The goddess who loved the Fire God

Muskaan Gupta

The goddess who loved the Fire God

A common practice in many Hindu households to date is the carrying out of yagyas or sacrifices. These yagyas are offerings made to various gods via the messenger god, Agni, the fire devta. A key element of these yagyas are the mantras chanted, of which the most crucial is Om Swaha, which is spoken at the end of every mantra. The vitality of this phrase can be understood from a divine ancient love story- that of the fire god Agni and his consort Swaha.

A painting of Agni and Swaha (Source-Wikipedia)

Fire engulfs everyone and everything. Agni, the Hindu god of fire represents a power that is capable of destroying the existence of almost everything. However, as per the Brahmavantara Purana, there exists a power without which the existence of Agni is not possible, and which cannot be burned by Agni. This power is none other than Agni’s consort, Swaha, a form of Prakriti and the shakti (power) behind Angi.

The term swaha is derived from the root words ‘su’ implying good and ‘-aha’ meaning “to call”. It is a Sanskrit word that is spoken at the end of a mantra, wherein it implies ‘so be it’. This word's meaning in the Rig Veda is "oblation." The word is pronounced during every sacrifice made during a yagya. Popular traditions believe that if the word ‘swaha’ is not invoked during fire sacrifices and yagyas, God Agni will reject the offerings. This importance of Swaha is due to her status in the Hindu pantheon as a nymph or a minor goddess, who became immortal upon her marriage with Lord Agni.

The Vana Parva of the Mahabharata delves into the story of this otherworldly union. In the epic, Markandeya, a sage, narrates to Pandavas, that Swaha was the daughter of Prajapati Daksha and his wife Prasuti. One day Swaha, also known as Manyanti, saw the god of fire in a forest, where he was hiding after an unlikely episode with the Kritikas, the wives of the Sapta Rishis. While performing a sacrifice for the sapta rishis, Agni caught a glimpse of the Kritikas and became deeply infatuated with them. He kept staring at them until he realized the unrighteousness of the act. Filled with heavy guilt and hurt for longing for someone else’s wife, he resorted to hiding in the forests where Swaha spotted him.

Upon seeing him, Swaha fell in love with him at first sight and approached Agni. The guilt-ridden Agni, who had immersed himself in performing penances, did not notice her. Nonetheless, mad in love, Swaha was determined as she disguised herself as one of the Kritikas and seduced Agni. Content with her success, she went on to take the form of the other six Kritikas as well. Unknown to the fact that the seventh Kritika, Arundhati, was extremely devoted to her husband Vashishtha, she took her form and went to the fire god. Agni then realized that it was a trick, but instead of being enraged, was grateful to Devi Swaha as it was because of her that he had ‘quenched his thirst without breaking the sacred laws of marriage and without incurring the wrath of the sapta rishis’. Agni then accepted Swaha as his consort, much to her delight, and stated that no oblation would be accepted by him unless her name was chanted during the offering.

It is also believed that during each of these six times when Swaha seduced Agni, she threw the seed of each union into a golden pot, and carried them in the form of a bird, the Suparni, to a cave. Out of the cave was born a boy named Skanda, also known as Kartikeya, who later went on to become the commander of the army of devas. Swaha is therefore regarded as one of Skanda's many divine mothers. Agni's union with Swaha also led to the birth of their daughter who was named Agneya.

Another tale of their union exists in the Bhagavata Purana. After the creation of the world, the question of the sustenance of the heavenly beings remained unanswered. Brahma intervened and said that the sacrifices poured into the earthly sacrificial fires would be the food of the gods. They paid respects to the Great Goddess, who had appeared in front of them as the goddess "Swaha." The gods spoke to her in the following manner:

“O Goddess, Let yourself become the burning power of fire; who is not able to burn anything without thee. At the conclusion of any mantra, whoever taking thy name (Svaha), will pour oblations in the fire, he will cause those offerings to go directly to the gods. Mother, let yourself, the repository of all prosperity, reign over as the lady of his (fire’s) house.”

Later, Agni and Swaha were tied in matrimony by chanting holy mantras. Their union is a metaphysical play between Pran (soul or energy) and desire. Agni is energy. Offerings are required for Agni to burn continuously. When Hindus perform a ceremony, they bring many offerings to the fire altar and chant 'Swaha' to each one. If no offerings are made, the fire will gradually fade away. Pran is similarly satisfied by the fulfillment of desire. Swaha's various forms represent the inner quality of desire. The story of Agni and Swaha then is that of a union of fire that consumes, and sacrifice that sustains.