Gods (contd..)
One of the Upanishads starts with this dialogue.
 How many gods are there?asked the teacher.
 33000 said the pupil.
Can you reduce it further?
 Yes, It shall 3300.
 can you reduce it further?
Yes, it is 330.
 Can you further reduce?
Yea, it is 33. Finally, the pupil said, it can be reduced to 3.
Thus, the Gods are as many as one may assume.
These Gods and their names are enumerated and their powers are explained in Rk Vedaas follows:

   The very First Mantra of the First Sukta of The First Mandala of the Rk Veda is a mysterious one, highly esoteric and creative in its power of creation. Madhuchchandas VaishvAmitra praises the Deity Agni in gAyatrI Chandas- Agnim Iley purohitam . . . “| (RV 1.1.1.1) this is a Prayer mantra, an invocation addressed to the God of Fire, Agni. Agni is verily the most important of the Vedic gods for the three worlds are governed by Him. Agni is everything- pure, sat, cit, citi, jnyana, ananda, and the Master who presides. Fire rules the three worlds. He is the Aditya, the Sun in the Heavens (Svar), Varuna (in the subtle form of water vapour in clouds), vidyut and Lightning, in the Mid-region/antarisksha, (Bhuvah) Sky, and in gross form Indhana, Fire in arani sticks and quartzites and coal on Earth (Bhu). He, the Fire God Agni (citi), has pervaded the three worlds as Energy (chetana), Consciousness (prajnya), and Vital-breath (Prana). In fact, Bhagavan Shree Krishna says, aham vaisvanarObhUtva…| meaning that “He has entered all Jivas as Vaishvanara Agni and digests the four types of foods.” Agni is Truth, the purifier and sustains truth in man. He is the Jataveda and knows all jivas at birth.

Who created the Fire God?

    The omniscient, the omnipotent, self-effulgent, and the omnipresent Fire God need no creation since He is the Creator Parabrahman, the source of all creation. Agni is both the efficient and the material cause of the Universe. Agni in the form of Ghruni, Aditya, Surya- the Sun is the Father of the solar system and all subsequent creation on Earth, the Mother.

   Who is the author, the Rishi, of this Mantra? What means or Metre, Chchandas has he adopted? Which Devata the Guiding force, Light is the Rishi inviting to worship the Fire God, the Yjanyasya Devam? Who are these Purohita, Rutvijam (Rutvik), Hotaram (hotr) and the Ratna dhatamam? Moreover, what is the purpose of this adoration and worship? What does the Rishi want? Is it the worldly attainments that this Sage-seer is seeking or is it Mukti, Moksha, or Jnyan to break the shackles of the chain of metempsychosis that binds the Jiva eternally to the cycle of re-births? All these questions remain a secret forever. The Rks outwardly seek worldly riches ratna like jewels, wealth, progeny, cows, milk and honey, good rains and harvest, and seek protection of the wealth, health, and good physical strength; but, inwardly, the Sage is not interested in all these since he has got all these and has enjoyed the life so well that he is now seeking the higher Knowledge of ‘sat’, Brahman (Brahmavidya), the Knowledge of the Self (atmajnyan). He requests the gods to help him in his endeavor to attain to Brahman.

   Agni is jataveda. He is all-knowing and the only God who pervades all the three worlds. He is the citi, pure Consciousness. He is all-in-all. He is the one who sits in the Homa Kunda/ Havana Fire Place / Yajnya Kunda Bowl of Fire as the Fire God (yajnyasya deva) and, he is the one who sits in front of Fire Place (purohita) as well. He only can withstand the glare of the blazing flames. He is the one who conducts (hotru) the sacrificial ritual, accepts the offerings havi (rutvija) and take the aspirations of the people to the supreme Lord and brings the Blessings. He is the ratnadhatama, one who brings health, wealth, progeny, and Peace; he is the one who protects all. I adore Him as the supreme God Agni.

Origin of Agni 

   Agni being Jatavedas know all births! He is the Self-effulgent and He only exists in all animate and inanimate objects of creation. Agni is the all pervading pure Consciousness, RitambhAra-Prajnya, the ‘Truth-Consciousness’. This is the essence of all creation. In the parlance of popular science, fire (Agni) is created ordinarily by vibration, friction, fission and fusion. It is dormant in objects at rest. It is the potential energy that vibrates as kinetic energy. At-273 Deg. K. everything is at complete rest, Absolute Zero entropy), a state of equilibrium. The inherent Energy in the Atom (Matter) is released by friction and the Fire manifests in numerous forms. There are a thousand forms of Agni, and innumerable functions of Fire. Basically we have the 5-Fires (pancagnis- garhapatya, AhvanIya, vaishvanara, and the like).

    Every organic and inorganic substance is intrinsically citi, heat, Energy, only and it is the function of this chetana, prajnya that brings identity to the substance. The supreme Lord has pervaded the universe as ‘cit’, pure Consciousness and ‘citi’ (Fire). It is the Varna, Akshara Brahma ‘A’, the Purusha; He expands, collapses (kshara) and reduces Him self to form the tiniest of the substance, kana (k); He that develops an association (anyonyata) with ‘k’ (Prakruti) to form the ‘Ak’ of the Fire, ‘Ag’ of Agni. The atom (Matter) so formed (‘Ak’) only forms the Bha (Bhaskara, the Sun); bha (k) (Bhag, to burn) are the transformations of the letters, words and objects. There is ‘sat’ and supreme order, ritam in all these great transformations.The strength, vitality, potency, Sound of Breath (of the lord Vayu jeevottama) producing Svara, shabda, the Varna (akshara), the letters, Alphabets, and the like is the mysterious aspect of the Veda. The letters (varna) giving rise to word formation (pada) bring with them all the colours, qualities (guna) and objects (padartha).

  The principle here is that “sound creates word’ and ‘word creates the world’; and, thus, the entire universe is the product of the Sound, the sound of the Rk, Rucha, Mantra, Veda, Brahmana. Mantra, Vedavid, and Brahmana are all one and the same Veda Brahma.

                       Mantra brahmanyor-vedanamadheyam |       

                                             (Apasthambha sutram, 24.1.31).                                      

     Mantra is the mechanism or Tantra that brings out the power inherent in the word, the Sound, the Syllable (Bijakshara). The Rishi is the Brahmanaspati who uses the Mantra for creation. Together the three constitute the Veda.  

     The collapse (kshara) of the State of Yogic stance (Yoganidra) or disequilibrium of pure consciousness or wave in the Sea of Consciousness called ’Ak – kshara’, ie, collapse of ‘A’, the Purusha (Silence in Yoganidra) and re-emergence of the same (as Spirit) in the form of ‘k’- the Prakruti (dynamic aspect of Purusha) produces gross Fire/Matter (Elemental/Atomic Energy / Hydrogen in the case of Sun)! It is this Vibration, electrons in motion, Spanda, anyonyata or Sparsha that creates the world of objects starting with Fire (cetana). Fire God is thus the beginning of the Light, go-loka (galactic world), the Brahmanda or the universe; He is the Lord called Govindham (go/gau indham) the Adi Purusham. Ironically, ‘gou’ is also cow and Cow is Light in the Veda.

     Here, every letter, every word of the Rk Mantra, Varna is counted. Beginning with the letter ‘A’, letters Ak, and the word ‘agnim’ every letter, every word (pada), feet (carana / paada), and every Rk is a family of mystic origin that has its root in the Self. This is the beginning of the family of Language and its history. ‘A’, here, is the Ekakshara Parabrahman, the supreme Lord of the universe GOVINDHA whose breath vibrates (cittavrutti) and culminates in the creative Energy and Force manifesting the objective world of atoms, molecules and cells- ‘k’. It is virtually the delegated power of creation in the Creator Chaturmukha Brahma, symbolically sitting on the Lotus emanating from the navel of Mahavishnu. It is the first Letter of the primordial sound AUM. ‘Om’ is the sum and substance of the Veda.

      Here, the Letter (akshara), Sounds (shabda), Words (pada)- all mean a family; and, it starts with the family of nakshatras (Stars), go lokas (galaxies), at the Svar (Heaven) level, Indra, Agni, Varuna (Vayu), Maruta, etc at the antariks, Mid-Region, and the family, species of plants, animals and birds and human beings at the earth (Bhu) Level. Many families have disappeared and new ones have come in their place; so also is the Devabhasha of Kruta/Satya Yuga replaced by Samskruta, Prakruta, Pali of Dvapara and Kaliyuga. The same words of by-gone days have lost their original fervor and mean different today. The semantics and philology of these families of Languages need a careful study in order to understand the Veda. There is a sequential order in which the letters manifest from the navel and breath (of Brahman) such as the first letter ‘A’ and, from it emerges the next letter ‘u’ and ‘m’ to form the symbolic OM- the sacred Mantra of creation, sustenance and dissolution. Hence, it is very important to note that the letter, varna akshara, ‘A’ and ‘k’ emanating from the depth of Silence (GAP) is the creative Force (kriyashakti), Prakruti and it is mystic, Maya. From ‘Ak’ (‘ag’) comes the agnim (Fire) of the First Rk Veda Mantra.  Agni, the God of Fire, of the very first Mantra of the Rk Veda is the Creator of the universe. The Word is God; Agni is the World. Everything is ‘citi’, Consciousness, Fire, Agni. The word ‘Akshara’ itself forms the potential creator. ‘Akshara’ is Varna, vowel and consonants, subject and object, this and that, here and there giving rise to Time, Space, and Objects. The basic varnas are ‘a’, ‘i’, and ‘u’ and these are followed by their dheeragha svara ‘aa”, ‘I’, and ‘oo’. The rest of the letters are transformation of the first three letters/varnas only. Even the so called sacred first letter ‘Om’ is not anything but a logo/insignia/symbol; it is just an arc and its transformation. With the changing letter and its form there comes a change and transformation in object. A simple example in this respect is that of a Kingdom established by a King.  The King thought, ‘Let there be a Kingdom of mine’. He, without lifting a small brick, created a huge city, a large empire! So, everything is just a thought particle in the Mind. It is supported by breath, heart and soul! The First Manu svayambhu Vivasvan (Sun) or the Sixth Manu Cakshus or the Seventh Svayambhu Manu Vaivasvata are the Purusha and there is no Female counterpart here. All creations whether Male or Female, manifests from the One, advitiyam (no second) by mere vibration of citta (cittavrutti). Hence it is clear that all are just the brainchild (manasaputra) of the Creator- a product of Imagination! It is discernible that the world of objects including the humans is created by the very first letter ‘a’ of the Veda Mantra agnimeelay purohitam…| Agni is the Brahman, the Lord of the universe. He is the Truth, the ‘sat’. The Sun is referred to as the TRUTH / ‘sat’ throughout the Rk Veda. Thus, everything has emanated from the ‘sat’ of which the Satyam, Ritam, Dharma and Shruddha are the other derivatives that sustain this world of transcient objects and mortals, as also, the universe. And, everything is Agnim, the Perfect, Purnam* here.  Agni is the fire god. In many religions, especially the Parsi, ‘agni’ is the main Deity; most of the people still worship Fire since it is the Chief of Gods, a sustaining force. 

   Hence, it is understandable how the ritual of worship of the Sun-God was initiated by the Raghukula King Ikshvaku in Bharata. Everything is offered to the Sun-god and its replica is Fire (Agni). Agni is citi, pure Consciousness that pervades the three worlds- Bhu, Bhuvah and Svar. It is inherent in our physiological system as Vaishvanara digesting the food we eat and it is the agni that is in our eye, tongue, skin, brain, and what not? He is the sun in the svar, it is the Lightning in the sky (akasha) and, also, the fuel in earth. He is the Fire God. He is the purohita (Who sits in front), the One, ekam, who accepts our humble offerings (ahuti), takes our aspirations and dreams to the supreme Lord and brings back His blessings. He is the one who takes us to Heavens as ativahaka when we depart from this earth. Agni conveys the Jivatman to Maruta and Varuna, who in turn lead it to the Brahma Loka with the help of Maha Rudra.

   Yajnya: The Yajnya is God. The yajnya aspect of the sacrificial ritual is associated with the Veda, particularly the Yajurveda. The entire Veda is treated by ordinary people as a sacrificial ritual called Yajnya. The Yajnya, however, is the human effort to attain to the divine by sacrificing his personal interest in worldly affairs and devoting all his time to dhyana, dharana, yoga and Samadhi towards God-Realization.Yajnya as sacrifice is not suffering for others. It is transformation of the self by offering itself to the other.

  Yajnya is the most beautiful mystic word in the Veda. The letter ‘ya’ is of great importance here. It is followed by ‘ja’ and ‘nya’. The two letters Ja and nya makes janya, meaning ‘born of’ or ‘birth’. Born of what? The letter Ya stands for the supreme Consciousness that pervades the universe, Vishnu. Hence Yajnya is God Vishnu. When the Rishi says, “Agnimeelay”, he says,”I adore Lord Vishnu”.   Agni on the earth, Sun in the heavens, and Varuna and Maruta in the sky are our virtual Gods, they are the visible Light, Force, and Power of Mind. To realize this simple truth is beyond the ability of the common man! Agni is “Parameshvara”. Agni is worshiped in daily rituals in order to propitiate Him and get Food (annam), strength, wealth, progeny and all worldly desires are fulfilled by Him as Ratnadhata.Agni is also the Mokshadata. Moksha sadhanam or attainment of liberation is the goal of life, purushartha. However, there are numerous difficulties in attaining mukti or moksha. There are forces like indolence,  ignorance (avidya), anadhyata, weakness, laziness, boredom, disinterestedness, monotony, sickness, etc. that prevent spiritual practice and fifteen of them are enumerated in the sacred scriptures. These forces obstructing to acquiring knowledge of the Self are called the asuree shakti like Panis, Takshaks, Vrutra, Vala, dasyus, etc. there is a constant fight within the Mind between these opposing forces. The Mind is the Battlefield, ranaranga, Kurukshetra. Hence, the Rishis are praying the Lord Agni, Indra, through this invocation mantra.

 Other Prayers To Sun God: The most important prayer Mantras addressed to Sun as Agni Deva in Heavens (Svar) are the Gayatree and the Savitree. The Svitru Devatas are the divine forces

that help in Self-Realization; besides, there are the Mantras attributed to the Devas like Saraswati, Sarama, and Nr.simha. These Mantras are used in japa, in addition to study of scriptures (single-minded approach to scriptures as svadhyaya), steadfastness, concentration, and focused attention (dhruti and yoga). The evil forces that come in the way of enlightenment have to be cut asunder with the help of Indra, the Lord of the Luminous Mind (Light/JNYAN) and the hosts of Varuna, Mitra, Maruta, Agni, Ashvins, Vishve Devas (Gods/FORCES).

    Indra the slayer of the daitya Vrutra (a Serpent or Rakshasa?) is praised along with Agni, one of the two chief gods of the Vedic sacrifices. The Maruts and his companions Mitra Varuna, Twashtri, and others are strong forces that combat evil forces- the Panis, the Titans, Tarakas, Takshaks, the Vala and others. The lords of the ignorance have to be slained or enslaved to Indra, the God of all Gods. Purushartha, human fulfillment is important. Truth and its seekers and their wealth are indispensable to Yajnya. The most wealth-abounding head of the Panis- Paninam varshishte murdhnam asthat” (Rk Veda, VI.45.31) are the main problems in human attainments. These obstructive forces (serpents, Vrutra) have to be slain with the help of Indra.

   The implication of the sukta is thus very clear. All the Forces that thwart the progress in spiritual sadhana are to be controlled

 with the help of a strong determination (dhruti) and the deity of the Mind, Indra the Lord of the luminousMind is invoked here. When the evil Forces, disturbing thoughts are controlled the Cows hidden by the Panis ie, Light, comes out of the Caves (ignorance). Thus, the Gods help the sadhaka in his attainments to Knowledge and Illumination.

   The First Mantra of the Rk Veda is elaborately discussed in the Hymns of Mystic Fire by Shree Aurobindo. It gives an insight into ___________________________________________________

  [Note: From the letter mahiyan, manifests / emanates the atomic particle ‘kana’ (‘k’), the microcosmic world, the smallest of the smallest or the ‘anoranian’. It is by mere collapse of the akshara (A) into deep silence of contemplation and dynamic creative energy only to emerge again as the next letter ‘k’ and its representative object- the ‘Ak’, the agnim, the Fire-god- the Sun, the electric charges, the lightning, the fuel- et all emerge. The ‘Ak’ (‘Ag’) and ‘agnim’ are derivatives of the Creative Energy (cit-shakti) and Force in the Light (Knowledge) of the Parabrahman. Everything here is Brahman, pure Consciousness, the ‘sat’. From ‘sat’ emanates the ‘cit’ and, from sat and 'cit' emanate ‘ananda’, the pure sattva, the nature of parabrahman, sacchidananda svarupa. This is summed up in the aphorism- “sarvam khalvidam sarvam”.                                        

the nature of the Veda Mantras. It is better to look into the Glossory of Vedic Terms in order to understand the true meaning of the alphabets and the words used in the Veda. Even Sayana’s Nirukta is not helpful here since he also accepts that he does not know the meaning of many words! The Language of Gods that originate as vibration of 'cit' in the Navel of Vishnu reaches the hr’daya, Hari nivasa, the cavity of the heart, and gains its full potency, and finally it merges in Vishuddha, Shiva’s throat. It (the Sound) is heard by the Rishis in an exalted state of samprajnya Samadhi. This is apourusheya, the Veda! Actually, it is the Vedic Mantra on Ganapati that reveals the secret! Lord of the Ganas, the Earth sits in Muladhara plexus and writes the Veda with his broken tooth in the heart of the spiritual seeker! This is confirmed by Shree Krishna Dvaipayana sitting in the highest level of purified Mind.