The Religion of the Veda: The Ancient Religion of India (from Rig-Veda to Upanishads) c9.31

c9.31

In fact the gods cannot subsist without him. A very neat story which, as usual, remains one of the stock themes of story-telling India in later times, tells in two hymns of the Rig-Veda¹ how Agni on a certain occasion tired of this service. Agni has it born in upon him that his older brothers have worn themselves out in their job, and concludes that he had better dodge a like fate. Whereupon he escapes into the waters. But the god Yama discovers and betrays him, and Varuna, as the spokesman of the gods, finally induces him for a consideration to resume the task of expediting the sacrifice to the gods.² The names which he obtains in this capacity, such as "oblation-eater" and "oblation-carrier,"³ reappear familiarly in the Mahābhārata and later. There they are pigeon-holed, along with numerous other names, to be selected in the manner of the Norse kennings, to vary the diction, to swell its dignity, and to ease the task of the verse-maker. With a different turn, he brings the gods to the sacrifice, and seats them on the strewn grass. He thus becomes familiar with the roads that connect heaven and earth, and becomes the regular messenger between the two. In this capacity he is associated with the Angiras, a race of mythic semi-divine priests whose name seems to be identical with Greek ἄγγελος (angel), "messenger." They also mediate between gods and men, and naturally Agni is an Angiras, the first seer Angiras, the ancient Angiras, the most inspired of the Angiras.