Rig Veda 9.39.4: Mandala 9, Sukta 39, Mantra 4
Sukta 9.39
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna
- Rasa
- Adbhuta (wonder) and Shanta (peace)
अयं स यो दिवस्परि रघुयामा पवित्र आ । सिन्धोरूर्मा व्यक्षरत् ॥
ayáṃ sá yó divás pári raghu-yā́mā pavítra ā́ | síndhor ūrmā́ vy àkṣarat ||
ଏହି ସେଇ—ନିଜ ଦ୍ରୁତ ଗତିପଥରେ ଚଞ୍ଚଳ, ଦିବ୍ୟର ପାରରୁ ପବିତ୍ର ପାଖକୁ ଆସେ; ମହାନଦୀର ତରଙ୍ଗ ପରି ନିଜକୁ ଢାଳି ଦେଇ ବ୍ୟାପିଯାଏ।
Word by Word
- अयम्
- this (one)Pronounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role कर्तृ (सिन्धोः ऊर्मा इत्यस्य निर्देशः) / विषय-निर्देशकःRoot इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → अयम्
- सः
- he/that (same one)Pronounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role कर्तृ/विषय-निर्देशकः (अयम् इत्यस्य पुनर्निर्देशः)Root तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) → सः
- यः
- whoPronounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role कर्तृ (यः… व्यक्षरत्)Root यद् (सम्बन्ध-सर्वनाम) → यः
- दिवः
- of heaven / from the skyNounस्त्रीलिङ्गः (द्यौः), षष्ठी, एकवचनम्Role अपादान/सम्बन्ध (दिवः परि = heaven’s/from heaven around)Root दिव्/द्यौः (प्रातिपदिक: दिव्/द्यौ-) → दिवः
- परि
- around, from all aroundIndeclinableअव्ययम् (उपसर्ग/पूर्वपद-भावः)Role अधिकारण-सम्बन्ध (परितः/चारितः)Root परि (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- रघुयामा
- swift-going, of rapid courseAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम् (विशेषणम्)Role कर्तृ-विशेषणम् (यः… पवित्रः)Root रघु- (प्रातिपदिक) + यामन्/याम (प्रातिपदिक) → बहुव्रीहि/कर्मधारय-समासः
- पवित्रः
- the purifier; the straining (Soma)Noun/Adjectiveपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role कर्तृ (सोमः/धारः—‘the purifier/through the strainer’)Root पवित्र (प्रातिपदिक; ‘purifying/strainer’)
- आ
- towards, forthIndeclinableअव्ययम् (उपसर्ग)Role क्रिया-विशेषकः (आ- = towards/into, intensifier)Root आ (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- सिन्धोः
- of the river/streamNounपुंलिङ्गः, षष्ठी, एकवचनम्Role सम्बन्ध (ऊर्मा = ‘of the river/stream’)Root सिन्धु (प्रातिपदिक)
- ऊर्मा
- wave, surgeNounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्Role कर्तृ (व्यक्षरत्)Root ऊर्मि (प्रातिपदिक) → ऊर्मा (वैदिकः प्रथमा एकवचन-रूपम्)
- वि
- forth, out, widelyIndeclinableअव्ययम् (उपसर्ग)Role क्रिया-विशेषकः (वि- = apart, forth, distinctly)Root वि (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- अक्षरत्
- flowed, streamedVerbलङ् (अनद्यतन-भूत), प्रथमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्Role क्रिया (कर्तृ: ऊर्मा)Root √क्षर् (क्षरति ‘to flow, stream, melt’)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: अयम् | सः | यः | दिवः | परि | रघुयामा | पवित्रः | आ | सिन्धोः | ऊर्मा | वि | अक्षरत् । (1) ‘दिवस्परि’ = ‘दिवः परि’ (षष्ठी + अव्यय)
- (2) ‘सिन्धोरूर्मा’ = ‘सिन्धोः ऊर्मा’ (विसर्ग-लोपः/सन्धिः: षष्ठी-एकवचन ‘-ोः’ + स्वरादि)
- (3) ‘व्यक्षरत्’ = ‘वि अक्षरत्’ (उपसर्ग-सन्धिः)
The meaning
Outer meaning
This Soma, swift in course, comes from beyond heaven to the purifier; like a wave of the river he pours out and spreads.
Inner meaning
Soma originates ‘divas pari’—from beyond the ordinary heaven of mind, from a supramental/luminous beyond. It descends swiftly to the ‘pavitra’—entering the human instrument through purification. As a ‘wave of the Sindhu’ it is not a small stream but a vast force: a surge of delight-consciousness that pours out and spreads through the being, overcoming separative boundaries and irrigating all parts with luminous sweetness.
Universal truth
The highest consciousness descends from beyond our mental sky, but it must pass through purification; when it does, it comes as a vast wave that can pervade and transform the whole life.
Themes
Soma as river, descent-ascent dynamic, vastness to form, illumination in motion
The seer
- Other hymns
- RV 9.39.3 (comes to the purifier, becomes radiant), RV 9.2/9.96 (Soma as great river imagery)
Significance
The seer emphasizes descent from ‘beyond heaven’—a key psychological pointer: Soma is not merely vital pleasure but a higher-plane Ananda that must be purified to act integrally.
The deity
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna
- Epithets
- divas-pari (from beyond heaven), raghu-yāmā (swift-course), sindhu-ūrmi (river-wave)
- Related deities
- Indra (who receives Soma and releases the waters), Varuṇa (vastness, oceanic order), Savitar (descent/impulsion)
Cosmic role
Downflow of supramental delight into the sacrificial field; pervading wave that prepares the ground for illumination and right action.
Inner power
Descending Ananda with vastness (bṛhat) and pervasion; it dissolves rigidity and spreads light-force through the system.
In ritual
Where it is used
Soma filtration/clarification chant describing Soma’s descent and spreading
अ॒यं स यो दि॒वस्परि॑ रघु॒यामा॑ प॒वित्र॒ आ । सिन्धो॑रू॒र्मा व्यक्ष॑रत् ॥
अ॒यम् । सः । यः । दि॒वः । परि॑ । र॒घु॒ऽयामा॑ । प॒वित्रे॑ । आ । सिन्धोः॑ । ऊ॒र्मा । वि । अक्ष॑रत् ॥
ayam | saḥ | yaḥ | divaḥ | pari | raghu-yāmā | pavitre | ā | sindhoḥ | ūrmā | vi | akṣarat
44
4 padas × ~11 syllables
Swift opening (raghu-yāmā) followed by rolling wave-like cadence (sindhoḥ ūrmā).
First lifts awareness upward (‘beyond heaven’), then brings a palpable ‘surge’ down through the body as a spreading wave.
- दिवः परि (divaḥ pari)
- Literal: from around/beyond heaven. Symbolic: from beyond the mental heaven; higher luminous plane
- रघुयामा (raghu-yāmā)
- Literal: swift-going, quick in courses. Symbolic: rapid movement of higher force when unobstructed
- सिन्धोः ऊर्मा (sindhoḥ ūrmā)
- Literal: wave of the river/oceanic stream. Symbolic: great surge of consciousness; vastness and irresistible flow
- व्यक्षरत् (vy akṣarat)
- Literal: poured out, streamed forth widely. Symbolic: pervasion through all parts of the being
Descriptive praise used in Soma filtration sequence; Soma imagined as heavenly descent and river-wave in the straining
As Soma is brought to the pavitra and begins to flow strongly into collecting vessels.
Chant to accompany the visible streaming; ritually ‘invites’ the vast wave of Soma’s power.
A mantra for invoking descent: use when seeking a higher peace/joy to enter the body; pair with a downward visualization from above the head.
raghu ‘quick, light’ (possibly from √raṃh/lagh semantic field of speed) + yāman ‘going, course’ from √yā ‘go’. ūrmí/ūrmā ‘wave’ (water imagery). √kṣar ‘to flow, melt away’ (aorist akṣarat). sindhu- ‘river, sea’ (also cultural-geographic term; here symbolic of vast flow).
descent from higher mind (divaḥ), expansion (vi) into the field of manifestation, purification as passage from vast to formed
Descent must pass through pavitra—right process ensures right manifestation.
divas pari indicates a truer plane than the mental heaven.
Descent of higher reality into the purified instrument; pervasion as transformation.
Integral Vedanta/Yoga (descent from beyond mind into embodied life).
A supramental-like downflow entering through purification, then spreading as an oceanic wave of delight through mind-life-body.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Soma as the heavenly river-wave: a divine surge descends from the supernal and enters the purifier. Psychologically, the wave is a rising of blissful force from the vast subliminal, made clear and distributable through purification.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √yā ‘go’ is PIE (*h₁ey-/*yeh₁- often proposed). √kṣar ‘flow’ belongs to inherited fluid-motion vocabulary (exact PIE etymon uncertain). The water-wave imagery is a common Indo-European poetic device for force and inspiration.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The seer identifies Soma as a present descent (‘this is he’), making the ritual perception an inner recognition: the practitioner learns to feel the wave-like influx and to guide it through the pavitra (discernment) so it can spread as ordered power.
Invite descent from above mind; allow it to spread through the whole being.
Sahasrara (source beyond heaven) to Anahata and down the central channel; grounding into Muladhara for pervasion.
Inhale imagining light above the head; exhale letting a wave descend through the spine into the body (8–12 cycles), then chant.
Vast, descending peace-joy; pervading fullness.
After chanting, keep attention slightly above the head for 1–2 minutes, then consciously ‘bring it down’ through the body as a single wave, relaxing each part.
Not specified; chant with an uplift on divas pari and a rolling, wave-like intonation on sindhoḥ ūrmā vy akṣarat.
Three movements in sound: rise (divas pari), quickness (raghu-yāmā), wave-spread (sindhoḥ ūrmā vy akṣarat).
divas: short i; v soft, raghuyāmā: gh voiced aspirate; long ā in yāmā, sindhoḥ: dh voiced aspirate; visarga ḥ clear, ūrmā: long ū; retroflex ṛ (vocalic), vy akṣarat: separate vy-a; kṣ conjunct crisp; short a in -rat
Broad and resonant, with a ‘rolling’ sustain to evoke the wave; avoid tightness in throat.
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