Rig Veda 10.49.6: Mandala 10, Sukta 49, Mantra 6
Sukta 10.49
- Rishi
- Vāmadeva Gautama
- Devata
- Indra
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Adbhuta (wonder) and Vira (heroism)
अहं स यो नववास्त्वं बृहद्रथं सं वृत्रेव दासं वृत्रहारुजम् । यद्वर्धयन्तं प्रथयन्तमानुषग्दूरे पारे रजसो रोचनाकरम् ॥
ahaṃ sá yó náva-vāstvaṃ bṛhád-rathaṃ sáṃ vṛtréva dā́saṃ vṛtra-hā́ rújam | yád vardháyantaṃ pratháyantam ānuṣág dūré pāré rájasaḥ rocanā́ ákaram ||
मैं वो हूँ जिसने दुश्मन को तोड़ दिया, वृत्र जैसा जो रोक रहा था। उसने नई जगह और बड़ा रथ पकड़ लिया था। जब वो ताकत बढ़ रही थी और फैल रही थी, मैंने रोशनी को बहुत दूर ले गया। अंधेरे से आगे, आसमान के उस पार।
Word by Word
- अहम्
- IPronoun1st person pronoun; nominative singularRole कर्तृRoot अस्मद्
- सः
- that (one), hePronounmasculine; nominative singularRole कर्तृ (apposition to अहम्)Root तद्
- यः
- whoRelative pronounmasculine; nominative singularRole कर्तृRoot यद्
- नव-वास्त्वम्
- having a new dwelling; newly-settledAdjectiveneuter; accusative singular (used adjectivally)Role कर्म (object-complement)Root नव + वास्तु (वास्तु-)
- बृहत्-रथम्
- with a great chariotAdjectivemasculine; accusative singularRole कर्मRoot बृहत् + रथ (रथ-)
- सम्
- together; completelyPreverb/IndeclinableupasargaRoot सम्
- वृत्रा-इव
- like VṛtraNoun + indeclinableवृत्रा: masculine; instrumental singular; इव: indeclinableRole करण (comparison-instrument)Root वृत्र + इव
- दासम्
- the Dāsa (enemy/foe)Nounmasculine; accusative singularRole कर्मRoot दास (दास-)
- वृत्र-हा
- Vṛtra-slayerAgent nounmasculine; nominative singularRole कर्तृ (epithet)Root वृत्र + हन् (√हन्)
- अरुजम्
- I shattered/brokeVerbaorist (root-aorist); 1st person singular; parasmaipadaRole क्रियाRoot √रुज्
- यत्
- whom/whichRelative pronounneuter; accusative singular (referring to दासम्)Role कर्म (relative object)Root यद्
- वर्धयन्तम्
- growing; causing to grow; increasingParticiplepresent active participle; masculine accusative singularRole कर्म (qualifier of यत्/दासम्)Root √वृध्
- प्रथयन्तम्
- spreading; making broadParticiplepresent active participle; masculine accusative singularRole कर्म (qualifier of यत्/दासम्)Root √प्रथ्
- अनुषक्
- in succession; continuously; alongIndeclinableadverbRoot अनुषक्
- दूरे
- far awayAdverbial formlocative singular used adverbiallyRole अधिकरणRoot दूर (दूर-)
- पारे
- on the farther sideNoun (adverbial)locative singular used adverbiallyRole अधिकरणRoot पार (पार-)
- रजसः
- of the space/region (rajas)Nounneuter; genitive singularRole सम्बन्धRoot रजस् (रजस्-)
- रोचन-अकरम्
- making light/brightness; light-producingCompound (agent/epithet)masculine; accusative singular (as epithet of यत्/दासम्)Role कर्म (qualifier)Root रोचन (रोचन-) + √कृ
Sandhi Notes
- अहं स → अहम् सः (anusvāra before s; visarga in pada)
- नव॑वास्त्वं → नव-वास्त्वम्
- बृ॒हद्र॑थं → बृहत्-रथम्
- सं → सम् (before v)
- वृ॒त्रेव॒ → वृत्रा इव (instr. sg. वृत्रा + इव)
- वृत्र॒हारु॑जम् → वृत्र-हा अरुजम् (compound epithet + verb)
- प्र॒थय॑न्तमानु॒षग्दू॒रे → प्रथयन्तम् अनुषक् दूरे
- रोच॒नाक॑रम् → रोचन-अकरम्
The meaning
Outer meaning
Indra says he, the slayer of Vṛtra, shattered the hostile Dāsa who had seized the new dwelling and the vast chariot. When that force was growing and spreading among humans, Indra made the luminous realms far beyond the mid-worlds, to the distant shore.
Inner meaning
The ‘new dwelling’ is a new state of consciousness being founded in the seeker; the ‘vast chariot’ is the large instrument of progress (body-life-mind harnessed for the journey). The Dāsa-like obstructer (a hostile formation) tries to seize this new establishment. Indra as Vṛtrahan breaks it. As the obstruction grows and spreads ‘through human nature’ (ānuṣak), Indra carries the consciousness beyond the intermediate obscurities (rajas—mid-regions of mixed light and darkness) and establishes ‘rocanā’—luminous widenesses—on the farther shore: stable supramental/inner-heavenly clarity beyond mixed mentality.
Universal truth
When a new spiritual opening appears, resistance often intensifies and tries to appropriate the gains. The divine intelligence must not only defeat resistance but also relocate the center of living to a wider, more luminous plane beyond the mixed zones.
Themes
Vṛtra-slaying (inner obstruction-breaking), opening of the luminous worlds, spiritual conquest over hostile forces, expansion of consciousness
The seer
- Rishi
- Vāmadeva Gautama (traditional attribution varies for RV 10.49; hymn is Indra-voice)
- Lineage
- Gautama
- Other hymns
- RV 4.26-27 (Vāmadeva’s visionary declarations; thematic kinship in ‘I’ voice), RV 4.18 (Indra-Vāmadeva themes; liberation and wideness)
Family tradition
Vāmadeva’s broader tradition often emphasizes inner wideness and the finding of the ‘cows’ (lights); here the late hymn style merges with that spiritual motif of expansion beyond rajas.
Significance
Connects victory over obstruction with the establishment of a new, wider consciousness—an essential step in integral transformation.
The deity
- Devata
- Indra
- Epithets
- Vṛtrahan, Rocanākṛt (maker of luminous realms, implied), Purandara
- Related deities
- Sūrya, Uṣas, Bṛhaspati, Agni
Cosmic role
Opens the luminous worlds by breaking the coverer; carries the journey beyond the mid-regions.
Inner power
Capacity to shift the base of consciousness from mixed mind-vital to stable wideness and clarity.
In ritual
Where it is used
Indra victory and world-opening praise in Soma contexts; also appropriate as a ‘crossing’ mantra in transitional rites by later usage.
अ॒हं स यो नव॑वास्त्वं बृ॒हद्र॑थं॒ सं वृ॒त्रेव॒ दासं॑ वृत्र॒हारु॑जम् । यद्व॒र्धय॑न्तं प्र॒थय॑न्तमानु॒षग्दू॒रे पा॒रे रज॑सो रोच॒नाक॑रम् ॥
अ॒हम् । सः । यः । नव॑ऽवास्त्वम् । बृ॒हत्ऽर॑थम् । सम् । वृ॒त्राऽइ॑व । दास॑म् । वृ॒त्र॒ऽहा । अरु॑जम् । यत् । व॒र्धय॑न्तम् । प्र॒थय॑न्तम् । आ॒नु॒षक् । दू॒रे । पा॒रे । रज॑सः । रो॒च॒ना । अक॑रम् ॥
aham | saḥ | yaḥ | nava-vāstvam | bṛhat-ratham | sam | vṛtrāiva | dāsam | vṛtra-hā | arujam | yat | vardhayantam | prathayantam | ānuṣak | dūre | pāre | rajasaḥ | rocanā | akaram
44
4×11
Expansive triṣṭubh: strong opening, widening middle, far-reaching close.
Creates a felt sense of crossing beyond limitation; energizes the ‘leap’ past mixed states.
- नववास्त्वम् (navavāstvam)
- Literal: new dwelling. Symbolic: Newly founded inner home in higher consciousness; fresh establishment of the yoga
- बृहद्रथम् (bṛhadratham)
- Literal: vast chariot. Symbolic: Large instrument of progress; integrated psycho-physical vehicle for the journey
- दासम् (dāsam)
- Literal: Dāsa (hostile). Symbolic: Servile/ignorant force that resists the light; hostile formation in the being
- वृत्रहा (vṛtrahā)
- Literal: slayer of Vṛtra. Symbolic: Power that breaks coverings; decisive illumination overcoming obstruction
- वर्धयन्तम् (vardhayantam)
- Literal: growing. Symbolic: Escalation of resistance; inflation of ego/obscurity when threatened
- प्रथयन्तम् (prathayantam)
- Literal: spreading. Symbolic: Diffusion of obscurity through many parts of nature
- रजसः (rajasaḥ)
- Literal: mid-regions, atmosphere. Symbolic: Intermediate consciousness—mixed light and darkness; restless mind-vital zone
- रोचना (rocanā)
- Literal: luminous realms. Symbolic: Planes of clear illumination; wide light of higher mind/supramental dawn
- दूरे पारे (dūre pāre)
- Literal: far, on the farther shore. Symbolic: Beyond the habitual mental limits; a stable station beyond mixture
- अरुजम् (arujam)
- Literal: I shattered. Symbolic: Breakthrough that dissolves the seized formation
Indra-invocations in Soma rites (general usage in Agniṣṭoma/Ukthya contexts; employed as praise to strengthen Indra’s ‘vajra’ power in the pressing sessions)
During invocations seeking removal of obstacles and opening of ‘wide spaces’ (uru loka).
Recitation to invoke Indra’s breakthrough and establishment of luminous wideness.
Chant when entering a new phase of practice/life and resistance spikes; use to ‘re-base’ in wider awareness beyond agitation.
Key terms: (1) vṛtra-: from √vṛ ‘to cover, obstruct’; vṛtra-han ‘obstruction-slayer’ (han/√han ‘to strike, slay’). (2) arujam: aorist of √ruj ‘to break, shatter’. (3) rocanā: from √ruc ‘to shine’; denotes shining spaces/planes. (4) bṛhat: from √bṛh ‘to grow, expand’; ‘the Vast’ as a technical Vedic epithet for widened consciousness. (5) prathay-: causative/intensive from √prath ‘to spread, broaden’. (6) rajas: from √raj/√ra ‘to be colored, dim’; in RV often the mid-region between earth and heaven; inwardly the mixed, turbid field between physical and illumined mind.
R̥ta (right order as the re-establishment of free flow/light), Bṛhat (the Vast; widened consciousness), Satyam-R̥tam-Bṛhat (truth-order-vastness implied through rocanā beyond rajas)
Breaking seizure restores the right establishment of the new inner order (ṛta in a new vāstu).
Rocanā as truth-light beyond mixture; stable seeing.
World-building: making luminous realms beyond rajas; evolution by widening.
Integral Vedāntic reading: ascent beyond intermediate planes; establishment in higher light.
Rajas = restless mixed consciousness; farther shore = stable luminous plane; chariot = integrated life-instrument.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The dragon/obstructor-slaying myth (Vṛtra-han): the divine Force (Indra) shatters a ‘dāsa’ obstruction figured ‘like Vṛtra’. In the inner reading, this is the breaking of a subconscient/vital-mental knot that blocks the establishment of a ‘new dwelling’ (nava-vāstu) and the ‘vast chariot’ (bṛhad-ratha), i.e., a new stable formation for the soul’s widened movement.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √vṛ ‘cover’ (vṛtra-) aligns with PIE *wer- ‘to cover/close’ (cf. English ‘ward’ in the sense of guarding/closing off; also semantic field of covering). √han ‘strike’ is widely Indo-European (PIE *gwhen- ‘to strike/kill’, cf. Greek -phonos in compounds, Slavic *goniti in related strike/chase fields is debated). √ruc ‘shine’ corresponds to PIE *leuk- ‘light/brightness’ in the broad Indo-European poetic lexicon of luminosity (Latin lux, Greek leukos). The verse’s opposition rajas (dim mid-region) vs rocanā (luminous spaces) expresses a classic IE binary of darkness/covering vs light/revelation.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The hymn adopts Indra’s ‘I’-voice (deity self-proclamation), a common RV strategy where the seer’s utterance becomes the devatā’s speech. The reciprocity is implicit: the ṛṣi gives articulate mantric form to Indra’s action; Indra in return establishes the ‘rocanā’ (illumined widenesses) beyond the rajas for the human field (ānuṣak). Thus the dakṣiṇā-exchange is not material but a mutual intensification—mantra gives shape; the god-force delivers inner victory and widened consciousness.
Cross beyond rajas: feel the mind-vital turbulence below; invoke Indra to establish you on the ‘farther shore’ of wide clarity.
viśuddha (space/ether; wideness)
Extended exhale (1:2 ratio) to quiet rajas; recite at the end of exhale to ‘land’ in wideness.
Wide, luminous, detached from agitation; stable witness with dynamic power.
When resistance ‘grows and spreads’, don’t fight on its plane—shift upward into wide light, then act from there.
Triṣṭubh with strong udatta-driven openings; keep ‘dūre pāre’ slightly lengthened to evoke distance (without breaking meter).
Highlight ‘vṛtrahā’ and ‘rocanā’ as luminous peaks; let the final cadence ‘akaram’ land firmly.
(bṛhadratham): syllabic ṛ in bṛ; aspirate ‘th’ lightly., (rajasaḥ): soft ‘j’; visarga light., (rocanā): ‘c’ as ‘ch’ (palatal), long ā at end.
Expansive, open-throated, with a widening resonance toward the end.
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