Sukta 181
Sukta 10.181
Vasiṣṭha (named in the verse)
Dhātṛ / Savitṛ / Viṣṇu (triadic sourcing of the rite’s power; hymn concerns sacrificial formulation)
Anuṣṭubh (explicitly referenced; verse itself may be in a different meter in some recensions, but the mantra thematizes Anuṣṭubh)
This brief hymn reflects on how the power of sacrifice is “carried” and made effective through correct formulation—meter (Anuṣṭubh), inspired finding, and the right yājñika speech (yajus). It traces the rite’s efficacy to a triad of divine sources—Dhātṛ as ordainer, Savitṛ as impeller, and Viṣṇu as pervader—by whom hidden seats of yajña, primal formulas, and the solar “gharma” (sacrificial heat) are recovered and brought into the ritual field.
Mantras
Mantra 1
प्रथश्च यस्य सप्रथश्च नामानुष्टुभस्य हविषो हविर्यत् । धातुर्द्युतानात्सवितुश्च विष्णोरथंतरमा जभार वसिष्ठः ॥
He whose wideness and name are wideness—of him the Anuṣṭubh brings the offering as the offering. From the shining ordainer (Dhātṛ), from Savitṛ and from Viṣṇu, Vasiṣṭha has borne hither the Atharvan-like inner support, the moving chariot of the rite.
Mantra 2
अविन्दन्ते अतिहितं यदासीद्यज्ञस्य धाम परमं गुहा यत् । धातुर्द्युतानात्सवितुश्च विष्णोर्भरद्वाजो बृहदा चक्रे अग्नेः ॥
They found that which was set beyond, when the supreme seat of the sacrifice was hidden in the cavern. From Dhātṛ’s shining, from Savitṛ and from Viṣṇu, Bharadvāja fashioned the Vast (Bṛhat) for Agni—so the Fire may blaze in the wideness of the soul.
Mantra 3
तेऽविन्दन्मनसा दीध्याना यजुः ष्कन्नं प्रथमं देवयानम् । धातुर्द्युतानात्सवितुश्च विष्णोरा सूर्यादभरन्घर्ममेते ॥
They found, by the illumined mind in its kindling, the first Yajus that had fallen—opening the path of the gods. From Dhātṛ’s shining, from Savitṛ and from Viṣṇu, these brought the Gharma from the Sun: the heat of conscious truth for the work.
Frequently Asked Questions
It explains how sacrifice becomes effective through correct form—especially the Anuṣṭubh meter and the right yajus-formula—and how this power is sourced from Dhātṛ, Savitṛ, and Viṣṇu.
Anuṣṭubh is treated as a “carrier” of the offering: the meter is not just poetic form but a ritual vehicle that helps speech deliver the oblation correctly.
Gharma is the heat/ardor that ripens the rite; symbolically it is solar clarity and truth-energy drawn into the sacrifice so the work becomes luminous and successful.