Changes

*  '''Bearer of Sacrificial Offerings''' : The presiding deity of tejas, fire and heat, Agni is revered as the receiver of oblations and sacrifices of men on behalf of the Devatas.  

*  '''Bearer of Sacrificial Offerings''' : The presiding deity of tejas, fire and heat, Agni is revered as the receiver of oblations and sacrifices of men on behalf of the Devatas.  

*  '''First Rig Suktam''' :  Fire has a very prominent place since the Vedic period and the Rig Veda starts with the Agni sukta (Agnimeele purohitam...). Agni is second only to Indra in power and importance attributed to him in Vedic literature, with 218 out of 1,028 hymns of the Rigveda dedicated to him. With Varuna and Indra he is one of the supreme gods in the Rig Veda.

*  '''First Rig Suktam''' :  Fire has a very prominent place since the Vedic period and the Rig Veda starts with the Agni sukta (Agnimeele purohitam...). Agni is second only to Indra in power and importance attributed to him in Vedic literature, with 218 out of 1,028 hymns of the Rigveda dedicated to him. With Varuna and Indra he is one of the supreme gods in the Rig Veda.

*  '''Dikpalaka''' : He is the one of the [[अष्टदिक्पालकाः ॥ Astadikpalakas]] or the presiding deities of the eight directions.  Among them He is the आग्नेयदिशादिपतिः ॥ Aagneyadishadhipati  or the sovereign guardian of the Aagneya direction or the south-east quarter.

*  '''Dikpalaka''' : He is the one of the [[अष्टदिक्पालकाः ॥ Astadikpalakas]] or the presiding deities of the eight directions as described in Devi bhagavatam (Chap. 8).  Among them He is the आग्नेयदिशादिपतिः ॥ Aagneyadishadhipati  or the sovereign guardian of the Aagneya direction or the south-east quarter.

* '''Swaroopa/Nature''' : He has a five-fold existence and manifests as the  

* '''Swaroopa/Nature''' : He has a five-fold existence and manifests as the  

Kravyaad (क्रव्याद) is the form of Agni which consumes corpses, the fire of the funeral pyre; the fire that burns the corpses can consume everything. In this form, after one’s death and at the time of cremation, Agni heats up and burns the body (SB 2.2.4.8) and is the fastest way to unite the body's panchabhutas (five elements) back into them. Agni thus releases the Jeevatma from the body, and the soul then starts its ascent to the higher realms based on its Karma.  

Kravyaad (क्रव्याद) is the form of Agni which consumes corpses, the fire of the funeral pyre; the fire that burns the corpses can consume everything. In this form, after one’s death and at the time of cremation, Agni heats up and burns the body (SB 2.2.4.8) and is the fastest way to unite the body's panchabhutas (five elements) back into them. Agni thus releases the Jeevatma from the body, and the soul then starts its ascent to the higher realms based on its Karma.  

=== Devata Swaroopam ===

=== देवता स्वरुपम् '''॥ Agnid'''evata Swaroopam ===

=== Birth and Family ===

=== Birth and Family ===

Agni is the son of Brahma. In the Visnu Purana, Agni, called ''Abhimāni'' is said to have sprung from the mouth of the Virat purusha, the Cosmic Man. In another version, Agni is the son of Dharma (Eternal Law) and Vasubhāryā (daughter of Light).  A sage of the Rig Veda (Sukta IV.iii.11) states that the Sun became visible when Agni was born.^[28]

There are different statements in puranas about the origin of Agni. Agni descended from Vishnu in the following order according to Puranic Encyclopedia (based on Bhagavata and Mahabharata) :  Vishnu - Brahma - Angiras - Brihaspati - Agni.  

Agni is also called ''Arka'', "water," the accessory to worship, and the cause of fire that covers all food which covers all life (Yajurveda V.vii.5).

Agni is also called ''Arka'', "water," the accessory to worship, and the cause of fire that covers all food which covers all life (Yajurveda V.vii.5).