Rig Veda 1.91.19: Mandala 1, Sukta 91, Mantra 19
Sukta 1.91
- Devata
- Soma
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Shanta (peace)
या ते धामानि हविषा यजन्ति ता ते विश्वा परिभूरस्तु यज्ञम् । गयस्फानः प्रतरणः सुवीरोऽवीरहा प्र चरा सोम दुर्यान् ॥
yā́ te dhā́māni havíṣā yájanti tā́ te víśvā paribhū́r astu yajñám | gaya-sphā́naḥ pra-táraṇaḥ su-vī́ro 'vīra-hā́ prá carā soma duryā́n ||
Wahai Soma, apa pun dhāman (kedudukan-kedudukan suci) dan keadaan kuasa-Mu yang mereka sembah dengan havis (persembahan), semoga semuanya itu melingkupi dan menguasai yajña (korban suci) kami. Wahai Soma, pengembang hayat, penyelamat yang menjangkau jauh, penganugerahi kepahlawanan sejati, pembinasa yang tidak gagah—melangkahlah maju melalui kediaman batin kami.
Word by Word
- या
- which (those)Pronounfeminine, nominative pluralRole KartāRoot यद् (sarvanāma-prātipadika)
- ते
- of you / yourPronoungenitive singular (enclitic)Role Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandhaRoot युष्मद् (sarvanāma-prātipadika)
- धामानि
- abodes; ordinances; powersNounneuter, nominative/accusative pluralRole KarmaRoot धामन् (prātipadika)
- हविषा
- with oblationNounneuter, instrumental singularRole KaraṇaRoot हविस् (prātipadika)
- यजन्ति
- they worship; they sacrificeVerbpresent (laṭ), 3rd person plural, parasmaipadaRole (finite verb)Root यज्
- ता
- thosePronounfeminine, nominative pluralRole KartāRoot तद् (sarvanāma-prātipadika)
- ते
- to youPronoundative singular (enclitic)Role SampradānaRoot युष्मद् (sarvanāma-prātipadika)
- विश्वा
- all (things)Adjective (used substantively)neuter, nominative/accusative pluralRole Karma (with implied ‘make/bring’)Root विश्व (prātipadika)
- परिभूः
- overlord; one who surpasses (all)Noun (agent noun)masculine, nominative singularRole KartāRoot परि-भू (dhātu: भू with preverb परि)
- अस्तु
- let (him/it) beVerbimperative (loṭ), 3rd person singular, parasmaipadaRole (finite verb)Root अस्
- यज्ञम्
- sacrifice; riteNounmasculine, accusative singularRole KarmaRoot यज्ञ (prātipadika)
- गयस्फानः
- Gayasphāna (Soma-epithet; ‘swelling with life/household prosperity’)Adjective/Noun (epithet)masculine, nominative singularRole Kartā (apposition to Soma)Root गयस्फान (prātipadika; epithet of Soma)
- प्रतरणः
- the one who helps to cross; delivererAdjective/Noun (agent)masculine, nominative singularRole Kartā (apposition)Root प्र-तॄ (dhātu: तॄ ‘to cross’ with preverb प्र) → प्रतरण (agent noun)
- सुवीरः
- having good heroes/sons; strong in heroesAdjectivemasculine, nominative singularRole Kartā (apposition)Root सु-वीर (prātipadika)
- अवीरहा
- not slaying heroes; not man-destroyingAdjectivemasculine, nominative singularRole Kartā (apposition)Root अ-वीर-हन् (prātipadika; nañ + vīra + han ‘slay’)
- प्र
- forth; forwardIndeclinablepreverb/adverbRole (modifies verb)Root प्र (upasarga/avyaya)
- चर
- move; go; proceedVerbimperative (loṭ), 2nd person singular, parasmaipadaRole (finite verb)Root चर्
- सोम
- O SomaNoun (deity)masculine, vocative singularRole SambodhanaRoot सोम (prātipadika)
- दुर्यान्
- households; homesAdjective (used substantively)masculine, accusative pluralRole Karma (goal/objects of motion)Root दुर्य (prātipadika; ‘of the house/home’)
Sandhi Notes
- Sandhi resolved: (1) ते धामानि (no change)
- (2) यजन्ति ता (no change)
- (3) परिभूर् अस्तु → परिभूः अस्तु (final -r before vowel realized as visarga in pada)
- (4) सुवीरः अवीरहा → सुवीरः + अवीरहा (written in saṃhitā as सुवीरोऽवीरहा with avagraha: -o + a-)
- (5) सोम दुर्यान् (no change)
- Accent marks in the saṃhitā text are noted but not re-applied in the pada forms here
The meaning
Outer meaning
Whatever seats/stations of Soma are worshiped with offerings—may they all encompass and master our sacrifice. Soma, enlarger of life, deliverer, giver of heroes, slayer of the unheroic—move through our dwellings.
Inner meaning
Soma has many dhāman—states of power and modes of presence in consciousness. The seeker asks that all these powers not remain partial but surround and govern the inner yajña (the whole sādhana). As gayasphānaḥ, Soma expands life-force into a larger, freer vitality; as prataraṇaḥ, he carries us safely across difficulties; as suvīraḥ, he births true heroic energies (courage, perseverance, illumined action); as avīrahā, he destroys the false ‘heroism’—the inert, cowardly, or egoistic vital that cannot fight for truth. ‘Move through our inner dwellings’ means pervade the layers of our being—body, life, mind—so the delight-consciousness becomes an indwelling governor.
Universal truth
Spiritual transformation requires the total presence of the higher delight in all parts of the being; then life expands, obstacles are crossed, true strength arises, and weakness/inertia is dissolved.
Themes
Pervasion, Inner heroism, Life-expansion, Soma as deliverer
The seer
- Rishi
- Kavi of the Soma hymns (traditionally aligned with Kāṇva stream)
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 1.91.1-23
Significance
The seer emphasizes integral yoga: Soma must not be a momentary ecstasy but an all-encompassing mastery moving through the whole being.
The deity
- Devata
- Soma
- Epithets
- paribhū (all-encompassing master), gayasphāna (enlarger of life), prataraṇa (deliverer), suvīra (giver of true heroism), avīrahā (slayer of the unheroic)
- Related deities
- Indra (victory/illumination), Agni (will and offering)
Cosmic role
Soma pervades and sustains the sacrifice, empowering gods and establishing victorious movement through difficulty.
Inner power
Pervasive Ananda that expands prāṇa, creates courage, and eliminates tamasic weakness.
In ritual
Where it is used
Soma-yāga praises; invocation for Soma’s pervasive support
या ते॒ धामा॑नि ह॒विषा॒ यज॑न्ति॒ ता ते॒ विश्वा॑ परि॒भूर॑स्तु य॒ज्ञम् । ग॒य॒स्फान॑: प्र॒तर॑णः सु॒वीरोऽवी॑रहा॒ प्र च॑रा सोम॒ दुर्या॑न् ॥
या । ते॒ । धामा॑नि । ह॒विषा॑ । यज॑न्ति । ता । ते॒ । विश्वा॑ । प॒रि॒ऽभूः । अ॒स्तु॒ । य॒ज्ञम् । ग॒य॒ऽस्फानः॑ । प्र॒ऽतर॑णः । सु॒ऽवीरः॑ । अवी॑रऽहा । प्र । च॒र॒ । सो॒म॒ । दुर्या॑न् ॥
yā | te | dhāmāni | haviṣā | yajanti | tā | te | viśvā | pari-bhūḥ | astu | yajñam | gaya-sphānaḥ | pra-taraṇaḥ | su-vīraḥ | avīra-hā | pra | cara | soma | duryān
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4 × ~11
Encircling, governing movement—phrases feel like a protective perimeter around the yajña.
Invokes a sense of being ‘held’ by a larger power; energizes courage and forward motion.
- धामानि (dhāmāni)
- Literal: seats, abodes, stations. Symbolic: states/planes and modalities of Soma’s power in consciousness
- हविषा (haviṣā)
- Literal: with the oblation. Symbolic: with offered energies—attention, aspiration, surrender
- परिभूः (paribhūḥ)
- Literal: encompassing, overpowering. Symbolic: total mastery that surrounds the sadhana and governs it
- यज्ञम् (yajñam)
- Literal: sacrifice. Symbolic: the inner work of self-offering and transformation
- गयस्फानः (gayasphānaḥ)
- Literal: swelling life, enlarger of vitality. Symbolic: expander of prāṇa into a larger life-force under Ananda
- प्रतर॑णः (prataraṇaḥ)
- Literal: one who carries across. Symbolic: deliverer across inner crises and resistances
- सुवीरः (suvīraḥ)
- Literal: good hero, giver of heroes. Symbolic: producer of true spiritual courage and effective action
- अवीरहा (avīrahā)
- Literal: slayer of the unheroic. Symbolic: destroyer of inertia, fear, and ego-vital incapacity
- दुर्यान् (duryān)
- Literal: dwellings, houses. Symbolic: inner habitations—layers of the being where Soma must circulate
Soma invoked to pervade the yajña and the sacrificer’s ‘dwellings’; a formula for ensuring Soma’s complete presence through the rite and its inner correspondences.
When seeking Soma’s comprehensive aid and protection of the rite and participants.
Chanted as laud and request for Soma to pervade the sacrificial space (outer and inner).
As a protective-pervasive meditation: invite delight to move through the ‘rooms’ of the psyche, clearing fear and inertia.
dhā́man- from √dhā ‘to set/establish’ → ‘seat, ordinance, domain’; paribhū́- (nom. sg.) pari- + √bhū ‘become, be’ meaning ‘overlordship, encompassing mastery’; gaya-sphāna-: sphā ‘to swell, expand’ (cf. sphīta) + gaya ‘life’; pra-táraṇa- from √tṛ ‘cross over’ (PIE *terh₁- ‘cross’); duryá- ‘household, dwelling’ (inner psychical ‘rooms’).
Dhāman as law/seat of power (ordered by Rita), Heroism (vīra) as inner strength against inertia, Pervasion of the sacrifice as total consecration
paribhūḥ: r̥ta as an encompassing governance rather than fragmented effort.
suvīra: strength aligned with truth, not ego.
Pervasion of dhāman through duryān: descent of higher power into embodied life.
Integral-Vedic psychology (Aurobindo/Kashyap style: pervasion and transformation of all parts).
Moon-Soma as circulating cool force through inner channels; ‘crossing’ as passage through inner darkness to wider life.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Soma as the pervading lord of the sacrifice who enters and ranges through the ‘dwellings,’ expanding life and destroying unheroic weakness—an inner house-cleansing and empowerment myth.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- pra-táraṇa (√tṛ ‘cross’) reflects PIE *terh₁- ‘to cross over’ (cf. Latin trans). The inherited spatial metaphors (‘encompass,’ ‘dwellings’) are used to encode psychological pervasion.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi asks Soma’s dhāman-powers to become ‘paribhū’ of the yajña—i.e., to take sovereign charge of the inner-outer rite—so the divine force actively reorganizes the sacrificer’s inner spaces.
Invite Soma to pervade all ‘dhāman’ in you—thought, emotion, sensation—so the practice is governed by delight rather than strain.
Anāhata (life-expansion) and Ājñā (governance/command)
Slow inhalation imagining Soma entering each ‘duryā’; slow exhalation releasing ‘avīra’ inertia; repeat.
Protected, widened, courageous.
Scan the body-mind as a house; on ‘pra carā’ feel Soma moving room to room, replacing fear with quiet heroism.
Vedic udatta/anudatta/svarita as per recension; keep compound epithets clearly segmented.
Give a slight lift on key epithets (gayasphānaḥ, prataraṇaḥ, suvīraḥ) to emphasize the rising power.
dhāmāni: long ā., haviṣā: ṣ retroflex; keep i short., paribhūr: lengthen ū; light rolling r., avīrahā: long ī; avoid turning v into b.
Protective, pervading resonance; less sharp, more enveloping.
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