SACRED HYMNS TO AGNI

{Rig Veda, tr. by Ralph T.H. Griffith, [1896], at sacred-texts.com}

1. I Laud Agni, the chosen Priest, God, minister of sacrifice,
The hotar, lavishest of wealth.

2. Worthy is Agni to be praised by living as by ancient seers.
He shall bring hitherward the Gods.

3. Through Agni man obtaineth wealth, yea, plenty waxing day by day,
Most rich in heroes, glorious.

4. Agni, the perfect sacrifice which thou encompassest about
Verily goeth to the Gods.

5. May Agni, sapient-minded Priest, truthful, most gloriously great,
The God, come hither with the Gods.

6. Whatever blessing, Agni, thou wilt grant unto thy worshipper,
That, Angiras, is indeed thy truth.

7. To thee, dispeller of the night, O Agni, day by day with prayer
Bringing thee reverence, we come

8. Ruler of sacrifices, guard of Law eternal, radiant One,
Increasing in thine own abode.

9. Be to us easy of approach, even as a father to his son:
Agni, be with us for our weal.

1. How shall we pay oblation unto Agni? What hymn, God loved, is said to him refulgent?
Who, deathless, true to Law, mid men a herald, bringeth the Gods as best of sacrificers?

2. Bring him with reverence hither, most propitious in sacrifices, true to Law, the herald;
For Agni, when he seeks the Gods for mortals, knows them full well and worships them in spirit.

3. For he is mental power, a man, and perfect; he is the bringer, friend-like, of the wondrous.
The pious Aryan tribes at sacrifices address them first to him who doeth marvels.

4. May Agni, foe-destroyer, manliest Hero, accept with love our hymns and our devotion.
So may the liberal lords whose strength is strongest, urged by their riches, stir our thoughts with vigour.

5. Thus Agni Jatavedas, true to Order, hath by the priestly Gotamas been lauded.
May he augment in them splendour and vigour: observant, as he lists, he gathers increase.

1. THOUGH holding many gifts for men, he humbleth the higher powers of each wise ordainer.
Agni is now the treasure-lord of treasures, for ever granting all immortal bounties.

2. The Gods infallible all searching found not him, the dear Babe who still is round about us.
Worn weary, following his track, devoted, they reached the lovely highest home of Agni.

3. Because with holy oil the pure Ones, Agni, served thee the very pure three autumn seasons,
Therefore they won them holy names for worship, and nobly born they dignified their bodies.

4. Making them known to spacious earth and heaven, the holy Ones revealed the powers of Rudra.
The mortal band, discerning in the distance, found Agni standing in the loftiest station.

5. Nigh they approached, one-minded, with their spouses, kneeling to him adorable paid worship.
Friend finding in his own friend's eye protection, they made their own the bodies which they chastened.

6. Soon as the holy beings had discovered the thrice-seven mystic things contained within thee,
With these, one-minded, they preserve the Am?ta: guard thou the life of all their plants and cattle.

7. Thou, Agni, knower of men's works, hast sent us good food in constant course for our subsistence:
Thou deeply skilled in paths of Gods becamest an envoy never wearied, offering-bearer.

8. Knowing the Law, the seven strong floods from heaven, full of good thought, discerned the doors of riches.
Sarama found the cattle's firm-built prison whereby the race of man is still supported.

9. They who approached all noble operations making a path that leads to life immortal,
To be the Bird's support, the spacious mother, Aditi, and her great Sons stood in power.

10. When Gods immortal made both eyes of heaven, they gave to him the gift of beauteous glory.
Now they flow forth like rivers set in motion: they knew the Red Steeds coming down, O Agni.

1. MAY we, the pious, win much food by prayer, may Agni with fair light pervade each act,—
He the observer of the heavenly laws of Gods, and of the race of mortal man.

2. He who is germ of waters, germ of woods, germ of all things that move not and that move,—
To him even in the rock and in the house: Immortal One, he cares for all mankind.

3. Agni is Lord of riches for the man who serves him readily with sacred songs.
Protect these beings thou with careful thought, knowing the races both of Gods and men.

4. Whom many dawns and nights, unlike, make strong, whom, born in Law, all things that move and stand,—
He hath been won, Herald who sits in light, making effectual all our holy works.

5. Thou settest value on our cows and woods: all shall bring tribute to us to the light.
Men have served thee in many and sundry spots, parting, as ’twere, an aged father's wealth.

6. Like a brave archer, like one skilled and bold, a fierce avenger, so he shines in fight.

1. COMMINGLING, restless, he ascends the sky, unveiling nights and all that stands or moves,
As he the sole God is preeminent in greatness among all these other Gods.

2. All men are joyful in thy power, O God, that living from the dry wood thou art born.
All truly share thy Godhead while they keep, in their accustomed ways, eternal Law.

3. Strong is the thought of Law, the Law's behest; all works have they performed; he quickens all.
Whoso will bring oblation, gifts to thee, to him, bethinking thee, vouchsafe thou

4. Seated as Priest with Manu's progeny, of all these treasures he alone is Lord.
Men yearn for children to prolong their line, and are not disappointed in their hope.

5. Eagerly they who hear his word fulfil his wish as sons obey their sire's behest.
He, rich in food, unbars his wealth like doors: he, the House-Friend, hath decked heaven's vault with stars.

1. LIKE the Sun's glance, like wealth of varied sort, like breath which is the life, like one's own son,
Like a swift bird, a cow who yields her milk, pure and refulgent to the wood he speeds.

2. He offers safety like a pleasant home, like ripened corn, the Conqueror of men.
Like a Seer lauding, famed among the folk; like a steed friendly he vouchsafes us power.

3. With flame insatiate, like eternal might; caring for each one like a dame at home;
Bright when he shines forth, whitish mid the folk, like a car, gold-decked, thundering to the fight.

4. He strikes with terror like a dart shot forth, e’en like an archer's arrow tipped with flame;
Master of present and of future life, the maidens’ lover and the matrons’ Lord.

5. To him lead all your ways: may we attain the kindled God as cows their home at eve.
He drives the flames below as floods their swell: the rays rise up to the fair place of heaven.

1. ONE-MINDED, wise, they tracked thee like a thief lurking in dark cave with a stolen cow:
Thee claiming worship, bearing it to Gods: there nigh to thee sate all the Holy Ones.

2. The Gods approached the ways of holy Law; there was a gathering vast as heaven itself.
The waters feed with praise the growing Babe, born nobly in the womb, the seat of Law.

3. Like grateful food, like some wide dwelling place, like a fruit-bearing hill, a wholesome stream.
Like a steed urged to run in swift career, rushing like Sindhu, who may check his course?

4. Kin as a brother to his sister floods, he eats the woods as a King eats the rich.
When through the forest, urged by wind, he spreads, verily Agni shears the hair of earth.

5. Like a swan sitting in the floods he pants wisest in mind mid men he wakes at morn.
A Sage like Soma, sprung from Law, he grew like some young creature, mighty, shining far.

1. THE other fires are, verily, thy branches; the Immortals all rejoice in thee, O Agni.
Centre art thou, Vaisvanara, of the people, sustaining men like a deep-founded pillar.

2. The forehead of the sky, earth's centre, Agni became the messenger of earth and heaven.
Vaisvanara, the Deities produced thee, a God, to be a light unto the Arya.

3. As in the Sun firm rays are set for ever, treasures are in Vaisvanara, in Agni.
Of all the riches in the hills, the waters, the herbs, among mankind, thou art the Sovran.

4. As the great World-halves, so are their Son's praises; skilled, as a man, to act, is he the Herald.
Vaisvanara, celestial, truly mighty, most manly One, hath many a youthful consort.

5. Even the lofty heaven, O Jatavedas Vaisvanara, hath not attained thy greatness.
Thou art the King of lands where men are settled, thou hast brought comfort to the Gods in battle.

6. Now will I tell the greatness of the Hero whom Puru's sons follow as Vrtra's slayer:
Agni Vaisvanara struck down the Dasyu, cleave Sambara through and shattered down his fences.

7. Vaisvanara, dwelling by his might with all men, far-shining, holy mid the Bharadvajas,
Is lauded, excellent, with hundred praises by Purunitha, son of Satavani.

1. As ’twere Some goodly treasure Matarisvan brought, as a gift, the glorious Priest to Bh?gu,
Banner of sacrifice, the good Protector, child of two births, the swiftly moving envoy.

2. Both Gods and men obey this Ruler's order, Gods who are worshipped, men who yearn and worship.
As Priest he takes his seat ere break of morning, House-Lord, adorable with men, Ordainer.

3. May our fair praise, heart-born, most recent, reach him whose tongue, e’en at his birth, is sweet as honey;
Whom mortal priests, men, with their strong endeavour, supplied with dainty viands, have created.

4. Good to mankind, the yearning Purifier hath among men been placed as Priest choice-worthy.
May Agni be our Friend, Lord of the Household, protector of the riches in the dwelling.

5. As such we Gotamas with hymns extol thee, O Agni, as the guardian Lord of riches,
Decking thee like a horse, the swift prizewinner. May he, enriched with prayer, come soon and early.

1. NE’ER waxeth faint the Immortal, Son of Strength, since he, the Herald, hath become Vivasvan's messenger.
On paths most excellent he measured out mid-air: he with oblation calls to service of the Gods.

2. Never decaying, seizing his appropriate food, rapidly, eagerly through the dry wood he spreads.
His back, as he is sprinkled, glistens like a horse: loud hath he roared and shouted like the heights of heaven?

3. Set high in place o’er all that Vasus, Rudras do, immortal, Lord of riches, seated as High Priest;
Hastening like a car to men, to those who live, the God without delay gives boons to be desired.

4. Urged by the wind be spreads through dry wood as he lists, armed with his tongues for sickles, with a mighty roar.
Black is thy path, Agni, changeless, with glittering waves! when like a bull thou rushest eager to the trees.

5. With teeth of flame, wind-driven, through the wood he speeds, triumphant like a bull among the herd of cows,
With bright strength roaming to the everlasting air: things fixed, things moving quake before him as he flies.

6. The Bh?gus established thee among mankind for men, like as a treasure, beauteous, easy to invoke;
Thee, Agni, as a herald and choice-worthy guest, as an auspicious Friend to the Celestial Race.

7. Agni, the seven tongues' deftest Sacrificer, him whom the priests elect at solemn worship,
The Herald, messenger of all the Vasus, I serve with dainty food, I ask for riches.

8. Grant, Son of Strength, thou rich in friends, a refuge without a flaw this day to us thy praisers.
O Agni, Son of Strength, with forts of iron preserve thou from distress the man who lauds thee.

9. Be thou a refuge, Bright One, to the singer, a shelter, Bounteous Lord, to those who worship.
Preserve the singer from distress, O Agni. May he, enriched with prayer, come soon and early.

  (Samaveda, or Veda of Holy Songs, by Ralph T.H. Griffith, [1895], at sacred-texts.com}

1. The God who giveth wealth accept the full libation poured to him!
Pour ye it out, then fill the vessel full again, for so the God regardeth you!

2. The Gods made him the Hotar-priest of sacrifice, oblation bearer, passing wise.
Agni gives wealth and valour to the worshipper, to man who offers up his gifts.

1. He hath appeared, best prosperer, in whom men lay their holy acts:
So may our songs of praise come nigh to Agni who was born to give the Arya strength.

2. Him before whom the people shrink when he performs his glorious deeds,
Him who wins thousands at the sacrifice, himself, that Agni, reverence with songs!

3. Agni of Divoddsa, God, comes forth like Indra in his might.
Rapidly hath he moved along his mother earth; he stands in high heaven's dwelling-place.

1. Agni, thou pourest life: send down upon us food and vigorous strength:
Drive thou misfortune far away!

2. Agni is Pavamana, Sage, Chief Priest of all the fivefold tribes; To him whose wealth is great we pray.

3. Skilled in thy task, O Agni, pour splendour with hero strength on us, Granting me wealth that nourishes!

1. O Agni, holy and divine with splendour and thy pleasant tongue. Bring thou the Gods and worship them!

2. We pray thee bathed in butter, O bright-rayed! who lookest on the sun, Bring the Gods hither to the feast!

3. Sage, we have kindled thee, the bright, the feaster on oblation, thee, O Agni, great in sacrifice!

I. Adorable in all our prayers, favour us, Agni, with thine aid.
What time the psalm is chanted forth!

2. Bring to us ever-conquering wealth, wealth, Agni, worthy of our choice,
Invincible in all our frays!

3. Grant us, O Agni, through thy grace wealth to support us evermore,
Thy favour so that we may live!

1. Let songs of ours speed Agni forth like a fleet courser in the race,
And we will win each prize through him

2. Agni! the host whereby we gain kine for ourselves with help from thee,-
That send us for the gain of wealth!

3. O Agni, bring us wealth secure, vast wealth in horses and in kine:
Oil thou the socket, turn the wheel!

4. O Agni, thou hast made the Sun, the eternal star, to mount the sky,
Giving the boon of light to men.

5. Thou, Agni, art the people's light, best, dearest, seated in thy shrine
Watch for the singer, give him life!

1. Agni is head and height of heaven, the master of the earth is he:
He quickeneth the waters' seed.

2. Yea, Agni, thou as Lord of light rulest o'er choicest gifts may I,
Thy singer, find defence in thee

3. Upward, O Agni, rise thy flames, pure and resplendent, blazing high,
Thy lustres, fair effulgences.

1. He who hath lighted up the joyous castle, wise courser like the steed of cloudy heaven,
Bright like the Sun with hundredfold existence

2. He, doubly born, hath spread in his effulgence through the three luminous realms, through all the regions,
Best sacrificing Priest where waters gather.

3. Priest doubly born, he through his love of glory hath in his keeping all things worth the choosing.
The man who brings him gifts hath noble offspring.

1. Agni, with hymns may we now accomplish that which thou lovest,
Strength, like a horse auspicious, with service!

2. For, Agni, thou art now the promoter of strength auspicious,
Lofty sacrifice, power effective.

3. Through these our praises, come thou to meet us, bright as the sunlight,
Agni, kindly with all thy faces!

1. Immortal Jatavedas, thou bright-hued refulgent gift of Dawn.
Agni, this day to him who pays oblations bring the Gods who waken with the morn!

2. For thou art offering-bearer, well-loved messenger, and charioteer of holy rites.
Accordant with the Asvins and with Dawn grant us heroic strength and lofty fame!

1. Agni I deem our Hotar priest, munificent wealth-giver, Son of Strength, who knoweth all that is even as the Sage who knoweth all.
Lord of fair rites, a God with form erected turning to the Gods, he when the flame hath sprung forth from the holy oil, the offered fatness, longs for it as it grows bright.

2. We, sacrificing, call on the best worshipper thee eldest of Angirasas, singer! with hyrnns, thee, brilliant one! with singers' hymn;
Thee, wandering round, as 'twere the sky, thee who art Hotar-priest of men, whom, Bull with hair of flame, the people must observe, tile people that he speed them on.

3. He with his blazing Power refulgent far and wide, he verily it is who conquers demon foes, conquers the demons like an axe:
At whose close touch things solid partg and what is stable yields he keeps his ground and flinches not,like trees. Subduing all from the skilled archer flinches not.

1. O Agni, strength and fame are thine: thy fires blaze forth on high, O thou refulgent God!
Sage, passing bright, thou givest to the worshipper with power, the wealth that merits laud.

2. With brilliantg purifying sheen, with perfect sheen thou liftest up thyself in light.
Thou, visiting both thy mothers, aidest them as son; thou joinest close the earth and heaven.

3. O Jatavedas, Son of Strength, rejoice thyself, gracious, in our fair hymns and songs!
In thee have they heaped viands various, many formed; wealth born, of wondrous help are they.

4. Agni, spread forth, as ruler, over living things: give wealth, to
us, immortal God!
Thou shinest out from beauty fair to look upon: thou leadest
us to beauteous Power.

5. I laud the Sage, who orders sacrifice, who hath great riches under his control.
Thou givest blest award of good, and plenteous food, thou givest wealth that wins success.

6. The men have set before them, for his favour, Agni, strong, visible to all, the holy.
Thee, Lord divine, with ears to hear, most famous, mens' generations magnify with praise-songs.

1. Agni, he conquers by thine aid that brings him store of valiant sons and does great deeds,
Whose bond of friendship is thy choice.

2. Thy spark is black and crackling; kindled in due time, O bounteous, it is taken up.
Thou art the dear friend of the mighty Mornings: thou shinest in glimmerings of the night.

1. Him, duly coming, as their germ have plants received: this Agni have maternal Waters brought to life.
So, in like manner, do the forest trees and plants bear him within them and produce him evermore.

1. Agni grows bright for Indra: he shines far resplendent in the sky:
He sends forth offspring like a queen.

1. The sacred hymns love him who wakes and watches: to him who watches the holy verses.
This Soma saith to him Who wake my dwelling in thy friendship.

1. Agni is watchful, and the Richas love him: Agni is watchful, Sama hymns approach him.
Agni is watchful, to him saith this Soma, I rest and have my dwelling in thy friendship.

 Vedic Hymns, Part II (SBE46), by Hermann Oldenberg [1897], at sacred-texts.com

1. For Vaisvânara, the increaser of Rita, for Agni we produce a Dhishanâ like purified ghee. And verily by their prayer the invoking men (accomplish) him, the Hotri, as the axe accomplishes a chariot.

2. By his birth he has given splendour to both worlds (Heaven and Earth). He became the praiseworthy son of his parents, Agni, the carrier of oblations, never aging, with satisfied mind, undeceivable, the guest of men, rich in light.

3. Through the power of their mind, within the sphere of their superior strength the gods have procreated Agni by their thoughts. Desirous of winning the prize I address Him who shines with his splendour, who is great in his light, as (one who desires to win the prize addresses his) race-horse.

4. Desirous of winning the choice, glorious, and praiseworthy prize (which is the gift) of the joy-giver, we choose the boon of the Bhrigus, the Usig, who has the mind of a sage, Agni, who reigns with his heavenly light.

5. Men, having spread the sacrificial grass, holding the sacrificial ladle, have placed here in front (as Purohita), for the sake of (the divine) blessing, Agni renowned for strength, with great splendour, united with all the gods, the Rudra of sacrifices, who accomplishes the oblations of active (worshippers).

6. O (Agni) whose flame is purifying, around thy dwelling, O Hotri, the men who at the sacrifices have spread the sacrificial grass, O Agni, seeking (how to do) honour (to thee), and (desiring) thy friendship, surround thee (reverentially);—bestow thou wealth on them!

7. He has filled the two worlds (Heaven and Earth) and the great Sun, when the active ones (i. e. the priests) held him fast who had been born. He the sage is led round for the performance of worship, like a racer for the winning of the prize, with satisfied mind.

8. Adore ye him, the giver of offerings, the best performer of worship; honour ye him the domestic Gâtavedas. Agni, the charioteer of the mighty Rita, he who dwells among manifold tribes, has become the Purohita of the gods.

9. The immortal Usigs have purified three logs for the vigorous Agni who wanders round the earth: of these they have placed one among the mortals for their enjoyment; two have passed into the sister world.

10. The food offered by men has sharpened him, the sage of the tribes, the lord of the tribes, as an axe. Busily he goes to the heights and to the depths. He has held fast the germ in these worlds.

11. He the generator, the strong one, stirs in the resplendent bellies like a roaring lion, Vaisvânara with his broad stream of light, the immortal, distributing goods and treasures to his worshipper.

12. Vaisvânara has mounted the firmament, the back of heaven, as of old, glorified by those who are rich in good thoughts. He, creating wealth for the creatures as of old, goes watchful round the common course.

13. The righteous, worshipful priest deserving of praise, the dweller in heaven whom Mâtarisvan has established (on earth): him we approach whose way is bright and hair golden, the resplendent Agni, for the sake of ever new welfare.

14. Like the flaming one (the sun?) on his way, the quick one, of sun-like aspect, the banner of heaven, who dwells in light, who wakes at dawn—Agni the head of heaven, the unrepressed, him we approach with adoration, the strong one mightily.

15. The joy-giving, bright Hotri, in whom is no falsehood, the domestic, praiseworthy dweller among all tribes, like a splendid chariot, wonderful to behold, established by Manus: him we constantly approach for the sake of wealth.

1. They have worshipped Vaisvânara with his broad stream of light with prayers and treasures in order that he may walk on firm ground. For immortal Agni honours the gods, and from of old he has not violated the laws.

2. The wonderful messenger goes between the two worlds (heaven and earth), the Hotri who has sat down, the Purohita of Manus. He takes care of his wide dwelling day by day, Agni who, incited by the gods, gives wealth for our prayers.

3. The priests have exalted with their thoughts Agni, the banner of sacrifices, the achiever of sacrifice. From him in whom they have put together their (sacrificial) works and their prayers, the sacrificer desires blessings.

4. The father of sacrifices, the miraculous lord of those who know prayers (?), Agni, is the measure and rule of the sacrificers; he has entered the two manifold-shaped worlds; the sage beloved by many people is glorified in his foundations.

5. The gods have established here in great beauty Agni the bright with his bright chariot, whose every law is golden, Vaisvânara who dwells in the waters, who finds the sun, the diver, the swift one covered with strength, the quick one.

6. Agni, spreading out with his thought the manifold-adorned sacrifice, together with the gods and with the people of Manus, goes as a charioteer to and fro with (gods and men) who accomplish the sacrifice, the quick, domestic (god), the dispeller of curses.

7. Agni, be wakeful in our life which may be blessed with offspring; swell with sap; shine upon us (plenty of) food. Stir up vigour and the great ones, O watchful (god). Thou art the Usig (or willing one) of the gods, the good-minded (lord) of prayers.

8. The lord of the tribe, the vigorous guest, the guider of prayers, the Usig (or willing one) of those who invoke him, Gâtavedas, the light of worship—him men constantly praise with adoration, with solicitations for their welfare.

9. The resplendent, joyous god, Agni on his chariot, has with his might encompassed the dwellings. May we honour in our house with beautiful prayers his commands who is rich in manifold prosperity.

10. O Vaisvânara, I love thy statutes by which thou hast found the sun, O far-seeing one. When born thou hast filled the worlds, heaven and earth; Agni, thou encompassest all these (beings) by thyself.

11. For Vaisvânara's wonderful deeds he the sage alone has by his great skill mightily let loose (his powers?). Agni has been born exalting. both his parents, Heaven and Earth, rich in seed.

Agni Purán´a

"That Purán´a which describes the occurrences of the Ísána Kalpa, and was related by Agni to Vasisht´ha, is called the Ágneya: it consists of sixteen thousand stanzas." The Agni or Agneya Purán´a derives its name from its having being communicated originally by Agni, the deity of fire, to the Muni Vasisht´ha, for the purpose of instructing him in the twofold knowledge of Brahma.

The Agni Purana is sacred because it tells us about the essence of the brahman (the divine essence). 

Agni Purana:
The Incarnations of God

Avatars

Do you know what an avatara is? An avatara is an incarnation and means that a god adopts a human form to be born on earth. Why do gods do this. The purpose is to destroy evil on earth and establish righteousness. Vishnu is regarded as the preserver of the universe and it is therefore Vishnu’s incarnations that one encounters most often. Vishnu has already had nine such incarnations and the tenth and final incarnation is due in the future. continue...

Agni Purana: Harivamsha and Mahabharata

Agni Purana: Buddha, Kalki, and Creation

Buddha and Kalki

The ninth avatara of Vishnu was Buddha and the tenth will be Kalki.

Many years ago, there was a war between the devas and the asuras in which the demons managed to defeat the gods. The gods went running to Vishnu for protection and Vishnu told them that Mayamoha would be born as Buddha, the son of Shuddhodana. Such were the illusions that Buddha created, that the asuras left the path indicated by the Vedas and became Buddhists. These dastardly creatures performed ceremonies that were a sure ticket to naraka. Towards the end of the Kali era, all people will be dastardly. They will oppose the Vedas, become robbers and will be concerned only with wealth. The disbelievers will then become kings and these kings will also be cannibals.

Much later, Kalki will be born on earth as the son of Vishnuyasha. He will take up arms to destroy these disbelievers. Kalki’s priest will be the sage Yajnavalkya. The norms of he four classes (varna) and the four stages of life (ashrama) will be established yet again. People will honour the sacred texts and become righteous. It will then be time for the dawn of a new satya yuga, a fresh period of righteousness.

In every cycle (kalpa) and in every era (manvantara) Vishnu is thus born in various forms. It is a sacred duty to listen to the stories of the ten avataras. The listener attains his desires and goes to heaven.

Creation

Agni next told Vashishtha the history of creation.

Vishnu is the Lord of creation, preservation and destruction. Before creation, it was only the brahman that was everywhere. There was no day, night or sky.  continue...

Agni Purana: Temples, Holy Places, and Astrology Agni Purana: Manvantaras, Varnashrama, and Vratas Agni Purana: Hellish Planets, Charity, and the Gayatri Mantra

Gayatri Mantra

Gayatri mantra is a very powerful incantation.

The human body has many veins. Out of these, ten veins are important and their names are Ida, Pingala, Sushumna, Gandhari, Hastijihva, Pritha, Yasha, Alambusha, Huha and Shankhini. These veins bear the breath of life. The breath of life is called prana vayu. Apart from prana vayu, nine other major breaths course through the human body. Their names are Apana, Samana, Udana, Vyana, Naga, Kurma, Krikara, Devadatta and Dhananjaya.

Gayatri is a goddess worshipped even by Vishnu and Shiva. This goddess is there everywhere, even in every individual’s heart in the form of a swan. Gayatri mantra is an incantation to the goddess. If one chants the mantra seven times, one’s sins are forgiven. Chanting it ten times means that one attains svarga. To attain worlds (lokas) which are even more desirable than svarga, one has to chant gayatri mantra twenty times. If one chants the mantra a hundred and eight times, one does not have to be born again. The severest of sins, like killing cows, brahmanas or parents, are forgiven if one chants the mantra a thousand times. Gayatri mantra has always to be preceded by the chanting of the sacred syllable Om.  continue...

Agni Purana: Dreams, Omens, and the Instructions of Rama Agni Purana: The Science of Fighting, Dynasties, and Literature Agni Purana: Destruction, Yoga, and Knowledge of Brahman

Yoga

Yoga is the way to circumvent the miseries of life. True knowledge is that which informs one about the true nature of brahman or paramatman. The atman or jivatman is that which characterises an individual. Yoga means union, it is the union of the jivatman with the paramatman. Yoga concentrates one’s mind on the paramatman.

The first prerequisites of yoga is non-violence. A non-violent person is always righteous. The second requirement of yoga is truthfulness. The third prerequisite is celibacy. The fourth is controlling one’s senses and the last is the worship of god. One who practices yoga should not go around collecting material possessions. A piece of cloth, a covering against the cold, and a pair of sandals are possessions enough for him.

Before meditating on the true nature of the paramatman, one has to seat oneself in a proper asana (posture). The piece of cloth on which one is to sit should be placed in a clean place. One sits on such a seat and tries to purify one’s atman by controlling one’s mind and senses through yoga. The head and the neck should be held straight up, motionless. The point of vision should be directed towards the tip of one’s nose. One should not look in any direction. The arms should lightly rest on the folded thighs and the right hand should be placed, palm upwards, on the left palm. Padmasana (lotus position) is one such recommended posture.

The breath of life (prana vayu) has to be controlled. This process of control is known as pranayama. A finger is placed on the nose when the breath is being exhaled. The entire breath should be exhaled from the body. Since rechana means exhalation, this process of control is known as rechaka. When the breath is inhaled, the inhalation should be such that it fills the entire body. Since puraka literally means ‘that which fills’, this process of control is known as puraka. When the breath is neither being exhaled nor inhaled, one sits completely still like a kumbha (pot) and this is known as kumbhaka. Pranayama makes one healthy, swift, enthusiastic, strong and collected. Since the senses are controlled, one goes to heaven and avoids going to hell. Material pursuits are like the strong current of a river. The atman drowns in it.

Pranayama alone is not enough. It has to be supplemented with dhyana of japa (meditation and contemplation). One contemplates the true nature of the paramatman. The body is like a chariot. The senses are its horses, the mind is the charioteer and pranayama is the bridle. An individual who dies while performing dhyana is immediately assimilated with Vishnu.

Dhyana involve four different things, all of which must be in complete harmony. The first is the meditator, the second is the act of meditating, the third is the object that one is meditating upon and the fourth is the reason why one is performing the mediation. One does not have to; sit in a rigid posture for dhyana to be possible. It can be done while one is walking, sitting or even sleeping. The important aspect is to establish the object of one’s meditation in one’s heart.

There are different ways of establishing one’s concentration. As an object of meditation, one can meditate on three concentric circles which are black, red and white. In the centre of the circles is a divine lotus. The lotus has eight petals. One thinks that detachment is the stem of the lotus and praying to Vishnu its stamen. Right in the centre of the lotus is a pure spark of fire and that is the paramatman. Alternatively, one can visualise the paramatman in a blaze of light, in the centre of the lotus. Dhyana is far far superior to any yajna that one might perform.

One particular form of deep and intense meditation is known as samadhi. The meditator is then completely still, as calm as the ocean. He loses all track of the outside world. He does not hear, smell, see or touch. His mind has no wishes and feels nothing. He is completely united with god. Such a meditator automatically gets to know all the knowledge that can be gleaned from the Vedas or the shastras. He can obtain all the material possessions that he wants, but he regards them all as no more important than a blade of grass.

Such a meditator attains supreme knowledge. If you look at various pots full of water, you will find that the same sky is reflected in them all. Supreme knowledge tells one that, exactly similarly, it is the same atman that is everywhere. It is the atman which is the same as the paramatman, it is this atman that is in the water, in energy, in water, in the earth and in metals. The atman is everywhere.

The Knowledge of The Brahman

Brahma jnana is the knowledge of brahman. This knowledge, which gives the ultimate bliss, is nothing but the sense that the individual atman is identical with the universal brahman or paramtman. The physical body is not the atman. Nor are the senses the atman. The mind or intelligence is not the atman. Life itself is not the atman.

The atman is different from all the objects that have been mentioned above. The atman is in an individual’s heart. It sees everything and senses everything, but is different from the physical body. It is this that sages contemplate when they meditate. The sky was created from the brahman, from the sky came wind, from wind fire, from fire water, from water the earth and from the earth the five elements. One has to meditate on the physical body gradually disappearing and merging into the brahman.

The brahman is neither true nor untrue. It has neither form nor is it without form. The brahman has several parts, but at the same time it is an integral whole. The brahman cannot be described. It cannot be achieved through the power of action. The brahman is always pure. It has no ties and it is the true form of happiness. What is required is the sense that it is I, the individual, who am the brahman. I am nothing but the atman and the atman is nothing but the brahman. This sense is true knowledge. The brahman is the Lord who is the origin of everything and the individual is part of the brahman. It is this knowledge that frees one from the ties of the world and this is what brahman jnana is all about.

The brahman is not the earth; it is beyond the earth. The brahman is not the wind, nor is it the sky. The brahman has no beginning; it is independent of all action. The brahman is huge; it is everywhere. The brahman not only has no form, it is beyond all form. The brahman cannot be heard. It cannot be touched. The brahman has neither intelligence nor mind. It has no sense of ego or vanity. It does not have life, birth, old age or death.

The brahman is neither happy nor unhappy. It does not feel hungry or thirsty. It cannot be measured. At the same time, it is both nothing and everything.

Life has five possible ends. By performing yajnas one can attain heaven. By performing tapasya one can become an ascetic. By performing actions one can attain brahmaloka. By detachment from material pursuits (vairagya) one can merge oneself into nature. And by true knowledge the individual gets absorbed into the divine essence. This is known as kaivalya. Detachment means to withdraw oneself from the effects of all actions. And knowledge means the knowledge that the atman is no different from the brahman. This is known as jnana yoga (the yoga of knowledge).  continue...

The Gita

Krishna had taught Arjuna the lessons of the Gita on the plains of Kurukshetra. The Agni Purana now relates the essence of the Gita.

If physical body is alive, that is no reason for rejoicing. Just as, if the physical body is dead, that is no reason for mourning. The atman does not die. It does not decay, it cannot be destroyed and it is immortal. The atman does not warrant any tears that might be shed over it. people who are addicted to sensual pleasures cannot realise this. The person who is addicted to the atman alone has no desire for anything else. He had no action to perform. He had neither gains nor losses. The knowledge of this is like a raft that rescues one from the flood of illusions.

Biblical Passages and Verses

The Fire is God's Presence

The angel of Yahweh appeared to him in the shape of a flame of fire. —Ex. 3.2

Yahweh went before them...in the form of a pillar of fire to give them light. —Ex. 13.21

Where could I go to escape your spirit?
Where could I flee from your presence?
If I climb the heavens, you are there,
There too, if I lie in Sheol.
—Ps. 139.7-8

He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. —Lk. 3.16

Something appeared to them that seed like tongues of fire; these separated and came to rest on the head of each of them. —Acts 2.3

Our God is a consuming fire. — Heb.12.29; Deuteronomy 4:24

Understand therefore this day, that the LORD thy God is he which goeth over before thee; as a consuming fire.....—Deut.  9.3

... the fire will test the quality of each man's work...If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.
—1 Cor. 3.13b...15

Twin Flames in Love
Introduction of the Goddess of Prosperity, Srí.

Vishnu Purana, Book I, Chapter VIII

PARÁSARA.--Srí, the bride of Vishn´u, the mother of the world, is eternal, imperishable; in like manner as he is all-pervading, so also is she, oh best of Brahmans, omnipresent.

Vishn´u is meaning; she is speech. Hari is polity (Naya); she is prudence (Níti). Vishn´u is understanding; she is intellect. He is righteousness; she is devotion. He is the creator; she is creation.
 

Srí is the earth; Hari the support of it. The deity is content; the eternal Lakshmí is resignation. He is desire; Srí is wish. He is sacrifice; she is sacrificial donation (Dakshiná).
 

The goddess is the invocation which attends the oblation; Janárddana is the oblation. Lakshmí is the chamber where the females are present (at a religious ceremony); Madhusúdana the apartment of the males of the family.
 

Lakshmí is the altar; Hari the stake (to which the victim is bound). Srí is the fuel; Hari the holy grass (Kusa). He is the personified Sáma veda; the goddess, lotus-throned, is the tone of its chanting.
 

Lakshmí is the prayer of oblation (Swáhá); Vásudeva, the lord of the world, is the sacrificial fire. Saurí (Vishn´u) is Sankara (Siva); and Srí is the bride of Siva (Gaurí). Kesava, oh Maitreya, is the sun; and his radiance is the lotus-seated goddess.

Vishn´u is the tribe of progenitors (Pitrigana); Padma. is their bride (Swadhá), the eternal bestower of nutriment. Srí is the heavens; Vishn´u, who is one with all things, is wide extended space.

The lord of Srí is the moon; she is his unfading light. She is called the moving principle of the world; he, the wind which bloweth every where.

Govinda is the ocean; Lakshmí its shore. Lakshmí is the consort of Indra (Indrání); Madhusúdana is Devendra. The holder of the discus (Vishn´u) is Yama (the regent of Tartarus); the lotus-throned goddess is his dusky spouse (Dhúmorná).
 

Srí is wealth; Sridhara (Vishn´u) is himself the god of riches (Kuvera). Lakshmí, illustrious Brahman, is Gaurí; and Kesava, is the deity of ocean (Varuna).

Srí is the host of heaven (Devasená); the deity of war, her lord, is Hari. The wielder of the mace is resistance; the power to oppose is Srí. Lakshmí is the Kásht´há and the Kalá; Hari the Nimesha and the Muhúrtta.

Lakshmí is the light; and Hari, who is all, and lord of all, the lamp. She, the mother of the world, is the creeping vine; and Vishn´u the tree round which she clings. She is the night; the god who is armed with the mace and discus is the day. He, the bestower of blessings, is the bridegroom; the lotus-throned goddess is the bride.

The god is one with all male--the goddess one with all female, rivers. The lotus-eyed deity is the standard; the goddess seated on a lotus the banner. Lakshmí is cupidity; Náráyan´a, the master of the world, is covetousness.
 

Oh thou who knowest what righteousness is, Govinda is love; and Lakshmí, his gentle spouse, is pleasure. But why thus diffusely enumerate their presence: it is enough to say, in a word, that of gods, animals, and men, Hari is all that is called male; Lakshmí is all that is termed female: there is nothing else than they.

The Lady of the Banner of Peace, by Nicholas Roerich

The Lady of scarlet flame,
The Lady of the Banner of Peace!
Upon You, Our Lady, we set our hopes.
Who will raise the Sign of Peace,
The Sign of the Preservation of Heavenly Treasures!
Who, if not You, will help us
To raise the Banner, the Sign of creation for the sake of people?
The sea is rough, and whirlwinds are destructive,
But You’ll raise the Banner
And fill people’s hearts
With the consciousness of the sacred Spirit.
You know that this Sign must not be put off,
You know what destructions the earth has survived,
You know how the best things are defamed,
The things which are indispensable for people.
By Nicholas Roerich. Flowers of Moria. The Lady of the Banner of Peace

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About Cheryl | Agni Yoga (AY) | Credits

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I will be waiting here 

For your silence to break 

For your soul to shake 

For your love to wake.-

- Rumi

*Agni Yoga Society

"Agni is one of the most important of the Vedic gods. He is the god of fire, the messenger of the gods, the acceptor of sacrifice. Agni is in everyone's hearth; he is the vital spark of life, and so a part of him is in all living things; he is the fire which consumes food in peoples' stomachs, as well as the fire which consumes the offerings to the gods. He is the fire of the sun, in the lightening bolt, and in the smoke column which holds up the heavens. The stars are sparks from his flame. He was so important to the ancient Indians that 200 hymns in the Rig Veda are addressed to him, and eight of its ten books begin with praises dedicated to him.  

Deva Premal & Miten with special guest Manose, (and a tuned in audience) sing the Gayatri Mantra. This is an excerpt from their CD/DVD "In Concert". 

'Om Bhur Bhuvah Svaha 

Tat Savitur Varenyam 

Bhargo Devasya Dhimahi

 Dhiyo Yonah Prachodayat'