i used to be an Aires, now somehow I have been translocated to a pices. who changed our astrological signs anyway.

1. Agni, the Vedic God of Fire http://www.hinduwebsite.com/hinduism/concepts/agni.asp
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Hindu Pantheon Agni is the most popular
Upanishads
god of the Rigveda as is
Bhagavad-Gita
Buddhist Philosophy evident from the number
Practical Buddhism of hymns addressed to him
Symbolism
in the scripture. Fire is
Yoga
Scriptures central to all vedic rituals.
Vedas As the most potent and
My Horoscope
visible form of energy,
My Search
Web Directory useful but destructive at
Indian News the same time, it was both
Hinduism News
feared and revered by the
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Today in History vedic people. Almost
Technology Articles every mandala or division
Encyclopedias
of the
Information Portal
Rigveda
starts with a
hymn to
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Indian Gods Agni. The
Shani God vedic hymns
Lakshmi Gods
Worship Hymns praise him
Vedic Yantra
copiously
often
describing
him as the supreme god and creator. The
Recent Articles
Upanishads describe Atman or soul as a flame of
the size of a thumb. Other gods and elements such
as the earth, the air are but his manifestations. He
Support this site is the thunderbolt of Indra's weapon, the light of
The money generated
from the website will
the Surya. In the later vedic period he became, one
help us improve the of the Ashtadikpalas as lord of the southeast
website. Use our
shopping center to quarter. Agni is the chosen Priest, God, minister of
make your online
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2. Agni, the Vedic God of Fire http://www.hinduwebsite.com/hinduism/concepts/agni.asp
purchases from today. sacrifice, the hotar, who lavishes wealth and dispels
the darkness. Sapient-minded priest, truthful, most
gloriously great, ruler of sacrifices, guard of Law
eternal, radiant One, no sacrifice is complete
without his presence. His presence verily ensures
the success of a sacrifice, because whatever
sacrifice he accepts goes to the gods. Agni is the
messenger, the herald, master of all wealth,
oblation-bearer, much beloved, who brings the
willing Gods from the heavens and makes them sit
on the grass with him near the sacrificial altar. Agni
along with Indra, the lord of the heavens and
Surya, the lord of the skies, constitute the first
trinity of Hinduism. Their places were latter
assigned to Siva, Brahma and Vishnu respectively.
In the Puranas, Agni is subordinated to other gods.
We see in them a clear decline in his popularity and
significance. The Agni Purana, for example, is not
about the significance of Agni but of Vishnu as the
lord of the universe. Agni is a mere recipient of
divine knowledge like other vedic deities.
According to tradition Agni has ten forms, which are
described below. Of these the first five are his
material or natural forms and the next five his ritual
forms.
1. The ordinary fire
2. Lightning
3. The sun
4. The digestive fire (jatharaagni)
5. Destructive Fire (forest fire, fire that is going
to consume the worlds at the end of creation
and so on)
6. Fire produced using sticks for the purpose of
sacrificial ritual.
7. Fire given to a student at the time of his
initiation (upanayana) ceremony
8. The fire kept in the house for domestic rituals.
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3. Agni, the Vedic God of Fire http://www.hinduwebsite.com/hinduism/concepts/agni.asp
9. The southern fire of the ancestors used in
certain rituals.
10. The funeral fire used in the cremation rituals.
Agni is
appointed
by Manu as
the priest.
He is often
invoked
along with
Indra, with
whom he
shares the
pico.ameba.net Ads by Google passion for
soma drink. He is also invoked along with Maruts
probably to ward off the dangers of forest fires.
Agni, was the earliest Angiras, a Seer. After his holy
ordinance the Maruts, were born with their
glittering spears. Addressed as immortal Jatavedas,
many-hued effulgent gift of Dawn, bearer of
offerings and the charioteer of sacrifice, Agni is the
Lord of Red Steeds, who loves songs. Kind and
bountiful giver of gifts, of wondrous fame, Agni is
the friend of all, loved by many in their homes.
The Vedic Aryans were well aware of his destructive
ability, as he sets the forests aflame. "Urged by the
wind he 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 rushes eager
to the trees, 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." We also
know some thing about his origins. Matariswan
brought him down from the heavens and handed
him over to the Bhrigus for keeping.
In some of the hymns like the following ones, we
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4. Agni, the Vedic God of Fire http://www.hinduwebsite.com/hinduism/concepts/agni.asp
see Agni being elevated to the status of a supreme
god, " Agni is the Vaivashnara the center of all
people ... He is in the sky as well as at the center of
the earth." A similar notion can be found in this
hymns also. "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."
In the images, Agni is depicted with two heads,
long flowing hair, a pot belly, six eyes, seven hands,
four horns and three legs. His seven hands
represent the seven flames and the three legs
represent the three worlds which he reigns. His pot
belly denotes his love for rich oily food. His consorts
are svaha and svadha. Being a dhoomaketu, smoke
is his banner. The Ram is his vehicle, and the ram
being a typical sacrificial animal, his association
with it denotes his connection with sacrificial rituals.
Suggested Further Reading
Vedic gods
Vedic Sacrifice
Navagrahas,
the Planetary
deities
The
Ashtadikpalas,
Rulers of Eight
Directions pico.ameba.net Ads by Google
The History
and Tradition
of the Vedas
Mantra,
meaning and
significance
Hymns from
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5. Agni, the Vedic God of Fire http://www.hinduwebsite.com/hinduism/concepts/agni.asp
the Rig Veda
Tuesday , July 6, 2010
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