firm, bright, initiating; not heavy
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