Chapter 23The Twenty-Second Hymn to Agni

A HYMN OF THE JOURNEY TO THE PERFECT JOY [Man, the eater of things, seeks a fulfilment of his desires in a final equality of delight. To this end he has to be purified by the divine Flame, the Seer-Will who holds in himself the conscious vision and the utter rapture. By increasing him in us we shall journey forward with our progressing sacrifice and the gods will utterly manifest themselves. We must entertain this divine Force as the master of our house, our physical and mental body, and give it all the objects of our enjoyment as its food.]

EvvsAmEvdcA ' pAvkfoEcq

yo a2vr vFˆo hotA m d

tmo EvEf

1. Man who seekest thy equal fulfilment in all, sing as the enjoyer of things the word of illumination to him of the bright purifying flame, to the object of our adoration in the march of our sacrifices, to the priest of the offering most rapturous in the creature.

yEn

jAtv ds

dDAtA d vm

Evjm

y evAn

qg%A d v4yctm

2. Set within thee Will that knows all the births, the divine sacrificer in the seasons; today let thy sacrifice march for- ward unceasingly, thy sacrifice shall open to thee the whole epiphany of the godheads. EcEkEv mns

vA d v

mtA 's Uty

vr

yy t vs iyAnAso am mEh

Hymns of the Atris 3. Mortals, we have set our mind on thee the divine, for thou hast the mind of conscious vision; we meditate on thee as we journey, that we may increase and for the increase too of thee, the supremely desirable. an

EcEkd

2yy n id

vc shy

t

vA s

Ef d pt

tom v 'D ' yyo gFEB ' f

MB yy

4. Awake then, O Will, to the vision of this within us; this is our word to thee, O Lord of Force. Strong-jawed enjoyer, master of our house, the eaters of things increase thee by their affirmations and by their words they make thee a thing of bright gladness.