Rig Veda 9.37.5: Mandala 9, Sukta 37, Mantra 5
Sukta 9.37
स वृत्रहा वृषा सुतो वरिवोविददाभ्यः । सोमो वाजमिवासरत् ॥
sa vṛtra-hā vṛṣā suto varivo-vid adābhyaḥ | somo vājam ivāsarat ||
彼は—ヴリトラ（Vṛtra）を屠る者、力ある牡牛、搾り出されたもの、広き道を見いだす者。無敵のソーマ（Soma）は、まさに豊饒そのもののごとく流れ出た。
Soma pressing: the expressed Soma is invoked as the force that breaks inner obstruction and creates varivas (free room) for the rite’s success and for Indra’s empowerment
removal of inner obstruction (Vṛtra as ignorance/inertia), varivas as widened consciousness, invincibility of truth-force (adābhya)
Vṛtra’s defeat restores r̥ta: the right movement of waters/lights.
Adābhya indicates a truth-founded force not distorted by falsehood.
Classic cosmogony: slaying the coverer to release abundance and wideness.
Yoga of transformation: Ananda as dynamic shakti that conquers the subconscient.
A powerful joy-energy breaking inner knots, releasing blocked currents, and expanding the field of consciousness.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The Vṛtra-slaying mythologem: Soma is described with the epithet vṛtra-hā, aligning him with the archetype of breaking the obstruction that withholds the waters/light. In inner terms, Soma’s clarified force breaks the knot of ignorance and releases free movement (varivas).
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- vṛtra derives from √vṛ ‘cover’ (PIE *wer- ‘cover/enclose’), showing an inherited metaphor of obstruction as ‘covering’. The ‘bull’ image vṛṣā from √vṛṣ ‘shower’ parallels Indo-European associations of potency with raining/flowing. √su ‘press’ is Indo-Iranian ritual vocabulary with clear morphological transparency (suta participle).
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The ṛṣi recognizes Soma as the effective liberator: by naming him varivo-vit and adābhya, the seer establishes trust in Soma’s capacity to create inner ‘room’ for the divine work. The reciprocity is functional: Soma grants widened being; the human act of pressing (suta) provides the channel for Soma’s manifestation.
Invoke Soma as the force that breaks the ‘coverer’ in the subconscient; feel a widening space open in chest and head as energy streams freely.
Maṇipūra (bull-force, conquest) opening into Anāhata (wideness/varivas) and Ajñā (clarity).
Kapalabhāti (mild, if appropriate) or strong exhale through the nose to ‘break’ inertia; then long calming breaths to stabilize wideness.
Victorious energy leading into spacious calm.
Chant 9 times when stuck; after chanting, take one decisive action (outer) aligned with the inner breakthrough (varivas).
Chant with emphatic rises on epithets (vṛtrahā, vṛṣā, adābhyaḥ); allow the final ‘asarat’ to flow downward as release.
Do not rush the compound varivovid; keep it clear and weighty; slight pause before ‘somo’.
vṛtrahā: retroflex ṛ; aspirate hā with long ā, vṛṣā: retroflex ṣ; long ā, varivovid: articulate as va-ri-vo-vit (avoid swallowing middle vowels), adābhyaḥ: long ā; bhy cluster clean, vājam iva: keep iva short; light sandhi into āsarat
Strong, resonant, slightly forceful; end with a sense of flowing release.
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