Rig Veda Sukta 5
Mandala 10Sukta 57 Mantras

Sukta 5

Sukta 10.5

Rishi

Dīrghatamas Āucathya (traditional for RV 10.5)

Devata

Mystic One/Agni-Sūrya principle (hymn is enigmatic; often treated as addressing a hidden cosmic principle rather than a single named deity)

Chandas

Jagatī (probable for RV 10.5; many verses are Jagatī in indices)

Kidung yang penuh teka-teki ini merenungkan satu prinsip kosmis yang tersembunyi—dialami sebagai Agni–Sūrya, api batin dan pelihat surya—yang menopang kelimpahan laksana “samudra” dan menyingkap jejak rahasia yang ditempatkan di dalam mata air kehidupan. Ia bergerak melalui citra nutrisi yang terselubung, jalur-jalur Ṛta (tatanan–kebenaran), serta pelukan kosmogonis antara ada dan tiada dalam keluasan Aditi, dan berpuncak pada Agni sebagai yang sulung dari Ṛta serta sumber baik daya maupun kemakmuran.

Recitation with translationRig Veda 10.5

Mantras

Mantra 1

एकः समुद्रो धरुणो रयीणामस्मद्धृदो भूरिजन्मा वि चष्टे । सिषक्त्यूधर्निण्योरुपस्थ उत्सस्य मध्ये निहितं पदं वेः ॥

Satu adalah Samudra, landasan penopang segala kelimpahan; dari hati kami Yang banyak-terlahir memandang dan menyingkapkan. Ia memasang ambing pada singgasana yang tersembunyi; di tengah mata air Ia menaruh jejak/tumpuan sang pencari.

Mantra 2

समानं नीळं वृषणो वसानाः सं जग्मिरे महिषा अर्वतीभिः । ऋतस्य पदं कवयो नि पान्ति गुहा नामानि दधिरे पराणि ॥

Berpakaian dalam sarang yang sama, para jantan perkasa berhimpun bersama kuda-kuda mereka. Para kavi (resi) menjaga tapak R̥ta; dalam rahasia mereka menempatkan nama-nama tertinggi.

Mantra 3

ऋतायिनी मायिनी सं दधाते मित्वा शिशुं जज्ञतुर्वर्धयन्ती । विश्वस्य नाभिं चरतो ध्रुवस्य कवेश्चित्तन्तुं मनसा वियन्तः ॥

Yang berjalan menurut R̥ta dan yang bekerja melalui Māyā berpadu; setelah mengukur, mereka melahirkan sang anak dan membesarkannya. Mereka bergerak mengitari pusar dari segala yang ada, dari yang teguh; bahkan benang sang kavi pun mereka tenun dengan pikiran.

Mantra 4

ऋतस्य हि वर्तनयः सुजातमिषो वाजाय प्रदिवः सचन्ते । अधीवासं रोदसी वावसाने घृतैरन्नैर्वावृधाते मधूनाम् ॥

Jalan-jalan Ṛta memang berpaut pada yang terlahir baik; dorongan-dorongan (iṣaḥ) menyertai menuju kepenuhan daya (vāja) dari langit yang mendahului. Dua dunia (rodasī), mengenakan selubungnya, bertumbuh oleh ghee yang disucikan dan oleh santapan kenikmatan, oleh kemanisan-kemanisan.

Mantra 5

सप्त स्वसॄररुषीर्वावशानो विद्वान्मध्व उज्जभारा दृशे कम् । अन्तर्येमे अन्तरिक्षे पुराजा इच्छन्वव्रिमविदत्पूषणस्य ॥

Terjaga dan mengetahui, ia mengangkat untuk penglihatan tujuh saudari kemerah-merahan dari kemanisan. Yang purba-terlahir ini tertahan di dalam ruang-antara (antarikṣa); mencari, ia menemukan kandang tersembunyi milik Pūṣan.

Mantra 6

सप्त मर्यादाः कवयस्ततक्षुस्तासामेकामिदभ्यंहुरो गात् । आयोर्ह स्कम्भ उपमस्य नीळे पथां विसर्गे धरुणेषु तस्थौ ॥

Tujuh batas teguh para kavi (kavayaḥ) pahatkan dalam wujud; dan dari semuanya itu, hanya satu jalan yang dapat ditembus oleh kesempitan. Di sana tiang penopang Sang Tertinggi berdiri pada singgasana rahasianya, ditegakkan dalam pelepasan jalan-jalan, pada landasan-landasan yang menopang.

Mantra 7

असच्च सच्च परमे व्योमन्दक्षस्य जन्मन्नदितेरुपस्थे । अग्निर्ह नः प्रथमजा ऋतस्य पूर्व आयुनि वृषभश्च धेनुः ॥

Yang bukan-ada dan yang ada terjalin bersama di langit tertinggi, pada kelahiran Dakṣa, di pangkuan luas Aditi. Di sana Agni bagi kami adalah yang pertama-lahir dari ṛta, purba dalam hayat, sekaligus Sang Banteng-kekuatan dan Sang Sapi kelimpahan.

Inside Sukta 5

How it unfolds

  1. Where it opens

    A single sustaining reality is proclaimed—an ‘ocean’ of plenitudes—known from within the heart and indicated through secret symbols of nourishment and a hidden path.

  2. Development

    The hymn elaborates the concealed mechanics of Ṛta: impulses and powers join the well-born order; Heaven and Earth are ‘clothed’ and grow through ghee, food, and sweetness—images of both ritual and cosmic nutrition.

  3. Climax

    The paradox of asat and sat held together in the highest heaven, in Dakṣa’s birth within Aditi’s lap—cosmogony stated as a unity of opposites.

  4. Where it settles

    Agni is affirmed as the first-born of Ṛta, ancient in life, simultaneously bull (force) and cow (abundance), leaving the listener anchored in a practical-theological certainty: the hidden source is accessible through Ṛta.

The deity: Hidden One

  • In the VedaDescribed through paradox and symbol: a single sustaining “ocean” of riches, a many-born knower arising from the heart, who fixes the secret udder in a hidden seat and establishes the seeker’s track within the fountain; aligned with Ṛta’s pathways and with Agni as first-born in Aditi’s expanse where being and non-being meet.
  • Cosmic functionTo found and maintain Ṛta (truth-order), mediate between the worlds, and generate nourishment, light, and intelligibility—making the hidden source of plenitude accessible through the right path.
  • Inner significanceThe inward flame of insight that turns the heart into a seer: it discovers the concealed ‘footing’ (pada) of truth within experience, reconciles opposites (asat/sat), and transforms desire and impulse into ordered understanding.

The seer

  • Dīrghatamas ĀucathyaĀucathya (connected with the Ucathya/Angirasa-associated seer families in later tradition) · A visionary poet of highly symbolic, “riddle-like” hymns that probe cosmogony, Ṛta, and the hidden workings of speech and light; he is especially known for paradoxical formulations and layered imagery.

Famous verses

ekaḥ samudro dharuṇo rayīṇām
Verse 10.5.1Sets the hymn’s signature riddle: the One as ocean-base of riches, the many-born seer in the heart, and the hidden ‘udder’ and ‘track’ placed within the fountain—core imagery for the whole sukta.Read verse 10.5.1 →
ऋतस्य हि वर्तनयः सुजातमिषो वाजाय प्रदिवः सचन्ते । अधीवासं रोदसी वावसाने घृतैरन्नैर्वावृधाते मधूनाम् ॥
Verse 10.5.4Articulates the operative principle of Ṛta through ‘paths’ and shows the cosmic-ritual economy: the worlds grow by ghṛta, food, and sweetness—linking metaphysics to yajña.Read verse 10.5.4 →
asac ca sac ca parame vyoman
Verse 10.5.7Provides the culminating cosmogonic statement (asat/sat in the highest heaven within Aditi) and resolves it in Agni as first-born of Ṛta, the double emblem of power and plenty.Read verse 10.5.7 →

Attributes of the deity

  • One-yet-many (ekaḥ… bhūrijanmā)
  • Hidden nourishment (udder in the secret seat)
  • Ṛta-path maker (vartanayaḥ of Ṛta)
  • Cosmogonic polarity-holder (asat and sat together)
  • Agni as first-born of Ṛta
  • Bestower of abundance (bull-force and cow-plenty)

Also by this seer

  • Rig Veda Mandala 1 hymns traditionally linked to Dīrghatamas (notably the riddle/cosmogony cluster such as RV 1.164 in later attributions)
  • Hymns and verses cited in later Vedic-Brāhmaṇa discussions as examples of cryptic (parokṣa) expression and symbolic theology

The rite, step by step

  • Ācamana and sankalpa: establish intention to align with Ṛta and awaken inner Agni
  • Kindle or attend the household/sacrificial fire (Agni), maintaining silence briefly for inward ‘heart-seeing’ (hṛdā dṛṣṭi)
  • Recite RV 10.5 verses with attention to key symbols (ocean, fountain, track/pada, Ṛta-paths)
  • Offer oblations while contemplating the ‘hidden udder’ as the concealed source of nourishment and clarity
  • Conclude with a short prayer for Ṛta-guidance (right path), abundance, and steadiness of mind
  • Śānti/closing: dedicate the fruit of the rite to universal order and well-being

Offerings

  • Ghee (ghṛta) as primary oblation
  • Milk or milk-products (symbolic resonance with udder/cow imagery, where appropriate)
  • Grain or simple food-offering (anna) as ‘nourishment of Ṛta’
  • Optional: soma-substitute offerings in later practice (where tradition permits)

Frequently Asked Questions

The hymn does not focus on a single named god in a simple way. It points to a hidden cosmic principle expressed through Agni (inner fire) and Sūrya-like seership, closely tied to Ṛta (truth-order).

It suggests that the highest reality holds together opposites that the ordinary mind separates. The hymn places both sat (manifest existence) and asat (unmanifest or not-yet) within the supreme expanse, in Aditi’s boundlessness.

These are symbols for concealed nourishment and guidance. The ‘udder’ represents the hidden source of plenty, the ‘fountain’ the wellspring of life, and the ‘track/pada’ the discoverable path of Ṛta that the seeker can follow through insight and right ritual.

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