Rig Veda 5.7.2: Mandala 5, Sukta 7, Mantra 2
Sukta 5.7
- Rishi
- Vasiṣṭha
- Devata
- Agni
- Rasa
- Adbhuta (wonder) and Shanta (peace)
कुत्रा चिद्यस्य समृतौ रण्वा नरो नृषदने । अर्हन्तश्चिद्यमिन्धते संजनयन्ति जन्तवः ॥
kútrā cid yásya samṛ́tau raṇvā́ náro nṛ́sádane | árhantaś cid yám índhate sáṃjanayanti jántavaḥ ||
जब वो आता है, लोग खुश होते हैं। अच्छे लोग उस्से जलाते हैं। सब मिलकर उस्से पैदा करते हैं।
Word by Word
- कुत्रा
- where?Indeclinableप्रश्नार्थक-अव्यय (स्थान/देश)Role AdhikaraṇaRoot कुत्र (प्रश्न-अव्यय) < क (प्रश्न) + त्र (स्थानार्थ)
- चित्
- even, indeedIndeclinableनिपात; ‘even/indeed’ (बलार्थ/अपि-अर्थ)Root चित् (निपात) अव्यय
- यस्य
- of whom/whosePronounपुं/नपुं; षष्ठी एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (Genitive)Root यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- समृतौ
- in the encounter/meeting (in the conflict)Nounस्त्रीलिङ्ग; सप्तमी एकवचनRole AdhikaraṇaRoot समृति (स्त्री) < सम्-√ऋ (गमन/प्राप्ति) / ‘सम्-ऋति’ (समागम/संघर्ष)
- रण्वाः
- delighting, gladdeningAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा बहुवचनRole KartāRoot रण्व (विशेषण) < √रन्/√रम (रमण/हर्ष)
- नरः
- men, heroesNounपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा बहुवचनRole KartāRoot नर (पुं)
- नृषदने
- in the seat/assembly of menNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी एकवचनRole AdhikaraṇaRoot नृषदन (नपुं) = नृ + सदन (आसन/निवास) < √सद् (सीदति)
- अर्हन्तः
- worthy onesAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा बहुवचनRole KartāRoot अर्हन्त् (विशेषण/संज्ञा) < √अर्ह् (योग्यता/अर्हता)
- चित्
- evenIndeclinableनिपात; ‘even’Root चित् (निपात) अव्यय
- यम्
- whomPronounपुं/नपुं; द्वितीया एकवचनRole KarmaRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- इन्धते
- they kindle, they igniteVerbलट् (वर्तमान); आत्मनेपद; प्र.पुरुष बहुवचनRoot √इन्ध् (दीपन/प्रज्वलन)
- संजनयन्ति
- they generate, bring forthVerbलट् (वर्तमान); परस्मैपद; प्र.पुरुष बहुवचन; णिच् (causative) भावःRoot सम्-√जन् (जनने/उत्पत्तौ)
- जन्तवः
- creatures, beingsNounपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा बहुवचनRole KartāRoot जन्तु (पुं) < √जन्
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (Vedic): कुत्रा | चित् | यस्य | समृतौ | रण्वाः | नरः | नृषदने || अर्हन्तः | चित् | यम् | इन्धते | संजनयन्ति | जन्तवः । विशेष: ‘कुत्रा चित्’ = ‘कुत्र + चित्’ (निपात-संयोग)
- ‘अर्हन्तश्चित्’ में श् + च् → श्च् (अर्हन्तः + चित्)
- ‘चिद्यमिन्धते’ = चित् + यम् + इन्धते (चित् + यम् → चिद्यम्; द् + य् संयोग)
The meaning
Outer meaning
Where indeed is he—at whose assembling men rejoice in the seat of man? Even the worthy kindle him; the creatures generate him into manifestation.
Inner meaning
The verse points to the mysterious presence of Agni: ‘Where is he?’—because the divine Will is not an object in outer space but a power that appears when conditions of consciousness meet (samṛti: coming-together). In the nṛ-sadana, the human seat (the embodied being), the inner ‘men’ (thought-powers) rejoice when Agni is born. The ‘worthy’ (arhantaḥ) are the purified parts—sincere, disciplined, truth-seeking—that can kindle this flame. The ‘creatures’ (jantavaḥ) are the multiple life-movements; when harmonized, they ‘generate’ Agni, i.e., they bring the will-to-truth into active manifestation.
Universal truth
Higher consciousness becomes real when our inner elements meet in a right conjunction. The divine force is ‘born’ through sincerity and purification; it is generated into life by the collaboration of our many movements.
Themes
search for the indwelling Agni, manifestation through kindling, joy as sign of right presence
The seer
- Rishi
- Vasiṣṭha (traditional; verify for RV 5.7)
- Lineage
- Vāsiṣṭha
- Other hymns
- RV 7.1, RV 7.3, RV 7.4
Family tradition
Seer-line emphasizing the inner birth of Agni through right order and worthy effort.
Significance
Highlights the ‘birth’ motif: Agni is not merely invoked; he is generated in the human seat by purification and integration.
The deity
- Devata
- Agni (implied)
- Epithets
- jāta (born) motif implicit, hotṛ (kindled by the worthy), gṛhapati (lord of the house—nṛ-sadana)
- Related deities
- Bṛhaspati (generative word), Soma (delight accompanying birth), Uṣas (conditions for awakening)
Cosmic role
Ever-born in the worlds; appears at junctions (samṛti) as the mediator-force.
Inner power
The emergent flame of aspiration and right will, born when the being becomes sincere and integrated.
In ritual
Where it is used
Agni kindling context; recited when lighting the fire and affirming its ‘birth’ from human action
कुत्रा॑ चि॒द्यस्य॒ समृ॑तौ र॒ण्वा नरो॑ नृ॒षद॑ने । अर्ह॑न्तश्चि॒द्यमि॑न्ध॒ते सं॑ज॒नय॑न्ति ज॒न्तव॑: ॥
कुत्र॑ । चि॒त् । यस्य॑ । सम्ऽऋ॑तौ । र॒ण्वाः । नरः॑ । नृ॒ऽसद॑ने । अर्ह॑न्तः । चि॒त् । यम् । इ॒न्ध॒ते । स॒म्ऽज॒नय॑न्ति । ज॒न्तवः॑ ॥
kutra | cit | yasya | sam-ṛtau | raṇvāḥ | naraḥ | nṛ-sadane | arhantaḥ | cit | yam | indhate | sam-janayanti | jantavaḥ
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4 × ~11
Interrogative opening with a settling cadence—moves from question to affirmation (kindling/generation).
Invokes inward inquiry, then consolidates into certainty: the flame is born by worthiness.
- समृतौ (samṛtau)
- Literal: in coming together, meeting. Symbolic: right conjunction of faculties; integrative moment of yoga
- नृसदने (nṛ-sadane)
- Literal: in the seat of man/human dwelling. Symbolic: the embodied field of practice; heart-mind-life as altar
- रण्वाः (raṇvāḥ)
- Literal: rejoicing, delighting. Symbolic: psychic gladness when the flame is born
- अर्हन्तः (arhantaḥ)
- Literal: worthy ones. Symbolic: purified, sincere parts capable of true ignition
- इन्धते (indhate)
- Literal: they kindle. Symbolic: they awaken the will and sustain it with offering
- संजनयन्ति (saṃjanayanti)
- Literal: they generate, bring forth together. Symbolic: collective birth of the divine force in the being
- जन्तवः (jantavaḥ)
- Literal: creatures. Symbolic: multiplicity of impulses and life-forces to be converted
Reflective/gnomic verse within Agni hymn sequence; suitable for contemplative framing of the kindling as an emergence within the human seat.
During ādhāna/kindling sequences; also as reflective verse within Agni-stotra
Kindling with friction/embers; acknowledging the human role in manifesting Agni
Use as self-inquiry: ‘Where is the flame now?’ then kindle it by a deliberate act of sincerity (one truthful intention).
indhate from √indh (to kindle). janayanti from √jan (to be born, generate; PIE *ǵenh₁- 'beget'). nṛ (man) + sadana (seat) from √sad (to sit; PIE *sed-). sam-ṛti/sam-ṛtau expresses 'convergence/meeting'; the proximity to ṛta suggests interpretive layering: right conjunction enables manifestation.
immanence of the divine in the human seat (nṛ-sadana), collective generation of the god (sam-jan), ṛta as right conjunction (sam-ṛtau)
Samṛti implies right meeting—ṛta’s geometry in consciousness.
The ‘worthy’ kindle: truth in motive is the condition for real fire.
Microcosmic creation: the divine is generated in the human seat as in the cosmos.
Yoga of inner sacrifice: manifestation of divine force through purification and integration.
Kindling = awakening will; house/seat = embodied consciousness; generation = emergence of higher force from coordinated parts.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The birth of Agni in the human seat: beings 'generate' him and the worthy 'kindle' him. The mythologem of Agni’s birth is interiorized—Agni is born whenever consciousness and aspiration converge rightly within the human vessel.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √jan (generate) corresponds to PIE *ǵenh₁- (beget), one of the most stable IE root sets (Latin gignere, Greek gígnomai). √sad in sadana reflects PIE *sed- (sit). These roots support the embodied theology: the god is 'seated' and 'born' within.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi frames the divine not as externally located but as discoverable and generable through right convergence (sam-ṛtau). The devata depends on human readiness (arhantaḥ) for manifestation; the relationship is co-creative—invocation and kindling allow the god to take birth in the nṛ-sadana.
Inquiry into the presence of will-to-truth; generate it through sincerity and integration.
Hṛdaya/Anāhata (seat of the ‘human’ in Aurobindonian sense)
Gentle kapalabhāti-like clearing (very mild) followed by steady nāḍī-śodhana to create ‘samṛti’ (conjunction).
Reflective, inwardly gathered, quietly luminous.
Ask inwardly ‘kutrā?’ (where is my Agni now?). Identify one impurity/diversion; offer it; then feel a small steady flame appear and be ‘generated’ by all parts consenting.
Interrogative first pāda: keep tonal lift on kutrā; maintain clear svarita transitions on sandhi; follow śākhā markings for indhate/saṃjanayanti.
Pause after ‘kutrā cid’; then flow: yasya samṛtau… | arhantaś cid… | saṃjanayanti…
‘kutrā’ long ā., ‘samṛtau’ pronounce ṛ clearly (sa-mṛ-tau)., ‘nṛṣadane’ keep ṛ and ṣ distinct; no ‘ri’., ‘saṃjanayanti’ with clear anusvāra before j.
Inquiring, then affirmative; warm and contained.
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