Mantra 1
Sukta 53
कालः। कालो अश्वो वहति सप्तरश्मिः सहस्राक्षो अजरो भूरिरेताः । तमा रोहन्ति कवयो विपश्चितस्तस्य चक्रा भुवनानि विश्वा
kāláḥ | kā́lo áśvo vahati saptáraśmiḥ sahasrā́kṣo ajáro bhū́riretāḥ | tám ā́ rohanti kaváyo vipaścítaḥ tásya cakrā́ bhúvanāni víśvā ||
Time—Time is the Steed that beareth on, with seven reins, thousand-eyed, unaging, of plenteous seed. Him mount the Poets, the discerning sages: his wheels are all the worlds that be.
ਕਾਲ—ਕਾਲ ਹੀ ਉਹ ਅਸ਼ਵ ਹੈ ਜੋ ਸੱਤ ਰਸ਼ਮੀਆਂ (ਲਗਾਮਾਂ) ਨਾਲ ਅੱਗੇ ਵਧਦਾ ਹੈ; ਹਜ਼ਾਰ-ਅੱਖਾਂ ਵਾਲਾ, ਅਜਰ, ਬਹੁਤ ਵੀਰਜ ਵਾਲਾ। ਉਸ ਉੱਤੇ ਕਵੀ ਅਤੇ ਵਿਪਸ਼ਚਿਤ ਰਿਸ਼ੀ ਚੜ੍ਹਦੇ ਹਨ; ਉਸ ਦੇ ਚੱਕਰ ਹੀ ਸਾਰੇ ਭੁਵਨ—ਸਾਰੇ ਲੋਕ—ਹਨ।
Rishi: Traditionally attributed in later lists to a Kāla-seer complex (often Atharvanic/Angirasa associations in AV 19).
Devata: Kāla (Time).
Chandas: Triṣṭubh-like cadence (late AV speculative hymns often use triṣṭubh/jagatī patterns).
{"primary_rasa":"adbhuta","secondary_rasa":"shanta","emotional_arc":"Awe at the vast steed of time → calm acceptance as sages ‘mount’ it.","listener_experience":"Vastness, perspective, reduced urgency; a sense that life is carried within a larger rhythm.","intensity":6}