1.76.1
का त॒ उपे॑ति॒र्मन॑सो॒ वरा॑य॒ भुव॑दग्ने॒ शंत॑मा॒ का म॑नी॒षा |
को वा॑ य॒ज्ञैः परि॒ दक्षं॑ त आप॒ केन॑ वा ते॒ मन॑सा दाशेम ||
How may the mind draw nigh to please thee, Agni? What hymn of praise shall bring us greatest blessing? Or who hath gained thy power by sacrifices? or with what mind shall we bring thee oblations?
O Agni, what approach of the mind will win your favor? What contemplation brings the deepest peace and blessing? Who has encompassed your skill through sacred offerings, and with what inner disposition shall we offer to you?
The Rishi opens with sincere jijñāsā—sacred inquiry into upeti (approach), manīṣā (discerning thought), and dākṣa (ritual skill). In Sanātana Dharma, Agni is not coerced by mechanical rite alone; the quality of manas and bhāva determines whether the offering reaches the Devas. This verse places inner readiness before outer fire.
Before any important conversation, project, or apology, pause and ask: What intention will actually serve? Outer productivity without inner clarity rarely yields lasting blessing.
1.76.2
एह्य॑ग्न इ॒ह होता॒ नि षी॒दाद॑ब्ध॒: सु पु॑रए॒ता भ॑वा नः |
अव॑तां त्वा॒ रोद॑सी विश्वमि॒न्वे यजा॑ म॒हे सौ॑मन॒साय॑ दे॒वान् ||
Come hither, Agni; sit thee down as Hotar; be thou who never wast deceived our leader. May Heaven and Earth, the all-pervading, love thee: worship the Gods to win for us their favour.
Come here, Agni; sit as Hotar; be our undeceivable forerunner. May all-pervading Heaven and Earth favor you; worship the Gods so that great goodwill may be ours.
Agni as Hotar (divine invoker) and adabdha (never deceived) is the trustworthy purohita of the sacrifice. Rodasī—Dyaus and Pṛthivī—are invoked as cosmic witnesses. Saumanasa (good-minded favor of the Devas) is the fruit of rightly seated Agni, the bridge of ṛta between human and divine.
Choose undeceived leadership—integrity that cannot be bought by flattery. Healthy ecosystems of work and family need a center of trust that Sky-and-Earth (outer reality and inner truth) can both endorse.
1.76.3
प्र सु विश्वा॑न् र॒क्षसो॒ धक्ष्य॑ग्ने॒ भवा॑ य॒ज्ञाना॑मभिशस्ति॒पावा॑ |
अथा व॑ह॒ सोम॑पतिं॒ हरि॑भ्यामाति॒थ्यम॑स्मै चकृमा सु॒दाव्ने॑ ||
Burn thou up all the Rākṣasas, O Agni; ward thou off curses from our sacrifices. Bring hither with his Bays the Lord of Soma: here is glad welcome for the Bounteous Giver.
Burn away all the Rākṣasas, O Agni; become the shield that wards curses from our rites. Then bring the Lord of Soma with his bay horses; we have prepared hospitality for the generous giver.
Agni as rakṣasa-dahana and abhiśasti-pāvan protects yajña from hostile forces and verbal curse. He then conveys Indra, Soma-pati, on the hari steeds. Hospitality (ātithya) to the bounteous Deva is a core Sanātana ethic: purify the field, then welcome the guest of power.
Clear toxic dynamics and sabotage before inviting creative force into a project. Psychological ‘warding’—boundaries, hygiene, honest speech—precedes genuine collaboration and abundance.
1.76.4
प्र॒जाव॑ता॒ वच॑सा॒ वह्नि॑रा॒सा ऽऽ च॑ हु॒वे नि च॑ सत्सी॒ह दे॒वैः |
वेषि॑ हो॒त्रमु॒त पो॒त्रं य॑जत्र बो॒धि प्र॑यन्तर्जनित॒र्वसू॑नाम् ||
Thou Priest with lip and voice that bring us children hast been invoked. Here with the Gods be seated. Thine is the task of Cleanser and Presenter: waken us, Wealth-bestower and Producer.
With speech that fosters progeny I invoke the Fire-priest of the mouth; sit here among the Gods. You fulfill Hotar and Potar; awaken us, O Conveyor, Generator of treasures.
Agni holds multiple ṛtvij functions—Hotar (invocation) and Potar (purification)—embodying the full priesthood in one flame. Prajāvatā vacasā links sacred speech to continuity of lineage. As janitā vasūnām he awakens (bodhi) both material and spiritual vasu.
Integrate roles: speak truth, clean process, and generate value. Leadership that only inspires without purifying, or only audits without creating, stays incomplete.
1.76.5
यथा॒ विप्र॑स्य॒ मनु॑षो ह॒विर्भि॑र्दे॒वाँ अय॑जः क॒विभि॑: क॒विः सन् |
ए॒वा हो॑तः सत्यतर॒ त्वम॒द्याग्ने॑ म॒न्द्रया॑ जु॒ह्वा॑ यजस्व ||
As with oblations of the priestly Manus thou worshippedst the Gods, a Sage with sages, So now, O truthfullest Invoker Agni, worship this day with joy-bestowing ladle.
As you, yourself a seer among seers, worshipped the Gods with the offerings of priestly Manu, so now, O most truthful Hotar Agni, worship today with the gladdening ladle.
Continuity with Manu’s primordial yajña affirms paramparā: Agni as kavi among kavis renews the same ṛta today. Satyatara (most truthful) Hotar guarantees that the present juhū (ladle of offering) carries the same authentic force as the first ages.
Reconnect innovation to proven foundations. ‘As then, so now’ means adapting timeless integrity—honesty, shared craft, joyful discipline—rather than inventing ethics from scratch each generation.