Rig Veda 4.39.1: Mandala 4, Sukta 39, Mantra 1
Sukta 4.39
- Rishi
- Vāmadeva Gautama
- Devata
- Dadhikrā with support of Uṣas as awakeners
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Adbhuta (wonder) and Shanta (peace)
आशुं दधिक्रां तमु नु ष्टवाम दिवस्पृथिव्या उत चर्किराम । उच्छन्तीर्मामुषसः सूदयन्त्वति विश्वानि दुरितानि पर्षन् ॥
āśúṃ dadhikrā́ṃ tám u nu ṣṭávāma divás pṛthivyā́ utá carkirāma | ucchántīr mām uṣásaḥ sūdayantv áti víśvāni duritā́ni parṣan ||
Dadhikrā yang tangkas—dialah kini kami puji, dan kami maklumkan dari Langit dan dari Bumi. Semoga Fajar-fajar yang terbit membangunkanku, dan semoga mereka membawaku melampaui segala lintasan sukar dan gerak yang sesat.
Word by Word
- आशुम्
- the swift (one)Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग? द्वितीया एकवचन (विशेष्यः दधिक्राः)Role Karma (स्तुत्य-वस्तु/उद्देश्य-निर्देशः)Root आशु- (प्रातिपदिक)
- दधिक्राम्
- Dadhikrā (the swift divine steed)Noun (proper/theonym)पुंलिङ्ग द्वितीया एकवचनRole Karma (स्तव्यम्)Root दधिक्रावन्-/दधिक्राः (प्रातिपदिक; अश्वदेवता)
- तम्
- himPronounपुंलिङ्ग द्वितीया एकवचनRole Karma (दधिक्राम्-प्रत्यवस्थापनम्)Root तद् (सर्वनाम)
- उ
- indeed, andIndeclinableनिपातः (उपपादक/अन्वयार्थः)Root उ (निपात)
- नु
- nowIndeclinableनिपातः (अधुनातनता/प्रेरणा)Root नु (निपात)
- ष्टवाम
- let us two praiseVerbलोट् (वैदिके—आज्ञार्थ/प्रार्थनार्थ), उत्तमपुरुष, द्विवचनRole Kriyā (स्तवन-कर्म)Root स्तु (धातु)
- दिवः
- of heavenNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग (द्यौः) षष्ठी एकवचनRole Apādāna/Adhikaraṇa (उत्पत्तिसम्बन्ध/सम्बन्ध-निर्देशः: ‘of heaven’)Root दिव्/द्यौ- (प्रातिपदिक)
- पृथिव्याः
- of earthNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग षष्ठी एकवचनRole Apādāna/Adhikaraṇa (सम्बन्धः: ‘of earth’)Root पृथिवी- (प्रातिपदिक)
- उत
- and alsoIndeclinableसमुच्चयार्थक-निपातःRoot उत् (निपात)
- चर्किराम
- we have praised / we have proclaimedVerbलिट् (परिपूर्ण/अनुभूत-भूत; वैदिके स्तुत्यर्थे), उत्तमपुरुष, बहुवचनRole Kriyā (कीर्तन/स्तवन-कर्म)Root कृ (धातु) + पुनरुक्ति-आदेश (चर्किर्-)
- उच्छन्तीः
- shining forth, dawningAdjective (participle)स्त्रीलिङ्ग प्रथमा बहुवचन (उषसः-विशेषणम्)Role Kartā (सूदयन्तु-क्रियायाः कर्तृ-विशेषणम्)Root उद्-शम्/शा? → उच्छन्ती- (उद्+छद्/छन्द्?; वैदिक रूप: ‘उच्छन्ती’ = ‘उद्-गच्छन्ती/उद्-भासमानाः’ उषसः-विशेषणम्)
- माम्
- mePronounद्वितीया एकवचनRole Karma (सूदयन्तु—यम्)Root अस्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- उषसः
- the DawnsNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग प्रथमा बहुवचनRole KartāRoot उषस्- (प्रातिपदिक)
- सूदयन्तु
- may (they) impel/rouseVerbलोट्, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचनRole KriyāRoot सूदय् (धातु; causative/denominative sense ‘to set in motion, impel, rouse’)
- अति
- over, beyond; completelyIndeclinableअव्ययम् (अतिक्रम/पर्याप्ति)Root अति (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- विश्वानि
- allAdjective (used substantively)नपुंसकलिङ्ग द्वितीया बहुवचनRole Karma (पर्षन्—यत्)Root विश्व- (प्रातिपदिक)
- दुरितानि
- misdeeds, troubles, sinsNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग द्वितीया बहुवचनRole KarmaRoot दुरित- (प्रातिपदिक)
- पर्षन्
- may (they) carry (us) across / removeVerbलोट् (वैदिके—आशीर्लिङ्ग/प्रार्थना-भावः), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचनRole KriyāRoot पॄ/पृ (धातु; ‘to carry across, save’)
Sandhi Notes
- Sandhi resolution (padapāṭha-style): आशुं दधिक्रां तम् उ नु ष्टवाम दिवः पृथिव्याः उत चर्किराम । उच्छन्तीः माम् उषसः सूदयन्तु अति विश्वानि दुरितानि पर्षन् ॥ Notes: (1) तमु → तम् उ. (2) नु ष्टवाम: ष्टवाम is Vedic sandhi of स्तवाम with initial s- after particle nu (nu + stavāma → nu ṣṭavāma). (3) मामुṣasः → माम् उषसः. (4) Accent marks in the saṃhitā text are not reproduced per-pada here
- forms are given in de-sandhied Devanāgarī
The meaning
Outer meaning
We will praise the swift Dadhikrā and proclaim him from heaven and earth. May the Dawns rising awaken me and carry me beyond all difficulties and wrong passages.
Inner meaning
The seeker invokes the swift divine energy (Dadhikrā) to be affirmed in both ‘heaven’ (mind, luminous ranges) and ‘earth’ (body-life). The Dawns are repeated awakenings of illumination; as they rise, they rouse the soul from inertia and lead it across duritāni—crooked movements, inner errors, and obstructed transitions. Praise here is not flattery but attunement: by naming the power, one aligns with it.
Universal truth
Progress requires both awakened energy and recurring illumination; together they help us cross inner errors and difficult transitions, uniting higher vision with embodied life.
Themes
invocation, dawn-illumination, purification-by-right-movement, victorious-speed
The seer
- Rishi
- Vāmadeva Gautama (traditional attribution within Maṇḍala 4 family collection)
- Lineage
- Gautama
- Other hymns
- RV 4.26-4.30 (Vāmadeva’s inspired self-discoveries), RV 4.39.2-4 (continuation of Dadhikrā praise)
Family tradition
Vāmadeva’s hymns frequently move between cosmic imagery and inner realization—dawn, fire, and heroic powers as stages of awakening.
Significance
Vāmadeva’s voice is that of the awakened mind calling swift force into both heights and depths, insisting on integral realization—heaven and earth together.
The deity
- Devata
- Dadhikrā (with Uṣas as supporting power)
- Epithets
- āśu (swift), divaspṛthivyā (proclaimed in heaven and earth)
- Related deities
- Uṣas, Sūrya, Agni, Indra
Cosmic role
A dynamic power enabling transition and safe passage; Uṣas opens the way by illumination.
Inner power
Rapid, decisive life-force guided by dawning insight; capacity to move through inner crises without deviation.
In ritual
Where it is used
Morning praise connected with dawn recitations; supportive verse for safe passage and auspicious beginnings.
आ॒शुं द॑धि॒क्रां तमु॒ नु ष्ट॑वाम दि॒वस्पृ॑थि॒व्या उ॒त च॑र्किराम । उ॒च्छन्ती॒र्मामु॒षस॑: सूदय॒न्त्वति॒ विश्वा॑नि दुरि॒तानि॑ पर्षन् ॥
आ॒शुम् । द॒धि॒ऽक्राम् । तम् । ऊँ॒ इति॑ । नु । स्त॒वा॒म॒ । दि॒वः । पृ॒थि॒व्याः । उ॒त । च॒र्कि॒रा॒म॒ । उ॒च्छन्तीः॑ । माम् । उ॒षसः॑ । सू॒द॒य॒न्तु॒ । अति॑ । विश्वा॑नि । दुः॒ऽइ॒तानि॑ । प॒र्ष॒न् ॥
āśum | dadhi-krām | tam | oṃ iti | nu | stavāma | divaḥ | pṛthivyāḥ | uta | carkirāma | ucchantīḥ | mām | uṣasaḥ | sūdayantu | ati | viśvāni | duḥ-itāni | parṣan
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4 × ~11
Energetic and declarative; suitable for proclamation (carkirāma).
Creates uplift and momentum; the repeated long vowels support a sense of ‘crossing over’ and release.
- आशुम् (āśum)
- Literal: swift. Symbolic: Quick, responsive force under higher guidance
- दिवः (divaḥ)
- Literal: heaven. Symbolic: Mind-world; higher luminous consciousness
- पृथिव्याः (pṛthivyāḥ)
- Literal: earth. Symbolic: Embodied nature; stability and receptivity
- उषसः (uṣasaḥ)
- Literal: Dawns. Symbolic: Successive illuminations and awakenings in sadhana
- सूदयन्तु (sūdayantu)
- Literal: may they awaken/impel. Symbolic: Stirring of aspiration; arousal from tamas
- दुरितानि (duritāni)
- Literal: hard passages, misfortunes, sins. Symbolic: Wrong turnings of mind-life; knots and resistances in the path
- अति पर्षन् (ati parṣan)
- Literal: may they carry across. Symbolic: Crossing beyond limitation into a freer consciousness
Opening invocation for swift victorious force and for dawn-illumination to remove durita; suitable at beginnings of recitation cycles seeking purification and right movement.
At daybreak or at the start of a journey/undertaking; also within soma-related morning sequences in śrauta settings.
Recitation as inner ‘awakening call’ (bodhana) and protection across obstacles.
Use at waking: chant to clear mental fog and set a protected, illumined direction for the day.
Key terms: (1) √stu/√kīr: praise and proclamation as mantric act—speech that aligns the being with the invoked power. (2) dyu/pṛthivī: heaven and earth as higher and lower poles of consciousness. (3) uṣas: dawns as illuminations; psychologically, successive uprisings of clarity. (4) √sūd: ‘impel’—awakening of the inner being. (5) durita: ‘difficult going/wrong going’ (dur- + ita from √i ‘go’)—not moralism but misdirected movement and suffering states; (6) √pṛ ‘carry over’—crossing beyond obstacles into a freer state.
crossing beyond durita (mis-movement), awakening/impulsion (sūd), integration of higher and lower (dyāvāpṛthivī)
Dawn reveals the straight path of ṛta; crossing durita is returning from crookedness to right movement.
Uṣas brings satya-prakāśa (truth-light) that exposes and dissolves error-patterns.
Daily re-creation: dawn renews the world; psychologically, each awakening renews the inner creation.
Integral psychological Vedism: cosmic dawn as recurrent inner awakening.
dawn
Uṣas = awakening insight; heaven/earth = higher mind and embodied nature needing integration; ‘crossing’ = transition to a freer poise.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The ‘dawn as deliverer’ mythologem joined to the swift champion: successive dawns awaken the seeker and ferry him beyond durita (wrong turnings). The outer dawn becomes inner illumination enabling right movement.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- Uṣas (dawn goddess) is a major Indo-European inheritance (cf. Greek Ēōs, Latin Aurora). The dur- prefix parallels IE δυσ-/dys-/dur- for difficulty. Praise verbs √stu/√kīr represent archaic hymn-making formulas across IE traditions.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi offers praise as alignment from both poles (heaven/earth) and asks for an inner awakening by the Dawns; the Devatā’s gift is safe passage beyond mis-movements into the right-ordered advance.
Morning awakening: call swift, clear energy; ask the dawning light to reveal and correct wrong turns.
Ajna (dawn/clarity) supporting Manipura (right action).
4-4-6 breathing (inhale-hold-exhale) while feeling dawn-light rise in the brow; exhale on ‘ati viśvāni duritāni parṣan’.
Waking lucidity—transition from tamas to sattva with forward readiness.
Chant at sunrise; visualize a rose-gold light lifting from the horizon inside the chest to the forehead, carrying you over the day’s inner ‘rough crossings’ without anxiety.
Triṣṭubh with clear udātta on key invocatives (āśúṃ, dadhikrā́ṃ, uṣásaḥ, víśvāni, duritā́ni); maintain svarita transitions without sliding into melody.
Slight lift on udātta; keep ‘ucchantīr’ clean and not over-lengthened; pause lightly after each pāda to preserve the four-step ascent.
: nasalized ‘-uṃ’ as anusvāra, not full ‘m’ stop, : link sandhi smoothly (divas-pṛthivyā), : double ‘cch’—a clear aspirated cluster, : ‘du-ri-tā-ni’ with long ā
Fresh, bright, morning tone; not heavy—let the sound ‘rise’.
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