Rig Veda 9.9.3: Mandala 9, Sukta 9, Mantra 3
Sukta 9.9
- Devata
- Soma
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Adbhuta (wonder)
स सूनुर्मातरा शुचिर्जातो जाते अरोचयत् । महान्मही ऋतावृधा ॥
sá sūnúr mātarā́ śúcir jātó jā́te arocayat | mahā́n mahī́ ṛtāvṛ́dhā ||
Er, der reine Sohn der beiden Mütter, ließ, geboren, die zwei Geburten erglänzen. Groß ist er, und nach dem Gesetz der Wahrheit (ṛta) lässt er Größe wachsen.
Word by Word
- सः
- he (that one)Pronounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → स
- सूनुः
- sonNounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role Kartā (apposition to सः)Root सूनु- (प्रातिपदिक)
- मातरौ
- (his) two mothersNounस्त्रीलिङ्गः, द्वितीया, द्विवचनम्Role KarmaRoot मातृ- (प्रातिपदिक)
- शुचिः
- bright, pureAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role Kartā (qualifier of सः/सूनुः)Root शुचि- (प्रातिपदिक)
- जातः
- bornParticiple (past passive) used adjectivallyपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role Kartā (qualifier of सः)Root √जन् (जने) + क्त (कृदन्त)
- जाते
- in/among the two born (ones)Participle (past passive) used substantivelyस्त्रीलिङ्गः, सप्तमी, द्विवचनम्Role Adhikaraṇa (locative)Root √जन् (जने) + क्त (कृदन्त)
- अरोचयत्
- made (them) shine; illuminedVerbलङ् (imperfect), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्Role Kriyā (finite verb); takes कर्म = मातरौRoot √रुच् (रुचँ दीप्तौ) + णिच् (causative) → रोचयति
- महान्
- greatAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role Kartā (qualifier of implied subject = सः)Root महत्- (प्रातिपदिक)
- मही
- the great one; greatnessNoun/Adjective (f.)स्त्रीलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role Kartā/Predicate-nominative (in apposition/parallel epithet)Root मही- (प्रातिपदिक)
- ऋतावृधा
- increasing through ṛta (cosmic order); ṛta-nourishedAdjective (compound epithet)पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role Kartā (qualifier of implied subject = सः)Root ऋतावृध- (प्रातिपदिक; compound: ऋत + आवृध ‘growing by/with ṛta’)
Sandhi Notes
- Padapāṭha-style resolution: स सू॒नुर्मा॒तरा॒ शुचि॑र्जा॒तो जा॒ते अ॑रोचयत् → सः | सूनुः | मातरौ | शुचिः | जातः | जाते | अरोचयत्. Sandhi: (1) स + सूनुः → सः सूनुः (visarga before sibilant). (2) सूनुः + मातरौ → सूनुर्मातरौ (visarga → र् before voiced m). (3) शुचिः + जातः → शुचिर्जातः (visarga → र् before voiced j). Accent marks in the saṃhitā are retained on the original forms
- pada-forms shown without accent for morphological clarity
The meaning
Outer meaning
He, the pure son of the two Mothers, once born made the two births shine; great is he, and he increases greatness by the law of Truth.
Inner meaning
Soma is the ‘son’ of the two Mothers—heaven and earth, or the higher and lower nature—born through the yogic-ritual process of expression and purification. Once manifested, he illumines both births: the soul’s higher birth into light and the embodied birth in nature, making both luminous and harmonious. As ṛta-vṛdhā, he increases greatness by the law of truth: Ananda, when pure, amplifies the soul’s largeness and the being’s capacity to hold light without distortion.
Universal truth
A purified delight can reconcile spirit and nature: it illumines both the transcendent and the embodied life, and by truth-order it expands our capacity for greatness.
Themes
Cosmic birth, Illumination of dual realms, Ṛta-driven growth, Greatness (mahān/mahī)
The seer
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 9.9.1-2 (movement and progress of Soma), Rig Veda 1.95 (Agni as child of two mothers—symbolic parallel)
Family tradition
The ‘two Mothers’ motif is pan-Vedic (also for Agni); here applied to Soma’s birth through purification—indicating a shared symbolic vocabulary among seer lineages.
Significance
Encodes the integrative aim: illumination of both births (higher realization and earthly embodiment) through purity and ṛta.
The deity
- Devata
- Soma (Pavamāna)
- Epithets
- Śuci (pure), Sūnu (son), Ṛtāvṛdhā (increaser by ṛta), Mahān (great)
- Related deities
- Agni (parallel ‘two mothers’ birth symbolism), Indra (greatness/victory), Aditi (vastness, mother-principle)
Cosmic role
A born-and-purified divine delight that illuminates both heaven and earth and lawfully increases greatness.
Inner power
Purity that brings reconciliation of planes; expansive Ananda that stabilizes and enlarges consciousness.
In ritual
Where it is used
Pavamāna Soma chant during purification; proclamation of Soma’s birth and power
स सू॒नुर्मा॒तरा॒ शुचि॑र्जा॒तो जा॒ते अ॑रोचयत् । म॒हान्म॒ही ऋ॑ता॒वृधा॑ ॥
सः । सू॒नुः । मा॒तरा॑ । शुचिः॑ । जा॒तः । जा॒ते इति॑ । अ॒रो॒च॒य॒त् । म॒हान् । म॒ही । ऋ॒त॒ऽवृधा॑ ॥
saḥ | sūnuḥ | mātarā | śuciḥ | jātaḥ | jāte iti | arocayat | mahān | mahī | ṛta-vṛdhā
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4 pādas × ~11 syllables
Measured, declarative rhythm suited to proclamation of greatness (mahān).
Stabilizes the mind in a sense of purity and wideness; supports integration of higher experience into life.
- सूनु (sūnu)
- Literal: son. Symbolic: a power born from the union of higher and lower; emergent divine force in the being
- मातरौ (mātarau)
- Literal: two mothers. Symbolic: heaven–earth; mind–body; spirit–nature as the dual womb of manifestation
- शुचि (śuci)
- Literal: pure, bright. Symbolic: purified consciousness free from mixture and desire
- जाते…अरोचयत् (jāte…arocayat)
- Literal: born…made shine. Symbolic: manifestation leading to illumination; revelation after emergence
- महान्/मही (mahān/mahī)
- Literal: great. Symbolic: vastness of consciousness; largeness of being
- ऋतावृधा (ṛtāvṛdhā)
- Literal: increasing by ṛta. Symbolic: growth according to truth-order; lawful expansion of realization
Cosmic birth-and-illumination motif within Soma hymns; inner: the purified delight, born of dual foundations, illumines both planes and increases greatness by Ṛta
At moments emphasizing Soma’s clarified emergence and its efficacy for the sacrificer
Chant while Soma is seen ‘born’ from pressing/straining—celebrating its pure manifestation
A mantra for integration: after a high meditation, chant to bring the light into daily life and to grow by truth-order rather than excitement.
√ruc ‘shine’ in causative arocayat: Soma actively illumines. ṛtāvṛdhā (ṛta + √vṛdh ‘grow’) explicitly ties growth to cosmic order: greatness is not egoic expansion but expansion by truth-law. The ‘two Mothers’ and ‘two births’ preserve the dual-plane cosmology (higher/lower) as inner generative principles.
Ṛta (truth-order), growth by truth (vṛdh under ṛta), vastness (mahī/bṛhat sense)
Explicit: ṛtāvṛdhā—greatness increases only when aligned with right order.
Shining (roc) is the mark of satya manifesting in both births.
Dual birth and illumination: manifestation between two poles; reconciliation of worlds.
Integral-Vedāntic tendency: unity of higher and lower through a mediating power (Ananda/Soma).
Two mothers = higher/lower nature; birth = emergence of purified delight; shining = illumination of mind and body; ṛta-growth = stable evolution.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The ‘son of the two Mothers illumines the two births’ mythologem: Soma, born from dual generative principles, makes both planes shine and expands greatness only by Ṛta—truth as the law of increase.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √ruc ‘shine’ corresponds to an IE light lexicon (cf. Latin rūtilus ‘reddish’ is related in the light/color field; direct PIE reconstructions for *leuk- are more typical for ‘light’, but Indo-Iranian has multiple light roots). √vṛdh ‘grow’ is from PIE *werdʰ- ‘grow’ (cf. English ‘worth’ is different; better: Latin viridis ‘green’ is not cognate; but the PIE root is well attested across IE). The compound ṛta-vṛdhā shows classic Vedic compounding to encode metaphysics.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi recognizes Soma as an agent of illumination and lawful growth: the deity’s gift is not merely pleasure but purified brightness that makes both planes luminous and increases the being according to Ṛta—an inner covenant of truth.
Integration of ‘two births’: let higher realization illuminate the body and life; cultivate purity (śuci) so growth is by ṛta, not impulse.
Sahasrara (higher birth) to Muladhara (earth-birth) integration line
Slow coherent breathing (e.g., 5–6 breaths/min) while feeling light descending and stabilizing in the pelvic base.
Quiet vastness; settled luminous purity.
After chanting, contemplate: ‘What in me is not yet lit?’ Invite Soma-śuci to brighten it without force; commit to one truth-aligned action (ṛta) to ‘increase greatness’ concretely.
Honor udatta peaks on key nouns (śuciḥ, mahān) as marked; keep svarita as a gentle fall—avoid sing-song flattening.
Sustain clarity on ‘’ and ‘’; broaden tone on ‘’ and ‘’; end with a steady, law-like firmness on ‘’.
śuciḥ: ś as palatal ‘sh’, final ḥ lightly aspirated, mātarā: long ā; retroflex ṭ not present—keep dental t, arocayat: roll r lightly; ‘c’ as ‘ch’ in IAST context is ‘c’ (ts-like not needed)—use standard Sanskrit ‘cha’? here ‘c’ is palatal stop, crisp, ṛtāvṛdhā: vocalic ṛ; keep dhā long and aspirated
Pure, even, resonant; minimal vibrato; let wideness be felt.
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