Rig Veda 8.21.4: Mandala 8, Sukta 21, Mantra 4
Sukta 8.21
- Devata
- Indra
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Vira (heroism)
वयं हि त्वा बन्धुमन्तमबन्धवो विप्रास इन्द्र येमिम । या ते धामानि वृषभ तेभिरा गहि विश्वेभिः सोमपीतये ॥
vayáṃ hí tvā bandhu-mántam abandhávo víprāsa indra yemimá | yā́ te dhā́māni vṛṣabha tébhir ā́ gahi víśvebhiḥ sóma-pītaye ||
အခြားအထောက်အပံ့မရှိသော်လည်း ကျွန်ုပ်တို့သည် အမှန်တကယ် ဆက်ဆံမှုများ ပြည့်ဝသူအဖြစ် သင့်အား စွဲမြဲစွာ ယူဆပါ၏။ အိန္ဒြာ၊ ကျွန်ုပ်တို့ ပညာရှိများသည် သင့်ကို တစ်စိတ်တစ်ဒေသ တပ်မက်ပါ၏။ တန်ခိုး၏ နွားလား၊ သင့်၏ နေရာဌာနများနှင့် တန်ခိုးများအားလုံးဖြင့် သောမရာသီသောက်ရန် လာပါ။ သင့်၏ တစ်ကိုယ်လုံးဖြင့် ကျွန်ုပ်တို့၏ ပူဇော်ပွဲနှင့် တက်ကြွမှု၌ ဝင်ရောက်ပါ။
Word by Word
- वयम्
- wePronounप्रथमा, बहुवचनRole कर्तृRoot अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- हि
- indeed/forIndeclinableअव्ययRoot हि (निपात)
- त्वा
- youPronounद्वितीया, एकवचनRole कर्मRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- बन्धुमन्तम्
- possessing kin/friendship; a true allyAdjectiveद्वितीया, एकवचन, पुंलिङ्गRole कर्म (त्वा-विशेषणम्)Root बन्धु + मन्त (प्रातिपदिक)
- अबन्धवः
- (we) without kin/without alliesNoun/Adjectiveप्रथमा, बहुवचन, पुंलिङ्गRole कर्तृ (वयम्-समनाधिकरणम्)Root अ- + बन्धु (प्रातिपदिक)
- विप्रासः
- inspired poets/priestsNounप्रथमा, बहुवचन, पुंलिङ्गRole कर्तृ (वयम्-समनाधिकरणम्)Root विप्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- इन्द्र
- O IndraNoun (Vocative)सम्बोधन, एकवचन, पुंलिङ्गRole सम्बोधनRoot इन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- येमिम
- we have held/kept (you); we have restrained/fastened (to us)Verbलिट् (परिप्रास/परोक्शभूत), उत्तमपुरुष, बहुवचन, परस्मैपदRole क्रिया (कर्तृ=वयम्; कर्म=त्वा)Root यम् (धातु)
- या
- which/what (those)Pronounप्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचन, नपुंसकलिङ्ग (सामान्यतः ‘धामानि’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्)Role कर्म/सम्बन्ध (आगमनस्य हेतु-सम्बन्धः)Root यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- ते
- yourPronounषष्ठी, एकवचनRole सम्बन्धRoot युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- धामानि
- abodes/ordinances/powersNounप्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचन, नपुंसकलिङ्गRole कर्म (तेभिः सह ‘आ गहि’ इत्यत्र साधन/सहचर्य-सम्बन्धः)Root धामन् (प्रातिपदिक)
- वृषभ
- O bull (mighty one)Noun (Vocative)सम्बोधन, एकवचन, पुंलिङ्गRole सम्बोधनRoot वृषभ (प्रातिपदिक)
- तेभिः
- with those (with them)Pronounतृतीया, बहुवचन, नपुंसक/पुं (सामान्य सर्वनाम)Role करण/सहचर्यRoot तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- आ
- hither, towardsIndeclinableअव्यय (उपसर्गः ‘गहि’ इत्यस्य)Root आ (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- गहि
- come!Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद (वेदिक रूप ‘गहि’)Role क्रिया (आह्वान)Root गम् (धातु)
- विश्वेभिः
- with all (of them)Adjectiveतृतीया, बहुवचन, पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग (सामान्यतः ‘सोम’/‘सोमपान’ इत्यस्य सहचर्ये)Role करण/सहचर्यRoot विश्व (प्रातिपदिक)
- सोमपीतये
- for soma-drinkingNounचतुर्थी, एकवचन, स्त्रीलिङ्गRole सम्प्रदान (उद्देश्य)Root सोमपीति (सोम + पीति; प्रातिपदिक)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: वयम् | हि | त्वा | बन्धुमन्तम् | अबन्धवः | विप्रासः | इन्द्र | येमिम | या | ते | धामानि | वृषभ | तेभिः | आ | गहि | विश्वेभिः | सोमपीतये । प्रमुख-सन्धयः: (1) त्वा + बन्धुमन्तम् → त्वा बन्धुमन्तम् (पदविरामे सन्धि-निवृत्तिः) (2) बन्धुमन्तम् + अबन्धवः → बन्धुमन्तमबन्धवो (अ + अ → अ; पदे ‘-म’ + ‘अ-’ संयोगः) (3) अबन्धवः + विप्रासः → अबन्धवो विप्रासः (विसर्ग-लोपः/ओ-आदेशः पदसंहितायाम्) (4) तेभिः + आ → तेभिरा (विसर्ग/र्-आदेशः) (5) विश्वेभिः + सोमपीतये → विश्वेभिः सोमपीतये (पदविरामे सन्धि-निवृत्तिः)
The meaning
Outer meaning
We, though without other kin/supports, hold to you who are full of bonds; O Indra, we seers cleave to you. O Bull, come with all your stations/powers for the drinking of Soma.
Inner meaning
The seekers confess inner poverty of supports (abandhavaḥ): when ordinary props fail, they choose the true bond (bandhumantam)—Indra as the genuine connecting power between human effort and divine light. Viprāsaḥ (seers) ‘hold/embrace’ (yemima) Indra: sustained concentration and allegiance. Indra as vṛṣabha (bull) is the puissant force of illumination. ‘Dhāmāni’ are not merely abodes but stable states/planes of power—Indra’s many functional capacities. The call is for Indra to come with all his dhāmas so the Soma-drinking becomes total: the whole being participates in delight and is transformed.
Universal truth
When lesser supports fall away, the deepest bond is with the inner divine; calling the higher power with all its ‘stations’ integrates life—joy, strength, and knowledge—into one ascent.
Themes
Soma-drinking, divine support, bond and correspondence, Indra as bull-force
The seer
Significance
The verse expresses the classic ‘soul-choice’: abandoning secondary dependencies and taking refuge in the divine Friend. This is a key psychological turn in Vedic yoga—shift from external reliance to inner alliance.
The deity
- Devata
- Indra
- Epithets
- bandhumant (full of true bonds), vṛṣabha (bull of force), Somapā (Soma-drinker—implied)
- Related deities
- Soma, Agni, Maruts, Uṣas
Cosmic role
Holds together the powers of ascent; comes with many stations to receive Soma and distribute victory and light.
Inner power
Integrator: gathers scattered energies into a unified, illumined force; establishes stable higher states (dhāmas) in the being.
In ritual
Where it is used
Indra-Soma context: invitation to Indra for Soma-drinking
व॒यं हि त्वा॒ बन्धु॑मन्तमब॒न्धवो॒ विप्रा॑स इन्द्र येमि॒म । या ते॒ धामा॑नि वृषभ॒ तेभि॒रा ग॑हि॒ विश्वे॑भि॒: सोम॑पीतये ॥
व॒यम् । हि । त्वा॒ । बन्धु॑ऽमन्तम् । अ॒ब॒न्धवः॑ । विप्रा॑सः । इ॒न्द्र॒ । ये॒मि॒म । या । ते॒ । धामा॑नि । वृ॒ष॒भ॒ । तेभिः॑ । आ । ग॒हि॒ । विश्वे॑भिः । सोम॑ऽपीतये ॥
vayam | hi | tvā | bandhu-mantam | abandhavaḥ | viprāsaḥ | indra | yemima | yā | te | dhāmāni | vṛṣabha | tebhiḥ | ā | gahi | viśvebhiḥ | soma-pītaye
Triṣṭubh-like (invocation + request; typical 11-syllable cadence)
44
4 pādas of ~11 syllables; strong mid-line pauses on vocatives (indra, vṛṣabha).
Grave and embracing; the rhythm ‘holds’ (yemima) the deity with steady devotion.
Creates a sense of refuge and gathering; good for centering and invoking integral presence.
- बन्धुमन्तम् (bandhumantam)
- Literal: possessing bonds/kinship. Symbolic: the true inner relation—divine companionship and connecting grace
- अबन्धवः (abandhavaḥ)
- Literal: without kin/support. Symbolic: the soul’s recognition of insufficiency of outer props; spiritual dependence on the higher
- विप्रासः (viprāsaḥ)
- Literal: inspired seers. Symbolic: the illumined parts of the mind aspiring to revelation
- धामानि (dhāmāni)
- Literal: abodes, stations. Symbolic: stable states of power/consciousness; functional modalities of Indra
- वृषभ (vṛṣabha)
- Literal: bull. Symbolic: virile, steadfast force of illumination
- सोमपीतये (somapītaye)
- Literal: for Soma-drinking. Symbolic: for receiving and assimilating bliss to empower transformation
Soma invitation with emphasis on Indra’s total presence (all dhāmāni) and the human’s reliance on him as sole bond/support.
During Soma offerings where Indra is invited with his powers
Invitatory recitation preceding libation; mentally assembling one’s faculties for offering
For times of loneliness or lack of support: recite to establish inner kinship with the divine and invite integrated strength.
√yam ‘hold, restrain’ (PIE *yem- ‘hold’). dhā́man- from √dhā ‘to place’ → ‘that which is set/established’ (a station of power). vṛṣabhá- ‘bull’ from √vṛṣ ‘to rain/sprinkle; be virile’—Indra as raining force and potent energy. √gam (gahi) PIE *gʷem- ‘go/come’.
bandhu as inner linkage/correspondence, total descent of divine powers (all dhāmāni), human insufficiency and divine support
Indra’s dhāmas represent ordered powers; when they descend, the being becomes rightly arranged.
Bandhu as truth-connection: the real relationship is with the Truth-consciousness.
Stabilization of higher planes in the human—dhāmas as steps of manifestation.
Integral Vedāntic: descent of higher states into the whole nature.
Bull = steadfast force; stations = stable inner levels; Soma drinking = receiving bliss for empowerment.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The mythologem is ‘the god as the only true kin’: humans ‘without bonds’ take refuge in Indra ‘full of bonds’. Inwardly, the seeker recognizes that scattered human supports cannot found the ascent; only the divine principle can create the binding integration (bandhu) that makes the Soma-delight effective.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √gam ‘come’ is from PIE *gʷem- (cf. Greek baínō is different; Latin veniō is different, but the PIE root is widely attested e.g., Sanskrit gam-, Avestan jam-). √dhā ‘place’ (dhāman) aligns with PIE *dʰeh₁- (cf. Greek títhēmi). These inherited roots underpin the central idea: divine ‘stations’ are ‘placed’ powers that can ‘come’ into the rite.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi speaks as vipra—one who knows by illumination—yet confesses human lack (abandhavaḥ). The relationship is covenantal: the seer holds to Indra (√yam) and calls him to enter with all his established powers (dhāmāni) for Soma-drinking, expecting in return the binding integration and victorious strength that only Indra can provide.
Shift reliance from external supports to the inner divine bond; invite Indra’s ‘dhāmas’ to occupy the whole being.
Anahata (bond/inner friend) and Ajna (seer-mind)
Inhale with ‘vayaṃ hi tvā’; exhale with ‘bandhumantam’; pause and silently feel support; repeat 7–12 times.
Sheltered, unified, receptive to descent.
After recitation, scan the body-mind and invite Indra’s power into each faculty (speech, thought, will, nerves), as if calling ‘all dhāmas’ to assemble.
Emphasize udatta on ‘tvā’, ‘bandhumantam’, ‘indra’, ‘vṛṣabha’, ‘ā gahi’, ‘somapītaye’ (exact svara per recension).
Keep the first half intimate and steady; broaden and strengthen on ‘vṛṣabha… ā gahi’.
‘bandhumantam’: ban-dhu-man-tam (clear ‘ndh’ cluster)., ‘yemima’: ye-mi-ma, keep short vowels clean., ‘somapītaye’: sō-ma-pī-ta-ye, long ī.
Warm, devotional, with a strong but calm crest on the invitation.
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Rig Veda in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.
