Rig Veda 6.56.5: Mandala 6, Sukta 56, Mantra 5
Sukta 6.56
- Rishi
- Bharadvāja
- Devata
- Pūṣan
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Adbhuta (wonder)
इमं च नो गवेषणं सातये सीषधो गणम् । आरात्पूषन्नसि श्रुतः ॥
imáṃ ca no gaveṣáṇaṃ sātáye sīṣadho gaṇám | ārā́t pūṣann asi śrutáḥ ||
हम किरणों की तलाश में हैं, उन्हे पाना चाहते हैं। हमारी टीम आगे बढ़ रही है। पूषन, तुम पास से सुनो। तुम वो हो जो जवाब देता है, लोग जानते हैं।
Word by Word
- इमम्
- this (him/it)Pronounपुंलिङ्गः, द्वितीया विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्Role कर्मRoot इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- च
- andIndeclinableअव्ययम्Root च (निपात)
- नः
- of us / ourPronounषष्ठी विभक्तिः, बहुवचनम् (एन्क्लिटिक) अथवा दत्तिव-बहुवचनम्; अत्र ‘our’ (gen.)Role सम्बन्ध (षष्ठी) / सम्प्रदान (यदि दत्तिवार्थे)Root अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- गवेषणम्
- seeking, quest (for cattle/wealth)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्गः, द्वितीया विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्Role कर्मRoot गवेषण (प्रातिपदिक; गवेष्/गवेषण ‘searching, seeking’)
- सातये
- for winning / for attainmentNounचतुर्थी विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्Role सम्प्रदानRoot साति (स्त्रीलिङ्ग-प्रातिपदिक; ‘winning, gaining, attainment’)
- सीषधः
- impel (it)! / make (it) succeed!Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे), मध्यमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्Root सीषध् (धातु; Vedic ‘to set in motion/urge on, accomplish, make succeed’)
- गणम्
- the troop, companyNounपुंलिङ्गः, द्वितीया विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्Role कर्मRoot गण (प्रातिपदिक)
- आरात्
- from afar / at close rangeIndeclinableअव्ययम्Role अधिकरण (देश/परिसर) / अपादान (यदि ‘from afar’)Root आरात् (अव्यय; ‘from afar/at a distance; near’ in Vedic usage depending on context)
- पूषन्
- O PūṣanNoun (proper) संबोधनपुंलिङ्गः, सम्बोधन-एकवचनम्Role सम्बोधनRoot पूषन् (प्रातिपदिक; देवता ‘Pūṣan’)
- असि
- you areVerbलट् (वर्तमान), मध्यमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्Root अस् (धातु ‘to be’)
- श्रुतः
- heard of, renownedAdjective/Participleपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्Role कर्तृ-विशेषणम् (असि इत्यस्य) / विधेय-विशेषणम्Root श्रु (धातु) → श्रुत (कृदन्त; भूतकृत्/कृत-प्रत्यय)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: इमम् | च | नः | गवेषणम् | सातये | सीषधः | गणम् | आरात् | पूषन् | असि | श्रुतः || 1) ‘च नो’ इत्यत्र ‘नः’ एन्क्लिटिक-रूपम्। 2) ‘पूषन्नसि’ = ‘पूषन् असि’ (सम्बोधनान्त ‘-न्’ + अकारादि ‘असि’ इत्यत्र नकार-प्रत्यावर्तन/द्वित्व-लेखनम्: पूषन् + असि → पूषन्नसि)
The meaning
Outer meaning
Hear also this our quest for cows for winning, this forward-pressing band; from near, O Pūṣan, you are famed as one who listens.
Inner meaning
The ‘cows’ are rays of knowledge: the seeker-community (gaṇa) presses forward to win illumination. Pūṣan is invoked as the near and responsive guide who hears the aspiration and leads the quest toward the recovery of light from concealment.
Universal truth
Progress is a collective movement of aspiration: when the will to know gathers into a band of forces, the guiding Light responds and brings the hidden knowledge within reach.
Themes
Go-seeking (light quest), Guidance, Near help, Attainment (sāti)
The seer
- Rishi
- Bharadvāja
- Other hymns
- RV 6.56.1-6, RV 6.45, RV 6.47
Family tradition
A tradition of ‘winning the cows’—recovering light/knowledge through guided effort and indraic breakthroughs, with Pūṣan as safe-conduct.
Significance
Bharadvāja frames seeking as a disciplined collective impulse (gaṇa): inner faculties must cooperate to recover illumination.
The deity
- Devata
- Pūṣan
- Epithets
- śrutaḥ, ārāt (near)
- Related deities
- Indra, Sarasvatī (knowledge-flow), Sūrya
Cosmic role
Guardian of ways, protector of herds/wealth, leader of seekers on right tracks.
Inner power
The intimate guide who hears the soul’s call and organizes the seeking energies toward luminous discovery.
In ritual
Where it is used
Used for guidance in the ‘quest’ motif (finding cows/light), and for near protection and responsiveness; suitable for rites seeking safe progress and recovery of lost goods (outer) / lost light (inner)
इ॒मं च॑ नो ग॒वेष॑णं सा॒तये॑ सीषधो ग॒णम् । आ॒रात्पू॑षन्नसि श्रु॒तः ॥
इ॒मम् । च॒ । नः॒ । गो॒ऽएष॑णम् । सा॒तये॑ । सी॒स॒धः॒ । ग॒णम् । आ॒रात् । पू॒ष॒न् । अ॒सि॒ । श्रु॒तः ॥
imam | ca | naḥ | go--eṣaṇam | sātaye | sīsadhaḥ | gaṇam | ārāt | pūṣan | asi | śrutaḥ
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4×11 (approx.); energetic middle cadence around sīṣadhaḥ gaṇam.
March-like, collective and impelling.
Energizes aspiration; supports group practice; evokes a sense of ‘moving together’ toward light.
- go-eṣaṇam (gaveṣaṇam)
- Literal: search for cows. Symbolic: quest for rays of knowledge/illumination; recovery of lost light
- sātaye
- Literal: for winning, for conquest. Symbolic: attainment of inner gains—clarity, truth, right power
- sīṣadhaḥ
- Literal: pressing forward, impelling. Symbolic: ardent striving energies that push through inertia
- gaṇam
- Literal: band, host, group. Symbolic: organized powers of the being (thought, will, life) united for the yoga
- ārāt
- Literal: from near. Symbolic: the divine is inwardly close, accessible in the heart-consciousness
- śrutaḥ
- Literal: heard, renowned as hearing. Symbolic: the responsive divine attention; grace that answers sincere call
Used for guidance in the ‘quest’ motif (finding cows/light), and for near protection and responsiveness; suitable for rites seeking safe progress and recovery of lost goods (outer) / lost light (inner)
Invoked for successful seeking—material and spiritual; especially journeys, searches, and undertakings requiring guidance.
Recite while beginning a ‘quest’ (study, inquiry, travel). Offer the ‘band’ of energies—attention, breath, will—into a unified movement.
Use for study/learning: before reading or research, chant to invoke ‘rays’ (insights) and right direction.
go-eṣaṇa ‘cow-seeking’ (√iṣ ‘seek, desire’). sā́ti from √san/√sā ‘to win, gain’ (semantic: attainment). sīṣadhaḥ is difficult; often taken as an epithet meaning ‘pressing/urging forward’ (connected with √sidh/√sādh or a desiderative/intensive formation; here treated as ‘impelling’ based on contextual sense of a forward-driving group). śrutá from √śru ‘hear’ also means ‘famed’; the inner reading exploits the polyvalence: ‘renowned as the one who hears’.
recovery of light/knowledge from obscurity, divine hearing/response (śruti as living reception)
The ‘quest’ succeeds when it follows ṛta—right method and right direction under guidance.
Cows/rays are satya-forms: true illuminations recovered from concealment.
Revelation as recovery: light is not invented but found/uncovered.
Vedic psychological symbolism (cows as rays), aligned with Aurobindo/Kashyap.
The ‘herd’ is the plurality of illuminations; the ‘near’ is the indwelling guide accessible by inward turning.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The ‘finding the cows’ mythologem (go-eṣaṇa): cows as rays/knowledges sought for attainment. Pūṣan is invoked as the near guide who helps recover the hidden light and leads the band of faculties to victory.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √iṣ ‘seek’ belongs to a common IE desiderative semantic field (though direct cognates are less transparent than √yuj/√śru). √śru in śruta ties to PIE *ḱleu- ‘hear/fame’. The compound go-eṣaṇa shows productive compounding typical of early Indo-European poetic diction.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The r̥ṣi presents an organized striving (gaṇa) and asks for immediate divine participation (ārāt). Pūṣan’s gift is not an external object but a guided movement toward recovered light—divine responsiveness completes human seeking.
Unify the faculties into a single seeking movement; invoke guidance for right inquiry.
anāhata (inner nearness/response)
Brisker 1:1 breathing for 12 cycles, then chant once slowly; feel the ‘band’ of energies collect at the heart.
Aspiring, forward-moving, attentive.
Before practice, name your ‘cows’ (the insights you seek: calm, clarity, truth). Chant 9 times, then sit and listen—let the ‘near’ guidance show the next step.
Keep a slightly rising energy through ‘gaveṣaṇam… sīṣadhaḥ gaṇam’; settle gently on ‘ārāt… śrutaḥ’.
Articulate the sandhi in go-eṣaṇam clearly; do not swallow the long vowels in sātaye.
go-eṣaṇam: separate go + eṣaṇam lightly, sīṣadhaḥ: long ī; retroflex ṣ, pūṣan: long ū; retroflex ṣ
Bright and rallying, yet controlled—like calling companions to a shared aim.
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