That light, the son of the two parents, full of brightness, the wise, brightens the world by his power.

Agni is even called váhni-tama (IV, I, 4), which hardly means more than the brightest.

II, 17, 4. â´t ródasî (íti) gyótishâ váhnih â´ atanot.

Then the bright (Indra) stretched out or filled heaven and earth with his light.

II, 38, I. út ûm (íti) syáh deváh savitâ´—váhnih asthât. The divine Savitar, the luminous, arose.

Besides this meaning of light or fire, however, there are clearly two other meanings of váhni which must be admitted in the Veda, first that of a carrier, vehicle, and, it may be, horse; secondly that of minister or priest.

VI, 57, 3. agâ´h anyásya váhnayah hárî (íti) anyásya sámbhritâ.

The bearers of the one (Pûshan) are goats, the bays are yoked for the other (Indra).

I, 14, 6. ghritá-prishthâh manah-yúgah yé tvâ váhanti váhnayah.

The horses with shining backs, obedient to thy will, which carry thee (Agni).

VIII, 3, 23. yásmai anyé dása práti dhúram váhanti váhnayah.

A horse against whom other ten horses carry a weight; i. e. it requires ten horses to carry the weight which this one horse carries. (See X, II, 7. váhamânah ásvaih.)

II, 37, 3. médyantu te váhnayah yébhih î´yase.

May thy horses be fat on which thou goest. II, 24, 13.

I, 44, 13. srudhí srut-karna váhni-bhih.

Agni, who hast ears to hear, hear, on thy horses. Unless váhni-bhih is joined with the words that follow, devaíh sayâ´va-bhih.

III, 6, 2. vakyántâm te vâhnayah saptá-gihvâh a.

May thy seven-tongued horses be called. Here váhnayah is clearly meant for the flames of Agni, yet I doubt whether we should be justified in dropping the simile, as the plural of váhni is nowhere used in the bald sense of flames.

In one passage váhni is supposed to be used as a feminine, or at all events applied to a feminine subject:

VIII, 94, 1. yuktâ´ váhnih ráthânâm.

She is yoked as the drawer of the chariots. Probably, however, váhnih should here be changed into váhnî.

The passages in which váhni is applied to Soma in the ninth and tenth Mandalas throw little light on the subject. (IX, 9, 6; 20, 5; 6; 36, 2; 64, 19; 89, 1; X, 101, 10.)

Instead of visâ´m vispátih, lord of men (VII, 7, 4), we find IX, 108, 10. visâ´m váhnih ná vispátih. One feels inclined to translate here váhnih by leader, but it is more likely that váhni is here again the common name of Soma, and that it is inserted between visâ´m ná vispátih, which is meant to form one phrase.

In IX, 97, 34, tisráh vâ´kah îrayati prá váhnih, we may take váhni as the common appellation of Soma. But it may also mean minister or priest, as in the passages which we have now to examine. Cf. X, 11, 6.