Agni: archetypal image of the creative force

Agni and his consort, circa 1800. US public domain via wikimediaIt is said that
Agni is the first-born; that Agni is the God of fire. Agni is an image of the cr
eative force.
In the above image we see the Hindu deity Agni and his consort Svaha. Agni appe
ars in his dual nature, with two heads he faces both God and man.
While Agni is the first-born and beginning, his consort Svaha is an expression o
f release. Svaha is called out during a fire (Agni) sacrifice to express release
. Conze says Svaha is an ecstatic shout of joy, expressive of a feeling of comple
te release (2001).
The word Agni ????? may have originated from the Proto-Indo-European languages.
In its Latin forms we see the variations: ignio to ignite, ignesco to kindle, burn
, igneus fiery, ignifer bearing fire (from Wikipedia).
Carl Jung sees Agni as an emanation of the inner libido-fire and at the same time t
he sacrificial flame (Cw 5, para. 246). Mythically, the fire of Agni is said to a
ppear in three forms: in heaven as the sun, in mid-air as lightning, on earth as
fire (Dowson, 1879). Agni is the divine mediator (Jung, CW 5). Max Muller says:
It was a familiar idea with the Brahmans to look upon the fire both as the subjec
t and the object of a sacrifice. The fire embraced the offering, and was thus a
kind of priest; it carried it to the gods, and was thus a kind of mediator betwe
en gods and men. But the fire represented also something divine, a god to whom h
onor was due, and thus it became both the subject and the object of the sacrific
e. Hence the idea that Agni sacrifices himself, that he offers a sacrifice to hi
mself, and likewise that he offers himself as a sacrifice (cited in Jung CW5).
We might say that the inner libido-fire acts as a mediator between men and gods.
In this role Agni may exhaust his vigor by devouring too many oblations ( Mahabha
rata cited in Dowson, 1879).
As first born, Agni is the child of the great parents; and in being so, Agni ass
ists humanity in Self-realization:
The representations of [Agni] vary. We have met previously the greatest parents o
f them all: Heaven and Earth. Their union was conceived in early Indo-European t
imes as the fruitful source of the heavenly gods (Dowson, 1879, see footnote)
Agni holds a relation to the primal couple, to the primal scene as source of cre
ation. From this primal scene arises the fire. Dowson continues:
God Agni, Fire, is occasionally regarded as the progenitor of men. There is in this
some vague symbolic connection with the process of obtaining fire by friction.
This is the Vedic process : the two sticks which are rubbed are conceived as par
ents. Agni is their child, the first progeny, and, next, possibly, the first man
(ibid).
Agni is born of the parental couple, both in eternal form and temporal, both sym
bolic and literal. He emerges from the relation between container and contained
, from the friction of vessel and staff. Agni occurs in the three manifestations
of being: pure source, emanation, manifestation. And in each of these forms he
is the creative force. Carl Jung speaks of the fire sacrifice in Indian thought:
The pramantha instrument of the manthana (fire sacrifice), is conceived under a p
urely sexual aspect in India, the fire-stick being the phallus or man, and the b
ored wood under-neath the vulva or woman. The fire that results from the boring
is the child, the divine son Agni. The two pieces of wood are ritually known as
pururavas urvasi, and, when personified, are thought of as man and woman. The f
ire is born from the genitals of the woman (CW 5, para. 210).
Weber describes the ritual is as follows:
A sacrificial fire is kindled by rubbing two fire-sticks together. One of the fir
e-sticks is taken up with the words: Thou art the birth-place of fire, and two bla
des of grass are placed upon it: Ye are the two testicles. The priest then places
on them the adhararani (the underlying piece of wood), saying: Thou art Urvasi, an
d anoints the uttargrani (uppermost piece) with butter: Thou art the power (semen)
. This is then placed on the adhararani, with the words: Thou art Pururavas. Rubbi
ng them together three times the priest says: I rub thee with the Gayatrimetrum:

I rub thee with the Trishtubhmetrum: I rub thee with the Jagatimetrum (cited in J
ung CW5, para 210).
In this regard Jung also cites the Rig Veda:
Here is the gear for friction, here tinder is made ready for the spark. Bring the
mistress of the people: we will rub Agni in ancient fashion forth. In the two f
ire-sticks lies Jatavedas, safe as the seed in pregnant women; Daily let Agni be
praised by men who watch and worship with oblations. Let this (staff) enter int
o her as she lies there outstretched, 0 you skilled ones; Straightway she concei
ves, has given birth to the fructifier: With his red pillar lighting his path, t
he son of Ila is born from the precious wood (para. 211)
Above, Agni is the fructifier, the giver of light and warmth, the child that is
born from divine coupling, in both literal and symbolic fire. Agni is the creativ
e force, but he is also the destructive force. Fire both ignites and consumes, an
d through this Agni offers transformation through both creation and sacrifice. D
awson (1879) says:
Agni can be devouring element and intelligent god at one and the same time. Even
the Epic poet in the Mahabharata stops to wonder: There is but one Agni, yet is
he kindled manifold ; and Agni himself is made to say : Because I can multiply mys
elf by the power of mental concentration (yoga), therefore am I present in the b
odies (of men, as vital fire).
Agni is both within and without. Jung says:
The Brahmans to look upon the fire both as the subject and the object of a sacrif
ice. The fire embraced the offering, and was thus a kind of priest; it carried i
t to the gods, and was thus a kind of mediator between gods and men. But the fir
e represented also something divine, a god to whom honour was due, and thus it b
ecame both the subject and the object of the sacrifice. Hence the idea that Agni
sacrifices himself, that he offers a sacrifice to himself, and likewise that he
offers himself as a sacrifice (CW 5).
This whole idea of creator-created, container-contained is related to speech and
the capacity for symbolization. Carl Jung cites the Aitareya Upanishad:
Then he drew forth a Person (purusha) from the waters and shaped him. He brooded
upon him, and when he had brooded him forth, a mouth split open like an egg. Fro
m the mouth came speech, and from speech fire.
And again in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad:
Yajfiavalkya, what is the light of man?
The sun is his light, he answered. It is by the light of the sun that a man rests,
goes forth, does his work and returns.
Quite so, Yajfiavalkya. But when the sun is set, what then is the light of man?
The moon is his light, he answered. It is by the light of the moon that a man rests
; goes forth, does his work and returns.
Quite so, Yajfiavalkya. But when the sun is set, and the moon is set, what then i
s the light of man?
Fire is his light, he answered. It is by the light of the fire that a man rests, go
es forth, does his work and returns.
Quite so, Yajfiavalkya. But when the sun is set, and the moon is set, and the fir
e has gone out, what then is the light of man?
Speech is his light, he answered. It is by the light of speech that a man rests, go
es forth, does his work and returns.
Quite so, Yajfiavalkya. But when the sun is set, and the moon is set, and the fir
e has gone out, and speech is hushed, what then is the light of man?
Self is his light, he answered. It is by the light of the Self that a man rests, go
es forth, does his work and returns (cited in Carl Jung CW 5, para 231).
Agni is the inner fire, igniting the light of Self-awareness. Agni is the passio
nate child-flame of Self-awareness, lighting the darkness even when there is no
other source of light.
References: