Rig Veda 8.53.3: Mandala 8, Sukta 53, Mantra 3
Sukta 8.53
- Rishi
- Kaṇva
- Devata
- Soma/Indu
- Chandas
- Triṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Adbhuta (wonder)
आ नो विश्वेषां रसं मध्वः सिञ्चन्त्वद्रयः । ये परावति सुन्विरे जनेष्वा ये अर्वावतीन्दवः ॥
ā́ no víśveṣāṃ rásaṃ mádhvaḥ siñcántv ádrayaḥ | yé parāváti sunvíre jáneṣv ā́ yé arvāvatī́ndavaḥ ||
ഞങ്ങളിലേക്കു സർവ മധുരതയുടെ സാരം മധുരരസമായി അദ്രയഃ—സോമം പിഴിയുന്ന കല്ലുകൾ—ചൊരിയട്ടെ. പരാവത്—ദൂരദേശങ്ങളിൽ—ജനങ്ങളിൽ പിഴിയപ്പെടുന്ന സോമബിന്ദുക്കളും, അർവാവത്—ഇവിടെ സമീപത്ത്—പിഴിയപ്പെടുന്നവയും, എല്ലാം ആനന്ദവും പ്രകാശവും ഒരേ ധാരയായി ഞങ്ങളിലേക്കു വരട്ടെ.
Word by Word
- आ
- hither, towards (us)Indeclinableउपसर्ग/निपात (गत्यर्थे/आह्वाने)Root आ (उपसर्ग/निपात)
- नः
- to us / for usPronounषष्ठी/चतुर्थी? एकवचन-बहुवचन? → प्रचलित: षष्ठी बहुवचन (enclitic) ‘of us/our’ (RV usage also for dative ‘to us’ in context)Role SampradānaRoot अस्मद्
- विश्वेषाम्
- of allAdjective (used substantively)पुं/नपुंसक, षष्ठी बहुवचनRole सम्बन्ध (genitive)Root विश्व
- रसम्
- sap, essence, juiceNounपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचनRole KarmaRoot रस
- मध्वः
- of honey / of sweetnessNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी एकवचन (Vedic: ‘of honey/sweetness’; also used adverbially ‘sweetly’ in some contexts)Role सम्बन्ध (genitive)Root मधु
- सिञ्चन्तु
- let them pourVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), परस्मैपद, प्रथम पुरुष, बहुवचनRole (क्रिया)Root सिच्
- अद्रयः
- the pressing-stonesNounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचनRole KartāRoot अद्रि
- ये
- who, whichPronoun (relative)पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचनRole Kartā (of subordinate clause)Root यद्
- परावति
- in the far region, afarNoun/Adjective (locative of place)स्त्रीलिङ्ग (परावत्-), सप्तमी एकवचनRole AdhikaraṇaRoot परावत् (पर + अवत्)
- सुन्विरे
- have pressed (Soma)Verbलिट्/परफेक्ट (Vedic perfect), आत्मनेपद, तृतीय पुरुष, बहुवचनRole (क्रिया)Root सु (सोम-प्रसवने) / सुनु
- जनेषु
- among peoples, in tribesNounपुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी बहुवचनRole AdhikaraṇaRoot जन
- आ
- hither, towardsIndeclinableनिपात (आगमनार्थे)Root आ (उपसर्ग/निपात)
- ये
- whoPronoun (relative)पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचनRole Kartā (of subordinate clause)Root यद्
- अर्वावतीम्
- nearer, on this side (hitherward)Adjectiveस्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचन (qualifying an implied feminine noun like ‘दिशम्/परावत्/भूमिम्’ per RV style)Role Karma (object of motion/goal in sense)Root अर्वावत्
- दवः
- gifts/portions (Vedic: distributions, offerings)Nounपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचनRole KartāRoot दव
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (sandhi-resolved): आ | नः | विश्वेषाम् | रसम् | मध्वः | सिञ्चन्तु | अद्रयः | ये | परावति | सुन्विरे | जनेषु | आ | ये | अर्वावतीम् | दवः । मुख्य संधि: (1) मध्वः सिञ्चन्तु = मधु-षष्ठी ‘मध्वः’ + सिञ्चन्तु (visarga before sibilant/stop per Vedic recitation)
- (2) जनेष्वा = जनेषु + आ (उकारान्त ‘-षु’ + ‘आ’ → ‘ष्वा’)
- (3) अर्वावतीन्दवः = अर्वावतीम् + दवः (म् + द → न्द्, Vedic anusvāra/parasavarṇa assimilation)
The meaning
Outer meaning
A prayer that the pressing-stones (adrayaḥ) pour out for us the honeyed essence (rasa, madhvaḥ) of Soma; whether Soma is pressed far away among peoples or near at hand, may the drops (indavaḥ) come to us.
Inner meaning
The ‘pressing-stones’ are the disciplined forces of tapas (concentrated effort) that crush the raw life-substance and release Soma—inner delight and luminous sweetness. The mantra asks that the essence of all experiences (‘of all sweetness’) be distilled into a single current of ananda, regardless of whether the seeker is in ‘far’ (parāvati: distant, obscure, subconscient or foreign movements) or ‘near’ (arvāvati: immediate, present, conscious field) conditions. It is an aspiration for continuity of delight and light across all states.
Universal truth
When aspiration and disciplined practice act steadily, the fragmented sweetness of life can be unified into a continuous stream of clarity and joy, independent of external place or circumstance.
Themes
Soma-ritual, extraction of essence, delight and unity, flow to the seeker
The seer
- Rishi
- Kaṇva
- Lineage
- Kāṇva
- Other hymns
- RV 1.3, RV 1.10, RV 8.48, RV 8.49, RV 8.50
Family tradition
Kaṇvas—visionary-poets strongly associated with Soma and Indra hymns; emphasis on inner gain (vāja) through inspired word (brahman).
Significance
Kaṇva-vision often frames Soma as a universal delight that must be brought into the human field by right pressing (tapas) and right speech; the seer’s role is to make the inner ‘flow’ continuous.
The deity
- Devata
- Soma/Indu
- Epithets
- Indu (the bright drop), Madhu (honey-sweet), Pavamāna (purifying), Rasa (essence)
- Related deities
- Agni, Indra, Uṣas, Aśvins
Cosmic role
Soma is the delight-principle that sustains gods and humans; the immortal sap that strengthens Indra and nourishes the sacrifice.
Inner power
Ananda that clarifies mind and energizes will; the luminous delight released when consciousness is purified and concentrated.
In ritual
Where it is used
Soma pressing (Soma-yajña) / Soma-pavamāna context
आ नो॒ विश्वे॑षां॒ रसं॒ मध्व॑: सिञ्च॒न्त्वद्र॑यः । ये प॑रा॒वति॑ सुन्वि॒रे जने॒ष्वा ये अ॑र्वा॒वतीन्द॑वः ॥
आ । नः॒ । विश्वे॑षाम् । रस॑म् । मध्वः॑ । सि॒ञ्च॒न्तु॒ । अद्र॑यः । ये । प॒रा॒ऽवति॑ । सु॒न्वि॒रे । जने॑षु । आ । ये । अ॒र्वा॒ऽवति॑ । इन्द॑वः ॥
ā | naḥ | viśveṣām | rasam | madhvaḥ | siñcantu | adrayaḥ | ye | parāvati | sunv ire | janeṣu | ā | ye | arvāvati | indavaḥ
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4 pādas of ~11 syllables (requires śākala recitation check for exact counts)
Forward-driving, expansive cadence suited to invocation and movement of ‘flow’.
Builds a sense of gathering and streaming; supports visualization of a unified current of delight entering the system.
- adrayaḥ
- Literal: pressing-stones. Symbolic: forces of tapas; concentrated disciplines that extract the essence from experience
- rasa
- Literal: sap, juice, essence. Symbolic: quintessence of consciousness; distilled meaning of experiences
- madhvaḥ (madhu)
- Literal: honey, sweetness. Symbolic: ananda; the sweetness of truth-consciousness
- indavaḥ
- Literal: Soma-drops. Symbolic: drops of delight-illumination entering the mind-life
- parāvati
- Literal: far away, distant region. Symbolic: remote or subconscient layers; conditions where delight is not easily accessible
- arvāvati
- Literal: near, this side. Symbolic: the immediate waking field; present accessible consciousness
- sunvire
- Literal: they press/express Soma. Symbolic: inner expression and extraction of delight by practice
Direct Soma-pressing verse: accompaniment to pressing; invocation for the flow of Soma-essence
During pressing and offering sequences; also as a general Soma-invocation within Indra-Soma settings.
Pressing, filtering, and inviting Soma to flow toward the offering and the sacrificer.
Use as a meditation invocation before practice: ‘May the essence of sweetness flow to me’—especially when feeling dryness or fragmentation.
rasa ‘sap/essence’ (√ras ‘taste, relish’) becomes cognitive-affective essence. madhu ‘sweetness’ is both sensory and spiritual delight. adri ‘stone’ in Soma rite; psychologically, the hard instruments that crush and extract the hidden delight. √su ‘press’ is specialized Soma verb. parāvat/arvāvat encode spatial symbolism that readily maps to distant/higher vs near/immediate planes of experience.
rasa as essence of experience, madhu as delight of consciousness (ānanda-tone), unity of distant and near (parāvat / arvāvat) as integration of planes
R̥ta appears as the law of right circulation: the true ‘flow’ of delight from higher to lower nature.
Satya as the ‘essence of all sweetness’—truth experienced as delight rather than concept.
Extraction of essence from the unformed: consciousness ‘pressed’ into articulate delight.
Proto-Vedāntic/Integral Yogic reading (Aurobindo): Soma as Ananda, the fourth principle completing Sat-Cit-Ananda.
A steady inward stream of sweetness and clarity produced by disciplined churning/pressing of experience.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The Soma-extraction mythologem: stones ‘pour’ the essence of sweetness. Innerly, disciplined pressure on the raw substance of life releases rasa (essential delight/meaning), gathered from both distant and near regions—higher and immediate planes—into one stream.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √sic ‘pour’ and the honey/sweetness lexicon participate in a broad IE poetic economy where ‘sweet drink’ signifies divine inspiration. The spatial opposition far/near (parāvat/arvāvat) reflects an archaic binary mapping used to structure cosmology and ritual space.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The r̥ṣi does not command the god but orchestrates conditions: by invoking the adrayaḥ and the indavaḥ, he seeks the descent/arrival of concentrated essence (rasa). The devatā-response is experienced as a flow of delight and illumination entering the human vessel.
Invite a unified current of ananda to descend through the mind-life; practice ‘gathering the sweetness’ from all experiences.
Ājñā–Anāhata axis (clarity + sweetness)
Slow nasal breathing; on inhale ‘ā no’, on exhale imagine Soma-stream pouring down the central channel.
From scattered to collected; from dryness to luminous ease.
Before meditation, recall both ‘far’ and ‘near’ parts of life; offer them to the inner pressing; feel a single stream of sweetness forming and entering the heart-mind.
Vedic svara as per Śākala tradition: maintain udatta peaks on key invocatory words (ā, viśveṣām, madhvaḥ); observe svarita falls on enclitics as marked in pada text.
Keep ‘ā no’ clearly open and long; do not flatten udātta on ‘viśveṣām’ and ‘madhvaḥ’.
adrayaḥ: roll ‘dr’ lightly; final visarga as soft aspiration, indavaḥ: short ‘i’, clear ‘nd’ cluster, parāvati/arvāvati: maintain long ā; articulate v as labio-dental, siñcantu: palatal ‘ñc’ (ny + ch) cleanly
Flowing, liquid tone; sustain vowels to evoke ‘pouring’.
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