Rig Veda 8.6.47: Mandala 8, Sukta 6, Mantra 47
Sukta 8.6
- Rishi
- Kaṇva lineage
- Devata
- Indra, with dānastuti content
- Chandas
- Likely Tr̥ṣṭubh-family
- Rasa
- Vira (heroism) and Adbhuta (wonder)
त्रीणि शतान्यर्वतां सहस्रा दश गोनाम् । ददुष्पज्राय साम्ने ॥
trī́ṇi śatā́ny árvātāṃ sahásrā daśá gónām | dadúṣ pajrā́ya sā́mne ||
ม้าสามร้อย และแสงหนึ่งหมื่น—ดุจโคแห่งแสง—เขาทั้งหลายมอบให้ปัชระ (Pajra) เพื่อบทสวดสาแมน (sāman). ของทานภายนอกย่อมสะท้อนการปลดปล่อยพลังและความสว่างภายใน.
Word by Word
- त्रीणि
- threeAdjective (numeral)नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचनRole विशेषण (कर्म/प्रमेय-सम्बन्धः) — ‘शतानि’ इत्यस्यRoot त्रि- (प्रातिपदिक)
- शतानि
- hundredsNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचनRole कर्म (ददुषे/ददुः इत्यर्थे ‘दत्तम्’ वस्तु)Root शत- (प्रातिपदिक)
- अर्वताम्
- of horsesNounपुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचनRole सम्बन्ध (शतानि—कस्य? अर्वताम्)Root अर्वत्- (प्रातिपदिक)
- सहस्रा
- thousandsNoun (numeral)नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचन (वैदिके -ā अन्तः)Role कर्म (दत्तम् वस्तु)Root सहस्र- (प्रातिपदिक)
- दश
- tenIndeclinable (numeral)अव्यय (संख्या)Role विशेषण (गोनााम् इत्यस्य संख्या-निर्देशः)Root दशन्/दश- (प्रातिपदिक)
- गोनाम्
- of cowsNounस्त्रीलिङ्ग (वैदिके सामान्यतः), षष्ठी, बहुवचनRole सम्बन्ध (सहस्रा—कस्य? गोनाम्)Root गो- (प्रातिपदिक)
- ददुष्
- giving; the giverKṛdanta (verbal adjective/participle)परस्मैपद-परिप्रेक्ष्ये क्त्वसुँ/परिपूर्ण-भूतकाले कृदन्तः; प्रातिपदिकरूपे ‘ददुष्-’ (देय-कर्तृवाचकः), एकवचन-सम्बन्धे प्रयोगःRole कर्तृ-विशेषण (पज्राय—‘ददुष्’ = दाता)Root दा (दाने) धातु
- पज्राय
- to Pajra (the recipient)Noun (proper name/epithet)पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी, एकवचनRole सम्प्रदान (यस्यै दत्तम्/याय दत्तम्)Root पज्र- (प्रातिपदिक; व्यक्तिनाम/विशेषण)
- साम्ने
- for the Sāman-chant; for the hymnNounनपुंसकलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी, एकवचनRole सम्प्रदान/प्रयोजन (साम्ने = सामगानाय/स्तोत्राय)Root सामन्- (प्रातिपदिक)
Sandhi Notes
- पदच्छेदः: त्रीणि | शतानि | अर्वताम् | सहस्रा | दश | गोनाम् | ददुष् | पज्राय | साम्ने । 1) ‘शतान्यर्वताम्’ = ‘शतानि अर्वताम्’ (इ + अ → य्, यण्-सन्धिः). 2) ‘सहस्रा दश’ इत्यत्र सन्धिः न
- पदविरामः. 3) ‘ददुष्पज्राय’ = ‘ददुष् पज्राय’ (विसर्गस्य परे प् इति व्यञ्जने लोपः/संयोगः; संहितायां ‘ष्प’ रूपम्)
The meaning
Outer meaning
They gave three hundred steeds and ten thousand cows to Pajra for the sāman (chant).
Inner meaning
The ‘steeds’ (aśva/arvat) are released vital energies—forces of action and progress. The ‘cows’ (go) are rays of light/knowledge, here in vast number, indicating a great illumination. Given ‘to Pajra for the sāman’ means these powers are won/secured by the right chant—mantric harmony that aligns mind and life to the truth-rhythm, enabling Indra’s victorious release of force and light.
Universal truth
Right vibration (true chant) unlocks both energy and knowledge; illumination is not separate from force—both are fruits of alignment with the higher harmony.
Themes
Dānastuti, Cows as light, Horses as force, Sacred chant
The seer
- Rishi
- Kaṇva lineage (hymn context; dānastuti style)
- Lineage
- Kaṇva
- Other hymns
- RV 8.6, RV 1.62 (cows as rays; Angiras/Indra context parallels), RV 4.26–4.27 (Indra and the winning of light)
Family tradition
Kaṇva tradition integrates praise, chant (sāman), and the symbolism of horses/cows as inner force and light.
Significance
Affirms the psycho-spiritual economy of the Veda: mantra-harmony yields tangible inner gains—energy (aśva) and illumination (go).
The deity
- Devata
- Indra (frame; giver/releaser of spoils of light and force)
- Epithets
- Gomat (rich in rays/cows), Aśvavat (rich in steeds/energies), Maghavan
- Related deities
- Bṛhaspati (lord of mantra), Soma, Agni
Cosmic role
Releases the herds of light and the energies of victory; patron of the chant that wins them.
Inner power
Transforms the vital into a progressive force and the mind into a luminous knowledge by breaking the Coverer.
In ritual
Where it is used
Sāman-related praise within Soma context; dānastuti acknowledging gifts for chant
त্রীणि॑ श॒तान्यर्व॑तां स॒हस्रा॒ दश॒ गोना॑म् । द॒दुष्प॒ज्राय॒ साम्ने॑ ॥
त्रीणि॑ । श॒तानि॑ । अर्व॑ताम् । स॒हस्रा॑ । दश॑ । गोना॑म् । द॒दुः । प॒ज्राय॑ । साम्ने॑ ॥
trīṇi | śatāni | arvatām | sahasrā | daśa | gonām | daduḥ | pajrāya | sāmne
33
3 pādas × ~11 syllables
Triumphal enumeration; strong beats on numbers and nouns.
Invokes abundance and victorious expansion; energizes and brightens simultaneously.
- अर्वताम् (arvatām)
- Literal: steeds. Symbolic: vital energies, dynamic powers of action
- गोनाम् (gonām)
- Literal: cows. Symbolic: rays of light/knowledge (not literal cattle)
- साम्ने (sāmne)
- Literal: for the sāman/chant. Symbolic: inner harmony of mantra—musical truth that opens the gates
- पज्राय (pajrāya)
- Literal: to Pajra (name). Symbolic: the ‘firm/strong’ receiver—capacity in the seeker that can hold the gained powers
- ददुः (daduḥ)
- Literal: they gave. Symbolic: the gods/powers bestow when the chant aligns consciousness
- त्रीणि शतानि / सहस्रा दश (trīṇi śatāni / sahasrā daśa)
- Literal: three hundreds / ten thousands. Symbolic: abundant magnitudes—mass release of force and light
Dānastuti linked to sāman/chanting; reflects patronage of ritual song and its spiritual efficacy
After successful chant/recitation; in celebratory segments of Soma sessions.
Recitation honoring the power of sāman and the resulting boons.
Use when beginning mantra-music (kīrtan/vedic chanting) to set intention: may chant bring both energy and insight.
(gó-) from PIE *gʷōus ‘cow’ (Latin bōs, English cow via Germanic *kūz); Vedic symbolism extends ‘cow’ to ‘ray/illumination’ because go is linked with dawning light and the ‘cows’ released from darkness. (árvant-) ‘steed’ from √ar ‘to move, fit’ (motion/energy). (sā́man) from √sā/√śam? ‘song/chant’—technical term for melodic recitation, later Sāmaveda. √dā again as core giving verb.
Release of ‘cows’ = recovery of knowledge from obscurity, Sound (sāman) as a vehicle of realization
Sāman embodies ṛta as audible harmony; alignment releases the ‘cows’ of light.
True chant is satya in vibration—speech that corresponds to inner reality.
Release-from-cave motif: concealed light and force become manifest through mantra and victory.
Mantra-yoga: sound as a vehicle of consciousness; abundance as inner siddhi of aligned vibration.
dawn (implicit by ‘cows’ as rays)
Steeds = mobilized prāṇa/vital force; cows = illumined thoughts/rays; sāman = harmonized breath-sound that opens both.
- What is the primary Vedic 'mythologem' present in this verse?
- Gift of ‘cows and horses’—a classic Vedic motif that, inwardly, encodes the bestowal of illumination (go) and dynamic force (arvant). The chant (sāman) is the means: right sound-form releases and distributes these powers.
- How does the linguistic structure reflect Proto-Indo-European roots?
- go- preserves PIE *gʷōus with clear cognates across IE, and its mythic extension to ‘rays’ is a Vedic semantic innovation layered onto an inherited pastoral term. The numerative style (three hundreds, ten thousands) is typical archaic Indo-European hyperbolic enumeration in praise contexts.
- What is the relationship between the Rishi and the Devata here?
- The rishi’s chant mediates between divine abundance and human distribution: by sāman the seer aligns with Indra’s victorious wideness, and the resulting ‘light and force’ are made transmissible—represented outwardly as cows and steeds given to the singer.
Harmonize breath and sound (sāman) to release two results: energized action (aśva) and illumined understanding (go).
viśuddha (sound) leading to ājñā (light) and maṇipūra (force)
ujjāyī (gentle) with humming on exhale; 12 rounds, then chant the mantra 9 times
Vibrational coherence—mind-life synchronized, producing luminous energy.
Chant as if ‘counting’ inner gains: feel three waves of strength rising (300 steeds) and a vast dawn of thoughts (10,000 rays). End by resting in quiet after-sound (nāda) for 1–2 minutes.
Keep strong udātta emphasis on numerals (trīṇi, śatāni, sahasrā, daśa) and on gonām; follow śākhā-specific accents if available.
Arvatām: clear ‘rv’ cluster; gonām: long ō; sāmne: long ā.
: retroflex ṇ, long ī, : dental ś? (ś is palatal); keep ‘ta’ crisp, : ‘ar-va-tām’ with long ām, : keep separation and rhythm in counting, : ‘pajrāya’ with clear jr cluster, : ‘sāmne’ with nasal n, not ‘mne’ swallowed
bright, triumphant, ringing; let the final syllables land firmly.
9
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Rig Veda in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.
