Rig Veda 8.77.4: Mandala 8, Sukta 77, Mantra 4
Sukta 8.77
- Devata
- Indra
- Rasa
- Adbhuta (wonder) and Shanta (peace)
एकया प्रतिधापिबत्साकं सरांसि त्रिंशतम् । इन्द्रः सोमस्य काणुका ॥
ékayā prati-dhā́ apibat sākáṃ sarā́ṃsi triṃśátam | índraḥ sómasya kāṇukā́ ||
इंद्र ने एक ही बार में तीस नदियों का सोम रस पिया। वो इतना तेज था कि एक ही सेटिंग से सब कुछ ले लिया। उसने खुद को पूरा भर लिया उस रस से जो खुशी और ताकत देता है।
Word by Word
- एकया
- with one (single) [means]Adjective (numeral)स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया विभक्ति, एकवचनRole करणRoot एक (प्रातिपदिक)
- प्रतिधा
- in return; in response; correspondinglyIndeclinableअव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण)Role AdhikaraṇaRoot प्रति-धा (अव्यय/उपसर्गयुक्त-धातु; धा)
- अपिबत्
- drankVerbलङ् (अनद्यतन भूत), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचनRole (क्रिया) —Root पा (पिबति) धातु
- साकम्
- together; jointlyIndeclinableअव्ययRole AdhikaraṇaRoot साकम् (अव्यय)
- सरांसि
- lakes; pools; watersNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, बहुवचनRole कर्मRoot सरस् (प्रातिपदिक)
- त्रिंशतम्
- thirty (in number)Adjective (numeral)नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन (समूह/परिमाणवाचक)Role विशेषण (कर्मणः)Root त्रिंशत् (संख्यावाचक प्रातिपदिक)
- इन्द्रः
- IndraNoun (proper)पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचनRole कर्तृRoot इन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- सोमस्य
- of SomaNounपुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी विभक्ति, एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (षष्ठी)Root सोम (प्रातिपदिक)
- काणुकाः
- the (Soma-)drinkers / the eager (ones) [epithet]; lit. ‘kāṇukāḥ’Adjective (used substantively) / Noun-like epithetपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, बहुवचनRole कर्तृ/विशेष्य (इन्द्रस्य विशेषण-सम्बोधनात्मक)Root काणुक (प्रातिपदिक; विशेषण)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (sandhi-resolved): एकया | प्रतिधा | अपिबत् | साकम् | सरांसि | त्रिंशतम् | इन्द्रः | सोमस्य | काणुकाः । 1) प्रति॒धापि॑बत् → प्रतिधा + अपिबत् (आ + अ = आ; संधि-लोपेन ‘धा’ + ‘अपि’ → ‘धापि’).
- ‘सरांसि’ RV-प्रयोग में ‘सरस्’ का नपुंसक बहुवचन (अकस्मात् दीर्घ/अनुनासिकता सहित) है। 3) उच्चारण-चिह्न (॑, ॒) वैदिक स्वर (उदात्त/अनुदात्त/स्वरित) सूचित करते हैं
- पद-रूप मूलतः ऊपर दिए अनुसार हैं।
The meaning
Outer meaning
Indra, the keen one, drank Soma—together thirty streams—by a single steady arrangement.
Inner meaning
The illumined Mind (Indra) takes in the delight-substance (Soma) not in scattered gulps but by ekayā pratidhā—one unified poise/ordering of consciousness. ‘Thirty streams’ suggests a plenitude of currents—multiple channels of joy, inspiration, and force—harmonized into one act of assimilation. The result is a concentrated, integrated delight-power that strengthens illumination.
Universal truth
When consciousness is unified, nourishment from higher joy becomes abundant and coherent. Integration (one poise) allows many energies to be received without dispersion.
Themes
Soma-ritual, Indra drinking Soma, plenitude of energy
The seer
- Other hymns
- RV 8.77.3, RV 8.77.5, RV 8.77.6, RV 8.77.7
Family tradition
Kāṇva-style Indra-Soma poetry emphasizing strength through Soma and integration of powers.
Significance
The seer presents Soma not as intoxication but as disciplined assimilation—delight received by a single inner posture.
The deity
- Devata
- Indra
- Epithets
- Kāṇukā (the keen/acute one), Soma-pā (Soma-drinker, implied)
- Related deities
- Soma, Agni, Maruts, Bṛhaspati
Cosmic role
Receiver and magnifier of Soma-force; leader who turns delight into victorious power.
Inner power
Capacity to hold many currents of bliss without fragmentation; integrative illumination.
In ritual
Where it is used
Soma libation verses for Indra in Soma-yajña sequences
एक॑या प्रति॒धापि॑बत्सा॒कं सरां॑सि त्रिं॒शत॑म् । इन्द्र॒: सोम॑स्य काणु॒का ॥
एक॑या । प्र॒ति॒ऽधा । अ॒पि॒ब॒त् । सा॒कम् । सरां॑सि । त्रिं॒शत॑म् । इन्द्रः॑ । सोम॑स्य । का॒णु॒का ॥
ekayā | prati-dhā | apibat | sākam | sarāṃsi | triṃśatam | indraḥ | somasya | kāṇukā
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4 pādas × ~11 syllables (approximate)
Smooth but forceful; a ‘single sweep’ feeling matching ekayā…sākam (together).
Creates coherence; the listener feels gathered inward, as if many energies are drawn into one channel.
- ekayā
- Literal: by one (means/way). Symbolic: one-pointed integration; single poise of mind
- prati-dhā
- Literal: arrangement, placing; steady disposition. Symbolic: right inner ordering; yogic ‘set’ of consciousness
- apibat
- Literal: drank. Symbolic: assimilated; made part of one’s substance
- sarāṃsi
- Literal: streams, currents. Symbolic: channels of delight/force; movements of inspiration
- triṃśatam
- Literal: thirty. Symbolic: full measure/plenitude (a symbolic totality rather than arithmetic)
- somasya
- Literal: of Soma. Symbolic: of divine Ananda, immortal delight
- kāṇukā
- Literal: keen, acute; sharp-sighted (epithet). Symbolic: penetrating discernment that can receive and hold subtle delight
Explicit Soma-drinking motif; central to Soma sacrifice (Agnisṭoma-like cycles), praising Indra’s capacity to receive and magnify Soma.
At Soma-pressing/drinking moments or praises describing Indra’s Soma reception.
Recitation during offering to invoke Indra’s capacity to receive Soma and convert it into strength for the sacrifice.
As a meditation on integration: repeat before practice to unify attention; imagine ‘streams’ of scattered energy collected into one steady poise.
: prati + √dhā ‘to place, set’—ordered disposition; inner sense: stable concentration. : plural of saráṃs ‘stream’; Soma as flowing delight. : obscure epithet; likely from a base conveying ‘sharp/keen/ardent’; treated as a quality of intensified receptivity/action.
Soma as ānanda/delight-force, unity of concentration (ekayā), measure/number symbolism (triṃśat)
Right arrangement (pratidhā) is ṛta in the psyche—order that allows higher forces to descend.
Kāṇukā implies sharp truth-sense; delight is stabilized by discernment.
Multiplicity gathered into unity—many streams into one act—an archetype of manifestation returning to its source.
Integral/psychological Vedism: Soma as delight-substance supporting evolution of consciousness.
Streams are subtle currents of prāṇa and inspiration; Soma is the sweetness of higher consciousness; ‘one arrangement’ is the unified inner seat (āsana of mind).
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Indra’s superhuman Soma-drinking—an empowerment myth: by taking vast flows of Soma, Indra becomes capable of victory. Innerly, concentrated unity (ekayā) allows the being to assimilate many currents of delight-force into one integrated power.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √pā ‘drink’ (apibat) reflects PIE *peh₃- ‘drink’ (cf. Latin pōtus, English potable via Romance). The repeated use of adverbial/instrumental constructions (ekayā, pratidhā, sākam) shows the archaic Indo-European tendency to encode ritual-psychological method through case semantics.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The r̥ṣi praises Indra’s capacity to receive Soma as the guarantee of help: the more Indra is filled with delight-force, the more he can act within the sacrificer. Praise and offering ‘feed’ the god-power, which returns as increased inner strength.
Unify attention (ekayā pratidhā) and ‘drink’ Soma as quiet joy permeating the mind.
ājñā (integration) and anāhata (joy)
Sama-vṛtti (equal breath) 4–4 or 6–6; on inhale feel Soma-streams enter, on exhale settle them into one center.
Collected luminosity with gentle bliss
Chant 12 times, then sit: feel multiple inner currents (thought, emotion, sensation) become ‘one stream’ in awareness; let joy spread without excitement.
Not fully derivable from provided text; maintain a steady contour with minimal pitch jumps to embody ekayā pratidhā (one arrangement).
Emphasize ekayā, pratidhā, sarāṃsi, triṃśatam, somasya, kāṇukā.
ekayā: long ā at end, pratidhā: aspirated dhā, long ā, sarāṃsi: nasal ṃ, clear s, triṃśatam: retroflex ṇ? (here ‘ṃś’ cluster), keep ‘triṃ-śa-’ distinct, kāṇukā: long ā, retroflex ṇ
Clear, smooth, ‘gathering’ tone; avoid aggressive attack.
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