Sukta 176
Sukta 1.176
Vasiṣṭha (traditional; verify for RV 1.176)
Triṣṭubh (probable; verify)
This six-verse hymn invokes Soma (Indu) as the energizing, bull-like force that enters Indra and makes his power irresistible in battle and in winning wealth. It asks that non-offerers (those who do not press Soma) be checked, and that the gains and delights of the rite flow to the true celebrants, as they did for the ancient seers.
In this hymn
Addressed to
Mantras
Mantra 1
मत्सि नो वस्यइष्टय इन्द्रमिन्दो वृषा विश । ऋघायमाण इन्वसि शत्रुमन्ति न विन्दसि ॥
इंद्र, हमारे लिए खुश हो जाओ। तुम बड़े हो, तुम्हारी शक्ति बड़ी है। तुम ऐसे चलो जैसे कुछ रोक न सके। तुम दुश्मन को पास नहीं आने देते। जो तुम्हारे साथ है, उसका काम बनता है। हम भी तुम्हारे साथ रह के जीतना चाहते हैं।
Mantra 2
तस्मिन्ना वेशया गिरो य एकश्चर्षणीनाम् । अनु स्वधा यमुप्यते यवं न चर्कृषद्वृषा ॥
इस इंद्र के पास हमारी बात पहुँचाओ। वोही एक है जो सब लोगों का काम करता है। वो अपना काम खुद करता है, किसी का मुँह नहीं देखता। जैसे गेहूँ पिस के तैयार होती है, वैसे ही वो भी तैयार रहता है। उसकी शक्ति काम के लिए रेडी रहती है।
Mantra 3
यस्य विश्वानि हस्तयोः पञ्च क्षितीनां वसु । स्पाशयस्व यो अस्मध्रुग्दिव्येवाशनिर्जहि ॥
इंद्र के हाथ में पाँच प्रांतों का खज़ाना है। वो सब कुछ हमें भी दिखाओ। जो हमारे ऊपर हमला करे, उसे ऐसे मारो जैसे बिजली गिरे। तुम्हारी शक्ति हमारा काम सही करके दुश्मन को भगा दे। अंधेरा दूर हो जाए, हमारी जीत हो जाए।
Mantra 4
असुन्वन्तं समं जहि दूणाशं यो न ते मयः । अस्मभ्यमस्य वेदनं दद्धि सूरिश्चिदोहते ॥
जो तुम्हारे भजन नहीं करता, जो तुम्हारी खुशी नहीं देता, उसको रोक दो। वो लोग बराबर नहीं कर सकते। लेकिन हमें जो मिलना चाहिए, वो हमें दे दो। जो बड़ा आदमी है, वो भी देना सीखो। जो माँगता है, उसे मिलना चाहिए, कोई रोक नहीं सकता।
Mantra 5
आवो यस्य द्विबर्हसोऽर्केषु सानुषगसत् । आजाविन्द्रस्येन्दो प्रावो वाजेषु वाजिनम् ॥
तू उसकी मदद किया जिसकी ताकत गानों में है। उसकी ताकत डबल है और वो हमेशा गानों में रहती है। लड़ाई में तूने इंद्र के घोड़े को और ताकत दी। ओ सोम, तूने उसे जीतने में मदद किया।
Mantra 6
यथा पूर्वेभ्यो जरितृभ्य इन्द्र मय इवापो न तृष्यते बभूथ । तामनु त्वा निविदं जोहवीमि विद्यामेषं वृजनं जीरदानुम् ॥
इंद्र, तूने पुराने गानेवालों की मदद की थी। वो लोग तड़से थे और तूने उन्हें पानी दिया जैसे प्यासे को पानी मिलता है। मैं भी वही कर रहा हूँ, तुझे बुला रहा हूँ। मुझे जीत मिल जाए और तू जल्दी अपना दान दे दे।
Inside Sukta 176
How it unfolds
- Where it opens
Indu is urged to exhilarate and enter Indra, becoming the forward-driving, invincible force.
- Development
The hymn links Soma’s rush and brightness with practical outcomes: protection, overcoming enemies, and securing spoils for the true offerers.
- Climax
A sharp ethical-ritual contrast: the non-presser is to be smitten/checked, while the sacrificers receive the ‘portion of gain’ and joy.
- Where it settles
The poet aligns the present invocation with the ancient seers’ precedent, calling Indra through the established revealing formula (nivíd) for victory and fullness.
The deity: Soma in the Indra–Soma complex
- In the VedaHe is praised as rushing, victorious, and enemy-dispelling when offered rightly.
- Cosmic functionMediator of divine vitality: Soma invigorates the gods (especially Indra), sustains the sacrificial exchange, and enables victory, abundance, and inspired speech.
- Inner significanceThe clarified surge of consciousness and will—joy, courage, and luminous intensity—by which the seeker becomes inwardly undefeated and capable of decisive action.
The seer
- Vasiṣṭha (traditional attribution; some uncertainty noted in secondary listings for individual verses)Vasiṣṭha gotra (one of the Seven Ṛṣis/Saptarṣi lineages) · A foremost Vedic seer associated with royal consecration, dharmic kingship, and powerful Indra–Varuṇa hymns; emblematic of brahman (sacred utterance) that secures victory and order.
Famous verses
indram indo vṛṣā ā viśa
asunvantaṃ ... jahi
yathā pūrvebhyo jaritṛbhyaḥ
Attributes of the deity
- Exhilarating (mada/mayaḥ-giving)
- Purified and luminous (Indu)
- Bull-like potency (vṛṣā)
- Enemy-dispelling and victory-making
- Ritually conditioned (depends on pressing/offerings)
- Allied with Indra’s martial force
Also by this seer
- Major authorship within Rigveda Maṇḍala 7 (Vasiṣṭha family hymns)
- Hymns to Indra, Varuṇa, Agni, and the Ādityas emphasizing ṛta (cosmic order)
- Vedic lore surrounding the Vasiṣṭha–Viśvāmitra rivalry in later tradition
The rite, step by step
- Prepare the Soma plant and pressing stones; establish the rite with fire and recitation.
- Press Soma (savana), collect the juice, and purify it through straining (pavitra).
- Recite the hymn while offering Soma to Indra (and Indra-Soma), inviting Indu to ‘enter’ Indra as power.
- Petition for victory and the removal of rivals/non-offerers; request the rightful share of wealth and delight.
- Conclude with reaffirmation of the ancient pattern (as with former singers) and a final call (nivíd) for impulse and plenitude.
Offerings
- Pressed Soma juice (primary)
- Ghee and oblations into Agni (supporting offerings)
- Optional accompanying gifts/dakṣiṇā in the broader soma rite
Frequently Asked Questions
It asks Soma to empower Indra so that the worshippers gain victory, protection, and prosperity, and that the benefits of the rite come to the true offerers.
The asunvant is the one who does not press/offer Soma—symbolically, a person who refuses the sacrificial duty and yet seeks equal share; the hymn asks that such obstruction be removed.
In Vedic ritual thought, Soma is the energizing ‘juice’ that intensifies Indra’s strength; together they represent inspired power that wins battles and secures abundance for the community.
Ask anything about Sukta 176 of the Rig Veda
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Rig Veda in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.
