Rig Veda 7.16.7: Mandala 7, Sukta 16, Mantra 7
Sukta 7.16
- Rishi
- Vasiṣṭha
- Devata
- Agni
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Shanta (peace)
त्वे अग्ने स्वाहुत प्रियासः सन्तु सूरयः । यन्तारो ये मघवानो जनानामूर्वान्दयन्त गोनाम् ॥
tve agne svāhuta priyā́saḥ santu sūŕayaḥ | yantā́ro ye maghávāno jánānām ūrvā́n dayanta gónām ||
W Tobie, o Agni, prawidłowo ofiarowane, niech umiłowani widzowie znajdą swój dom, ci przewodnicy, hojni pośród ludów, którzy krzewią szerokie pastwiska krów: otwarte łąki Światła i Wiedzy.
Word by Word
- त्वे
- in/with youPronounसप्तमी एकवचन (वेदिक-रूप; ‘त्वयि’ अर्थे)Role अधिकारणRoot त्वद्- (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → त्वम्
- अग्ने
- O AgniNoun (vocative)पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot अग्नि-
- स्वाहुत
- well-invoked / well-offered-toAdjective (vocative)पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन एकवचन (अग्ने इति विशेषणम्)Role सम्बोधनRoot सु-आहुत- (आहुत- < √हु ‘to offer/sacrifice’), प्रातिपदिक: स्वाहुत-
- प्रियासः
- dear (ones)Adjective (substantivized)पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचनRole कर्तृ (सन्तु इत्यस्य)Root प्रिय-
- सन्तु
- may they beVerbलोट् (आशीर्लिङ्/आज्ञार्थ), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचनRoot √अस् (भू-सत्तायाम्)
- सूरयः
- patrons / bountiful lordsNounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचनRole कर्तृ (सन्तु इत्यस्य; प्रियासः इत्यस्य अपि विशेष्यः)Root सूरि-
- यन्तारः
- guiders / controllersNounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचनRole कर्तृ (दयन्त इत्यस्य)Root यन्तृ- (कर्तृ-प्रातिपदिक; < √यम् ‘to restrain/guide’)
- ये
- whoRelative pronounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचनRole कर्तृ (दयन्त इत्यस्य; यन्तारः/मघवानः इत्यस्य विशेषण-सम्बन्धः)Root यद्- (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- मघवानः
- bountiful onesNoun/Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचनRole कर्तृ (दयन्त इत्यस्य)Root मघवन्-
- जनानाम्
- of the peoplesNounपुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी बहुवचनRole सम्बन्ध (उर्वान् इत्यस्य; ‘of people’)Root जन-
- ऊर्वान्
- wide spaces / broad roomNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया बहुवचनRole कर्म (दयन्त इत्यस्य)Root ऊर्वा- (स्त्रीलिङ्ग; ‘wide space/expanse, room’)
- दयन्त
- they apportion / grantVerbलट्, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचनRoot √दा/दय् (वेदिक; ‘to apportion, give, distribute’)
- गोनाम्
- of cows (wealth)Nounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी बहुवचनRole सम्बन्ध (ऊर्वान् इत्यस्य; ‘of cattle/wealth’)Root गो-
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: त्वे | अग्ने | स्वाहुत | प्रियासः | सन्तु | सूरयः | यन्तारः | ये | मघवानः | जनानाम् | ऊर्वान् | दयन्त | गोनाम् । मुख्य-सन्धयः: (1) ‘त्वे अग्ने’ इति पदान्त-स्वर-सन्धिः
- संहितायां ‘त्वेऽग्ने’ (अवग्रह) सम्भवः। (2) ‘जनानाम् ऊर्वान्’ इत्यत्र म् + ऊ → म् ऊ (अनुस्वार/परसवर्ण-प्रवृत्तिः न; स्वरादौ ऊ इति)। (3) ‘ऊर्वान् दयन्त’ इत्यत्र न् + द → न्द (व्यञ्जन-सन्धिः) → संहितायां ‘ऊर्वान्दयन्त’।
The meaning
Outer meaning
May the beloved seers (sūrayaḥ), leaders among men, find their resting-place in you, O Agni, when you are rightly offered; they who foster the wide pastures/fields of the cows.
Inner meaning
Agni as the awakened divine Will receives the right self-offering (svāhuta) and becomes the inner hearth where the illumined powers (sūrayaḥ) can abide. These ‘leaders’ are the guiding faculties of the being—those generous forces (maghavānaḥ) that govern the many movements (janānām) and widen the inner ‘fields’ (ūrvāḥ) so the Rays of Knowledge (go) can freely graze: an expansion of consciousness where light multiplies and becomes usable in life.
Universal truth
When aspiration and self-giving are sincere and rightly directed, the inner fire becomes a stable home for wisdom; then leadership is not domination but the widening of the field of awareness so knowledge can move freely and nourish all parts of the nature.
Themes
community of seers, leadership and guidance, increase of light-knowledges, right offering (svāhuta)
The seer
- Rishi
- Vasiṣṭha
- Lineage
- Vasiṣṭha-gotra
- Other hymns
- RV 7.16, RV 7.18, RV 7.33, RV 7.88
Family tradition
Vasiṣṭha family hymnody (Mandala 7) emphasizing Agni as priest of the inner and outer sacrifice; a steady, integrative yoga of truth (ṛta) and right action.
Significance
Vasiṣṭha’s vision often joins power with harmony: the Fire is not mere force but a disciplined will that makes the human field wide enough to hold illumination and right governance of life.
The deity
- Devata
- Agni
- Epithets
- svāhuta (rightly offered), yaviṣṭha (youngest), havyavāhana (carrier of the offering), hotṛ (priest)
- Related deities
- Indra, Soma, Uṣas, Bṛhaspati
Cosmic role
Mediator between human and divine; establishes the sacrifice (yajña), carries offerings, kindles ṛta in the worlds.
Inner power
Aspiring will and psychic flame that organizes the nature, attracts higher light, and makes consciousness expansive and hospitable to wisdom.
In ritual
Where it is used
Agnihotra / Agni-stoma context within Agni hymn recitation
त्वे अ॑ग्ने स्वाहुत प्रि॒यास॑: सन्तु सू॒रय॑: । य॒न्तारो॒ ये म॒घवा॑नो॒ जना॑नामू॒र्वान्दय॑न्त॒ गोना॑म् ॥
त्वे इति॑ । अ॒ग्ने॒ । सु॒ऽआ॒हु॒त॒ । प्रि॒यासः॑ । स॒न्तु॒ । सू॒रयः॑ । य॒न्तारः॑ । ये । म॒घऽवा॑नः । जना॑नाम् । ऊ॒र्वान् । दय॑न्त । गोना॑म् ॥
tve iti | agne | su-āhuta | priyāsaḥ | santu | sūrayaḥ | yantāraḥ | ye | magha-vānaḥ | janānām | ūrvān | dayanta | gonām
44
4 pādas of ~11 syllables each
Firm, forward-driving cadence suited to invocation and governance.
Builds steadiness and inner uprightness; supports a sense of widening space and confident guidance.
- त्वे (tve)
- Literal: in you. Symbolic: in the awakened inner Fire as the seat of yoga and sacrifice
- अग्ने (agne)
- Literal: O Fire. Symbolic: divine Will, conscious force that leads the inner offering
- स्वाहुत (svāhuta)
- Literal: well-offered / rightly invoked. Symbolic: right consecration of energies, sincere self-offering aligned to truth
- सूरयः (sūrayaḥ)
- Literal: seers, illumined ones. Symbolic: illumined faculties; inner guides of intuition and discernment
- यन्तारः (yantāraḥ)
- Literal: leaders, controllers, drivers. Symbolic: governing powers that yoke and direct life-forces toward the goal
- मघवानः (maghavānaḥ)
- Literal: bountiful, generous. Symbolic: abundant inner energies that freely give strength and light
- जनानाम् (janānām)
- Literal: of peoples/creatures. Symbolic: the many movements and sub-personalities within the being
- ऊर्वान् (ūrvān)
- Literal: wide spaces, broad fields. Symbolic: expanded consciousness, widened inner capacity
- गोनाम् (gonām)
- Literal: of cows. Symbolic: rays of Light/Knowledge; luminous perceptions
Blessing for the community of seers/patrons around the fire; protection and increase for leaders who sustain the ‘cows’ (lights/knowledges).
Kindling or praising Agni at the opening of offerings; also as a protective and prosperity-invoking verse within Agni sequences.
Offering with svāhā; establishing the fire as carrier of oblations.
Use before meditation or work to ‘set the inner fire’: a brief offering of intention so one’s faculties become luminous leaders and the mind-field widens.
sūra (often ‘hero’): from √svar/√sū? associated with light and nobility; taken as illumined force. yantāraḥ (from √yam ‘hold, rein in, guide’): governance of energies. ūrvān (from uru ‘wide’): wideness of consciousness (bṛhat-ideal). go (cow) from √gā/√gam? Vedic symbol: rays/knowledges; ‘pastures’ are fields of illumination rather than cattle-wealth.
bṛhat/wideness (ūrvān), illumination as ‘cows’ (go), guided force (yam)
Right offering (svāhuta) aligns the human will with ṛta, enabling expansion (ūrvāḥ) of the inner world.
Beloved seers abide where truth is lived as right action, not only thought.
Widening of the inner spaces so light can manifest and multiply.
Proto-Vedāntic/Integral (Aurobindonian) reading: evolution of consciousness through sacrifice and illumination.
Fire = will; fields = widened consciousness; cows = rays of knowledge that feed and sustain the being.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The ‘cows’ as recoverable and expandable light: leaders nurture the wide fields of the cows. In inner sense, the illumined guides foster widening consciousness where rays/knowledges multiply under Agni’s right kindling.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √yam (yantāraḥ) reflects PIE *yem- ‘hold’ (cf. Lat. premere? semantic overlap; more securely Indo-Iranian continuations of ‘restraint/holding’), encoding governance imagery (‘holding reins’). The symbolic ‘go’ has Indo-Iranian parallels where bovine imagery maps to luminous wealth.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- Agni is the inner foundation (‘in you’) where the seer-community becomes ‘priyāsaḥ’. Right offering makes Agni a stable support for leaders who distribute wideness and light; thus the rishi seeks a collective yogic environment sustained by the flame.
Kindle the inner flame and widen the ‘field’ of awareness so insights can arise and remain.
anahata (heart)
Nadi shodhana (gentle) followed by a brief breath-hold with attention in the heart-flame.
Collected, spacious, guided (inner governance).
Offer one recurring impulse (fear, haste, doubt) into Agni; then contemplate ‘ūrvāḥ’—make room inwardly; let ‘go’ appear as clear perceptions without forcing.
Vedic accenting with udatta/anudatta/svarita as per śākhā tradition; maintain clear udātta lifts on key nouns (agné, sūrayaḥ).
Keep the pitch-rise crisp on udātta; avoid flattening compounds (svāhuta, maghavānaḥ). Pause lightly at the pāda break (|).
Pronounce ṛ/ḷ distinctions carefully: sūrayaḥ (long ū)., Keep retroflex ṇ in gonām and nasalization clean., yantāraḥ: clear ‘ya’ glide, do not harden to ‘j’., ūrvān: sustain long ū; avoid inserting a vowel after rv.
Steady, bright, invoking; not rushed.
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