Rig Veda 8.4.18: Mandala 8, Sukta 4, Mantra 18
Sukta 8.4
- Rishi
- Kaṇva
- Devata
- Pūṣan
- Chandas
- Jagatī
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Vira (heroism)
परा गावो यवसं कच्चिदाघृणे नित्यं रेक्णो अमर्त्य । अस्माकं पूषन्नविता शिवो भव मंहिष्ठो वाजसातये ॥
parā́ gā́vo yávasaṃ kác cid āghṛṇe nítyaṃ rékṇo amartya | asmā́kaṃ pūṣann avitā́ śivó bhava máṃhiṣṭho vājá-sātaye ||
Nawet jeśli promienie (krowy) oddalają się na swoje pastwisko, o ciepło promienny Nieśmiertelny, Twoje bogactwo pozostaje stałe. Bądź dla nas, o Pūṣanie, błogosławionym opiekunem; bądź najhojniejszy w zdobywaniu obfitości siły.
Word by Word
- परा
- away, forthIndeclinableअव्ययRole क्रियाविशेषण (गत्यर्थे)Root परा (उपसर्ग/निपात)
- गावः
- cowsNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; बहुवचनRole कर्तृRoot गो (प्रातिपदिक)
- यवसम्
- fodder, pasture-grassNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचनRole कर्मRoot यवस (प्रातिपदिक)
- कच्चित्
- whether indeed?, I wonder ifIndeclinableअव्यय (प्रश्नार्थक/संशयार्थक)Role वाक्योपपत्ति (प्रश्न-निपात)Root कच्चित् (निपात)
- आघृणे
- O compassionate one (epithet of Pūṣan)Noun (vocative epithet)पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन; एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot आघृणि (प्रातिपदिक; पुं.)
- नित्यम्
- always, continuallyAdjective/Adverbनपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया/प्रथमा; एकवचन (क्रियाविशेषणवत्)Role क्रियाविशेषण (काल/नित्यत्वे)Root नित्य (प्रातिपदिक)
- रेक्णः
- of wealth, of richesNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; षष्ठी; एकवचनRole सम्बन्ध (षष्ठी)Root रेक्णस् (प्रातिपदिक; नपुं.)
- अमर्त्य
- O immortal oneNoun/Adjective (vocative)पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन; एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot अमर्त्य (प्रातिपदिक)
- अस्माकम्
- of us, ourPronounषष्ठी; बहुवचनRole सम्बन्ध (षष्ठी)Root अस्मद् (सर्वनाम)
- पूषन्
- O PūṣanNoun (deity name; vocative)पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन; एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot पूषन् (प्रातिपदिक; पुं.)
- अविता
- protectorNounपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचनRole कर्तृ (भव-क्रियायाः)Root अवितृ (प्रातिपदिक; पुं.; from √अव् ‘to protect’)
- शिवः
- auspicious, graciousAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचनRole कर्तृ-विशेषणRoot शिव (प्रातिपदिक)
- भव
- be! become!Verbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे); मध्यमपुरुष; एकवचन; परस्मैपदRole (आज्ञा)Root √भू (भवति)
- मंहिष्ठः
- most generousAdjectiveपुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचनRole कर्तृ-विशेषणRoot मंहिष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक; ‘most bountiful’, superlative of मंह/मंहस्)
- वाजसातये
- for the winning of the prize (strength/booty)Nounस्त्रीलिङ्ग; चतुर्थी; एकवचनRole सम्प्रदान (उद्देश्य/प्रयोजन)Root वाजसाति (प्रातिपदिक; स्त्री.; ‘winning of prize/strength’)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: परा | गावः | यवसम् | कच्चित् | आघृणे | नित्यम् | रेक्णः | अमर्त्य | अस्माकम् | पूषन् | अविता | शिवः | भव | मंहिष्ठः | वाजसातये । प्रमुख-सन्धयः: (1) कच्चिदाघृणे = कच्चित् + आघृणे (त् + आ → दा, परेण दीर्घस्वरः) । (2) पूषन्नविता = पूषन् + अविता (न् + अ → न्न, व्यञ्जनसन्धि/अनुस्वार-रहित द्वित्व) ।
The meaning
Outer meaning
Even if the cows go far to pasture, O warmly-radiant Immortal, your wealth remains constant. O Pūṣan, be our blissful protector and most bountiful helper for winning strength/plenty.
Inner meaning
Even when the rays of knowledge (gāvaḥ) seem to withdraw into distant fields of experience, the inner Sun-power that guides the journey (Pūṣan) retains an unwavering abundance (rekṇaḥ). The seeker asks that this guiding Consciousness become a benevolent inner guardian (avitā śivaḥ), leading the energies of life toward victorious attainment (vājasātaye)—the gaining of force, capacity, and effective action in the yoga of works.
Universal truth
Spiritual progress includes phases where insight feels distant; what sustains the path is an inner guiding intelligence whose abundance is constant. Aligning with that guide turns apparent loss into renewed strength and sure attainment.
Themes
Recovery/keeping of rays (cows), Protection on the path, Spiritual wealth (rekṇa/rayi), Victory as inner attainment (vāja-sāti)
The seer
- Rishi
- Kaṇva (Kaṇva lineage)
- Lineage
- Kaṇva
- Other hymns
- RV 8.4 (Kaṇva collection; Pūṣan sequence), RV 1.116–1.120 (Kaṇva-associated Aśvin material in broader tradition), RV 8.5 (Kaṇva dawn/illumination cluster)
Family tradition
Kaṇvas are noted for hymns of inner striving where light (go), force (vāja), and guidance (solar powers) are read as movements of consciousness; dānastuti elements often mirror divine giving as inner abundance.
Significance
The Kaṇva voice here is the practical yogin-seer: when illuminations roam, he anchors in the constant inner Wealth and prays for Pūṣan’s auspicious guardianship toward a decisive gain of force.
The deity
- Devata
- Pūṣan
- Epithets
- āghṛṇi (warmly-radiant), amartya (immortal), avitṛ (protector/guide), śiva (auspicious), maṃhiṣṭha (most bountiful)
- Related deities
- Sūrya, Savitar, Uṣas, Aśvins, Indra (as illumining mind supporting the journey)
Cosmic role
Solar guide and nourisher: protector of paths, increaser of prosperity, leader through transitions; in Vedic cosmology he is a form of the Sun’s beneficent guidance.
Inner power
The psychic guide-force that leads the will along the right path (ṛta), restores confidence when light seems distant, and converts aspiration into effective attainment (vāja).
In ritual
Where it is used
Pūṣan-related invocations for safe passage, nourishment, and prosperity; potentially used in travel/wayfinding and prosperity-seeking rites within Soma/yajña contexts.
परा॒ गावो॒ यव॑सं॒ कच्चि॑दाघृणे॒ नित्यं॒ रेक्णो॑ अमर्त्य । अ॒स्माकं॑ पूषन्नवि॒ता शि॒वो भ॑व॒ मंहि॑ष्ठो॒ वाज॑सातये ॥
परा॑ । गावः॑ । यव॑सम् । कत् । चि॒त् । आ॒घृ॒णे॒ । नित्य॑म् । रेक्णः॑ । अ॒म॒र्त्य॒ । अ॒स्माक॑म् । पू॒ष॒न् । अ॒वि॒ता । शि॒वः । भ॒व॒ । मंहि॑ष्ठः । वाज॑ऽसातये ॥
parā | gāvaḥ | yavasam | kat | cit | āghṛṇe | nityam | rekṇaḥ | amartya | asmākam | pūṣan | avitā | śivaḥ | bhava | maṃhiṣṭhaḥ | vāja-sātaye
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4 pādas of ~12 syllables each
Expansive, forward-moving cadence suited to guidance and assurance.
Creates a broad, steadying flow—helpful for invoking constancy (nityam) and protective guidance (avitā) during japa or reflective recitation.
- गावः (gāvaḥ)
- Literal: cows. Symbolic: rays of light; illuminations/knowledges that nourish the inner being
- यवसम् (yavasam)
- Literal: pasture/grass. Symbolic: field of experience where insights feed and grow into steadier knowledge
- आघृणे (āghṛṇe)
- Literal: warmly-radiant, glowing. Symbolic: the kindly solar heat of consciousness that matures and sustains aspiration
- रेक्णः (rekṇaḥ)
- Literal: riches, wealth. Symbolic: stable inner plenitude—resources of consciousness, joy, and power
- अमर्त्य (amartya)
- Literal: immortal. Symbolic: the deathless principle in us; the enduring divine support beyond fluctuation
- पूषन् (pūṣan)
- Literal: Pūṣan, nourisher/guide. Symbolic: the inner guide of the path; the fostering consciousness that leads the soul’s journey
- अविता (avitā)
- Literal: protector, helper. Symbolic: the safeguarding power that preserves the sadhana from dispersion
- शिवः (śivaḥ)
- Literal: auspicious, blissful. Symbolic: benign grace; harmony that makes progress smooth and luminous
- वाजसातये (vājasātaye)
- Literal: for the winning of vāja (prize/strength). Symbolic: for the conquest of effective force—victory of the illumined will in life
Prayer for protection and successful ‘winning’ (sāti) within soma and journey motifs; Pūṣan invoked for safe passage and right acquisition (general śrauta usage).
As a supporting verse when invoking Pūṣan for protection and successful gaining (vāja) in offerings; also adaptable to daily prayer for guidance.
Recitation with offering (ghee/grain) while seeking auspicious protection and plenitude.
Use as a ‘guidance mantra’ before journeys, decisions, or when inspiration feels distant—affirming constant inner support and asking for benevolent protection.
(go-) from PIE *gʷōus ‘cow’ becomes a standard Vedic symbol for ‘rays/illumined knowings’ because the ‘cows’ are repeatedly ‘found/released’ from concealment (darkness/subconscient). ‘pasture’ is the field where energies feed and multiply. denotes treasure/wealth; inwardly a stable spiritual resource. : vāja ‘strength, vital plenitude, victorious force’ (not merely food/prize) + sāti ‘winning’ from √san/√sā ‘to gain’. maṃhiṣṭha: superlative of bounty—divine giving as an intensification of being.
Constancy of divine abundance (nityam rekṇaḥ), Auspicious protection (śiva avitā), Vāja as force-plenitude to be won (vāja-sāti)
Pūṣan is the keeper of paths; the mantra aligns personal striving with the right road of ṛta.
‘nityaṃ rekṇaḥ’—the truth that the divine plenitude is stable even when perceptions vary.
Sustenance and increase: the cosmos as a guided journey where light-rays may range yet the source remains.
Proto-Vedāntic/Integral (Aurobindo-style) reading: the divine as constant support; yoga of works (vāja as effective force).
Rays of insight may move outward into life’s fields, yet the inner solar guide remains a constant reservoir of force and well-being.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The ‘cows to pasture’ motif reframed inwardly: the luminous powers (gāvaḥ) may seem to move away into outer fields of life, yet the divine treasure remains constant. The mythic movement of cattle becomes the psychological fluctuation of illumination, countered by reliance on Pūṣan’s steady abundance and protection.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- go- ‘cow’ reflects PIE *gʷōus (Skt go-, Gk bous, Lat bōs), showing inherited pastoral imagery that Vedic poetry spiritualises into ‘rays/knowledges’. √bhū continues PIE *bʰuH- ‘become, be’ (cf. English be), supporting the performative imperative ‘be for us…’ as a realisation-command.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The seer asks for Pūṣan’s guardianship (avitā) and auspiciousness (śiva) not as external luck but as an inner safeguarding of illumination and a right acquisition of vāja (force-plenitude). The exchange is hymn-for-help: the human calls the deity to stabilise the seeker’s fluctuating lights into constant richness.
Trust in the inner guide when insights feel distant; recollect the ‘constant wealth’ of consciousness behind changing mental states.
Anāhata (śiva/benign protection) and Ājñā (guidance/light)
Moderate nāḍī-śodhana for 6–12 rounds, then recite on a long exhale to establish steadiness.
Quiet confidence (śānta) with a forward will to accomplish (vīra).
When inspiration ‘goes far’, do not chase; turn inward to the steady source, invoke Pūṣan as path-finder, then act from the regained inner alignment.
Vedic svara as per Śākala tradition: udatta/anudatta/svarita distributed across pada; consult a svara-text for exact accents (not fully inferable from plain saṃhitā here).
Hold udatta slightly higher; let svarita glide down; keep anudatta grounded—especially on key invocations ‘pūṣan’, ‘śivo bhava’, ‘vājasātaye’.
Maintain retroflex ṣ/ṇ where applicable; keep ‘pūṣan’ with long ū., Pronounce ‘āghṛṇe’ with clear ghṛ (aspirated gh + ṛ)., Keep ‘rekṇo’ with ṇ (retroflex n) and short o., Split mentally by padapāṭha to avoid sandhi blur: parā | gāvaḥ | yavasam | ...
Warm, steady, protective tone; slightly intensified on ‘śivo bhava’ and ‘maṃhiṣṭho’.
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