Sukta 4
Sukta 1.4
Madhucchandas Vaiśvāmitra
Gāyatrī
This Gāyatrī hymn invokes the divine power that makes the sacrifice effective—Agni as the well-shaped, unbroken force of offering and aspiration—called day after day for protection and increase. It also turns toward Indra as the securing Peace and mighty helper of the Soma-presser, asking for good repute, plenitude, and safe passage beyond obstacles. Together, the hymn frames the early Vedic ritual as an inner-and-outer act: kindling will (Agni) and receiving victorious protection (Indra).
In this hymn
Addressed to
Mantras
Mantra 1
सुरूपकृत्नुमूतये सुदुघामिव गोदुहे । जुहूमसि द्यविद्यवि ॥
हम अग्नि को बुलाते हैं कि वो हमारे साथ रहे और हमारा काम करे। वो बिलकुल सही है, कोई टूटा-फूटा नहीं। जैसे एक गाय बहुत दूध देती है, वैसे ही वो रोशनी देता है। रोज़-रोज़ हम उसकी पूजा करते हैं।
Mantra 2
उप नः सवना गहि सोमस्य सोमपाः पिब । गोदा इद्रेवतो मदः ॥
आओ हमारे पास, हम जो पूजा कर रहे हैं उसमें शामिल हो जाओ। सोमरस पियो, जो भगवान पीते हैं वो वाला। यह पीने से बहुत खुशी मिलती है। जैसे अमीर लोग खुश रहते हैं, वैसे ही यह भी वैसी ही खुशी देता है।
Mantra 3
अथा ते अन्तमानां विद्याम सुमतीनाम् । मा नो अति ख्य आ गहि ॥
अब हम यह जानना चाहते हैं कि तुम्हारे अंदर क्या बात है, तुम्हारी अच्छी बातें क्या हैं। तुम हमसे आगे मत जाओ, हमारे पास आओ। हमारे ऊपर नज़र रखना।
Mantra 4
परेहि विग्रमस्तृतमिन्द्रं पृच्छा विपश्चितम् । यस्ते सखिभ्य आ वरम् ॥
आगे बढ़ जाओ, इंद्र को ढूँढो। वो बहुत ताकतवाला है, कभी हिलता नहीं। वो बहुत समझदार है। तुम्हारे दोस्तों के लिए वो सबसे अच्छा गिफ्ट लाता है। उनका काम बनता है।
Mantra 5
उत ब्रुवन्तु नो निदो निरन्यतश्चिदारत । दधाना इन्द्र इद्दुवः ॥
जो लोग हमारे खिलाफ बोलते हैं, वो सब चले जाएँ। कोई भी तरफ से न रहें। हम इंद्र को अपना पूजा समर्पित करते हैं। उसकी ताकत हमारे साथ रहे।
Mantra 6
उत नः सुभगाँ अरिर्वोचेयुर्दस्म कृष्टयः । स्यामेदिन्द्रस्य शर्मणि ॥
लोग हमारे बारे में ऐसा बोलें कि हम खुशकिस्मत हैं। हम इंद्र की शरण में रहें। इंद्र जो चमत्कार करते हैं, उनकी हिफाज़त में हम सफ़ीद रहें।
Mantra 7
एमाशुमाशवे भर यज्ञश्रियं नृमादनम् । पतयन्मन्दयत्सखम् ॥
इस तेज़ शक्ति के लिए जल्दी खुशी लाओ। यज्ञ की चमक लाओ जो इंसान को खुश करती है। उड़ने वाली ताकत लाओ जो अपने साथी के साथ खेलती है। अंदर की भक्त चमक उठे और जीत जाए।
Mantra 8
अस्य पीत्वा शतक्रतो घनो वृत्राणामभवः । प्रावो वाजेषु वाजिनम् ॥
इंद्र, तुमने यह सोमरस पिया। फिर तुमने दुश्मनों को तोड़ दिया। जीत की जगह में तुमने विजयी शक्ति को आगे बढ़ाया। तुमने वो ताकत लाई जो हर चीज़ जीतती है।
Mantra 9
तं त्वा वाजेषु वाजिनं वाजयामः शतक्रतो । धनानामिन्द्र सातये ॥
इंद्र, तुम्हारी सौ शक्तियाँ हैं। तुम हर जगह जीत लेकर चलते हो। हम तुम्हे विजयी बनाते हैं ताकि धन मिल जाए। अंदर के ख़ज़ाने हम पा लें।
Mantra 10
यो रायोऽवनिर्महान्त्सुपारः सुन्वतः सखा । तस्मा इन्द्राय गायत ॥
इंद्र की स्तुति करो। वो बड़े मददगर हैं। वो धन की हिफाज़त करते हैं। वो उस नदी से पार कराने वाले हैं जो सोम रस निकालते हैं। वो हमारी मेहनत का साथ देते हैं। वो हमें पार ले जाते हैं।
Inside Sukta 4
How it unfolds
- Where it opens
A daily invocation of Agni as the perfectly-formed, unbroken power sought for fostering protection and increase.
- 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.
- Climax
The prayer for abiding in Indra’s śarman (protecting peace) and for Indra’s active help as the great guardian of plenitudes.
- 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 VedaIndra 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
indrasya śarmaṇi
supāraḥ sunvataḥ sakhā
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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