Rig Veda 9.13.7: Mandala 9, Sukta 13, Mantra 7
Sukta 9.13
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna
- Chandas
- Likely Gāyatrī
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Shringara (love)
वाश्रा अर्षन्तीन्दवोऽभि वत्सं न धेनवः । दधन्विरे गभस्त्योः ॥
vāśrā́ arṣántī́ndavo ’bhí vatsáṃ ná dhenávaḥ | dadhanviré gabhástyoḥ ||
輝くソーマの滴は流れ、鳴きつつ子牛へ向かう牝牛のように寄り来たる。彼らは両の手のうちに安住し自らを支え、供献する者と求める者の把握の中に堅き拠り所を得る。
Word by Word
- वाश्राः
- calves (as subjects)Nounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole KartāRoot वाश्र (प्रातिपदिक; ‘वाश्र’ = बछड़ा/वत्स) अथवा वाश्र (विशेषण-प्रातिपदिक ‘बछड़े-सम्बन्धी/वत्सवत्’)
- अर्षन्ति
- they rush/flowVerbलट् (वर्तमान), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचनRole (क्रिया)Root ऋष् (धातु; ‘गमन/प्रवाह’)
- इन्दवः
- the Soma-dropsNounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole KartāRoot इन्दु (प्रातिपदिक; सोम)
- अभि
- towards, untoIndeclinableअव्ययRole (दिशा/उपसर्ग)Root अभि (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- वत्सम्
- the calfNounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot वत्स (प्रातिपदिक)
- न
- like, asIndeclinableअव्यय (उपमा)Role (उपमान-सूचक)Root न (अव्यय)
- धेनवः
- milch-cowsNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole KartāRoot धेनु (प्रातिपदिक)
- दधन्विरे
- they have sped/they hastenVerbलिट् (परिपूर्ण/परफेक्ट; वैदिक प्रयोग), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचनRole (क्रिया)Root धन्व्/धनु (धातु; वैदिक ‘धन्व्’ = धाव्/वेगं गम्, ‘to speed/press on’)
- गभस्त्योः
- in/at the two hands (i.e., in the grasp)Nounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, द्विवचनRole AdhikaraṇaRoot गभस्ति (प्रातिपदिक; ‘हस्त/किरण/ग्रहण-स्थान’)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (सन्धि-निरसन): वाश्राः | अर्षन्ति | इन्दवः | अभि | वत्सम् | न | धेनवः | दधन्विरे | गभस्त्योः । 1) ‘इन्दवोऽभि’ = इन्दवः + अभि (विसर्ग-सन्धि: अ-कारादौ ‘अ’ परे विसर्गस्य ‘ओ’/ऽ-रूप)
- 2) ‘अर्षन्तीन्दवः’ पाठ-समास/सन्धि-लेखन: अर्षन्ति + इन्दवः (इ-आदि संयोग; संहितायां दीर्घ/संयोग-लेखन)
- 3) ‘धेनव॑:’ = धेनवः (विसर्ग)
The meaning
Outer meaning
The bright Soma drops stream like lowing cows toward the calf; they settle/establish themselves in the two hands (gabhastyoḥ).
Inner meaning
The ‘cows’ (dhenavaḥ) are not cattle but luminous rays/streams of knowledge and delight; they move toward the ‘calf’ (vatsam): the child of the soul, the psychic center that draws nourishment. Soma drops (indavaḥ) flow with a living call (vāśrāḥ) toward that central sweetness. ‘In the two hands’ suggests a firm grasp in the dual powers that receive and shape the offering—often read as the two hands of the sacrifice (giving and receiving), or symbolically the two faculties (will and knowledge) that hold the delight steady so it can be established in life.
Universal truth
When knowledge-currents and delight are rightly directed, they converge on the soul-center and become stable capacities; spiritual experience must be ‘held’—received and integrated—so it does not dissipate.
Themes
Cow symbolism, Nourishment, Soma streams, Embodied holding
The seer
- Other hymns
- RV 1.164 (go as rays/knowledge imagery), RV 9.79 (Soma as cow/stream nourishment), RV 9.96 (Soma drops establishing in the offering)
Family tradition
Pavamāna seers using ‘cow/calf’ imagery for converging streams of nourishment toward the soul’s center.
Significance
The vision is integrative: the flow of Ananda and light must find its ‘calf’ (psychic center) and be held in the hands—made stable in embodied life.
The deity
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna (Indavaḥ)
- Epithets
- Indu, Pavamāna, Vāśra (sounding, here as quality)
- Related deities
- Uṣas (awakening that releases rays), Sarasvatī (flow of inspiration), Agni (holder/receiver of offering)
Cosmic role
Nourisher and gatherer of divine energies; brings streams to their true center and stabilizes them in the embodied sacrifice.
Inner power
Concentration of delight into the psychic core; stabilization of experience through receptive-active balance.
In ritual
Where it is used
Soma filtration/collection into vessels; receiving Soma in hands/cups
वा॒श्रा अ॑र्ष॒न्तीन्द॑वो॒ऽभि व॒त्सं न धे॒नव॑: । द॒ध॒न्वि॒रे गभ॑स्त्योः ॥
वा॒श्राः । अ॒र्ष॒न्ति॒ । इन्द॑वः । अ॒भि । व॒त्सम् । न । धे॒नवः॑ । द॒ध॒न्वि॒रे । गभ॑स्त्योः ॥
vāśrāḥ | arṣanti | indavaḥ | abhi | vatsam | na | dhenavaḥ | dadhanvire | gabhastyoḥ
24
3×8 (approx.)
softly flowing, maternal; a gathering cadence
settles the mind into a heart-centered receptivity; promotes integration and steadiness
- वा॒श्राः (vāśrāḥ)
- Literal: lowing/crying (of cows), sounding. Symbolic: living call of luminous energies; vibration of delight seeking its center
- इन्दवः (indavaḥ)
- Literal: Soma drops. Symbolic: units/currents of Ananda moving through the being
- धेनवः (dhenavaḥ)
- Literal: milch-cows. Symbolic: rays/streams of knowledge and nourishment (go as light)
- वत्सम् (vatsam)
- Literal: calf. Symbolic: psychic being/soul-child; the inner recipient that draws true nourishment
- गभस्त्योः (gabhastyoḥ)
- Literal: in the two hands/rays. Symbolic: the two grasping powers—receptive and active; or dual channels (ida/pingala) stabilizing the flow
- दधन्विरे (dadhanvire)
- Literal: they placed/established themselves. Symbolic: integration: delight becomes steady realization, not passing experience
Soma flowing into vessels, handled by priests; inner application: nourishing powers (dhenavaḥ) converge upon the nascent realization (vatsa) and become held in the grasp (gabhasti) of awakened faculties.
as Soma drops are gathered and held for offering
chant while collecting/holding Soma; symbolic ‘establishing’ of the flow
use to center scattered energies: bring experiences back to the heart and stabilize them with mindful holding
dhenū ‘cow’ is a classic Vedic symbol of nourishing light/knowledge; ‘milk’ as outflow of sustenance parallels Soma outflow. gabhasti can mean ‘hand’ or ‘ray’; both suit Soma: physically held in vessels/hands, and inwardly held in ‘rays’ of consciousness. vatsá ‘calf’ suggests the newly formed delight/realization that draws the nourishing streams.
Go/cow as rays of knowledge (recovery of light), Embodiment/retention of realization (gabhasti as grasp), Ananda nourishment
Right movement is not only flow but convergence—energies returning to their proper ‘calf’ (center).
Truth is what can be held and lived; dadhanvire indicates establishment of realization.
Gathering and stabilization: from dispersed currents to formed, held substance—creation as integration.
Integral-psychic emphasis: the psychic being as the true receiver and organizer of higher currents.
dawn-like (implied brightness)
Rays of knowledge and delight converge on the heart/psychic center; balanced channels ‘hold’ the experience so it becomes steady.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The mythologem is ‘the cows to the calf’: Soma drops flow like cows to their calf. Inner sense: nourishing rays/powers of knowledge and delight converge toward a newly born realization (vatsa) and become established in the ‘hands/rays’ (gabhasti) of the seeker—retained and usable, not fleeting.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- Pastoral imagery (cow/calf) is an IE poetic inheritance used to encode abstract gains (light/wealth). The semantic polyvalence of gabhasti (‘hand’/‘ray’) shows archaic metaphorical layering typical of early Vedic diction.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi frames Soma’s descent as nourishing convergence: the divine drops seek the ‘calf’ (new realization) within the aspirant. The devata grants not only influx but also establishment (dadhanvire) in the grasping faculties, enabling sustained inner nourishment.
Bring the flowing delight and insights toward the heart-center (‘calf’); hold them gently with awareness until they settle.
Anāhata (heart/psychic)
slow coherent breathing (5–6 breaths/min); chant softly on exhale to ‘gather’ the currents
tender, unified, inwardly held
After chanting, place attention in the heart; recall scattered thoughts as ‘cows’ returning; let them rest in a steady inner ‘cup’ of awareness.
Rigvedic accents should be followed from accented saṃhitā; maintain gentle rises on udātta and smooth svarita falls to preserve the ‘maternal’ flow.
Keep ‘indavo ’bhi vatsaṃ’ connected; pause lightly before ‘dadhanvire’.
vāśrāḥ: long ā; ‘śr’ cluster clear, arṣanti: retroflex ṣ; ‘ar-ṣan-ti’, abhi: light ‘bh’ aspiration, vatsam: clear ‘ts’, dhenavaḥ: aspirated ‘dh’; short e, gabhastyoḥ: ‘bh’ aspirated; ‘styoḥ’ with consonant cluster carefully articulated
soft, warm, heart-centered resonance
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