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Rig Veda · 811 of 1027
Mandala 9: HYMN LXXXVIII. Soma Pavamana.
1.FOR thee this Soma is effused, O Indra: drink of this juice; for thee the stream is flowing- Soma, which thou thyself hast made and chosen, even Indu, for thy special drink to cheer thee.
2.Like a capacious car hath it been harnessed, the Mighty; to acquire abundant treasures. Then in the sacrifice they celebrated all triumphs won by Nahus -n the battle.
3.Like Vāyu with his team, moving at pleasure, most gracious when invoked like both Nāsatyas, Thou art thyself like the Wealth-Giver, Soma! who grants all boons, like song-inspiring Pūṣan.
4.Like Indra who hath done great deeds, thou, Soma, art slayer of the Vṛtras, Fort-destroyer. Like Pedu’s horse who killed the brood of serpents, thus thou, O Soma, slayest every Dasyu.
5.Like Agni loosed amid the forest, fiercely he winneth splendour in the running waters. Like one who fights, the roaring of the mighty, thus Soma Pavamana sends his current.
6.These Somas passing through the fleecy filter, like rain descending from the clouds of heaven, Have been effused and poured into the beakers, swiftly like rivers running lowly seaward.
7.Flow onward like the potent band of Maruts, like that Celestial Host whom none revileth. Quickly be gracious unto us like waters, like sacrifice victorious, thousand-fashioned.
8.Thine are King Varuṇa’s eternal statutes, lofty and deep, O Soma, is thy glory. All-pure art thou like Mitra the beloved, adorable, like Aryaman, O Soma.
Asked of Guide
Why does the hymn call Soma both a godlike warrior and a flowing, poured drink?
The hymn names Soma as both a conquering force and a poured juice to show how ritual and power are the same event: when Soma is “effused” and “poured into the beakers,” the liquid becomes Indra’s weapon and Maruts’ band, winning “splendour” and slaying enemies like a warrior. The poem moves between images of battle—“slayer of the Vṛtras,” “Fort-destroyer”—and images of river and rain to treat the sacrificial drink as an active, divine presence that effects victory when consumed.
This merging of roles matches other Rigvedic hymns where gods act through offerings; compare Mandala 1 where Agni mediates between worshippers and gods as both fire and divine messenger. The hymn teaches that pouring Soma is an enactment: the fluid presence accomplishes the cosmic deeds attributed to the gods.
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