Rig Veda 8.1.5: Mandala 8, Sukta 1, Mantra 5
Sukta 8.1
- Rishi
- Kaṇva
- Devata
- Indra
- Chandas
- Gāyatrī or mixed
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Shanta (peace)
महे चन त्वामद्रिवः परा शुल्काय देयाम् । न सहस्राय नायुताय वज्रिवो न शताय शतामघ ॥
mahé caná tvā́m adrivaḥ párā śulkā́ya deyām | ná sahásrāya náyutāya vajrivo ná śatā́ya śatāmagha ||
たとえ大いなる代価をもってしても、石を携える者（adri-váḥ）よ、われは汝を手放さぬ。千のためにも、万のためにも、雷槌を執る者（vajrin）よ、まして百のためにも、百の富を有する主（śatamaghā）よ。汝は魂の勝利に欠くことのできぬ力である。
Word by Word
- महे
- to the great (one)Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग; चतुर्थी एकवचन (दत्तिव)Role सम्प्रदानRoot महत् (प्रातिपदिक)
- चन
- indeed, evenIndeclinableनिपात; अव्ययRoot चन (निपात)
- त्वाम्
- youPronounद्वितीया एकवचनRole कर्मRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- अद्रिवः
- O stone-bearer/stone-armed (Indra)Noun (epithet)पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot अद्रि-वन् (प्रातिपदिक; ‘stone/pressing-stone’ + -वन्)
- परा
- away, forth; utterlyIndeclinableउपसर्ग/क्रियाविशेषण; अव्ययRoot परा (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- शुल्काय
- for a price/rewardNounपुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग; चतुर्थी एकवचनRole सम्प्रदानRoot शुल्क (प्रातिपदिक)
- देयाम्
- may I giveVerbविधिलिङ् (optative); उत्तमपुरुष; एकवचन; परस्मैपदRoot दा (दाने)
- न
- notIndeclinableनिषेध-अव्ययRoot न (निषेध)
- सहस्राय
- for a thousandNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; चतुर्थी एकवचनRole सम्प्रदानRoot सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- न
- norIndeclinableनिषेध-अव्ययRoot न (निषेध)
- अयुताय
- for ten thousandNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; चतुर्थी एकवचनRole सम्प्रदानRoot अयुत (प्रातिपदिक)
- वज्रिवः
- O wielder of the vajraNoun (epithet)पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot वज्रि-वन् (प्रातिपदिक; ‘vajra’ + -वन्)
- न
- notIndeclinableनिषेध-अव्ययRoot न (निषेध)
- शताय
- for a hundredNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; चतुर्थी एकवचनRole सम्प्रदानRoot शत (प्रातिपदिक)
- शतामघ
- O hundred-bountied (Indra)Noun (epithet)पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot शत-मघ (प्रातिपदिक; ‘hundred’ + ‘bounty/gift’)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (Vedic): म॒हे | च॒न | त्वाम् | अद्रिवः | परा | शु॒ल्काय॑ | देयाम् । न | स॒हस्रा॑य | न | अयुताय | वज्रिवः | न | श॒ताय॑ | शतामघ ॥ विशेष: ‘नायुता॑य’ = ‘न अयुताय’ (न + अयुताय → नायुता॑य, स्वर-सन्धि/प्रगृह्य-न-; पदपाठे पृथक्)
- सम्बोधनरूपाणि: अद्रिवः, वज्रिवः, शतामघ (इन्द्रस्य विशेषणानि)
The meaning
Outer meaning
The poet declares he would not give Indra away even for a great price—neither for a thousand nor ten thousand nor a hundred—addressing him as stone-holder, thunderbolt-wielder, lord of riches.
Inner meaning
The seeker refuses to barter the divine illumination-force for any quantity of outer gains (numbers signify magnitudes of vital reward). Indra, the inner victor, is priceless because he is the very power of conquest over obscurity and inertia. The mantra rejects the temptation to exchange the spiritual ally for lower satisfactions—an insistence on the primacy of the soul’s victory.
Universal truth
No external success compensates for loss of inner truth and light. The power that awakens and liberates consciousness is beyond price; it must not be traded for comfort, status, or fear-based bargains.
Themes
Exclusive devotion, Indra epithets (adri-vaḥ, vajri-vaḥ, śatāmagha), Spiritual valuation
The seer
- Rishi
- Kaṇva (probable; Kāṇva lineage)
- Lineage
- Kāṇva
- Other hymns
- RV 8.1 (hymn context), RV 1.84 (Indra as giver of riches and victory; thematic parallel)
Family tradition
Kāṇva devotion often has a strong note of fidelity to the divine helper, refusing lesser substitutes and insisting on the decisive power of victory.
Significance
The seer models vairāgya before it is named: a refusal to trade the inner light for the currency of desire.
The deity
- Devata
- Indra
- Epithets
- Adriva (stone-holder), Vajrin/Vajriva (thunderbolt-bearer), Śatāmagha (hundred-bounteous)
- Related deities
- Soma, Agni, Bṛhaspati
Cosmic role
Breaker of obstructions, winner of the ‘prize’ of light and power; distributor of true riches to the aligned seeker.
Inner power
Inward fidelity to illumination; uncompromising force that prefers truth over transaction.
In ritual
Where it is used
Indra-stotra in Soma settings; also fits vow/saṅkalpa moments in practice.
म॒हे च॒न त्वाम॑द्रिव॒: परा॑ शु॒ल्काय॑ देयाम् । न स॒हस्रा॑य॒ नायुता॑य वज्रिवो॒ न श॒ताय॑ शतामघ ॥
म॒हे । च॒न । त्वाम् । अ॒द्रि॒ऽवः॒ । परा॑ । शु॒ल्काय॑ । दे॒या॒म् । न । स॒हस्रा॑य । न । अ॒युता॑य । व॒ज्रि॒ऽवः॒ । न । श॒ताय॑ । श॒त॒ऽम॒घ॒ ॥
mahe | cana | tvām | adri-vaḥ | parā | śulkāya | deyām | na | sahasrāya | na | ayutāya | vajri-vaḥ | na | śatāya | śata-magha
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Likely 3×8 with variations; RV 8 sometimes shows flexible gāyatrī.
Firm, declarative, vow-like.
Strengthens resolve; seals an inner commitment not to compromise aspiration.
- अद्रिवः (adrivaḥ)
- Literal: stone-holder (bearing the pressing-stone). Symbolic: master of concentrated force; the power that presses out the essence (soma/joy) from experience
- शुल्क (śulka)
- Literal: price, payment. Symbolic: temptation of exchange—vital bargains for spiritual compromise
- सहस्र (sahasra)
- Literal: thousand. Symbolic: large vital reward, abundance of outer means
- अयुत (ayuta)
- Literal: ten-thousand. Symbolic: massive magnification of outer gain
- वज्रिवः (vajrivaḥ)
- Literal: thunderbolt-wielder. Symbolic: force that breaks the inner coverer and fixed formations
- शतमघ (śatāmagha)
- Literal: of a hundred gifts/riches. Symbolic: plenitude granted by illumination—true wealth as consciousness-power
Devotional insistence in praise: asserting unwavering reliance on Indra during soma offering; reinforces exclusive allegiance in the rite.
During offerings seeking Indra’s strength; in personal use, when facing temptation to dilute practice for convenience.
Praise with a ‘niyama’ (constraint) tone—offering loyalty as oblation.
Chant before making value-based decisions (career, relationships, habits): reaffirm that inner light is not for sale.
śulka ‘price’ frames a refusal of barter: the divine force is beyond transactional exchange. deyām from √dā ‘give’ (PIE *deh₃- ‘give’). adri ‘stone/mountain’ and vajra ‘thunderbolt’ are Indra’s force-symbols; psychologically, the ‘stone’ is concentrated will/pressure, the ‘thunderbolt’ is decisive illumination-force.
non-transactional devotion, Indra as irreplaceable inner power, true value beyond quantities (sahasra/ayuta/śata)
Holding to Indra supports right order against the distortions of desire and fear.
Truth is protected by refusing false exchanges; the mantra is a guardrail for Satya in action.
Consolidation: creation of a stable inner center by rejecting dispersive bargains.
Ethical-spiritual psychology consonant with later Upaniṣadic renunciation, read here as integral prioritization.
Thunderbolt = sudden liberating insight; pressing-stone = concentrated effort that extracts bliss/essence from life.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The mythologem of the ‘invaluable god’: Indra cannot be exchanged for any quantity. Mythically it asserts Indra’s supreme worth; psychologically it fixes the will on the central divine force, refusing substitutions (lesser desires, alternative supports).
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √dā ‘give’ is PIE *deh₃- (cf. Greek dí-dō-mi, Latin dōnum). The numeric escalations (100/1000/10000) reflect an inherited Indo-European rhetorical device of graded amplification.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The ṛṣi’s stance is fidelity: he binds himself to Indra as the non-negotiable ally. The reciprocal expectation is that Indra, the abundant giver, will uphold the seeker’s victory and fullness (magha) precisely because the seeker refuses to disperse allegiance.
Non-negotiable commitment to inner truth: ‘I do not trade my light for reward.’
hṛdaya (value-center)
slow_meditative: 4-4-6 breathing (inhale-hold-exhale) for 7 rounds, then chant softly
Steady will with quiet renunciation.
Bring one temptation to mind. Feel its ‘price’. Chant 11 times, each time releasing the bargain on the exhale. End with a brief inner vow of fidelity to the highest you know.
Three-tone Vedic contour; emphasize the negations (na… na… na…) with clear rhythmic separation.
Make ‘na sahasrāya nāyutāya…’ a steady descending refusal; keep the vocatives adrivaḥ/vajrivo/śatāmagha bright and uplifted.
(adrivaḥ): cluster ‘dri’ clean; visarga lightly aspirated, (śulkāya): ś = palatal ‘sh’, not retroflex, (vajrivo): ‘jri’ cluster; avoid ‘vajee’, (śatāmagha): ‘gha’ aspirated
Firm, vow-like, slightly lower pitch; crisp consonants.
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