Dashati 8
Aindra protection and victory: divine light as inner armor and the defeat of hostile forces
Indra
Brisk forceful and warding (rakṣoghna/apotropaic) with a luminous contemplative refrain-like center
R̥ṣi attribution is not supplied; identification requires concordance to the corresponding Ṛgvedic sources for each mantra. The theological coloring matches common Aindra/Rakṣā usage rather than a single clearly marked family in the provided excerpt.
Applicable to Soma-yajña as an Aindra set supporting Indra’s reception of Soma and the sacrificer’s protection; also usable as general rakṣā-mantras within śrauta performance.
Mantras
Mantra 1
मर्माणि ते वर्मणा च्छादयामि सोमस्त्वा राजामृतेनानु वस्ताम् उरोर्वरीयो वरुणस्ते कृणोतु जयन्तं त्वानु देवा मदन्तु
I cover thy vital parts with armour; may Soma the king clothe thee with immortality; may Varuṇa make for thee a wider, ampler safeguard; and may the gods rejoice in thee as victorious.
Mantra 2
अन्धा अमित्रा भवताशीर्षाणो ऽहय इव तेषां वो अग्निनुन्नानामिन्द्रो हन्तु वरंवरम्
Let the foes become blind and headless, like serpents; of them, driven forth by Agni for your sake, may Indra slay them one by one.
Mantra 3
यो नः स्वो ऽरणो यश्च निष्ट्यो जिघांसति देवास्तं सर्वे धूर्वन्तु ब्रह्म वर्म ममान्तरं शर्म वर्म ममान्तरम्
Whosoever, whether of our own household or a stranger, seeketh to slay us, him may all the gods confound; the sacred prayer is armour for my inmost being; protection is armour for my inmost being.
Frequently Asked Questions
It teaches that divine light (jyotis) is the shared essence of Agni, Indra, and Sūrya, and that the mantra itself becomes ‘armor’ protecting the sacrificer while Indra overcomes hostile forces.
The verses present a two-step protection: Agni first purifies and drives out the hostile influence, and Indra then destroys the adversary decisively, ‘one by one’ (varaṃ-varaṃ).
Here ‘brahma’ is the potent sacred utterance/mantra, not merely abstract knowledge; it functions as varman (cuirass/armor) and śarman (refuge), guarding one’s ‘inner being’ (antaram).