Rig Veda Sukta 4
Mandala 1Sukta 410 Mantras

Sukta 4

Sukta 1.4

Rishi

Madhucchandas Vaiśvāmitra

Devata

Agni (invoked as the integral, well-formed power of the sacrifice and inner will)

Chandas

Gāyatrī

Is mantra mein Gayatri ke through pooja ki taakat ko bulaya ja raha hai. Agni ko achhi shape wala, toota nahi hua bal kehte hain jo havan ko chalta hai. Har din usse protection aur badhao ke liye pukarte hain. Phir Indra ki taraf mudte hain jo shanti deta hai aur Soma nikalne wale ka mad karta hai. Achhi reputation aur full life maangte hain. Raste ke rukawatein paar karne mein help chahiye. Yeh pooja andar aur bahar dono kaam karti hai. Agni se irada jagana aur Indra se protection lena.

Recitation with translationRig Veda 1.4

Mantras

Mantra 1

सुरूपकृत्नुमूतये सुदुघामिव गोदुहे । जुहूमसि द्यविद्यवि ॥

Hum Agni ko bulate hain ki woh humare saath rahe aur humara kaam kare. Woh bilkul sahi hai, koi toota-phuta nahi. Jaise ek gaay bahut doodh deti hai, waise hi woh roshni deta hai. Roz-roz hum uski puja karte hain.

Mantra 2

उप नः सवना गहि सोमस्य सोमपाः पिब । गोदा इद्रेवतो मदः ॥

Aao hamare paas, hum jo puja kar rahe hain usme shaamil ho jao. Somras piyo, jo bhagwan peete hain woh wala. Yeh peene se bahut khushi milti hai. Jaise ameer log khush rehte hain, waise hi yeh bhi waisi hi khushi deta hai.

Mantra 3

अथा ते अन्तमानां विद्याम सुमतीनाम् । मा नो अति ख्य आ गहि ॥

Ab hum yeh jaanna chahte hain ki tumhare andar kya baat hai, tumhari acchi baatein kya hain. Tum humse aage mat jao, humare paas aao. Humare upar nazar rakhna.

Mantra 4

परेहि विग्रमस्तृतमिन्द्रं पृच्छा विपश्चितम् । यस्ते सखिभ्य आ वरम् ॥

Aage badh jao, Indra ko dhoondho. Woh bahut taakatwala hai, kabhi hilta nahi. Woh bahut samajhdar hai. Tumhare doston ke liye woh sabse accha gift laata hai. Unka kaam banata hai.

Mantra 5

उत ब्रुवन्तु नो निदो निरन्यतश्चिदारत । दधाना इन्द्र इद्दुवः ॥

Jo log humare khilaf bolte hain, woh sab chale jaayein. Koi bhi taraf se na rahein. Hum Indra ko apna puja samarpit karte hain. Uski taakat hamare saath rahe.

Mantra 6

उत नः सुभगाँ अरिर्वोचेयुर्दस्म कृष्टयः । स्यामेदिन्द्रस्य शर्मणि ॥

Log hamare baare mein aisa bolein ki hum khushkismat hain. Hum Indra ki sharan mein rahein. Indra jo chamatkar karte hain, unki hifazat mein hum safeed rahein.

Mantra 7

एमाशुमाशवे भर यज्ञश्रियं नृमादनम् । पतयन्मन्दयत्सखम् ॥

Is tez shakti ke liye jaldi khushi lao. Yagya ki chamak lao jo insaan ko khush karti hai. Urne wali taakat lao jo apne saathi ke saath khelti hai. Andar ki bhakt chamak uthe aur jeet jaye.

Mantra 8

अस्य पीत्वा शतक्रतो घनो वृत्राणामभवः । प्रावो वाजेषु वाजिनम् ॥

Indra, tumne yeh Somras piya. Phir tumne dushmanon ko tod diya. Jeet ki jagah mein tumne vijayi shakti ko aage badhaya. Tumne woh taakat layi jo har cheez jeetti hai.

Mantra 9

तं त्वा वाजेषु वाजिनं वाजयामः शतक्रतो । धनानामिन्द्र सातये ॥

Indra, tumhari sau shaktiyan hain. Tum har jagah jeet lekar chalte ho. Hum tumhe vijayi banate hain taaki dhan mil jaye. Andar ke khazane hum paa lein.

Mantra 10

यो रायोऽवनिर्महान्त्सुपारः सुन्वतः सखा । तस्मा इन्द्राय गायत ॥

Indra ki stuti karo. Woh bade madadgar hain. Woh dhan ki hifazat karte hain. Woh us nadi se paar karane wale hain jo Som ras nikalte hain. Woh hamari mehnat ka saath dete hain. Woh humein paar le jaate hain.

Inside Sukta 4

How it unfolds

  1. Where it opens

    A daily invocation of Agni as the perfectly-formed, unbroken power sought for fostering protection and increase.

  2. Development

    Agni’s role as the effective force of sacrifice expands into the wider aim: prosperity, good fortune, and social recognition, with divine support made concrete as protection.

  3. Climax

    The prayer for abiding in Indra’s śarman (protecting peace) and for Indra’s active help as the great guardian of plenitudes.

  4. Where it settles

    A closing exhortation to sing to Indra, the helper and ‘ferryman across,’ affirming divine friendship with the consecrated effort of the Soma-presser.

The deity: Agni

  • In the VedaAgni is the perfectly-formed (surūpa), unbroken (akṛtnu) power of the offering, invoked repeatedly as the priestly fire that carries oblations and awakens the sacrifice. Indra appears as the wonder-worker (dasma), protector, and companion of the Soma-presser, granting shelter (śarman) and plenitude (rāyaḥ).
  • Cosmic functionAgni mediates between human and divine realms, translating offerings into divine reception and maintaining ṛta through the rite; Indra upholds victory, protection, and the widening of life-force and abundance.
  • Inner significanceAgni signifies the integrated will, aspiration, and clarity that makes spiritual effort coherent and ‘well-formed’; Indra signifies the courageous, overcoming power that establishes inner security and opens the way across difficulties.

The seer

  • Madhucchandas VaiśvāmitraVaiśvāmitra (Kauśika/Viśvāmitra line) · One of the earliest seers of Mandala 1, credited with foundational hymns that establish the Vedic act of invocation; closely associated with the Vaiśvāmitra tradition and the shaping of early Vedic liturgy.

Famous verses

juhūmasi dyavi-dyavi
Verse 1.4.1Defines Agni as surūpa-akṛtnu—an integral, well-shaped and unbroken power—invoked daily for protection, using the vivid image of a richly-yielding cow for the ‘milking’ of light and increase.Read verse 1.4.1 →
indrasya śarmaṇi
Verse 1.4.6Expresses the social and spiritual fruit of the rite: luminous good fortune and the aspiration to dwell in Indra’s sheltering peace (śarman), a key Vedic ideal of protected well-being.Read verse 1.4.6 →
supāraḥ sunvataḥ sakhā
Verse 1.4.10Summarizes Indra’s function as protector of plenitudes and the ‘safe-crosser’ (supāraḥ), emphasizing companionship with the Soma-presser—divine support for sustained disciplined effort.Read verse 1.4.10 →

Attributes of the deity

  • Well-formed, integral power (surūpa)
  • Unbroken/consistent force (akṛtnu)
  • Daily-invoked priestly fire (dyavi-dyavi)
  • Giver of fostering protection (ūtaye)
  • Indra as shelter/peace (śarman)
  • Indra as helper of plenitudes and the ‘ferryman across’ (supāraḥ)

Also by this seer

  • RV 1.1–1.11 (traditional Anukramaṇī attribution, including early Agni and Indra hymns)
  • Early Mandala 1 Gāyatrī-style stotras used in Soma and fire rites

The rite, step by step

  • Prepare the altar/vedi and establish ritual purity and intention.
  • Kindle or rekindle Agni; invoke him as the well-formed, unbroken power of the sacrifice (invocation repeated day by day).
  • Offer oblations into the fire while reciting the Gāyatrī verses as a steady stotra.
  • Turn the praise toward Indra, aligning the rite with Soma-pressing and asking for śarman (protecting peace) and rāyas (plenitudes).
  • Conclude with a directive to sing to Indra as the great helper and safe ‘crosser-over,’ sealing the rite in confidence and protection.

Offerings

  • Ghṛta (clarified butter) into Agni
  • Samidh (fuel sticks) for kindling
  • Soma (or Soma-substitute) offered/praised in Indra’s context
  • Optional: grains/cakes (puroḍāśa) according to the rite

Frequently Asked Questions

It asks for protection and increase by invoking Agni as the steady, well-formed power that makes the sacrifice work, and it seeks Indra’s sheltering peace and help for success and safe progress.

The hymn praises Agni as an integrated, consistent force—both the ritual fire and the inner will—that does not fail in carrying the offering and sustaining the effort day after day.

Early Mandala 1 hymns often move fluidly between closely linked divine powers in the ritual. Here, Agni establishes the rite, and Indra is praised as the protector and helper who grants peace (śarman) and abundance to the Soma-presser.

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