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RV 3.26.7

अग्निरस्मि जन्मना जातवेदाः घृतं मे चक्षुरमृतं म आसन् । अर्कस्त्रिधातू रजसो विमानो अजस्रो घर्मो हविरस्मि नाम ॥

“I am Agni, omniscient by birth, Light is my eye and Immortality is my mouth. I am the three-fold Light that measures the universe. I am both immortal energy and matter.” SOURCE

In this verse Agni is saying that he is Omniscience by birth. And also he is saying that he is immortal.

But this contradicts Gita 2:27 :

BG 2.27: Death is certain for one who has been born, and rebirth is inevitable for one who has died. Therefore, you should not lament over the inevitable.

It say the one who is born he/she will die.

MY QUESTION : In RV 3.26.7 Agni is saying he is immortal and Omniscience by birth but in the gita anyone who is born is certain to dies.Angi's immortality contradicts gita 2:27.
What is the solution to this apparent contradiction?

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  • OMG - tough to explain this away @darkknight
    – S K
    Apr 11, 2021 at 11:50
  • @SK can you explain, what do you mean by "OMG - tough to explain this away"
    – Dark Knight
    Apr 11, 2021 at 12:06
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    seems to be an outright contradiction @darkknight
    – S K
    Apr 11, 2021 at 12:10
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    You are conflating two different ideas. In the Rg Veda, Agni is being identified with Brahman whose identification is being described as a manifested being. The use of the word 'birth' shouldn't be taken literally. The verse from the Gita refers to ordinary jivas. Recommend reading Gita Chapter 10.
    – Swami Vishwananda
    Apr 11, 2021 at 12:47
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    Yes, might be, Although English translation often mislead. By the way I am not an expert, shared what I found. Let's see if an answer comes up.
    – Second
    Apr 11, 2021 at 14:42

1 Answer 1

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Agni is immortal in the same way that Krishna, even though born of Devaki and Vasudeva, is immortal. Both Agni and Krishna are saguNa brahman and are hence immortal, even though they have births and even apparent deaths (as in the case of Krishna). Here, immortality means - being free from birth-death cycle that arises due to karma. SaguNa brahman, being free from karma eternally, can still choose to manifest himself or herself as various forms like Agni, Krishna etc.

BG 2.27 is applicable to bonded jiva-s only, who are affected by ignorance. In the Rig Veda verse, Agni is called as omniscient, and Agni is hence beyond ignorance. As such BG 2.27 is not applicable to Agni.

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