Rig Veda 9.4.2: Mandala 9, Sukta 4, Mantra 2
Sukta 9.4
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna
- Rasa
- Shanta (peace) and Adbhuta (wonder)
सना ज्योतिः सना स्वर्विश्वा च सोम सौभगा । अथा नो वस्यसस्कृधि ॥
sanā́ jyótiḥ sanā́ svàr víśvā ca soma sáubhagā | áthā no vásyasas kṛdhi ||
என்றும் ஒளி உள்ளது; என்றும் ஸ்வர்லோகம் (ஸ்வஃ) உள்ளது; மேலும், ஓ சோமா, எல்லா நல்வாழ்வும் (ஸௌபாக்யம்) உள்ளது. பின்னர் எங்களை மேலும் சிறந்த/மேன்மையான நிலையாக்கி வடிவமை.
Word by Word
- सना
- from of old; everIndeclinableकालवाचक अव्यय; ‘सदा/पुरा/चिरम्’Role Adhikaraṇa (कालाधिकरण) / क्रियाविशेषणRoot सना (avyaya-prātipadika; from PIE *sen- ‘old, long’)
- ज्योतिः
- light; radianceNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा एकवचनRole Karma (प्राप्तव्य/विधेय) / विधेय-नामRoot ज्योतिस् (prātipadika)
- सना
- from of old; everIndeclinableकालवाचक अव्ययRole Adhikaraṇa (कालाधिकरण) / क्रियाविशेषणRoot सना (avyaya-prātipadika)
- स्वः
- heaven; the solar worldNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा एकवचन (वैदिक रूप: स्वः)Role Karma (प्राप्तव्य/विधेय) / विधेय-नामRoot स्वर्/स्वः (prātipadika; ‘heaven, sunlight’)
- विश्वा
- all; everythingAdjective (substantivized)नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया बहुवचनRole Karma (समुच्चित-वस्तु) / ‘all (things)’Root विश्व (prātipadika)
- च
- andIndeclinableसमुच्चयार्थक अव्ययRole (connector)Root च (avyaya)
- सोम
- O SomaNoun (vocative)पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन एकवचनRole सम्बोधनRoot सोम (prātipadika)
- सौभगानि
- good fortunes; prosperitiesNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया बहुवचनRole Karma (प्राप्तव्य) / ‘prosperities’Root सौभग (prātipadika; from सु- + भग ‘fortune’)
- अथ
- then; thereafterIndeclinableअनन्तरार्थक/प्रसङ्गार्थक अव्ययRole (discourse particle)Root अथ (avyaya)
- नः
- for us; ourPronounषष्ठी बहुवचन (enclitic) ‘our/for us’Role Sampradāna (हित/लाभ-सम्बन्ध) / सम्बन्धRoot अस्मद् (pronominal stem)
- वस्यसः
- the better (thing); greater goodAdjective (used substantively)नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया एकवचन (comparative: ‘better’)Role Karma (यत् कर्तव्यम्/प्राप्यम्)Root वस्यस् (comparative prātipadika of वसु ‘good’)
- कृधि
- make; do; grantVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे); मध्यमपुरुष; एकवचन; परस्मैपदRole (finite verb; governs कर्म)Root कृ (धातु)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेद (resolved): सना | ज्योतिः | सना | स्वः | विश्वा | च | सोम | सौभगानि | अथ | नः | वस्यसः | कृधि । 1) ‘ज्योति॒:’ = ज्योतिः (visarga before pause). 2) ‘स्व१॒॑र्’ is Vedic orthography for स्वः (svar ‘heaven’), here taken as nominative/accusative sg. 3) ‘सौभ॑गा’ in saṃhitā corresponds to सौभगानि (neut. pl.) in pada reading
- final -a reflects Vedic sandhi/metrical shortening before pause in some recensions
- sense requires neuter plural ‘prosperities’. 4) ‘वस्य॑सस्कृधि’ = वस्यसः + कृधि (visarga + k → s + k cluster in saṃhitā: -सः कृ- → -सस् कृ-)
The meaning
Outer meaning
Ever is the light, ever the sun-world, and all felicities, O Soma; then make us into the more excellent state.
Inner meaning
Soma is invoked as the ever-present principle of illumination (jyotiḥ) and the supramental solar realm (svar), carrying within it the totality of felicities (viśvā saubhagā). By drinking/receiving this purified delight, the aspirant asks to be re-formed into a higher mode of existence—more luminous, fortunate, and wide.
Universal truth
Light and true happiness are not intermittent accidents but perennial realities; when consciousness aligns with that ever-light through inner delight, life is reshaped into a higher well-being.
Themes
Light-realization, Soma as illuminator, Felicity, Ascent to svàr
The seer
- Other hymns
- RV 9.4.1, RV 9.4.3, RV 9.4.4
Family tradition
Pavamāna refrain hymns preserved for chant-function; rishi name sometimes eclipsed by liturgical use.
Significance
The verse states a key Aurobindonian theme: jyotiḥ and svar are ‘ever’; the yoga is recovery, not invention—Soma is the means of recovery through Ananda.
The deity
- Devata
- Soma Pavamāna
- Epithets
- Pavamāna, Indu, Jyotiṣmat (light-bearing, implied)
- Related deities
- Sūrya, Uṣas, Indra
Cosmic role
Bearer of light and felicity, mediator of the solar truth-world into the human sacrifice.
Inner power
Ananda as the bridge to illumination: delight that opens the mind to jyotiḥ and lifts it toward svar.
In ritual
Where it is used
Soma purification chant emphasizing light (jyotiḥ) and heaven (svar) as fruits/presences of Soma
सना॒ ज्योति॒: सना॒ स्व१॒॑र्विश्वा॑ च सोम॒ सौभ॑गा । अथा॑ नो॒ वस्य॑सस्कृधि ॥
सना॑ । ज्योतिः॑ । सना॑ । स्वः॑ । विश्वा॑ । च॒ । सो॒म॒ । सौभ॑गा । अथ॑ । नः॒ । वस्य॑सः । कृ॒धि॒ ॥
sanā | jyotiḥ | sanā | svaḥ | viśvā | ca | soma | saubhagā | atha | naḥ | vasyasaḥ | kṛdhi
24
3 × 8 (approx.)
luminous, evenly balanced; mantra-like refrain closure
Stabilizes the sense of ‘everness’ (sanā) and evokes a bright, serene uplift.
- सना (sanā)
- Literal: ever; perennial. Symbolic: timeless availability of higher consciousness
- ज्योतिः (jyotiḥ)
- Literal: light. Symbolic: illumination in mind; awakening of discernment
- स्वः (svaḥ/svar)
- Literal: sun-world; heaven. Symbolic: supramental luminous plane; truth-consciousness
- सौभग (saubhaga/saubhagā)
- Literal: felicity; good fortune. Symbolic: harmonious joy and right success of the soul’s movement
- वस्यसः कृधि (vasyasaḥ kṛdhi)
- Literal: make (us) better/more excellent. Symbolic: divine refashioning into a higher, brighter being
Soma purification chants emphasizing illumination (jyotis) and svàr as the goal of the rite and inner ascent
During pavamāna recitations as Soma is filtered and offered; reinforces the rite’s aim: light and felicity.
Chanted while Soma flows through the strainer; aligns offering with jyotiḥ/svar intention.
Morning meditation mantra to invoke ‘ever-light’: repeat slowly while visualizing a steady inner dawn and a sun-world above the head.
jyótiḥ from √dyut ‘to shine’ (light as shining power). svàr (Vedic) related to √svar/√sūr ‘to shine’ and the solar luminous realm; in inner reading, ‘svàr’ as the settled world of illumination. sáubhagā from su- ‘good’ + bhaga ‘portion, allotment, felicity’ (bhaga as distributive divine enjoyment), hence ‘good allotments’ → felicities.
Satya-illumination, Svàr as luminous world, Ṛta as ordered felicity (saubhaga)
Ṛta is experienced as luminous rightness when jyotiḥ becomes steady and ‘ever’.
Svar indicates truth-consciousness; Soma makes Satya experiential as felicity, not abstraction.
Descent/manifestation of solar light into human nature through the nectar of delight.
Vedantic-inclined Vedic symbolism: svar as higher consciousness; Soma as Ananda facilitating ascent/descent.
dawn-to-sunrise (suggested by jyotiḥ→svar)
Jyotiḥ is awakened understanding; svar is the stable plane of truth-vision; saubhaga is the harmonious joy that follows alignment.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Soma as the ever-renewed source of Light and svàr: the pressed/purified Soma is mythically identical with the solar principle that establishes luminous worlds and distributes ‘bhaga’ (felicity/portion).
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- jyótiḥ ties to PIE *dyeu-/*dyewt- ‘to shine’ (cf. Latin iūbar ‘radiance’, Sanskrit dyú ‘sky’). śrávaḥ is absent here, but svàr participates in the Indo-European solar/sky lexicon; bhaga relates to PIE *bʰag- ‘to apportion, share’ (cf. Slavic bogŭ ‘god’ as ‘dispenser’ in later semantic drift).
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The seer recognizes Soma as the stable (‘sanā’) foundation of illumination and felicity, then petitions for embodiment: not merely to behold light, but to be ‘made’ into a better mode of being capable of sustaining it.
Rest in the sense that light is perennial; allow delight to reveal a higher ‘sun-world’ of truth above ordinary mind.
Ajna (light) and Sahasrara (svar as higher plane)
Slow meditative breathing; on inhale ‘sanā jyotiḥ’, on exhale ‘sanā svar’; pause in stillness on ‘viśvā… saubhagā’.
quiet illumination, gentle bliss
Do not strain for visions; repeat until a natural brightness and ease appear, then sit silently as if under an inner sun.
Three-tone Vedic; give sanā a steady udātta; let jyotiḥ and svar carry a clear lift; settle into soft svarita before the refrain close.
Open vowels fully: sanā, jyotiḥ; keep svar crisp; let viśvā ca expand slightly; end firmly on kṛdhi.
jyotiḥ: ‘jyo’ as single unit; visarga audible, svaḥ/svar: ‘sv’ cluster clean; visarga if svaḥ, viśvā: palatal ś; long ā, saubhagā: au diphthong clear; bh soft aspirate, kṛdhi: vocalic ṛ
soft, luminous, sustained
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