Rig Veda 5.68.4: Mandala 5, Sukta 68, Mantra 4
Sukta 5.68
- Rishi
- Atri
- Devata
- Mitra-Varuṇa
- Chandas
- Gāyatrī
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Vira (heroism)
ऋतमृतेन सपन्तेषिरं दक्षमाशाते । अद्रुहा देवौ वर्धेते ॥
ṛtám ṛténa sápantā iṣiráṃ dákṣam āśāte | ádruhā deváu vardhete ||
यह दोनों सच के साथ सच को पाते हैं। इनकी समझ तेज है और काम में दम है। यह देवता धोखा नहीं देते। यह हमारे अंदर हमेशा बढ़ते रहते हैं।
Word by Word
- ऋतम्
- the cosmic order / truthNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचनRole कर्म (आशाते इत्यस्य)Root ऋत (प्रातिपदिक) < √ऋ (गतौ/ऋ- ‘to go, to fit’; semantic: ‘right order, truth’)
- ऋतेन
- by/with (the) truth, by right orderNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया एकवचनRole करण (सपन्ते इत्यस्य)Root ऋत (प्रातिपदिक)
- सपन्ते
- they follow / attendVerbलट् (वर्तमान), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचनRole क्रियाRoot √सप् (सप्/सपँ) ‘to follow, to accompany, to attend’
- इषिरम्
- strong, vigorousAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचन (दक्षम् इति विशेषणम्)Role कर्म (दक्षम् इत्यस्य विशेषणत्वेन)Root इषिर (प्रातिपदिक) ‘vigorous, strong, impetuous’
- दक्षम्
- power/skill (dakṣa)Nounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचनRole कर्म (आशाते इत्यस्य)Root दक्ष (प्रातिपदिक) ‘skill, power, ability; (also) the god Dakṣa’
- आशाते
- the two desire / seekVerbलट् (वर्तमान), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, द्विवचनRole क्रियाRoot √आश् (आश्/आशँ) ‘to desire, to seek, to hope for’
- अद्रुहा
- non-injuring, non-hostileAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा द्विवचन (देवौ इति विशेषणम्)Role कर्तृ (देवौ इत्यस्य विशेषणत्वेन)Root अ-द्रुह् (प्रातिपदिक) < √द्रुह् ‘to harm, to be hostile’ (नञ्-समास)
- देवौ
- the two godsNounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा द्विवचनRole कर्तृ (वर्धेते इत्यस्य)Root देव (प्रातिपदिक) ‘god’
- वर्धेते
- the two grow / prosperVerbलट् (वर्तमान), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, द्विवचनRole क्रियाRoot √वृध् (वृधँ) ‘to grow, to increase, to prosper’
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: ऋतम् | ऋतेन | सपन्ते | इषिरम् | दक्षम् | आशाते | अद्रुहा | देवौ | वर्धेते । 1) ऋतमृतेन = ऋतम् + ऋतेन (म् + ऋ → मृ; संहितायां ‘मृ’)
- 2) सपन्तेषिरम् = सपन्ते + इषिरम् (ए + इ → एऽ/एइ; संहितायां ‘एषि’)
- 3) दक्षमाशाते = दक्षम् + आशाते (म् + आ → मा; संहितायां ‘माशा’)
The meaning
Outer meaning
They win Truth by Truth; together they attain swift, keen dakṣa (skill/power). Undeceiving, the two gods grow.
Inner meaning
Mitra-Varuṇa operate by the principle that only truth can realize truth: alignment with ṛta is both the means and the result. ‘Iṣiram dakṣam’ is sharp discernment joined to effective executive power—an inner competence that can order life according to truth. ‘Adruhā’ emphasizes their action as non-deceptive: they remove inner duplicity, self-justification, and crooked movements that break the vow (vrata). Their ‘growth’ is the increasing establishment of truth-governance in the seeker.
Universal truth
Integrity is a self-fulfilling method: when means and end are both truth, discernment and effective power naturally arise, and the divine order strengthens in life.
Themes
Self-establishing Truth, Inner discernment (dakṣa), Ethical purity (adruhā), Growth of divine powers in the human
The seer
- Rishi
- Atri (Ātreya)
- Lineage
- Ātreya
- Other hymns
- RV 5.68.1-5, RV 5.69.1
Family tradition
Ātreya vision stresses ṛta as lived discipline: truth not merely as idea but as operative power (dakṣa) that orders the being.
Significance
Atri’s seerhood here is ethical-spiritual: the yoga of truthfulness that generates discernment and mastery.
The deity
- Devata
- Mitra-Varuṇa
- Epithets
- adruhā (undeceiving), ṛtasya gopā (guardians of ṛta), dhartārā (upholders—common theme)
- Related deities
- Sarasvatī (inspiration/discernment), Bṛhaspati (truth-word), Indra (illumination)
Cosmic role
Sustain the worlds through ṛta; ensure that truth is the operative law behind growth and stability.
Inner power
They awaken a truth-sense: the capacity to detect falsehood in thought and motive, and to act with clean precision.
In ritual
Where it is used
Invoked for truth-guardianship and correctness of rite/vow; used in Mitra-Varuṇa stuti sections.
ऋ॒तमृ॒तेन॒ सप॑न्तेषि॒रं दक्ष॑माशाते । अ॒द्रुहा॑ दे॒वौ व॑र्धेते ॥
ऋ॒तम् । ऋ॒तेन॑ । सप॑न्ता । इ॒षि॒रम् । दक्ष॑म् । आ॒शा॒ते॒ इति॑ । अ॒द्रुहा॑ । दे॒वौ । व॒र्धे॒ते॒ इति॑ ॥
ṛtam | ṛtena | sapantā | iṣiram | dakṣam | āśāteiti | adruhā | devau | vardheteiti
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3×8 (approx.)
Crisp and aphoristic; strong parallelism (ṛtam/ṛtena) gives a ‘law-like’ cadence.
Instills integrity and sharpens attention; good for japa when correcting inner deviation.
- ऋतम् (ṛtam)
- Literal: truth-order. Symbolic: right law of consciousness; exact rhythm of the Real
- ऋतेन (ṛtena)
- Literal: by/with truth. Symbolic: truth as the method—sincere alignment and right action
- इषिरम् (iṣiram)
- Literal: swift, impetuous, keen. Symbolic: sharp luminous discernment; swift intuition
- दक्षम् (dakṣam)
- Literal: skill, competence, power. Symbolic: effective ordering intelligence; executive capacity of the soul-mind
- अद्रुहा (adruhā)
- Literal: non-deceiving, non-injuring. Symbolic: powers that dissolve inner falsehood and crookedness
Truth-formula: emphasizes ṛta as both path and attainment; used to affirm the gods’ role in establishing dakṣa (ordering intelligence) in the yajamāna.
When seeking purification of intention and correctness—before vows, agreements, or solemn undertakings.
Recite with water offering (āpaḥ) as symbol of cleansing truth, or ghṛta as clarity.
Use before difficult conversations or commitments: chant to align speech and motive with truth so that outcomes arise by truthful means.
ṛta/ṛtena: from √ṛ 'to fit, set in order'—order as both goal and instrument. dakṣa: from √dakṣ 'be able, be competent'—capacity that orders; psychologically, executive intelligence. āśāte: from √aś 'to attain, reach'. adruh: a- + druh (√druh 'to deceive, harm')—the gods are incapable of inner falsehood; they establish sincerity in consciousness.
Ṛta by ṛta (self-confirming truth), Dakṣa (ordering intelligence), Adruh (non-deception) as ethical foundation for truth-consciousness
Explicit: Truth is achieved by Truth—ṛta is self-consistent and self-validating.
Truth as non-duplicity (adruha); sincerity as spiritual force.
Cosmic evolution by increasing truth-order; growth (vardhete) through lawful alignment.
Ethical mysticism leading to higher knowledge; compatible with Upaniṣadic satya-ṛta axis and Aurobindo’s ‘truth-consciousness’.
Swiftness is the quick intuition; dakṣa is the organizing power that translates insight into right act.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The mythologem is ṛta as a self-sustaining principle: truth is attained through truth. Mitra-Varuṇa conjointly secure dakṣa (effective ordering intelligence) and grow as adruhā (incapable of deception), depicting the inner ascent where sincerity and law generate greater truth-consciousness.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- ṛta from √ṛ 'fit/order' reflects an Indo-European concern with 'right fitting' (compare Greek artios 'fitted, complete' as a semantic parallel). √vṛdh 'grow' is Indo-Iranian (Av. vərəz- etc. semantically adjacent), reflecting inherited formulaic growth language for divine increase through hymn and alignment.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi presents the gods as exemplars and agents of non-deceptive truth: by invoking their adruhā nature, he seeks the same sincerity and dakṣa to be established in the human. The hymn is a deliberate aligning of speech and will to the self-confirming movement of ṛta.
‘Truth by truth’: examine one thought-pattern; replace it with a precise, sincere formulation; feel the inner law settle.
Viśuddha (truth in speech) and Ājñā (discernment)
Exhale-lengthening (e.g., inhale 4, exhale 6–8) while mentally repeating ṛtam ṛtena.
Straight, lucid awareness; reduced self-deception.
After chanting, do a brief satya-sankalpa: one truthful action today. Let the feeling of ‘adruhā’ be a protective field against inner compromise.
Keep the parallel phrase ṛtam ṛtena with clear accent contrast per recension; avoid rushing the opening.
Slight emphasis on the first ṛtam and a measured return on ṛtena; pause at | to preserve the law-like statement.
(ṛ): vocalic r, short and clear, (iṣiram): retroflex ṣ; light ‘i’ vowels, (dakṣam): kṣ conjunct clean, (adruhā): dr cluster; long ā at end
pure, level, contemplative; minimal vibrato
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