Rig Veda 7.42.6: Mandala 7, Sukta 42, Mantra 6
Sukta 7.42
एवाग्निं सहस्यं वसिष्ठो रायस्कामो विश्वप्स्न्यस्य स्तौत् । इषं रयिं पप्रथद्वाजमस्मे यूयं पात स्वस्तिभिः सदा नः ॥
evā́gniṁ sahasyàṁ váṣiṣṭho rāyáskāmo viśvápsnyasyá staut | íṣaṁ rayíṁ paprathád vā́jam asmè yūyáṁ pāta svastíbhíḥ sadā́ naḥ ||
वशिष्ठ ने अग्नी की तारीफ की है, वो अमीर बनाना चाहते थे। उन्होंने कहा अग्नी बहुत ताकतवर है, सब काम कर सकता है। वो हमारे लिए पैसा और ताकत बढ़ा दें। आप लोग हमेशा हमारे लिए अच्छे रहो।
Agni-praise within the daily/seasonal soma-and-fire liturgies; suitable for Agni-invocation and protective benediction (svasti) segments in Śrauta performance (general application rather than a single exclusive rite).
Rayi (plenitude of being), Iṣ (impulsion/inner nourishment), Svasti (harmonious well-being), Expansion of consciousness (√prath)
Swasti implies harmony with ṛta; viśvapsnya suggests ordered effectiveness of divine works.
True ‘wealth’ is fullness of being aligned to truth, not mere accumulation.
Agni as universal worker expands the ‘field’ (pṛth) of life—microcosm echoing cosmic expansion.
Integral/Vedāntic tendency: gifts as powers of consciousness (iṣ, rayi, vāja) rather than external rewards.
Flame = transformative will; widening = growth of consciousness; swasti = balanced integration of energies.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The mythic action is the ‘kindling and widening’ performed by Agni: the divine Fire, praised by the seer, expands iṣ (impulsion) and rayi (plenitude) and vāja (victorious force) within the human field. This is not a narrative combat-myth but a core Vedic mythologem of Agni as the opener/expander of the inner worlds—he makes the being broad enough to receive the Truth and its riches.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √pā ‘protect’ matches PIE *peh₂- ‘to protect, shepherd’ (cf. Latin pāstor ‘shepherd’). √prath ‘spread, broaden’ aligns with PIE *pleth₂- / *pl̥th₂- ‘broad, flat’ (cf. Greek πλατύς platýs ‘broad’). svastí (su- + astí ‘being’) parallels Indo-European compositional patterns of ‘good + being’ (cf. Greek εὖ eu- ‘well’ + existential roots), showing inherited formulaic benediction structure.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- Vasiṣṭha’s praise (staut) is presented as an efficacious act that triggers Agni’s widening of inner goods (iṣ, rayi, vāja). The reciprocity is explicit: the seer offers the formed word/hymn; the deity responds by enlarging the sacrificer’s inner capacities and by ongoing protection through svasti. The closing ‘yūyam pāta’ broadens the reciprocity into a communal guardianship by the assisting divine powers.
Expansion mantra: invite Agni to widen right initiative, inner abundance, and effective force; end with protective harmony.
manipura
Bhastrikā (light, short) to awaken vāja, then slow exhale with ‘svasti’ feeling to integrate.
Strong, luminous, integrated; readiness for action as offering.
After practice, feel the inner fire consolidating gains; ask for iṣ (right impulse) before decisions, rayi (inner resources) for stability, vāja (effective energy) for execution; rest in swasti as balanced harmony.
Maintain udātta prominence on ‘agniṃ’, ‘staut’, and the boon-words ‘iṣam rayim vājam’.
Let the first pāda be firm; slightly broaden on the three boons; soften and stabilize on ‘svastibhiḥ sadā naḥ’.
‘evāgniṃ’: keep ‘vā’ long; do not drop the nasal in ‘agniṃ’., ‘viśvapsnyasya’: articulate ‘psn’ cluster carefully (viś-vap-snya)., ‘paprathat’: aspirated ‘th’, not ‘t’., ‘svastibhiḥ’: keep ‘sv’ conjunct clear; final visarga light but audible.
Steady, confident, concluding warmth.
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