Acharya Karan V – Agni or Fire is known as the primal force after the birth of the universe. In Hindu mythology, Agni Dev or the God of Fire has earned a respectful place as He is the one capable of dissipating everything into Himself. Agni is considered to be a symbol of knowledge and intellect as it kills the darkness symbolizing ignorance. Agni Dev is also considered to be a messenger of other Gods, conveying everything sacrificed to Him, to other deities. Whatever is sacrificed to Agni gets passed on to the concerned deity. Agni Dev is “Shaswat” or eternal, living forever in the ever-existing universe.

In Vedic scriptures, Agni is associated with Atma or soul recognized through the first senses of conscience, hence being the principal thought to be originated in intellect. The ancient Vedic people venerated Agni as the chief priest of Gods. They considered human will-power and strength enhanced with Agni puja, hence more than 200 mantras dedicated to Lord Agni in Rig Vedas. In Hindu mythology, Lord Agni is portrayed as one having two heads. One of the heads represents eternity and the other being a symbol of life. Having four hands, Lord Agni mounts on ram as his vehicle.

For ages, Hindus have considered Agni to be a symbol of a purifying agent. The Holi is celebrated as Lord Agni dissipated Holika – a symbol of evil – protecting Prahlaad. In Ramayana, Devi Sita tried to prove her chastity by passing through fire. In Mahabharta, Khandav Dahan purified the earth to make it ready for new structures to be built.

The prayer to Lord Agni is started with the following mantra mentioned in Rig Veda:

“AGNIMEELEY PUROHITAM YAJASYA DEVAM RITVIJAM HOTARAN RATNA DHATAMAM”

AGNI MANTRA -2
“… OM MAHA JWALAYA VIDHMAHE
AGNI DEVAYA DHEEMAHE
TANO AGNI PRACHODAYAT…”

AGNI MANTRA -3
“…VAISHVANARAYA VIDHMAHE
LALELAYA DHIMAHI
TANO AGNI PRACHODAYAT…”

Some other less difficult but more popular form of mantras also exists like:

“OM AGNAYA NAMAH”

“OM JATAVEDASE NAMAH”

“…OM AGNAYE SWAHA
IDAM AGNAYE IDAM NA MAM…”

These Agni mantras are often correlated with weight loss therapy or digestion improvement mantras, as Agni is directly for burning food inside our body. Lord Agni is usually venerated by a ritualistic Yagna or Sacrificial Fire performed at the time of sunset or sunrise in which Rice are offered two times, with the Vedic Mantras being chanted at the same time. Sometimes, the chief Yagna is preceded or followed by extra actions like three or five more sacrificial fires. The Agni Puja is usually performed by a Brahmin or a learned person who is well aware of the rules and procedures. Puja blessings brings health, wealth and prosperity for the worshipper.