Rig Veda 1.36.12: Mandala 1, Sukta 36, Mantra 12
Sukta 1.36
- Rishi
- Medhyātithi Kaṇva
- Devata
- Agni
- Chandas
- Jagatī
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Adbhuta (wonder)
रायस्पूर्धि स्वधावोऽस्ति हि तेऽग्ने देवेष्वाप्यम् । त्वं वाजस्य श्रुत्यस्य राजसि स नो मृळ महाँ असि ॥
rāyáspūrdhi svadhā́vo 'sti hí te 'gne devéṣv ā́pyam | tváṃ vā́jasya śrútyasya rājasi sá no mṛḷa mahā́ṃ asi ||
സ്വധാവാനായ അഗ്നേ, ഞങ്ങളെ റായസ്—സമൃദ്ധി/പൂർണ്ണത—കൊണ്ട് നിറയ്ക്കുക; ദേവന്മാരിൽ നിനക്കാണ് അന്തർഗ്ഗതമായ ആശ്രയവും സമീപനവും. ശ്രുത്യമായ വാജം—കേൾക്കപ്പെടുകയും അംഗീകരിക്കപ്പെടുകയും ചെയ്യേണ്ട ബല-സമൃദ്ധി—നീ ആധിപത്യം ചെയ്യുന്നു; അതിനാൽ ഞങ്ങളോട് കൃപ കാണിക്കേണമേ; നീ മഹാനാണ്.
Word by Word
- रायस्
- of wealth, of richesNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग; षष्ठी एकवचन (Vedic: -as = -āḥ/-āyāḥ type gen. sg.)Role सम्बन्ध (genitive relation) / विशेषण-सम्बन्धःRoot राय् (प्रातिपदिक: राय- ‘धन/समृद्धि’)
- पूर्धि
- fill, bestow (grant)Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे) मध्यमपुरुष एकवचन; परस्मैपदRole क्रिया (आज्ञा); कर्म अपेक्षितम् (याच्यमानं दानम्)Root √पॄ (पॄ/पॢ) ‘पूरयति’
- स्वधावः
- O you endowed with svadhā (inherent power/ritual potency)Adjective (epithet)पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन एकवचन (अग्नेः विशेषणम्)Role सम्बोधनRoot स्वधा (प्रातिपदिक) + -वस् (वसुँ-प्रत्ययः ‘युक्त/सम्पन्न’) → स्वधावस्
- अस्ति
- there isVerbलट् वर्तमान; प्रथमपुरुष एकवचन; परस्मैपदRole क्रियाRoot √अस् ‘भवति’
- हि
- indeed, forIndeclinableनिपातः (हेतौ/निश्चये)Role सम्बन्ध-प्रकाशक (reason/emphasis)Root हि (निपात)
- ते
- of you, yourPronounषष्ठी एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (possessor)Root युष्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- अग्ने
- O AgniNounपुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot अग्नि (प्रातिपदिक)
- देवेषु
- among the godsNounपुंलिङ्ग; सप्तमी बहुवचनRole अधिकरण (locus: ‘among/in the gods’)Root देव (प्रातिपदिक)
- आप्यम्
- a share/portion (proper to you); (lit.) ‘watery/Apya’Adjective/Noun (neuter)नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन (predicate/acc. of अस्ति)Role कर्म/प्रातिपदिक-विशेष्य (that which exists as your ‘share/portion’ among gods)Root आप्य (प्रातिपदिक; from आप् ‘water’ → ‘watery; belonging to/derived from the waters’; in RV also ‘attainable/one’s own share’ depending on context)
- त्वम्
- youPronounप्रथमा एकवचनRole कर्तृRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- वाजस्य
- of the prize, of strength (victory-booty)Nounपुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (genitive: ‘of prize/strength’)Root वाज (प्रातिपदिक)
- श्रुत्यस्य
- renowned, famedAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी एकवचन; वाजस्य विशेषणम्Role सम्बन्ध/विशेषणRoot श्रुत्य (प्रातिपदिक; from √श्रु ‘hear’ → ‘famed, renowned, to-be-heard-of’)
- राजसि
- you rule/shine, you are kingly overVerbलट् वर्तमान; मध्यमपुरुष एकवचन; परस्मैपद (Vedic usage with explicit subject ‘त्वम्’)Role क्रियाRoot √राज् ‘दीपते/शोभते; राजति’
- सः
- he/that (therefore)Pronounप्रथमा एकवचन; पुंलिङ्गRole कर्तृ/सम्बन्ध (resumptive: ‘therefore/that one’)Root तद् (सर्वनाम)
- नः
- to us, ourPronounषष्ठी बहुवचन (enclitic)Role सम्प्रदान/सम्बन्ध (to us/our)Root अस्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- मृळ
- be gracious, show mercyVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे) मध्यमपुरुष एकवचन; परस्मैपदRole क्रिया (benediction)Root √मृड्/√मृळ् (Vedic) ‘दयते/अनुगृह्णाति’
- महान्
- greatAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा एकवचन; ‘असि’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्Role कर्तृ-विशेषणRoot महत् (प्रातिपदिक)
- असि
- you areVerbलट् वर्तमान; मध्यमपुरुष एकवचन; परस्मैपदRole क्रियाRoot √अस् ‘भवति’
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः (sandhi-resolved): रायस् | पूर्धि | स्वधावः | अस्ति | हि | ते | अग्ने | देवेषु | आप्यम् || त्वम् | वाजस्य | श्रुत्यस्य | राजसि || सः | नः | मृळ | महान् | असि || 1) स्वधावोऽस्ति = स्वधावः + अस्ति (विसर्गस्य ओऽ-आदेशः पूर्वस्वरदीर्घ/गुणसन्धिः)
- 2) तेऽग्ने = ते + अग्ने (ए + अ → एऽ)
- 3) देवेष्वाप्यम् = देवेषु + आप्यम् (उ + आ → वा; ‘ष्वा’)
- 4) स नो = सः + नः (विसर्ग-लोपः पदान्ते)
The meaning
Outer meaning
Fill us with riches, O self-powered Agni, for you have intimate access among the gods. You rule over the vāja that is to be heard; be gracious to us, for you are great.
Inner meaning
The seeker asks not for outer wealth but for rāyas—plenitude of being: wideness, capacity, inner resources. Agni is svadhāvan, self-powered: the true will can sustain itself when aligned with the divine. Because Agni has ‘access among the gods’ (āpyam), the awakened will opens communication with higher powers. Agni rules the ‘vāja of śruti’—the victorious force that becomes audible as inner guidance and affirmed truth; hence the plea for mṛḻa (grace) so the growth is protected and harmonized.
Universal truth
A self-sustaining will aligned with higher truth brings inner plenitude and clear guidance; grace is needed so power grows without distortion.
Themes
plenitude request, access among gods, grace/mercy, inner hearing and confirmation
The seer
- Rishi
- Medhyātithi Kaṇva
- Lineage
- Kaṇva
- Other hymns
- RV 1.36.11–14 (linked progression: Ṛta-kindling → plenty → ascent → protection)
Family tradition
Kaṇvas frequently pray for rāyas as inner plenty and for Agni’s guidance among the gods—an ascent theology and psychology.
Significance
The seer frames prosperity as spiritual amplitude and right hearing (śruti) rather than mere acquisition; Agni is the gate to divine communion.
The deity
- Devata
- Agni
- Epithets
- Svadhāvan (self-powered), Mahān (the Great), Deveṣv āpya (having access among the gods)
- Related deities
- Bṛhaspati (lord of inspired hearing/speech), Soma (inner delight that accompanies plenitude)
Cosmic role
Opens the path between planes; governs the transmission of strength (vāja) from the gods to human aspiration.
Inner power
Self-sustaining ardor; intuitive guidance (‘to be heard’) that directs growth; grace that heals and integrates.
In ritual
Where it is used
Agni praise within offering rites; prayer for prosperity and protection
रा॒यस्पू॑र्धि स्वधा॒वोऽस्ति॒ हि तेऽग्ने॑ दे॒वेष्वाप्य॑म् । त्वं वाज॑स्य॒ श्रुत्य॑स्य राजसि॒ स नो॑ मृळ म॒हाँ अ॑सि ॥
रा॒यः । पू॒र्धि॒ । स्वध॒ा॒ऽवः॒ । अ॒स्ति॒ । हि । ते॒ । अ॒ग्ने॒ । दे॒वेषु॑ । आप्य॑म् । त्वम् । वाज॑स्य । श्रुत्य॑स्य । रा॒ज॒सि॒ । सः । नः॑ । मृ॒ळ्ह॒ । म॒हान् । अ॒सि॒ ॥
rāyaḥ | pūrdhi | svadhā-vaḥ | asti | hi | te | agne | deveṣu | āpyam | tvam | vājasya | śrutyasya | rājasi | saḥ | naḥ | mṛḷha | mahān | asi
48
4 × 12
Broad and beneficent; a ‘filling’ rhythm suited to prayers for plenitude and grace.
Expands the chest-breath; evokes calm confidence and receptivity to guidance.
- रायः (rāyaḥ)
- Literal: riches. Symbolic: plenitude of being—light, force, joy, wideness
- स्वधावः (svadhāvaḥ)
- Literal: self-powered, having own law. Symbolic: autonomous spiritual energy; will sustained by the soul’s truth
- आप्यम् (āpyam)
- Literal: access, intimate approach. Symbolic: inner channel/communion with higher planes and powers
- वाज (vāja)
- Literal: prize, strength, plenitude. Symbolic: victorious force and fulfilled capacity in consciousness
- श्रुत्य (śrutyá)
- Literal: to be heard. Symbolic: inner hearing—intuitive guidance, mantra-truth perceived within
- मृळ्ह (mṛḻa)
- Literal: be gracious, soothe. Symbolic: protective grace that harmonizes transformation
- महान् (mahān)
- Literal: great. Symbolic: the Vast/Greatness of the divine force in the will
Prayer for rayi and protection/benediction during continuation of offerings; suitable as a prosperity-and-grace petition in agni-centered recitations
After kindling, when seeking successful completion and divine favor.
Offering with request for rāyas and mṛḻa (grace).
Use when seeking steadiness and inner resources—before study, leadership, healing, or sustained discipline.
from √pṛ ‘fill’—request for fullness rather than mere goods. : svadhā (‘one’s own placing/power’, from sva ‘self’ + √dhā ‘set’) → autonomous force; Agni as self-sustaining will. āpyam (āpyá) conveys ‘belonging, intimate share’; psychologically: Agni grants entry into the divine ranges. vāja from √vaj/√vāj (strength, impetus) → ‘plenitude of force’ that becomes ‘śrutya’ (to be heard/recognized), i.e., confirmed by inner hearing (śruti as reception).
svadhā (self-law, autonomous power), rāyas (plenitude of being), śruti (inner hearing/recognition), vāja (force-plenitude)
Agni’s ‘access among the gods’ implies alignment with the order that allows higher forces to act through us.
Śrutyá vāja: truth becomes ‘heard’ as inner certainty and then embodied as power.
The Great (mahān) acts as widening force in evolution—expanding limited being into vast being.
Vedic integralism: prosperity as consciousness-expansion; śruti as inner revelation.
Fire = self-sustaining aspiration; sound/hearing = intuitive reception; plenty = widening like a growing flame filling space.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Agni as the one with ‘āpyam among the gods’—the mediator who grants belonging/access to the divine community. The boon sought is rayi (plenitude) and mṛḷa (grace), framing Agni as both power and healer of the human condition.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √śru ‘hear’ reflects PIE *ḱleu̯- ‘to hear, be famed’ (cf. Greek klúō, Latin cluēre, English ‘loud’ as related semantic field). The link between ‘hearing’ and ‘fame/renown’ is archaic IE: what is ‘heard’ becomes established as truth/authority.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi asks not only for increase (rayi) but for admission (āpyam) and gentleness (mṛḷa). Agni is approached as a sovereign power (rājasi) whose rule is beneficial when aligned with right aspiration; the human offers devotion and receives fullness plus pacifying protection.
Receive ‘rāyas’ as inner amplitude: widen the mind and heart; listen for the ‘vāja that is to be heard’—quiet intuitive instruction.
vishuddha (inner hearing/śruti) supported by anahata
Slow-meditative breathing with a brief pause after inhale to ‘listen’; exhale offering the day’s effort into Agni.
Receptive tranquility with steady will.
Practice: (1) kindle will, (2) ask for widening (rāyas), (3) sit in inner listening, (4) act only on what carries a calm certainty.
Follow Vedic accents; keep compounds smooth (svadhāvo’sti, deveṣv āpyam).
Let the tone broaden on ‘rāyas pūrdhi’; soften on ‘mṛḻa’ (grace) with a gentle descent.
svadhāvo’sti: sandhi—do not insert pause between -vo’sti, āpyam: long ā; clear py cluster, śrutyasya: śru-tya-sya (no extra vowel after ty), mṛḻa: retroflex ḻ (as in Vedic recitation tradition; careful articulation)
Warm, prayerful, expansive; slightly softer on the grace-request.
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Rig Veda in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.
