Rig Veda 10.22.8: Mandala 10, Sukta 22, Mantra 8
Sukta 10.22
- Devata
- Indra
- Chandas
- Trishtubh
- Rasa
- Raudra (fury) and Vira (heroism)
अकर्मा दस्युरभि नो अमन्तुरन्यव्रतो अमानुषः । त्वं तस्यामित्रहन्वधर्दासस्य दम्भय ॥
akarmā́ dásyur abhí no amántur anyá-vrato amā́nuṣaḥ | tváṃ tásyāmitra-han vádhar dāsásya dambhaya ||
నిజకర్మలేని దస్యు మాపై దాడి చేస్తాడు—అమంతు, ఇతర-వ్రతానుసారి, అమానుషుడు. ఓ అమిత్రహన్, ఆ దాసుని వధ-బలాన్ని నలిపివేయుము; అతని మాయా-బలాన్ని విరిచివేయుము.
Word by Word
- अकर्मा
- inactive, not performing (rites)Adjectiveपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा-एकवचनम् (दस्युः-विशेषणम्)Role KartāRoot कर्मन् (प्रा.) ← √कृ
- दस्युः
- the Dasyu (hostile/impious foe)Nounपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा-एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot दस्यु (प्रा.)
- अभि
- towards, againstIndeclinableRoot अभि (उपसर्ग/अव्यय)
- नः
- of us / ourPronounषष्ठी-बहुवचनम् (एन्क्लिटिक)Role SampradānaRoot अस्मद्
- अमन्तुः
- unthinking, witlessAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा-एकवचनम् (दस्युः-विशेषणम्)Role KartāRoot मन्तु (प्रा.) ← √मन्
- अन्यव्रतः
- of another vow/observance (alien in rite)Adjectiveपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा-एकवचनम् (दस्युः-विशेषणम्); समासः: अन्य-व्रतRole KartāRoot व्रत (प्रा.)
- अमानुषः
- non-human, inhumanAdjectiveपुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा-एकवचनम् (दस्युः-विशेषणम्)Role KartāRoot मानुष (प्रा.)
- त्वम्
- youPronounप्रथमा-एकवचनम्Role KartāRoot युष्मद्
- तस्य
- of that (one)Pronounषष्ठी-एकवचनम्Root तद्
- अमित्रहन्
- O slayer of foesNoun (epithet)पुंलिङ्गः, सम्बोधन-एकवचनम्Root अमित्रहन् (प्रा.) ← √हन्
- वधः
- slaying, killingNounपुंलिङ्गः, द्वितीया-एकवचनम्Role KarmaRoot वध (प्रा.)
- दा
- give, grantVerbलोट् (आज्ञार्थे), परस्मैपदम्, मध्यम-एकवचनम्Root √दा (दाने/दत्तौ)
- दासस्य
- of the Dāsa (enemy)Nounपुंलिङ्गः, षष्ठी-एकवचनम्Root दास (प्रा.)
- दम्भय
- crush, subdue, confoundVerbलोट्, परस्मैपदम्, मध्यम-एकवचनम्; णिच् (कारण) भावःRoot √दम्भ् (दम्भने) / √दभ् (हिंसायाम्) (वेद. caus.)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: अकर्मा दस्युः अभि नः अमन्तुः अन्यव्रतः अमानुषः । त्वम् तस्य (→ तस्या in संहिता by sandhi) अमित्रहन् वधः दा दासस्य दम्भय ॥ मुख्य-सन्धयः: (1) तस्य + अमित्रहन् → तस्या-मित्रहन् (अ + अ → आ; पदान्त-स्य + अ-आगमः). (2) अन्यव्रतः, अमानुषः इत्यादि समास/उपसर्ग-रूपाणि पदान्ते विसर्गः संहितायां यथोचितः. स्वर-टिप्पणी: संहितापाठे उदात्त/स्वरित चिह्न (॑, ॒) यथास्थानं
- पदच्छेदे सामान्यतः स्वरचिह्न न लिख्यते।
The meaning
Outer meaning
A Dasyu who performs no true works presses upon us—mindless, following another law, inhuman. Indra, slayer of foes, crush the weapon-force of that Dāsa; break his deceitful power.
Inner meaning
The ‘Dasyu/Dāsa’ here symbolizes the hostile consciousness: akarmā—incapable of the true works of the soul; amantuḥ—without right mind; anyavrataḥ—obedient to a law other than ṛta; amānuṣaḥ—anti-human/anti-evolutionary. Its ‘weapon’ (vadhar) is not physical but a force of falsehood, suggestion, and distortion; its ‘dambha’ is deception—glamour that derails aspiration. Indra’s victory is the clear, forceful illumination that shatters these formations and restores right law in the being.
Universal truth
The greatest enemies are not outer persons but inner falsities and inertias; illumination must break deception and re-establish the law of truth in action.
Themes
conflict with Dasyu/Dāsa, restoration of right law, Indra as enemy-slayer, psychological warfare against falsehood
The seer
Significance
A direct psychological battle-cry: identify the traits of the hostile nature (mindlessness, false law, deception) and call the Indra-force to break them.
The deity
- Devata
- Indra
- Epithets
- Amitrahan (slayer of foes), Indra (lord of illumination)
- Related deities
- Agni, Bṛhaspati, Soma
Cosmic role
Protector of the Aryan (truth-seeking) advance; destroyer of Dasyu forces; upholder of ṛta.
Inner power
Discriminating light and irresistible force that crushes deception, inertia, and hostile suggestion.
In ritual
Where it is used
Apotropaic usage: repelling hostile forces and restoring right action (karma) and right law (vrata)
अ॒क॒र्मा दस्यु॑र॒भि नो॑ अम॒न्तुर॒न्यव्र॑तो॒ अमा॑नुषः । त्वं तस्या॑मित्रह॒न्वध॑र्दा॒सस्य॑ दम्भय ॥
अ॒क॒र्मा । दसुः॑ । अ॒भि । नः॒ । अ॒म॒न्तुः । अ॒न्यऽव्र॑तः । अमा॑नुषः । त्वम् । तस्य॑ । अ॒मि॒त्र॒ऽह॒न् । वधः॑ । दा॒सस्य॑ । द॒म्भ॒य॒ ॥
akarmā | dasuḥ | abhi | naḥ | amantuḥ | anya-vrataḥ | amānuṣaḥ | tvam | tasya | amitra-han | vadhaḥ | dāsasya | dambhaya
44
4 pādas × ~11 syllables
Hard-edged, denunciatory; strong beats suit the naming of hostile traits and the command to crush.
Cleansing and strengthening; helps expose and reject inner falsehood with firm resolve.
- अकर्मा (akarmā)
- Literal: without works. Symbolic: incapable of true soul-action; sterile inertia/tamas
- दस्युः (dasyuḥ)
- Literal: hostile, robber. Symbolic: obstructing consciousness that steals light and force
- अमन्तुः (amantuḥ)
- Literal: without thought/intent. Symbolic: mindless impulse; subconscient automaticity
- अन्यव्रतः (anyavrataḥ)
- Literal: of another vow/law. Symbolic: obedience to false law—anti-ṛta habit-patterns
- अमानुषः (amānuṣaḥ)
- Literal: inhuman. Symbolic: anti-evolutionary, hostile to the soul’s human ascent
- अमित्रहन् (amitrahan)
- Literal: slayer of foes. Symbolic: illumined force that destroys inner adversaries
- वधः/वधर् (vadhaḥ/vadhar)
- Literal: weapon, slaying-force. Symbolic: hostile pressure, harmful suggestion/attack-force
- दम्भय (dambhaya)
- Literal: crush, confound. Symbolic: break the power of deception and self-delusion
- दम्भ (dambha)
- Literal: deceit, hypocrisy. Symbolic: glamour/false appearance that misleads consciousness
Apotropaic usage: repelling hostile forces and restoring right action (karma) and right law (vrata)
Protective Indra hymns in Soma ritual; also apotropaic usage to ward off hostile influences.
Recitation as protective stotra; symbolic ‘crushing’ of hostile forces through mantra.
Use when battling addiction, self-deception, procrastination, or intrusive negative thought-patterns—name the pattern, then chant to break it.
akarmā contrasts with Vedic karma as right action aligned with R̥ta. mantu ‘counsel, thought’ (cf. √man ‘think’)—amantuḥ indicates absence of luminous intelligence. vrata is functional law/regularity; anya-vrata is deviation into disorder. dambhaya from √dambh carries a semantic range ‘deceive, injure’; psychologically the ‘dambha’ is the falsehood-force that distorts perception and action.
R̥ta vs disorder (anya-vrata), true work (karma) vs sterile action (akarmā), falsehood/deception (dambha)
Anyavrataḥ = deviation from ṛta; Indra restores right law by crushing the deviation.
Deception (dambha) is anti-satya; Indra’s light exposes it.
Spiritual evolution requires removal of hostile formations to allow new order to manifest.
Ethical-psychological Vedism leading toward innerized dharma/ṛta notions.
‘Weapon’ = sharp hostile impulse/suggestion; ‘pressing upon us’ = psychological oppression; ‘crushing’ = decisive rejection by illumined will.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Indra vs Dasyu/Dāsa: the mythologem of the hostile who follows ‘another law’ and lacks true works. Inwardly, the Dasyu is the obstructing formation of falsehood and inertia that attacks the seeker; Indra is invoked to shatter the enemy’s ‘weapon’—its capacity to strike through deception and disorder.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- √man (mantu) reflects PIE *men- ‘think’; the negation amantuḥ encodes a deep IE valuation of ‘mind/counsel’ as the human mark. vrata as ‘law’ aligns with Indo-Iranian concepts of ordained order (Avestan urvāta-/vrata parallels), showing shared cultural-lexical inheritance.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The Rishi identifies the adversary in ethical-cosmic terms (akarmā, anya-vrata), then calls Indra as amitra-han to restore right functioning. The exchange is protective: the hymn is a diagnostic naming of falsehood, and Indra’s action is the re-establishment of R̥ta within the practitioner.
Discern and reject deception; invoke Indra to cut through glamour and restore straight intention.
Ajna (discernment) with Manipura (force to act)
Kapalabhati (mild) or strong exhale chanting to ‘crush’ tamas; avoid if agitated—then use slow exhale instead.
Purifying force with clear discrimination.
Identify one recurring self-deception; chant with firm resolve; after chanting, sit and watch thoughts—when the pattern arises, apply ‘vajra’ discernment: name it, refuse it, return to the chosen truth.
Śākala svara; maintain emphatic lift on key negations/hostile descriptors; exact udatta mapping requires the svara-text.
Deliver the list ‘akarmā… amantuḥ… anyavrataḥ… amānuṣaḥ’ with clear separations; emphasize ‘amitrahan’ and ‘dambhaya’ as the turning point.
(dasyuḥ): ‘sy’ conjunct clean, final visarga audible, (anyavrataḥ): ‘nya’ conjunct, ‘vr’ clear, (amitrahan): final ‘han’ light nasal, not ‘haṁ’, (dambhaya): ‘mbh’ conjunct—keep aspiration on ‘bh’
Firm, cutting clarity; controlled intensity without harshness.
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