Rig Veda 8.74.1: Mandala 8, Sukta 74, Mantra 1
Sukta 8.74
- Devata
- Agni
- Rasa
- Adbhuta (wonder) and Shanta (peace)
विशोविशो वो अतिथिं वाजयन्तः पुरुप्रियम् । अग्निं वो दुर्यं वचः स्तुषे शूषस्य मन्मभिः ॥
viśóviśo vo átithiṃ vājayántaḥ purupriyám | agníṃ vo dúryaṃ vácaḥ stuṣé śūṣásya mánmabhiḥ ||
हे विशोविशः, यूयं वाजानां पुरुप्रियं वोऽतिथिं—अग्निं—वाजयन्तः प्रचोदयथ। तं वो दुर्यं गार्हपत्यं ज्वलनं वचसा स्तुषे, शूषस्य मन्मभिः।
Word by Word
- विशः
- clans, peoplesNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole कर्तृRoot विश् (प्रातिपदिक: विश्/विश्- ‘जन/कुल/प्रजा’)
- विशः
- (again) clans, peoplesNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole कर्तृRoot विश् (प्रातिपदिक: विश्/विश्- ‘जन/कुल/प्रजा’)
- वः
- of you (your)Pronounषष्ठी (सम्बन्धे), बहुवचनRoot युष्मद्
- अतिथिम्
- guestNounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्मRoot अतिथि (प्रातिपदिक)
- वाजयन्तः
- strengthening / making (him) win the prizeVerb (participle)कर्तरि शतृ-प्रत्यय, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole कर्तृRoot वाजय् (धातु; ‘वाजं करोति/प्रापयति’), वर्तमान कृदन्त: शतृ
- पुरुप्रियम्
- much-beloved, dear to manyAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (अतिथिम्/अग्निम् इत्यस्य विशेषणम्)Role कर्मRoot पुरु-प्रिय (प्रातिपदिक; बहुव्रीहि/कर्मधारय-समास)
- अग्निम्
- Agni (fire-god)Nounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्मRoot अग्नि (प्रातिपदिक)
- वः
- of you (your)Pronounषष्ठी (सम्बन्धे), बहुवचनRoot युष्मद्
- दुर्यम्
- household, belonging to the houseAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (अग्निम् इत्यस्य विशेषणम्)Role कर्मRoot दुर्य (प्रातिपदिक; ‘गृह्य/गृहस्थ’), RV-प्रयोगे ‘गृहस्थं/गृहस्य’
- वचः
- speech, hymn, utteranceNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (RV में रूप: वचः)Role कर्मRoot वचस् (प्रातिपदिक)
- स्तुषे
- I praiseVerbलट् (वर्तमान), आत्मनेपद, उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचनRoot स्तु (धातु)
- शूषस्य
- of strength, of vigorNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचनRole सम्बन्धRoot शूष (प्रातिपदिक; ‘बल/वीर्य/उत्साह’)
- मन्मभिः
- with hymns / with thoughtsNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचनRole करणRoot मन्मन् (प्रातिपदिक; ‘मनन/स्तोत्र/विचार’)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (सन्धि-निरसन): विशोविशो → विशः विशः (पुनरुक्ति)
- वो अति॑थिं → वः अतिथिम्
- अग्निं वो → अग्निम् वः
- दुर्यं वचः → दुर्यम् वचः
- स्तुषे शूषस्य → स्तुषे शूषस्य (सन्धि नहीं)
- मन्मभिः (स्वर/विकल्प-रूप: मन्मन्-शब्द का तृतीया बहुवचन)
The meaning
Outer meaning
Across every clan, those who foster strength set forward their Guest—Agni, beloved of many. The poet praises this household/inner fire with word and powerful thought-formations.
Inner meaning
All parts of the being (viśo-viśaḥ) are invited to collaborate in the inner sacrifice by welcoming the divine Will (Agni) as Atithi, the ‘Guest’ who must be enthroned. When the nature ‘fosters plenitudes of force’ (vājayantaḥ), it is really increasing the capacities for right action and progress. The seer’s speech (vacas) and mantras/thought-formations (manmabhiḥ) are acts of conscious shaping—calling Agni to become the indwelling leader (duryam) who organizes the house of the being.
Universal truth
Transformation begins when the divine principle is treated not as an abstract ideal but as a living presence welcomed into every subsystem of life; inspired speech and concentrated intention become instruments of that descent.
Themes
Agni-invocation, inner fire, inspired speech, collective aspiration
The seer
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 8.74.1–4 (Agni hymn sequence)
Significance
The voice is that of the inner priest: one who knows that speech and intention are tools for installing Agni as the conscious governor of the being.
The deity
- Devata
- Agni (Atithi, indwelling fire)
- Epithets
- Atithi (Guest), Purupriya (beloved of many), Dūrya/Durya (of the house, indwelling)
- Related deities
- Uṣas, Indra, Soma, Bṛhaspati
Cosmic role
Mediator between human and divine; carrier of offerings; awakener of aspiration; establisher of the sacrificial order.
Inner power
The flame of will and discernment that converts intention into upward movement and makes the whole nature a conscious offering.
In ritual
Where it is used
Agnyādhāna/Agnihotra ethos (welcoming the fire), and general Agni-stuti at the opening of rites.
वि॒शोवि॑शो वो॒ अति॑थिं वाज॒यन्त॑: पुरुप्रि॒यम् । अ॒ग्निं वो॒ दुर्यं॒ वच॑: स्तु॒षे शू॒षस्य॒ मन्म॑भिः ॥
वि॒शःऽवि॑सः । वः॒ । अति॑थिम् । वा॒ज॒ऽयन्तः॑ । पु॒रु॒ऽप्रि॒यम् । अ॒ग्निम् । वः॒ । दुर्य॑म् । वचः॑ । स्तु॒षे । शू॒षस्य॑ । मन्म॑ऽभिः ॥
viśaḥ-visaḥ | vaḥ | atithim | vāja-yantaḥ | puru-priyam | agnim | vaḥ | duyarm | vacaḥ | stuṣe | śūṣasya | manma-bhiḥ
2 lines shown, typically 4 padas; probable triṣṭubh cadence with a strong medial break
Invocatory and expansive; suited to ‘calling in’ Agni as Guest and establishing him.
Creates a welcoming, uplifting warmth; aligns speech and thought into a single offering-stream.
- विशो-विशः (viśo-viśaḥ)
- Literal: clan by clan, people by people. Symbolic: each domain of nature: mind, life, body, and their sub-parts
- अतिथिम् (atithim)
- Literal: guest. Symbolic: the Divine that arrives when invited; Agni as welcomed Presence
- वाजयन्तः (vājayantaḥ)
- Literal: causing to win/strengthen with vāja (force, plenitude). Symbolic: increasing inner energies and capacities for right works
- पुरुप्रियम् (purupriyam)
- Literal: beloved of many. Symbolic: the divine Will loved by all awakened parts because it brings progress
- अग्निम् (agnim)
- Literal: fire. Symbolic: divine Will, soul-fire, leader of the inner yajña
- दुर्यम् (duryam)
- Literal: of the house, domestic/indwelling. Symbolic: Agni seated in the ‘house’ of the heart and embodied life
- वचः (vacaḥ)
- Literal: word, utterance. Symbolic: mantric speech that forms channels for higher force
- शूषस्य (śūṣasya)
- Literal: of ardour/impetuous strength. Symbolic: tapas-force: concentrated zeal for transformation
- मन्मभिः (manmabhiḥ)
- Literal: with thoughts, intentions. Symbolic: shaped formations of consciousness (mantric ideation)
Agni-praise suitable for household and soma contexts: establishing/strengthening the inner and outer fire (āhavanīya/gārhapatya symbolism), inviting the devatā as ‘guest’ before offerings.
At the beginning of offerings; also as a daily invocation to kindle aspiration.
Praise (stuti) accompanying kindling/attention to the fire; mental offering via mantra.
Morning practice: light a lamp/candle; recite to ‘install’ the will to progress in the day; then sit and feel Agni as the quiet leader in the chest.
Key roots: atithi (a-tithi ‘not fixed by a day’ → the ever-arriving divine guest); vāja from √vaj/√vāj ‘to be strong, to impel’ → plenitude of force, victorious energy; stuṣe from √stu ‘praise, affirm’; vacaḥ from √vac ‘speak’ → inspired utterance; śūṣa ‘ardour, impetuous strength’ related to forceful excitation; manman (manma) from √man ‘think’ → formed thought/hymnic intention. dūrya/durya ‘of the house’ (inner dwelling-place) marks Agni as domestic/inward priest.
inner sacrifice (yajña as psychological discipline), tapas/ardour as transformative power, ṛta (right ordering through the awakened will)
Agni as the establisher of right process: when welcomed, actions align with R̥ta rather than impulse.
Truth becomes effective when speech (vacas) and intention (manman) are aligned and offered.
The ‘house’ of embodied life becomes a temple where higher force can manifest.
Integral yoga resonance: consecration of all parts (‘viśo-viśaḥ’) to the inner flame.
morning or any rite-beginning time
Fire = awakened will; house/hearth = embodied personality; kindling = intensifying aspiration and clarity.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The ‘arrival of the Guest’ (Atithi-Agni): the divine Fire enters the human ‘house’ and is consciously installed and increased. Mythically this is hospitality to the god; psychologically it is the awakening of will and discernment in the embodied being, enabling vāja (plenitude/victory-force).
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- vácas (speech) continues PIE *wekʷ- ‘to speak’ (cf. Latin vox, English voice). Agni (fire) aligns with Indo-Iranian *agni- (Avestan ātar is different lexeme but same fire-cult complex). √man in manman reflects PIE *men- ‘think’ (cf. Greek menos ‘spirit/force’, English mind). The verse intertwines *men- (thought) and *wekʷ- (speech) as coordinated instruments of effective invocation.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- Reciprocity is framed as collective installation and individual articulation: the clans ‘foster vāja’ by welcoming Agni as guest, while the seer offers vacas and manman (speech and shaped intention). The devatā responds by becoming ‘duryá’—indwelling—so the human vessel gains ardour (śūṣa) and ordered force.
Welcome Agni as the ‘Guest’—a living presence in the heart that guides choices and purifies motives.
anahata
4-4 breathing (inhale 4, exhale 4) while feeling warmth in the chest; on exhale softly repeat ‘agnim’.
From scattered energies to collected aspiration and steady will.
Before work or study, recite once slowly; then form one clear intention (manman) and ‘offer’ it inwardly to Agni for right execution.
Follow pada-pāṭha accents; keep a gentle rise on invocation phrases and a grounded fall on ‘stuṣe’. Exact svara reconstruction not possible from prompt alone.
Light emphasis on ‘atithim’ and ‘agnim’; keep ‘purupriyam’ flowing; pause at |.
viśo-viśo: palatal ‘ś’; keep the reduplication clear, atithim: dental ‘t’ and short ‘i’, vājayantaḥ: long ‘ā’; ‘j’ soft; final visarga as breath, duryam: ‘ry’ cluster clean, no extra vowel, śūṣasya: long ‘ū’; retroflex ‘ṣ’, manmabhiḥ: nasal ‘nm’ cluster—don’t over-separate
warm, inviting, steady
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