Rig Veda 8.81.2: Mandala 8, Sukta 81, Mantra 2
Sukta 8.81
- Devata
- Indra
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Vira (heroism)
विद्मा हि त्वा तुविकूर्मिं तुविदेष्णं तुवीमघम् । तुविमात्रमवोभिः ॥
vidmá hí tvā tuvi-kūrmíṃ tuví-deṣṇaṃ tuvī́-mágham | tuvi-mātrám ávo-bhiḥ ||
われらは汝を知る。動きは広くめぐり、施しは広大、恵みは力強い。多くの護りによってわれらを支える者よ、汝の尺度は測りがたい。
Word by Word
- विद्मा
- we two knowVerbलिट् (परिप्रास/परफेक्ट), उत्तमपुरुष, द्विवचन (Vedic: ‘we two know’)Root √विद् (विद् ‘जानने’)
- हि
- indeed, forIndeclinableनिपात (emphatic/causal particle)Root हि (निपात)
- त्वा
- youPronounद्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot युष्मद् (त्वद्) सर्वनाम
- तुविकूर्मिम्
- you, the ‘much-/mighty-’ kūrmí (strong/abundant in kūrmí)Adjective (epithet)पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole Karma (apposition to त्वा)Root तुवि- + कूर्मि (प्रातिपदिक: ‘कूर्मि’ ‘tortoise/slow-moving; (epithet)’)
- तुविदेष्णम्
- you, the mighty bestower/dispellerAdjective (epithet)पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole Karma (apposition to त्वा)Root तुवि- + देष्ण (प्रातिपदिक; from √दिश्/√दश्? Vedic ‘bestowing/dispensing’; epithet)
- तुवीमघम्
- you, very bountifulAdjective (epithet)पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole Karma (apposition to त्वा)Root तुवी- + मघ (प्रातिपदिक ‘gift, bounty’; ‘bountiful’)
- तुविमात्रम्
- you, of great measure/mightAdjective (epithet)पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole Karma (apposition to त्वा)Root तुवि- + मात्रा (प्रातिपदिक ‘measure, magnitude’)
- अवोभिः
- with helps/protectionsNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचनRole KaraṇaRoot अवस् (प्रातिपदिक ‘help, protection, favor’)
Sandhi Notes
- External sandhi is minimal
- Sequence is essentially padapāṭha-like: विद्मा | हि | त्वा | तुविकूर्मिम् | तुविदेष्णम् | तुवीमघम् | तुविमात्रम् | अवोभिः
- Final -म् before following consonant remains unchanged
- Accent marks (उदात्त/स्वरित) are as in saṃhitā text and do not alter pada segmentation
The meaning
Outer meaning
We know you as wide in movement, vast in giving, mighty in bounty, immeasurable in your measures, by your many protections.
Inner meaning
The seeker affirms experiential knowledge of Indra: he moves in vast ranges (tuvikūrmiṃ)—the mind-force that can traverse many planes; he is abundant in distribution (tuvideṣṇam) and bounteous (tuvīmagham), granting multiple forms of help. He is ‘immeasurable in measure’ (tuvimātram): the divine Mind exceeds our limited standards yet provides the right measure for growth. His protections (avobhiḥ) are the sustaining supports—inner safeguards, guidance, and recoveries—that keep the ascent continuous.
Universal truth
The higher intelligence is both vast and precise: it surpasses our limits, yet it measures out exactly what we can bear and use, protecting the journey through many kinds of support.
Themes
Indra epithets, Vastness and bounty, Protection, Force of expansion
The seer
- Other hymns
- RV 8.81.1 (invocation for the grasp of power)
Significance
A mantra of confidence grounded in experience: it stabilizes faith (śraddhā) as a dynamic certainty, preparing the being to receive larger measures of Indra’s force.
The deity
- Devata
- Indra
- Epithets
- tuvi-kūrmi, tuvi-deṣṇa, tuvī-maghā, tuvi-mātra
- Related deities
- Varuṇa (measure/law), Mitra (harmony), Maruts (dynamic aids)
Cosmic role
Universal giver and protector; mover across the worlds; measurer and surpasser of measures.
Inner power
Vast illumined mind that both expands consciousness and apportions the right force; protective intelligence that sustains progress.
In ritual
Where it is used
Indra-stotra (general)
वि॒द्मा हि त्वा॑ तुविकू॒र्मिं तु॒विदे॑ष्णं तु॒वीम॑घम् । तु॒वि॒मा॒त्रमवो॑भिः ॥
वि॒द्म । हि । त्वा॒ । तु॒वि॒ऽकू॒र्मिम् । तु॒विऽदे॑ष्णम् । तु॒वीऽम॑घम् । तु॒वि॒ऽमा॒त्रम् । अवः॑ऽभिः ॥
vidma | hi | tvā | tuvi-kūrmim | tuvi-deṣṇam | tuvī-magham | tuvi-mātram | avaḥ-bhi ḥ
Two pādas with repeated ‘tuvi-’ epithets creating mantraic accumulation.
Rolling, cumulative, expansive; repetition builds amplitude.
Generates trust and wideness; the repeated ‘tuvi’ enlarges the listener’s sense of capacity and protection.
- vidma
- Literal: we know. Symbolic: knowledge by inner experience, not belief
- tuvi-kūrmi
- Literal: wide-ranging in movement/advance. Symbolic: vast traversing power of illumined mind across planes
- tuvi-deṣṇa
- Literal: vast in giving/distribution. Symbolic: many-sided bestowal of light, strength, and right conditions
- tuvī-maghā
- Literal: mighty in bounty. Symbolic: generous divine abundance that enriches the being
- tuvi-mātra
- Literal: immeasurable in measure. Symbolic: beyond mental limits; also giver of right proportion and law
- avobhiḥ
- Literal: by protections, helps. Symbolic: supporting forces: safeguards, rescues, guidance, sustaining grace
Praise (stuti) establishing Indra’s recognized attributes to secure his protective intervention (avaḥ) in the rite and inner battle.
In sequences of Indra praise; also as protective affirmation
Recitation to invoke Indra’s guarding help and abundance.
Use when overwhelmed: repeat as an affirmation of being held by a larger intelligence that can measure the next step.
√vid ‘know’ from PIE *weyd- (cf. Eng. wit, Lat. videre). √mā ‘measure’ from PIE *meh₁- (cf. meter, measure). maghá ‘gift’ tied to the Indo-Iranian *magh- ‘power/gift’ (cf. Avestan magha-). tuvi- is an intensifier ‘much, strong, vast’, frequent in Indra hymns to mark superhuman amplitude.
bṛhat (vastness), ananta-like immeasurability (tuvi-mātra), grace/protection (avaḥ)
Indra as tuvimātra implies a divine measuring aligned with ṛta—right proportion for evolution.
‘We know’ indicates lived truth, satya as realized certainty.
Expansion (the Vast) and distribution of powers into the human instrument.
Integral psychology: widening of consciousness plus right regulation of force.
Vast movement = roaming illumined mind; shelter = protective grace; measure = law of growth and integration.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Indra as the Vast One whose expansive motion and immeasurable measure secure protection: the mythic image of the god who exceeds limits and therefore can break confinements—psychologically, the force that enlarges consciousness beyond constriction.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- vidmá from √vid continues PIE *weyd- ‘see/know’. mātra from √mā continues PIE *meh₁- ‘measure’. The stacked tuvi-compounds show an inherited Indo-European poetic device: iterative intensification through epithets to ‘build’ the deity’s power in speech-act form.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi asserts experiential knowledge (‘we know thee’) as a credential of relationship; praise is not flattery but recognition that activates avaḥ—Indra’s protections—within the human field.
Widening into the Vast while trusting right measure and protection.
Anāhata (security/trust) and Ājñā (guidance/measure)
Coherent breathing (5s in / 5s out) while mentally stressing each ‘tuvi-’ epithet on successive breaths.
From constriction to wideness; from anxiety to guarded confidence.
After chanting, practice ‘widening’: feel awareness extend beyond the body in all directions; then ask inwardly for the ‘right measure’ of effort today and commit to that measure.
Not fully determinable; keep the accentuation on compounds (e.g., तुविकू॒र्मिं, तु॒विदे॑ष्णं, तु॒वीम॑घम्).
Let each ‘tuvi-’ be clearly articulated; slight rhythmic emphasis on the first syllable of each epithet to build cumulative force.
tuvi : short ‘u’, light ‘v’, kūrmiṃ : long ū; final anusvāra as nasalization, deṣṇam : retroflex ‘ṣṇ’ cluster clean, mātram : long ā; dental ‘t’
Steady, expansive, assuring.
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