Rig Veda 8.26.10: Mandala 8, Sukta 26, Mantra 10
Sukta 8.26
- Devata
- Aśvinau
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Adbhuta (wonder)
अश्विना स्वृषे स्तुहि कुवित्ते श्रवतो हवम् । नेदीयसः कूळयातः पणीँरुत ॥
aśvinā́ svṛ́ṣe stúhi kúvit te śrávato hávam | nédī́yasaḥ kūḷayātaḥ paṇī́ṃr utá ||
हे रिशि, अश्विन दोनों भाइयों की आज़ादी से तरीके से स्तुति करो। शायद वो तुम्हारी आवाज़ सुन लें। वो पास आएँ और उन लोगों को भगा दें जो सब कुछ अपने पास रख लेते हैं और दूसरों को नहीं देते।
Word by Word
- अश्विना
- O Aśvins (Divine Horsemen)Noun (dual vocative) / Devatā-nameपुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन; द्विवचनRole सम्बोधन (addressed deities)Root अश्विन् (प्रातिपदिक) → अश्विनौ
- स्वृ॑षे
- I praise / I singVerbलट् (वर्तमान); आत्मनेपद; उत्तमपुरुष; एकवचनRole कर्तृ (speaker as agent)Root स्वृ (धातु; ‘to sound/chant/praise’—Vedic) → स्वृ॑षे
- स्तुहि
- praise! / sing!Verb (imperative) / injunctive-like Vedic usageलोट्; परस्मैपद; मध्यमपुरुष; एकवचनRole कर्तृ (addressed one as agent)Root स्तु (धातु) → स्तुहि
- कुवित्
- perhaps? / whether?Indeclinable (particle)अव्ययRoot कु (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक, interrogative particle) + वित् (particle) → कुवित्
- ते
- of you / yourPronounषष्ठी; एकवचन (enclitic genitive)Role सम्बन्ध (genitive relation)Root युष्मद् (सर्वनाम) → ते
- श्रवतः
- of the renowned / of the famedAdjective (used substantively)पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी; एकवचनRole विशेषण-सम्बन्ध (qualifying ‘havam’ as ‘of the famed one/for the famed’ in Vedic genitive relation)Root श्रवत् (प्रातिपदिक; ‘famed, glorious, hearing/renowned’) → श्रवतः
- हवम्
- invocation, callNounपुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचनRole कर्म (object of calling/praising)Root हव (प्रातिपदिक) / √ह्वे (धातु ‘to call, invoke’) → हवम्
- नेदीयसः
- of the nearer / nearestAdjective (comparative)पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी; एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (genitive: ‘of the nearer/nearest’)Root नेदीयस् (तुलनात्मक-प्रातिपदिक from ‘निदि/नेद’ ‘near’) → नेदीयसः
- कूळयातः
- you two guide/bring (to the shore/near)Verbलट्/लृट्-like Vedic present; परस्मैपद; मध्यमपुरुष; द्विवचनRole कर्तृ (Aśvins as agents)Root कूळय (causative/denominative stem, Vedic; ‘to lead/bring to the bank/shore, to guide’) → कूळयातः
- पणीन्
- the Paṇis (stingy foes)Nounपुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; बहुवचनRole कर्म (those to be dealt with/overcome/led away)Root पणि (प्रातिपदिक; ‘Pani’, niggardly demon/merchant) → पणीन्
- उत
- and / also / moreoverIndeclinable (conj./emphatic)अव्ययRoot उत (अव्यय) अव्यय
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (resolved): अश्विना | स्वृ॑षे | स्तुहि | कुवित् | ते | श्रवतः | हवम् | नेदीयसः | कूळयातः | पणीन् | उत । प्रमुख संधि: ‘कुवित्ते’ = ‘कुवित् + ते’ (त् + त् → त्त्). अन्यत्र स्पष्ट संधि-परिवर्तन न्यून
- ‘पणीँरुत’ पदपाठानुसार ‘पणीन् | उत’ (अनुस्वार/नासिक्य-चिह्न वैदिक उच्चारण-विशेष)
The meaning
Outer meaning
The seer is urged to praise the Aśvins with a fluent hymn so that they may hear the call and come nearer, driving away the Paṇis (hoarders who obstruct offerings).
Inner meaning
The soul (ṛṣi as inner Seer) is asked to release a clear, unimpeded mantric flow so the twin divine powers of swift help (Aśvins) may hear the aspiration (havam) and approach the consciousness. Their coming disperses the Paṇis—inner misers and obstructors who hoard force, delight, and light—so the inner sacrifice can proceed and the rays of knowledge can circulate.
Universal truth
When aspiration becomes sincere and fluent, higher help responds; as illumination descends, the psychology of fear, hoarding, and obstruction is driven out, and the being becomes more receptive to truth and progress.
Themes
Praise, Hearing the invocation, Obstacle-removal, Paṇi myth (withholding light/wealth)
The seer
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 8.26.1-18 (same sūkta context, Aśvin hymn cluster)
Family tradition
Likely Kāṇva (Book 8 contains many Kāṇva hymns; this is a cautious, non-exclusive attribution).
Significance
The anonymity highlights a universal yogic situation: the inner Seer in any practitioner can become the ‘ṛṣi’ when speech turns mantric and aspiration becomes direct.
The deity
- Devata
- Aśvinau
- Epithets
- Nāsatyā, Dasrā, yuvānā (the youthful pair), svarvatī (bringers of light, implied)
- Related deities
- Uṣas, Sūrya, Indra, Adityas (as upholders of ṛta, allied powers)
Cosmic role
Divine physicians and swift helpers who restore right functioning, bring auspicious transitions, and open paths between darkness and dawn.
Inner power
Rapid harmonizing force in the vital-mental nature—bringing clarity, courage, and effective movement; they ‘draw near’ as increased responsiveness and practical guidance.
In ritual
Where it is used
Aśvin invocation within Soma-related praise cycles (general Aśvin stotras; not uniquely tied to one śrauta act in this verse alone)
अ॒श्विना॒ स्वृ॑षे स्तुहि कु॒वित्ते॒ श्रव॑तो॒ हव॑म् । नेदी॑यसः कूळयातः प॒णीँरु॒त ॥
अ॒श्विना॑ । सु । ऋ॒षे॒ । स्तु॒हि॒ । कु॒वित् । ते॒ । श्रव॑तः । हव॑म् । नेदी॑यसः । कू॒ळ॒या॒तः॒ । प॒णीन् । उ॒त ॥
aśvinā | su | ṛṣe | stuhi | kuvit | te | śravataḥ | havam | nedīyasaḥ | kūḷayātaḥ | paṇīn | uta
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4 pādas × ~11 syllables (approx.)
Forward-driving, exhortative cadence suited to invocation and approach.
Creates a sense of urgency and nearness—supporting a felt ‘arrival’ of help and the clearing of obstruction.
- aśvinā (अश्विना)
- Literal: the two Aśvins. Symbolic: twin divine powers of swift, practical aid—illumined vital-mental forces that bring right movement and healing to the seeker
- ṛṣe (ऋषे)
- Literal: O seer. Symbolic: the inner witness/knower capable of true mantra and right discernment
- stuhi (स्तुहि)
- Literal: praise. Symbolic: offer the conscious affirmation that opens the inner doors
- havam (हवम्)
- Literal: call/invocation. Symbolic: the soul’s aspiration that summons higher force
- śravataḥ (श्रवतः)
- Literal: may they hear. Symbolic: the higher powers’ receptivity to sincere inner prayer
- nedīyasaḥ (नेदीयसः)
- Literal: nearer, closest. Symbolic: a more intimate descent/approach of help into the front of consciousness
- paṇīn (पणीन्)
- Literal: Paṇis, misers/hoarders. Symbolic: forces of concealment, bargaining ego, and withholding that block the flow of light and offering
Praise-invocation to secure the Aśvins’ attentive hearing and protective clearing of obstacles; applicable in soma pressing sequences where obstructive forces (paṇi) are ritually/psychologically excluded.
At dawn or in sequences inviting Aśvins early in the rite; also suitable for personal dawn recitation.
Stuti (praise) and āhvāna (invocation) to bring the powers ‘near’.
Use at the start of meditation to call swift inner help and to reject inner ‘miser’ tendencies (withholding, doubt, bargaining).
stuhi: √stu ‘praise’ (imperative). √śru ‘hear’ (śrav-) is PIE *ḱlew- ‘hear, fame’ (cf. Greek klýō, English ‘loud’ via semantic shifts; ‘clue’ from ‘clew’ is separate). paṇi: often linked with ‘bargainer/hoarder’; in RV myth it is the withholder of cows (rays). kūḷayātaḥ: form suggests a causative/denominative ‘to cause to retreat/drive off’; exact dhātu assignment is debated; here taken functionally as “repel/drive away.”
R̥ta vs. obstruction: the call aligned with truth is ‘heard’; the paṇi-force blocks circulation of light/wealth, Speech as force (stuti) shaping inner reality
The Aśvins’ nearness implies alignment with ṛta: right rhythm, right speech, right movement.
‘Śravataḥ’ (may they hear) is activated by truthful, undistorted intention.
Progress from obstruction/covering to openness and circulation of light—microcosmic recreation of dawn within the being.
Proto-yogic/psychological reading aligned with Aurobindo’s inner sacrifice (antar-yajña).
dawn (Aśvins’ characteristic hour)
Dawn = first openings of illumination; chariot/approach = descent of higher assistance into the nervous-vital field.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The Paṇi as the Hider/Withholder: the Aśvins are asked to come nearer and repel the Paṇis. Psychologically, the Paṇi represents the acquisitive, closed vital that hoards energies and refuses the sacrifice, thereby hiding ‘cows’ (rays/knowledges). The Aśvins’ nearness breaks this contraction.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- śru- ‘hear’ aligns with PIE *ḱlew- (hearing/fame), a pan-Indo-European poetic theme (renown through hearing the hymn). The comparative nedīyasaḥ continues inherited comparative morphology (-īyas-).
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The ṛṣi’s rightly formed praise (su … stuhi) is offered as the channel for divine responsiveness; the Aśvins’ return-gift is śravaṇa (hearing/answering) and the active removal of inner adversaries (paṇi).
Invoke swift inner aid; offer clear aspiration; consciously reject ‘Paṇi’ patterns (withholding, fear of giving, mental bargaining).
Anāhata (aspiration) and Viśuddha (truthful mantra-speech)
4-4-6 breathing (inhale-hold-exhale) while repeating ‘stuhi…havam’ to steady call and receptivity.
Active receptivity—alert, hopeful, forward-moving.
Before japa, state one sincere intention; chant once slowly, then 9 repetitions with increasing clarity; end with a silent pause to ‘hear the hearing’—the inward response.
Mixed udatta/anudatta/svarita as per Rigvedic accent; preserve marked svaras especially on elongated vowels (e.g., aśvinā, svṛṣe, nedīyasaḥ).
Keep the natural rise on udatta syllables; avoid flattening the cadence—let ‘havam’ be clearly articulated as the pivot of the call.
aśvinā: ‘śv’ cluster clean, not ‘shv’ overly aspirated, svṛṣe: vocalic ṛ as a brief ‘ri’ with retroflex coloring, śravataḥ: ‘śra’ palatal ś, not dental s, paṇīn: retroflex ṇ; nasalization in paṇīm̐ (if chanted with anusvāra) should be light, not heavy
Bright, forward, prayerful; end each pāda with a soft release to invite ‘nearness’.
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