Verses 1, 2
प्र सु ज्येष्ठं॑ निचि॒राभ्यां॑ बृ॒हन्नमो॑ ह॒व्यं म॒तिं भ॑रता मृळ॒यद्भ्यां॒ स्वादि॑ष्ठं मृळ॒यद्भ्यां॑ । ता स॒म्राजा॑ घृ॒तासु॑ती य॒ज्ञेय॑ज्ञ॒ उप॑स्तुता । अथै॑नोः क्ष॒त्रं न कुत॑श्च॒नाधृषे॑ देव॒त्वं नू चि॑दा॒धृषे॑ ॥
prá sú jyéṣṭham nicirā́bhyām bṛhánnámo havyám matím bharatā mṛḷayádbhyām svā́diṣṭham mṛḷayádbhyām ǀ tā́ samrā́jā ghṛtā́sutī yajñéyajña úpastutā ǀ áthainoḥ kṣatrám ná kútaścanā́dhṛ́ṣe devatvám nū́ cidādhṛ́ṣe ǁ
अद॑र्शि गा॒तुरु॒रवे॒ वरी॑यसी॒ पंथा॑ ऋ॒तस्य॒ सम॑यंस्त र॒श्मिभि॒श्चक्षु॒र्भग॑स्य र॒श्मिभिः॑ । द्यु॒क्षं मि॒त्रस्य॒ साद॑नमर्य॒म्णो वरु॑णस्य च । अथा॑ दधाते बृ॒हदु॒क्थ्यं१॒॑ वय॑ उप॒स्तुत्यं॑ बृ॒हद्वयः॑ ॥
ádarśi gātúruráve várīyasī pánthā ṛtásya sámayaṃsta raśmíbhiścákṣurbhágasya raśmíbhiḥ ǀ dyukṣám mitrásya sā́danamaryamṇó váruṇasya ca ǀ áthā dadhāte bṛhádukthyám váya upastútyam bṛhádváyaḥ ǁ
In these opening verses, the Ṛṣi summons the great sovereign deities—Mitra and Varuṇa—whose rule is deeply intertwined with the cosmic law of Ṛta. The seeker approaches them with the highest reverence, offering a prayer that is like a sweet distillation of devotion, asking for the gentle, merciful protection of these twin lords of light. The imagery shifts effortlessly to the physical and spiritual sunrise, where the pathways of Ṛta open up before humanity, guided by the radiant rays of Bhaga and the divine vision associated with Mitra and Varuṇa. As the cosmic path becomes wide and accessible, the divine sustainers establish supreme, overflowing vitality for those who praise them. This act establishes the foundational mood of the sūkta: a harmonious alignment between human aspiration and the vast, unassailable majesty of cosmic law that governs both day and night.
Verse 1: Bring forward this supreme, vast praise and oblation to the two merciful ones, the sweetest bestowers of grace; for they are the universal sovereigns, sustained by the clarified butter of sacrifice, praised in every sacred rite, and their divine majesty and power can never be assaulted.
Verse 2: The wide, expansive pathway of Ṛta has become visible, stretching forth through the rays of Bhaga and the solar splendor, revealing the luminous seat of Mitra, Aryaman, and Varuṇa, who together bestow vast and praiseworthy sustenance.
Sāyaṇa interprets these verses through the lens of ritual sacrifice, where 'ghṛtāsutī' refers to libations of melted butter. Sri Aurobindo and psychological interpreters view Ṛta as the inner law of Truth, and the sovereigns as psychological powers governing harmony, vast consciousness, and divine light.
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| ज्येष्ठम् | jyeṣṭham | supreme, most excellent |
| निचिराभ्याम् | nicirābhyām | to the two attentive or closely observing ones |
| सम्राजा | samrājā | the two universal sovereign rulers |
| देवत्वम् | devatvam | divine nature, divinity |
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| अदर्शि | adarśi | has become visible, is seen |
| गातुः | gātuḥ | path, way, or course |
| ऋतस्य | ṛtasya | of Ṛta, of cosmic truth and order |
| सदनम् | sadanam | seat, abode, resting place |
Picture the golden gates of a celestial fortress swinging open at dawn, where the luminous highway of Truth stretches out before travelers, illuminated by the benevolent gaze of sovereign kings.
Verses 3, 4
ज्योति॑ष्मती॒मदि॑तिं धार॒यत्क्षि॑तिं॒ स्व॑र्वती॒मा स॑चेते दि॒वेदि॑वे जागृ॒वांसा॑ दि॒वेदि॑वे । ज्योति॑ष्मत्क्ष॒त्रमा॑शाते आदि॒त्या दानु॑न॒स्पती॑ । मि॒त्रस्तयो॒र्वरु॑णो यात॒यज्ज॑नोऽर्य॒मा या॑त॒यज्ज॑नः ॥
jyótiṣmatīmáditim dhārayátkṣitim svárvatīmā́ sacete divédive jāgṛvā́ṃsā divédive ǀ jyótiṣmatkṣatrámāśāte ādityā́ dā́nunaspátī ǀ mitrástáyorváruṇo yātayájjano’ryamā́ yātayájjanaḥ ǁ
अ॒यं मि॒त्राय॒ वरु॑णाय॒ शंत॑मः॒ सोमो॑ भूत्वव॒पाने॒ष्वाभ॑गो दे॒वो दे॒वेष्वाभ॑गः । तं दे॒वासो॑ जुषेरत॒ विश्वे॑ अ॒द्य स॒जोष॑सः । तथा॑ राजाना करथो॒ यदीम॑ह॒ ऋता॑वाना॒ यदीम॑हे ॥
ayám mitrā́ya váruṇāya śáṃtamaḥ sómo bhūtvavapā́neṣvā́bhago devó devéṣvā́bhagaḥ ǀ tám devā́so juṣerata víśve adyá sajóṣasaḥ ǀ táthā rājānā karatho yádī́maha ṛ́tāvānā yádī́mahe ǁ
The Ṛṣi deepens the vision by describing Aditi, the undivided cosmic mother, held firmly in her luminous, heavenly abode by the ever-vigilant guardians. Day after day, these wakeful deities maintain the radiant dominion of truth, acting as the lords of the bounty that flows from above. Mitra and Varuṇa, along with Aryaman, actively shape and direct human society, ensuring that moral and cosmic laws are upheld among mortals. In the fourth verse, the Ṛṣi invokes a sublime blending of the divine and the terrestrial, comparing the sweetness of the offering to Soma, which brings utter bliss to Mitra and Varuṇa. All the assembled gods take delight in this offering, and the dual monarchs grant whatever the righteous supplicants earnestly pray for, bridging the gap between human desire and divine fulfillment.
Verse 3: Day after day, the two wakeful ones embrace the luminous, unfragmented Aditi who sustains the earthly settlements, holding fast to their radiant sovereignty; and among them, Mitra, Varuṇa, and Aryaman act as the true ordainers of men.
Verse 4: May this Soma-offering become most soothing to Mitra and Varuṇa, bringing a rich share of grace to them as divine beings among the gods; may all the deities joyfully accept it today, and may you two truth-bound kings grant whatever we entreat.
Traditional commentators focus on the technical execution of the Soma ritual and the precise sharing of portions among deities. Mystical readings see 'Aditi' as the infinite consciousness and 'Soma' as the delight of spiritual existence.
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| ज्योतिष्मतीम् | jyotiṣmatīm | full of light, luminous |
| अदितिम् | aditim | Aditi, the indivisible mother of the gods |
| जागृवांसौ | jāgṛvāṃsāu | the two wakeful, vigilant ones |
| यातयज्जन्मन् | yātayat-janan | regulator or ordainer of people |
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| शंतमः | śaṃtamaḥ | most auspicious, most comforting/soothing |
| आभगः | ābhagaḥ | partaker of shares, endowed with grace or fortune |
| सजोषसः | sa-joṣasaḥ | unanimous, joyful together, harmonized |
| ऋतावाना | ṛtāvānā | the two possessors/guardians of Ṛta |
Imagine a pair of wise, eternal shepherds holding a shining vessel of nectar, surrounded by an eager circle of heavenly lights, listening intently to the wishes of sincere earth-dwellers.
Verses 5, 6, 7
यो मि॒त्राय॒ वरु॑णा॒यावि॑ध॒ज्जनो॑ऽन॒र्वाणं॒ तं परि॑ पातो॒ अंह॑सो दा॒श्वांसं॒ मर्त॒मंह॑सः । तम॑र्य॒माभि र॑क्षत्यृजू॒यंत॒मनु॑ व्र॒तं । उ॒क्थैर्य ए॑नोः परि॒भूष॑ति व्र॒तं स्तोमै॑रा॒भूष॑ति व्र॒तं ॥
yó mitrā́ya váruṇāyā́vidhajjáno’narvā́ṇam tám pári pāto áṃhaso dāśvā́ṃsam mártamáṃhasaḥ ǀ támaryamā́bhí rakṣatyṛjūyántamánu vratám ǀ uktháiryá enoḥ paribhū́ṣati vratám stómairābhū́ṣati vratám ǁ
नमो॑ दि॒वे बृ॑ह॒ते रोद॑सीभ्यां मि॒त्राय॑ वोचं॒ वरु॑णाय मी॒ळ्हुषे॑ सुमृळी॒काय॑ मी॒ळ्हुषे॑ । इंद्र॑म॒ग्निमुप॑ स्तुहि द्यु॒क्षम॑र्य॒मणं॒ भगं॑ । ज्योग्जीवं॑तः प्र॒जया॑ सचेमहि॒ सोम॑स्यो॒ती स॑चेमहि ॥
námo divé bṛhaté ródasībhyām mitrā́ya vocam váruṇāya mīḷhúṣe sumṛḷīkā́ya mīḷhúṣe ǀ índramagnímúpa stuhi dyukṣámaryamáṇam bhágam ǀ jyógjī́vantaḥ prajáyā sacemahi sómasyotī́ sacemahi ǁ
ऊ॒ती दे॒वानां॑ व॒यमिंद्र॑वंतो मंसी॒महि॒ स्वय॑शसो म॒रुद्भिः॑ । अ॒ग्निर्मि॒त्रो वरु॑णः॒ शर्म॑ यंस॒न्तद॑श्याम म॒घवा॑नो व॒यं च॑ ॥
ūtī́ devā́nām vayámíndravanto maṃsīmáhi sváyaśaso marúdbhiḥ ǀ agnírmitró váruṇaḥ śárma yaṃsantádaśyāma maghávāno vayám ca ǁ
In this final movement, the focus turns to moral rectitude and divine protection. The mortal who worships Mitra and Varuṇa with an unbending, straight path is safely guarded from all distress and narrowness of heart. Aryaman himself watches over the straight-walking devotee, while hymns and praises adorn the divine ordinances like precious garments. The Sūkta culminates in a grand burst of universal reverence. The Ṛṣi offers obeisance to the vast heaven, to the earthly and heavenly realms (Rodasī), and to the generous deities. He calls upon Indra, Agni, Aryaman, and Bhaga to bless the community so that they may live long lives filled with flourishing progeny and enjoy the sustaining grace of Soma. Finally, wrapped in the protective shelter (śarma) of Agni, Mitra, and Varuṇa, alongside the Maruts and Indra, the patrons and poets alike attain their ultimate spiritual and material aspirations.
Verse 5: Whichever mortal worships Mitra and Varuṇa with an unobstructed path, him you two shield from distress and harm; Aryaman protects this upright devotee who follows the sacred vow, whether adorned with hymns or praises.
Verse 6: Homage to the vast Heaven and the two Worlds; I have spoken my praise to Mitra and the bountiful Varuṇa of kindly grace. Invoke Indra, Agni, the luminous Aryaman, and Bhaga, that living long, we may be blessed with progeny and share the grace of Soma.
Verse 7: May we attain the protective grace of the gods through the companionship of Indra and the self-luminous Maruts. May Agni, Mitra, and Varuṇa extend their shelter to us, and may we—both patrons and poets—attain it fully.
Sāyaṇa explains the closing verses as a standard benediction ensuring long life and material wealth for the yajamāna (sacrificer). Esoteric interpretations see the 'long life' as immortality in divine consciousness and the 'patrons' as those who harbor the divine light within.
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| अनर्वाणम् | anarvāṇam | unimpeded, unobstructed, unhurt |
| अंहसः | aṃhasaḥ | from distress, narrowness, sin, or suffering |
| ऋजुयन्तम् | ṛju-yantam | walking straight, acting righteously |
| परिभूषति | paribhūṣati | surrounds with devotion, honors, adorns |
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| मीळ्हुषे | mīḷhuṣe | to the bountiful, rain-shedding/bestowing one |
| सुमृळीकाय | su-mṛळीkāya | very merciful, full of compassionate grace |
| ज्योक् | jyok | for a long time, long |
| सचेमहि | sacemahi | may we be united with, enjoy, or follow |
| Devanāgarī | IAST | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| इन्द्रवन्तः | indra-vantaḥ | accompanied by Indra, having Indra as friend |
| स्वयशसः | sva-yaśasaḥ | self-luminous, having their own inherent glory |
| शर्म | śarma | shelter, protection, refuge, bliss |
| मघवानः | magha-vānaḥ | bountiful patrons, possessors of bounty |
Visualize a magnificent fortress of light under a vast sky, where a joyful community stands hand in hand with the shining gods, basking in an unbreakable shield of divine peace and abundance.