Rig Veda 1.170.2: Mandala 1, Sukta 170, Mantra 2
Sukta 1.170
- Rishi
- Agastya
- Devata
- Indra
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Karuna (compassion) and Vira (heroism)
किं न इन्द्र जिघांससि भ्रातरो मरुतस्तव । तेभिः कल्पस्व साधुया मा नः समरणे वधीः ॥
kíṃ na indra jighāṃsasi bhrā́taro marútas táva | tébhiḥ kalpasva sādhuyā́ mā naḥ samáraṇe vadhīḥ ||
لِمَ تَهُمُّ أَنْ تَضْرِبَنَا، يَا إِنْدْرَا، وَالْمَرُوتُ إِخْوَتُكَ؟ فَتَوَاءَمْ مَعَهُمْ عَلَى الْوَجْهِ السَّدِيدِ؛ وَلَا تَصْرَعْنَا فِي صَدْمَةِ التَّنَازُعِ، بَلِ اجْعَلْ قِتَالَنَا وِفَاقًا لِلْقُوَى.
Word by Word
- किम्
- what? why?Pronounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनRole Karma (प्रश्नरूपेण)Root किम् (प्रश्न-सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- नः
- of us / ourPronounषष्ठी (एन्क्लिटिक), बहुवचनRole Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/अधिकार)Root अस्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- इन्द्र
- O IndraNoun (proper)पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचनRole SambodhanaRoot इन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- जिघांससि
- you wish to slayVerbलट् (वर्तमान), परस्मैपद, मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन; देशिदेरटिव (सन्नन्त) ‘to wish to kill’Role KriyāRoot हन् (धातु) → desiderative stem जिघांस-
- भ्रातरः
- brothersNounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole Kartā (जिघांससि इत्यस्य लक्ष्य-सम्बन्धे ‘whom’)Root भ्रातृ (प्रातिपदिक)
- मरुतः
- the MarutsNounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole Kartā/Viśeṣya (भ्रातरः इत्यस्य)Root मरुत् (प्रातिपदिक)
- तव
- yourPronounषष्ठी, एकवचनRole SambandhaRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- तेभिः
- with themPronounतृतीया, बहुवचनRole KaraṇaRoot तद् (सर्वनाम)
- कल्पस्व
- make yourself accord / be in harmonyVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), आत्मनेपद, मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचनRole KriyāRoot कॢप् (धातु) / कल्प् (वेद. प्रयोग) ‘to be fit, arrange oneself’
- साधुया
- in a good/right wayAdjective (used adverbially/instrumental)स्त्रीलिङ्ग (साध्वी-भावे), तृतीया, एकवचनRole Karaṇa (रीत्या/प्रकारेण)Root साधु (प्रातिपदिक)
- मा
- do notIndeclinableनिषेध (prohibitive particle), लोट्/विधिलिङ्-प्रयोगेषुRole (निषेधक)Root मा (निषेध-अव्यय)
- नः
- usPronounद्वितीया (एन्क्लिटिक), बहुवचनRole KarmaRoot अस्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- समरणे
- in battleNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचनRole AdhikaraṇaRoot समरण (प्रातिपदिक) < सम्+√ऋ (अर्) / स्मृ?; ‘battle, encounter’ (स्थिर-नाम)
- वधीः
- (do not) slayVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ) परस्मैपद, मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन; मा-निषेधेन ‘prohibitive’ अर्थःRole KriyāRoot वध्/हन् (धातु) ‘to strike, slay’
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: किम् नः इन्द्र जिघांससि भ्रातरः मरुतः तव । तेभिः कल्पस्व साधुया मा नः समरणे वधीः ॥ 1) किं नः → किम् नः (म् + न् संयोगः)
- 2) मरुतस्तव → मरुतः तव (विसर्ग-सन्धिः: -ः + त-)
- 3) तेभि: → तेभिः (विसर्ग-लोप/लेखनभेदः)
- 4) मा नः → मा नः (नः एन्क्लिटिक)
The meaning
Outer meaning
Why would you strike us, Indra, when the Maruts are your brothers? Join with them rightly; do not slay us in battle.
Inner meaning
The seer addresses the illumined mind (Indra) when it seems to oppose or suppress the vital energies (Maruts). Indra’s force can become harsh if it rejects the life-force instead of governing and harmonizing it. The prayer asks for sādhuyā—right method, right accord—so that the inner battle (samaraṇa) becomes a coordinated striving: illumination leading, life-energy supporting, rather than inner civil war where one power ‘smite’ the others. This is integral yoga in Vedic form: not mutilation of nature, but right integration under truth.
Universal truth
Transformation requires harmony of powers: higher clarity must not violently crush life-energy but align it; right method turns conflict into coordinated progress.
Themes
conciliation, Indra-Maruts relationship, inner harmony
The seer
- Rishi
- Agastya
- Lineage
- Agastya (Mānasa/Agastya lineage in later tradition)
- Other hymns
- RV 1.170, RV 1.169, RV 1.171
Family tradition
Agastya mediates between powers, insisting on concord; his hymns often encode the yogic art of holding and harmonizing great forces in the human vessel.
Significance
A key mantra of integration: the seer asks the higher mind to ally with life-force, preventing spiritual effort from becoming self-destructive.
The deity
- Devata
- Indra (explicit) with Maruts
- Epithets
- bhrātṛvat (brotherly, implied through relationship), śakra (mighty, implied)
- Related deities
- Maruts, Agni, Soma
Cosmic role
Indra leads; Maruts energize—together they win the cosmic battle and uphold order.
Inner power
Indra as governing illumination; Maruts as executive dynamism. The verse seeks their right synergy.
In ritual
Where it is used
Indra–Marut reconciliation hymn segment within Soma ritual recitations.
किं न॑ इन्द्र जिघांससि॒ भ्रात॑रो म॒रुत॒स्तव॑ । तेभि॑: कल्पस्व साधु॒या मा न॑: स॒मर॑णे वधीः ॥
किम् । नः॒ । इ॒न्द्र॒ । जि॒घां॒स॒सि॒ । भ्रात॑रः । म॒रुतः॑ । तव॑ । तेभिः॑ । क॒ल्प॒स्व॒ । सा॒धु॒ऽया । मा । नः॒ । स॒म्ऽअर॑णे । व॒धीः॒ ॥
kim | naḥ | indra | jighāṃsasi | bhrātaraḥ | marutaḥ | tava | tebhiḥ | kalpasva | sādhu-yā | mā | naḥ | sam-araṇe | vadhīḥ
11
4 pādas × ~11 syllables
Dialogic and urgent; sharp interrogative opening, then conciliatory cadence.
Releases inner tension; encourages balance between clarity and energy; prevents over-austerity.
- jighāṃsasi
- Literal: do you wish to strike/kill?. Symbolic: harsh repression; violent mental control that damages the instrument
- bhrātaraḥ
- Literal: brothers. Symbolic: complementary powers meant to cooperate
- marutaḥ tava
- Literal: the Maruts are yours. Symbolic: vital energies belong to and should serve illumination
- tebhiḥ kalpasva
- Literal: compose/fit yourself with them. Symbolic: integration; right relation of mind and life
- sādhuyā
- Literal: rightly, well, by the good method. Symbolic: true discipline (ṛta-sādhanā), not coercion
- samaraṇe
- Literal: in battle, clash. Symbolic: inner struggle of transformation
- mā naḥ vadhīḥ
- Literal: do not slay us. Symbolic: do not break the seeker by imbalance; protect the evolving harmony
Conciliatory formula in Indra-Marut worship; supports the Marutvatīya alignment so the powers do not act at cross-purposes within the sacrificer.
When invoking cooperation of deities/powers; also in contexts seeking protection in conflict.
Recitation as appeasement/conciliation; mentally offer the ‘battle’ to be transformed into coordinated striving.
For inner conflict (mind vs desire/energy): chant to convert repression into right alignment and sustainable discipline.
jighāṃsasi is desiderative of √han ‘to strike/kill’ (PIE *gʷhen- ‘to slay’, cf. Greek phénō, Sanskrit han-). √kḷp ‘arrange, be fit’ (kalpasva) signals inner integration: divine powers must be ‘made to fit together’ in the human field.
integration of forces in the being, non-violence toward the aspiring vessel (do not smite us), right action (sādhu)
sādhuyā indicates action in Ṛta—right arrangement of forces rather than violent imbalance.
Truth is integrative: it unites powers in their right function.
Harmony of gods as condition for victory and increase—cosmic cooperation mirrors inner integration.
Integral yoga psychology: transformation through harmonization of mind and life under a higher truth.
Thunderbolt = discriminating illumination; storm = vital surge; battle = transformative tapas; harmony = stable atmosphere of consciousness.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The ‘quarrel and reconciliation of allied gods’ motif: Indra’s force can become destructive if not harmonized with the Marut host; the verse seeks concord so the battle becomes a coordinated advance.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √han (in jighāṃsasi, vadhīḥ) reflects PIE *gʷhen- ‘to strike/kill’. The kinship term bhrātṛ reflects PIE *bʰréh₂tēr (cf. Latin frāter), highlighting inherited social-mythic grammar for divine alliances.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi speaks as mediator on behalf of the human collectivity (‘naḥ’): he petitions Indra to channel power without harming the vessel, insisting on right companionship with the Maruts—an inner yogic demand for coordinated energies.
Integrate illumination and energy: let clarity guide without suppression; let energy serve without revolt.
ājñā + maṇipūra balance
Coherent breathing (5–5) to harmonize; chant on exhale, feel reconciliation on inhale.
Balanced striving; calm strength.
If practice becomes harsh: (1) soften the will; (2) invite the vital to cooperate by giving it a noble work; (3) reassert clear direction; (4) proceed ‘sādhuyā’—steady, kind, exact.
Triṣṭubh; interrogative first pāda should rise clearly on udātta; subsequent pādas settle into conciliatory cadence (per śākhā accenting).
Do not over-aggressively stress ‘jighāṃsasi’; let it be a questioning, not accusatory, tone; give warmth to ‘bhrātaro marutaḥ’.
jighāṃsasi: keep nasalized āṃ; pronounce ‘ghāṃ’ clearly., bhrātaro: aspirated ‘bh’, long ā., kalpasva: ‘sv’ cluster clean; avoid inserting extra vowel., samaraṇe: dental ‘n’; keep short vowels distinct.
Firm but gentle; conciliatory resonance rather than martial sharpness.
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