Rig Veda 5.72.2: Mandala 5, Sukta 72, Mantra 2
Sukta 5.72
- Rishi
- Atri explicitly referenced
- Devata
- Mitra-Varuṇa
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace)
व्रतेन स्थो ध्रुवक्षेमा धर्मणा यातयज्जना । नि बर्हिषि सदतं सोमपीतये ॥
vraténa stho dhruvá-kṣemā dhármaṇā yātayáj-janā | ní barhíṣi sadatā́m sóma-pītaye ||
بِـ«فْرَتَا» (القانون الباطن) اثبتا راسخَيْن، مُقِيمَيْن سَلامًا مُسْتَقِرًّا لا يَتَزَعْزَع؛ وبِـ«دَرْمَا» (النِّظام الحامِل) اكْبَحا الدَّوافِعَ المُفْسِدَةَ المُشَوِّشَة. اجْلِسا على «بَرْهِس» (الفِراشِ المُقَدَّس) لِشُرْبِ «سُومَا».
Word by Word
- व्र॒तेन॑
- by/with (your) vow, sacred ordinanceNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया विभक्ति; एकवचनRole करणRoot व्रत (प्रातिपदिक)
- स्थः
- you two stand/areVerbलट् (वर्तमान); मध्यमपुरुष; द्विवचनRole KartāRoot स्था (धातु)
- ध्रु॒वक्षे॑मा
- having firm security; firmly-protectingAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; द्विवचन (स्थः इत्यस्य विशेषणम्)Role KartāRoot ध्रुव-क्षेम (समास; प्रातिपदिक)
- धर्म॑णा
- by/through (cosmic) law, right orderNounपुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया विभक्ति; एकवचनRole करणRoot धर्म (प्रातिपदिक)
- यात॒यत्
- restraining, keeping in checkVerb (participle)वर्तमान कृदन्त (शतृ); नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया; एकवचनRole KarmaRoot यत् (धातु) + आ (उपसर्ग) → यातयति
- जनाः
- people, folkNounपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; बहुवचनRole KartāRoot जन (प्रातिपदिक)
- नि
- down; in; (as preverb)Indeclinableअव्ययRoot नि (उपसर्ग/निपात)
- ब॒र्हिषि॑
- on the sacred grass (seat)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी विभक्ति; एकवचनRole AdhikaraṇaRoot बर्हिस् (प्रातिपदिक)
- सदतम्
- sit down, take your seat (you two)Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ); मध्यमपुरुष; द्विवचनRole KartāRoot सद् (धातु) → सीदति
- सोम॑पीतये
- for Soma-drinkingNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग; चतुर्थी विभक्ति; एकवचनRole SampradānaRoot सोम-पीति (समास; प्रातिपदिक)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: व्रतेन | स्थः | ध्रुवक्षेमा | धर्मणा | यातयत् | जनाः | नि | बर्हिषि | सदतम् | सोमपीतये । 1) स्थो = स्थः (विसर्ग-लोपः पदान्ते) । 2) यातयज्जना = यातयत् + जनाः (त् + ज → ज्ज; संहितायां व्यञ्जनसन्धिः) ।
The meaning
Outer meaning
Mitra and Varuṇa stand firm by their vrata, establishing secure peace; by dharma they restrain disruptive people/forces. They are asked again to sit on the barhis for Soma-drinking.
Inner meaning
The twin powers uphold an inner law (vrata): steadfast alignment to truth that creates unshakable security (dhruva-kṣema). By dharma (right sustaining order) they restrain the turbulent impulses (yātayat-janā)—the scattering movements in mind and life. Once disorder is curbed, the consciousness becomes a fit seat for Soma, the delight that can then be received without downfall.
Universal truth
Lasting peace is not mere quietude but the stability born of inner law and right order; only then can joy become enduring and luminous rather than intoxicating or unstable.
Themes
Soma-ritual, Inner discipline, Order over disorder, Invocation and seating of the gods
The seer
- Rishi
- Atri Ātreya (hymn context of RV 5.72; verse rishi not separately stated)
- Lineage
- Ātreya
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 5.72.1, Rig Veda 5.72.3
Family tradition
Ātreya hymns emphasize the establishment of ṛta and the recovery/holding of light; here the focus is on law (vrata) and stability (kṣema).
Significance
The seer-impulse seeks not only illumination but a governed nature capable of holding delight; the Atri current tends toward disciplined wideness and luminous order.
The deity
- Devata
- Mitra–Varuṇa
- Epithets
- Dhruvakṣema (establishers of firm peace), Vrata-sthā (standing by inner law), Dharma-yātayat (restrainers by right order)
- Related deities
- Agni (discipline of will), Soma (delight), Indra (illumination that supports right discrimination)
Cosmic role
They stabilize the worlds by ṛta: preventing collapse into chaos and ensuring the right functioning of forces.
Inner power
They create an inner constitution: truth-guided self-rule that pacifies turbulence and makes joy safe.
In ritual
Where it is used
Soma rite invocations to Mitra–Varuṇa emphasizing ṛta and restraint before libation.
व्र॒तेन॑ स्थो ध्रु॒वक्षे॑मा॒ धर्म॑णा यात॒यज्ज॑ना । नि ब॒र्हिषि॑ सदतं॒ सोम॑पीतये ॥
व्र॒तेन॑ । स्थः॒ । ध्रु॒वऽक्षे॑मा । धर्म॑णा । या॒त॒यत्ऽज॑ना । नि । ब॒र्हिषि॑ । स॒द॒त॒म् । सोम॑ऽपीतये ॥
vratena | sthaḥ | dhruva-kṣemā | dharmaṇā | yātayat-janā | ni | barhiṣi | sadatam | soma-pītaye
Triṣṭubh (likely, by hymn pattern and cadence; refrain matches 5.72.1)
44
4×11 (approx.)
Grave and stabilizing; emphasizes firmness (dhruva) through steady beats.
Produces a sense of containment and order; supports regulation of breath and thought.
- व्रत (vrata)
- Literal: vow, fixed law, ordinance. Symbolic: Inner alignment to truth; self-governing principle of the higher nature
- ध्रुवक्षेम (dhruva-kṣema)
- Literal: firm security/peace. Symbolic: Stable inner foundation; unshakable settled being
- धर्म (dharma)
- Literal: that which upholds; right order. Symbolic: Sustaining right action and right rhythm in the being
- यातयज्जना (yātayat-janā)
- Literal: those who restrain/drive away people. Symbolic: Power that checks the disordering impulses, the crowd of restless movements
- बर्हिषि (barhiṣi)
- Literal: on the grass-seat. Symbolic: Prepared inner ground for the divine presence
- सोमपीतये (somapītaye)
- Literal: for Soma-drinking. Symbolic: For receiving divine Ananda in a regulated, truth-ruled consciousness
Soma-yajña context: invitatory seating on the barhis and participation in Soma-drinking; applicable to Soma pressing rites (general Śrauta Soma liturgy).
Before/around Soma offering when affirming vows, purity, and right order.
Recite to establish ‘vrata’ and ‘dharma’ in the rite; symbolic ‘seating’ on barhis.
Use when seeking emotional regulation: chant to invoke inner law, then sit quietly to ‘drink’ a calm joy rather than chase stimulation.
Key terms: (1) vrata- ‘vow, ordinance’ from √vṛ ‘to choose, to will, to restrain/enclose’; hence an inner chosen law that contains and directs energies. (2) dharmaṇā from √dhṛ ‘to hold, support’; dharma as that which upholds the cosmic/psychic order (ṛta in action). (3) yātayat- causative/intensive from √yat ‘to control, hold back, strive’; ‘yātayaj-janā’ = those who restrain/quiet the restless ‘peoples’ (inner movements). (4) kṣema ‘secure dwelling, peace’ from √kṣi ‘to dwell, settle’; dhruva-kṣema = peace made stable. (5) barhis- ritual grass-seat; psychologically the prepared field of consciousness for the descent of Soma (delight-knowledge).
Dharma (supporting right), Vrata (self-law, inner discipline), Ṛta (implied cosmic order as the ground of dharma)
Vrata is the operational face of ṛta in the individual and cosmos; Mitra–Varuṇa enforce it.
Truth as firmness (dhruva) rather than opinion; it creates secure peace.
Cosmos is held by law; delight (Soma) becomes creative only when contained by truth.
Yoga of self-rule (niyama-like vrata) leading to Ananda; Aurobindonian inner yajña reading.
Dhruva-kṣema as pole-star steadiness in the mind; dharma as rhythmic regulation; Soma as quiet sweetness arising when turbulence is checked.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The mythic action is the enthronement of the cosmic Law-powers (Mitra–Varuṇa) upon the barhis to drink Soma: a recurring Vedic scene where Order (ṛta via dharma/vrata) is installed in the sacrifice (and inwardly in the seeker), enabling the flow of luminous delight (Soma).
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √sthā ‘stand’ (PIE *steh₂-) appears in sthaḥ; √dhṛ ‘hold’ (PIE *dher-) in dharmaṇā; kṣema relates to settling/dwelling (cf. Indo-Iranian semantic field of ‘peace, security’). The causative yātayat from √yat ‘control/strive’ shows productive Vedic causative morphology used to encode governance of forces (‘janā’).
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The Rishi calls the Law-powers to stabilize and govern the inner collective (‘janā’ as movements/impulses), and offers them the Soma within the prepared seat (barhis). Reciprocity: the human establishes vrata/dharma (discipline and right action), and the gods confer dhruva-kṣema (stable peace) and the Soma-joy of illumination.
Establish inner vows: truthfulness, calm, and right rhythm; observe and restrain scattering impulses.
Mūlādhāra (stability) and Ājñā (law of truth)
Box breathing 4–4–4–4 for 12 rounds, then natural breath while repeating ‘dhruvakṣemā’.
Steady, protected, regulated; readiness for Ananda without excitement.
Before chanting, silently set one clear inner rule (vrata) for the sitting. Chant once; feel the spine as ‘dhruva’. Watch impulses arise; gently ‘yātayat’—guide them back to order. End by resting in a mild sweetness (Soma).
As per Vedic accenting; emphasize udātta where marked in traditional recitation (not supplied here).
Give weight to ‘vraténa sthó’ and ‘dhrúvakṣemā’; keep refrain slightly softer but steady.
vratena: clear ‘vr’ cluster, dhruva: retroflex ‘ṛ’ not present; pronounce ‘dhru-’ cleanly, kṣemā: kṣ as one cluster, yātayatjanā: articulate ‘t-j’ junction without inserting extra vowel, barhiṣi: keep ‘rhi’ audible
Steady, grounded, slightly deeper tone to convey firmness.
3
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