Rig Veda 9.98.7: Mandala 9, Sukta 98, Mantra 7
Sukta 9.98
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna
- Rasa
- Adbhuta (wonder) and Shringara (love)
परि त्यं हर्यतं हरिं बभ्रुं पुनन्ति वारेण । यो देवान्विश्वाँ इत्परि मदेन सह गच्छति ॥
pári tyáṃ haryatáṃ háriṃ babhrúṃ punanti vā́reṇa | yó devā́n víśvāṃ ít pári mádena sahá gácchati ||
वोह सोम को पानी से पूरा साफ करते हैं। सोम का रंग सुनहरा-भूरा है और सबको प्रिय है। यह सोम इतना तेज़ है कि सब देवताओं के साथ चलता है। उसकी खुशी की ताकत इतनी बड़ी है कि वोह सब भगवानों को अपने साथ ले जाता है।
Word by Word
- परि
- around; all aroundIndeclinableउपसर्ग/अव्ययRoot परि (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- त्यम्
- that (him)Pronounपुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग? (सामान्यतः पुं.), द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- हर्यतम्
- most desirable/most impetuousAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot हर्यत (प्रातिपदिक; √हृ/हर् ‘to take/bring’ से ‘हर्य’ ‘desirable/impetuous’), -तम (उत्तम-तुल्य प्रत्यय)
- हरिम्
- the tawny one; Hari (Soma/Indra-epithet)Noun/Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot हरि (प्रातिपदिक)
- बभ्रुम्
- brown; ruddyAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot बभ्रु (प्रातिपदिक)
- पुनन्ति
- they purifyVerbलट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन, परस्मैपदRoot √पू (पुनाति) ‘to purify’
- वारेण
- with waterNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग (वारि), तृतीया, एकवचनRole KaraṇaRoot वारि/वार (प्रातिपदिक; ‘water’)
- यः
- whoPronounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole KartāRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- देवान्
- the godsNounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचनRole KarmaRoot देव (प्रातिपदिक)
- विश्वान्
- allAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन (देवान् इति विशेषणम्)Role KarmaRoot विश्व (प्रातिपदिक)
- इत्
- indeed; justIndeclinableनिपात (एव/अपि-भावे; बलार्थकः)Root इत् (निपात/अव्यय)
- परि
- aroundIndeclinableउपसर्ग/अव्ययRoot परि (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- मदेन
- with exhilaration; in intoxicationNounपुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचनRole KaraṇaRoot मद (प्रातिपदिक; ‘intoxication/rapture’)
- सह
- together withIndeclinableअव्यय; सह + तृतीया (सहयोगे)Root सह (अव्यय/उपपद)
- गच्छति
- goes; movesVerbलट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदRoot √गम् (गच्छति) ‘to go’
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: परि | त्यम् | हर्यतम् | हरिम् | बभ्रुम् | पुनन्ति | वारेण || यः | देवान् | विश्वान् | इत् | परि | मदेन | सह | गच्छति || 1) दे॒वान्विश्वाँ॒ः → देवान् + विश्वान् (न् + व् संयोगः; संहितायां ‘देवान्वि-’)
- 2) विश्वाँ॒ इत् → विश्वान् + इत् (न् + इ-; संहितायां नकारस्य परसवर्ण/अनुस्वार-प्रवृत्तिः; पाठे ‘विश्वाँ॒ इत्’)
- 3) इत्परि → इत् + परि (त् + प् संयोगः)
- 4) परि मदेन: संधि-रहितं (इकारान्त ‘परि’ + म-)
- 5) सह गच्छति: संधि-रहितं
- (स्वरचिह्नाः संहितापाठानुसारं; पदपाठे सामान्यतः स्वर-चिह्न-परिवर्तनं भवति)
The meaning
Outer meaning
They cleanse all around the beloved tawny Soma, the golden-brown one, with purifying water; he who, by the ecstasy of his delight, encompasses all the gods and goes with them.
Inner meaning
The tawny (hari/babhru) Soma is the luminous delight in the vital-mental being. ‘Cleansing all around’ indicates a total purification—no corner of nature left untouched—so the delight becomes universal and godward. In his ‘mada’ (ecstatic intensification), Soma moves in companionship with all the gods: delight becomes the unifying medium in which the various divine powers (illumination, will, harmony, truth) act together rather than separately.
Universal truth
When delight is purified, it becomes integrative: it unites the powers of the being and allows the divine forces to work in concert; true ecstasy is inclusive and harmonizing.
Themes
Soma-ritual, Purification, Divine ecstasy, Integration of the gods (inner faculties)
The seer
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 9.98.1-11
Significance
This is an integral-yoga key: purified delight is not a private thrill but a unifier that ‘goes with all the gods’—supporting the coordinated action of multiple inner powers.
The deity
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna
- Epithets
- hari, babhru, haryata, pavamāna (implied)
- Related deities
- Viśve Devāḥ, Indra, Agni
Cosmic role
Purified Soma circulates among the gods, increasing their powers and sustaining the cosmic harmony.
Inner power
Unifying ananda: ecstasy that harmonizes and coordinates the faculties and divine forces.
In ritual
Where it is used
Soma purification with water (washing/filtration)
परि॒ त्यं ह॑र्य॒तं हरिं॑ ब॒भ्रुं पु॑नन्ति॒ वारे॑ण । यो दे॒वान्विश्वाँ॒ इत्परि॒ मदे॑न स॒ह गच्छ॑ति ॥
परि॑ । त्यम् । ह॒र्य॒तम् । हरि॑म् । ब॒भ्रुम् । पु॒न॒न्ति॒ । वारे॑ण । यः । दे॒वान् । विश्वा॑न् । इत् । परि॑ । मदे॑न । स॒ह । गच्छ॑ति ॥
pari | tyam | haryatam | harim | babhrum | punanti | vāreṇa | yaḥ | devān | viśvān | it | pari | madena | saha | gacchati
44
4 × ~11 (probable)
Circular, encompassing phrasing (reinforced by pari…pari); bright and mobile.
Creates a sense of cleansing and inclusion; culminates in a buoyant uplift on madena saha gacchati.
- परि (pari)
- Literal: around, encompassing. Symbolic: totality of purification; integrative movement
- हर्यतम् (haryatam)
- Literal: beloved, desirable. Symbolic: that which the soul naturally seeks—pure delight
- हरिम् / बभ्रुम् (harim/babhrum)
- Literal: tawny / golden-brown. Symbolic: luminous vital radiance; joy colored by life-force but made clear
- पुनन्ति (punanti)
- Literal: they purify. Symbolic: processes of clarification, discernment, and refinement
- वारेण (vāreṇa)
- Literal: with water. Symbolic: purifying flow of consciousness; cleansing clarity
- मदेन (madena)
- Literal: with intoxication/ecstasy. Symbolic: intensified delight that lifts beyond ordinary mind
- देवान् विश्वान् (devān viśvān)
- Literal: all the gods. Symbolic: all divine powers/faculties in the being
- सह गच्छति (saha gacchati)
- Literal: goes together with. Symbolic: harmonized action; integral movement of the yoga
Soma-pavamāna sequence: purification/filtration of Soma through the pavitra (wool/strainer) in Soma rites (e.g., Agniṣṭoma and related Soma-yāgas).
During the washing and straining of Soma; sung/recited in Pavamāna sequences
Accompanies the act of purification; invokes Soma’s ecstatic power to move with the gods
Chant to purify emotional energy and convert it into inclusive joy; useful before group meditation to harmonize collective atmosphere.
Key terms: (1) punánti < √pū ‘to cleanse, purify’ (present 3pl), indicating an active refinement of substance/consciousness. (2) vā́reṇa: instrumental sg. of vā́ra-/vā́ri; commonly ‘water’, but vā́ra also ‘covering/ward’—suggesting a filtering medium that both washes and separates. (3) mádena: instr. sg. of máda ‘rapture, exhilaration’ < √mad ‘to be glad, intoxicated’; in Soma hymns denotes a luminous ecstasy that empowers divine action. (4) hári-/babhrú- color-epithets: not mere chromatics; they mark Soma as a light-bearing essence (hari = golden/greenish, babhru = ruddy-brown), i.e., radiance ripening into force.
Ṛta (right order through purification and alignment with the gods), Satyam–Ṛtam–Bṛhat (truth-order-vastness implied by all-encompassing divine movement), Ānanda (mada as divine delight/rapture)
‘Going with all the gods’ is ṛta in action: coordinated divine functioning rather than fragmentation.
Purification makes delight transparent to truth; ecstasy becomes truth-bearing rather than intoxicating confusion.
Circulation and mutual increase: Soma moves among gods, enabling a more integrated creation.
Integral Vedism: ananda as the link that integrates the divine powers in the human instrument.
Water = clarifying consciousness; tawny Soma = vital joy made luminous; circular purification = making the whole nature receptive.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The mythologem is Soma’s purification and consequent divine pervasion: the pressed essence is washed/filtered and becomes capable of ‘encompassing all the gods’. Mythically, Soma is the mediator-substance that, once clarified, unites the divine powers; psychologically, purified delight (ānanda/mada) integrates the faculties (devas) into a single forward movement.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √pū ‘cleanse’ aligns with PIE *pewh₁-/*peuH- notions of purification/cleansing (cf. Latin pūrus ‘pure’). √mad ‘be glad/intoxicated’ reflects an Indo-European semantic field of exhilaration/rapture (cf. Avestan mad- ‘to be excited/joyful’). The repeated pári ‘around’ encodes a spatial metaphor (enclosure/pervasion) common to IE poetics for totality and sovereignty.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The speakers (ritual agents/inner workers) ‘purify’ Soma, while Soma in turn moves in ecstatic union with the gods—showing reciprocity: human effort refines the divine force; the refined force then amplifies and harmonizes the divine powers within the practitioner. The implied exchange is not material but transformational: purification (discipline) yields mada (divine rapture) which carries the being into co-action with the devas.
Purify delight until it becomes inclusive and harmonizing for all inner powers.
Anahata (inclusive joy) with Ajna (coordinating intelligence)
Gentle ujjayi or slow coherent breathing (5–6 breaths/min); on inhale feel ‘washing’, on exhale feel ‘encompassing’.
Joyful wideness; harmonious integration.
Bring a personal emotion into awareness; ‘wash it’ with calm clarity (vāreṇa). When it becomes sweet and clear, offer it to the whole being so every faculty moves together (saha gacchati).
Mixed udatta/anudatta/svarita; exact mapping depends on śākhā.
Give gentle emphasis to pari (both occurrences), haryatam, harim, punanti, vāreṇa, madena, saha gacchati.
haryatam: palatal h? with clear rya cluster, babhruṃ: keep anusvāra before pause; do not overnasalize, vāreṇa: long ā, viśvām̐: nasalization with anusvāra/candrabindu per tradition, gacchati: double cch articulation
Bright, flowing, lightly ecstatic but controlled.
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