The sixth Mandala of the Rig Veda has 75 hymns, mainly to Agni and Indra. Most hymns in this book are attributed to the bārhaspatya family of Angirasas, especially to Bharadvaja. It is one of the "family books" (mandalas 2-7), the oldest core of the Rigveda.
Deities addressed besides Indra and Agni include the Vishvadevas, Pusan, the Asvins, Ushas (Dawn), the Maruts, Dyaus and Prthivi (Heaven and Earth), Savitar, Brhaspati and Soma-Rudra.
The rivers mentioned in the sixth Mandala are the Sarasvati, Yavyavati and Hariupiya. RV 6.61 is entirely dedicated to Sarasvati. In RV 6.45.31 the term Ganga occurs whichrefer to the River Ganges.
Talageri (2000), based on his proposition of an westward expansion early Rigvedic culture from Harayana (contrary to the nearly universally assumed eastward expansion from Gandhari) and his identification of some Rigvedic rivers, claims this Mandala as the oldest of the family books.
List of incipits
The dedication as given by Griffith is in square brackets
6.1 (442) [Agni.] tuváṃ hí agne prathamó manóta6.2 (443) [Agni.] tuváṃ hí kṣaítavad yáśo6.3 (444) [Agni.] ágne sá kṣeṣad ṛtapâ ṛtejâ6.4 (445) [Agni.] yáthā hotar mánuṣo devátātā6.5 (446) [Agni.] huvé vaḥ sūnúṃ sáhaso yúvānam6.6 (447) [Agni.] prá návyasā sáhasaḥ sūnúm áchā6.7 (448) [Agni.] mūrdhânaṃ divó aratím pṛthivyâ6.8 (449) [Agni.] pṛkṣásya vŕṣṇo aruṣásya nû sáhaḥ6.9 (450) [Agni.] áhaś ca kṛṣṇám áhar árjunaṃ ca6.10 (451) [Agni.] puró vo mandráṃ diviyáṃ suvṛktím6.11 (452) [Agni.] yájasva hotar iṣitó yájīyān6.12 (453) [Agni.] mádhye hótā duroṇé barhíṣo râḷ6.13 (454) [Agni.] tuvád víśvā subhaga saúbhagāni6.14 (455) [Agni.] agnâ yó mártiyo dúvo 6.15 (456) [Agni.] imám ū ṣú vo átithim uṣarbúdhaṃ6.16 (457) [Agni.] tuvám agne yajñân~āṃ6.17 (458) [Indra.] píbā sómam abhí yám ugra tárda 6.18 (459) [Indra.] tám u ṣṭuhi yó abhíbhūtiojā6.19 (460) [Indra.] mahâṁ índro nṛvád â carṣaṇiprâ6.20 (461) [Indra.] dyaúr ná yá indra abhí bhûma aryás 6.21 (462) [Indra. Visvedevas.] imâ u tvā purutámasya kārór 6.22 (463) [Indra.] yá éka íd dháviyaś carṣaṇīnâm6.23 (464) [Indra.] sutá ít tváṃ nímiśla indra sóme6.24 (465) [Indra.] vŕṣā máda índare ślóka ukthâ6.25 (466) [Indra.] yâ ta ūtír avamâ yâ paramâ 6.26 (467) [Indra.] śrudhî na indra hváyāmasi tvā 6.27 (468) [Indra.] kím asya máde kím u asya pītâv 6.28 (469) [Cows.] â gâvo agmann utá bhadrám akran 6.29 (470) [Indra.] índraṃ vo náraḥ sakhiyâya sepur6.30 (471) [Indra.] bhûya íd ? vāvṛdhe vīríyāyaṁ6.31 (472) [Indra.] ábhūr éko rayipate rayīṇâm6.32 (473) [Indra.] ápūrviyā purutámāni asmai 6.33 (474) [Indra.] yá ójiṣṭha indara táṃ sú no dā6.34 (475) [Indra.] sáṃ ca tvé jagmúr gíra indra pūrvîr6.35 (476) [Indra.] kadâ bhuvan ráthakṣayāṇi bráhma 6.36 (477) [Indra.] satrâ mádāsas táva viśvájanyāḥ 6.37 (478) [Indra.] arvâg ráthaṃ viśvávāraṃ ta ugra6.38 (479) [Indra.] ápād itá úd u naś citrátamo 6.39 (480) [Indra.] mandrásya kavér diviyásya váhner 6.40 (481) [Indra.] índra píba túbhya * sutó mádāya 6.41 (482) [Indra.] áheḷamāna úpa yāhi yajñáṃ6.42 (483) [Indra.] práti asmai pípīṣate6.43 (484) [Indra.] yásya tyác chámbaram máde6.44 (485) [Indra.] yó rayivo rayíṃtamo6.45 (486) [Indra.] yá ânayat parāvátaḥ6.46 (487) [Indra.] tuvâm íd dhí hávāmahe 6.47 (488) [Indra, Etc.] svādúṣ kílāyám mádhumāṁ utâyáṃ6.48 (489) [Agni and Others.] yajñâ-yajñā vo agnáye6.49 (490) [Visvedevas.] stuṣé jánaṃ suvratáṃ návyasībhir6.50 (491) [Visvedevas.] huvé vo devîm áditiṃ námobhir6.51 (492) [Visvedevas.] úd u tyác cákṣur máhi mitráyor âṁ6.52 (493) [Visvedevas.] ná tád divâ ná pṛthivyânu manye6.53 (494) [Pusan.] vayám u tvā pathas pate 6.54 (495) [Pusan.] sám pūṣan vidúṣā naya6.55 (496) [Pusan.] éhi vâṃ vimuco napād6.56 (497) [Pusan.] yá enam ādídeśati 6.57 (498) [Indra and Pusan.] índrā nú pūṣáṇā vayáṃ6.58 (499) [Pusan.] śukráṃ te anyád yajatáṃ te anyád6.59 (500) [Indra-Agni.] prá nú vocā sutéṣu vāṃ6.60 (501) [Indra-Agni.] śnáthad vṛtrám utá sanoti vâjam6.61 (502) [Sarasvati.] iyám adadād rabhasám ṛṇacyútaṃ6.62 (503) [Asvins.] stuṣé nárā divó asyá prasántā6.63 (504) [Asvins.] kúva tyâ valgû puruhūtâ adyá 6.64 (505) [Dawn.] úd u śriyá uṣáso rócamānā6.65 (506) [Dawn.] eṣâ siyâ no duhitâ divojâḥ6.66 (507) [Maruts.] vápur nú tác cikitúṣe cid astu6.67 (508) [Mitra-Varuna.] víśveṣāṃ vaḥ sat~âṃ jyéṣṭhatamā6.68 (509) [Indra-Varuna.] śruṣṭî vāṃ yajñá údyataḥ sajóṣā6.69 (510) [Indra-Visnu.] sáṃ vāṃ kármaṇā sám iṣâ hinomi6.70 (511) [Heaven and Earth.] ghṛtávatī bhúvanānām abhiśríyā6.71 (512) [Savitar.] úd u ṣyá deváḥ savitâ hiraṇyáyā6.72 (513) [Indra-Soma.] índrāsomā máhi tád vām mahitváṃ6.73 (514) [Brhaspati.] yó adribhít prathamajâ ṛtâvā6.74 (515) [Soma-Rudra.] sómārudrā dhāráyethām asuryàm 6.75 (516) [Weapons of War.] jīmûtasyeva bhavati prátīkaṃ