Verses 1, 2, 3
अमं॑दा॒न्त्स्तोमा॒न्प्र भ॑रे मनी॒षा सिंधा॒वधि॑ क्षिय॒तो भा॒व्यस्य॑ । यो मे॑ स॒हस्र॒ममि॑मीत स॒वान॒तूर्तो॒ राजा॒ श्रव॑ इ॒च्छमा॑नः ॥
ámandāntstómānprá bhare manīṣā́ síndhāvádhi kṣiyató bhāvyásya ǀ yó me sahásramámimīta savā́natū́rto rā́jā śráva icchámānaḥ ǁ
श॒तं राज्ञो॒ नाध॑मानस्य नि॒ष्काञ्छ॒तमश्वा॒न्प्रय॑तान्त्स॒द्य आदं॑ । श॒तं क॒क्षीवाँ॒ असु॑रस्य॒ गोनां॑ दि॒वि श्रवो॒ऽजर॒मा त॑तान ॥
śatám rā́jño nā́dhamānasya niṣkā́ñchatámáśvānpráyatāntsadyá ā́dam ǀ śatám kakṣī́vām̐ ásurasya gónām diví śrávo’járamā́ tatāna ǁ
उप॑ मा श्या॒वाः स्व॒नये॑न द॒त्ता व॒धूमं॑तो॒ दश॒ रथा॑सो अस्थुः । ष॒ष्टिः स॒हस्र॒मनु॒ गव्य॒मागा॒त्सन॑त्क॒क्षीवाँ॑ अभिपि॒त्वे अह्नां॑ ॥
úpa mā śyāvā́ḥ svanáyena dattā́ vadhū́manto dáśa ráthāso asthuḥ ǀ ṣaṣṭíḥ sahásramánu gávyamā́gātsánatkakṣī́vām̐ abhipitvé áhnām ǁ
In these opening verses, the Rishi Kakṣīvān breaks into a song of exuberant praise (dānastuti) for King Svānaya, the son of Bhavya. Having received immense patronage, Kakṣīvān declares that he brings forth rich, unwaning praises for the generous king who measured out thousands of gifts. He recalls receiving a hundred gold necklaces (niṣkas), a hundred well-trained horses, and a hundred cattle from the great asura-like patron. Ten chariots accompanied by brides arrive as gifts, alongside sixty thousand cows. Through these vivid descriptions, the hymn celebrates the profound reciprocal bond between the Vedic poet who channels divine illumination and the noble king who sustains the material conditions for cosmic and earthly ritual to flourish. Yet, beneath the surface of royal largesse lies a deeper Vedic mystery. The wealth bestowed is not merely transactional; it is equated with the extension of celestial fame (śravas) that reaches up to the heavens. The horses and cows symbolize dynamic vitality and luminous streams of consciousness, while the bridal chariots represent the union of aspiration and divine grace. Svānaya is depicted not just as a wealthy terrestrial ruler, but as a cosmic benefactor whose generosity mirrors the boundless outpouring of the gods themselves.
Verse 1: I bring forth unflagging praises with my inspired thought for the river-dwelling Bhavya; the king, unvanquished and desiring fame, who measured out a thousand sacrificial gifts for me.
Verse 2: Instantly I received a hundred gold necklaces, a hundred ready-harnessed horses from the beseeching king, and a hundred cows from the lordly patron, stretching eternal fame up to the heavens.
Verse 3: Ten dark-grey chariots, bearing brides, sent by Svānaya, stood near me; sixty thousand cattle followed, and Kakṣīvān won them at the closing of the days.
Sāyaṇa interprets these verses literally as historical records of wealth gifted to the Rishi Kakṣīvān by King Svānaya. Spiritual commentators like Sri Aurobindo suggest that these vast quantities of cows, horses, and gold carry esoteric meanings representing rays of spiritual illumination, dynamic vital forces, and intrinsic divine wealth.
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| अमन्दान् | amandān | unfading, exhilarating, joyous |
| स्तोमान् | stomān | praises, hymns of praise |
| मनीषा | manīṣā | by inspired thought, intellect |
| सहस्रम् | sahasram | a thousand |
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| राज्ञः | rājñaḥ | of the king |
| निष्कान् | niṣkān | gold ornaments, necklaces |
| असुरस्य | asurasya | of the mighty, lordly one |
| अजरम् | ajaram | ageless, unaging |
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| श्यावाः | śyāvāḥ | dark-grey horses or chariots |
| वधूमन्तः | vadhūmantaḥ | accompanied by brides |
| कक्षीवान् | kakṣīvān | the Rishi Kakṣīvān |
Picture an opulent caravan emerging from the morning mist—hundreds of gleaming gold necklaces, prancing horses, and bridal chariots rolling into the Rishi's sanctuary as tangible proof of divine-human reciprocity.
Verses 4, 5, 6, 7
च॒त्वा॒रिं॒शद्दश॑रथस्य॒ शोणाः॑ स॒हस्र॒स्याग्रे॒ श्रेणिं॑ नयंति । म॒द॒च्युतः॑ कृश॒नाव॑तो॒ अत्या॑न्क॒क्षीवं॑त॒ उद॑मृक्षंत प॒ज्राः ॥
catvāriṃśáddáśarathasya śóṇāḥ sahásrasyā́gre śréṇim nayanti ǀ madacyútaḥ kṛśanā́vato átyānkakṣī́vanta údamṛkṣanta pajrā́ḥ ǁ
पूर्वा॒मनु॒ प्रय॑ति॒मा द॑दे व॒स्त्रीन्यु॒क्ताँ अ॒ष्टाव॒रिधा॑यसो॒ गाः । सु॒बंध॑वो॒ ये वि॒श्या॑ इव॒ व्रा अन॑स्वंतः॒ श्रव॒ ऐषं॑त प॒ज्राः ॥
pū́rvāmánu práyatimā́ dade vastrī́nyuktā́m̐ aṣṭā́varídhāyaso gā́ḥ ǀ subándhavo yé viśyā́ iva vrā́ ánasvantaḥ śráva áiṣanta pajrā́ḥ ǁ
आग॑धिता॒ परि॑गधिता॒ या क॑शी॒केव॒ जंग॑हे । ददा॑ति॒ मह्यं॒ यादु॑री॒ याशू॑नां भो॒ज्या॑ श॒ता ॥
ā́gadhitā párigadhitā yā́ kaśīkéva jáṅgahe ǀ dádāti máhyam yā́durī yā́śūnām bhojyā́ śatā́ ǁ
उपो॑प मे॒ परा॑ मृश॒ मा मे॑ द॒भ्राणि॑ मन्यथाः । सर्वा॒हम॑स्मि रोम॒शा गं॒धारी॑णामिवावि॒का ॥
úpopa me párā mṛśa mā́ me dabhrā́ṇi manyathāḥ ǀ sárvāhámasmi romaśā́ gandhā́rīṇāmivāvikā́ ǁ
The concluding movement of the sūkta shifts deeper into the community life and esoteric imagery of the Pajras (Kakṣīvān's lineage). Forty red horses of Daśaratha lead the procession in a brilliant line, adorned with golden kṛśana ornaments. The Pajras cleanse themselves and claim their reward—three yoke-teams and eight cows that nourish righteousness, moving together like close-knit clans seeking higher inspiration. The hymn then takes a famously enigmatic, intimate turn in verses 6 and 7, where cryptic references to bodily touch, garments, and a Gāndhārī ewe with a thick fleece appear. Verse 7 in particular (“Do not think me minor; touch me closely, for I am entirely woolly like the ewe of the Gāndhārīs”) has baffled and fascinated scholars for millennia. Traditionally, it is viewed as a playful, dialogical exchange between the Rishi and his wife or a poetic metaphor for the abundant fleece and fertility of the gifts received. Symbolically, it points to the rugged, earthy reality of pastoral life intimately wedded to spiritual ecstasy—reminding us that Vedic revelation embraces both the sublime heights of heaven and the dense, woolly textures of earthly existence.
Verse 4: Forty red horses of Daśaratha lead the front of the line of a thousand; the radiant Pajras, moving like surging streams and adorned with gold, cleansed their steed-drawn wealth.
Verse 5: I take up the prior offering: three yoke-teams and eight cows that sustain righteousness. Closely bonded like members of a clan, the wagonless Pajras sought after luminous fame.
Verse 6: Seized from before and behind, like a weaving shuttle it moves to and fro; she gives to me a hundred bounties of the Yāśū people, hundredfold and rich.
Verse 7: Touch me closer and closer; do not think me insignificant. For I am completely woolly, like the ewe of the Gāndhārīs.
While ritualists like Sāyaṇa interpret verse 7 as a conversation between Kakṣīvān and his wife regarding intimacy and gifts, modern philologists often see it as a folk riddle or a satirical/erotic dialogue fragment preserved within the priestly collection, highlighting the vibrant human dimension of the Ṛgvedic seers.
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| चत्वारिंशत् | catvāriṃśat | forty |
| शोणाः | śoṇāḥ | red horses |
| कृशनावतः | kṛśanāvataḥ | adorned with pearl-shell ornaments |
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| अष्टौ | aṣṭau | eight |
| अरिधायसः | ari-dhāyasaḥ | sustaining bounty or piety |
| सुबन्धवः | su-bandhavaḥ | well-allied, closely bound |
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| कशीका इव | kaśīkā iva | like a weaver's shuttle |
| ददाति | dadāti | she gives |
| मह्यम् | mahyam | to me |
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| उपोप | upopa | close and closer |
| दभ्राणि | dabhrāṇi | small, meager, trivial |
| रोमशा | romaśā | hairy, woolly, shaggy |
| अविका | avikā | ewe, female sheep |
Imagine a weaver's shuttle flying back and forth, weaving together rich woolen textures, culminating in the earthy, humorous image of a thick-fleece Gāndhārī ewe symbolizing abundant fertility and poetic closeness.