Rig Veda 4.49.4: Mandala 4, Sukta 49, Mantra 4
Sukta 4.49
- Rishi
- Vāmadeva Gautama
- Devata
- Indra-Bṛhaspati
- Chandas
- Tr̥ṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Adbhuta (wonder)
अस्मे इन्द्राबृहस्पती रयिं धत्तं शतग्विनम् । अश्वावन्तं सहस्रिणम् ॥
a॒smé indrābṛhaspatī rayíṁ dhattaṁ śatagvínam | áśvāvantaṁ sahasríṇam ||
હે ઇન્દ્રા–બૃહસ્પતિ, અમામાં શતગ્વિન રયિ સ્થાપો—વૃદ્ધિના સો પ્રેરણાઓથી સમૃદ્ધ; અશ્વવંત—ગતિશીલ ઊર્જાના અશ્વોથી યુક્ત; સહસ્રિણ—હજારગણી વિશાળતા ધરાવતો.
Word by Word
- अस्मे
- for us / among usPronounसप्तमी (locative), एकवचन; वैदिक-प्रयोगः = अस्मासु/अस्माकम्-अर्थे ‘हमारे यहाँ/हमारे लिए’Role अधिकारण (स्थान/संबन्ध-आधारः; ‘हमारे लिए/हमारे बीच’)Root अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- इन्द्रा
- O IndraNoun (proper)सम्बोधन (vocative), द्विवचन (द्वन्द्व-सम्बोधन का प्रथम सदस्य)Role सम्बोधन (addressed deity)Root इन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- बृहस्पती
- O BṛhaspatiNoun (proper)सम्बोधन (vocative), द्विवचन (द्वन्द्व-सम्बोधन का द्वितीय सदस्य)Role सम्बोधन (addressed deity)Root बृहस्पति (प्रातिपदिक)
- रयिम्
- wealth, richesNounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (accusative), एकवचनRole कर्म (that which is to be placed/granted)Root रयि (प्रातिपदिक)
- धत्तम्
- bestow (you two), placeVerbलोट् (imperative), मध्यमपुरुष, द्विवचन; परस्मैपदRole क्रिया (आज्ञार्थक क्रिया: ‘bestow/put’)Root धा (धातु) ‘to place, bestow’
- शतग्विनम्
- rich in hundreds (of cattle), hundred-foldAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘रयिम्’ इति विशेषणम्Role कर्म (विशेषणरूपेण कर्मणि)Root शतग्विन् (प्रातिपदिक; ‘having a hundred cows/possessing hundreds’)
- अश्वावन्तम्
- having horsesAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘रयिम्’ इति विशेषणम्Role कर्म (विशेषणरूपेण कर्मणि)Root अश्वावत् (प्रातिपदिक; ‘possessing horses’)
- सहस्रिणम्
- thousand-fold / possessing a thousandAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘रयिम्’ इति विशेषणम्Role कर्म (विशेषणरूपेण कर्मणि)Root सहस्रिन् (प्रातिपदिक; ‘having a thousand’)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: अस्मे | इन्द्रा बृहस्पती | रयिम् | धत्तम् | शतग्विनम् | अश्वावन्तम् | सहस्रिणम् । ‘इन्द्राबृहस्पती’ इति संहितायां द्वन्द्व-सम्बोधन-द्विवचनम् (इन्द्रा + बृहस्पती) । ‘अस्मे’ वैदिक-रूपम्: अस्मद्-प्रातिपदिकस्य सप्तमी-एकवचनं, अर्थतः ‘हमारे लिए/हमारे बीच’ (क्लासिकल ‘अस्मासु/अस्मभ्यम्’ के निकट) ।
The meaning
Outer meaning
A prayer to Indra and Bṛhaspati to place within the worshippers a rich “rayi” (wealth/plenitude), described as hundred-increasing, possessed of horses, and thousandfold.
Inner meaning
The seeker asks the twin Powers—Indra (luminous force of the awakened mind) and Bṛhaspati (the soul’s priestly word, master of inspired discernment)—to establish in the being a plenitude of consciousness (rayi) that multiplies growth-impulses (śatagvinam), is rich in dynamic life-forces for right action (aśvāvantam), and expands into vast wideness (sahasriṇam). This is the inner “wealth”: intensified aspiration, energized execution, and wideness of being.
Universal truth
When illumination (Indra) and inspired truth-word (Bṛhaspati) work together, inner abundance arises: growth becomes manifold, energy becomes obedient to the higher aim, and consciousness widens beyond limitation.
Themes
Boon request, Spiritual wealth (rayi), Empowerment, Expansion into the Vast
The seer
- Rishi
- Vāmadeva Gautama
- Lineage
- Gautama
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 4.1-4.58 (selected hymns attributed to Vāmadeva Gautama), Rig Veda 4.50 (Bṛhaspati hymn, traditionally Vāmadeva)
Family tradition
Vāmadeva is a principal seer of Maṇḍala 4; the Gautamas are noted for hymns of inner ascent where the gods are powers of consciousness and the sacrifice is psychological as well as ritual.
Significance
Vāmadeva’s vision often turns “wealth” into a symbol of inner plenitude and “cows/horses” into light and force—aligning with the Aurobindonian reading of the Veda as a record of yogic realization.
The deity
- Devata
- Indra-Bṛhaspati (dual)
- Epithets
- Vṛtrahan (slayer of the Coverer) — Indra, Brahmaṇaspati/Bṛhaspati (Lord of the Word), Supraketá (well-guided, clear-perceiving) (contextual epithet)
- Related deities
- Agni (inner priest and will), Soma (bliss-substance empowering illumination), Uṣas (dawn of awakening)
Cosmic role
Indra breaks the obstructions to light and releases the luminous plenitudes; Bṛhaspati founds and guards the right formation through the true Word and divine discernment.
Inner power
A combined action: the illumined mind-force (Indra) + the truth-speaking intuition that forms and protects the inner order (Bṛhaspati). Together they install growth, energy, and wideness in the seeker.
In ritual
Where it is used
Soma-yajña context (invocation of Indra/Bṛhaspati for increase and strength)
अ॒स्मे इ॑न्द्राबृहस्पती र॒यिं ध॑त्तं शत॒ग्विन॑म् । अश्वा॑वन्तं सह॒स्रिण॑म् ॥
अ॒स्मे इति॑ । इ॒न्द्रा॒बृ॒ह॒स्प॒ती॒ इति॑ । र॒यिम् । ध॒त्त॒म् । श॒त॒ऽग्विन॑म् । अश्व॑ऽवन्तम् । स॒ह॒स्रिण॑म् ॥
asme iti | indrābṛhaspatī iti | rayim | dhattam | śata-gvinam | aśva-vantam | sahasriṇam
44
4 pādas × ~11 syllables
Firm, forward-driving cadence suited to invocation and establishment of power.
Builds a sense of energetic expansion—first calling the powers, then “placing” the plenitude, ending in a widening, thousandfold release.
- अस्मे (asme)
- Literal: in us. Symbolic: in the embodied consciousness; the inner field of sādhanā
- इन्द्रा-बृहस्पती (indrā-bṛhaspatī)
- Literal: Indra and Bṛhaspati. Symbolic: illumined mind-force + truth-guiding intuition/word acting in harmony
- रयिम् (rayim)
- Literal: wealth, treasure, plenitude. Symbolic: plenitude of being—inner resources of light, strength, joy, capacity
- धत्तम् (dhattam)
- Literal: place, establish. Symbolic: fix as a stable attainment, not a passing experience
- शतग्विनम् (śatagvinam)
- Literal: hundred-increasing/abounding. Symbolic: manyfold impulses of progress; repeated intensifications of growth
- अश्वावन्तम् (aśvāvantam)
- Literal: possessed of horses. Symbolic: rich in vital energies disciplined for divine action
- सहस्रिणम् (sahasriṇam)
- Literal: thousandfold. Symbolic: vast wideness; expansive consciousness beyond narrow ego
Dakṣiṇā/boon-request layer within Soma hymn: asking for rayi (plenitude) as the fruit of right invocation and Soma-offering
During Soma pressing/offering sequences; also adaptable to daily recitation for inner increase.
Invocatory recitation accompanying offering/pressing and the call for divine “rayi”.
Affirmation-mantra for cultivating inner abundance: growth impulses, disciplined energy, and wideness of consciousness.
rayi from √rā/rai ‘to bestow, give, grant’ (and the noun-field of ‘riches’): in Vedic symbolism ‘wealth’ is capacity/fullness, not material gold. √dhā ‘to place/establish’ (dhattaṁ, 2du impv.) is PIE *dʰeh₁- ‘to put’ (cf. Greek títhēmi). aśva ‘horse’ from PIE *h₁éḱwos (Lat. equus, etc.); in Vedic inner reading, ‘horse’ commonly encodes force, speed, life-energy harnessed to the will. sahasra ‘thousand’ marks immeasurable abundance/wideness.
Rayi as fullness of being, Stability of attainment (√dhā: establishment in the nature), Multiplication (śata/sahasra) as expansion toward bṛhat (the Vast)
The requested plenitude is an ṛta-aligned increase: growth that supports right order rather than egoic expansion.
Bṛhaspati’s action implies truth-guided formation; Indra’s implies truthful illumination.
Expansion from limitation to the Vast (sahasriṇam) as a microcosmic echo of cosmic widening.
Proto-Vedāntic/Integral Yoga-compatible (Aurobindo): ascent to wider consciousness through illumined mind and truth-word.
Steed imagery (aśva) as storm-speed/dynamic movement (outer), energy-force (inner)
“Horses” become forces of action; “hundred/thousand” become intensities and wideness; “wealth” becomes inner plenitude of consciousness.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The bestowal of ‘wealth’ by the gods upon the sacrificer. Innerly, the mythologem is the installation of an increased, energized, and widened state of being (rayi) by illumination-force (Indra) and truth-word (Bṛhaspati).
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- aśva aligns with PIE *h₁éḱwos (equus, etc.), showing inherited poetic symbolism of the ‘horse’ as power/speed. dhā (dhattaṁ) continues PIE *dʰeh₁- ‘put’, a core inherited verb with cognates across IE.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The seer requests not external prosperity but a divinely established inner plenitude. The devatā are approached as active builders of the seeker’s nature—placing (√dhā) capacities and energies into the embodied field.
Invite illumined mind (Indra) and truth-guiding intuition (Bṛhaspati) to establish inner abundance: growth, energy, wideness.
Ājñā (illumination) with support of Viśuddha (truth-word)
Moderate nāḍī-śodhana for 6–8 rounds, then chant on long exhalations.
From concentrated aspiration to expansive, steady clarity.
After chanting, sit quietly and sense three qualities entering: (1) many impulses to progress, (2) obedient energy for action, (3) widening beyond habitual limits.
Use Vedic accenting as per śākha tradition; key lift on deity names (indrā-bṛhaspatī) with clear udatta, avoid flattening compounds.
Sustain vowels in indrābṛhaspatī; keep rayiṃ crisp with anusvāra; end sahasriṇam with a full nasal resonance.
ṛ in bṛhaspati: short vocalic ‘r’ (brih-aspati not ‘bri-ha’), ś in śatagvinam: palatal ‘sh’, aśvāvantam: clear long ā after śv, Maintain sandhi flow: asme indrābṛhaspatī (no hard break)
Steady, resonant, uplifting; emphasize widening on sahasriṇam.
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