Rig Veda 4.42.4: Mandala 4, Sukta 42, Mantra 4
Sukta 4.42
- Rishi
- Vāmadeva Gautama
- Devata
- Varuṇa
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Adbhuta (wonder)
अहमपो अपिन्वमुक्षमाणा धारयं दिवं सदन ऋतस्य । ऋतेन पुत्रो अदितेॠतावोत त्रिधातु प्रथयद्वि भूम ॥
ahám apó apinvam ukṣámāṇā dhāráyaṃ dívaṃ sádana ṛtásya | ṛténa putró áditeḥ ṛtā́vā utá tri-dhā́tu prathayád ví bhū́ma ||
मैंने पानी को भर दिया, उसमें ज़ोर भरा। मैंने आसमान को उसकी जगह पे पकड़ा रखा। अदिति के बेटे ने धरम के साथ यह सब किया। उसने दुनिया को तीन हिस्सों में बाँटा और ज़मीन को फैला दिया।
Word by Word
- अहम्
- IPronounप्रथमापुरुष-सर्वनाम, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचनRole कर्तृRoot अहम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- अपः
- watersNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, बहुवचनRole कर्मRoot अप् (प्रातिपदिक)
- अपिन्वम्
- I caused to swell / I set in motionVerbलुङ् (अorist), परस्मैपद, उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचनRole (क्रिया)Root √पिव्/प्याय् (पिन्वति ‘to swell, make abound, set in motion’)
- उक्षमाणाः
- sprinkling / pouring (as rain)Participle (Adjective)वर्तमान कृदन्त (शतृ), प्रथमा विभक्ति, बहुवचन, पुंलिङ्ग (कर्तरि)Role कर्तृ (अपः के विशेषणरूपेण)Root √वक्ष्/उक्ष् (उक्षति ‘to sprinkle, pour; make rain’)
- धारयम्
- I upheld / I sustainedVerbलुङ् (अorist), परस्मैपद, उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचनRole (क्रिया)Root √धृ (धारयति ‘to hold, support, sustain’)
- दिवम्
- the heaven / skyNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचनRole कर्मRoot दिव्/द्यौः (प्रातिपदिक ‘sky, heaven’)
- सदने
- in the seat / abodeNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति, एकवचनRole अधिकरणRoot सदन (प्रातिपदिक ‘seat, abode’)
- ऋतस्य
- of ṛta (cosmic order)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी विभक्ति, एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (षष्ठी)Root ऋत (प्रातिपदिक ‘cosmic order, truth’)
- ऋतेन
- by/with ṛtaNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया विभक्ति, एकवचनRole करणRoot ऋत (प्रातिपदिक)
- पुत्रः
- the sonNounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचनRole कर्तृRoot पुत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- अदितेः
- of AditiNoun (Proper)स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी विभक्ति, एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (षष्ठी)Root अदिति (प्रातिपदिक)
- ऋतावो
- ṛta-possessing / righteousAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन (वैदिक रूप: -ओ < -अन्)Role कर्तृ (पुत्रः के विशेषणरूपेण)Root ऋतावन् (प्रातिपदिक ‘possessing ṛta, righteous’)
- उत
- and / alsoIndeclinableसमुच्चय/अपि-अर्थे अव्ययRole (सम्बन्धक)Root उत (निपात)
- त्रिधातु
- the threefold (foundation/realm)Noun/Adjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन (कर्मरूपेण)Role कर्मRoot त्रि-धातु (प्रातिपदिक ‘threefold foundation/element’)
- प्रथयत्
- he spread / extendedVerbइम्पर्फेक्ट् (लङ्), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचनRole (क्रिया)Root √प्रथ् (प्रथयति ‘to spread, extend, make broad’)
- वि
- apart, widelyIndeclinable (Preverb)उपसर्गः (प्रथयत् इत्यस्य सह)Role (क्रियाविशेषक)Root वि (उपसर्ग/निपात)
- भूम
- the earth / the expanseNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन (वैदिक संक्षिप्त रूप ‘भूम’)Role कर्मRoot भूमन् (प्रातिपदिक ‘earth, ground; expanse’)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: अहम् | अपः | अपिन्वम् | उक्षमाणाः | धारयम् | दिवम् | सदने | ऋतस्य || ऋतेन | पुत्रः | अदितेः | ऋतावो | उत | त्रिधातु | प्रथयत् | वि | भूम । 1) ‘अहमपो’ → ‘अहम् अपः’ (म् + अ = म् अ)
- 2) ‘अपिन्वमुक्षमाणाः’ → ‘अपिन्वम् उक्षमाणाः’ (म् + उ = म् उ)
- 3) ‘धारयं दिवं’ → ‘धारयम् दिवम्’ (पदपाठे -म्; संहितायां -ं)
- 4) ‘सदन ऋतस्य’ → ‘सदने ऋतस्य’ (ए + ऋ = ए ऋ; पदपाठे सप्तमी ‘सदने’)
- 5) ‘पुत्रो अदितेः’ → ‘पुत्रः अदितेः’ (विसर्ग-लोपः संहितायाम्)
- 6) ‘ऋतावो’ वैदिकः प्रथमा-एकवचनरूपः (ऋतावन् > ऋतावो)
- 7) ‘प्रथयद्वि’ → ‘प्रथयत् वि’ (त् + व् संहितायां ‘द्व’ इव श्रूयते)
- 8) ‘भूम’ वैदिकः ‘भूमन्’ इत्यस्य संक्षिप्त/पदपाठ-रूपः, कर्म (द्वितीया एकवचन) इति ग्रहणम्।
The meaning
Outer meaning
The speaker declares: “I caused the waters to swell, pouring their increase; I upheld heaven in the seat of ṛta. By ṛta, the son of Aditi, established in ṛta, spread out the threefold foundation and widened the earth.”
Inner meaning
In Aurobindo/Kashyap line, the “I” is the divine king-power (Varuṇa as master of ṛta, or the soul speaking in union with that Power). “Waters” are the flowing energies of consciousness (inspired currents) made to swell by inner pressure (ukṣamāṇāḥ) when the law of truth (ṛta) is held. “Heaven” is the illumined mind (dyu), sustained in the “seat of ṛta” (sadana ṛtasya): a stable poise where truth-order governs thought and will. “Son of Aditi” points to the solar/āditya principle—vast, undivided consciousness—acting by ṛta to establish the ‘threefold foundation’ (tridhātu): typically read as the three worlds/planes (mind–life–body) harmonized, or the triple status of consciousness (higher, mid, lower) integrated. “Widening the earth” is the expansion of the physical-vital base to receive light without collapse—making the embodied nature broad enough for the descent of truth.
Universal truth
Spiritual progress is not random ecstasy but an ordered enlargement: when truth-law (ṛta) becomes the inner seat, the energies of life (waters) increase rightly, the mind (heaven) is upheld in clarity, and the whole being (threefold foundation) is established so the earthly nature can widen to hold the Infinite.
Themes
cosmogonic ordering, Ṛta foundation, widening of earth (inner basis)
The seer
- Rishi
- Vāmadeva Gautama
- Lineage
- Gautama
- Other hymns
- RV 4.1–4.58 (traditional Vāmadeva corpus), RV 4.26–4.27 (Vāmadeva’s famed self-realization hymns, traditional attribution)
Family tradition
Seer of Mandala 4; hymns often voice a kingly, sovereign consciousness (Varuṇa/Indra powers) and the soul’s identification with cosmic law.
Significance
Vāmadeva is associated with expansive realization where the seer speaks from a widened identity; his poetry frequently turns cosmic images into inner operations—establishing ṛta in the being and releasing the waters of inspiration.
The deity
- Devata
- Varuṇa (Āditya; ṛta–Aditi complex)
- Epithets
- ṛtā́vān (established in ṛta), Āditya (of Aditi’s vastness), dhārayitā (upholder)
- Related deities
- Mitra, Aryaman, Indra, Sūrya, Aditi
Cosmic role
Guardian of ṛta, binder and harmonizer of worlds; sustains heaven and earth in right order; oversees the moral-spiritual law.
Inner power
Power of vast, clear, self-regulating truth in the mind and conscience; the capacity to hold the being steady in a luminous law so energies flow rightly.
In ritual
Where it is used
Āditya/Varuṇa praises within Soma-sacrifice liturgy (general RV usage); also recited in contexts invoking ṛta, order, and protection.
अ॒हम॒पो अ॑पिन्वमु॒क्षमा॑णा धा॒रयं॒ दिवं॒ सद॑न ऋ॒तस्य॑ । ऋ॒तेन॑ पु॒त्रो अदि॑तेॠ॒तावो॒त त्रि॒धातु॑ प्रथय॒द्वि भूम॑ ॥
अ॒हम् । अ॒पः । अ॒पि॒न्व॒म् । उ॒क्षमा॑णाः । ध॒रय॑म् । दिव॑म् । सद॑ने । ऋ॒तस्य॑ । ऋ॒तेन॑ । पु॒त्रः । अदि॑तेः । ऋ॒तऽवा॑ । उ॒त । त्रि॒ऽधातु॑ । प्र॒थ॒य॒त् । वि । भूम॑ ॥
aham | apaḥ | apinvam | ukṣamāṇāḥ | dharayam | divam | sadane | ṛtasya | ṛtena | putraḥ | aditeḥ | ṛta-vā | uta | tri-dhātu | prathayat | vi | bhūma
44
4 pādas of ~11 syllables each (triṣṭubh norm; exact count varies with sandhi/recitation).
Firm, declarative, sovereign cadence; suited to proclamations of cosmic establishment.
Builds a sense of inner steadiness and lawful expansion—like setting pillars in consciousness and then letting power pour through them.
- अहम् (aham)
- Literal: I. Symbolic: the soul-voice identified with the divine sovereign power; the I-consciousness acting from ṛta
- अपः (apaḥ)
- Literal: waters. Symbolic: currents of consciousness, inspiration, life-energies made luminous
- अपिन्वम् (apinvam)
- Literal: I caused to swell. Symbolic: increase of inner force and abundance through right action and right law
- उक्षमाणाः (ukṣamāṇāḥ)
- Literal: pouring/increasing. Symbolic: the outflow of strengthened energies; a fertilizing descent of power
- दिवम् (divam)
- Literal: heaven. Symbolic: illumined mind-plane, clarity, higher seeing
- सदने ऋतस्य (sadane ṛtasya)
- Literal: in the seat of ṛta. Symbolic: stable station of truth-order in consciousness
- ऋतम्/ऋतेन (ṛtam/ṛtena)
- Literal: cosmic order/truth. Symbolic: truth-law that harmonizes thought, will, and life
- अदितेः पुत्रः (aditeḥ putraḥ)
- Literal: son of Aditi. Symbolic: Āditya power: vast, unbroken consciousness; solar truth-force
- त्रिधातु (tridhātu)
- Literal: threefold foundation. Symbolic: integration of mind–life–body (or three worlds) under truth
- भूम (bhūma/bhūmā)
- Literal: earth. Symbolic: physical-vital base; embodied nature widened for the descent
Cosmic-affirmation verse: supports the rite by asserting ṛta as the sustaining principle of heaven, waters, and earth; used to stabilize and widen the sacrificer’s inner ‘seat of ṛta’.
During Soma-related recitations or hymns to Indra–Varuṇa/Varuṇa; also adaptable for vows (vrata) and truth-observance invocations.
Stotra/śastra-style praise; mental ‘establishment’ of ṛta and calling the waters/energies to increase.
Use as a morning or pre-meditation affirmation: ‘I establish truth-order; energies increase rightly; my mind is upheld; my embodied nature widens.’
āp- ‘waters’ (plural apáḥ) are both physical and symbolic: flowing energies of life and consciousness. √pinv ‘to swell, make abundant’ (apinvam). ṛtá- from √ṛ ‘to fit, move rightly’ → ‘right order/truth in movement’. aditi- ‘unbound’ (a-diti) → infinity; her ‘son’ here is a power born of vastness acting by ṛta. tri-dhātu ‘three foundations’ evokes the Vedic triplicity (often earth/atmosphere/heaven, or body-life-mind as inner mapping).
Ṛta as creative law, Aditi (infinite consciousness), tri-dhātu (threefold foundation)
Direct: heaven is upheld in the seat of ṛta; all expansion is ‘by ṛta’.
Truth is not only spoken but structurally upheld—becoming the stable seat of mind.
Cosmic ‘building’: upholding heaven, spreading foundations, widening earth—creation as ordered manifestation.
Proto-Vedāntic/Integral (Aurobindo): manifestation of higher truth into mind-life-body via law of consciousness.
Waters = flowing inspirations; heaven = illumined mind; earth = embodied base; their right relation is secured by ṛta.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- A cosmogonic mythologem of ordering and expansion: swelling waters, upholding heaven in ṛta’s seat, and spreading the threefold foundation to widen earth. Inwardly, it is the establishment of a stable truth-seat in consciousness from which life-flows increase and embodiment widens.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- ṛtá- corresponds to the IE idea of ‘fitting/right’ (often compared with Avestan aša). The formula ‘by ṛta’ as an instrumental of cosmic efficacy parallels IE sacral speech where right order is performative.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi presents Varuṇa (and the ṛta-power born of Aditi) as the inner cosmic engineer: the hymn teaches the seeker to ground experience in ṛta so that the waters (energies) increase and the earth (embodied field) becomes wide and capable.
Establish a ‘seat of ṛta’ in the mind: observe truthfulness, clarity, and self-regulation; invite the upward widening (bhūma) of the embodied base.
ājñā (heaven/mind) with grounding into mūlādhāra (earth/base)
Slow nasal breathing with brief pauses after inhale to ‘uphold heaven’; exhale to ‘widen earth’ and release waters smoothly.
Steady, clear, sovereign poise; widening without agitation.
Begin with a vow of truth (satya) for the session; feel a luminous canopy above the head, then a broad stable base below; let inner ‘waters’ rise as calm inspiration, not excitement.
Triṣṭubh recitation with standard Vedic udātta/anudātta/svarita accents as per śākhā; ensure the udātta peaks on key verb-forms and ṛta-related words (per traditional accent marks).
Keep ‘ṛ́tasya/ṛ́tena’ clearly accented; avoid flattening the cadence—each pāda should land firmly at its close.
Hold vocalic ‘ṛ’ clearly in ṛta, ṛtena (not ri/ru)., Differentiate dental ‘t’ in ṛta from retroflex ‘ṭ’., In ‘tridhātu’, keep ‘dh’ aspirated (dʱ), not plain d., In ‘ukṣamāṇāḥ’, pronounce ‘kṣ’ as a conjunct (k+ṣ) with clarity.
Steady, resonant, ‘sovereign’—more firm than sentimental.
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