Rig Veda 1.4.9: Mandala 1, Sukta 4, Mantra 9
Sukta 1.4
- Rishi
- Madhucchandas Vaiśvāmitra
- Devata
- Indra
- Chandas
- Gāyatrī
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Shanta (peace)
तं त्वा वाजेषु वाजिनं वाजयामः शतक्रतो । धनानामिन्द्र सातये ॥
táṃ tvā́ vā́jeṣu vājínaṃ vājáyāmaḥ śatakrato | dhánānām indra sātáye ||
तं त्वा वाजेषु वाजिनं वाजयामः शतक्रतो । धनानामिन्द्र सातये ॥
Word by Word
- तम्
- him (that one)Pronounपुंलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचनम्Role कर्मRoot तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
- त्वा
- youPronounद्वितीया एकवचनम्Role कर्मRoot युष्मद् (अस्मद्-युष्मद् सर्वनाम)
- वाजेषु
- in/among prizes, in contestsNounपुंलिङ्गे सप्तमी बहुवचनम्Role अधिकारणRoot वाज (प्रातिपदिक)
- वाजिनम्
- the prize-winner, the strong/possessing bootyAdjective (used substantively)पुंलिङ्गे द्वितीया एकवचनम्Role कर्मRoot वाजिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
- वाजयामः
- we strengthen/impel (to win), we make (you) winVerbलट् (वर्तमान), उत्तमपुरुष, बहुवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्Role (क्रिया)Root √वाजय् (वाजयति) / denominative from वाज
- शतक्रतो
- O hundred-powered/ hundred-willed one (Indra)Noun/Adjective (epithet)पुंलिङ्गे सम्बोधन एकवचनम् (ओ-सम्बोधनः)Role सम्बोधनRoot शतक्रतु (प्रातिपदिक; इन्द्रस्य विशेषणम्)
- धनानाम्
- of riches, of treasuresNounनपुंसकलिङ्गे षष्ठी बहुवचनम्Role सम्बन्ध (षष्ठी)Root धन (प्रातिपदिक)
- इन्द्र
- O IndraNoun (proper)पुंलिङ्गे सम्बोधन एकवचनम्Role सम्बोधनRoot इन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
- सातये
- for winning, for acquisitionNounस्त्रीलिङ्गे चतुर्थी एकवचनम्Role सम्प्रदान (उद्देश्य)Root साति (प्रातिपदिक; √सन्/√सा ‘to win, gain’ > ‘winning, acquisition’)
Sandhi Notes
- संहिता-पाठः: तं त्वा वाजेषु वाजिनं वाजयामः शतक्रतो । धनानामिन्द्र सातये ॥ पदच्छेदः: तम् | त्वा | वाजेषु | वाजिनम् | वाजयामः | शतक्रतो | धनानाम् | इन्द्र | सातये | सन्धिः: (1) धनानाम् + इन्द्र → धनानामिन्द्र (म् + इ → मि; अनुस्वार-परम्परा/व्यञ्जनसन्धिः)
The meaning
Outer meaning
We would make you victorious in the contests, O Śatakratu, so that the riches may be won.
Inner meaning
The mantra turns the relation inward: the seeker ‘makes Indra victorious’ (vājayāmaḥ) by giving him the right offerings—attention, aspiration, truth of effort—so the illumined Mind-force can lead the whole nature to win the true ‘riches’ (dhanānām): powers of knowledge, joy, harmony, and capacity. Vājeṣu indicates repeated fields of striving—thought, life, body—where Indra must be established as the leader of victory.
Universal truth
We empower higher intelligence through sincere practice; when the inner leader is strengthened, the real wealth of being becomes attainable.
Themes
Indra-strengthening, inner victory over obstruction, attainment of spiritual wealth, mantric empowerment (word as force)
The seer
- Rishi
- Madhucchandas Vaiśvāmitra
- Lineage
- Vaiśvāmitra
- Other hymns
- RV 1.4.9 (within RV 1.4), RV 1.3 (invocation to Indra for gifts/forces)
Family tradition
A practical yoga of collaboration: the human side offers and aligns so the divine power becomes effective in the fields of life.
Significance
Shows the reciprocity of the inner sacrifice: the god-force is ‘made victorious’ by the seeker’s consecration, resulting in attainment of inner riches.
The deity
- Devata
- Indra (Śatakratu)
- Epithets
- Śatakratu, vājín (bearer of plenitude)
- Related deities
- Soma, Agni, Sarasvatī (inspiration/flow of truth)
Cosmic role
Giver of victories and distributor of powers (riches) when invoked by right offering.
Inner power
The victorious discernment and force that turns aspiration into concrete attainment.
In ritual
Where it is used
Indra stotra for winning ‘dhanāni’ (gains) in Soma ritual symbolism.
तं त्वा॒ वाजे॑षु वा॒जिनं॑ वा॒जया॑मः शतक्रतो । धना॑नामिन्द्र सा॒तये॑ ॥
तम् । त्वा॒ । वाजे॑षु । वा॒जिन॑म् । वा॒जया॑मः । श॒त॒क्र॒तो॒ इति॑ शतऽक्रतो । धना॑नाम् । इ॒न्द्र॒ । सा॒तये॑ ॥
tam | tvā | vājeṣu | vājinam | vājayāmaḥ | śatakrato itiśata-krato | dhanānām | indra | sātaye
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3 × 8
Martial clarity with a collaborative tone (‘we would’).
Instills agency and devotion together—effort aligned with higher help.
- vājeṣu
- Literal: in contests/strivings for vāja. Symbolic: in all inner arenas where force and mastery must be won
- vājínam
- Literal: victorious, possessor of vāja. Symbolic: Indra as the carrier of plenitude; the victorious power in consciousness
- vājayāmaḥ
- Literal: we make (you) win; we urge to victory. Symbolic: we strengthen the higher power by offering and alignment; we collaborate with the divine force
- śatakrato
- Literal: hundred-powered. Symbolic: multiform effective will-intelligence
- dhanānām
- Literal: of riches/treasures. Symbolic: inner wealth: light, peace, force, joy, right action
- sātaye
- Literal: for winning, for conquest/attainment. Symbolic: secure acquisition and integration of realized powers
Indra-invocation in Soma liturgy; suitable for praising and ‘strengthening’ Indra with soma/word-power in Agniṣṭoma-type settings (general Indra-stotra usage rather than a uniquely fixed application).
In sequences asking Indra for victory and gains; adaptable for daily intention-setting.
Stuti + saṅkalpa (resolve) for attainment.
Use before exams/decisions/creative work: empower clear intelligence to win the ‘right outcome’ and inner growth, not egoic triumph.
Key terms: (1) vāja: commonly ‘prize/food’, but from the semantic field of strength and increase; in the inner sense, plenitude of force that supports victorious becoming. Related adjective vājín ‘possessing vāja’ → ‘force-bearer, victorious’. (2) vājayāmaḥ: causative/intensive formation from vāja/vājaya- ‘to make victorious, to impel to win’; 1st pl. present—collective act of aspiration/evocation. (3) krátu: will, intelligent resolve, effective power of action; śatá-kratu ‘hundred-willed’ = inexhaustible multiplicity of operative energies. (4) sātí / sātáye (dat. sg.): winning, gaining; from √san ‘to win, obtain’ (also ‘to gain, to bestow’), indicating attainment rather than mere receipt. (5) dhána: ‘wealth, treasure’; inwardly, accumulated powers/realizations (rays, wideness, felicity) rather than material goods.
R̥ta (right order expressed as victorious alignment of will and force), Kratu (effective will-power as an instrument of truth-conscious action), Satyam-R̥tam-Bṛhat (implicit: true force leading to wide fulfillment)
Victory is right victory—attainment that aligns life with ṛta.
Winning is stable only when founded on truth of aspiration and clarity.
Progressive conquest of the inner fields; evolution by repeated victories over limitation.
Yoga of works (karma-yoga resonance): consecrated effort empowers higher guidance.
thunderstorm-force (Indra as storm-power transmuted into inner dynamism); victory in contests (outer image of battle/competition as inner struggle)
daytime striving (symbolic)
unspecified
Daily life as an arena where luminous intelligence must be enthroned to win lasting capacities.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- The ‘strengthening of Indra for victory’ mythologem: the singers empower the god (through hymn/offerings) so he may win the treasures. In the inner reading, Indra is the luminous mind-force in the human being; ‘victory’ is conquest over limiting forces (darkness/ignorance), and ‘treasures’ are the released powers of consciousness (dhana as rays, wideness, effective capacities).
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- krátu (will, resolve) aligns with Indo-European notions of directed power/intent (cf. the broader IE semantic domain of ‘strength, capacity, resolve’). √san ‘to win/obtain’ (sātaye) corresponds to IE patterns of acquisition/attainment verbs (compare Latin sano is unrelated; closer is the general IE acquisitive verbal morphology rather than a single neat cognate). vāja and vājín belong to an archaic poetic lexicon of ‘prize/strength/refreshment’, comparable to IE heroic diction where ‘winning’ and ‘prize’ encode both material and glory/force.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- Reciprocity of empowerment: the seer-community does not merely request; they actively ‘make Indra win’ (vājayāmaḥ) by concentrating will and mantra so the Indric force becomes operative in them. The devatā responds by enabling sāti—effective attainment—so the aspirant’s inner riches (dhana) are secured in accordance with R̥ta.
Consecration that empowers the higher mind: ‘Let Indra win in me.’
maṇipūra (will)
Box-breath 4-4-4-4 briefly, then chant; feel resolve stabilize in the navel region.
Collected determination without strain.
Name one inner ‘wealth’ to win today (clarity, patience, courage). Chant, then act once in alignment with that intention.
Three-tone; keep a crisp rise on índra and śatakrato; allow sātaye to resolve downward.
Slight emphasis on vājayāmaḥ (the act of empowering) and dhanānām (the intended attainment).
vājayāmaḥ: long ā and clear yā; avoid ‘waja’, śatakrato: retroflex ṭ, sātaye: long ā, dental t (not retroflex)
Steady, confident, devotional resolve.
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