Rig Veda 8.25.4: Mandala 8, Sukta 25, Mantra 4
Sukta 8.25
- Devata
- Mitra-Varuṇa
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Adbhuta (wonder)
महान्ता मित्रावरुणा सम्राजा देवावसुरा । ऋतावानावृतमा घोषतो बृहत् ॥
mahā́ntā mitrā́varuṇā samrā́jā devā́v asurā́ | ṛtá-vānāv ṛtám ā́ ghoṣato bṛhát ||
मित्र और वरुण दोनों बहुत बड़े हैं। दोनों मिलके राज करते हैं, दोनों देवता हैं। यह सच्चाई के धारण करते हैं। यह सच्चाई को ज़ोर से बोलते हैं ताकि हम सुन सकें और सही रास्ता ले सकें।
Word by Word
- म॒हान्ता॑
- the two great (ones)Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन (महत् → महान्तौ/महान्ता; वैदिक पाठ)Role विशेषण (कर्तृसम्बन्धी)Root महत् (प्रातिपदिक)
- मि॒त्रावरु॑णा
- Mitra and VaruṇaNoun (dual deity name)पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचनRole कर्तृ (स्तुत्य-देवता)Root मित्र + वरुण (प्रातिपदिक; द्वन्द्व-समास)
- स॒म्राजा॑
- the two sovereign kingsNoun/Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन (सम्राजौ/सम्राजा; वैदिक पाठ)Role विशेषण (कर्तृसम्बन्धी)Root सम्राज् (प्रातिपदिक)
- दे॒वावसु॑रा
- (both) gods and asuras (lordly ones)Noun/Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन (देवौ असुरौ → दे॒वावसु॑रा)Role विशेषण (कर्तृसम्बन्धी)Root देव + असुर (प्रातिपदिक; द्वन्द्व/समाहार-भाव)
- ऋ॒तावा॑ना
- the two possessing ṛta (cosmic order)Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन (ऋतावानौ/ऋतावाना; वैदिक पाठ)Role विशेषण (कर्तृसम्बन्धी)Root ऋतावन् (प्रातिपदिक)
- ऋ॒तमा
- ṛta, the true orderNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्म (गम्य/प्राप्य-वस्तु)Root ऋतम् (प्रातिपदिक)
- घो॑षतः
- they sound/they resoundVerb (finite)लट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, द्विवचन, परस्मैपदRole क्रिया (कर्तृ: मित्रावरुणौ)Root घोष् (धातु) / घोषत् (वर्तमान कृदन्त)
- बृ॒हत्
- loudly, greatly; the great (sound)Adjective (used adverbially)नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (क्रियाविशेषण-प्रयोगः)Role क्रियाविशेषण (रीति/परिमाण)Root बृहन्त्/बृहत् (प्रातिपदिक)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: महान्ता | मित्रावरुणा | सम्राजा | देवौ असुरौ | ऋतावाना | ऋतम् | आ | घोषतः | बृहत् । (1) देवौ + असुरौ → दे॒वावसु॑रा (औ + अ → आव; वैदिक संधि)
- (2) ऋतम् + आ → ऋ॒तमा (म् + आ → मा; अनुस्वार/मकारादेशः)
- (3) ‘मित्रावरुणा’ समास/द्वन्द्व-रूपेण द्विवचन-प्रथमा
- (4) ‘महान्ता, सम्राजा, ऋतावाना’ इत्यत्र द्विवचन-प्रथमा वैदिक-रूपाणि (क्लासिकल -औ के स्थान पर -आ पाठे दृश्यते)
The meaning
Outer meaning
Mitra and Varuṇa, vast co-kings, divine and lordly, possessors of ṛta, proclaim the great Vast (bṛhat) and the law of Truth.
Inner meaning
Mitra–Varuṇa are the twin sovereign powers of harmony and vast purity in the consciousness: Mitra as the force of luminous concord, Varuṇa as the force of infinite wideness and truth-order. When these two reign together, the inner being begins to “hear” the law of ṛta—an intuitive rightness that organizes thought, will, and feeling into a single alignment with Truth (satya). Their “proclamation” is the clear inner discernment that makes the soul receptive to right measure, right relation, and right action.
Universal truth
True freedom is not lawlessness but living in a deeper order: when harmony (Mitra) and vast truth (Varuṇa) govern together, life spontaneously arranges itself around what is right, whole, and universally beneficial.
Themes
Rita-proclamation, Divine kingship, Ethical-cosmic law, Mantric hearing
The seer
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 8.25 (whole hymn, Mitra–Varuṇa), Rig Veda 8.24–8.26 (neighboring Kāṇva hymns, thematic resonance of sovereignty and ṛta)
Family tradition
Kāṇva (probable book-8 family tradition; attribution uncertain at verse level)
Significance
The seer-voice here is impersonal and ‘cosmic’: it invokes not a personal boon but the installation of truth-order in the listener’s consciousness, a hallmark of ṛta-centered Kāṇva inspiration.
The deity
- Devata
- Mitra–Varuṇa
- Epithets
- mahāntā (vast), samrājā (co-sovereigns), devau (divine), asurā (lordly), ṛtāvānā (bearers of ṛta)
- Related deities
- Aryaman (social harmony/inner nobility), Bhaga (right enjoyment/portion), Aditi (infinite mother-principle), Indra (illumined mind that executes the truth)
Cosmic role
Guardians of ṛta and satya; sustain cosmic harmony, moral order, and the vast law that binds heaven and earth.
Inner power
The combined power that (1) harmonizes relations and movements (Mitra) and (2) widens and purifies into truth and infinity (Varuṇa), producing a stable inner sovereignty.
In ritual
Where it is used
Mitra–Varuṇa śastra/stotra context in Soma-related rites; also general invocation for ṛta-protection
म॒हान्ता॑ मि॒त्रावरु॑णा स॒म्राजा॑ दे॒वावसु॑रा । ऋ॒तावा॑नावृ॒तमा घो॑षतो बृ॒हत् ॥
म॒हान्ता॑ । मि॒त्रावरु॑णा । स॒म्ऽराजा॑ । दे॒वौ । असु॑रा । ऋ॒तऽवा॑नौ । ऋ॒तम् । आ । घो॒ष॒तः॒ । बृ॒हत् ॥
mahāntā | mitrāvaruṇā | sam-rājā | devau | asurā | ṛta-vānau | ṛtam | ā | ghoṣataḥ | bṛhat
Anuṣṭubh (probable; hymn 8.25 commonly moves in compact 8-syllable quarters)
32
4 pādas × ~8 syllables
firm, balanced, declarative; suited to ‘proclamation’ (ghoṣa) and establishment of law
Creates a steady, judicial clarity—felt as an inner ‘settling’ into rightness and wideness.
- म॒हान्ता (mahāntā)
- Literal: vast, great. Symbolic: wideness of consciousness; capacity to hold opposites without distortion
- मि॒त्रावरु॑णा (mitrāvaruṇā)
- Literal: Mitra and Varuṇa. Symbolic: twin sovereignty of harmony (Mitra) and infinite truth/purity (Varuṇa)
- स॒म्राजा॑ (samrājā)
- Literal: co-kings, joint sovereigns. Symbolic: integrated governance of the inner nature; unified rule over mind-life-body
- असु॑रा (asurā)
- Literal: lordly, possessing vital force (asu). Symbolic: master-powers that govern life-breath and inner energies (not ‘demon’ here)
- ऋ॒तावा॑ना (ṛtāvānā)
- Literal: possessors/bearers of ṛta. Symbolic: powers that establish right order and truth-acting in consciousness
- ऋ॒तम् (ṛtam)
- Literal: truth, right order. Symbolic: the exact law of being; intuitive truth that naturally becomes right action
- घो॑षतः (ghoṣataḥ)
- Literal: they sound/proclaim aloud. Symbolic: inner clarity that becomes unmistakable; a ‘heard’ guidance within
- बृ॒हत् (bṛhat)
- Literal: the Vast. Symbolic: infinite consciousness; the wide heaven of the spirit (br̥hat/divaḥ)
Invoked in contexts of establishing ṛta: vows, truth-speaking, right relations, and consecratory moments where ‘sovereignty’ (samrājya) is symbolically affirmed.
When establishing right order, truthfulness, and protective harmony in the rite; often in sequences invoking Ādityas
Recitation to invite the co-sovereigns to uphold ṛta, remove disorder, and confirm right relations
Use as a daily ‘alignment’ mantra before work/decision-making: chant to enter truthful speech, ethical clarity, and calm wideness.
mitrá: from √mi ‘to bind/measure’ in semantic field of alliance; ‘friend/contract’ → power of harmony. varuṇá: from √vṛ ‘to cover/encompass’ → the all-containing law, restraint, and vastness. samrājā: sam- ‘together’ + rāj ‘to rule’ (PIE *h₃reǵ- ‘to straighten, rule’; cf. Latin rēx). ghoṣ- (√ghuṣ/ghoṣ) ‘to sound’ → truth as an audible/mantric force that impresses itself on mind. bṛhát: from √bṛh ‘to grow, expand’ (cf. bṛhat, brahman in later developments), indicating expansion of being.
Ṛta, Bṛhat (the Vast), Sovereignty (rājya) as inner governance
Central: Mitra–Varuṇa are invoked as ṛtāvānā who make ṛta audible and operative.
Truth as a lived law—speech and action conforming to inner reality.
Maintenance of cosmos through law and wideness; order as an active sustaining power.
Proto-Vedāntic and Yogic: movement from outer law to inner governance by truth-consciousness (ṛta-cit).
Sky = wideness of consciousness; proclamation = inner hearing of truth (śruti within), where guidance becomes unmistakable.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The mythologem of ‘Twin Sovereigns of ṛta’: Mitra and Varuṇa as co-kings who uphold and announce the cosmic law. In inner terms, they are the paired powers of harmony (Mitra) and vast restraining law (Varuṇa) that make the truth audible and operative in the seeker.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- rāj- in samrājā continues PIE *h₃reǵ- ‘to rule/straighten’ (rex/raj). bṛh- ‘expand’ corresponds to an Indo-Iranian development of a ‘growth/expansion’ root; the abstract ‘Vast’ (bṛhat) is characteristic of IE sacral poetics where spatial expansion encodes spiritual intensification.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi positions himself as a hearer of ṛta: the gods ‘proclaim’ and the human receives, aligns, and becomes truthful. Reciprocity is through consent and fidelity—by accepting Mitra’s bond and Varuṇa’s law, the rishi becomes fit for their protection and kingship within.
Establish inner sovereignty by invoking harmony (Mitra) and wideness/purity (Varuṇa) until ‘ṛta’ is felt as a living guidance.
Anahata (harmony/accord) and Ajna (truth-discernment)
Slow equal breathing (sama-vṛtti), pausing briefly after exhale to ‘hear’ the inner law
Widened, quiet, ethically lucid awareness; receptive intuition
Chant 9 or 27 times, then sit in silence asking: ‘What is the right order here?’ Wait for a calm, wide, uncompelled clarity—act only from that.
Notated svaras not provided; chant with Vedic-style attention: preserve udātta peaks on accented syllables and avoid flattening compounds (mitrāvaruṇā, samrājā).
Keep a clear lift on key power-words: mahāntā, samrājā, ṛtāvānā, ṛtam, bṛhat.
ṛ in ṛtam/ṛtāvānā: short vocalic ‘ri’ (not ‘ar’), ṇ in varuṇā: retroflex nasal, gh in ghoṣataḥ: voiced aspirate (not hard ‘g’), bṛhat: vocalic ṛ + soft h
steady, wide, resonant; ‘proclamatory’ but calm
9
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Rig Veda in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.
