Rig Veda 1.25.2: Mandala 1, Sukta 25, Mantra 2
Sukta 1.25
- Rishi
- Śunaḥśepa Ājīgarti
- Devata
- Varuṇa
- Chandas
- Gāyatrī
- Rasa
- Bhayankara and Shanta (peace)
मा नो वधाय हत्नवे जिहीळानस्य रीरधः । मा हृणानस्य मन्यवे ॥
mā́ no vadhā́ya hatnáve jihīḷānásya rīradhaḥ | mā́ hṛṇānásya mányave ||
Não nos entregues ao abate, ao golpe do hostil em sua fúria; não (nos) entregues à ira do ofendido.
Word by Word
- मा
- do notIndeclinableनिषेधार्थक अव्यय (prohibitive particle)Root मा (निषेध) अव्यय
- नः
- us / to usPronounषष्ठी/चतुर्थी, बहुवचन (enclitic ‘nas’ = our/to us)Role SampradānaRoot अस्मद् (प्रातिपदिक)
- वधाय
- for slaying / for killingNounपुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी, एकवचनRole SampradānaRoot वध (प्रातिपदिक)
- हत्नवे
- to the smiter / to the slayerNounपुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी, एकवचनRole SampradānaRoot हत्नु (प्रातिपदिक; ‘हत्नु’ = smiter, slayer) अथवा हन्-धातु-सम्बद्ध
- जिहीळानस्य
- of the enraged/hostile (one)Participle (Adjective) used substantivelyपुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन (of the raging/hostile one)Root जिहीळान (कृदन्त; √हीळ्/√हिड् ‘to be angry, to rage, to be hostile’), जि- (intensive/reduplicated) + -आन (शानच्)
- रीरधः
- harm / injure (us)Verbलुङ्/आशीर्लिङ्-प्राय (Vedic injunctive/precative), मध्यमपुरुष?— here best taken as 2nd sg precative: ‘may you not harm’Role Kriyā (main verb)Root √राध् (to harm, injure; also ‘to fail/neglect’ in some contexts) — Vedic reduplicated aorist/precative form
- मा
- do notIndeclinableनिषेधार्थक अव्ययRoot मा (निषेध) अव्यय
- हृणानस्य
- of the wrathful (one)Participle (Adjective) used substantivelyपुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन (of the wrathful one)Root हृणान (कृदन्त; √हृ/√हृण् ‘to be angry, to be wrathful’), -आन (शानच्)
- मन्यवे
- to wrath / to anger (personified)Nounपुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी, एकवचनRole SampradānaRoot मन्यु (प्रातिपदिक)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (Vedic pada): मा | नः | वधाय | हत्नवे | जिहीळानस्य | रीरधः || मा | हृणानस्य | मन्यवे || 1) ‘मा नः’ = prohibitive particle + enclitic pronoun ‘नः’. 2) ‘वधाय हत्नवे’ are separate datives (purpose/recipient): ‘for slaying, to the slayer’. 3) ‘जिहीळानस्य’ and ‘हृणानस्य’ are genitive singular participles qualifying an implied agent (e.g., the hostile/wrathful one). 4) ‘रीरधः’ is a Vedic finite verb form from √राध् with reduplication
- used with prohibitive ‘मा’ in a precative/injunctive sense: ‘do not harm’ (us)
The meaning
Outer meaning
Do not hand us over to slaying, to the blow of the hostile one in his rage; do not (hand us) to the wrath of the offended.
Inner meaning
A prayer for protection from destructive forces that arise when consciousness is out of harmony: external hostility and inner ‘manyu’ (wrath) that can turn punitive. In Aurobindonian terms, ‘hatnava/jihīḻāna’ can be read as the violent impulse in the vital nature; the seeker asks Varuṇa to prevent the being from falling into the hands of that force—whether as outer circumstance or inner self-sabotage.
Universal truth
When anger and hostility dominate, life becomes a field of blows. Protection comes by aligning with a higher law that restrains destructive impulses and restores right relation.
Themes
protection, averting wrath, after-confession supplication
The seer
- Rishi
- Śunaḥśepa Ājīgarti
- Other hymns
- Rig Veda 1.25.1, Rig Veda 1.25.3-5
Family tradition
Part of RV 1.25’s Gāyatrī sequence; continues the ethical-psychological movement from confession to protection and restoration.
Significance
Teaches mastery of the vital: not merely asking pardon, but asking to be kept from the violent currents (manyu) that perpetuate bondage.
The deity
- Devata
- Varuṇa
- Epithets
- protector, law-keeper (vrata implied)
- Related deities
- Mitra (harmony), Indra (force purified into victorious energy)
Cosmic role
Restrains chaos and hostility; ensures that punitive forces do not overrun the seeker who turns toward truth.
Inner power
The sovereign calm that contains rage and redirects force into right action.
In ritual
Where it is used
Protective petition following confession: seeks to avert punitive consequence (vadhá/hatná) and destructive manyu
मा नो॑ व॒धाय॑ ह॒त्नवे॑ जिहीळा॒नस्य॑ रीरधः । मा हृ॑णा॒नस्य॑ म॒न्यवे॑ ॥
मा । नः॑ । व॒धाय॑ । ह॒त्नवे॑ । जि॒ही॒ळा॒नस्य॑ । री॒र॒धः॒ । मा । हृ॒णा॒नस्य॑ म॒न्यवे॑ ॥
mā | naḥ | vadhāya | hatnave | jihīḷānasya | rīradhaḥ | mā | hṛṇānasyamanyave
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3 × 8
Quick, protective, with repeated ‘mā’ creating a firm warding rhythm.
Functions like a mantra of boundary-setting; steadies the nervous system against fear/anger spirals.
- वध (vadha)
- Literal: slaying, killing. Symbolic: destructive consequence; collapse of harmony; inner breakdown
- हत्नव (hatnava)
- Literal: smiter/striker; blow. Symbolic: violent vital force; impulsive aggression
- जिहीळान (jihīḷāna)
- Literal: raging, hostile. Symbolic: hostile vibration in the vital; reactive fury
- मन्यु (manyu)
- Literal: wrath, anger. Symbolic: storm-force in consciousness that can either be purified into zeal or fall into destructive rage
- हृणान (hṛṇāna)
- Literal: offended, angered. Symbolic: wounded ego that breeds resentment
- मा (mā)
- Literal: do not. Symbolic: protective refusal; boundary set by higher law
Protective petition following confession: seeks to avert punitive consequence (vadhá/hatná) and destructive manyu
For protection, especially when facing conflict, anger, or fear of consequences; also in expiatory sequences.
Apotropaic (warding) recitation; can accompany water-sipping (ācamana) as calming act.
Anger-regulation mantra: chant before difficult conversations; use to prevent reactive speech/action.
manyú (mán yu): ‘wrath, indignation’—a potent Vedic force that can be divine or hostile; psychologically it is the surge that destroys harmony. √han ‘strike’ is IE (cf. English hench? not cognate; but Germanic *han- in ‘to hit’ is not direct; better: Sanskrit han- aligns with IE *gʷhen- ‘strike/kill’, cf. Greek phénō ‘slay’, Avestan jan-). The prayer asks Varuṇa not to ‘hand us over’ (√rādh/√radh) to destructive reactions arising from anger.
manyu (wrath) as destructive power, divine protection amid consequences of deviation
Hostility and wrath are movements of anṛta; Varuṇa’s law restrains and reorders.
Truthfulness reduces offended ego; thus diminishes manyu’s destructive form.
Psychological reading: enemies as inner forces; protection as inner governance by truth-consciousness.
Storm-force corresponds to surging prāṇa and adrenal reactivity; Varuṇa corresponds to cooling vastness that contains and re-patterns it.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The ‘handing over’ to wrath and destruction: when law is violated, punitive forces arise. The rishi asks Varuṇa to intercept this transfer—psychologically, to prevent consciousness from being surrendered to rage-driven self-destruction.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √han ‘strike/kill’ reflects PIE *gʷhen- with broad IE reflexes (Avestan jan-, Greek phénō). The abstract manyú ‘wrath’ parallels IE traditions where anger is personified as a quasi-agentive force, not merely an emotion.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- Having admitted diminishment of the ordinance, the rishi turns to Varuṇa as protector and mediator: the deity is requested not to abandon the seeker to the automatic punitive spiral of anger, but to preserve the possibility of restoration.
Transforming manyu: from reactive rage to purified force under truth.
Manipūra (fire of will) balanced by Anāhata (calm relation)
Cooling breath emphasis: lengthen exhale; optionally śītalī/śītkārī (if suitable) after chanting.
From agitation to contained power and calm vigilance.
When anger rises: pause, feel the ‘blow’ impulse in the belly/chest, chant the two ‘mā’ prohibitions slowly, then choose one truthful action aligned with ṛta.
Gāyatrī accenting per Saṁhitā; keep repeated ‘mā’ emphatic but not harsh.
Slightly stress the initial ‘mā’; keep the rest even to avoid feeding anger while chanting about anger.
mā: long ā—sustain gently, jihīḷānasya: keep retroflex/ḷ articulation as per your training; avoid collapsing syllables, rīradhaḥ: long ī; final ḥ light, manyave: ‘ny’ conjunct clear; final ‘e’ long/closed
Cooling, firm, protective; avoid aggressive tone.
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