अथ पञ्चदश ऋगात्मकस्य श्रीसूक्तस्यानन्दकर्दमचिक्लीतेन्दिरासुता ऋषयः । श्रीऋष्याद्या ऋचः चतुर्दशानमृचामानन्दाद्यृषयः । हिरण्यवर्णाद्याद्यत्रयस्यानुष्टुप् छन्दः । कांसोस्मीत्यस्य बृहती छन्दः । तदन्ययोर्द्वयोस्त्रिष्टुप् । पुनरष्टकस्यानुष्टुप् । शेषस्य प्रस्तारपङ्क्तिः । श्र्यग्निर्देवता
atha pañcadaśa ṛgātmakasya śrīsūktasyānandakardamaciklītendirāsutā ṛṣayaḥ | śrīṛṣyādyā ṛcaḥ caturdaśānamṛcāmānandādyṛṣayaḥ | hiraṇyavarṇādyādyatrayasyānuṣṭup chandaḥ | kāṃsosmītyasya bṛhatī chandaḥ | tadanyayordvayostriṣṭup | punaraṣṭakasyānuṣṭup | śeṣasya prastārapaṅktiḥ | śryagnirdevatā
"Of the fifteen-ṛc Śrī-sūkta the sages are Ānanda, Kardama, Ciklīta, and the son of Indirā; of the fourteen ṛcs the sages are Ānanda and the rest. Of the first three, from 'golden-hued,' the meter is anuṣṭubh; of 'kāṃso'smi' it is bṛhatī; of the next two it is triṣṭubh; of the following eight it is anuṣṭubh; of the rest it is prastara-paṅkti. The deity is Śrī-Agni."
3175f5d8729d · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
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A breakdown of the hymn is given by sages, meters, and deity; this device itself was discussed when reading the Hayagrīva (1.4). It is worth noting the sages' names, for they do not resemble ordinary names of Vedic ṛṣis. Ānanda means "bliss," Kardama means "mud, silt," Ciklīta means "moist, sticky," Indirā is a name of Lakṣmī herself.
In the Purāṇas they are called sons of Lakṣmī; and it is worth noting that these names are names of moisture and growth: silt, dampness, abundance. This detail shows where Lakṣmī came from in the most ancient usage: she is the goddess of harvest and offspring, not of abstract happiness. Let us add that the deity of the hymn is named śrī-agni, "Śrī-Agni," not Śrī alone.
This union is present in the hymn itself, and it is worth noting: there Agni is asked to bring Lakṣmī — tāṃ ma āvaha jātavedo lakṣmīm anapagāminīm, "bring me, O Knower of births, the Lakṣmī who does not depart." That is, in the ancient hymn Agni is an intermediary: he is asked to go and call her. This detail, to my mind, is beautiful and worth voicing: even to the goddess of abundance one does not turn directly, but asks the one who carries the offering to go for her.
The Vaiṣṇava side holds this as its own rule about the intercessor, discussed when reading the Varāha (5.34): the one who asks must have one who loves the petitioner and knows the one petitioned.