Rig Veda 9.37.5: Mandala 9, Sukta 37, Mantra 5
Sukta 9.37
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Raudra (fury)
स वृत्रहा वृषा सुतो वरिवोविददाभ्यः । सोमो वाजमिवासरत् ॥
sa vṛtra-hā vṛṣā suto varivo-vid adābhyaḥ | somo vājam ivāsarat ||
यह सोम वृत्र को मारता है, बलवान है, निचोड़ा जा चुका है। उसने विकास रास्ता ढूँढ लिया है। वो ऐसे बहता है जैसे खुद ताकत हो।
Word by Word
- सः
- he (that one)Pronounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → स
- वृत्रहा
- Vṛtra-slayerNoun/Epithetपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role Kartā (सः इत्यस्य विशेषणम्)Root वृत्रहन् (प्रातिपदिक; वृत्र + हन् ‘to slay’)
- वृषा
- the bull; vigorous oneNoun/Adjectiveपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role Kartā (सः इत्यस्य विशेषणम्)Root वृषन् (प्रातिपदिक) अथवा वृषा- (विशेषण-प्रातिपदिक)
- सुतः
- pressed (Soma); the pressed oneParticiple (Adjectival) / Nounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role Kartā (सः इत्यस्य विशेषणम्)Root √सु (सुनोति ‘to press/express (Soma)’) → सुत (कृदन्त, भूतकर्मणि/कृत)
- वरिवोविद्
- finder/procurer of room (favor, free scope)Noun/Epithetपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role Kartā (सः इत्यस्य विशेषणम्)Root वरिवस् (प्रातिपदिक ‘wide space, room, favor’) + √विद् (‘to know/find’) → विद् (कृदन्त/नामधातु-समास; ‘one who finds/procures’)
- ददाभ्यः
- to/for the givers (bestowers)Noun (agent noun) / Epithetपुंलिङ्गः, चतुर्थी/पञ्चमी, बहुवचनम्Role Sampradāna (beneficiaries: ‘to/for the givers’)Root √दा (ददाति ‘to give’) → ददाभि- (प्रातिपदिक; ददाभ्यः = ददाभि + भ्यस्)
- सोमः
- SomaNounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot सोम (प्रातिपदिक)
- वाजम्
- prize; strengthNounपुंलिङ्गः, द्वितीया, एकवचनम्Role Karma (उपमान-आश्रयः; ‘like a prize/strength’)Root वाज (प्रातिपदिक)
- इव
- like, asIndeclinableअव्ययम्Root इव (निपात)
- असरत्
- flowed; ran forthVerbलङ् (अद्यतनभूत/अनद्यतनभूत-प्रयोगः), प्रथमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्Role KriyāRoot √सृ (सरति ‘to flow, run’) with preverb आ- (आसरत्)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: सः | वृत्रहा | वृषा | सुतः | वरिवोविद् | ददाभ्यः | सोमः | वाजम् | इव | आसरत् । 1) स वृत्रहा → सः वृत्रहा (विसर्ग-लोपः पदान्ते)
- 2) विददा॑भ्यः → विद् ददाभ्यः (समासान्त/पदान्त-सन्धिः; अन्त्य-द् परतः द- इत्यत्र संयोगः)
- 3) इवासरत् → इव आसरत् (अ + इव-परः संधिः; पदपाठे ‘इव | आसरत्’)
The meaning
Outer meaning
Soma, Vṛtra-slayer, strong bull, pressed out, finder of wide room, invincible, has streamed forth like vāja (plenitude/prize).
Inner meaning
Purified delight becomes vṛtrahā: it breaks the Coverer—subconscient resistance that blocks the flow. As vṛṣā (bull), it is a strong generative force; as sutaḥ, it is the expressed essence drawn out by discipline. Varivovid: it discovers wide space—inner freedom and room for growth. Adābhya: it cannot be overpowered by hostile movements. Thus Soma streams like vāja itself—realization arriving as living abundance.
Universal truth
True joy, when extracted and purified through practice, is a power of liberation: it breaks inner resistance, creates spaciousness, and pours as abundance that cannot be diminished by outer circumstance.
Themes
Vṛtra-slaying, Soma-ritual, Force/Plenitude (vāja), Liberation of space (varivas)
The seer
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 9.37
Significance
Transfers an Indraic motif (Vṛtra-slaying) to Soma: delight itself becomes the liberator, indicating that Ananda is not passive but an active power in transformation.
The deity
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna
- Epithets
- vṛtrahā, vṛṣā, sutaḥ, varivaḥvit, adābhya
- Related deities
- Indra (archetypal Vṛtra-slayer), Agni (pressing/forcing out essence through aspiration), Bṛhaspati (breaker of the cave; opener of wideness)
Cosmic role
Liberating essence that breaks obstruction and releases the waters/lights; establishes wideness and victory in the worlds.
Inner power
Ananda-shakti as a force of conquest over inertia and fear; a widening, invincible delight.
In ritual
Where it is used
Soma pressing/straining; celebratory chant for Soma’s victorious potency
स वृ॑त्र॒हा वृषा॑ सु॒तो व॑रिवो॒विददा॑भ्यः । सोमो॒ वाज॑मिवासरत् ॥
सः । वृ॒त्र॒ऽहा । वृषा॑ । सु॒तः । व॒रि॒वः॒ऽवित् । अदा॑भ्यः । सोमः॑ । वाज॑म्ऽइव । अ॒स॒र॒त् ॥
saḥ | vṛtra-hā | vṛṣā | sutaḥ | varivaḥ-vit | adābhyaḥ | somaḥ | vājam-iva | asarat
Likely Jagatī or Triṣṭubh (Strong heroic cadence)
44
4 pādas × ~11 syllables (approx.)
Punchy, heroic beats with emphatic epithets; culminates in a strong outflow.
Energizes will and courage; supports a felt breaking-through and widening.
- vṛtrahā
- Literal: slayer of Vṛtra. Symbolic: breaker of the inner coverer—ignorance, inertia, subconscient obstruction
- vṛṣā
- Literal: bull. Symbolic: strong generative force; virile power of growth and confirmation
- sutaḥ
- Literal: pressed out. Symbolic: essence expressed through tapas/discipline; distilled consciousness
- varivaḥvit
- Literal: knower/finder of wide space (varivas). Symbolic: discoverer of inner freedom, wideness, unobstructed paths
- adābhya
- Literal: invincible, not to be deceived/harmed. Symbolic: unassailable clarity and joy resistant to lower attacks
- vāja
- Literal: prize, strength, plenitude. Symbolic: effective abundance—power that brings fulfillment and victory
- asarat
- Literal: streamed, flowed forth. Symbolic: spontaneous outpouring of realized force
Soma pressing: the expressed Soma is invoked as the force that breaks inner obstruction and creates varivas (free room) for the rite’s success and for Indra’s empowerment
At moments emphasizing Soma’s power to overcome obstacles and grant ‘vāja’.
Chanted as Soma is offered to empower the gods (especially Indra) and secure victory/abundance.
Use when confronting inner resistance (procrastination, depression, fear). Chant as an affirmation of widening and breakthrough.
vṛtra from √vṛ ‘cover, obstruct’ → obstruction; vṛtra-han (here -hā) from √han ‘smite’. vṛṣan/vṛṣā from √vṛṣ ‘to rain, be virile, shower’ → overflowing force. suta from √su ‘press out, distill’. varivas (varivo-) from √vṛ ‘to choose/cover’ developed sense ‘open space, free room’ (semantic widening: room freed by removing cover/obstruction). adābhya from a- + √dabh ‘deceive, harm’.
removal of inner obstruction (Vṛtra as ignorance/inertia), varivas as widened consciousness, invincibility of truth-force (adābhya)
Vṛtra’s defeat restores r̥ta: the right movement of waters/lights.
Adābhya indicates a truth-founded force not distorted by falsehood.
Classic cosmogony: slaying the coverer to release abundance and wideness.
Yoga of transformation: Ananda as dynamic shakti that conquers the subconscient.
A powerful joy-energy breaking inner knots, releasing blocked currents, and expanding the field of consciousness.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The Vṛtra-slaying mythologem: Soma is described with the epithet vṛtra-hā, aligning him with the archetype of breaking the obstruction that withholds the waters/light. In inner terms, Soma’s clarified force breaks the knot of ignorance and releases free movement (varivas).
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- vṛtra derives from √vṛ ‘cover’ (PIE *wer- ‘cover/enclose’), showing an inherited metaphor of obstruction as ‘covering’. The ‘bull’ image vṛṣā from √vṛṣ ‘shower’ parallels Indo-European associations of potency with raining/flowing. √su ‘press’ is Indo-Iranian ritual vocabulary with clear morphological transparency (suta participle).
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The ṛṣi recognizes Soma as the effective liberator: by naming him varivo-vit and adābhya, the seer establishes trust in Soma’s capacity to create inner ‘room’ for the divine work. The reciprocity is functional: Soma grants widened being; the human act of pressing (suta) provides the channel for Soma’s manifestation.
Invoke Soma as the force that breaks the ‘coverer’ in the subconscient; feel a widening space open in chest and head as energy streams freely.
Maṇipūra (bull-force, conquest) opening into Anāhata (wideness/varivas) and Ajñā (clarity).
Kapalabhāti (mild, if appropriate) or strong exhale through the nose to ‘break’ inertia; then long calming breaths to stabilize wideness.
Victorious energy leading into spacious calm.
Chant 9 times when stuck; after chanting, take one decisive action (outer) aligned with the inner breakthrough (varivas).
Chant with emphatic rises on epithets (vṛtrahā, vṛṣā, adābhyaḥ); allow the final ‘asarat’ to flow downward as release.
Do not rush the compound varivovid; keep it clear and weighty; slight pause before ‘somo’.
vṛtrahā: retroflex ṛ; aspirate hā with long ā, vṛṣā: retroflex ṣ; long ā, varivovid: articulate as va-ri-vo-vit (avoid swallowing middle vowels), adābhyaḥ: long ā; bhy cluster clean, vājam iva: keep iva short; light sandhi into āsarat
Strong, resonant, slightly forceful; end with a sense of flowing release.
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