Rig Veda 10.25.2: Mandala 10, Sukta 25, Mantra 2
Sukta 10.25
- Rishi
- Vimadá
- Devata
- Soma
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Adbhuta (wonder)
हृदिस्पृशस्त आसते विश्वेषु सोम धामसु । अधा कामा इमे मम वि वो मदे वि तिष्ठन्ते वसूयवो विवक्षसे ॥
hṛdi-spṛ́śas te āsate víśveṣu soma dhā́masu | ádhā kā́mā imé máma ví vo máde ví tiṣṭhante vasū-yávo vívakṣase ||
Deine herzberührenden Berührungen weilen in allen Sitzen, o Soma. Dann stehen diese meine Wünsche in deiner Ekstase weit wach — Sucher des wahren Reichtums — wenn du ihr Gedeihen willst.
Word by Word
- हृदिस्पृशः
- heart-touching (those who touch the heart)Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole Kartā (विशेषणरूपेण ‘विश्वेषु…’ इत्यस्य कर्तृसमूहस्य)Root हृदि- (हृद्) + स्पृश् (√स्पृश् ‘स्पर्शने’) → कृत्: स्पृश् + अ (बहुव्रीहि/तत्पुरुष-समास) ‘हृदि स्पृशन्ति ये’
- ते
- theyPronounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole KartāRoot तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- आसते
- sit / abideVerbलट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन, आत्मनेपदRole (क्रिया) —Root √आस् (आसने ‘to sit’)
- विश्वेषु
- in allAdjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, बहुवचनRole AdhikaraṇaRoot विश्व (प्रातिपदिक)
- सोम
- O SomaNoun (vocative)पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचनRole (सम्बोधन) —Root सोम (प्रातिपदिक; देवता/पेय)
- धामसु
- in the abodes / stationsNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, बहुवचनRole AdhikaraṇaRoot धामन् (प्रातिपदिक)
- अध
- then / nowIndeclinableअव्ययRoot अध (निपात)
- कामाः
- desiresNounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole KartāRoot काम (प्रातिपदिक)
- इमे
- thesePronounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole Kartā (कामाः इमे = ‘these desires’)Root इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- मम
- of me / myPronounषष्ठी, एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (genitive relation)Root अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- वि
- apart / forthIndeclinableअव्ययRoot वि (उपसर्ग/निपात)
- वः
- of you (pl.)Pronounषष्ठी, बहुवचन (एन्क्लिटिक)Role सम्बन्ध (genitive relation)Root युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- मदे
- in (your) exhilaration / intoxicationNounपुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचनRole AdhikaraṇaRoot मद (प्रातिपदिक; ‘उन्माद/हर्ष’)
- वि
- apart / forthIndeclinableअव्ययRoot वि (उपसर्ग/निपात)
- तिष्ठन्ते
- stand forth / become manifestVerbलट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन, आत्मनेपदRole (क्रिया) —Root √स्था (तिष्ठति; ‘to stand’)
- वसूयवः
- wealth-seeking (ones) / seeking richesNoun/Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole Kartā (कामाः इमे… वसूयवः = ‘these desires, wealth-seeking’)Root वसूयु (प्रातिपदिक; ‘वसु-इच्छु/वसु-याचक’), वसु + (इच्छार्थ) यु
- विवक्षसे
- you wish to utter / you intend to speakVerbलट् (वर्तमान), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन, आत्मनेपदRole (क्रिया) —Root वि + √वच् (वक्तुम्/उच्यते; desiderative sense here: ‘to wish to speak/utter’) → विवक्ष्
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: हृदिस्पृशः ते आसते विश्वेषु सोम धामसु । अध कामाः इमे मम वि वः मदे वि तिष्ठन्ते वसूयवः विवक्षसे ॥ मुख्य-सन्धि/समास: (1) हृदि + स्पृशः → हृदिस्पृशः (समास; ‘हृदि’ उपपद, ‘स्पृश्’ कृत्-आधार). (2) वि + वः (निपात + एन्क्लिटिक सर्वनाम) लेख्यरूपेण पृथक्
- उच्चारणे संयोगः. (3) वि + तिष्ठन्ते पृथक्
- ‘वि’ क्रियाविशेषणत्वेन. (4) विवक्षसे = वि-उपसर्गपूर्वक √वच्-धातोः ‘विवक्ष्’ (इच्छार्थ/देसिदेरटिव-प्रातिपदिक) तिङन्त-रूपम्
- मन्त्रे ‘विवक्षसे’ इति एकपदम्
The meaning
Outer meaning
Soma’s heart-touching influences abide in all his stations; then the speaker’s desires stand expanded in Soma’s ecstasy as seekers of wealth, as Soma wills their increase.
Inner meaning
Soma’s “touches” are experiences of delight that reach the heart (hṛd). They are not confined to one ritual place: they can inhabit every inner ‘seat’ (dhāman)—mind, life, body, and deeper layers. When this Ananda pervades, desires are transformed: they stand awake and wide (vi tiṣṭhante) as vasūyavaḥ—seekers of true riches (light, power, joy), no longer restless cravings but aspiring movements consenting to divine growth.
Universal truth
When joy becomes a pervasive inner contact, desire is purified into aspiration; the heart-led life seeks real wealth—truth, harmony, and plenitude.
Themes
Soma pervasion, awakening aspiration, inner wealth-seeking
The seer
- Rishi
- Vimadá
- Other hymns
- RV 10.20–10.26 (traditional cluster)
Family tradition
A contemplative-psychological strain: emphasis on heart-contact and the transformation of kāma into a higher seeking.
Significance
The rishi witnesses that Soma is not merely a pressed drink but a universal pervading power; the ‘heart-touch’ anticipates later Upaniṣadic centrality of the heart as a seat of realization.
The deity
- Devata
- Soma
- Epithets
- Hṛdispṛś (heart-touching, descriptive), Indu (bright drop), Madhu (sweet essence, implicit)
- Related deities
- Agni (inner priest), Indra (illumined mind)
Cosmic role
Pervasive delight that can inhabit all worlds/abodes, sustaining gods and energizing aspiration.
Inner power
Psychic sweetness that converts desire into luminous seeking and makes the being wide-awake.
In ritual
Where it is used
Soma praise within Soma-yajña; also as an inner invocation before offerings.
हृ॒दि॒स्पृश॑स्त आसते॒ विश्वे॑षु सोम॒ धाम॑सु । अधा॒ कामा॑ इ॒मे मम॒ वि वो॒ मदे॒ वि ति॑ष्ठन्ते वसू॒यवो॒ विव॑क्षसे ॥
हृ॒दि॒ऽस्पृशः॑ । ते॒ । आ॒स॒ते॒ । विश्वे॑षु । सो॒म॒ । धाम॑ऽसु । अध॑ । कामाः॑ । इ॒मे । मम॑ । वि । वः॒ । मदे॑ । वि । ति॒ष्ठ॒न्ते॒ । व॒सु॒ऽयवः॑ । विव॑क्षसे ॥
hṛdi-spṛśaḥ | te | āsate | viśveṣu | soma | dhāma-su | adha | kāmāḥ | ime | mama | vi | vaḥ | made | vi | tiṣṭhante | vasu-yavaḥ | vivakṣase
44
4 × ~11 syllables
Even, expansive; supports the sense of pervasion (‘viśveṣu…dhāmasu’) and widening (‘vi…vi’).
Creates a steady widening in the listener, especially when the ‘vi’ phrases are voiced with breadth.
- hṛdi-spṛś
- Literal: touching the heart. Symbolic: direct inner contact that awakens psychic consent and sweetness
- dhāman
- Literal: abode, seat, station. Symbolic: planes/centers of consciousness where the divine can dwell
- kāma
- Literal: desire. Symbolic: movement of seeking that can be purified into aspiration
- mada
- Literal: ecstasy. Symbolic: widening delight that lifts desire above compulsion
- vasūyavaḥ
- Literal: desiring wealth. Symbolic: seeking the true ‘vasu’: light, force, right joy, inner riches
- vivakṣase
- Literal: you will to increase. Symbolic: divine fostering of growth when nature consents
Soma praise within Soma pressing: describes Soma’s pervasion of all dhāmas and awakening of aspirational energies; recitable during offering/consumption phases.
During Soma stotra/śastra sequences emphasizing Soma’s pervasion and delight.
Recitation praising Soma’s presence in all ‘seats’ and inviting awakened aspiration.
A mantra for transforming desire: chant before making intentions (saṅkalpa) so motives become heart-led and sattvic.
hṛd ‘heart’ + spṛś ‘touch’ (√spṛś, PIE *(s)per- ‘touch’ debated; cf. Latin spargō is different; but Indo-Iranian continuity is clear). dhāman from √dhā ‘set’ → ‘seat/abode’. kāma from √kam ‘to desire, love’—in Vedic can be aspiration-force, not merely craving; refined by Soma into vasūyavaḥ, seekers of true plenitude.
dhāman as planes of consciousness, kāma as aspiration purified, Ananda-touch (heart-touching Soma)
Desires become aligned with right order when they ‘stand’ in Soma’s ecstasy rather than in ego-impulse.
Vasu as true wealth implies satya-valued aims (truth, harmony, plenitude).
Pervasion of delight through all dhāmas enables evolutionary growth (vivakṣase).
Integral-psychological Vedic exegesis: dhāmas as inner planes; Soma as Ananda permeating them.
Touching the heart = psychic awakening; abodes = layers/centers; nectar = bliss-substance nourishing aspiration.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Soma as the pervasive nectar that awakens the heart and establishes aspiration across all ‘abodes’: the mythic Soma is not only a plant/juice but a universal essence seated in all planes; it arouses the soul’s seeking (vasūyavaḥ).
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- The ‘abode/seat’ notion (dhāman from √dhā) rests on an inherited IE root for ‘placing/setting’. The compositional style (hṛdi-spṛśaḥ) is characteristic of old Indo-European poetic compounding, compressing psychological description into a single epithet.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi testifies to Soma’s immanent operation: Soma’s ‘touches’ are already seated everywhere, and the rishi’s own kāmāḥ become rightly oriented as wealth-seeking aspirations. The devatā is thus both indwelling and transformative of desire into a higher seeking.
Feel Soma’s ‘heart-touch’ permeating each layer: body, breath, emotions, thoughts.
Anāhata (primary).
Slow breathing with attention at the heart; on inhale feel ‘touch’, on exhale feel pervasion into all dhāmas.
Wakeful calm (prasāda) with gentle bliss.
Repeat the mantra while scanning awareness from heart outward; then observe desires arising—offer them into Soma’s delight until they become clear aspirations for true wealth (vasu).
General Vedic contour: udatta lifts on key nouns (sóma, dhā́masu, kā́māḥ), with svarita glides where applicable (requires śākhā for exact).
Give breadth to ‘viśveṣu soma dhāmasu’ and to the paired ‘vi…vi’ in pāda 3.
hṛdi: syllabic ‘ṛ’ clear, not ‘ri’, spṛśaḥ: ‘spṛ’ cluster clean; final visarga light, dhāmasu: long ‘ā’, tiṣṭhante: retroflex ‘ṣṭh’ distinct
Soft, heart-centered, sustained vowels to convey ‘touch’ and pervasion.
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