Rig Veda 2.4.6: Mandala 2, Sukta 4, Mantra 6
Sukta 2.4
- Rishi
- Gṛtsamada
- Devata
- Agni
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Adbhuta (wonder)
आ यो वना तातृषाणो न भाति वार्ण पथा रथ्येव स्वानीत् । कृष्णाध्वा तपू रण्वश्चिकेत द्यौरिव स्मयमानो नभोभिः ॥
ā́ yó vánā tatṛṣāṇó ná bhāti vā́rṇa pathā́ rathyéva svānīt | kṛṣṇā́dhvā tapú raṇváś ciketa dyáur iva smáyamāno nábho-bhiḥ ||
തൃഷ്ണയോടെ വനത്തിൽ പ്രകാശിക്കാത്തവനും, എങ്കിലും രഥമാർഗ്ഗംപോലെയുള്ള പഥത്തിൽ—സ്വന്തം സ്വരത്തെ പിന്തുടർന്ന്—നയിക്കപ്പെടുന്നു. കൃഷ്ണ അധ്വയിൽ അവന്റെ തപസ് രണ്വത്തെ അറിയുന്നു; മേഘങ്ങളോടെ പുഞ്ചിരിക്കുന്ന ദ്യൗർപോലെ അവൻ സ്വയം വെളിപ്പെടുത്തുന്നു.
Word by Word
- आ
- towards, hitherIndeclinableउपसर्ग (क्रियाविशेषक)Root आ (उपसर्ग) / ā (preverb)
- यः
- whoPronounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole KartāRoot यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- वना
- woods, forestsNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन (वेदिक: ‘वना’ = ‘वनानि’)Role KarmaRoot वन (प्रातिपदिक)
- तातृषाणः
- eagerly longing, thirstingParticipleपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; (वेदिक परिपूर्ण-भाव: ‘अत्यर्थं तृषित/उत्कण्ठित/उत्सुक’)Role Kartā (यः के विशेषणम्)Root तृष् (धातु) → तातृषाण (कृदन्त, परिपूर्ण/रेडुप्लिकेटेड परस्मैपदीय-प्रत्ययान्त)
- न
- like, asIndeclinableउपमानार्थक/निपातRoot न (निपात)
- भाति
- shines, appearsVerbलट्, परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचनRole KriyāRoot भा (धातु)
- वार्णम्
- colour, lustreNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot वर्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
- पथा
- by the path, along the wayNounपुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन (वेदिक: ‘पथा’ = ‘पथेन’)Role KaraṇaRoot पथ् (प्रातिपदिक)
- रथ्येव
- like a chariot-roadAdjective + Indeclinableरथ्य (स्त्रीलिङ्ग/विशेषण-प्रयोग), प्रथमा, एकवचन; इव = उपमानRole Adhikaraṇa/Upamā (उपमान-प्रयोग)Root रथ्य (प्रातिपदिक) + इव (निपात)
- स्वानीत्
- sounded, resoundedVerbवेदिक: अनादेश/इञ्जङ्क्टिव् (लुङ्-सम्बद्ध), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचनRole KriyāRoot स्वा (धातु ‘स्वा/स्वन’ = ध्वनिते) → स्वानीत् (वेदिक रूप; 3sg injunctive/aorist-like)
- कृष्णाध्वा
- the dark path (dark way)Compound (Adj+Noun)पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहि/कर्मधारय: ‘कृष्णः अध्वा’Role Kartā (अथवा विषयः)Root कृष्ण (विशेषण-प्रातिपदिक) + अध्वन् (प्रातिपदिक)
- तपूः
- heat, glow (ardour)Nounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (वेदिक रूप)Role Kartā/विषयःRoot तपु (प्रातिपदिक)
- रण्वः
- delightful, charmingAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole Kartā (विशेषणम्)Root रण्व (विशेषण-प्रातिपदिक)
- चिकेत
- has perceived, has become manifest/knownVerbलिट् (परफेक्ट), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचनRole KriyāRoot चित् (धातु) → चिकेत (परिपूर्ण/रेडुप्लिकेटेड परफेक्ट)
- द्यौः
- heaven, the skyNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग (वेदिक), प्रथमा, एकवचनRole Kartā/UpamānaRoot द्यौ (प्रातिपदिक)
- इव
- likeIndeclinableउपमानार्थकRoot इव (निपात)
- स्मयमानः
- smilingParticipleपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; शानच्/मान-प्रत्यय (आत्मनेपदीय वर्तमान कृदन्त)Role Kartā (विशेषणम्)Root स्मि (धातु) → स्मयमान (वर्तमान कृदन्त)
- नभोभिः
- with the clouds / with the skiesNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचनRole KaraṇaRoot नभस् (प्रातिपदिक)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (सन्धि-विग्रह): आ | यः | वना | तातृषाणः | न | भाति | वार्णम् | पथा | रथ्ये इव → रथ्येव | स्वानीत् | कृष्ण-अध्वा → कृष्णाध्वा | तपूः | रण्वः | चिकेत | द्यौः इव → द्यौरिव | स्मयमानः | नभोभिः । (रथ्ये+इव = रथ्येव; द्यौः+इव = द्यौरिव; कृष्ण+अध्वा = कृष्णाध्वा)
The meaning
Outer meaning
He who, thirsting, does not shine in the woods, yet is led along a path like a chariot-road, following his own sound. On the black way, his heat knows delight; like heaven smiling with clouds, he reveals himself.
Inner meaning
Agni in the ‘woods’ (vanā) can be hidden—thirsting (tātṛṣāṇaḥ) for fuel and offering—so the divine will in us may not yet shine amid the tangled nature. Still, there is a ‘path’ (pathā) like a chariot-road (rathyeva): a prepared inner channel made by practice and right rhythm, along which Agni is led by his own sound (svānīt)—the self-guiding call of aspiration/mantra. Even on the ‘black way’ (kṛṣṇādhvā)—the obscure passage through ignorance, depression, or subconscient resistance—Agni’s heat (tapū) discovers delight (raṇvaḥ ciketa): tapas becomes joyful when it is conscious. Like heaven smiling with clouds, he manifests—suggesting a luminous vastness emerging through veils, not by their absence but by transfiguring them.
Universal truth
When the divine impulse seems absent in the chaos of life, disciplined pathways and inner listening can lead it forward. Even through dark phases, conscious heat can turn struggle into a quiet joy and reveal a wider sky of being.
Themes
inner journey, tapas through obscurity, self-led fire, revelation through veils
The seer
- Rishi
- Gṛtsamada
- Lineage
- Bhārgava (traditional attribution)
- Other hymns
- RV 2.4.3, RV 2.4.5, RV 2.4.7
Family tradition
Maṇḍala 2 seer; often shows Agni’s guidance through obscurity toward manifestation.
Significance
A key yogic insight: even when the inner fire does not ‘shine’ in the forest of nature, it can be conducted by a prepared path—practice, mantra, and inner hearing—through the black road.
The deity
- Devata
- Agni
- Epithets
- tātṛṣāṇa (thirsting), svānīt (self-led), raṇva (delight-knowing)
- Related deities
- Sarasvatī (flowing path/sound), Uṣas (emergence), Indra (breakthrough)
Cosmic role
Hidden fire in matter; path-finder through night; revealer of the sky-consciousness.
Inner power
Tapas guided by inner sound; power to transfigure obscurity into a smiling vastness.
In ritual
Where it is used
Agni kindling and processional/leading imagery (general); could accompany carrying fire or maintaining it through difficult conditions symbolically
आ यो वना॑ तातृषा॒णो न भाति॒ वार्ण प॒था रथ्ये॑व स्वानीत् । कृ॒ष्णाध्वा॒ तपू॑ र॒ण्वश्चि॑केत॒ द्यौरि॑व॒ स्मय॑मानो॒ नभो॑भिः ॥
आ । यः । वना॑ । त॒तृ॒षा॒णः । न । भाति॑ । वाः । न । प॒था । रथ्या॑ऽइव । स्वा॒नी॒त् । कृ॒ष्णऽअ॑ध्वा । तपुः॑ । र॒ण्वः । चि॒के॒त॒ । द्यौःऽइ॑व । स्मय॑मानः । नभः॑ऽभिः ॥
ā | yaḥ | vanā | tatṛṣāṇaḥ | na | bhāti | vāḥ | na | pathā | rathyāiva | svānīt | kṛṣṇa-adhvā | tapuḥ | raṇvaḥ | ciketa | dyauḥ-iva | smayamānaḥ | nabhaḥ-bhiḥ
44
4 × ~11 syllables
Alternates restraint (not shining) with guided motion (road), then a revealing uplift (sky).
Supports perseverance: steadies the mind in dark phases and evokes a gentle unveiling.
- ततृषाणः (tātṛṣāṇaḥ)
- Literal: thirsting. Symbolic: aspiration seeking fuel; will seeking offering
- वनाः (vanā)
- Literal: woods. Symbolic: tangled vital/subconscient field
- पथा (pathā)
- Literal: path. Symbolic: inner channel of practice; ṛta-path
- रथ्याइव (rathyeva)
- Literal: like a chariot-road. Symbolic: disciplined, prepared route for the force of progress
- स्वानीत् (svānīt)
- Literal: led by his own sound. Symbolic: self-guided mantra/inner call of the soul
- कृष्णाध्वा (kṛṣṇādhvā)
- Literal: black road. Symbolic: passage through ignorance, gloom, subconscient resistance
- तपुः (tapuḥ)
- Literal: heat. Symbolic: tapas: transformative ardour
- द्यौः ... नभोभिः (dyaur ... nabhobhiḥ)
- Literal: heaven with clouds. Symbolic: vast consciousness revealing itself through veils
Describes Agni’s movement through fuel and darkness; supports meditative understanding of tapas as the means of passage through obscurity.
When sustaining fire, especially when it is low/hidden; in hymnic praise for guidance
Feeding embers, guarding continuity of fire, invoking Agni’s self-guidance
Chant during ‘dark night’ periods: use as a mantra for staying on the path when inspiration feels absent; pair with listening meditation on inner sound.
√tṛṣ ‘thirst’ (desire/aspiration) underlies tatṛṣāṇa. tapas from √tap ‘heat, burn’ becomes spiritual ardour. kṛṣṇa ‘black’ marks the path through obscurity. svānīt suggests an inner guidance by resonance/cry—Agni’s self-leading sound (crackle/roar) becomes symbol of inner leading intuition.
tapas (ardour), passage through darkness (kṛṣṇa-adhvā), self-guidance (sva-nīt)
The rathya-path symbolises the ṛta-way prepared in consciousness.
Satya is the ‘sky’ that smiles through clouds—truth revealed through veils.
Hidden fire moving in matter toward manifestation of heaven-consciousness.
Yoga of inner sound and tapas (anticipates later nāda and tapas traditions, read integrally).
night or pre-dawn (black path; clouded sky)
Black path = depression/ignorance; road = sādhanā channel; clouds = veils; sky = wide consciousness; sound = inner guidance.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The ‘black path traversed by tapas’ mythologem: Agni moves along a chariot-like path through darkness, guided by his own sound, and reveals a heaven-like smile. Innerly, aspiration (thirst) and tapas create a channel through ignorance; the fire’s own resonance is the intuitive guidance.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- tapas from √tap aligns with heat/ardour roots across IE (cf. Latin tepēre ‘be warm’ is a related semantic field). patha has Indo-Iranian cognates (Avestan pantā). √cit ‘notice’ is a key Indo-Aryan cognition verb.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi reads Agni’s outer movement as an inner instruction: let tapas carve a rathya-like road through the black path. The devatā’s gift is self-guidance (svānīt) and the eventual opening into a smiling wideness (dyauḥ-iva).
Follow ‘inner sound’ to conduct will through obscurity; keep tapas gentle and joyful.
Viśuddha (inner sound)
Bhrāmarī (humming) softly, then silent listening; afterward slow breathing with attention on a subtle inner flame
Quiet perseverance; receptive listening; widening above thought
When the fire ‘does not shine’, do not force emotion. Keep the path: small consistent practice, inner listening, and a steady offering. Let the sky-consciousness appear through the clouds rather than fighting them.
Rigvedic accents; highlight udātta on key path/heat terms (pathā, tapuḥ, dyaur).
Keep the first half slightly subdued (not shining), then lift on ‘pathā rathyeva’ and open the tone on the final sky image.
tātṛṣāṇaḥ: retroflex ṛ; ṣ, rathyeva: rathy-eva, do not merge too hard, svānīt: long ā; dental n, kṛṣṇādhvā: retroflex ṣṇ; dhv cluster, smayamānaḥ: clear ‘sma-ya’, nabhobhiḥ: bh aspirated; visarga at end
Low, steady, inward; broaden on the last pāda like opening sky.
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