Rig Veda 9.33.3: Mandala 9, Sukta 33, Mantra 3
Sukta 9.33
- Rishi
- Soma-Pavamāna seer tradition
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna
- Chandas
- Likely Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Vira (heroism)
सुता इन्द्राय वायवे वरुणाय मरुद्भ्यः । सोमा अर्षन्ति विष्णवे ॥
sutā́ indrā́ya vāyáve váruṇāya marúdbhyaḥ | sómā arṣanti víṣṇave ||
સુત થયેલા સોમપ્રવાહો ઇન્દ્ર અને વાયુને, વરુણને અને મરુદ્ભ્યોને વહે છે; તેઓ વિષ્ણુને પણ અર્ષે છે—ઋત, વિશાળતા અને સમ્યક બળના દેવત્વ તરફ.
Word by Word
- सुताः
- pressed / expressed (as Soma)Adjective/Participleपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा विभक्तिः, बहुवचनम्Role कर्तृ (सोमाः इति कर्तृपदस्य विशेषणम्)Root सु (धातु) → सुत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
- इन्द्राय
- for IndraNounपुंलिङ्गः, चतुर्थी विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्Role सम्प्रदानRoot इन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- वायवे
- for VāyuNounपुंलिङ्गः, चतुर्थी विभक्तिः, एकवचनम् (वैदिक रूप: वायवे)Role सम्प्रदानRoot वायु (प्रातिपदिक)
- वरुणाय
- for VaruṇaNounपुंलिङ्गः, चतुर्थी विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्Role सम्प्रदानRoot वरुण (प्रातिपदिक)
- मरुद्भ्यः
- for the MarutsNounपुंलिङ्गः, चतुर्थी विभक्तिः, बहुवचनम्Role सम्प्रदानRoot मरुत् (प्रातिपदिक)
- सोमाः
- Soma (drops/juices)Nounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा विभक्तिः, बहुवचनम्Role कर्तृRoot सोम (प्रातिपदिक)
- अर्षन्ति
- they flow / streamVerbलट् (वर्तमाने), प्रथमपुरुषः, बहुवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्Role (क्रिया)Root ऋष् (धातु) (वैदिक: ‘to flow, rush’)
- विष्णवे
- for ViṣṇuNounपुंलिङ्गः, चतुर्थी विभक्तिः, एकवचनम् (वैदिक रूप: विष्णवे)Role सम्प्रदानRoot विष्णु (प्रातिपदिक)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: सुताः | इन्द्राय | वायवे | वरुणाय | मरुद्भ्यः | सोमाः | अर्षन्ति | विष्णवे || 1) ‘इन्द्राय वा॒यवे’ इति द्वन्द्व-समुच्चयः (चतुर्थी-एकवचनयोः समाहारः), ‘च’ अव्ययम् लुप्तम्। 2) ‘मरुद्भ्यः’ इत्यत्र मरुत्-शब्दस्य भ्यस्-प्रत्यये ‘त् + भ् → द्भ्’ (व्यञ्जनसन्धिः)। 3) ‘सोमा अर्षन्ति’ इत्यत्र पदान्त ‘आ’ परतः स्वरारम्भे सन्धिः न कृतः (पदपाठानुसारं पदविरामः)। 4) ‘वायवे/विष्णवे’ इति वैदिक चतुर्थी-एकवचनरूपे -ए (क्लासिकल -वे) दृश्यते।
The meaning
Outer meaning
Pressed out, the Soma streams flow to Indra and Vāyu, to Varuṇa and the Maruts; they flow to Viṣṇu.
Inner meaning
When Soma is pressed (sutāḥ)—when delight is consciously released and offered—it naturally seeks the higher powers in us: Indra (illumined mind) and Vāyu (life-breath, dynamic prāṇa), Varuṇa (vast truth-order and ethical wideness), the Maruts (storm-powers of energetic thought and life-force), and Viṣṇu (all-pervading vastness, the three strides of expansion). Soma distributes itself as nourishment to each faculty for integrated transformation.
Universal truth
True spiritual delight does not remain private; it feeds and harmonizes the whole inner ecology—mind, breath-life, ethical truth, dynamic energies, and expansive consciousness.
Themes
Soma offering, Poly-deity integration, Inner yajña, Victory and vastness
The seer
- Rishi
- Soma-Pavamāna seer tradition
- Other hymns
- RV 9.33 (distribution motif), RV 9.97 (Soma to the gods; inner nourishment theme)
Family tradition
Pavamāna seers often present Soma as a distributive power—offered to multiple devatās to build a complete inner harmony.
Significance
The seer’s vision is integrative: delight must be shared with all inner gods so realization becomes stable, ethical, energetic, and vast.
The deity
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna (as offering-current)
- Epithets
- Sutá (pressed), Pavamāna (purifying, implied in maṇḍala)
- Related deities
- Indra, Vāyu, Varuṇa, Maruts, Viṣṇu
Cosmic role
Mediator-nourisher: the divine delight that strengthens all cosmic functions and maintains harmony among powers.
Inner power
Ability to feed illumination (Indra), regulate breath-force (Vāyu), widen truth-order (Varuṇa), energize transformative forces (Maruts), and expand consciousness (Viṣṇu).
In ritual
Where it is used
Soma offering to various deities within Soma-yajña sequences
सु॒ता इन्द्रा॑य वा॒यवे॒ वरु॑णाय म॒रुद्भ्य॑: । सोमा॑ अर्षन्ति॒ विष्ण॑वे ॥
सु॒ताः । इन्द्रा॑य । वा॒यवे॑ । वरु॑णाय । म॒रुत्ऽभ्यः॑ । सोमाः॑ । अ॒र्ष॒न्ति॒ । विष्ण॑वे ॥
sutāḥ | indrāya | vāyave | varuṇāya | marut-bhyaḥ | somāḥ | arṣanti | viṣṇave
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4 × ~11
Enumerative and processional—well-suited for listing recipients in a steady march.
Creates a sense of orderly offering and inner coordination; supports ‘integration’ meditation.
- सुताः (sutāḥ)
- Literal: pressed out. Symbolic: Released by conscious effort and offering; distilled experience made available to the soul
- इन्द्र (indra)
- Literal: Indra. Symbolic: Divine Mind/illumination; power that breaks the coverer
- वायु (vāyu)
- Literal: Wind. Symbolic: Prāṇa, life-breath; carrier of inner currents
- वरुण (varuṇa)
- Literal: Varuṇa. Symbolic: Vastness and law of truth; inner conscience and wideness that holds ṛta
- मरुतः (marutaḥ)
- Literal: Maruts. Symbolic: Energies of dynamic thought and vital force; helpers of Indra
- विष्णु (viṣṇu)
- Literal: Viṣṇu. Symbolic: All-pervading expansion; wide consciousness; the threefold stride beyond limitation
Offering distribution: Soma as oblation to multiple deities in Soma-yajña; inwardly, the clarified delight-force feeds several divine functions in the being.
At points where Soma is apportioned for different devatā-invocations/stotras.
Verbal consecration of Soma’s flow to the gods; reinforces correct distribution in rite.
A ‘whole-being offering’ mantra: before practice, mentally offer the day’s energies to illumination (Indra), breath (Vāyu), truth (Varuṇa), dynamic effort (Maruts), and wideness (Viṣṇu).
sutá: from √su ‘press out/express’—also ‘bring forth’ psychologically. √ṛṣ ‘flow’ repeated as Soma’s characteristic motion. Varuṇa from √vṛ ‘cover/encompass’—vastness and binding law; Viṣṇu from √viṣ/√viś ‘pervade’—wide stride as expansion of consciousness.
Integration of powers (Indra-Vāyu-Varuṇa-Maruts-Viṣṇu), Ṛta upheld by Varuṇa, Expansion (Viṣṇu) as culmination
The right distribution of Soma to the gods mirrors ṛta: each cosmic function is nourished appropriately.
Varuṇa signifies satya-ṛta containment; Soma supports truthfulness and wideness.
Sustenance of worlds by mutual nourishment—delight as a cosmic food that maintains harmony.
Integral-Vedic synthesis: many godheads as powers of one Consciousness; Soma as unifying Ananda.
Flow = offering of experience; wind = breath movement; storm = energizing transformation; vastness = expansion beyond ego-limits.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Soma as the shared divine nourishment distributed to multiple powers: victory (Indra), breath-force (Vāyu), cosmic law (Varuṇa), dynamism (Maruts), and all-pervading expansion (Viṣṇu). Mythically, one essence feeds the whole divine economy.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- Indra and the Maruts preserve Indo-Iranian storm/warrior strata; Varuṇa has close Indo-Iranian parallels (Avestan Ahura/Varuna-related debates), reflecting shared IE concerns with ‘binding law’ and ‘cosmic order’. √su ‘press’ is Indo-Iranian ritual lexicon with parallels in Iranian haoma pressing traditions.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The seer positions Soma as mediator: by pressing and offering, the human channels one purified essence to awaken multiple divine functions within. The devatās are not competing; they are coordinated operations receiving the same clarified delight-force.
Integration practice: feel one Soma-current branching into five inner functions—illumined mind, breath-force, ethical truth, dynamic energies, and vast awareness.
ajna (coordination of faculties)
5-cycle breathing: on each inhale/exhale mentally offer Soma to one devatā (Indra, Vāyu, Varuṇa, Maruts, Viṣṇu).
Consecrated harmony; collected wideness.
Chant 5 or 10 times; after chanting, sit and sense the whole system ‘fed’ and bright, with breath smooth and mind wide.
Follow RV accenting; keep clear udatta on devatā names as marked in your recensional text (e.g., índrāya).
Make each recipient a distinct offering-unit: ‘indrāya | vāyave | varuṇāya | marudbhyaḥ | viṣṇave’.
Keep ‘marudbhyaḥ’ with clear dbhy cluster (marut-bhyaḥ)., Do not soften ṇ in ‘varuṇāya’ (retroflex ṇ)., ‘viṣṇave’: retroflex ṣṇ cluster; avoid ‘visnave’.
even, consecratory, slightly lifted on each devatā name.
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