Rig Veda 8.7.2: Mandala 8, Sukta 7, Mantra 2
Sukta 8.7
- Rishi
- Kaṇva lineage
- Devata
- Maruts
- Chandas
- Likely Tr̥ṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism)
यदङ्ग तविषीयवो यामं शुभ्रा अचिध्वम् । नि पर्वता अहासत ॥
yád aṅgá taviṣī-yavo yā́maṃ śubhrā́ acídhvam | ní párvatā ahāsata ||
Wenn ihr, o Glänzenden, stark in eurer antreibenden Kraft, euren Zug antretet, dann beugen sich die Berge nieder.
Word by Word
- यत्
- when / asIndeclinableसम्बन्धसूचक अव्यय (यदा/यत् = ‘जब/जिस समय’)Role Adhikaraṇa (काल-सम्बन्ध) / वाक्य-सम्बन्धकRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) अथवा यत् (सम्बन्ध/यदा-तदा) अव्यय
- अङ्ग
- indeed, prayIndeclinableनिपात; संबोधन/उत्साह/प्रत्ययार्थकRoot अङ्ग (निपात) अव्यय
- तविषीयवः
- O mighty ones / the strong (you)Noun/Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; बहुवचनRole Kartā (अचिध्वम् का कर्ता) / सम्बोधनार्थे ‘हे’ (प्रयोगतः)Root तविषीयु (प्रातिपदिक; ‘बलवान्/उग्रः’)
- यामम्
- the course/way; the march (journey)Nounपुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया विभक्ति; एकवचनRole KarmaRoot याम (प्रातिपदिक) अथवा √या (गमन) से ‘याम’ (यात्रा/मार्ग/प्रहर)
- शुभ्राः
- bright, radiantAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; बहुवचन (तविषीयवः का विशेषण)Role Kartā-विशेषणRoot शुभ्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- अचिध्वम्
- you perceived/marked; you took noteVerbलुङ् (आorist) / परस्मैपद; मध्यम पुरुष; बहुवचनRole (क्रिया)Root √चिध्/√चिद् (वेदिक; ‘चेतयति/समझना, ध्यान देना, लक्ष्य करना’)
- नि
- down, awayIndeclinableउपसर्ग; ‘नीचे/अधः/अन्तः’ अर्थेRoot नि (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- पर्वताः
- mountainsNounपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; बहुवचनRole Kartā (अहासत् का कर्ता)Root पर्वत (प्रातिपदिक)
- अहासत्
- laughed / resounded with laughterVerbलुङ् (आorist); परस्मैपद; प्रथम पुरुष; एकवचन (वेदिक प्रयोग में बहुवचन कर्ता के साथ एकवचन क्रिया सम्भव)Role (क्रिया)Root √हस् (हासे ‘हँसना’)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (सन्धि-निरसन): यद् अङ्ग तविषीयवः यामम् शुभ्राः अचिध्वम् । नि पर्वताः अहासत् । 1) यद॒ङ्ग = यद् + अङ्ग (व्यञ्जन-सन्धि: द् + अ → दङ्/दङ्ग लेखन).
- ‘नि’ उपसर्ग स्वतंत्र अव्यय रूप में।
The meaning
Outer meaning
When, O radiant strong ones, you set your course, the mountains bowed down.
Inner meaning
When the Maruts—bright powers of impelling strength (taviṣīyavaḥ, śubhrāḥ)—establish their yāma (ordered march/course), the parvatas (fixed formations) ‘laugh down’/sink (ahāsata) i.e., their proud rigidity collapses. Psychologically, once the right dynamic movement is set in the being, entrenched habits and fixed mental structures lose their dominance and become pliant.
Universal truth
A true, luminous movement, once firmly set, naturally subdues inertia; rigidity yields before sustained, ordered force.
Themes
Maruts, Ordered movement, Breaking rigidity, Radiance
The seer
- Rishi
- Kaṇva lineage
- Lineage
- Kaṇva
- Other hymns
- RV 8.7.1, RV 8.7.3, RV 8.7.4
Family tradition
Marut hymns in Mandala 8 often stress the psychology of movement: the gods are powers that set the right course and break the fixed ‘mountains’.
Significance
The seer presents a repeatable law of inner change: establish luminous force in motion, and resistance diminishes.
The deity
- Devata
- Maruts
- Epithets
- Śubhrāḥ, Taviṣīyavaḥ, Rudriyas (of Rudra, by affiliation)
- Related deities
- Rudra, Indra, Vāyu
Cosmic role
Agents of atmospheric dynamism; they shake what is fixed, prepare the field for Indra’s illumination.
Inner power
Transformative prāṇa that sets disciplined momentum and subdues inner inertia.
In ritual
Where it is used
Marut invocation in Soma context; strengthening movement and overcoming obstacles
यद॒ङ्ग त॑विषीयवो॒ यामं॑ शुभ्रा॒ अचि॑ध्वम् । नि पर्व॑ता अहासत ॥
यत् । अ॒ङ्ग । त॒वि॒षी॒ऽय॒वः॒ । याम॑म् । शुभ्राः॑ । अचि॑ध्वम् । नि । पर्व॑ताः । अ॒हा॒स॒त॒ ॥
yat | aṅga | taviṣī-yavaḥ | yāmam | śubhrāḥ | acidhvam | ni | parvatāḥ | ahāsata
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4 pādas × ~11 syllables (probable; requires full saṃhitā syllable check)
Compact, force-forward; emphasizes ‘setting the course’ then the yielding of mountains.
Gives a decisive ‘turn’ in the listener—like locking onto a path; then a felt softening of inner rigidity.
- तविषीयवः (taviṣīyavaḥ)
- Literal: strong, full of might. Symbolic: impelling energies that can overcome resistance
- शुभ्राः (śubhrāḥ)
- Literal: bright, radiant. Symbolic: purified forces aligned with truth, not turbulence
- यामम् (yāmam)
- Literal: course, march, appointed movement. Symbolic: right rhythm/path of inner progress; ordered prāṇic movement
- अचिध्वम् (acidhvam)
- Literal: you set/arranged/established (a course). Symbolic: fixing the will’s direction; establishing discipline
- पर्वताः (parvatāḥ)
- Literal: mountains. Symbolic: hard formations of nature—fixed thoughts, stubborn vital patterns
- नि ... अहासत (ni ... ahāsata)
- Literal: they sank down / bowed down. Symbolic: collapse of egoic rigidity; resistance loses its height
Marut invocation emphasizing their ordered march (yāma) in ritual and inner discipline
In Marut sequences where their march and shaking power are praised
Recitation to call disciplined force and reduce ‘parvata’ resistances in the rite and in the sacrificer
Use when stuck in patterns: chant to ‘set the course’ (yāma) and let rigidity bow.
(taviṣī) ‘strength, impetuous force’ from √tav ‘to be strong’. √ci ‘to gather, arrange’ (acidhvam) suggests ordered formation—R̥ta-structured movement. √has ‘to laugh’ (ahāsata) in Vedic often extends to ‘open/brighten/relax’, so ‘mountains laughed’ = rigidity loosens before the divine host.
R̥ta as ordered course (yāma) of the powers, Transformation of fixed formations (parvata) by dynamic truth-force
Yāma is movement under Ṛta—energy that is lawful, not chaotic.
Brightness (śubhra) indicates Satya-bearing force that compels without distortion.
Re-formation: the fixed is made pliant so new order can manifest.
Vedic yoga of transformation (Aurobindo): dynamic forces establish progress; resistance yields.
Mountains = hardened structures; storm-march = disciplined prāṇa; yielding = release of subconscious resistance.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The advancing Maruts whose march makes mountains ‘laugh’ (yield/open). Inner sense: when radiant powers set the right course (yāma) in ordered force, the rigid structures of the being relax and become permeable to transformation.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- The particle aṅgá is an archaic discourse marker seen in early Vedic style. The root √tav ‘be strong’ reflects inherited strength semantics; √ci ‘gather/arrange’ parallels IE ‘heap/collect’ notions though direct cognates are primarily Indo-Iranian attestations.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi witnesses and invokes the Maruts’ disciplined dynamism: their power is not chaotic storm but ordered march. The seer’s recognition of their yāma aligns the human movement with theirs, enabling rigidity (parvata) in the psyche to yield.
Establish one clear line of progress (yāma) and let all inner ‘mountains’ bow to it.
Maṇipūra (directional force)
Walking meditation with synchronized breath (inhale 3–4 steps, exhale 3–4 steps) to embody yāma.
Directed, forceful, purified.
Chant 5–11 times, then name one ‘mountain’ habit; feel it losing height as you reaffirm the course.
Standard RV accenting; keep the pivot on ‘yāmam’ as the semantic and rhythmic center.
Do not rush ‘aṅga’; let it be an intimate address. Strike ‘ni parvatā’ with a downward settling tone.
(aṅga): nasal ṅ clearly, : long ī; articulate ṣī, : cluster cidhv; avoid inserting extra vowel, : aspirate h lightly, keep short a’s
Firm and bright; end with a gentle downward resolve on ‘ahāsata’.
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