Rig Veda 8.24.2: Mandala 8, Sukta 24, Mantra 2
Sukta 8.24
- Devata
- Indra
- Chandas
- Anuṣṭubh
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Adbhuta (wonder)
शवसा ह्यसि श्रुतो वृत्रहत्येन वृत्रहा । मघैर्मघोनो अति शूर दाशसि ॥
śávasā hí ási śrutó vṛtrahátyena vṛtrahā́ | magháir maghóno áti śūra dāśasi ||
Kerana dengan kekuatan semata engkau termasyhur—dengan pembunuhan Sang Penutup engkau ialah pembunuh Sang Penutup. Wahai Wira, dengan kurnia-kurniamu engkau mengatasi semua yang pemurah; engkau membahagi kelimpahan melampaui sukatan.
Word by Word
- शवसा
- by/with might, through strengthNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया विभक्ति; एकवचनRole करणRoot शवस् (प्रातिपदिक) < √शू/श्वि (बलार्थ) (निघण्टु-सम्बद्ध)
- हि
- for, indeedIndeclinableनिपात (अव्यय)Root हि (निपात)
- असि
- you areVerbलट् (वर्तमान); मध्यमपुरुष; एकवचनRoot √अस् (भू-सत्तायाम्)
- श्रुतः
- renowned, famedAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; एकवचन (कर्तरि/कर्मणि भूतकृदन्त; ‘heard/renowned’)Role कर्तृ-विशेषणRoot √श्रु (श्रवणे) → श्रुत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
- वृत्रहत्येन
- by the slaying of Vṛtra (Vṛtra-killing)Nounस्त्रीलिङ्ग; तृतीया विभक्ति; एकवचनRole करणRoot वृत्रहत्य (प्रातिपदिक) = वृत्र + हत्य (हत्या)
- वृत्रहा
- Vṛtra-slayerNounपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; एकवचनRole कर्तृRoot वृत्रहन् (प्रातिपदिक) = वृत्र + हन् (घ्नन्त्-समास; ‘slayer’)
- मघैः
- with gifts, with bountiesNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया विभक्ति; बहुवचनRole करणRoot मघ (प्रातिपदिक)
- मघोनः
- of the bountiful one (of the generous lord)Adjectiveपुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी विभक्ति; एकवचन (इन्द्रस्य)Role सम्बन्ध (षष्ठी)Root मघवन्/मघोन (प्रातिपदिक; ‘bountiful, giver’)
- अति
- beyond, exceedinglyIndeclinableअव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण/उपसर्गार्थ (अतिक्रमण/अतिशय)Root अति (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- शूर
- O heroNounपुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन; एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot शूर (प्रातिपदिक)
- दाशसि
- you give, you bestowVerbलट् (वर्तमान); मध्यमपुरुष; एकवचनRoot √दाश् (दान/पूजन/सेवनार्थ; ‘to give, to bestow’)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: शवसा | हि | असि | श्रुतः | वृत्रहत्येन | वृत्रहा | मघैः | मघोनः | अति | शूर | दाशसि । 1) ह्यसि = हि + असि (यणादेश/व्यञ्जनसन्धि: इ + अ → य; ‘हि’ → ‘ह्य’).
- ‘वृत्रहा’ समास-निष्पन्न प्रातिपदिक (वृत्र + हन्)
The meaning
Outer meaning
Indra is famed for strength and for slaying Vṛtra; by his gifts he surpasses all other givers and bestows abundant riches.
Inner meaning
The illumined Mind-Power (Indra) is known inwardly by its effective force (śavas) that breaks the Coverer (Vṛtra)—the inertia, obscurity, and subconscient resistance that blocks the flow of higher light. When that obstruction is slain, Indra’s “gifts” are the descending powers of clarity, courage, right discernment, and victorious energy that exceed ordinary capacities and multiply the soul’s plenitudes beyond habitual measure.
Universal truth
True spiritual progress is recognized not by belief but by the tangible breaking of inner resistance and the spontaneous increase of luminous capacities—an overflowing giving from the higher consciousness that outstrips the limited ego’s resources.
Themes
Vṛtra-slaying, Heroic force, Divine generosity, Surpassing abundance
The seer
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 8.24.1, Rig Veda 8.24.3, Rig Veda 8.24.4, Rig Veda 8.24.5, Rig Veda 8.24.6
Family tradition
Likely Kāṇva milieu of Indra hymns in Maṇḍala 8; emphasis on energetic victory and largess.
Significance
The seer-voice here is the practical yogin: Indra is invoked as the demonstrable power that breaks inner obstruction and turns victory into concrete increase of consciousness and capacity.
The deity
- Devata
- Indra
- Epithets
- vṛtrahā (slayer of the Coverer), śūra (hero), maghavan (bountiful, implicit through magha/maghona)
- Related deities
- Agni, Soma, Bṛhaspati, Uṣas, Maruts
Cosmic role
Champion of the gods who releases the waters/light by breaking the obstructing power; establishes wideness and right order for the worlds.
Inner power
Illuminated intelligence and victorious will in the mental being—decisive force that pierces confusion, defeats inertia, and brings down abundant faculties.
In ritual
Where it is used
Indra-stotra in Soma-related praise cycles (general)
शव॑सा॒ ह्यसि॑ श्रु॒तो वृ॑त्र॒हत्ये॑न वृत्र॒हा । म॒घैर्म॒घोनो॒ अति॑ शूर दाशसि ॥
शव॑सा । हि । असि॑ । श्रु॒तः । वृ॒त्र॒ऽहत्ये॑न । वृ॒त्र॒ऽहा । म॒घैः । म॒घोनः॑ । अति॑ । शू॒र॒ । दा॒श॒सि॒ ॥
śavasā | hi | asi | śrutaḥ | vṛtra-hatyena | vṛtra-hā | maghaiḥ | maghonaḥ | ati | śūra | dāśasi
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4 pādas × ~8 syllables (probable)
Compact, hammer-like cadence suited to assertion and victory-formulae.
Builds confidence and forward drive; the short pādas make the ‘vṛtrahā’ emphasis feel like repeated inner blows against resistance.
- śavasā
- Literal: by force, strength. Symbolic: effective soul-force / divine dynamism enabling inner victory
- śrutaḥ
- Literal: heard of, famed. Symbolic: verified in experience; known by results in consciousness
- vṛtra-hatyena
- Literal: by the slaying of Vṛtra. Symbolic: act of removing the obstructing cover over light and wideness
- vṛtra-hā
- Literal: slayer of Vṛtra. Symbolic: the illumined mind-force that conquers obscurity
- maghaiḥ
- Literal: by gifts, bounties. Symbolic: inpourings of power, light, joy, and capacity
- maghonaḥ
- Literal: the bountiful (givers). Symbolic: lesser beneficent forces/ordinary attainments surpassed by the higher descent
- śūra
- Literal: hero. Symbolic: the courageous divine power in the seeker’s nature
- dāśasi
- Literal: you give, apportion. Symbolic: the Divine Mind distributes inner riches according to receptivity
Indra praise for empowerment and overcoming obstacles; often congruent with Soma-offerings to Indra in victory/strength contexts.
During Indra invocations in Soma pressing/offerings; also as a victory-prayer in communal rites.
Recitation/chant with oblations to Indra; affirmation of Vṛtra-slaying power and request for plenitude.
Use as a mantra of ‘breakthrough’: recite when facing mental heaviness, procrastination, fear, or confusion; pair with a resolve to act from clarity.
śavas- (instr sg śavasā): from √śū/√śvi? Vedic śavas denotes 'force, might, vigor' (heroic energy). vṛtra-: from √vṛ 'to cover, obstruct' → 'the Coverer' (psychologically, ignorance/obstruction). -hatyā: action noun from √han 'to strike/kill' → the act of smiting obstruction. magha-: 'gift, bounty, plenitude' (semantic extension: fullness of force/fortune). dāśasi: 2sg pres act; Vedic verb of giving/apportioning, used for divine bestowal.
Rita as victory of right movement over obstruction, Tapas/śavas as concentrated force
Indra’s Vṛtra-slaying restores the free movement of powers needed for R̥ta in the being.
Strength becomes ‘true’ when it results in liberation of light and increase of right capacities.
Release of blocked plenitudes; widening after the breaking of the cover.
Proto-Vedāntic/Integral (Aurobindonian) reading: evolution of consciousness through descents of higher mind.
Storm-force = dynamic awakening; ‘cover’ = subconscient inertia; ‘gifts’ = descending luminous energies and wideness.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Explicit Vṛtra-slaying: Indra as the archetypal breaker of the covering power that withholds waters/light. In inner terms, the slaying is the decisive rupture of ignorance and inertia so the streams of consciousness can flow.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- naming vṛtra from √vṛ 'cover' parallels broad IE imagery of 'covering' as obstruction; han 'strike/kill' is an old Indo-European verbal idea (cf. various IE 'strike' roots, though direct cognate mapping is complex). nṛ/śūra belong to the inherited heroic diction shared across Indo-Iranian and wider IE poetics.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The poet establishes Indra’s credential (renown through Vṛtra-slaying) to ground a claim upon his generosity: because Indra breaks obstruction, he also 'gives' magha—inner plenitudes and effective powers—surpassing all other givers.
Invoke the ‘Indra-force’ to strike through a specific inner obstruction (tamasic heaviness, fear, doubt) and call down a measurable increase of clarity and capacity.
maṇipūra (will-force) and ājñā (illumined mind)
4-4-6 breathing (inhale 4, hold 4, exhale 6) while mentally repeating vṛtrahā on the exhale.
Energized, decisive, forward-moving clarity.
Name the ‘Vṛtra’ you feel (one sentence). Chant once slowly for meaning, then 9 or 27 times with emphasis on vṛtrahā; end by sitting 2 minutes in silence to notice what ‘gift’ (magha) arrives—an idea, courage, or a clean impulse to act.
Notated svara unavailable in input; chant with Rigvedic-style udatta prominence on key words (śavasā, vṛtrahā, maghaiḥ).
Give a firm lift on vṛtra-hatyena and vṛtra-hā; keep the cadence clipped in anuṣṭubh quarters.
śavasā: ‘śa-va-sā’ (palatal ś), vṛtra: vocalic ṛ (vri-tra, not ‘virtra’), hatyena: ‘hat-ye-na’ (clear ‘y’), maghaiḥ: final ḥ as light aspiration, śūra: long ū sustained
Steady, resonant, martial clarity (not shouted).
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