Rig Veda 1.97.4: Mandala 1, Sukta 97, Mantra 4
Sukta 1.97
- Devata
- Agni
- Chandas
- Likely Gāyatrī/Anuṣṭubh-adjacent short meter with refrain
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Shanta (peace)
प्र यत्ते अग्ने सूरयो जायेमहि प्र ते वयम् । अप नः शोशुचदघम् ॥
prá yát te agne sū́rayo jā́yemahi prá te vayám | ápa naḥ śóśucad aghám ||
เมื่อเราทั้งหลายจักได้บังเกิดในเดชอันสว่างไสวของท่าน โอ อัคนี—แท้จริงแล้ว เราจักก้าวหน้าไปในท่าน—ขอจงเผาผลาญความชั่วอันเกาะติดนั้นให้พ้นไปจากเราเถิด
Word by Word
- प्र
- forth, forwardIndeclinableupasarga (preverb)Root प्र (upasarga)
- यत्
- that which; whatPronounnapuṃsaka; prathamā/ dvitīyā; ekavacanaRole Karma (of ‘जायेमहि’ as ‘that [state/goal]’)Root यद् (sarvanāma-prātipadika)
- ते
- of you, yourPronounṣaṣṭhī; ekavacanaRole Sambandha (genitive relation)Root त्वद् (yuṣmad-prātipadika)
- अग्ने
- O AgniNounpuṃliṅga; sambodhana; ekavacanaRole Sambोधन (addressed deity)Root अग्नि (prātipadika)
- सूरयः
- patrons, lords (generous men)Nounpuṃliṅga; prathamā; bahuvacanaRole Kartā (of ‘जायेमहि’)Root सूरि (prātipadika)
- जायेमहि
- may we be born; may we come to beVerbliṅ (vidhi/optative); 1st person; bahuvacana; ātmanepadaRole KriyāRoot √जन् (जायते)
- प्र
- forth, forwardIndeclinableupasarga (preverb)Root प्र (upasarga)
- ते
- of you, yourPronounṣaṣṭhī; ekavacanaRole Sambandha (genitive relation)Root त्वद् (yuṣmad-prātipadika)
- वयम्
- wePronounprathamā; bahuvacanaRole Kartā (understood with the wish/prayer)Root अस्मद् (prātipadika)
- अप
- away, offIndeclinablepreverb/particleRoot अप (upasarga/avyaya)
- नः
- of us; from usPronounṣaṣṭhī; bahuvacana (enclitic)Role Sambandha (genitive: ‘from us/our’ in Vedic usage with ‘अप’)Root अस्मद् (prātipadika)
- शोशुचत्
- may it blaze away; may it burn offVerblaṭ; 3rd person; ekavacana; parasmaipada; intensive/reduplicated present stemRole KriyāRoot √शुच् (शोशुचति)
- अघम्
- evil, sin, harmNounnapuṃsaka; dvitīyā; ekavacanaRole Karma (of ‘शोशुचत्’)Root अघ (prātipadika)
Sandhi Notes
- Sandhi resolved as: प्र + यत् + ते + अग्ने + सूरयः + जायेमहि + प्र + ते + वयम् । अप + नः + शोशुचत् + अघम् । Notable: ‘यत्ते’ = ‘यत् ते’ (t+t)
- ‘ते॑ अग्ने’ = ‘ते अग्ने’ (vowel contact kept in saṃhitā)
- ‘अप नः’ shows enclitic ‘नः’
- ‘शोशुचदघम्’ = ‘शोशुचत् अघम्’ (final -t before vowel in saṃhitā written as -d)
The meaning
Outer meaning
We seek to be born into Agni’s luminous power and to advance in him; may he burn away from us the clinging evil (agham).
Inner meaning
The seeker prays to be continually re-born in the soul’s Fire—Agni as the divine Will and conscious aspiration—so the inner life moves forward (pra) under that guidance. “Clinging evil” is not moralistic guilt alone but the sticky residue of tamas, wrong habit, and subconscient impulses that adhere to the nature; Agni’s heat of tapas purifies and detaches it.
Universal truth
Spiritual progress requires repeated inner re-birth into a higher energy of will and clarity; purification is not suppression but a luminous burning-away of what clings and obscures the forward movement of consciousness.
Themes
Becoming luminous/seer-like, Agni-led progress, Removal of obstacles
The seer
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 1.97.5, Rig Veda 1.97.6, Rig Veda 1.97.7, Rig Veda 1.97.8
Significance
The anonymity fits the “common sādhanā” character of these verses: a mantra-formula for purification and protection, usable by any aspirant as a direct address to the inner Fire.
The deity
- Devata
- Agni
- Epithets
- sūrya/sūra-linked (luminous), śośucat (blazing), yajñasya netā (leader of sacrifice, implied)
- Related deities
- Sūrya, Uṣas, Indra, Soma
Cosmic role
Mediator between human and divine worlds; carrier of offerings; purifier and awakener of light.
Inner power
Psychic fire and will that turns life toward truth, burns obscurity, and births illumined faculties.
In ritual
Where it is used
Apotropaic (protective/purificatory) fire-invocation; also suitable at agnihotra or before offerings as a cleansing formula
प्र यत्ते॑ अग्ने सू॒रयो॒ जाये॑महि॒ प्र ते॑ व॒यम् । अप॑ न॒: शोशु॑चद॒घम् ॥
प्र । यत् । ते॒ । अ॒ग्ने॒ । सू॒रयः॑ । जाये॑महि । प्र । ते॒ । व॒यम् । अप॑ । नः॒ । शोशु॑चत् । अ॒घम् ॥
pra | yat | te | agne | sūrayaḥ | jāyemahi | pra | te | vayam | apa | naḥ | śośucat | agham
Short refrain-meter; gāyatrī/anuṣṭubh-adjacent (not strictly regular across the cluster)
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2 padas with a refrain-like cadence; closing formula ‘apa naḥ śośucat agham’ acts as a fixed tail
Incantatory, compact, driving forward with repeated ‘pra … pra …’ and the final apotropaic burn-away.
Creates a sense of forward surge followed by cathartic release at the refrain; supports purification and resolve.
- प्र (pra)
- Literal: forward, forth. Symbolic: the evolutionary push of aspiration; progress of the inner sacrifice
- अग्ने (agne)
- Literal: O Fire. Symbolic: divine Will, priest of the inner yajña; power of purification and right action
- सूरयः (sūrayaḥ)
- Literal: luminous ones, seers. Symbolic: illumined faculties in the mind; awakened powers of discernment
- जायेमहि (jāyemahi)
- Literal: may we be born. Symbolic: inner rebirth; emergence of a new poise of consciousness
- शोशुचत् (śośucat)
- Literal: may he blaze/burn. Symbolic: tapas that consumes obscurity; psychic heat that transforms
- अघम् (agham)
- Literal: evil, harm, sin. Symbolic: adhesive darkness—subconscient inertia and wrong formations that cling to the nature
Initiatory/purificatory: prayer for rebirth into luminous consciousness under Agni’s guidance.
At kindling the fire, before japa/meditation, or when seeking removal of inner/outer obstacles
Offer ghee or mental offering into Agni while repeating the refrain; visualize burning-away of obscurity
Use as a daily ‘inner cleansing’ mantra before work/meditation to reset intention and burn habitual negativity.
sū́rayaḥ: from sūrí-/sūra- 'luminous, inspired' (linked to sūrya- 'sun' from PIE *sóh₂wl̥). jā́yemahi: optative middle 1pl √jan—rebirth as spiritual event. prá: forward-driving preverb marking evolutionary movement.
Spiritual rebirth (jan as inner becoming), Forward movement (pra), Purification from agha
‘Pra’ aligns the being with ṛta—progressive right movement rather than circular habit.
Luminosity (sūra) indicates truth-vision being born in the mind.
Rebirth/manifestation of higher faculties through the fire of aspiration.
Proto-Vedāntic/Integral (Aurobindo): evolution of consciousness through Agni as the psychic guide.
Fire = will and tapas; sunlight = illumination in mind; burning = transformation of subconscient residues.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Rebirth into the company/state of the sūrayaḥ (luminous seers) through Agni—an initiatory mythic motif where the Fire transforms the human into a bearer of light, contingent on the burning away of obstruction.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- jāyemahi (√jan, PIE *ǵenh₁-) and the light-family around sūrya (PIE *sóh₂wl̥) show an inherited IE linkage between birth/becoming and solar luminosity as the emblem of awakened consciousness.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi seeks participation: to be 'born' in Agni (te…jāyemahi), not merely to receive a gift. Agni is invoked as the matrix of transformation; the refrain requests removal of what prevents that participation.
Rebirth into the psychic fire: ‘Let my will be luminous; let what clings be burned.’
manipura (fire/will center)
Moderate pace; inhale on ‘pra yat te agne…’, exhale on ‘apa naḥ śośucat agham’ with release-imagery
Uplifted, clarified, forward-moving (pravṛtti toward truth).
Begin practice by invoking Agni in the heart and navel; offer one recurring habit/impulse into the flame each repetition; end with quiet steadiness.
Mixed udatta/anudatta/svarita per Rigvedic recitation; refrain typically feels like a falling-then-sealing cadence on ‘…śośucat agham’.
Keep ‘prá’ lightly lifted; give clear weight to ‘ágnē’; articulate the retroflex/ś sounds in ‘śośucat’.
agne: keep ‘gn’ conjunct crisp (ag-ne), sūrayaḥ: long ū; final ḥ audible but light, jāyemahi: long ā; ‘ye’ as ‘yé’ not ‘jai’, śośucat: both ś are palatal ‘sh’; avoid dental ‘s’
Bright, steady, slightly heated tone; finish the refrain with firm release.
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