Rig Veda 7.73.5: Mandala 7, Sukta 73, Mantra 5
Sukta 7.73
- Rishi
- Vasiṣṭha
- Devata
- Aśvinau
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Adbhuta (wonder)
आ पश्चातान्नासत्या पुरस्तादाश्विना यातमधरादुदक्तात् । आ विश्वतः पाञ्चजन्येन राया यूयं पात स्वस्तिभिः सदा नः ॥
ā́ paścā́tān nāsatyā purástād ā́śvinā yātam adharā́d údaktāt | ā́ víśvataḥ pā́ñcajanyena rāyā́ yūyáṃ pāta svastíbhiḥ sádā naḥ ||
अश्विनी कुमार, तुम पीछे से भी आओ, आगे से भी आओ। नीचे से भी आओ, ऊपर से भी आओ। चारों तरफ से आओ, और पाँच प्रकार के लोगों के लिए धन लेकर आओ। हमेशा हमें अपनी शक्ति से बचाओ।
Word by Word
- आ
- hither, towardsIndeclinableउपसर्ग (गत्यर्थ/आगमनार्थ)Root आ (उपसर्ग) / ā (preverb)
- पश्चात्
- from behind; afterwardsIndeclinableअव्यय (काल/दिशा)Role AdhikaraṇaRoot पश्चात् (अव्यय)
- नासत्या
- O Nāsatyas (Aśvins)Noun (proper epithet)पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन; द्विवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot नासत्य (प्रातिपदिक; अश्विनौ)
- पुरस्तात्
- from the front; in frontIndeclinableअव्यय (दिशा)Role AdhikaraṇaRoot पुरस्तात् (अव्यय)
- आश्विना
- O AśvinsAdjective (gentilic)पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन; द्विवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot आश्विन (प्रातिपदिक; ‘of the Aśvins’)
- यातम्
- come, go (you two)!Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ); मध्यमपुरुष; द्विवचन; परस्मैपदRole Kartā (आहूतौ) / क्रियाRoot या (धातु) / yā ‘to go’
- अधरात्
- from belowIndeclinable (ablatival adverb)तसिलान्त-अव्यय (अपादानार्थ)Role ApādānaRoot अधर (प्रातिपदिक) + तसिल्
- उदक्तात्
- from aboveIndeclinable (ablatival adverb)तसिलान्त-अव्यय (अपादानार्थ)Role ApādānaRoot उदक्/उदञ्च् (प्रातिपदिक) + तसिल्
- आ
- hither, towardsIndeclinableउपसर्ग (आगमनार्थ)Root आ (उपसर्ग) / ā (preverb)
- विश्वतः
- from every side; on all sidesIndeclinable (ablatival adverb)तसिलान्त-अव्यय (दिशा/परितः)Role AdhikaraṇaRoot विश्व (प्रातिपदिक) + तसिल्
- पाञ्चजन्येन
- with (wealth) belonging to the five tribes/peoplesAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया; एकवचनRole KaraṇaRoot पाञ्चजन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
- राया
- with wealthNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग; तृतीया; एकवचन (वैदिक रूप: राया = रय्या/रय्या)Role KaraṇaRoot राय्/राय (प्रातिपदिक ‘wealth’)
- यूयम्
- youPronounमध्यमपुरुष-सर्वनाम; प्रथमा; बहुवचन (वैदिक: ‘you’ honorific/plural)Role KartāRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- पात
- protect!Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ); मध्यमपुरुष; बहुवचन; परस्मैपदRole Kartā (आहूताः) / क्रियाRoot पा (धातु) / pā ‘to protect’
- स्वस्तिभिः
- with well-being, with blessingsNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग; तृतीया; बहुवचनRole KaraṇaRoot स्वस्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
- सदा
- alwaysIndeclinableअव्यय (काल)Role AdhikaraṇaRoot सदा (अव्यय)
- नः
- us; ourPronounषष्ठी/द्वितीया; बहुवचन (एन्क्लिटिक ‘नः’ = our/us; here best as genitive)Role Sampradāna (हितार्थ) / सम्बन्धRoot अस्मद् (सर्वनाम)
Sandhi Notes
- Sandhi resolution (padapāṭha-style): आ | पश्चात् | नासत्या | पुरस्तात् | आश्विना | यातम् | अधरात् | उदक्तात् | आ | विश्वतः | पाञ्चजन्येन | राया | यूयम् | पात | स्वस्तिभिः | सदा | नः । Notable: (1) ‘पश्चाता॑न्नास॒त्या’ = ‘पश्चात् नासत्या’ (final -t + n- gives -न्न- in saṃhitā). (2) ‘पुरस्ता॒दाश्वि॑ना’ = ‘पुरस्तात् आश्विना’ (t + ā → dā in saṃhitā). (3) ‘अधरादुद॑क्तात्’ = ‘अधरात् उदक्तात्’ (t + u → d u by external sandhi). Accent marks are retained from saṃhitā
- pada-forms shown without accent marks
The meaning
Outer meaning
Come from behind and before, from below and above, from every side, O Nāsatyas/Aśvins, with wealth for the five tribes; protect us always with your well-being.
Inner meaning
The seeker asks for total assistance: from all directions of the being—past (behind), future (before), lower nature (below), higher consciousness (above), and the surrounding field (every side). ‘Pāñcajanya’ is the fivefold human: body, life, mind, higher mind/intuition, and soul-support (or the five prāṇas / five sheaths). The Aśvins are invoked to bring plenitude and ‘svasti’—a stable condition of harmony—so the whole nature is guarded and integrated.
Universal truth
Integral well-being requires help that reaches every layer and direction of life; protection is wholeness, not mere avoidance of harm.
Themes
all-sided-invocation, protection, plenitude, integral-human
The seer
- Rishi
- Vasiṣṭha
- Lineage
- Vasiṣṭha (Maitrāvaruṇa lineage)
- Other hymns
- RV 7.73, RV 7.74, RV 7.88
Family tradition
Aurobindonian reading fits Vasiṣṭha’s integrality: protection and harmony across the whole being, not partial attainment.
Significance
Vasiṣṭha’s prayer is for comprehensive transformation—divine help that encloses and permeates the entire nature with svasti.
The deity
- Devata
- Aśvinau (Nāsatyā)
- Epithets
- Nāsatyā, Aśvinā, bringers of svasti, all-direction helpers
- Related deities
- Viṣṇu (all-pervading support—conceptual), Uṣas, Sūrya
Cosmic role
All-approaching rescuers; they traverse the worlds and arrive from any quarter, bearing prosperity and protection.
Inner power
Omni-directional harmonization: they reconcile opposites (past/future, low/high), integrate the personality, and stabilize well-being.
In ritual
Where it is used
Directional invocation for protection and plenitude
आ प॒श्चाता॑न्नास॒त्या पु॒रस्ता॒दाश्वि॑ना यातमध॒रादुद॑क्तात् । आ वि॒श्वत॒: पाञ्च॑जन्येन रा॒या यू॒यं पा॑त स्व॒स्तिभि॒: सदा॑ नः ॥
आ । प॒श्चाता॑त् । ना॒स॒त्या॒ । आ । पु॒रस्ता॑त् । आ । अ॒श्वि॒ना॒ । या॒त॒म् । अ॒ध॒रात् । उद॑क्तात् । आ । वि॒श्वतः॑ । पाञ्च॑ऽजन्येन । रा॒या । यू॒यम् । पा॒त॒ । स्व॒स्तिऽभिः॑ । सदा॑ । नः॒ ॥
ā | paścātāt | nāsatyā | ā | purastāt | ā | aśvinā | yātam | adharāt | udaktāt | ā | viśvataḥ | pāñca-janyena | rāyā | yūyam | pāta | svasti-bhiḥ | sadā | naḥ
44
4 × ~11 syllables
Encircling, comprehensive sweep through directional phrases; concluding protective cadence.
Gives a felt ‘surround’ of protection; expands awareness spatially and vertically.
- paścātāt / purastāt
- Literal: from behind / from before. Symbolic: support for past residues and future movement; healing memory and guiding aspiration
- adharāt / udaktāt
- Literal: from below / from above. Symbolic: transforming lower impulses and opening to higher light
- viśvataḥ
- Literal: from every side. Symbolic: totality of influence; surrounding field of consciousness
- pāñcajanyena
- Literal: belonging to the five peoples. Symbolic: the fivefold constitution of the human being to be sustained and harmonized
- rāyā
- Literal: wealth, plenitude. Symbolic: abundance of force, joy, capacity, and right conditions for growth
- svastibhiḥ
- Literal: with well-beings, auspicious protections. Symbolic: harmonizing powers that establish lasting inner health and right movement
Directional ‘come from all quarters’ invitation common in Soma hymns; protective closing with svasti.
Dawn or journey/protection contexts; invocations seeking all-around safeguarding
Calling deities from all quarters; concluding with svasti-prayer
Use as a daily protective ‘aura’ practice—before work, travel, or sleep; also when seeking integration of conflicting inner parts.
: su- ‘good’ + √as ‘to be’ → ‘good-being’, a stabilizing harmony. : from √rā ‘to give’/rāy ‘wealth’—interpretable as plenitude and capacity, not merely material goods. : ‘fivefold-born’ (pañca + janya from √jan ‘be born’), here taken as the integrated fivefold human nature (body-life-mind and their higher correspondences), supported by divine plenitude.
integral protection, plenitude (rāyā) as fullness of being, svasti as harmonizing order
Protection is establishment in right order across all planes.
Guidance ‘from before’ suggests truth-leading of the future movement.
Integral manifestation: the divine enters from all sides to build a complete human instrument.
Integral yoga orientation: totality (sarvataḥ) and protection (svasti) as conditions for transformation.
dawn (Aśvin movement)
Directions symbolize dimensions of the psyche; above/below correspond to higher/lower consciousness; the encircling call builds an inner mandala of protection.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The ‘arrival from all directions’ epiphany mythologem: the Aśvins are invoked to surround and protect completely. Inwardly it signifies a totalizing integration—help entering from every layer and angle of the being, establishing svasti (stable right-being).
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- Directional formulae (purastāt/paścātāt; adharāt/udaktāt) are typical of archaic ritual language across IE traditions. svasti (su+as) parallels other IE ‘good-being’ compounds (cf. Greek eu- + einai patterns), reflecting inherited compositional strategies.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi asks for comprehensive guardianship, not a single boon: protection (pāta) through svasti and enrichment through rāyā. The devatā are envisioned as powers that can enter every plane (below/above) and every temporal angle (behind/before), completing the seeker’s integral safety and growth.
Invoke help into every layer: past/future, lower/higher, inner/outer; rest in svasti as a stable field.
sahasrāra–mūlādhāra axis integration; also anāhata as protective coherence
Directional breath: inhale imagining light from above, exhale grounding below; then inhale from front, exhale behind; finish with a full-body ‘sphere’ breath on viśvataḥ.
Expansive, integrated, quietly protected awareness.
Chant once, then visualize a luminous enclosure; offer each ‘direction’ of your life to the Divine Helpers; conclude by feeling steady well-being in the heart.
Observe saṃhitā accents; keep clear lifts on directional adverbs (आ प॒श्चाता॑त्, पु॒रस्ता॑त्, अ॒ध॒रात्, उद॑क्तात्).
Let each directional phrase be a distinct call; broaden tone on ‘viśvataḥ’; soften and lengthen on ‘svastibhiḥ sadā naḥ’.
nāsatyā: long ā; avoid ‘naasatya’ diphthongization., pāñcajanyena: ñc as palatal nasal+affricate; keep ‘ja’ clear., udaktāt: pronounce ud-aktāt with clear k+t cluster., svastibhiḥ: visarga ḥ lightly aspirated at end.
open, expansive, blessing-like.
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