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Dhammapada · narration sample

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Rig Veda · 499 of 1027

Mandala 6: HYMN LVIII. Pūṣan.

1.LIKE heaven art thou: one form is bright, one holy, like Day and Night dissimilar in colour. All magic powers thou aidest, self-depen. dent! Auspicious be thy bounty here, O Pūṣan.

2.Goat-borne, the guard of cattle, he whose home is strength, inspirer of the hymn, set over all the world; Brandishing here and there his lightly. moving goad, beholding every creature, Pūṣan, God, goes forth.

3.O Pūṣan, with thy golden ships that travel across the ocean, in the air’s mid-region, Thou goest on an embassy to Sūrya, subdued by love, desirous of the glory.

4.Near kinsman of the heaven and earth is Pūṣan, liberal, Lord of food, of wondrous iustre, Whom strong and vigorous and swiftlymoving, subdued by love, the Deities gave to Sūrya.

Asked of Guide

Why does the hymn keep calling Pūṣan “subdued by love” to Sūrya?

The chapter describes Pūṣan as a guide and benefactor who travels with “golden ships” and watches over cattle and the world; being “subdued by love” to Sūrya locates him in a service relationship to the sun, drawn by devotion or attraction toward Sūrya’s glory. The phrase frames Pūṣan’s energy as willingly directed outward—an active, affectionate motion toward the luminous source rather than a distant sovereignty.

This wording echoes other Rig Veda hymns where gods are allied through bonds of affinity and duty; compare Mandala 1 hymns that show gods moving “towards” the sun or each other in search of honor and nourishment. Here love explains why Pūṣan escorts, aids, and brings bounty: his movement is relational and purposeful, aimed at Sūrya’s radiance.

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