Rig Veda 7.3.7: Mandala 7, Sukta 3, Mantra 7
Sukta 7.3
- Rishi
- Vasiṣṭha
- Devata
- Agni
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Shanta (peace)
यथा वः स्वाहाग्नये दाशेम परीळाभिर्घृतवद्भिश्च हव्यैः । तेभिर्नो अग्ने अमितैर्महोभिः शतं पूर्भिरायसीभिर्नि पाहि ॥
yáthā vaḥ svā́hā’gnáye dā́śema párīḷābhir ghṛ́tavadbhiś ca havyáiḥ | tébhir no agne ámitair máhobhiḥ śatáṃ pū́rbhir ā́yasībhir ní pāhi ||
यथा वः स्वाहाग्नये दाशेम परीळाभिर्घृतवद्भिश्च हव्यैः । तेभिर्नो अग्नेऽमितैर्महोभिः शतं पूर्भिरायसीभिर्नि पाहि ॥
Word by Word
- यथा
- just as / in the manner thatIndeclinableसम्बन्ध/उपमानार्थक अव्यय (यथा = ‘as, just as’)Root यथा (अव्यय)
- वः
- of you (your)Pronounषष्ठी बहुवचन (enclitic)Role सम्बन्ध (genitive)Root युष्मद्
- स्वाहा
- svāhā (ritual exclamation)Indeclinableयज्ञीय उद्गार (oblation-call)Root स्वाहा (निपात/उद्गार)
- अग्नये
- to AgniNounपुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी एकवचनRole सम्प्रदानRoot अग्नि
- दाशेम
- may we offer / let us giveVerbलोट् (वेदिक: injunctive/precative-like use), उत्तमपुरुष बहुवचन, परस्मैपदRole कर्तृ (वयं)Root दाश्
- परीळाभिः
- with protections / with safeguardsNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया बहुवचनRole करणRoot परीळा (स्त्री.)
- घृतवत्भिः
- ghee-rich / having gheeAdjective(वत्-प्रत्ययान्त), तृतीया बहुवचन; ‘परीळाभिः’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्Role करणRoot घृतवत्
- च
- andIndeclinableसमुच्चयार्थक अव्ययRoot च
- हव्यैः
- with oblationsNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया बहुवचनRole करणRoot हव्य
- तेभिः
- with thosePronounतृतीया बहुवचनRole करणRoot तद्
- नः
- usPronounद्वितीया/षष्ठी बहुवचन (enclitic); अत्र कर्मरूपेणRole कर्मRoot अस्मद्
- अग्ने
- O AgniNounपुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot अग्नि
- अमितैः
- immeasurableAdjective(नञ्-समास), तृतीया बहुवचन; ‘महोभिः’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्Role करणRoot अमित
- महोभिः
- with great powers / mightsNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया बहुवचनRole करणRoot महस् (नपुं.)
- शतम्
- a hundredNumeral/Adjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचन; ‘पूर्’ इत्यस्य संख्याविशेषणम्Role कर्म (निपाहि इत्यस्य)Root शत
- पूर्भिः
- with strongholds / fortressesNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया बहुवचनRole करणRoot पूर् (स्त्री.)
- आयसीभिः
- of iron / iron(-like)Adjectiveस्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया बहुवचन; ‘पूर्भिः’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्Role करणRoot आयस (अयस्) → आयसी
- नि
- down / thoroughlyPreverb/Indeclinableउपसर्ग (पा-धातोः सह)Root नि
- पाहि
- protect!Verbलोट्, मध्यमपुरुष एकवचन, परस्मैपदRole कर्तृ (अग्निः)Root पा
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: यथा | वः | स्वाहा | अग्नये | दाशेम | परीळाभिः | घृतवत्भिः | च | हव्यैः | तेभिः | नः | अग्ने | अमितैः | महोभिः | शतम् | पूर्भिः | आयसीभिः | नि | पाहि । प्रमुख-सन्धयः: वः+स्वाहा → वः स्वाहा (विसर्जनीयः पदान्ते)
- स्वाहा+अग्नये → स्वाहा अग्नये
- दाशेम+परीळाभिः → दाशेम परीळाभिः
- परीळाभिः+घृतवत्भिः → परीळाभिर्घृतवत्भिः (र्-सन्धि)
- च+हव्यैः → च हव्यैः
- तेभिः+नः → तेभिर्नः (र्-सन्धि)
- अमितैः+महोभिः → अमितैर्महोभिः (र्-सन्धि)
- पूर्भिः+आयसीभिः → पूर्भिरायसीभिः (र्-सन्धि)
- नि+पाहि → नि पाहि (उपसर्गयोगः)
The meaning
Outer meaning
The poets offer the exclamation svāhā to Agni with enclosing prayers and ghee-rich oblations; by Agni’s immeasurable greatness they ask to be guarded and protected as if by a hundred iron forts.
Inner meaning
The seeker offers surrender (svāhā) into the inner Fire (Agni) through comprehensive aspiration (parīḻābhiḥ—enclosing invocations) and clarified devotion (ghṛta—illumined substance). Agni’s vast powers then build strong inner protections—stable formations of will and discernment—against hostile movements (doubt, inertia, subconscient pressure). The “hundred iron strongholds” are not walls of fear but luminous, firm structures of right habit and concentration established by the psychic fire.
Universal truth
When aspiration is total and offerings are sincere, the inner will-force organizes protective order in the being; steadfast inner discipline becomes a fortress through which consciousness can safely grow.
Themes
Protection, Self-offering, Fortress imagery, Divine guardianship
The seer
- Rishi
- Vasiṣṭha
- Lineage
- Vasiṣṭha (Mānava line; traditionally of the Vasiṣṭha-gotra)
- Other hymns
- RV 7.1, RV 7.2, RV 7.3, RV 7.4, RV 7.5
Family tradition
Saptarṣi Vasiṣṭha’s lineage emphasizes harmony with ṛta, priestly mastery of Agni, and the integrality of inner and outer sacrifice.
Significance
Vasiṣṭha’s vision often presents Agni as the organizing will that builds order (ṛta) in the human instrument, turning aspiration into stable protection and right action.
The deity
- Devata
- Agni
- Epithets
- Jātavedas (implied in the sequence of hymns), Pāvaka (clear-flaming), Sahaso sūnu (son of strength; adjacent verse)
- Related deities
- Indra, Soma, Uṣas, Bṛhaspati
Cosmic role
Mediator between human and divine worlds; carrier of offerings; awakener of the gods in the sacrifice; establisher of ṛta in action.
Inner power
The flame of conscious will that purifies, integrates, and defends the sadhaka by building luminous formations in mind-life-body.
In ritual
Where it is used
Agnihotra / general Agni iṣṭi contexts (protective invocation within Agni hymns)
यथा॑ व॒: स्वाहा॒ग्नये॒ दाशे॑म॒ परीळा॑भिर्घृ॒तव॑द्भिश्च ह॒व्यैः । तेभि॑र्नो अग्ने॒ अमि॑तै॒र्महो॑भिः श॒तं पू॒र्भिराय॑सीभि॒र्नि पा॑हि ॥
यथा॑ । वः॒ । स्वाहा॑ । अ॒ग्नये॑ । दाशे॑म । परि॑ । इळा॑भिः । घृ॒तव॑त्ऽभिः । च॒ । ह॒व्यैः । तेभिः॑ । नः॒ । अ॒ग्ने॒ । अमि॑तैः । महः॑ऽभिः । श॒तम् । पूः॒ऽभिः । आय॑सीभिः । नि । पा॒हि॒ ॥
yathā | vaḥ | svāhā | agnaye | dāśema | pari | iḷābhiḥ | ghṛtavat-bhiḥ | ca | havyaiḥ | tebhiḥ | naḥ | agne | amitaiḥ | mahaḥ-bhiḥ | śatam | pūḥ-bhiḥ | āyasībhiḥ | ni | pāhi
44
4 pādas of ~11 syllables each
Forward-driving, martial-stable cadence suited to protection and establishment.
Creates a sense of firm enclosure and uplift—good for invoking inner strength and psychic safeguarding.
- स्वाहा (svāhā)
- Literal: ritual exclamation ‘well said/so be it’ offered into fire. Symbolic: act of surrender and consent of the ego to the divine working
- अग्नि (agni)
- Literal: fire. Symbolic: divine will and the inner priest who leads the sacrifice of transformation
- परिळाभिः (parīḻābhiḥ)
- Literal: with encompassing/encircling invocations. Symbolic: integral aspiration that surrounds the whole nature, leaving no part outside the offering
- घृतवत् (ghṛtavat)
- Literal: ghee-rich. Symbolic: filled with clarified light—luminous understanding and sweetness of devotion
- हव्य (havya)
- Literal: oblation to be offered. Symbolic: all energies, thoughts, and impulses consciously given to the inner Fire
- अमितैः महोभिः (amitaiḥ mahobhiḥ)
- Literal: with immeasurable greatnesses. Symbolic: boundless powers of the divine Will acting in the nature
- शतं पूर्भिः आयसीभिः (śataṃ pūrbhir āyasībhiḥ)
- Literal: with a hundred iron strongholds. Symbolic: many firm, enduring formations of protection—stable inner disciplines and luminous boundaries against disorder
- नि पाहि (ni pāhi)
- Literal: protect/guard down, firmly. Symbolic: establish a settled, continuous safeguarding in the lower nature
Protective prayer within offering context; svāhā-formula tied to oblation acts in śrauta rites.
At the kindling and offering phase; also as a protective prayer around the sacrifice.
Offering ghee and recitation of protective verses; establishing ‘rakṣā’ (guarding) around the rite.
Before meditation or sadhana: offer a brief inner ‘svāhā’ (release of tension/ego) and invoke a ‘fortress’ of clarity and steadiness around the mind and vital.
स्वाहा: su+√vah ‘carry well’ (traditional derivation) → that by which the offering is well-carried; psychologically self-offering that transports consciousness. पूर्: ‘fort’ → structured defense; inner ‘strongholds’ are stable formations of truth-force. आयसी: from ayas ‘metal/iron’ → firmness, resilience.
Self-offering as method (svāhā), Protection by truth-force formations, Plenitude (śatam) as completeness of being
Agni’s guarding is the maintenance of ṛta against forces of confusion and division.
Protection is grounded in truth-consent (svāhā) rather than fear-based defense.
Formation of stable ‘cities/strongholds’ as symbolic creation of ordered consciousness in the lower planes.
Proto-Vedāntic / integral-psychological reading (Aurobindo-Kashyap line): divine powers constructing inner order.
Fire = conscious will; ghee = clarified light; iron forts = durable inner disciplines and protections; enclosing prayers = integral aspiration surrounding the being.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Agni as protector who builds strongholds: the sacrificial fire, fed by clarified offering, becomes a guarding power. Inner sense: self-giving to the flame establishes resilient structures in consciousness against hostile forces.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- ayas ‘metal’ has Indo-Iranian prominence; fortress (pūr) imagery is widespread in IE heroic diction as ‘defended enclosure’—here interiorized into psychic protection.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- A clear exchange: the rishi offers prayers and ghee-rich oblations; Agni returns protection through ‘immeasurable powers’, stabilizing the community/inner being with firm defenses.
Surrender of thoughts and impulses into the inner flame; establishing a protective field of clarity around the mind and vital.
Manipura (fire/will) with support to Anahata (psychic warmth)
Gentle nāḍī-śodhana or 4-4-6 breathing; on exhale, mentally offer ‘svāhā’ releasing grasping.
Collected, firm, safeguarded concentration (dhāraṇā moving toward dhyāna).
Begin with 3 inner offerings: (1) restlessness, (2) doubt, (3) desire; then visualize ‘iron forts’ as steady luminous boundaries—habits of truth, calm, and courage.
Vedic accents as in śākala tradition: udatta on marked syllables (॑), svarita/anudatta per sandhi; preserve ‘svā́hā́gnaye’ accenting as written.
Keep the cadence of Triṣṭubh: slight lift on udatta-marked syllables; avoid flattening ‘amítaiḥ mahóbhih’.
Maintain retroflex ḷ in parīḻābhiḥ (ळ) distinctly from l., घृतवत्भिः: pronounce the cluster -tbh- cleanly (ghṛ-ta-vat-bhiḥ), without inserting extra vowel., आयसīभिः: keep long ī in -sī-; articulate āyasa as ‘ā-ya-sa’., नि पाहि: clear dental n and aspirated pāhi (pā-hi).
Steady, resonant, protective; slight emphasis on concluding ‘ni pāhi’.
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