Rig Veda 9.1.3: Mandala 9, Sukta 1, Mantra 3
Sukta 9.1
- Rishi
- Madhucchandas
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna
- Chandas
- Gāyatrī
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Adbhuta (wonder)
वरिवोधातमो भव मंहिष्ठो वृत्रहन्तमः । पर्षि राधो मघोनाम् ॥
varivo-dhā́tamo bhava maṃhíṣṭho vṛtrahán-tamaḥ | párṣi rā́dho maghónām ||
Deviens pour nous le meilleur fondateur du vaste espace (varivas) ; sois le plus généreux, le plus puissant pourfendeur de Vṛtra. Fais-nous passer les richesses des larges donateurs (maghónām).
Word by Word
- वरिवोधातमः
- most bestowing wide space/room; most granting free courseAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम् (सुपरलेटिव -तम)Role सम्बोधन/विशेषण (हे सोम)Root वरिवस् (प्रातिपदिक) + धा (धातु) → वरिवो-धा (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
- भव
- be; becomeVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे), मध्यमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्Role क्रिया (आज्ञा) — कर्ता: त्वम् (सोम)Root भू (धातु)
- मंहिष्ठः
- most bountiful; most generousAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम् (सुपरलेटिव -इष्ठ)Role सम्बोधन/विशेषण (हे सोम)Root मंह (प्रातिपदिक ‘उदार/प्रचुर’)
- वृत्रहन्तमः
- most Vṛtra-slaying; greatest slayer of the obstructerAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम् (सुपरलेटिव -तम)Role सम्बोधन/विशेषण (हे सोम)Root वृत्रहन् (प्रातिपदिक: वृत्र + हन् ‘to slay’)
- पर्षि
- carry across; bring; bestowVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे), मध्यमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्Role क्रिया (आज्ञा) — कर्ता: त्वम् (सोम)Root पॄ/पृ (धातु ‘to carry across, bring over, convey’)
- राधः
- wealth; bounty; giftNounनपुंसकलिङ्गः, द्वितीया, एकवचनम्Role कर्म (पर्षि इत्यस्य)Root राधस् (प्रातिपदिक)
- मघोनाम्
- of the bountiful ones; of the patronsNounपुंलिङ्गः, षष्ठी, बहुवचनम्Role सम्बन्ध (राधः—कस्य? मघोनाम्)Root मघवन् (प्रातिपदिक ‘bountiful, wealthy patron’)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: वरिवोधातमः भव मंहिष्ठः वृत्रहन्तमः । पर्षि राधः मघोनाम् ॥ 1) वरिवो-धातमः: वरिवस् ‘विस्तीर्ण-स्थान/अवकाश’ + धा ‘धारणे/स्थापने’ से बना बहुव्रीहि/तत्पुरुष-आधारित कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक ‘वरिवोधा’ (वरिवो दधाति इति), उस पर -तम (सुपरलेटिव). 2) मंहिष्ठः: मंह-प्रातिपदिक पर -इष्ठ (सुपरलेटिव). 3) वृत्रहन्तमः: वृत्रहन् प्रातिपदिक पर -तम (सुपरलेटिव). 4) पर्षि: √पॄ/पृ का लोट् 2sg
- संहिता में ‘पर्षि’ रूप स्थिर. 5) राधो मघोनाम्: राधः (अक्-प्रत्ययान्त नपुंसक) + मघोनाम् (षष्ठी बहु)
- संहिता में ‘राधो’ (ओ) उच्चारण/पदपाठ-परम्परा के अनुसार, मूल रूप राधः।
The meaning
Outer meaning
Be the best giver/establisher of wide space; be most bountiful, most slayer of Vṛtra; bring to us the riches of the generous.
Inner meaning
Soma, as purified Ananda, is invoked to create ‘varivas’—wide room, free space in consciousness—by dissolving constriction and anxiety. He is asked to become ‘vṛtrahantama’—most powerful in slaying the Coverer (Vṛtra), i.e., the obstructing resistance of the subconscient that blocks the flow of light and joy. ‘Rādhas of the maghonām’ are inner riches from the luminous givers (powers of the Truth): capacities, inspirations, strengths that sustain the journey. Soma carries us across (parṣi) the difficult passages by widening the being and enabling Indraic victory.
Universal truth
Freedom is a widening of consciousness; when inner joy is purified, it breaks resistance and brings enduring resources for life and growth.
Themes
Vritra-slaying (innerized), boon and abundance, opening of inner space, Soma as helper-power
The seer
- Rishi
- Madhucchandas (traditional)
- Lineage
- Viśvāmitra (traditional association)
- Other hymns
- RV 9.1.1, RV 9.1.2, RV 9.1.4
Family tradition
A seer-line that often couples victory motifs (vṛtra-han) with sweetness (madhu/Soma), indicating conquest by delight and light rather than harsh asceticism.
Significance
The mantra articulates a key Aurobindonian movement: wideness (varivas) is a primary sign of higher consciousness; Soma is invoked as the agent that makes this wideness stable and victorious over the Coverer.
The deity
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna
- Epithets
- varivodhātama, maṃhiṣṭha, vṛtrahantama
- Related deities
- Indra, Bṛhaspati (opener of the cave, thematic), Agni
Cosmic role
Opens the paths and spaces for the gods; empowers the slaying of Vṛtra by nourishing Indra; brings riches from the luminous givers.
Inner power
Expansive joy that breaks contraction, fear, and inertia; a carrying power through inner transitions.
In ritual
Where it is used
Soma Pavamāna recitation within Soma rites
व॒रि॒वो॒धात॑मो भव॒ मंहि॑ष्ठो वृत्र॒हन्त॑मः । पर्षि॒ राधो॑ म॒घोना॑म् ॥
व॒रि॒वः॒ऽधात॑मः । भ॒व॒ । मंहि॑ष्ठः । वृ॒त्र॒हन्ऽत॑मः । पर्षि॑ । राधः॑ । म॒घोना॑म् ॥
varivaḥ-dhātamaḥ | bhava | maṃhiṣṭhaḥ | vṛtrahan-tamaḥ | parṣi | rādhaḥ | maghonām
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3 × 8
Assertive and victorious; concise imperatives create a marching clarity.
Generates a felt widening in chest/head and a confident push against inner resistance.
- वरिवः (varivas)
- Literal: wide room, free space. Symbolic: inner wideness, freedom from constriction
- धातमः (dhātamaḥ)
- Literal: best establisher. Symbolic: power that founds a stable wideness in the being
- मंहिष्ठ (maṃhiṣṭha)
- Literal: most bountiful. Symbolic: abundant giver of inner force and joy
- वृत्रहन्तम (vṛtrahantama)
- Literal: most slayer of Vṛtra. Symbolic: strongest breaker of subconscious resistance/covering
- पर्षि (parṣi)
- Literal: carry across. Symbolic: lead through difficulty to a higher state
- राधः (rādhaḥ)
- Literal: riches, bounty. Symbolic: inner plenitudes—powers, supports, realizations
- मघोनाम् (maghonām)
- Literal: of the bountiful. Symbolic: of the truth-giving powers/illumined beings
Invocatory in Soma pressing: Soma asked to widen the field (varivas) and bring boons; supports Indra’s Vṛtra-breaking action through Soma
During purification/flow, emphasizing Soma’s empowering effect for victory and abundance.
Chanted to strengthen the sacrifice’s success and remove obstructions.
For times of inner tightness, fear, or stuckness: chant to widen the field and mobilize a joyful force to meet resistance.
varivas ‘wide space, room’ (from √vṛ ‘to cover/choose’ with semantic development to ‘enclosure/space’); dhātama- superlative from √dhā ‘place, establish’. maṃhiṣṭha superlative from maṃh ‘to be bountiful/powerful’. vṛtrahan-tama superlative compound: vṛtra ‘obstruction’ + √han ‘smite’. parṣi from √pṛ/√par ‘to carry over, rescue’ (crossing metaphor).
freedom/inner wideness (varivas), victory over obstruction (vṛtra), R̥ta as passage/crossing into right being
Varivas is a condition for ṛta to act freely; Vṛtra is anti-ṛta constriction.
Rādhas of the maghonām are supports from the truth-plane powers.
Breaking the covering to release light and waters (classic Vṛtra myth) reinterpreted as releasing consciousness and joy.
Integral Yoga psychology: expansion (wideness) as ascent; resistance (Vṛtra) as subconscient obstruction.
Space = wideness of mind/heart; crossing = transition between states; waters = released streams of consciousness/Ananda.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Vṛtra-slaying translated into inner yoga: the obstructer is the constricting power that blocks the rivers of light/delight. Soma is invoked to create ‘wide room’ (varivas) and to ferry the seeker across the limiting threshold into abundance (rādhas).
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √bhū ‘become’ is IE (cf. English be). √dhā ‘set/place’ has wide IE correspondences (Greek títhēmi ‘I place’). The consistent superlative morphology (-tama/-iṣṭha) encodes a graded intensification typical of archaic Indo-European poetics (formulaic ‘most…’ epithets).
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi petitions Soma not merely for gifts but for a transformation of inner conditions: wideness, bounty, and the defeat of obstruction. The reciprocity is explicit—through offering/pressing Soma, the seeker receives widened consciousness and the capacity to cross beyond limitation.
Widen the inner space; let joy become a force that presses through resistance without violence.
Anahata (wideness) expanding into Vishuddha/Ajna (clear space of mind).
Dirgha pranayama (three-part breath) to embody varivas; on exhale, imagine breaking a subtle ‘cover’ around the mind.
Expansive strength; obstacle-facing clarity.
Chant 12 or 24 times. Then practice ‘widening’: feel space around the body, then within it, then above the head; offer any contraction to Soma’s flow.
Gāyatrī; treat varivodhātamo / vṛtrahantamaḥ as emphatic peaks; exact svara requires accent-marked recension text.
Deliver imperatives with firm onset: bhava, parṣi; keep pace steady across three pādas.
varivodhātamo: keep ‘dhā’ long; avoid collapsing syllables, maṃhiṣṭhaḥ: anusvāra ‘ṃ’ before h; retroflex ṣṭh, vṛtrahantamaḥ: vocalic ṛ in vṛ; clear cluster tr; dental t, parṣi: retroflex ṣ, rādhaḥ: long ā; final ḥ light, maghonām: gh aspirated; long ā in -nām
Strong, expansive, slightly projecting (without strain).
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