Rig Veda 2.13.10: Mandala 2, Sukta 13, Mantra 10
Sukta 2.13
- Rishi
- Gṛtsamada
- Devata
- Indra
- Chandas
- Trishtubh
- Rasa
- Adbhuta (wonder) and Vira (heroism)
विश्वेदनु रोधना अस्य पौंस्यं ददुरस्मै दधिरे कृत्नवे धनम् । षळस्तभ्ना विष्टिरः पञ्च संदृशः परि परो अभवः सास्युक्थ्यः ॥
viśvéd ánu rodhanā́ asya páuṃsyaṃ dadúr asmai dadhire kṛtnáve dhánam | ṣáḷ astabhnā vi-stíraḥ páñca saṃ-dṛ́śaḥ pári paró abhavaḥ sá āsy ukthyáḥ ||
सब सीमाएँ उसकी ताकत देख के उसके पास आ गई। उसके लिए धन रखा गया। तुमने छह जगहों को ठीक किया और पाँच रस्तों को जोड़ा। तुम सबसे बड़े हो गए। इसलिए लोग तुम्हारे बारे में गाते हैं।
Word by Word
- विश्वे
- all (the beings/ones)Adjective (used substantively)पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनम्Role कर्तृ (ददुः/दधिरे इत्यस्य)Root विश्व (सर्व) प्रातिपदिक
- इद्
- indeed, justIndeclinableनिपातः (अविकारी)Root इद् (निपात)
- अनु
- after, along, according toIndeclinableअव्ययम्Root अनु (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- रोधनाः
- barriers/closures (or restraining powers)Nounपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनम्Role कर्तृ (ददुः/दधिरे इत्यस्य; ‘रोधनाः’ = ‘बन्धन/अवरोध’ अथवा ‘रोधन-देवाः/शक्तयः’ रूपेण)Root रोधन (प्रातिपदिक; √रुध् ‘to obstruct/close’ से)
- अस्य
- of himPronounपुंलिङ्गे षष्ठी एकवचनम्Role सम्बन्ध (पौंस्यं इत्यस्य)Root इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- पौंस्यम्
- manly power, prowessNounनपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचनम्Role कर्म (ददुः)Root पौंस्य (प्रातिपदिक; ‘पुंस्’ से ‘manly power’)
- ददुः
- they have givenVerbलिट् (परोक्षभूत) परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमा बहुवचनम्Role क्रियाRoot √दा (दाने)
- अस्मै
- to himPronounपुंलिङ्गे चतुर्थी एकवचनम्Role सम्प्रदानRoot इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- दधिरे
- they have placed/establishedVerbलिट् (परोक्षभूत) आत्मनेपदम्, प्रथमा बहुवचनम्Role क्रियाRoot √धा (धारणे/स्थापने)
- कृत्नवे
- for the complete/entire oneAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गे चतुर्थी एकवचनम्Role सम्प्रदान (धनम् इत्यस्य विशेषणम्; ‘for the complete/whole one’)Root कृत्नु (प्रातिपदिक; ‘सम्पूर्ण/समग्र’)
- धनम्
- wealthNounनपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचनम्Role कर्म (दधिरे)Root धन (प्रातिपदिक)
- षळ्
- sixNumeralअव्ययवत्/संख्याशब्दः; अत्र ‘षळ्’ = ‘षट्’ (६)Role विशेषण (स्तभ्नाः इत्यस्य)Root षष् (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
- अस्तभ्नाः
- (he) propped up, supportedVerbलुङ् (अorist) परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमा एकवचनम् (वेदे बहुधा ‘अस्तभ्नाः’ 2nd/3rd sg. अorist रूपेण; अत्र कर्ता ‘त्वम्/सः’ निहितः)Role क्रियाRoot √स्तभ् (स्तम्भने ‘to prop/support’)
- विष्टिरः
- expanses, distributions, regionsNounस्त्रीलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनम् (वेदिक रूप: -रः)Role कर्म/विषय (अस्तभ्नाः—‘विष्टयः’ इत्यस्य स्थापनम्)Root विष्टि (प्रातिपदिक; ‘विस्तार/व्याप्ति/विभाग’)
- पञ्च
- fiveNumeralसंख्याशब्दः (अव्ययवत्)Role विशेषण (संदृशः इत्यस्य)Root पञ्च (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
- संदृशः
- (the) five appearances/forms (or correspondences)Noun/Adjectiveपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनम्Role कर्म/विषय (अस्तभ्नाः—स्थापिताः ‘पञ्च संदृशः’)Root संदृश्/संदृश (प्रातिपदिक; ‘समरूप/दृश्य’)
- परि
- around, all aroundIndeclinableअव्ययम्Root परि (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- परः
- higher, beyondAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा एकवचनम्Role कर्तृ/विशेषण (अभवत् इत्यस्य)Root पर (प्रातिपदिक)
- अभवत्
- became, came to beVerbलुङ् (अorist/इम्पर्फेक्ट-सदृश) परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमा एकवचनम्Role क्रियाRoot √भू (सत्तायाम्)
- सास्य
- he, of himPronoun (compound-like sandhi form)‘सः’ प्रथमा एकवचनम् + ‘अस्य’ षष्ठी एकवचनम् (सम्बन्धः)Role कर्तृ (अभवत्) + सम्बन्धRoot स (तद्-प्रातिपदिक) + अस्य (इदम्-षष्ठी) → ‘सास्य’ (वेदिक संधि)
- उक्थ्यः
- praiseworthy, to be hymnedAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा एकवचनम्Role विशेषण (सः/परः इत्यस्य)Root उक्थ्य (प्रातिपदिक; उक्थ ‘hymn’ से ‘worthy of hymn/praise’)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (संधि-निरसन): विश्वे इद् अनु रोधनाः अस्य पौंस्यम् ददुः अस्मै दधिरे कृत्नवे धनम् । षळ् (षट्) अस्तभ्नाः विष्टिरः पञ्च संदृशः परि परः अभवत् सः अस्य उक्थ्यः ॥ विशेषम्: ‘सास्य’ = ‘सः अस्य’ (वेदिक संधि)
- ‘षळ्’ छन्दसि ‘षट्’ का रूप
- ‘विष्टिरः’ वेदिक प्रथमा बहुवचन-रूप (विष्टयः)
The meaning
Outer meaning
All the boundaries followed his manhood and gave to him; they placed wealth for the accomplisher. You fixed the six expanses and the five correspondences; you became beyond the beyond; he is worthy of the hymn.
Inner meaning
When Indra’s divine manhood (pauṃsya) acts in the seeker, the very ‘boundaries’ of the being (rodhanāḥ—limits, frontiers of consciousness) consent and reorganize around that higher force. The powers of life place ‘wealth’—capacities, energies, attainments—into the hands of the accomplisher (kṛtnu). Indra establishes the wideness and stable order of the inner worlds: the ‘six expanses’ (ṣaḻ viṣṭiraḥ) and ‘five correspondences’ (pañca saṃdṛśaḥ) can be read as structured ranges and harmonies of the being (levels/directions and their interlinking), culminating in transcendence—‘beyond the beyond’—a supramental hint in Aurobindonian terms.
Universal truth
True power does not merely break obstacles; it reorders limits into supportive frontiers, establishes a harmonious architecture of consciousness, and opens a passage to transcendence beyond habitual measures.
Themes
Cosmic structuring, Wealth for the accomplisher, Beyond-beyond transcendence
The seer
- Rishi
- Gṛtsamada
- Lineage
- Āṅgirasa
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 2.13.2, Rig Veda 2.12.3, Rig Veda 2.15.3
Family tradition
The Gṛtsamada corpus often moves from concrete victory images to cosmic-psychological wideness and order, suggesting a progressive unveiling of Indra’s deeper function.
Significance
Here the seer points to Indra not only as a fighter but as an establisher of the inner worlds’ architecture—limits become channels; wideness becomes stable.
The deity
- Devata
- Indra
- Epithets
- kṛtnu (accomplisher, implied), pari-para (beyond the beyond, in effect), ukthya
- Related deities
- Viṣṇu (wideness/steps), Bṛhaspati (ordering Word), Agni
Cosmic role
Stabilizer of the worlds’ expanses; distributor of riches; upholder of wide space after victory.
Inner power
Architectural intelligence that fixes wideness (bṛhat) and harmonizes the fivefold nature; opens transcendence.
In ritual
Where it is used
Indra stotra in Soma rites emphasizing prosperity and world-order
विश्वेदनु॑ रोध॒ना अ॑स्य॒ पौंस्यं॑ द॒दुर॑स्मै दधि॒रे कृ॒त्नवे॒ धन॑म् । षळ॑स्तभ्ना वि॒ष्टिर॒: पञ्च॑ सं॒दृश॒: परि॑ प॒रो अ॑भव॒: सास्यु॒क्थ्य॑: ॥
विश्वा॑ । इत् । अनु॑ । रो॒ध॒नाः । अ॒स्य॒ । पौंस्य॑म् । द॒दुः । अ॒स्मै॒ । द॒धि॒रे । कृ॒त्नवे॑ । धन॑म् । षट् । अ॒स्त॒भ्नाः॒ । वि॒ऽस्तिरः॑ । पञ्च॑ । स॒म्ऽदृशः॑ । परि॑ । प॒रः । अ॒भ॒वः॒ । सः । अ॒सि॒ । उ॒क्थ्यः॑ ॥
viśvā | it | anu | rodhanāḥ | asya | paiṃsyam | daduḥ | asmai | dadhire | kṛtnave | dhanam | ṣaṭ | astabhnāḥ | vi-stiraḥ | pañca | sam-dṛśaḥ | pari | paraḥ | abhavaḥ | saḥ | asi | ukthyaḥ
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4 × ~11
Expansive yet measured; alternation of assertion and widening cadence
Creates a felt sense of inner space and order; good for meditation on wideness and stability.
- रोधनाः (rodhanāḥ)
- Literal: boundaries, banks, limits. Symbolic: Limits of consciousness; frontiers that can either confine or channel growth
- पौंस्यं (pauṃsyaṃ)
- Literal: manhood, virility. Symbolic: Divine hero-force; spiritual potency to act and accomplish
- कृत्नवे (kṛtnave)
- Literal: to the accomplisher. Symbolic: The part in us that completes the work (integral will) under the divine impulsion
- धनम् (dhanam)
- Literal: wealth. Symbolic: Inner riches: energies, faculties, realizations
- षट् विस्तिरः (ṣaṭ viṣṭiraḥ)
- Literal: six expanses. Symbolic: Widened ranges of consciousness (directions/planes) stabilized by illumined mind
- पञ्च संदृशः (pañca saṃdṛśaḥ)
- Literal: five correspondences/visions. Symbolic: Harmonies of the fivefold nature (senses/vital functions/elements) aligned to truth
- परि परः (pari paraḥ)
- Literal: beyond the beyond. Symbolic: Transcendent surpassing; opening to higher-than-mind consciousness
Cosmic stabilization motif applicable to Indra stotras: establishing spaces/directions and harmonies; supports ritual aim of ordered world for sacrifice
When invoking Indra for stability, wideness, and the granting of ‘wealth’ (inner/outer prosperity)
Praise and offering; contemplation of cosmic order (rodhanā, viṣṭira)
Meditate on re-framing ‘limits’ (stress, constraints) as banks that channel growth; invoke Indra to stabilize routines and widen perspective.
rodhaná ‘boundary, enclosure’ from √rudh ‘to obstruct/enclose’ (PIE *reudh- ‘block’). pauṃsya from pumā́n ‘male’ (heroic strength). √stab(h) ‘prop, support’ (cf. stambha). The numerological schema ṣaṭ/pāñca is traditional Vedic cosmological language; sam-dṛś ‘mutual seeing/correspondence’ parallels RV’s concern with harmonized planes.
Rita as boundary-ordering, Transcendence (pari paraḥ), Cosmic number-symbolism (six/five)
Fixing expanses and correspondences is the establishment of ṛta as stable cosmic/psychic order.
‘Beyond the beyond’ intimates a truth-plane surpassing ordinary mind-measures.
Worlds are ‘fixed’ and harmonized; wealth is placed for the accomplisher—creation as ordered manifestation.
Integral Vedantic reading: Indra’s action culminates in transcendence and wideness akin to Viṣṇu’s bṛhat steps.
Banks as channels of disciplined growth; sky-expanse as widened consciousness; correspondences as integrated fivefold functioning.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Cosmic architecture: fixing the spaces and harmonies, and surpassing all boundaries. Inner sense: Indra stabilizes the seeker’s inner worlds (spaces of consciousness) and their correspondences, then leads beyond limiting structures into the transcendent.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- rodhanāḥ from √rudh shares the IE theme of ‘blocking/boundary’; √stabh ‘support’ is part of a widespread IE architectural metaphor for cosmic stability. Numeral symbolism (six/five) is culturally specific but expressed with inherited numeral system.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi frames Indra as kṛtnú (accomplisher) to whom the ordered cosmos yields ‘wealth’—not mere goods but stable capacities. The hymn seeks that same stabilization and the movement beyond limits in the sacrificer.
Contemplate inner ‘boundaries’ as transformable; invite Indra to stabilize wideness and harmonize the fivefold nature into a single purpose.
ājñā (ordering intelligence)
Box breathing 4-4-4-4 for 8 rounds, then chant with long pauses after each pāda
From constricted mind to wide, ordered awareness; glimpse of transcendence
After chanting, sit 3 minutes in silent ‘space’ awareness; sense the six directions opening and the five faculties aligning around a central will.
RV accentuation; sustain a slightly elongated cadence on ‘ṣaḻ astabhnā’ and ‘pari paraḥ’ to convey fixing and transcendence.
Keep pāda breaks clean; emphasize consonant clarity in ṣaḻ and pañca; avoid flattening the final cadence.
viśved: articulate śv cluster cleanly., rodhanāḥ: clear dh aspiration., ṣaḻ: retroflex ṣ and final ḻ (Vedic lateral) approximated carefully; if uncertain, keep a clear retroflex ‘ḷ’., saṃdṛśaḥ: nasalize saṃ; keep ṛ short and crisp.
Spacious, steady, slightly elevated pitch; long resonant vowels
7
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