Rig Veda 1.13.9: Mandala 1, Sukta 13, Mantra 9
Sukta 1.13
- Rishi
- Kaṇva
- Devata
- Ilā, Sarasvatī, Mahī
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Adbhuta (wonder)
इळा सरस्वती मही तिस्रो देवीर्मयोभुवः । बर्हिः सीदन्त्वस्रिधः ॥
iḷā́ sárasvatī mahī́ tisró devī́r mayobhúvaḥ | bárhiḥ sīdantv asrídhaḥ ||
इळा, सरस्वती, महती मही—या तिन्ही मयोभू (आनंददायिनी) देव्या; त्या अस्रिध (अक्षत, निर्दोष) होऊन बर्हिस्वर आसनस्थ व्हाव्यात.
Word by Word
- इळा
- Iḷā (goddess of invocation/refreshment)Nounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole कर्तृRoot इळा (प्रातिपदिक) < इड्/इळ् (स्तुति/आह्वान-सम्बद्ध) वैदिक देवीनाम
- सरस्वती
- SarasvatīNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole कर्तृRoot सरस्वती (प्रातिपदिक) < सरस् + वती
- मही
- greatAdjectiveस्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (देवी-विशेषणम्)Role कर्तृ (विशेषण-रूपेण)Root मही (प्रातिपदिक) < मह् (to be great) / महत्-सम्बद्ध
- तिस्रः
- threeAdjective (Numeral)स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole कर्तृ (समूह)Root त्रि (संख्याप्रातिपदिक)
- देवीः
- goddessesNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचनRole कर्तृRoot देवी (प्रातिपदिक) < देव
- मयोभुवः
- well-being-bringing, bliss-bestowingAdjectiveस्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन (देवीः-विशेषणम्)Role कर्तृ (विशेषण-रूपेण)Root मयोभू (प्रातिपदिक) < मयस्/मयः (आनन्द/सुख) + भू (to be)
- बर्हिः
- the sacrificial grass (barhis)Nounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनRole कर्तृRoot बर्हिस् (प्रातिपदिक)
- सीदन्तु
- let them sit / may they sitVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ/विधिलिङ्-प्राय), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन, परस्मैपदRole (क्रिया)Root सद् (धातु) — ‘to sit, to settle’
- अस्रिधः
- unfailing, unerringAdjectiveस्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन (तिस्रः/देवीः-विशेषणम्)Role कर्तृ (विशेषण-रूपेण)Root अस्रिध् (प्रातिपदिक) < a- (निषेध) + स्रिध् (to fail, be lax) वैदिक
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः (RV-पदपाठानुसार): इळा । सरस्वती । मही । तिस्रः । देवीः । मयोभुवः । बर्हिः । सीदन्तु ।
- ‘दे॒वीर्म॑यो॒भुव॑:’ इत्यत्र संहितायां देवीः + मयोभुवः (विसर्गलोप/रकारादेशः) → ‘देवीर्मयोभुवः’।
The meaning
Outer meaning
A prayer that the three beneficent goddesses—Ilā, Sarasvatī, and Mahī—sit upon the sacred barhis (the strewn sacrificial grass), uninjured and flawless, to support the rite.
Inner meaning
The triad of divine Shaktis is invoked to take seat in the prepared inner field of consciousness (barhis). Ilā steadies right perception and receptivity; Sarasvatī brings inspired flow and discriminating truth-word; Mahī widens and grounds the being in vastness. “Uninjuring, without defect” indicates a harmony that does not tear the nature by violent tapas but establishes an integral, ordered offering.
Universal truth
Illumination is stable when receptivity, inspired truth-speech, and vast grounded harmony descend together into a prepared inner space; then the sacrifice of life becomes whole and non-fracturing.
Themes
Invocation, Soma-ritual, Installation of divine powers, Inspired speech and knowledge-flow, Inner sacrifice (adhyātma-yajña)
The seer
- Rishi
- Kaṇva
- Lineage
- Kaṇva (Kaṇva-gotra)
- Other hymns
- RV 1.13, RV 1.14, RV 1.15 (Kaṇva cycle around Agni/Indra/Viśve Devāḥ)
Family tradition
Kaṇvas are noted for practical yogic ritualism: mantric precision joined to an inner psychology of the yajña—invoking powers as living forces in consciousness.
Significance
Kaṇva’s voice here is that of the organizer of the inner sacrifice: he seats the supporting Shaktis first, so the later invocations (to the fashioner, carriers, and Indra) can act without distortion.
The deity
- Devata
- Ilā–Sarasvatī–Mahī (triad)
- Epithets
- tisraḥ devīḥ, mayaḥ-bhuvaḥ, asridhaḥ
- Related deities
- Vāc, Aditi (wideness), Bhāratī (often paired with Ilā/Sarasvatī in invocations)
Cosmic role
Supportive goddesses of the yajña: they establish right order (ṛta) in offering, speech, and the field of manifestation.
Inner power
A triple Shakti that (1) receives truth, (2) expresses truth, (3) widens and stabilizes truth in life.
In ritual
Where it is used
Agniṣṭoma/Soma-yāga invocatory sequence; also general āhavana invocations in agni-yajña
इळा॒ सर॑स्वती म॒ही ति॒स्रो दे॒वीर्म॑यो॒भुव॑: । ब॒र्हिः सी॑दन्त्व॒स्रिध॑: ॥
इळा॑ । सर॑स्वती । म॒ही । ति॒स्रः । दे॒वीः । म॒यः॒ऽभुवः॑ । ब॒र्हिः । सी॒द॒न्तु॒ । अ॒स्त्रिधः॑ ॥
iḷā | sarasvatī | mahī | tisraḥ | devīḥ | mayaḥ-bhuvaḥ | barhiḥ | sīdantu | asridhaḥ
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4 pādas × 8 syllables (typical anuṣṭubh cadence)
Balanced, steady, invocatory; suited to ‘seating’ and establishing harmony.
Creates composure and order—good for stabilizing the mind before deeper offerings or japa.
- इळा (iḷā)
- Literal: Ilā, a goddess associated with nourishment/oblation. Symbolic: Right receptivity and intuitive perception that receives the truth into the being
- सरस्वती (sarasvatī)
- Literal: Sarasvatī, the flowing one; goddess of speech and inspiration. Symbolic: Inspired speech (vāk), luminous discernment, and the streaming current of right knowledge
- मही (mahī)
- Literal: Mahī, the great/earth-like vast one. Symbolic: Vastness, wideness and stable foundation for the descent of higher powers
- तिस्रः देवीः (tisraḥ devīḥ)
- Literal: three goddesses. Symbolic: A coordinated triune power needed for integral offering: receptivity–inspiration–vastness
- मयोभुवः (mayaḥ-bhuvaḥ)
- Literal: bringing delight/pleasantness. Symbolic: Powers that generate inner ease, ananda-support, and healing harmony in sadhana
- बर्हिः (barhiḥ)
- Literal: sacrificial grass spread as a seat. Symbolic: Prepared inner ground: purified mind-life-body made ready to host the divine presence
- अस्रिधः (asridhaḥ)
- Literal: uninjured, not torn, faultless. Symbolic: Integral harmony; a descent that does not distort or fracture the nature
Agni-led soma offering context: invitation/installation of divine powers on the barhis during the soma-yajña (general śrauta soma liturgy; also applicable as an invocation of vāg/inspiration powers).
At the opening/establishment of the offering-seat and invitation of supportive deities
Strewing barhis; inviting devīs to “sit” and sustain the rite
Before meditation: mentally ‘spread the barhis’ by relaxing the body, quieting breath, and inviting receptivity–inspiration–vastness to settle in awareness.
Key terms: (1) sīdantu: √sad ‘to sit, settle, be established’ (imperative/benedictive 3pl), indicating descent and stable installation of the powers. (2) mayobhúvaḥ: mayaḥ ‘delight, refreshment, healing joy’ + bhū ‘to become, bring into being’ → ‘those who bring delight into manifestation’; supports the inner-sense reading of spiritual well-being rather than material comfort. (3) asrídhaḥ: a- (negation) + sridh/sṛdh ‘to injure, fail, be defective’ → ‘without defect, not failing’; marks the integrity of the invoked śaktis. (4) Sarasvatī from saras ‘flow, lake, stream’ + -vatī ‘possessing’ → ‘she who possesses the flow’ (of inspiration/knowledge). (5) Mahī from mah ‘great, vast’ (cf. mahát) → wideness; Ilā traditionally linked with speech/ordering of offering; philologically opaque, but consistently functions as a goddess of right formulation and nourishment of the rite.
Ṛta (right order of the rite and of inner truth), Vāc / inspired speech as a vehicle of truth-knowledge, Bṛhat (vastness) as a condition for holding the divine action
The devīs are invoked to seat ṛta in the field of the sacrifice—order in thought, word, and act.
Truth becomes effective when received (Ilā), rightly expressed (Sarasvatī), and held in wideness (Mahī).
Manifestation as a harmonized descent of powers into a prepared ‘seat’ (adhāra).
Proto-Vedāntic / integral yoga reading (Aurobindo–Kashyap): deities as psychological-cosmic powers acting in consciousness.
The ‘seat’ is the purified nervous system and mind; the ‘river’ is the current of inspiration; the ‘earth-vastness’ is wideness that can hold higher force without strain.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The ‘descent and seating of the goddesses on the barhis’: a recurrent yajña-mythologem where divine powers are invited to ‘sit’ in the prepared field. In inner terms, it is the stabilization of three complementary faculties—right formulation (Ilā), inspired flow of truth (Sarasvatī), and wideness (Mahī)—so the sacrifice can proceed in ṛta without rupture (asrídhaḥ).
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- The verb √sad ‘sit’ (sīdantu) continues PIE *sed- ‘to sit’ (cf. Lat. sedēre, Gk. hézomai via *sed-, Eng. sit is Germanic *sit- but semantically aligned). The semantic field of ‘establishing/settling’ supports both ritual seating and psychological installation. The formation of mayobhúvaḥ illustrates productive Indo-Aryan compounding with bhū ‘become’ (< PIE *bʰuH- ‘to be, become’; cf. Eng. be).
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The seer does not bargain for outer goods but asks for the operative presence of the powers themselves: ‘sit upon the barhis’ implies reciprocity—human preparation (barhis as purified ground/attention) is met by divine establishment (sīdantu). The requested boon is their flawless action (asrídhaḥ), i.e., an unbroken guidance of speech, inspiration, and wideness so the human offering aligns with ṛta.
Invite the triple support: receptivity (Ilā), inspired truth-word (Sarasvatī), wideness (Mahī) to settle in the inner space before mantra-japa.
Viśuddha (Sarasvatī/vāk) and Ājñā (illumined understanding), supported by Anāhata wideness (Mahī).
Gentle nāḍī-śodhana or equal breathing (sama-vṛtti) for 7–12 cycles, then chant once slowly.
Quiet, receptive, widened awareness (calm descent).
First ‘prepare the barhis’: relax jaw/throat, soften belly, widen attention around the heart-space; then chant and pause in silence, sensing the threefold settling.
Vedic accents as in Saṃhitā: maintain udātta on marked syllables (e.g., इळा॒, सर॑स्वती), anudātta on unmarked lows, svarita on following falls; avoid flattening the cadence.
Let the udātta syllable be slightly raised and clearer; do not over-sing—keep a steady anuṣṭubh pulse.
ḷ in iḻā: retroflex lateral (iḷā), not dental l, sarasvatī: keep ‘sva’ light, do not insert extra vowel, asridhaḥ: pronounce ‘sr’ cluster cleanly; final ḥ as soft aspiration
Clear, settled, slightly resonant in the chest and throat (supporting ‘seating’).
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