Rig Veda 8.5.4: Mandala 8, Sukta 5, Mantra 4
Sukta 8.5
- Rishi
- Kaṇvas
- Devata
- Aśvins
- Chandas
- Gāyatrī
- Rasa
- Shringara (love) and Shanta (peace)
पुरुप्रिया ण ऊतये पुरुमन्द्रा पुरूवसू । स्तुषे कण्वासो अश्विना ॥
purupriyā́ ṇa ūtáye purumandrā́ purūvasū́ | stuṣé kaṇvā́so aśvínā ||
तुम बहुत प्यारे हो और हमारी मदद करते हो। तुम सबको खुश करते हो और बहुत कुछ देते हो। कण्व रिशि के शिष्य तुम्हारी तारीफ करते हैं। हम तुम्हें स्तुति में मानते हैं।
Word by Word
- पुरुप्रियाः
- much-beloved / dear to manyAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचन (अश्विनौ इति द्विवचन-देवतायाः स्तुतौ बहुवचन-विशेषण-प्रयोगः वैदिकः) अथवा स्त्रीलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचन (स्तुतयः) — सन्दर्भतः अश्विनोः विशेषणम्Role विशेषण (कर्तृ/सम्प्रदान-सम्बन्धे) — अश्विनोःRoot पुरु- + प्रिय (प्रातिपदिक) अथवा बहुव्रीहि-समास-प्रातिपदिक ‘पुरुप्रिय’
- णः
- to us / ourPronounषष्ठी/चतुर्थी एकवचन (एन्क्लिटिक ‘नः’ = ‘our / to us’)Role सम्प्रदान (to us) / सम्बन्ध (our) — सन्दर्भानुसारRoot अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) — नः
- ऊतये
- for help, for protectionNounचतुर्थी एकवचन स्त्रीलिङ्गRole सम्प्रदान (for aid) / प्रयोजनRoot ऊति (स्त्री. प्रातिपदिक) ‘help, aid’
- पुरुमन्द्राः
- much-gladdening / very delightfulAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचन (विशेषणम्; वैदिक-प्रयोगः) अथवा स्त्रीलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचन — सन्दर्भतः अश्विनोः विशेषणम्Role विशेषण — अश्विनोःRoot पुरु- + मन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक); कर्मधारय/बहुव्रीहि-समास ‘पुरुमन्द्र’
- पुरूवसू
- rich in many goods / possessing much wealthAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा द्विवचन (अश्विनौ) — वैदिके दीर्घ ‘ऊ’ (पुरू-)Role विशेषण — अश्विनौ (कर्तृ-सम्बन्धः स्तुतौ)Root पुरु- + वसु (प्रातिपदिक) ‘good, wealth’; समास-प्रातिपदिक ‘पुरूवसु’
- स्तुषे
- I praiseVerbलट् (वर्तमान) आत्मनेपद, उत्तमपुरुष एकवचनRole क्रिया (अहं कर्ता) — ‘I praise’Root √स्तु (स्तवने)
- कण्वासः
- the Kaṇvas (seers/poets)Nounपुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा बहुवचनRole कर्ता (स्तुषे इत्यस्य) — ‘we, the Kaṇvas’Root कण्व (ऋषि-नाम; प्रातिपदिक)
- अश्विना
- the Aśvins (the twin horsemen)Nounपुंलिङ्गे द्वितीया द्विवचन (वैदिके -आ अन्तः ‘अश्विना’ = ‘अश्विनौ’ accusative dual) अथवा सम्बोधन-द्विवचन-रूप-प्रयोगः; क्रियायाः ‘स्तुषे’ इत्यस्य कर्मत्वेन युक्तम्Role कर्म (whom I praise) — अश्विनौRoot अश्विन् (देवता-नाम; प्रातिपदिक)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: पुरुप्रियाः | नः | ऊतये | पुरुमन्द्राः | पुरूवसू | स्तुषे | कण्वासः | अश्विना । 1) ‘णः’ इति पाठे नकारस्य वैदिक-लिप्यन्तर/अनुस्वार-प्रयोगः
- पदतः ‘नः’। 2) ‘अश्विना’ वैदिके द्विवचनस्य (अश्विनौ) द्वितीया-रूपे -आ अन्तः दृश्यते। 3) विशेषणानि (पुरुप्रियाः, पुरुमन्द्राः, पुरूवसू) अश्विनोः स्तुत्यर्थं
- वैदिके बहुवचन-विशेषण-प्रयोगः द्विवचन-देवतायामपि दृश्यते।
The meaning
Outer meaning
Much-beloved for our help, much-delighting, rich in many goods—thus we, the Kaṇvas, praise the Aśvins.
Inner meaning
The Aśvins are cherished because they repeatedly bring timely aid: delight (manda) is the soul’s gladness when energies are harmonized and the path clears. “Many goods” indicates plural inner riches—strength, clarity, right enjoyment, healing, swift progress. The Kaṇvas affirm a relationship of ongoing companionship with these Helpers, not a one-time rescue.
Universal truth
Spiritual progress depends on recurrent assistance and delight: when the divine powers are welcomed, life becomes a field of many supportive riches, not a struggle of scarcity.
Themes
Invocation, Help and protection, Delight and abundance
The seer
- Rishi
- Kaṇvāsaḥ (Kaṇvas explicitly)
- Lineage
- Kaṇva
- Other hymns
- RV 8.5 (this hymn), RV 1.47 (Kaṇva Aśvin hymn, traditional attribution in some indices)
Family tradition
A family of seers whose hymns often combine devotion, effectiveness, and psychological precision; they ‘praise’ as a means of establishing living relation with the gods.
Significance
By naming themselves (kaṇvāsaḥ), the seers emphasize continuity of sadhana: a lineage-memory of divine help repeatedly verified in experience.
The deity
- Devata
- Aśvinau
- Epithets
- purupriyā, purumandrā, puruvasū
- Related deities
- Uṣas, Soma, Sarasvatī
Cosmic role
Bestowers of aid and delight; restorers of wholeness; bringers of multiple boons in right season.
Inner power
They turn struggle into a harmonious forward movement; they bring a many-sided enrichment of the being.
In ritual
Where it is used
Stotra to Aśvins in dawn-related sequences; general invocation of helpers
पु॒रु॒प्रि॒या ण॑ ऊ॒तये॑ पुरुम॒न्द्रा पु॑रू॒वसू॑ । स्तु॒षे कण्वा॑सो अ॒श्विना॑ ॥
पु॒रु॒ऽप्रि॒या । नः॒ । ऊ॒तये॑ । पु॒रु॒ऽम॒न्द्रा । पु॒रु॒वसू॑ इति॑ पु॒रु॒ऽवसू॑ । स्तु॒षे । कण्वा॑सः । अ॒श्विना॑ ॥
puru-priyā | naḥ | ūtaye | puru-mandrā | puruvasūitipuru-vasū | stuṣe | kaṇvāsaḥ | aśvinā
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3 × 8 syllables
Affirmative, lilting, devotional; easy to memorize and repeat.
Builds bhāva of trust and gladness; stabilizes a friendly relation with the invoked powers.
- पुरुप्रिया (puru-priyā)
- Literal: much-beloved. Symbolic: frequently experienced as intimate helpers in the inner journey
- ऊतये (ūtaye)
- Literal: for help, for succor. Symbolic: saving support—bridging over difficulties and restoring right movement
- पुरुमन्द्रा (puru-mandrā)
- Literal: much-delighting. Symbolic: giver of inner gladness, harmonious ease, soul-cheer
- पुरुवसू (puru-vasū)
- Literal: rich in many goods/wealths. Symbolic: abundant inner resources: energies, joys, capacities, luminous possessions
- स्तुषे (stuṣe)
- Literal: I/We praise. Symbolic: affirmation that strengthens the link between seeker and divine power
Aśvin praise in morning liturgy; establishes their benevolent readiness to help.
When emphasizing the beneficence and belovedness of the Aśvins; as part of praise sections.
Recited to please/invite the Aśvins and to affirm their boons.
Use as a gratitude-mantra after receiving help or after meditation to seal the experience with appreciation.
ūti- ‘help’ denotes protective intervention; inwardly, the sustaining force that guards the ascent. puru- intensifies qualities: the Aśvins are repeatedly dear/delight-giving/abundant, indicating a many-sided assistance. vasu again points to stable substance of being, not mere wealth.
Divine help (ūti) as sustaining grace, Vasu as stable fullness, Delight (manda) as sign of right harmony
Aśvin help arrives according to Ṛta—timely, fitting, harmonizing rather than arbitrary.
Their ‘goods’ are satya-vasu: inner riches that support truth-being.
Sustenance of the worlds through recurrent divine aid; maintenance as a cosmic function.
Integral-Vedic: delight (manda) as a spiritual criterion, not mere pleasure.
dawn (hymn context)
As dawn returns daily, so does divine help recur—each awakening brings fresh resources and gladness.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The benevolent twin-saviours mythologem: the Aśvins as repeatedly ‘much-beloved’ helpers. Inwardly, they are the paired faculties that restore, heal, and gladden the being as it moves into the dawn of consciousness.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- The superlative/intensive use of puru- parallels Indo-European poetic intensification strategies (formulaic epithets). √stu ‘praise’ is part of an inherited hymn-technology where laudation is performative.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The Kaṇvas declare an intimate bond: the Aśvins are beloved specifically ‘for our help’. Praise is not flattery but a means of attunement, calling their delight-giving abundance to act within the human field.
Cultivate gratitude and receptivity to help; feel the inner life becoming ‘rich in goods’—capacities and joys aligned to the soul.
anāhata (devotional warmth)
Slow coherent breathing (5-5) while repeating; emphasize the soothing quality of puru-mandrā.
Gentle devotion, contented openness.
After practice, recall concrete instances of inner aid; chant to strengthen faith and to invite repeated harmonizing interventions.
Three-tone; keep a devotional softness; slight udātta emphasis on puru- compounds and aśvinā.
Compounds puru-priyā / puru-mandrā / puru-vasū: keep first member light, carry main lift on the accented syllable per tradition.
(purupriyā): avoid inserting extra vowel between puru+priyā, (kaṇvāsaḥ): retroflex ṇ; long ā, (aśvinā): śv cluster—clean ‘shv’
Warm, rounded, devotional.
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