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Hymn 62: The intuition Saramā, the route and the hill
Rişhi: Nodha Gautamaĥ
MANTRA (1.62.1): WE MEDITATE A
GLADDENING HYMN
We meditate a gladdening laud
For him who is mighty and praiseworthy like Angirasa;
Praising him, the celebrated leader, who measures the rik with
perfected hymns,
We worship with a luminous laud.
pra manmahe
shavasānāya shūşham
., meditate, mighty, gladdening,
āngūşham girvaņase angirasvat;
laud, praiseworthy, like the Angirasa seers,
suvŗktibhiĥ stuvata ŗgmiyāya
with perfected hymns, (who) praising, he who measures the rik,
archāma arkam nare vishrutāya.
worship, luminous laud, leader, celebrated.
Details:
We meditate intensely like the
ancient Angirasa seers on the One who knows the full
power of the rik, i.e., measures the rik.
ŗgmiyāya:
he who measures the riks (S), one deserving of lauds (Skandaswamy).
A related word, ŗgmiyam, occurs in RV (1.9.9) and RV
(1.51.1).
vishrutāya:
who is heard on all sides; celebrated.
shavasānāya:
mighty. Could refer to the laud or to Indra.
MANTRA (1.62.2): FIND THE ROUTE BY SINGING
Offer a great adoration for the great one;
Offer a powerful Sāma chant to the exceedingly mighty (Indra),
By which, knowing the route, our ancient fathers,
The worshipping Angirasa seers, attained the rays.
pra vo mahe mahi namo bharadhvam
., you, great or supreme, great, adoration, offer,
āngūşhyam shavasānāya sāma,
powerful, exceedingly mighty, Sāma chant,
yenā naĥ pūrve pitaraĥpadajňā
with which, our, ancient, fathers, knowing the route,
archanto angiraso gā avindan.
worshipping, Angirasa seers, rays of light,
attained.
Details:
It is by singing the rik,
the hymn of illumination that they find the solar illuminations
in the cave of their being.
sāma āngūşhyam:
a Sāma chant of the bŗhadrathantara type. The texts of
most of the verses in Sāma Veda are in Rig Veda, but they are
chanted in a more elaborate manner.
arka:
Sun, light and the Vedic hymn.
archanta:
to shine, to sing the rik.
MANTRA (1.62.3): SARAMA, THE POWER OF INTUITION
In the search
by Indra and Angirasas,
Saramā discovered a foundation for her son.
Bŗhaspati slew
Vala and attained the herd of rays;
The Gods exulted with the recovered light.
indrasya angirasām cha işhtau
by Indra, Angirasa seers, and, search or seek,
vidat saramā tanayāya dhāsim;
discovered, Saramā, for (her) son, the foundation,
bŗhaspatih bhinat adrim vidat gāĥ
Bŗhaspati, slew the devourer (Vala), found, the rays of light,
sam
usriyābhiĥ vāvashanta naraĥ.
., the (recovered) rays of light, exulted, Gods.
Details:
In the ordinary interpretation,
Saramā is a hound. Just as a hunter sends the hound to track
the animals, Indra sends Saramā to track the lost cows.
The phrase involving the son is supposed to be Sarama's
reply: ‘O Indra, I will look for the cows which provide the milk
for your son'. All this is far-fetched.
The esoteric interpretation is
straightforward. Indra is the Lord of the pure Divine Mind.
Saramā is the power of Intuition going straight at Truth.
She darts to the cave of the hill of Inconscience where the Rays
of Consciousness (symbolised by go) are hidden and shows up the
way for the entry of the divine Mind in the human seeker. By her
action, the workings of intuition (progeny) are stabilized. On
Indra's recovery of the Rays of Light, intuition gets
established.
Similar idea is in RV (1.96.4): ’Mātarishvan,
increasing the many desirable things (higher objects of life),
discovered the path for the Son, discovered Svar.' There
is one entire hymn (10.108) on Saramā. But in RV there is
no mention of Saramā being the divine hound, even though
the appellation is given to Saramā in the title part of
the Sūkta, supplied much later.
gāh:
the Rays of Light, spiritual knowledge; cows in ordinary usage.
adri:
generally it is the hill of inconscience, the home of the
demonic forces. Here it is used for a particular demon, Vala,
the leader of a class of demons called Paņis, who steal
the spiritual knowledge (or cows) and imprison them in the caves
of the hill of inconscience.
tanayāya:
for the powers or the son born of yajňa, not an ordinary puppy.
dhāsim:
foundation, food according to ritualists.
MANTRA (1.62.4): THE HILL IS
RENT BY THE PERFECT VERSE
He, along with the seven seers using the rhythmic hymn and the
perfect verse,
Rent the hill (demon) with his cry.
O Indra, O
puissant, with the ten-rayed travellers on the path,
You rent the concealer into pieces with your cry.
sa suşhţubhā sa stubhā sapta vipraiĥ
he, with perfect verse, he, rhythmic hymn, seven, seers,
svareņa adrim svaryo navagvaiĥ,
cry, mountain, of sunworld, nine-rayed seers,
saraņyubhiĥ phaligām indra shakra
travellers, concealer, Indra, puissant,
valam raveņa darayo dashagvaiĥ.
Vala, cry, rend, the ten-rayed seers.
Details:
It is by stubh, the
all-supporting rhythm of the hymn of the seven seers, by the
vibrating voice of the Navagvas, that Indra becomes full
of the power of svar, svareņa svarya. By the cry of
Dashagvas he rends Vala into pieces. The three
epithets, adri, the hill, phaliga, concealer and
Vala, refer to the same demonic force which hides the
Rays of Light.
vipra:
derived from vep, to vibrate; the sage with the vibrant
or resonating voice.
MANTRA (1.62.5): STRENGTHENED
THE BASE OF THE MIDWORLD
O destroyer of the foes, hymned by the Angirasa
seers,
You have
dispelled the darkness with the rays of the dawn and the sun.
O Indra, you have spread wide the summits of earth
And strengthened the base of the midregion under heaven.
gŗņāno angirobhiĥ dasma
hymned, by Angirasas, destroyer of foes,
vivaĥ uşhasā sūryeņa gobhiĥ andhaĥ,
dispelled, of the dawn, of Sūrya, with the rays, darkness,
vi bhūmyā aprathaya indra sānu
., earth, made wide, Indra, the peak or summit,
divo raja uparam astabhāyaĥ.
heaven, midregion, under, strengthened or propped up.
Details:
Indra spreads out the high
plateau's of the earthy hill with wideness and upholds the
higher midworld; the result of the opening of the higher planes
of consciousness is to increase the wideness of the physical
plane, and to raise the height of the mental or the vital.
All the events at the physical
level become more flexible and less rigid, apparently overcoming
the fixed laws of gravity, etc.,
gobhiĥ:
Rays of Truth Consciousness. Earth: the field of waking
consciousness.
raja:
the field of intermediate consciousness, Midworld.
MANTRA (1.62.6): THE FOUR
HONEYED RIVERS OF THE UPPERWORLD
This is the most worshipful work
Of the potent God and also the most graceful,
That he set flow in the crooked place
The four rivers of the upper world whose streams are honey.
tadu prayakşhatam asya karma
that, most worshipful, of Indra, work,
dasmasya chārutamam asti damsaĥ,
mighty doer or potent, graceful, is, deep,
upahvare yat uparā apinvan
in the crooked place, which, upper world, set aflow,
madhvarņaso nadyaĥ chatasraĥ.
honey-streams, rivers, four.
Details:
In the scheme of seven worlds,
three belong to the lower hemisphere, namely matter, the world
of life-energies and the world of mind. The remaining belong to
the higher hemisphere, which are the Divine Being, Divine
Consciousness-Force, Divine Delight and Divine Truth. The four
rivers from these four worlds streaming honey, the Delight,
nourish the lower worlds, full of crookedness. Only Indra can
make those four rivers reach earth, the field of waking
Consciousness.
MANTRA (1.62.7): UNATTAINABLE BY MERE EFFORT
He parted twofold the eternal (Goddesses) fused together,
He, unattainable by mere effort and who is pleased by the hymns
of singers.
Happy like the sun in the highest station,
He upholds and nourishes both heaven and earth, he of auspicious
deeds.
dvitā vivavre sanajā sanīļe
twofold, parted, eternal, fused together or in the same place,
ayāsyaĥ stavamānebhiĥ arkaiĥ,
unattainable by effort, singers, hymns,
bhago na mene parame vyoman
sun, like, happy, highest, station,
adhārayat rodasī sudamsāĥ.
nourished,
heaven and earth, of auspicious deeds.
Details:
Heaven is the consciousness of the
divine Mind; Earth is the lower physical consciousness. Both are
fused together in the unregenerate state of man. When he ripens
in the course of the sacrifice, the two states are separated;
freed from the lower, the higher resumes its own status and the
lower its own. Separating them from each other, Indra nourishes
both the states of man appropriately.
parame vyoman:
the highest world in the macrocosm, and the highest state of
Consciousness attainable in the subtle body of man.
ayāsya:
unattainable by effort. yāsa is effort. This concept is
the key for highly quoted Upanishadic passages such as, "The
ātman cannot be obtained by instruction nor by intellect nor
much hearing...' (Mundaka U,3.2.3). The idea is that
self-effort is not enough for us to reach the high states of
Consciousness. We need a spirit of complete surrender to the
Divine, indicated by the word, nama, in the RV in
response to which the Divine showers his grace. Ayāsya is
also the name of a rişhi.
MANTRA (1.62.8): STATES OF DAY AND NIGHT ALTERNATE
From ancient days heaven and earth are traversed
By the Goddesses, distinct of hue, repeatedly born and youthful
through their own motions.
Night with its dark features and
The day with its bright lustres circle each other alternately.
sanāt divam pari bhumā virūpe
ancient days, of the dyu world, traverse, earth, distinct
of hue,
punarbhuvā yuvatī svebhiĥ evaiĥ,
who are ever reborn, youthful, own, motions,
kŗşhņebhiĥ akta uşhā rushadbhiĥ vapubhiĥ
dark features, night, day, shining, limbs,
acharato anyānyā.
traverse or circle, each other or alternate.
Details:
The state of consciousness is not
always the same all the time in the inner life of the spiritual
aspirant. The luminous state is termed the Day or heaven. The
ordinary obscure state of Consciousness is called earth or
Night. The states alternate like Day and Night. In this rik,
Uşhas denotes the Day. Indra establishes earth and heaven
in their respective statuses. Then follows their growth through
the alternations of Day and Night. Both are the workings of
Indra.
MANTRA (1.62.9): YOU PROVIDE
RIPE MILK FROM EVEN RAW COWS
An eternal comradeship is maintained by the doer of great deeds.
The son of luminous might, labouring in perfect works,
You provide ripe and shining milk of immortality even from the
raw cows (immature rays),
Dark of hue or ruddy.
sanemi sakhyam svapasyamānaĥ
ancient, comradeship, doer of great deeds,
sūnuĥ dādhara shavasā sudamsāĥ,
son, held up
or maintains, luminous might, perfect works,
āmāsu chit dadhişhe pakvam antaĥ payaĥ
raw cows, ., establishes, ripe, inside, milk or nectar,
kŗşhņāsu rushat rohiņīşhu.
dark hue, shining, ruddy.
Details:
Mighty Indra, doer of good deeds,
out of friendship with the human seeker, stores the knowledge of
immortality in his immature or unprepared body, which contains
immature knowledge or rays, āmā. This immature knowledge
can be either ruddy indicating excessive or inappropriate
activity or rajas, or dark indicating inertia or
tamas.
Ashvins, the lords of bliss, are
repeatedly mentioned as filling the barren cows with milk
(1.116.22, 1.117.20, and 1.112.3). The symbolism is the same
here.
MANTRA (1.62.10): SISTERS GUARD
INDRA'S DEEDS FOR THE HUMAN ASPIRANT
From ancient times, the sisters of common dwelling, stable,
protective and immortal
Guard with their strength
Many thousand workings of Indra on behalf of the seeker; like
wives who are mothers of Gods,
The protectors serve him who deviates not from his labour, like
the sisters.
sanāt sanīļa avanīĥ avātā
ancient, of common dwelling, protective, stable,
vratā rakşhante amŗtāĥsahobhiĥ,
deeds, guard, immortal, with their strength,
purū sahasrā janayo na patnīĥ
many,
thousand, wives, like, protectors,
duvasyanti svasāro ahrayāņam.
serves, sisters, who deviates not from his labour.
Details:
The numerous deeds of Indra are for
the sake of the human aspirant.
svasāraĥ:
sisters, the divine powers, everywhere in the Veda. The divine
rivers are also referred to as the sisters in the Veda.
avanayaĥ:
protectors; fingers according to S.
patnīĥ:
protectors.
janayaĥ:
spouses of Gods or the executors of the will of the Gods.
MANTRA (1.62.11): OUR MINDS TOUCH YOU
Seeking the eternal, with adoration and songs of light,
Our new thoughts run to you seeking the riches, O potent one;
Longing for you as wives longing for their husbands,
Our minds touch you, O mighty one.
sanāyuvo namasā navyo arkaiĥ
seeking the eternal, with obeisance or adoration, new, songs of
light,
vasūyavo matayo dasma dadruĥ,
seeking the riches, thoughts, potent one, run (to you),
patim na patnīĥ ushatīĥ ushantam
husbands, like, wives, desiring, longing,
spŗshanti tvā shavasāvan manīşhāĥ.
touch, you, mighty one, minds or lauds of the seers.
Details:
manīşhāh:
the aspect of mind dealing with discrimination; budhdi in
the later literature.
The idea is that our minds touch
you through our chants.
MANTRA (1.62.12): TEACH US YOUR
POWERS
Riches eternally in your hands,
Neither decay
nor wasted, O potent one.
O Indra, you are a wise thinker, luminous and strong-willed;
Master of powers, teach us then by your powers.
sanādeva tava rāyo gabhastau
eternally, your, riches, in your hands,
na kşhīyante na upadasyanti dasma,
not, decay, not, destroyed, potent,
dyumān asi kratumān indra dhīraĥ
luminous, are, strong-willed, Indra, wise-thinker,
shikşhā shachīvaĥ tava naĥ shachībhiĥ.
teach (us),
master of powers, your, us, by your powers.
Details:
The riches of Indra are not
physical, but supernatural; they cannot be destroyed. Only Indra
can instruct us in understanding them.
MANTRA (1.62.13): MAY HE, RICH
IN THOUGHT, COME AT DAWN
O Indra, eternal, for you Nodha, the Gautama, has fashioned a
sacred hymn for the yoking of your bright steeds and
For your leading us excellently, O mighty one;
At dawn, may he swiftly come, rich with thought.
sanāyate gotama indra navyam
you who are eternal, Gotama, Indra, new or sacred,
atakşhat brahma hariyojanāya,
carved, hymn, yoking of your bright steeds,
sunīthāya naĥ shavasāna nodhāĥ
good leading, us mighty, Nodha,
prātaĥ makşhū dhiyāvasuĥ jagamyāt.
dawn, swiftly, rich in thought, may (he) come.
Details:
Nodha:
son of the seer Gotama. Gotama is one with excellent
knowledge or Light.
sunīthāya: leading to the right goal through
the right path.
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