Rig Veda 9.64.24: Mandala 9, Sukta 64, Mantra 24
Sukta 9.64
- Rishi
- Ascribed to Soma Pavamāna seers
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna
- Chandas
- Likely Jagatī
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Adbhuta (wonder)
रसं ते मित्रो अर्यमा पिबन्ति वरुणः कवे । पवमानस्य मरुतः ॥
rásaṃ te mitró aryamā píbanti váruṇaḥ kave | pávamānasya marútaḥ ||
Deine Saft‑Essenz trinken, o Weiser, Mitra und Aryaman, und Varuṇa; auch die Maruts — vom geläuterten Pavamāna.
Word by Word
- रसम्
- juice, sap (Soma-रस)Nounपुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया विभक्ति; एकवचनRole कर्मRoot रस (प्रातिपदिक)
- ते
- of you/thyPronounषष्ठी विभक्ति; एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (genitive relation)Root युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- मित्रः
- MitraNoun (deity name)पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; एकवचनRole कर्तृRoot मित्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- अर्यमा
- AryamanNoun (deity name)पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; एकवचन (वैदिक रूप: अर्यमा < अर्यमन्)Role कर्तृRoot अर्यमन् (प्रातिपदिक)
- पिबन्ति
- they drinkVerbलट् (वर्तमान); परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष; बहुवचनRole क्रियाRoot पा (धातु) ‘to drink’
- वरुणः
- VaruṇaNoun (deity name)पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; एकवचनRole कर्तृRoot वरुण (प्रातिपदिक)
- कवे
- O sage/poet (epithet)Noun / epithetपुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन/सप्तमी?—वैदिक प्रयोगे ‘कवे’ इति सम्बोधन-एकवचन (हे कवे) अधिक युक्तम्Role सम्बोधनRoot कवि (प्रातिपदिक)
- पवमानस्य
- of the purifying (Soma)Participle used as Noun (epithet of Soma)पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी विभक्ति; एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (genitive relation)Root पवमान (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √पू ‘to purify’ शानच्/मान)
- मरुतः
- the MarutsNoun (deity group)पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; बहुवचन (वैदिक रूप: मरुतः = मरुतः/मरुतः < मरुतः)Role कर्तृRoot मरुत् (प्रातिपदिक)
Sandhi Notes
- संहिता-पाठ: ‘रसं ते मित्रो अर्यमा पिबन्ति वरुणः कवे । पवमानस्य मरुतः ॥’ इति।
- पदच्छेदः स्वयमेव स्पष्टः। ‘मित्रो’ = ‘मित्रः’ (विसर्ग-लोपः पदान्ते), ‘रसं’ = ‘रसम्’ (अनुस्वार-लेखनम्), ‘मरुतः’ वैदिक-प्रथमा-बहुवचन-रूपम्। ‘कवे’ सम्बोधन-एकवचनरूपेण ग्रहणीयम्।
The meaning
Outer meaning
Mitra and Aryaman drink your essence; Varuṇa too, O sage; and the Maruts drink of the purified Soma.
Inner meaning
When Soma is purified, its rasa (essence) is received by the harmonizing powers: Mitra (unity/accord), Aryaman (noble effort, right aspiration and social-spiritual law), Varuṇa (vastness, law, inner purity), and the Maruts (dynamic energies). In us, purified delight becomes the nourishment of harmony, noble striving, wide truth-law, and energized action—integrating the whole being.
Universal truth
The best ‘essence’ of life is meant to be shared by all powers of the personality: harmony, aspiration, conscience/law, and energy. Joy that feeds only one part becomes imbalance; joy that feeds all becomes wholeness.
Themes
Soma-communion, Aditya powers, inner assimilation, truth-law and harmony
The seer
- Other hymns
- RV 9.64.1-28
Family tradition
Soma-seers articulate how multiple deva-powers partake of Soma—mapping a psychology of integrated faculties.
Significance
The mantra reveals an integral reception: not only Indra, but Mitra-Aryaman-Varuṇa and Maruts—i.e., harmony, aspiration, law, and dynamism—must all be nourished by Ananda.
The deity
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna
- Epithets
- Pavamāna, Kavi, Rasa-bhṛt (essence-bearer, implied)
- Related deities
- Mitra, Aryaman, Varuṇa, Maruts, Adityas (group)
Cosmic role
Nourisher of the Adityas (Mitra, Aryaman, Varuṇa) and Maruts; mediator that distributes delight across cosmic functions.
Inner power
Ananda that becomes ethical harmony (Mitra), noble movement (Aryaman), vast law (Varuṇa), and energized execution (Maruts).
In ritual
Where it is used
Soma offering where multiple deities are invited to partake
रसं॑ ते मि॒त्रो अ॑र्य॒मा पिब॑न्ति॒ वरु॑णः कवे । पव॑मानस्य म॒रुत॑: ॥
रस॑म् । ते॒ । मि॒त्रः । अ॒र्य॒मा । पिब॑न्ति । वरु॑णः । क॒वे॒ । पव॑मानस्य । म॒रुतः॑ ॥
rasam | te | mitraḥ | aryamā | pibanti | varuṇaḥ | kave | pavamānasya | marutaḥ
48
4 pādas × ~12 syllables
Expansive and inclusive, fitting the enumeration of powers.
Creates a feeling of widening reception—delight spreading through the whole system.
- रसम् (rasam)
- Literal: juice, essence, taste. Symbolic: quintessence of Ananda-power extracted by purification
- मित्रः (mitraḥ)
- Literal: Mitra. Symbolic: force of harmony, mutuality, luminous concord
- अर्यमा (aryamā)
- Literal: Aryaman. Symbolic: noble aspiration, right effort, inner ‘Arya’ movement
- वरुणः (varuṇaḥ)
- Literal: Varuṇa. Symbolic: vast law, inner moral-spiritual order, purification by wideness
- कवे (kave)
- Literal: O sage/poet. Symbolic: Soma as kavi-consciousness: luminous discernment in delight
- मरुतः (marutaḥ)
- Literal: Maruts. Symbolic: pranic dynamisms that execute the will of illumination
- पवमानस्य (pavamānasya)
- Literal: of the self-purifying. Symbolic: delight that refines itself into clarity and power
Soma offered to multiple deities; indicates distribution/participation of divine powers in the clarified draught.
During Soma flow and distribution to various deity-cups (grahas) in Soma rites (general)
Recitation to consecrate Soma as fit for Adityas and Maruts
A ‘wholeness’ practice: consciously offer joy to harmony (relationships), aspiration (growth), law (integrity), and energy (action).
rasa from √ras ‘to taste, relish’ → essence/sap (psychologically: relish of consciousness); mitra (from √mi ‘to bind/measure’ → harmonizing bond); aryaman (arya ‘noble’ + man ‘mind/spirit’/social bond concept); varuṇa (from √vṛ ‘cover/encompass’ → the vast enclosing law); kavi (possibly √ku/√kav ‘to be wise, to sing’ → seer-poet).
Ṛta and divine law (Varuṇa), harmonious relation (Mitra), noble aspiration/community (Aryaman), shared divine participation in consciousness
Adityas are guardians of Ṛta; Soma’s rasa nourishes the maintenance of truth-order.
Truth as wideness (Varuṇa) and concord (Mitra) supported by purified delight.
Sustaining creation: Soma circulates as nourishment that keeps cosmic functions balanced.
Integral Vedic psychology: deities as powers of consciousness, Soma as the integrating nectar.
Drinking = assimilation; wind = life-force; vastness = expansion of consciousness; rasa = distilled joy-power.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Divine communion through Soma: the Adityas (Mitra, Aryaman, Varuṇa) and Maruts ‘drink’ Soma’s rasa, a mythic image for the assimilation of clarified delight by the cosmic powers that govern harmony, nobility, and law.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √pā ‘drink’ (pibanti) reflects PIE *peh₃- ‘to drink’ (Lat. bibere is reduplicated; Skt. pibati shows similar patterning). Varuṇa’s name is often connected with √vṛ ‘encompass/cover’ (PIE *wel-/*wer- ‘cover/turn’ families), though exact etymology is debated.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The seer frames Soma as a mediating substance-consciousness: by offering/clarifying Soma, the practitioner enables the Aditya and Marut powers to become active within—harmony (Mitra), noble rightness (Aryaman), and vast law (Varuṇa) take the rasa and stabilize the inner order.
Assimilate purified joy and distribute it consciously into four functions: harmony (Mitra), aspiration (Aryaman), integrity/wideness (Varuṇa), and energetic execution (Maruts).
Anahata (harmony) and Vishuddha (purity/law of expression); supportive grounding in Manipura (Marut energy)
Four-part breath awareness: inhale ‘receive rasa’; brief hold ‘purify’; exhale ‘share to Mitra/Aryaman/Varuṇa/Maruts’; pause in wideness.
Integrated sattva with widened calm.
After chanting, scan the being: where is joy blocked (relationship, effort, integrity, energy)? Offer the ‘rasa’ there until it softens and aligns.
Mixed udatta/anudatta/svarita; not specified in input.
Give clear enumeration: mitro aryamā … varuṇaḥ … marutaḥ; keep ‘kave’ as a luminous address.
rasaṃ: anusvāra as nasal before s, mitro: short i; retroflex not used, aryamā: ‘ry’ cluster clean; long ā at end, varuṇaḥ: retroflex ṇ; visarga light, marutaḥ: dental t; visarga light
Even, reverent, widening tone; let the list feel like a calm distribution.
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Rig Veda in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.
