Hymns of Vamadeva — Sukta 6 — Rig Veda — Audobook Video with Commentary

SUKTA 6 1. O Fire, summoner priest of the pilgrim-rite, stand up very high for us, strong for sacrifice in the forming of the gods: thou art the ruler over every Thought and thou carriest forward the mind of thy worshipper. 2. Free from ignorance, Fire, the rapturous priest of the call has taken his seat in creatures, the conscious thinker in their findings of knowledge. He enters into a high lustre like a creator Sun, like a pillar he makes his smoke a prop to heaven. 3. A luminous force of giving, swift and put forth into action, he widens the formation of the gods as he turns round it; new-born he stands up high like an arrow-shaft well- planted and firm and shows by his light the herds. 4. When the sacred grass is strewn and kindled burns the flame, the leader of the pilgrim-rite stands up high rejoicing in his work; Fire, the priest of the call, like a guardian of the herds thrice moves round them, the Ancient of days, ever widening his circle. 5. He goes round in his self-motion with measured run, Fire, the rapturous priest of the call, sweet of word, possessing the Truth; his flames gallop like horses, all the worlds are in fear when he blazes. 6. O Fire of the fair front! happy is thy vision; even when thou art terrible and adverse great is thy beauty: for they hem not in thy flame with the darkness, for the destroyers cannot set evil in thy body. 7. He is the begetter of things and his conquest cannot be held back, not even the father and the mother can stay him any longer in his impulsion. Now like a friend well-established, the purifying Fire has shone out in the human peoples. 8. The twice five sisters who dwell together have given birth to the Fire in the human peoples, the waker in the dawn, like a tusk of flame, brilliant and fair of face, like a sharp axe. 9. Bay-coloured are those horses of thine, dripping light, or they are red, straight is their motion, swift is their going, males, ruddy-shining, straight and massive, great in their deeds they are called to our forming of the Gods. 10. These are thy rays, O Fire, that put forth overwhelming force, moving, impetuous in their blaze, they move towards the goal like hawks in their action, with many voices of storm like an army of the life-god. 11. O high-kindled Fire, the Word has been formed for thee, one voices the utterance, one sacrifices, — now ordain: men set the Fire within as the priest of the call, making to him their prostration of surrender, aspirants to the self-expression of the human being. (Translated by Sri Aurobindo)