Rig Veda 5.40.7: Mandala 5, Sukta 40, Mantra 7
Sukta 5.40
- Rishi
- Atri Bhāuma
- Devata
- Mitra-Varuṇa
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Karuna (compassion)
मा मामिमं तव सन्तमत्र इरस्या द्रुग्धो भियसा नि गारीत् । त्वं मित्रो असि सत्यराधास्तौ मेहावतं वरुणश्च राजा ॥
mā́ mām imáṃ táva sántaṃ atra irasyā́ drugdhó bhiyásā ní gārīt | tváṃ mitró asi satyárādhās táu mā́ ihā́vatam váruṇaś ca rājā́ ||
ഹേ അത്രി! നിന്റേതായ ഈയാൾ അസൂയയുടെ ഉപദ്രവം മൂലം ഭയത്താൽ താഴേക്ക് തള്ളപ്പെടാതിരിക്കട്ടെ. നീ സത്യസിദ്ധിയുള്ള മിത്രനാണ്; ഹേ രാജാ വരുണാ! നിങ്ങൾ ഇരുവരും—മിത്രനും വരുണനും—ഇവിടെ എന്നെ കാത്തുരക്ഷിക്കട്ടെ.
Word by Word
- मा
- do notIndeclinableनिषेधार्थक कण (prohibitive particle), वैदिक प्रयोगRoot मा (अव्यय-निषेध) / मा (धातु: मा ‘मापन’—यहाँ नहीं)
- मा
- mePronounद्वितीया, एकवचनRole KarmaRoot अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- अमिमं
- harm (me) / injure (me)Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन; निषेध ‘मा’ के साथ ‘मत्-…’ अर्थ: ‘मत् हिंसीः/मत् पीडय’Root अमि (धातु: अम्/अमि ‘हानि/हिंसा/पीडा’ वैदिक) अथवा अमी (अव्यय/क्रिया-रूप) — यहाँ आज्ञार्थ/निषेध के साथ क्रिया
- तव
- of you / yourPronounषष्ठी, एकवचनRole सम्बन्धRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- सन्तम्
- being; existentAdjective (participle)पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘being, existing’Role Karma (विशेष्य-सम्बन्ध) / विशेषणRoot सत् (प्रातिपदिक; √अस् ‘to be’ का वर्तमान कृदन्त)
- अत्र
- hereIndeclinableदेशवाचक अव्ययRole AdhikaraṇaRoot अत्र (अव्यय)
- इरस्याः
- of jealousy / from jealousyNounषष्ठी, एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (कारण/हेतु-सम्बन्ध)Root ईर्ष्या/इरस्या (स्त्री. प्रातिपदिक; ‘envy, jealousy’)
- द्रुग्धः
- having wronged; treacherousAdjective (participle)पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘having harmed/treacherous’Role Kartā (वाक्य-कर्ता के रूप में) / विशेषणRoot द्रुह् (धातु ‘द्रोह/अपकार’) → द्रुग्ध (भूतकृदन्त)
- भियसा
- through fear / out of fearNounतृतीया, एकवचनRole KaraṇaRoot भियस्/भिया (स्त्री. ‘fear’)
- नि
- down; in; completelyIndeclinableउपसर्ग; ‘down, into; completely’Root नि (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- अगारीत्
- he uttered / he sang / he proclaimedVerbलुङ् (अorist), तृतीयपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदRoot गॄ/गॢ (धातु: गॄ ‘गिर्/स्तुति/उच्चारण’ वैदिक) + आ (उपसर्ग) → आ-गारीत्
- त्वम्
- youPronounप्रथमा, एकवचनRole KartāRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- मित्रः
- MitraNounप्रथमा, एकवचनRole Kartā (समास/सम्बोधनात्मक विधेय) / विधेय-नामRoot मित्र (पुं. प्रातिपदिक; देवता-नाम)
- असि
- areVerbलट् (वर्तमान), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचनRoot √अस् (धातु ‘to be’)
- सत्यराधाः
- whose favors are true; truly graciousAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (विशेषण ‘मित्रः’ का)Role Kartā (विशेषण) / विधेय-विशेषणRoot सत्य-राधस् (बहुव्रीहि/कर्मधारय; ‘true/faithful + bounty/favor’)
- तौ
- those twoPronounप्रथमा, द्विवचन (पुं.)Role KartāRoot तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- मे
- to me / for mePronounषष्ठी/चतुर्थी, एकवचन (एन्क्लिटिक); यहाँ दत्तिव-भाव: ‘मे’ = ‘to/for me’Role SampradānaRoot अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- हावतम्
- call; invokeVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यमपुरुष, द्विवचन; ‘you two call/invoke (for me)’Root √हू (धातु ‘to call, invoke’) → हावयति (कारक) / हावत् (वैदिक रूप)
- वरुणः
- VaruṇaNounप्रथमा, एकवचनRole Kartā (समुच्चित) / विधेय-नामRoot वरुण (पुं. प्रातिपदिक; देवता-नाम)
- च
- andIndeclinableसमुच्चयार्थक अव्ययRoot च (अव्यय)
- राजा
- kingNounप्रथमा, एकवचनRole Kartā (विधेय) / अपादान नहींRoot राजन् (पुं. प्रातिपदिक)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (सम्भाव्य): मा | मा | अमिमं | तव | सन्तम् | अत्र | इरस्याः | द्रुग्धः | भियसा | नि | अगारीत् || त्वम् | मित्रः | असि | सत्यराधाः | तौ | मे | हावतम् | वरुणः | च | राजा || मुख्य संधि/रूप-टिप्पणी: (1) ‘मा’ (निषेध) + आज्ञार्थ/लोट् क्रिया ‘अमिमं’ (वैदिक निषेध-आज्ञा) । (2) ‘नि’ उपसर्ग ‘अगारीत्’ के साथ (नि + आ-गारीत्) अर्थ-तीव्रता/निम्नता देता है। (3) ‘सत्यराधाः’ समासिक विशेषण (सत्य + राधस्) ‘मित्रः’ पर। (4) ‘तौ … हावतम्’ में कर्ता द्विवचन ‘तौ’ और क्रिया द्विवचन ‘हावतम्’।
The meaning
Outer meaning
May this one—who belongs to you, O Atri—not be cast down by fear because of the harm of jealousy. You are Mitra of true fulfillments; you two, Mitra and King Varuṇa, protect me here.
Inner meaning
After the eclipse-struggle, the seeker prays against a subtler hostile movement: irasyā (jealousy/envy), which distorts relations and breaks inner harmony, producing fear and collapse. Atri here is invoked as the seer-presence within us (the ‘one who is thine’—the aspiring soul-movement). Mitra is the power of harmony, right relation, and luminous consent; Varuṇa is vastness and the sovereign law of truth. Together they guard the aspirant from divisive emotions and restore inner equilibrium needed for the light to remain.
Universal truth
Spiritual progress depends not only on defeating darkness but also on purifying relational and emotional distortions; harmony (Mitra) and truth-law/vastness (Varuṇa) protect the psyche from fear and jealousy’s harm.
Themes
protection prayer, inner purification, Mitra-Varuṇa guardianship, overcoming fear and jealousy
The seer
- Rishi
- Atri Bhāuma
- Lineage
- Atri (Ātreya)
- Other hymns
- RV 5.40.6, RV 5.40.8, RV 5.40.9
Family tradition
Ātreya line emphasizes brahman-force and protection of the inner light against obscuring and hostile movements.
Significance
Atri is both seer and inner faculty of discovery; here he becomes the locus of safeguarding the recovered illumination through ethical-psychological purification.
The deity
- Devata
- Mitra-Varuṇa
- Epithets
- Mitra (satyarādhās), Varuṇa (rājā)
- Related deities
- Aryaman, Bhaga, Aditi, Sūrya
Cosmic role
Guardians of ṛta: Mitra maintains concord and right exchange; Varuṇa enforces the vast law, purity, and truth-binding order.
Inner power
Mitra: calm clarity, benevolent harmony; Varuṇa: wideness, conscience, truth-compulsion that releases from crookedness.
In ritual
Where it is used
Mitra-Varuṇa śastra/stotra contexts; hymns for protection and ṛta in soma rites
मा मामि॒मं तव॒ सन्त॑मत्र इर॒स्या द्रु॒ग्धो भि॒यसा॒ नि गा॑रीत् । त्वं मि॒त्रो अ॑सि स॒त्यरा॑धा॒स्तौ मे॒हाव॑तं॒ वरु॑णश्च॒ राजा॑ ॥
मा । माम् । इ॒मम् । तव॑ । सन्त॑म् । अ॒त्रे॒ । इ॒र॒स्या । द्रु॒ग्धः । भि॒यसा॑ । नि । गा॒री॒त् । त्वम् । मि॒त्रः । अ॒सि॒ । स॒त्यऽरा॑धाः । तौ । मा॒ । इ॒ह । अ॒व॒त॒म् । वरु॑णः । च॒ । राजा॑ ॥
mā | mām | imam | tava | santam | atre | irasyā | drugdhaḥ | bhiyasā | ni | gārīt | tvam | mitraḥ | asi | satya-rādhāḥ | tau | mā | iha | avatam | varuṇaḥ | ca | rājā
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4×~11 syllables (with Vedic flexibility)
Protective, declarative rhythm with a prayerful turn in the final pādas.
Soothes fear while strengthening resolve; the paired invocation stabilizes the heart-mind.
- इरस्या (irasyā)
- Literal: jealousy/envy. Symbolic: divisive vital movement that resents another’s light; a force that breaks harmony and invites fear
- भियसा (bhiyasā)
- Literal: by fear. Symbolic: shrinking of consciousness; loss of courage and openness to higher light
- मित्रः (mitraḥ)
- Literal: Mitra. Symbolic: harmonizing power, luminous friendship, right relation and consent
- वरुणः राजा (varuṇaś ca rājā)
- Literal: Varuṇa the king. Symbolic: sovereign vast truth-law that binds and protects by right order
- सत्यराधाः (satyarādhāḥ)
- Literal: whose fulfillments are true. Symbolic: effective protection/boons that align with truth, not desire
Protective/prāyaścitta-like appeal within sacrificial setting: guarding the sacrificer from hostile emotions (envy/fear) that disrupt ṛta and the efficacy of the offering.
Evening/liminal times or whenever seeking protection and harmony in the rite/community
Recited to secure ṛta, social/inner concord, and remove hostile emotions affecting the sacrificer.
Use as a mantra for emotional purification—especially jealousy, social comparison, anxiety—invoking harmony and truth-law.
from īrṣyā (Vedic irasyā) ‘envy/jealousy’ related to √īrṣ/√īrṣy ‘to be jealous’. (bhiyas) from √bhī ‘to fear’. from √gṛ/√gṝ? (Vedic usage: ‘to sink down, be depressed’), with ni- expressing downward movement. from √mi ‘to bind/measure’ → principle of contract, harmony, right relation. from √vṛ ‘to cover/encompass’ → the all-encompassing lord of ṛta; also ‘binding’ through law.
Satya (truth) as basis of right boons (rādhāḥ), Ṛta upheld by Mitra-Varuṇa, psychological afflictions as inner adversaries (fear, envy)
Mitra-Varuṇa are explicit upholders of ṛta; protection is protection of right order within and without.
Satyarādhās: true results come from alignment with truth, not reactive emotion.
Ethico-spiritual Vedism trending toward Upaniṣadic truth-discipline (satya/ṛta as inner law).
Twilight/transition (psychologically: vulnerable moments)
Mitra = harmonizing daylight of mind; Varuṇa = vast sky/ocean of consciousness that purifies and holds to truth.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Not a cosmic combat but an ethical-psychological mythologem: hostile forces work through envy and fear to ‘cast down’ the aspirant; Mitra-Varuṇa, as guardians of truth and right relation, are invoked to restore inner order.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- The fear lexeme √bhī is widely IE (cf. Gk phóbos ‘fear’ as a semantic relative though not a direct cognate; PIE fear roots are multiple). The pair-sovereignty (Mitra/Varuṇa) reflects an IE pattern of dual guardians of order and contract, comparable to juridical/sovereign dyads in other IE traditions.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The speaker aligns himself as ‘tava santam’—belonging to and aligned with the seer’s truth—then seeks the concrete protection of Mitra-Varuṇa. The rishi’s truth-state and the gods’ law-power cooperate to prevent a fall into lower consciousness.
Bring awareness to the heart-space; invoke Mitra as harmony in relationships and Varuṇa as vast truth-holding awareness.
Anāhata (heart)
Slow coherent breathing (5–6 breaths/min) while repeating ‘tvam mitro asi… varuṇaś ca rājā’.
From reactive vital turbulence to calm, truthful wideness.
When jealousy or fear arises, name it, widen the breath, and repeat the mantra as an inner vow to truth and goodwill; let Varuṇa’s vastness dissolve contraction, let Mitra restore benevolence.
Follow saṃhitā accent marks per recension; emphasize the prayerful prohibitive ‘mā’ with clarity, not harshness.
Maintain pāda pauses after ‘ni gārīt’ and at the close; keep ‘mitro’ crisp; lengthen long vowels (ā, ī).
: mā mām imaṃ—separate mām / imaṃ clearly, : i-ra-syā (palatal ‘sy’ cluster), : drugdho—retain gh + dh articulation, : satya-rādhāḥ with clear aspirate dh
Gentle, protective, heart-centered tone.
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