Rig Veda 1.23.5: Mandala 1, Sukta 23, Mantra 5
Sukta 1.23
- Rishi
- Medhātithi Kāṇva
- Devata
- Mitra-Varuṇa
- Chandas
- Gāyatrī
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Vira (heroism)
ऋतेन यावृतावृधावृतस्य ज्योतिषस्पती । ता मित्रावरुणा हुवे ॥
ṛtena yāv ṛtāvṛdhāv ṛtasya jyotiṣaspātī | tā mitrāvaruṇā huve ||
Mitra und Varuṇa rufe ich an — die beiden, die durch die Wahrheit wachsen, durch ṛta erstarken, Herren des Lichtes des ṛta, damit unser Sein vom leuchtenden Gesetz gelenkt werde.
Word by Word
- ऋतेन
- by/with cosmic order (ṛta)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया विभक्ति, एकवचनRole करण (instrumental: ‘by/with ṛta’)Root ऋत (प्रातिपदिक) < √ऋ (गतौ/ऋ- ‘to go, to fit’; semantic ‘cosmic order, truth’)
- या
- who (the two)Pronounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, द्विवचनRole कर्तृ (of the implied/copular clause) / विशेष्य-संबन्ध (relative pronoun)Root यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- वृता
- chosen / encompassedAdjective (participle)स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन (agreeing with ‘या’)Role कर्तृ-विशेषणRoot √वृ (वरणे ‘to choose/cover’) → वृ (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक), past passive participle
- वृधा
- strengthening, increasingAdjectiveस्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन (agreeing with ‘या’)Role कर्तृ-विशेषणRoot वृध्/वर्ध् (प्रातिपदिक ‘वृधा’ = ‘strengthening, increasing’; Vedic adj.)
- वृतस्य
- of the ordered/regulated (one/realm)Noun/Adjective (used substantively)पुं/नपुंसक (contextual), षष्ठी विभक्ति, एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (genitive: ‘of the ordered/covered [realm]’)Root वृत (प्रातिपदिक; PPP of √वृ ‘covered/ordered/regulated’)
- ज्योतिषस्पती
- the two lords of lightNoun (compound)पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, द्विवचनRole कर्तृ (apposition to ‘या …’)Root ज्योतिस् (n.) + पति (m.) → ज्योतिष्पति (तत्पुरुष); dual form
- ता
- those twoPronounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, द्विवचनRole कर्म (object of ‘हुवे’)Root तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- मित्रावरुणा
- O Mitra and VaruṇaNoun (proper deities)पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन/प्रथमा, द्विवचन (Vedic: form used in address)Role सम्बोधन (addressed deities)Root मित्र (m.) + वरुण (m.) → द्वन्द्व समास; vocative/nom.-dual form
- हुवे
- I invoke / I callVerbलट् (वर्तमाने), उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन, आत्मनेपदRole क्रिया (main verb)Root √ह्वे/√हू (आह्वाने ‘to call, invoke’)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (sandhi resolution): ऋतेन | या | वृता | वृधा | वृतस्य | ज्योतिषस्पती | ता | मित्रावरुणा | हुवे । 1) ‘यावृता’ = ‘या’ + ‘वृता’ (आकार-सन्धि: अ + वृ…; continuous recitation). 2) ‘वृधावृतस्य’ = ‘वृधा’ + ‘वृतस्य’ (आ + व्… no change, only junction). 3) ‘ज्योतिषस्पती’ is a compound ‘ज्योतिस् + पती’ with internal sandhi: ज्योतिस् + पती → ज्योतिष्पती (स् + प → ष्प). 4) ‘मित्रावरुणा’ is a द्वन्द्व compound in dual
- used as address in Vedic style
The meaning
Outer meaning
I call Mitra and Varuṇa, who grow by ṛta, strengthened by ṛta, lords of the light of ṛta.
Inner meaning
The seer invokes the twin powers that increase by Truth (ṛta-vṛdhā) and are themselves reinforced by living in the right order. They are ‘lords of the light of ṛta’—the luminous discernment that reveals the right movement in thought, feeling, and action. Psychologically, this is the awakening of an inner law that is not rigid but radiant: truth becomes light, and light becomes guidance.
Universal truth
Truth is self-strengthening: when one lives by the right order, clarity increases, and that clarity further empowers right action—an upward spiral of truth and light.
Themes
Ṛta (Cosmic Order), Light/Illumination, Invocation, Sovereign deities
The seer
- Rishi
- Medhātithi Kāṇva
- Lineage
- Kāṇva
- Other hymns
- RV 1.25 (Varuṇa and ṛta), RV 7.60 (Mitra-Varuṇa and ṛta)
Family tradition
Kāṇva diction often compresses doctrine into epithets; this mantra is a quintessential ṛta-formula, making the Ādityas the inner governors of truth-light.
Significance
It articulates the Aurobindonian key: ṛta is not mere cosmic regularity but the truth-principle whose light can rule the human instruments.
The deity
- Devata
- Mitra-Varuṇa
- Epithets
- ṛtāvṛdhā, ṛtasya jyotiṣas patī
- Related deities
- Aditi, Sūrya, Savitar, Aryaman
Cosmic role
Sovereigns of ṛta: they maintain the luminous law that holds worlds together and ensures right relation among beings and forces.
Inner power
The ‘truth-light’ (ṛtasya jyotis) in the mind: capacity to see the right thing at the right time, and to feel the right measure—harmony without compromise, law without harshness.
In ritual
Where it is used
Āditya-related invocations in Soma contexts and rites of order/truth; a natural fit for vows and acts of purification (general).
ऋ॒तेन॒ यावृ॑ता॒वृधा॑वृ॒तस्य॒ ज्योति॑ष॒स्पती॑ । ता मि॒त्रावरु॑णा हुवे ॥
ऋ॒तेन॑ । यौ । ऋ॒त॒ऽवृधौ॑ । ऋ॒तस्य॑ । ज्योति॑षः । पती॒ इति॑ । ता । मि॒त्रावरु॑णा । हु॒वे॒ ॥
ṛtena | yau | ṛta-vṛdhau | ṛtasya | jyotiṣaḥ | patī iti | tā | mitrāvaruṇā | huve
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3×8
Mantric, incantatory balance with repeated ṛta-phrases; creates a firm ‘truth-beat’.
Builds a strong inner alignment; repetition of ṛta terms induces a sense of integrity and luminous exactness.
- ṛtena
- Literal: by ṛta (truth-order). Symbolic: by alignment with the inherent right law of consciousness
- ṛtāvṛdhau
- Literal: those who grow by ṛta. Symbolic: powers that expand as sincerity and right movement increase
- ṛtasya jyotiṣaḥ patī
- Literal: lords of the light of ṛta. Symbolic: masters of luminous discernment; guardians of inner guidance
- mitrāvaruṇā
- Literal: Mitra and Varuṇa. Symbolic: harmony + vast law acting together to establish right order
- huve
- Literal: I call. Symbolic: a focused aspiration for governance by truth-light
Soma-yajña and general ṛta-oriented invocation: establishes the rite as an enactment of ṛta, calling the sovereign powers of harmony and law.
When seeking rightness, reconciliation, ethical clarity; also suitable for daily recitation as a ‘truth alignment’ mantra.
Invocation of Mitra-Varuṇa as guardians of ṛta; mental offering of one’s actions to the truth-light.
A daily ‘ṛta check’: chant before important speech/actions to align intention, word, and deed.
ṛta from √ṛ ‘to go, fit, rise in right movement’ → ‘order, truth-in-motion’; vṛdh from √vṛdh ‘to grow, increase’ (PIE *werdh- ‘grow’). jyotis from √dyut ‘shine’ (PIE *dyeu-/*dyewt- ‘shine’). The repeated ṛta-lexemes create a semantic ring emphasizing order as dynamic luminous governance.
ṛta (cosmic order/truth), jyotis as truth-conscious illumination, sovereignty of law (Varuṇa) balanced by concord (Mitra)
Central: ṛta is both the means (ṛtena) and the nourishment (ṛtāvṛdhau) and the revelation (ṛtasya jyotis).
Satya is the content of truth; ṛta is its right operation; the mantra calls for both through ‘light of ṛta’.
Worlds persist by ṛta; the individual becomes a microcosmic participant by aligning to ṛta and receiving its light.
Vedantic-integral: ṛta as supramental truth-order; jyotis as consciousness-light.
dawn-to-noon (light increasing)
unspecified
Light = awakened discernment; sun = steady truth; order = right rhythm of life, thought, and aspiration.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The 'sovereigns of ṛta and its light' mythologem: Mitra-Varuṇa preside over the luminous order. Psychologically, the verse asks for the mind and life to be reorganized by truth-law, not by desire or confusion.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- vṛdh (PIE *werdh-) and dyut/jyotis (PIE shine-roots) are inherited; the formulaic repetition of ṛta resembles Indo-European poetic intensification through lexical clustering to mark a sacral concept.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi positions himself as aligning with ṛta: he invokes the devatās specifically as ‘lords of ṛta’s light’, implying the offering is sincerity/rightness and the return is illumination that orders the inner being.
Rest in ‘truth-light’: ask inwardly, “What is the right movement now?” and wait for a quiet luminous certainty rather than mental debate.
Simple breath-counting to 8 on exhale while mentally repeating ‘ṛta’; feel alignment through the spine as a column of light.
Sattvic steadiness; luminous conscience and clear guidance.
Chant 12 times; then choose one concrete act of truth (speech, decision, reconciliation). Offer it inwardly to Mitra-Varuṇa and perform it without agitation.
Maintain consistent three-tone; repeated ‘ṛta’ syllables should be crisp; avoid swallowing ṛ (vocalic).
Give gentle prominence to ‘ṛtena’, ‘ṛtāvṛdhau’, and ‘jyotiṣas’—the semantic pillars. Keep final ‘huve’ as a clean resolve.
ṛtena: vocalic ṛ (not ri), ṛtāvṛdhau: long ā; dh as aspirate, jyotiṣas: jy cluster; retroflex ṣ, mitrāvaruṇā: long ā in mitrā; ṇ in varuṇā
Steady, level, resonant; aim for ‘upright’ tone rather than emotional swell.
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