Mantra 22
Sukta 4
अष्टाचक्रं वर्तत एकनेमि सहस्राक्षरं प्र पुरो नि पश्चा। अर्धेन विश्वं भुवनं जजान यदस्यार्धं कतमः स केतुः
aṣṭā́cakraṃ vartata ékanemi sahásrākṣaraṃ prá puró ní paścā́ | ardhéna víśvaṃ bhúvanaṃ jajā́na yád asyā́rdhaṃ katamáḥ sá ketúḥ ||
An eight-wheeled wheel rolleth on, of single nave, of thousand syllables, forward before and downward behind. With half it hath generated all this world: which of its halves is that, the Sign?
عجلةٌ ذاتُ ثمانيةِ دواليبَ تدور، ذاتُ سُرّةٍ واحدة، ذاتُ ألفِ مقطعٍ، تتقدّم أمامًا وتهبط خلفًا. وبنصفِها ولدت هذا العالم كلَّه؛ فأيُّ نصفَيها هو ذلك—العلامة (ketu)؟
Rishi: Atharvanic seer(s) of the Prāṇa-cosmology cycle
Devata: Kāla/Ṛta-like time-wheel principle; Ketu (luminous sign) as revelatory power
Chandas: Triṣṭubh/Jagatī-like (long pādas; riddle-style verse)
{"primary_rasa":"adbhuta","secondary_rasa":"shanta","emotional_arc":"Wonder at cosmic mechanism → contemplative inquiry → quiet illumination.","listener_experience":"Awe and sharpened discernment; feeling of being placed within a larger lawful cycle.","intensity":6}