Rig Veda 2.29.3: Mandala 2, Sukta 29, Mantra 3
Sukta 2.29
- Rishi
- Gṛtsamada
- Devata
- Mitra-Varuṇa, Aditi
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Adbhuta (wonder) and Shanta (peace)
किमू नु वः कृणवामापरेण किं सनेन वसव आप्येन । यूयं नो मित्रावरुणादिते च स्वस्तिमिन्द्रामरुतो दधात ॥
kím ū́ nu vaḥ kṛṇavāmā́pareṇa kím sánena vasavo ā́pyena | yūyáṃ no mitrā́varuṇā́dite ca svastím indrā́maruto dadhāta ||
それでは、われらは汝らのために他のいかなる手立てをなすべきか。表面にとどまる得分によって、いかなることを成し得ようか、ヴァス（Vasu）たちよ。汝ら—ミトラ（Mitra）、ヴァルナ（Varuṇa）、そしてアディティ（Aditi）—は、われらに安寧（スヴァスティ）を据え給え。さらに、インドラ（Indra）よ、マルト（Marut）らと共に、それを確立し給え。
Word by Word
- किम्
- whatPronounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot किम् (प्रश्न-सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- ऊँ
- indeed/thenIndeclinableनिपात (प्रश्न/उत्कर्षार्थ)Root ऊँ (निपात)
- नु
- now/thenIndeclinableनिपात (अनन्तर्य/प्रश्न-प्रबलन)Root नु (निपात)
- वः
- of you / for youPronounषष्ठी (सम्बन्ध), बहुवचनRole SampradānaRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- कृणवाम
- shall we do/makeVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ/प्रार्थनार्थ), उत्तमपुरुष, द्विवचन (वैदिक रूप)Root कृ (धातु)
- अपरेण
- with another (means)Adjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचनRole KaraṇaRoot अपर (प्रातिपदिक)
- किम्
- whatPronounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot किम् (प्रश्न-सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- सनेन
- by gain/with acquisitionNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचनRole KaraṇaRoot सन (प्रातिपदिक; ‘प्राप्ति/लाभ’)
- वसवः
- O Vasus (gods)Nounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole Sambodhana (addressed) / Kartā (in sense)Root वसु (प्रातिपदिक)
- आप्येन
- with what is fitting/beneficial (to you)Adjectiveनपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचनRole KaraṇaRoot आप्य (प्रातिपदिक; ‘जल/आपः-सम्बद्ध, प्राप्तव्य/हितकर’)
- यूयम्
- youPronounप्रथमा, बहुवचनRole KartāRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- नः
- us / for usPronounद्वितीया/षष्ठी, बहुवचन (एन्क्लिटिक)Role KarmaRoot अस्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- मित्रावरुण
- O Mitra and VaruṇaNoun (dual deity name)सम्बोधन, द्विवचन (वैदिक समास-सम्बोधन)Role SambodhanaRoot मित्र + वरुण (देवनाम-प्रातिपदिक; द्वन्द्व)
- अदिते
- O AditiNounसम्बोधन, एकवचनRole SambodhanaRoot अदिति (देवीनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- च
- andIndeclinableसमुच्चयार्थक अव्ययRoot च (निपात)
- स्वस्तिम्
- well-being, welfareNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot स्वस्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
- इन्द्रामरुतः
- O Indra and MarutsNoun (plural deity group)सम्बोधन, बहुवचन (वैदिक)Role SambodhanaRoot इन्द्र + मरुत् (देवनाम-प्रातिपदिक; द्वन्द्व)
- दधात
- place/grantVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ/प्रार्थनार्थ), मध्यमपुरुष, बहुवचनRoot धा (धातु)
Sandhi Notes
- Sandhi resolved: किमू॒ → किम् + ऊँ (निपात)
- कृणवा॒माप॑रेण → कृणवाम् + अपरेण (म् + अ → मा)
- सने॑न → सनेन
- वसव॒ आप्ये॑न → वसवः + आप्येन (ः + आ → ओऽ/आ-प्रारम्भ; पदपाठे वसवः)
- मित्रावरुणादिते → मित्रावरुण + अदिते (सम्बोधन-समास + नाम)
- स्व॒स्तिमि॑न्द्रामरुतो → स्वस्तिम् + इन्द्रामरुतः (म् + इ → मि)
- accent marks (॒/॑) retained from saṃhitā but do not change pada segmentation
The meaning
Outer meaning
The poet asks what they can do for the gods by any other means, or by any superficial gain. He asks Mitra-Varuṇa and Aditi to grant well-being, and Indra with the Maruts to establish it.
Inner meaning
No merely ‘apara’ (lower/other) method or ‘āpya’ (surface, worldly) gain can substitute for true alignment with the divine powers. The seeker turns to the harmonizing law (Mitra-Varuṇa), the infinite mother-principle (Aditi), and the illumined force with dynamic energies (Indra-Maruts) to set and stabilize svasti (integral well-being) in the being—peace + right relation + victorious energy.
Universal truth
Spiritual well-being is not purchased by outer gains or substitutes; it is established by aligning with harmony, truth-law, infinite wideness, and illumined force working together.
Themes
well-being, collective invocation, beyond surface gain, integration of order and force
The seer
- Rishi
- Gṛtsamada (Bhārgava)
- Lineage
- Bhārgava
- Other hymns
- RV 2.29.1–2 (Āditya purification and healing), RV 2.28.10–11 (Varuṇa protection and plenitude)
Family tradition
Bhārgava clarity: true offering is inner alignment, not bargaining through outer gains; the hymn broadens from Āditya law to include Indra-Marut dynamism.
Significance
A turning point mantra: it rejects superficial substitutes and calls the full divine ensemble—order, infinity, illumination, and force—to found stable well-being.
The deity
- Devata
- Mitra-Varuṇa; Aditi; Indra-Maruts (collective invocation)
- Epithets
- Mitra (harmonizer, friend), Varuṇa (king of law), Aditi (the unbound/infinite), Indra (slayer of obstruction), Maruts (storm-powers, dynamic helpers)
- Related deities
- Ādityas (collective), Agni (leader of inner sacrifice, implicit as the offering-fire)
Cosmic role
Mitra-Varuṇa maintain social/cosmic order; Aditi is the infinite matrix; Indra-Maruts break resistance and establish victorious movement.
Inner power
Integration: ethical harmony (Mitra), truth-discipline (Varuṇa), wideness/freedom (Aditi), illumination (Indra), energized right action (Maruts).
In ritual
Where it is used
Benedictory conclusion in multi-deity invocations; suitable as a closing prayer for welfare after offerings or assemblies.
किमू॒ नु व॑: कृणवा॒माप॑रेण॒ किं सने॑न वसव॒ आप्ये॑न । यू॒यं नो॑ मित्रावरुणादिते च स्व॒स्तिमि॑न्द्रामरुतो दधात ॥
किम् । ऊँ॒ इति॑ । नु । वः॒ । कृ॒ण॒वा॒म॒ । अप॑रेण । किम् । सने॑न । व॒स॒वः॒ । आप्ये॑न । यू॒यम् । नः॒ । मि॒त्रा॒व॒रु॒णा॒ । अ॒दि॒ते॒ । च॒ । स्व॒स्तिम् । इ॒न्द्रा॒म॒रु॒तः॒ । द॒धा॒त॒ ॥
kim | oṃ iti | nu | vaḥ | kṛṇavāma | apareṇa | kim | sanena | vasavaḥ | āpyena | yūyam | naḥ | mitrāvaruṇā | adite | ca | svastim | indrāmarutaḥ | dadhāta
44
4×11
Interrogative opening (kim ū nu…kim…) followed by a confident imperative invocation.
Cuts through bargaining mentality; ends with a stabilizing cadence on ‘dadhāta’—a sense of being ‘set’ in well-being.
- apareṇa (अपरेण)
- Literal: by another/lower means. Symbolic: substitute methods that avoid inner transformation
- sanena (सनेन)
- Literal: by gain/winning. Symbolic: mere acquisition—egoic success, surface reward
- āpya (आप्येन)
- Literal: belonging to the waters/near; surface/accessible. Symbolic: outer life’s immediate satisfactions; superficial supports
- mitrāvaruṇā (मित्रावरुणा)
- Literal: Mitra and Varuṇa. Symbolic: harmony + law; right relation + truth-order
- adite (अदिते)
- Literal: Aditi (the infinite). Symbolic: limitless consciousness; mother of the gods; wideness that frees
- svasti (स्वस्ति)
- Literal: well-being, welfare. Symbolic: integral harmony of mind-life-body under truth
- indra-marutaḥ (इन्द्रामरुतः)
- Literal: Indra and the Maruts. Symbolic: illumined mind and dynamic life-forces establishing victory and stability
Ecumenical invocation in a protective hymn sequence; used to secure svasti (well-being) for the sacrificer and community.
At the end of meditation/recitation; before travel; before communal work; when tempted by superficial substitutes for practice.
Offer a simple oblation (ghee/lamp) or mental offering; then recite as a seal for svasti.
A ‘reset’ mantra: when chasing quick fixes, chant to return to core alignment—harmony, law, wideness, illumination, and right energy.
svastí from su- ‘good’ + asti ‘being’ (√as ‘be’) → good-being, harmony. sana from √san ‘to gain, win’ → acquisition; here contrasted with deeper divine establishment. Aditi as ‘unbounded’ (a-diti: not bound/cut) supports the psychological reading of wideness beyond limitation.
Svastí (good-being), Aditi (unboundedness), integration of multiple divine powers
Svasti is the human experience of ṛta working harmoniously through all parts of being.
Rejecting ‘apara’ substitutes is choosing satya-based transformation over surface gain.
The cosmos is sustained by coordinated powers: order + infinity + illumination + dynamism; the mantra mirrors that integrative creation.
Integral Vedic approach (Aurobindonian): multiple godheads as facets of one Divine working in consciousness.
Waters = surface vital satisfactions; storm/lightning = forceful liberation and energizing; vast sky = infinite wideness; svasti = clear weather of the soul after purification.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The mythologem is the establishment of svasti through a coalition of powers: order (Mitra-Varuṇa), infinity (Aditi), and victorious force (Indra-Maruts). The verse suggests that mere 'gain' (sana) is insufficient; true well-being is a divine placement (√dhā) in the being.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- svasti is a transparent compound built on √as ‘to be’, a core PIE root *h₁es-. The collocation of divine pairs (Mitra–Varuṇa; Indra–Maruts) reflects an IE poetic habit of formulaic dual/group invocations.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi confesses the limits of human offering or achievement and asks the gods to themselves establish the state of good-being. It is a reciprocal relation where the human turns from transactional gain to alignment with the divine act of ordering and widening life.
Renounce ‘quick fixes’: feel the pull of surface gain (āpya) and let it drop; invoke harmony-law-wideness-illumination-force to establish stable well-being.
ajna (clarity of choice) and sahasrara (Aditi/wideness)
3-part breath: inhale (wideness/Aditi), hold 1–2 counts (Varuṇa law), exhale (Indra-Marut release), then rest (Mitra harmony).
From scattered seeking to integrated alignment; a sealed calm with dynamic readiness.
Chant 3 times as a closing seal after practice. On the last repetition, pause silently after ‘svastim’ and feel it ‘set’ in the body-mind.
Vedic accents as marked; interrogatives ‘kim ū nu…kim…’ should rise slightly; settle firmly on ‘svastim…dadhāta’.
Make the two ‘kim’ questions crisp and slightly quicker; broaden on the deity-list; land decisively on ‘dadhāta’.
kim ū nu: nasal ‘ṃ’ in kim; ū long, apareṇa: clear retroflex ṇ in later words like varuṇa elsewhere; here keep eṇa fluid, āpyeṇa: long ā; palatal py conjunct, mitrāvaruṇā: keep long ā; retroflex ṇ in varuṇa, svastim: ‘sv’ conjunct; short i, marutaḥ: dental t; visarga light
bright, sealing, confident
3
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