Rig Veda 8.44.25: Mandala 8, Sukta 44, Mantra 25
Sukta 8.44
- Devata
- Agni
- Rasa
- Adbhuta (wonder) and Shanta (peace)
अग्ने धृतव्रताय ते समुद्रायेव सिन्धवः । गिरो वाश्रास ईरते ॥
ágne dhṛtá-vratāya te samudrā́ya-iva síndhavaḥ | gíro vāśrā́sa īrate ||
ഹേ അഗ്നേ, ധൃതവ്രത! നദികൾ സമുദ്രത്തിലേക്ക് ഒഴുകുന്നതുപോലെ, ഞങ്ങളുടെ വാക്കുകൾ—ആർത്തനാദത്തോടെ വിളിച്ചുയർന്ന്—നിന്റെ അടുക്കലേക്ക് പാഞ്ഞൊഴുകി നീങ്ങുന്നു.
Word by Word
- अग्ने
- O AgniNounपुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन; एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot अग्नि- (प्रातिपदिक)
- धृतव्रताय
- to (you) of firm/kept vowsAdjective (used substantively)पुंलिङ्ग; चतुर्थी (सम्प्रदान); एकवचनRole सम्प्रदानRoot धृत-व्रत- (कृदन्त-समास; धृ- ‘धारणे’ + व्रत-)
- ते
- of you / yourPronounषष्ठी; एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (genitive)Root त्वद्- (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- समुद्राय
- to the oceanNounपुंलिङ्ग; चतुर्थी; एकवचनRole सम्प्रदान (goal/recipient in simile)Root समुद्र- (प्रातिपदिक)
- इव
- like, asIndeclinableअव्ययRoot इव (निपात)
- सिन्धवः
- rivers/streamsNounपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; बहुवचनRole कर्तृRoot सिन्धु- (प्रातिपदिक)
- गिरः
- songs, hymnsNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; बहुवचनRole कर्तृRoot गिर्- (प्रातिपदिक)
- वा
- or / indeed (enclitic)Indeclinableअव्ययRoot वा (निपात)
- आश्रासः
- loud-sounding / resounding (ones)Noun/Adjective (poetic epithet)पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; बहुवचनRole कर्तृ (with गिरः as apposition/epithet)Root आश्रास- (प्रातिपदिक; ‘आ-श्रास’)
- ईरते
- move/are set in motion, ariseVerbलट्; आत्मनेपद; प्रथमपुरुष; बहुवचनRole क्रियाRoot ईर् (ईरते) ‘गतौ/प्रेरणे’
Sandhi Notes
- Sandhi resolution: समुद्रायेव → समुद्राय + इव. Other padas are already in padapāṭha-like form. Accent marks in the saṃhitā text are not reproduced in the pada list
- they do not change morphological parsing here
The meaning
Outer meaning
O Agni of steadfast vow, our words—like rivers to the ocean—rush crying to you.
Inner meaning
Agni as the inner Flame of divine Will (dhṛta-vrata, ‘held law’) is the fixed guiding power in sādhanā. The seeker’s inspirations and utterances (giraḥ) are not mere speech but currents of consciousness that must flow irresistibly toward the vastness (samudra) of the divine Presence. The ‘crying’ indicates intensity and sincerity: the soul’s call that breaks inertia and converges all movements toward the One Fire.
Universal truth
When the will is aligned to a higher law, all sincere movements of thought, speech, and aspiration naturally converge toward the Infinite, as many streams find their fulfillment in one ocean.
Themes
prayer as river, steadfast law, aspiration
The seer
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 8.44 (Agni hymn; adjacent verses 8.44.1-30)
Significance
The anonymity foregrounds the universal yogic gesture: aspiration (giraḥ) as a many-streamed movement offered to the one inner Fire. In Aurobindonian reading, the ‘seer’ is the awakened consciousness itself rather than a biographical personality.
The deity
- Devata
- Agni
- Epithets
- dhṛtavrata (steadfast in the law), pāvaka (purifier, implied by the hymn context)
- Related deities
- Indra (illumined mind), Soma (bliss), Uṣas (dawn/illumination)
Cosmic role
Mediator between human and divine worlds; carrier of offerings; awakener of the gods within the human being.
Inner power
Psychic flame and divine Will that gathers scattered energies and leads them toward the Infinite.
In ritual
Where it is used
Agnihotra / Agni-stoma praise (general Agni invocation)
अग्ने॑ धृ॒तव्र॑ताय ते समु॒द्राये॑व॒ सिन्ध॑वः । गिरो॑ वा॒श्रास॑ ईरते ॥
अग्ने॑ । धृ॒तऽव्र॑ताय । ते॒ । स॒मु॒द्राय॑ऽइव । सिन्ध॑वः । गिरः॑ । वा॒श्रासः॑ । ई॒र॒ते॒ ॥
agne | dhṛta-vratāya | te | samudrāya-iva | sindhavaḥ | giraḥ | vāśrāsaḥ | īrate
Likely Triṣṭubh (common in RV 8th maṇḍala Agni stanzas; 4 pādas of ~11 syllables)
44
4 × 11 (approx.)
Forward-driving, wave-like cadence mirroring ‘rivers rushing’.
Creates a sense of convergence and uplift; supports gathering scattered mind into one-pointed offering.
- अग्ने (agne)
- Literal: O Fire. Symbolic: Divine Will/psychic flame leading the inner sacrifice
- धृतव्रत (dhṛta-vrata)
- Literal: one who holds the vow/law. Symbolic: steadfast alignment to ṛta; unwavering spiritual discipline
- समुद्र (samudra)
- Literal: ocean. Symbolic: vast divine consciousness/Infinity that receives all streams
- सिन्धवः (sindhavaḥ)
- Literal: rivers. Symbolic: many currents of aspiration, life-movements, and thoughts converging
- गिरः (giraḥ)
- Literal: words/hymns. Symbolic: inspired utterances; forces of thought seeking the divine
- वाश्रासः (vāśrāsaḥ)
- Literal: crying aloud. Symbolic: ardent call of the soul, intensity of longing
- ईरते (īrate)
- Literal: they move/surge. Symbolic: uplift and dynamism of consciousness toward the goal
Verse suited to the moment of heightened recitation: emphasizes the flow of stoma toward Agni as the stable bearer of vrata; can accompany continuous offerings where the ‘stream’ of hymns is foregrounded.
At kindling and offering; also as opening praise to establish the inner/outer fire.
Kindling, oblation, recitation of stotra-like praise to invoke Agni’s presence.
Use as an ‘invocation of convergence’ before meditation: let all thoughts flow toward a single inner flame.
dhṛta from √dhṛ ‘hold, bear, maintain’ → sustained discipline. īrate from √īr ‘to set in motion, raise, impel’ → the dynamic surge of prayer. sindhu ‘river’ is also a mythic-poetic term for flowing force; samudra ‘gathering of waters’ → totality/vastness (often read inwardly as the infinite consciousness into which movements pour).
R̥ta/vrata (held law), Vastness (samudra as infinity), Mantric flow (giraḥ as currents of force)
dhṛta-vrata signals Agni as holder of ṛta, stabilizing the seeker in right movement.
Speech (giraḥ) becomes true when it flows toward the divine ocean rather than egoic ends.
Many-to-One integration: multiplicity of streams returning to the source.
Proto-Vedāntic / Yogic-Vedic (Aurobindo: ascent from mind-streams to vast consciousness).
Rivers→streams of thought/aspiration; ocean→vast divine consciousness; fire→psychic will that receives and transforms.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The convergence myth: many rivers to one ocean, here mapped onto many hymns/aspirations converging to Agni. Inner sense: scattered energies and thoughts are gathered and directed toward the stable truth-law (dhṛta-vrata), producing concentration and widening.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- The hydronymic/river imagery is a shared Indo-European poetic resource (flow as speech/thought). √dhṛ ‘hold’ has broad IE comparanda often reconstructed with *dʰer- ‘hold, support’ (e.g., Greek thronos in semantic neighborhood via ‘support’, though exact cognacy discussions vary). The simile -iva is a characteristic Vedic comparative device.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi’s side is the many-channeled utterance (giraḥ) and urgent call (vāśrāsaḥ); Agni’s side is the unwavering holder of law. The relationship is centripetal: human movements seek the divine center that can unify and stabilize them.
Convergence: let all mental ‘streams’ pour into the heart-flame (Agni).
Anāhata (heart)
Gentle nāḍī-śodhana or slow exhale with inner offering on the out-breath.
From scattered manas to collected, wide awareness (samudra-bhāva).
Repeat the mantra while visualizing thoughts as rivers entering a luminous inner ocean; end with silent resting in wideness.
Mixed udatta/anudatta/svarita as marked (e.g., अग्ने॑, धृ॒, व्र॑); follow pada-text accents.
Keep udatta slightly raised; svarita as a gentle fall; avoid flattening ‘samudrāyeva’.
- in dhṛta: clear ‘dhṛ’ with vocalic ṛ, : link -āya-iva smoothly (no hard break), : long ā; retroflex ṣ in -śrā- is palatal ś (vāśrā-)
Clear, flowing, wave-like; crescendo on vāśrāsaḥ, release on īrate.
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