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Dhammapada · narration sample

A one-minute narration sample. Every book in the library is narrated end to end — hear the rest in the app.

Rig Veda · 788 of 1027

Mandala 9: HYMN LXV. Soma Pavamana.

1.THE, glittering maids send Sūra forth, the glorious sisters, close-allied, Send Indu forth, their mighty Lord.

2.Pervade, O Pavamana, all our treasures with repeated light, God, coming hither from the Gods.

3.Pour on us, Pavamana, rain, as service and rain praise for Gods: Pour all to be our nourishment.

4.Thou art a Steer by lustre: we, O Pavamana, faithfully Call upon thee the Splendid One.

5.Do thou, rejoicing, nobly-armed! pour upon us heroic strength: O Indu, come thou bitherward.

6.When thou art cleansed with both the hands and dipped in waters, with the wood. Thou comest to the gathering-place.

7.Sing forth your songs, as Vyaśva sang, to Soma Pavamana, to, The Mighty One with thousand eyes;

8.Whose coloured sap they drive with stones, the yellow meath-distilling juice, Indu for Indra, for his drink.

9.We seek to gain the friendly love of thee that Strong and Mighty One, Of thee the winner of all wealth.

10.Flow onward with thy stream, a Steer, inspiriting the Maruts’ Lord, Winning all riches by thy might.

11.I send thee forth to battle from the press, O Pavamana, Strong, Sustainer, looker on the light.

12.Acknowledged by this song of mine, flow, tawny-coloured, with thy stream Incite to battle thine ally.

13.O Indu, visible to all pour out for us abundant food: Soma, be thou our prosperer.

14.The pitchers, Indu, with thy streams have sung aloud in vigorous might Enter them, and let Indra drink.

15.O thou whose potent gladdening juice they milk out with the stones, flow on, Destroyer of our enemies.

16.King Pavamana is implored with holy songs, on man’s behalf, To travel through the firmament.

17.Bring us, O Indu, hundredfold increase of kine, and noble steeds, The gift of fortune for our help.

18.Pressed for the banquet of the Gods, O Soma, bring us might, and speed, Like beauty for a brilliant show.

19.Soma, flow on exceeding bright with loud roar to the wooden vats, Falcon-like resting in thine home.

20.Soma, the Water-winner flows to Indra, Vāyu, Varuṇa, To Viṣṇu and the Marut host.

21.Soma , bestowing food upon our progeny, from every sides, Pour on us riches thousandfold

22.The Soma juices which have been expressed afar or near at hand, Or there on Śaryaṇāvān’s bank,

23.Those pressed among Arjikas, pressed among the active, in men’s homes, Or pressed among the Races Five-

24.May these celestial drops, expressed, pour forth upon us, as they flow, Rain from the heavens apd hero strength.

25.Urged forward o’er the ox-hide flows the Lovely One of tawny hue, Lauded by Jamadagni’s song.

26.Like horses urged to speed, the drops, bright, stirring vital power, when blent With milk, are beautified in streams.

27.So they who toil with juices send thee forward for the Gods’ repast: So with this splendour flow thou on.

28.We choose to-day that chariot-steed of thine, the Strong, that brings us bliss, The Guardian, the desire of all,

29.The Excellent, the Gladdener, the Sage with heart that understands, The Guardian, the desire of all;

30.Who for ourselves, O thou Most Wise, is wealth and fair intelligence, The Guardian, the desire of all.

Asked of Guide

Why does the hymn keep calling Soma “Pavamana” and comparing him to a steer or chariot-steed?

The hymn calls Soma “Pavamana” — the Purifier or One who is cleansed — to stress that the juice becomes sacred when ritually purified and brought into the sacrificial space, “cleansed with both the hands and dipped in waters” (verse 6). Calling Soma a steer and a chariot-steed ties that sanctified, moving power to life and wealth: a steer brings kine and a chariot-steed brings victory and “bliss,” making Soma the agent who propels prosperity and heroic force (verses 10, 17, 28).

This language makes Soma both a divine guest and a mobilizing force: he is poured, praised, and sent “to battle from the press” (verse 11), inspiring gods and men alike. The hymn’s images match what the Rigveda does elsewhere, as in other Soma hymns that present Soma as purifier, draught, and energizing warrior-companion to Indra and the Maruts.

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