Rig Veda 5.83.7: Mandala 5, Sukta 83, Mantra 7
Sukta 5.83
- Rishi
- Atri
- Devata
- Parjanya
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Adbhuta (wonder)
अभि क्रन्द स्तनय गर्भमा धा उदन्वता परि दीया रथेन । दृतिं सु कर्ष विषितं न्यञ्चं समा भवन्तूद्वतो निपादाः ॥
abhí kranda stanáya gárbham ā́ dhā udán-vatā pári dīyā́ ráthena | dṛtíṃ sú karṣa ví-sitaṃ ny-àñcaṃ samā́ bhavantūdváto ni-pādā́ḥ ||
बरसो और गरज, और अंदर काम शुरू कर। अपना पानी वाला रथ लेके घूम। बोरी को उल्टा करके खींच और पानी गिराओ। पहाड़ और मैदान सब भर जाएँ।
Word by Word
- अभि
- towards, against; overIndeclinableउपसर्ग/अव्ययRoot अभि (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- क्रन्द
- cry out!, roar!Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदRoot क्रन्द्
- स्तनय
- O thunder!Nounपुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचनRole सम्बोधन (addressed)Root स्तनय (प्रातिपदिक; ‘thunder’)
- गर्भम्
- the embryo; the germ (of rain)Nounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot गर्भ
- आ
- unto, into; forthIndeclinableउपसर्ग/अव्ययRoot आ (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- धा
- place!, set!, put!Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदRoot धा
- उदन्वता
- with the watery one; with water/sea-like massAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन (विशेषणरूपेण)Role KaraṇaRoot उदन्वत्
- परि
- aroundIndeclinableउपसर्ग/अव्ययRoot परि (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- दीय
- move!, course!, roll on!Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन; वैदिक-रूप (आदेश/छन्दसि)Root दी (दीयते/दीयति; ‘to go/flow, to move’)
- रथेन
- with a chariotNounपुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचनRole KaraṇaRoot रथ
- दृतिम्
- leather bag; skin (waterskin)Nounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot दृति
- सु
- well, thoroughlyIndeclinableनिपातRoot सु (अव्यय)
- कर्ष
- draw!, pull!Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदRoot कृष्
- विषितम्
- loosened, unboundAdjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्ग (दृतिम् इति कर्मणि विशेषणम्), द्वितीया, एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (क्त)Role Karma (qualifier)Root वि-षि/शि (कृदन्त; ‘loosened, unfastened’)
- न्यञ्चम्
- turned downwardAdjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (दृतिम् इति कर्मणि विशेषणम्)Role Karma (qualifier)Root न्यञ्च (प्रातिपदिक; ‘turned downward’)
- सम्
- together, completelyIndeclinableउपसर्ग/अव्ययRoot सम् (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- आ
- towards, intoIndeclinableउपसर्ग/अव्ययRoot आ (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- भवन्तु
- let them become; let there beVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन, परस्मैपदRoot भू
- उद्वतः
- from the height; from aboveNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी, एकवचन (अभ्यस्त-प्रयोगः: ‘from the height’)Role ApādānaRoot उद्वत् (प्रातिपदिक; ‘height, rising ground’)
- निपादाः
- the descending ones; down-coming (waters/streams)Noun/Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole KartāRoot नि-पाद (प्रातिपदिक; ‘down-footed/descending’)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः (वैदिक-सन्धि-विग्रह): अभि | क्रन्द | स्तनय | गर्भम् | आ | धा | उदन्वता | परि | दीय | रथेन || दृतिम् | सु | कर्ष | विषितम् | न्यञ्चम् | सम् | आ | भवन्तु | उद्वतः | निपादाः || 1) गर्भमा धा = गर्भम् + आ + धा (म् + आ → मा)
- 2) दीया रथेन् = दीय + रथेन (दीय इत्यादेशः छन्दसि; संधौ दीय रथेन)
- 3) भवन्तू॒द्वतो = भवन्तु + उद्वतः (उ + उ → ऊ)
The meaning
Outer meaning
Thunder loudly; place the embryo within; drive around on your water-bearing chariot. Pull well the opened leather bag turned downward; let high and low places become level.
Inner meaning
The thunder-call is an invocation for decisive awakening. ‘Place the embryo’ (garbham ā dhāḥ) is to implant the seed of a new work of consciousness in us—an inner formation ready to grow. The water-bearing chariot is the moving vehicle of descending energies circling the being to saturate it. The ‘leather bag’ (dṛti) is a vivid symbol of the cloud as a container of waters; inwardly it is the held-up reservoir of force/feeling in the vital that must be rightly opened and directed downward. ‘Let heights and lowlands be level’ signifies equalization: the descent should fill depressions (deficiencies) and soften rigid elevations (ego-peaks), creating an even field for growth.
Universal truth
Awakening must be followed by right distribution: the new inner possibility (embryo) grows when stored energies are released in a controlled descent that balances extremes and fills what is lacking.
Themes
Symbolic meteorology, Fertility as inner formation, Balance and harmony
The seer
- Rishi
- Atri (Ātreya)
- Lineage
- Ātreya
- Other hymns
- RV 5.83 (this hymn), RV 5.40 (formation and illumination motifs, thematic)
Family tradition
Ātreya vision often includes strong formative imagery (garbha, dṛti) to describe inner processes of manifestation.
Significance
This verse is a practical yogic instruction in symbolic form: awaken, implant the new formation, release the stored waters, and equalize the being for stable growth.
The deity
- Devata
- Parjanya
- Epithets
- stanayitnu (thunderer), udanvat (water-bearing), varṣakṛt (rain-maker)
- Related deities
- Maruts (storm circulation), Indra (thunder-force and breakthrough), Soma (inner waters/bliss that can be ‘poured’)
Cosmic role
Releases rain from the cloud-container, leveling the land and enabling fertility.
Inner power
Implants new formation (garbha) and pours balancing force that equalizes extremes in the psyche and body.
In ritual
Where it is used
Rain-making and land-fertility rites; imagery of leveling suggests agricultural benefit.
अ॒भि क्र॑न्द स्त॒नय॒ गर्भ॒मा धा॑ उद॒न्वता॒ परि॑ दीया॒ रथे॑न । दृतिं॒ सु क॑र्ष॒ विषि॑तं॒ न्य॑ञ्चं स॒मा भ॑वन्तू॒द्वतो॑ निपा॒दाः ॥
अ॒भि । क्र॒न्द॒ । स्त॒नय॑ । गर्भ॑म् । आ । धाः॒ । उ॒द॒न्ऽवता॑ । परि॑ । दी॒य॒ । रथे॑न । दृति॑म् । सु । क॒र्ष॒ । विऽसि॑तम् । न्य॑ञ्चम् । स॒माः । भ॒व॒न्तु॒ । उ॒त्ऽवतः॑ । नि॒ऽपा॒दाः ॥
abhi | kranda | stanaya | garbham | ā | dhāḥ | udan-vatā | pari | dīya | rathena | dṛtim | su | karṣa | vi-sitam | nyañcam | samāḥ | bhavantu | ut-vataḥ | ni-pādāḥ
44
4 × ~11
Percussive opening (abhi kranda stanaya) followed by circling movement imagery, ending in a leveling cadence.
First shocks the system awake, then guides into a feeling of downward release and balance—excellent for grounding.
- stanaya / stanayitnu
- Literal: thunder. Symbolic: awakening call; force of revelation that breaks inertia
- garbha
- Literal: embryo. Symbolic: seed of new consciousness/work placed in the being
- udanvatā rathena
- Literal: with water-bearing chariot. Symbolic: vehicle of descending energies circulating to permeate the system
- dṛti
- Literal: leather bag (water-skin). Symbolic: cloud-container; inner reservoir of held force/emotion to be released downward
- viṣitam
- Literal: opened, loosened. Symbolic: channels made ready; knots untied
- nyañcam
- Literal: turned downward. Symbolic: descent into embodiment; grounding of higher force
- udvataḥ / nipādāḥ
- Literal: heights and lowlands. Symbolic: inner extremes—over-tension vs deficiency; to be equalized by right influx
Ritual-poetic visualization of cloud-release; used to secure even distribution of rain (no floods/no drought), hence prosperity and stability.
When calling for thorough rains to saturate fields evenly.
Recitation while invoking rain to spread uniformly; symbolic ‘opening’ gesture may accompany.
For inner work: use when emotions/energies feel ‘stuck above’ or congested—invite a safe downward release and equalization.
garbha ‘embryo’ from √gṛbh/√garbh ‘to seize/contain’ → that which is held for birth; dṛti ‘leather-bag’ (container) becomes a potent symbol for the cloud as a vessel of waters; ny-àñc ‘turned downward’ expresses the Vedic ‘descent’ motif (avataraṇa in later terms) in a concrete directional adjective.
Gestation of realization (garbha), Ordered distribution (Ṛta as balance), Descent (nyañc) into embodied planes
Leveling high and low is ṛta as equilibrium—right measure in manifestation.
The ‘embryo’ is truth-seed; it must be placed and then nourished by rightly directed descent.
Seed implanted → circulation of force → container opened → descent → balance and fullness.
Integral Vedic yoga: manifestation of a new consciousness in matter through descent and harmonization.
monsoon / rain-spread over land
Thunder = awakening; cloud-container = held potential; rain = release into embodiment; leveling land = balancing the nature, filling deficiencies.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The cloud as a vessel (dṛti) whose mouth is opened and drawn downward to release waters; thunder as the cry that initiates the birth of the ‘embryo’. Psychologically: a contained force releases in a controlled descent, establishing a new formation (garbha) and equalizing the inner terrain (high/low).
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- The chariot imagery for divine movement is a shared Indo-European poetic device (storm-god/sky-god vehicles). Directional compounds and preverb-rich verbs (pari-, ā-, ni-/ny-) show the inherited Indo-Iranian preference for spatializing abstract processes.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi instructs the power through precise imagery—‘open, turn downward, distribute evenly’—indicating a collaborative ritual psychology: speech shapes the mode of descent so that it becomes harmonious rather than destructive.
Implant a clear intention (‘embryo of the work’), then allow a controlled downward release of stored energy to balance the system.
svādhiṣṭhāna (waters/reservoir), maṇipūra (distribution), mūlādhāra (grounding/leveling)
On inhale: feel a charged ‘cloud’ gathering above the head; on exhale: long, slow descent down to pelvis and feet (nyāsa-like grounding).
Awakened, then deeply grounded and evenly filled.
Chant the first pāda with force (wake up). After ‘garbham ā dhāḥ’, pause briefly to feel the new intention seated in the heart/belly. Then chant the remaining pādas softer, visualizing a reservoir opening and a gentle, even rain leveling the whole inner landscape.
Strike the opening with clear udātta lift; allow a controlled fall through the ‘dṛtiṃ … nyañcam’ sequence to embody the downward imagery.
Emphasize consonant clarity in clusters: kranda, stanaya, udanvatā, viṣitam, nyañcam.
abhi: short a, clear bh, kranda: roll r lightly; keep nd cluster, stanaya: dental n; short a endings, udanvatā: keep d dental; vata long ā at end, dṛtiṃ: vocalic ṛ; anusvāra ṃ nasal, viṣitam: retroflex ṣ; short i, nyañcam: palatal ñ; keep ‘ny’ clear, not ‘niy’
Start forceful and percussive; then smoother and downward-flowing, like rain.
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