Rig Veda 5.75.3: Mandala 5, Sukta 75, Mantra 3
Sukta 5.75
- Rishi
- Atri
- Devata
- Aśvinau
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Adbhuta (wonder) and Shanta (peace)
आ नो रत्नानि बिभ्रतावश्विना गच्छतं युवम् । रुद्रा हिरण्यवर्तनी जुषाणा वाजिनीवसू माध्वी मम श्रुतं हवम् ॥
ā́ no rátṇāni bíbhratāv aśvinā gácchataṃ yuvám | rudrā híraṇyavartanī juṣāṇā́ vājinīvasū mā́dhvī mama śrutáṃ hávam ||
अश्विन भाई, तुम दोनों हमारे पास आओ और अपने खज़ाने ले कर आओ। तुम दोनों बड़े ताकतवर हो, तुम्हारा रास्ता सोना जैसा चमकता है। हमारी पूजा तुम्हे पसंद है, तुम खुश हो। मेरा प्यारा बोलना सुनो।
Word by Word
- आ
- hither, towardsIndeclinableउपसर्ग (गत्यर्थकः)Root आ (उपसर्ग) / ā (preverb)
- नः
- to us / for usPronounषष्ठी/चतुर्थी, बहुवचन (enclitic)Role SampradānaRoot अस्मद्
- रत्नानि
- treasures, giftsNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचनRole KarmaRoot रत्न-
- बिभ्रता
- bearing, carryingVerb (participle)वर्तमान कृदन्त (शतृ), प्रथमा द्विवचन, पुंलिङ्ग (आश्विनौ-विशेषणम्)Role KartāRoot √भृ (भरणे)
- अश्विना
- O AśvinsNoun (proper/epithet)पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, द्विवचनRole SambodhanaRoot अश्विन्-
- गच्छतम्
- come (you two)!Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यमपुरुष, द्विवचन, परस्मैपदRoot √गम् (गत्यर्थे)
- युवम्
- you twoPronounप्रथमा, द्विवचनRole KartāRoot युष्मद्
- रुद्रा
- O Rudra-like ones (fierce/strong)Noun (epithet)पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, द्विवचन (आश्विनौ-विशेषणम्)Role SambodhanaRoot रुद्र-
- हिरण्यवर्तनी
- O (you two) of golden paths/tracksAdjective (compound)स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, द्विवचन (द्वन्द्व-देवतायाः स्त्रीलिङ्ग-विशेषणवत्; ‘golden-tracked/with golden paths’)Role SambodhanaRoot हिरण्य-वर्तनी-
- जुषाणा
- enjoying, accepting graciouslyVerb (participle)वर्तमान कृदन्त (शानच्), प्रथमा द्विवचन, आत्मनेपद-भावः (आश्विनौ-विशेषणम्)Role KartāRoot √जुष् (सेवने/प्रीतौ)
- वाजिनीवसू
- O possessors of prize-winning wealth (rich in steeds/strength)Noun (epithet, compound)पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, द्विवचनRole SambodhanaRoot वाजिनी-वसू-
- माध्वी
- honeyed, sweet (mead-like)Noun/Adjectiveस्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन (हवम्-विशेषणम्: ‘honey-sweet/intoxicating’)Root माध्वी-
- मम
- myPronounषष्ठी, एकवचनRoot अस्मद्
- श्रुतम्
- heard, heededVerb (participle)भूत कृदन्त (क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन (हवम्-विशेषणम्: ‘heard/hearken-to’)Root √श्रु (श्रवणे)
- हवम्
- invocation, callNounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot हव- (from √हू/√ह्वा ‘to call, invoke’)
Sandhi Notes
- Sandhi resolution (padapāṭha-style): आ | नः | रत्नानि | बिभ्रता | अश्विना | गच्छतम् | युवम् | रुद्रा | हिरण्यवर्तनी | जुषाणा | वाजिनीवसू | माध्वी | मम | श्रुतम् | हवम् । प्रमुख संधि: ‘आ नः’ (उपसर्ग + एनक्लिटिक सर्वनाम), ‘अश्विना गच्छतम्’ (सम्बोधन + लोट्), ‘वाजिनीवसू माध्वी’ (सम्बोधन + विशेषण-सम्बन्धः), ‘श्रुतं हवम्’ (विशेषण + विशेष्य)
The meaning
Outer meaning
Atri calls the Aśvins to come quickly, bringing treasures; he praises them as Rudra-like, moving on golden paths, and asks them to accept the offering and hear the sweet (honeyed) invocation.
Inner meaning
The Aśvins are the twin powers of swift, practical divine help—intuitive discernment and effective action—that arrive at the moment of inner need. “Treasures” are not objects but recoveries of lost inner wealth: clarity, strength, right movement, and healing energies. Their “golden paths” are luminous channels of right functioning in the being (mind–life–body) by which the higher Light can descend without distortion. The “honeyed call” is the soul’s sincere delight (mādhvī) that makes aspiration attractive to the gods; consent (juṣāṇa) indicates the harmonization of the human offering with the divine intention.
Universal truth
When aspiration is sweetened by gratitude and delight rather than strain, the higher helping powers respond more readily. True progress comes by opening luminous pathways in consciousness so that strength and knowledge can descend and organize life.
Themes
Bearing treasures, Acceptance of offering, Force and victory-plenitude
The seer
- Rishi
- Atri (Ātreya)
- Lineage
- Ātreya
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 5.75, Rig Veda 5.76, Rig Veda 5.77
Family tradition
Atri’s line is strongly associated with luminous vision, healing, and right ordering of inner and outer life; in Book 5 the Ātreyas frequently invoke swift divine helps (especially Aśvins) for restoration and right functioning.
Significance
Atri embodies the seer’s capacity to call immediate divine intervention into embodied life—yoga not only of ascent but of cure, adjustment, and integral perfection (mind–life–body).
The deity
- Devata
- Aśvinau (Nāsatyā)
- Epithets
- Nāsatyā (true, unerring), Vājinīvasū (lords of force and plenty), Hiraṇyavartanī (golden-pathed), Rudrā (ardent, forceful)
- Related deities
- Uṣas, Sūrya, Indra, Sarasvatī
Cosmic role
Twin dawn-riders and healers who restore wholeness, bring timely aid, and open safe passages for the powers of light into the human journey.
Inner power
Rapid harmonizing intelligence and executive energy that diagnose imbalance, remove immediate obstacles, and re-establish right movement in the being.
In ritual
Where it is used
Aśvinaśastra / Aśvin-related praises in Soma rites (general)
आ नो॒ रत्ना॑नि॒ बिभ्र॑ता॒वश्वि॑ना॒ गच्छ॑तं यु॒वम् । रुद्रा॒ हिर॑ण्यवर्तनी जुषा॒णा वा॑जिनीवसू॒ माध्वी॒ मम॑ श्रुतं॒ हव॑म् ॥
आ । नः॒ । रत्ना॑नि । बिभ्र॑तौ । अश्वि॑ना । गच्छ॑तम् । यु॒वम् । रुद्रा॑ । हिर॑ण्यऽवर्तनी॒ इति॒ हिर॑ण्यऽवर्तनी । जु॒षा॒णा । वा॒जि॒नी॒व॒सू॒ इति॑ वाजिनीऽवसू । माध्वी॒ इति॑ । मम॑ । श्रुत॑म् । हव॑म् ॥
ā | naḥ | ratnāni | bibhratau | aśvinā | gacchatam | yuvam | rudrā | hiraṇya-vartanī itihiraṇya-vartanī | juṣāṇā | vājinīvasūitivājinī-vasū | mādhvī iti | mama | śrutam | havam
44
4 pādas of ~11 syllables
Forward-driving, declarative, suited to invocation and command
Builds momentum and urgency while keeping a steady, luminous cadence—good for summoning and concentrating will.
- रत्नानि (ratnāni)
- Literal: treasures, jewels. Symbolic: inner riches: powers of light, strength, joy, right capacities recovered for the yoga
- अश्विना (aśvinā)
- Literal: the Aśvins, horsemen twins. Symbolic: twin divine healers: swift intuition + effective vital-physical execution
- रुद्रा (rudrā)
- Literal: Rudra-like, fierce/ardent. Symbolic: forceful purifying energy that breaks obstruction and heals
- हिरण्यवर्तनी (hiraṇyavartanī)
- Literal: having golden tracks/paths. Symbolic: luminous channels of movement; right, light-filled functioning in the nature
- जुषाणा (juṣāṇā)
- Literal: accepting, consenting. Symbolic: divine sanction when the offering is aligned with truth
- वाजिनीवसू (vājinīvasū)
- Literal: possessing vāja (prize/force) and wealth. Symbolic: lords of plenitude of force: abundance of effective energy and accomplishment
- माध्वी (mādhvī)
- Literal: honeyed, sweet. Symbolic: delight in aspiration; sweetness of the psychic call
- हवम् (havam)
- Literal: invocation, call. Symbolic: the will-to-offer; upward cry of the soul
Invitation at Soma offering: request for ratnas (powers/treasures) and for the gods’ juṣṭi (acceptance), a key ritual-psychological condition for effective sacrifice.
Invocations to invite the Aśvins at the opening/approach of offering; often associated with early/transition moments (dawn symbolism)
Calling the deities to the seat; offering of soma/oblations with praise
Use as a pre-meditation invocation for swift help in healing, right adjustment, and to ‘open the golden path’ before work or practice.
ratna ‘treasure’ (from √rad/√rat semantic field ‘to give, to delight’ in Vedic usage) becomes ‘attainment/power’ rather than material gem. rudrá as adjective ‘red/fierce/ardent’ linked to forceful breaking; psychologically the energy that shatters inertia. juṣāṇā from √juṣ (to enjoy, be pleased, accept) → consenting participation of the gods. vājinī-vasū: vāja from √vaj/√vāj (‘strength, impetuous force, prize’) → plenitude of force; vasu as settled richness.
Treasure as siddhi/attainment (ratna), Consent of the divine (juṣṭi) as alignment with ṛta, Vāja as victorious force
The ‘golden paths’ signify movements aligned with ṛta—right functioning that allows the descent of help.
Nāsatyā/true ones respond to sincerity and truth in the call.
Restoration and integration: the cosmos advances by repeated acts of healing and right adjustment of the evolving being.
Proto-Vedāntic / Integral (Aurobindonian) reading: descent of higher powers to transform nature.
dawn/early morning (Aśvin association)
Gold/light = supramental-mental illumination; honey = blissful psychic sweetness; path = channel of consciousness through which force descends.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The gods arriving ‘bearing treasures’ and ‘accepting’ the offering: the descent of divine ratnas. In inner terms, ratna are compact powers of realization brought by the Aśvins when the sacrifice-consciousness is rightly aligned.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √juṣ has Indo-Iranian parallels in the semantic field of ‘enjoy/accept’; √vah (implicit in the carrying sense) and √vṛt (vartanī) are classic PIE inheritances (*wegh-, *wert-). The formula ā no … gácchatam is a typical archaic invitatory construction.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The r̥ṣi seeks not mere objects but ratnas as inner supports; he asks for the Aśvins’ consent (juṣāṇā), i.e., their active participation. The Aśvins respond as vājinīvasū—powers that establish victorious plenitude in the aspirant.
Invoke the twin helpers for rapid correction: ‘show the right step and give strength to do it.’
ājñā (clarifying right perception) and viśuddha (truthful call/utterance)
4-4-6 breathing (inhale-hold-exhale) while repeating ‘mādhvī mama śrutaṃ havam’ as a sealing refrain
Receptive, brightened, help-seeking surrender without passivity
Begin with gratitude; feel a ‘golden track’ opening from crown to heart; offer the day’s actions as the treasure to be set right by the divine twins.
Triṣṭubh recitation with Vedic accents: maintain udatta peaks on key invocatory words (ā, aśvinā, gacchatam, juṣāṇā, havam); svarita as glide after udatta; anudatta as low support.
Lift the voice slightly on udatta syllables; avoid flattening the refrain ‘mādhvī mama śrutaṃ havam’—keep it clear and sweet, not rushed.
Maintain retroflex in (rudrā) with clear ‘ḍr’ cluster, hiraṇya: pronounce ‘ṇy’ distinctly (--), vartanī: keep ‘rt’ crisp; long ī at end, juṣāṇā: ‘ṣ’ is retroflex; long ā’s sustained, mādhvī: long ā; ‘dhv’ conjunct cleanly
bright, inviting, slightly urgent but benevolent
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