Rig Veda 10.16.14: Mandala 10, Sukta 16, Mantra 14
Sukta 10.16
- Rishi
- Vasiṣṭha
- Devata
- Cooling/refreshing powers associated with Agni
- Chandas
- Short meter
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Shringara (love)
शीतिके शीतिकावति ह्लादिके ह्लादिकावति । मण्डूक्या सु सं गम इमं स्वग्निं हर्षय ॥
śītike śītikāvati hrādike hrādikāvati | maṇḍūkyā su saṃ gamaḥ imaṃ su agniṃ harṣaya ||
हे जो ठंडा करते हो, बहुत ठंडा करो। जो खुश करते हो, बहुत खुश करो। मंडुक्य, तुम अच्छे से मिल जाओ। इस अग्नि को खुश करो और चमका दो।
Word by Word
- शीतिके
- O cool oneAdjective (vocative used as epithet)स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Voc.), एकवचनRole सम्बोधन (address)Root शीतिक (प्रातिपदिक; ‘शीत’ से) / शीत (विशेषण-आधार)
- शीतिकावति
- O she who is endowed with coolnessAdjective (vocative epithet)स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Voc.), एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot शीतिकावत् (प्रातिपदिक; -वत् ‘युक्त/सम्पन्न’)
- ह्लादिके
- O refreshing/pleasing oneAdjective (vocative epithet)स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Voc.), एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot ह्लादिक (प्रातिपदिक; √ह्लाद् ‘प्रहर्षे/आह्लादे’ से)
- ह्लादिकावति
- O she endowed with refreshment/joyAdjective (vocative epithet)स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Voc.), एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot ह्लादिकावत् (प्रातिपदिक; -वत् ‘युक्त/सम्पन्न’)
- मण्डूक्या
- O frog-like one / O Maṇḍūkyā (name/epithet)Noun/Adjective (vocative epithet)स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Voc.), एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot मण्डूक्य (प्रातिपदिक; ‘मण्डूक’ से तद्धित)
- सु
- well, auspiciouslyIndeclinableअव्ययRole विशेषण-निपात (intensifier)Root सु (उपसर्ग/निपात)
- सम्
- together, completelyIndeclinable (preverb)अव्ययRole क्रियाविशेषण (preverb to √गम्)Root सम् (उपसर्ग)
- गम
- go/come (hither), proceedVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद (गच्छ/गम प्रकार—वैदिक संक्षिप्त रूप ‘गम’)Role क्रिया (आज्ञा)Root √गम् (गत्यर्थ)
- इमम्
- thisPronoun (demonstrative)पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्म (object)Root इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- स्वग्निम्
- one’s own Agni / the good (proper) fireNoun (compound)पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्म (object; with इमम्)Root स्वग्नि (प्रातिपदिक; ‘स्व’ + ‘अग्नि’—समास)
- हर्षय
- gladden, make rejoice, kindle with joyVerb (causative)लोट् (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदRole क्रिया (आज्ञा)Root √हृष् (हर्षे) → causative stem हर्षय-
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (sandhi-resolved): शीति॑के | शीति॑कावति | ह्लादि॑के | ह्लादि॑कावति | मण्डूक्या | सु | सम् | गम | इमम् | स्वग्निम् | हर्षय । 1) ‘सु सं गम’ → ‘सु सम् गम’ (अनुस्वार/संयोग-सन्धि; सम् + गम)
- 2) ‘इमं स्व१ग्निं’ → ‘इमम् स्वग्निम्’ (अनुस्वार-लेखन; पदान्त -म्)
- 3) उदात्त/स्वरित चिह्न मूल संहिता-पाठ के अनुसार रखे गए हैं
The meaning
Outer meaning
O Cooling One, richly cooling; O gladdening One, richly gladdening. O Maṇḍūkyā, come together well; delight this good fire.
Inner meaning
After the fierce work of Agni, the mantra calls in cooling and gladdening powers—inner agencies that temper tapas with bliss and peace. ‘Maṇḍūkyā’ functions as a summoned force (a specific healing/cooling spirit-power in the rite) that harmonizes the fire so it becomes a luminous, beneficent transformer rather than a scorching intensity.
Universal truth
Spiritual fire must be balanced by the descent of peace and joy; transformation is sustainable only when the inner flame is made glad, not strained.
Themes
cooling invocation, appeasement of fire, restorative joy
The seer
- Rishi
- Vasiṣṭha (traditional; variable)
- Lineage
- Vasiṣṭha
- Other hymns
- RV 7.49 (waters/healing), RV 10.16.13 (restoration after burning)
Family tradition
A Vasiṣṭha-like balance of force and harmony: the hymn sequence moves from kindling, to burning, to cooling-integration.
Significance
Shows the seer’s practical knowledge: inner work requires not only intensity but also the art of pacifying and delighting the transforming force.
The deity
- Devata
- Cooling/Gladdening powers (Śītikā, Hlādikā) acting upon Agni; Maṇḍūkyā as invoked agency
- Epithets
- śītikāvati (abundantly cooling), hlādikāvati (abundantly gladdening)
- Related deities
- Āpaḥ (Waters), Soma (Bliss), Agni (Will)
Cosmic role
Regulators that harmonize the transformative fire with life’s sustaining waters and joy; ensure beneficent passage.
Inner power
Capacity to self-soothe and to receive ananda so aspiration remains luminous and kind.
In ritual
Where it is used
Antyeṣṭi pacification: cooling and auspicious completion around the fire
शीति॑के॒ शीति॑कावति॒ ह्लादि॑के॒ ह्लादि॑कावति । म॒ण्डू॒क्या॒३॒॑ सु सं ग॑म इ॒मं स्व१॒॑ग्निं ह॑र्षय ॥
शीति॑के । शीति॑काऽवति । ह्लादि॑के । ह्लादि॑काऽवति । म॒ण्डू॒क्या॑ । सु । सम् । ग॒मः॒ । इ॒मम् । सु । अ॒ग्निम् । ह॒र्ष॒य॒ ॥
śītike | śītikāvati | hrādike | hrādikāvati | maṇḍūkyā | su | sam | gamaḥ | imam | su | agnim | harṣaya
Anuṣṭubh-like short meter (invocatory; may be irregular)
32
4 pādas with compact calls and repeated epithets
Lullaby-like repetition (śītike… hlādike…) producing a pacifying cadence
Directly calms the system; the sound pattern itself ‘cools’ and ‘gladdens’ the inner fire.
- śītikā / śītike
- Literal: cooling one. Symbolic: descending peace, soothing wideness that prevents spiritual ‘overheat’
- hlādikā / hlādike
- Literal: gladdening one. Symbolic: ananda-current that refreshes and stabilizes progress
- su saṃ gama
- Literal: come together well; unite harmoniously. Symbolic: integration of forces—will, peace, joy—into a single effective movement
- su agnim
- Literal: good/noble fire. Symbolic: rightly governed aspiration guided by the psychic being
- harṣaya
- Literal: make rejoice, delight, brighten. Symbolic: turn tapas into luminous enthusiasm; joyful ardor rather than harsh effort
- Maṇḍūkyā
- Literal: name (lit. ‘frog-like’ in later etymologies). Symbolic: a specific restorative agency; in psychological reading, the ‘cooling carrier’ that mediates between heat and waters, bringing rhythmic renewal
Funerary appeasement/cooling: invocation to soothe Agni’s heat and convert it into auspicious, joyful flame
After intense fire-action; to appease and auspiciously ‘brighten’ Agni
Invoking cooling/gladdening forces; stabilizing the rite’s atmosphere
Use as a nervous-system ‘cooling mantra’ after strong pranayama/retreat intensity; also for grief-softening and heart-settling.
śītika from śīta ‘cool’ (past participle of √śī ‘to lie, be still’ with semantic cooling/calm). hlādika from √hlād ‘to gladden, refresh’. harṣaya causative from √hṛṣ ‘to thrill, rejoice’. maṇḍūka ‘frog’ is an old Indic term; here maṇḍūkyā likely a named feminine agency invoked for cooling/refreshment (frog as rain-bringer motif).
balance of tapas (heat) with śānti (cooling calm), transformation into ānanda (harṣa as delight)
Right order includes proportion: fire must be governed by harmony to serve life and truth.
Truth is not only forceful illumination but also luminous well-being (ānanda as a sign of alignment).
Sustaining creation through balance of heat and moisture/joy.
Integral-Vedic: ananda and śānti as necessary complements to tapas.
evening/night (cooling tendency; contextual, not explicit)
Cooling = śānti descending; gladdening = ananda rising; gentle fire = steady aspiration without strain.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The pacification of the transformative fire: after the fierce work of Agni, cooling and gladdening powers are summoned to harmonize the energies. Mythically, it is the return of waters/refreshment to balance the blaze.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- The verse is dominated by reduplicated/intensified feminine vocatives (śītikā-vatī, hlādikā-vatī), a stylistic feature of archaic ritual address. While direct PIE cognates are less certain for these specific stems, the performative pattern of paired epithets is broadly Indo-European poetic technique.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The r̥ṣi does not command but harmonizes: he calls complementary powers to ‘re-qualify’ Agni from harsh combustion into auspicious, rejoicing flame—showing a yogic mastery of energies through mantra.
Invite śānti (cooling) and ānanda (gladdening) to harmonize aspiration.
anahata (heart joy) and sahasrara (cool peace descending)
Śītalī/Śītkārī (if appropriate) for cooling; otherwise gentle nasal breathing with long exhale while repeating śītike… hlādike…
Pacified, sweet, integrated; ‘friendly fire’ in the heart.
If effort becomes harsh, pause and chant this softly. Feel a cool luminous nectar around the heart-flame; let joy replace strain. Resume practice only when the flame feels steady and kind.
Keep repetitive epithets even and soothing; preserve Vedic accents where known, but prioritize a calm, uniform intonation for meditative use.
Do not rush the doubled forms (śītike śītikāvati…); slight pause between cooling and gladdening pairs; brighten gently on harṣaya.
śītike: long ī; clear dental t, hlādike: initial ‘hl’ cluster—light h then l; long ā, maṇḍūkyā: retroflex ṇḍ; long ū; yā long ā, agnim: hard g; nasal m audible
Soft, cooling, slightly smiling tone; minimal force.
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