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Rig Veda · 815 of 1027
Mandala 9: HYMN XCII. Soma Pavamana.
1.THE gold-hued juice, poured out upon the filter, is started like a car sent forth to conquer. He hath gained song and vigour while they cleansed him, and hath rejoiced the Gods with entertainments.
2.He who beholdeth man hath reached the filter: bearing his name, the Sage hath sought his dwelling. The Ṛṣis came to him, seven holy singers, when in the bowls he settled as Invoker.
3.Shared by all Gods, mobt wise, propitious, Soma goes, while they cleanse him, to his constant station. Let him rejoice in all his lofty wisdom to the Five Tribes the Sage attains with labour.
4.In thy mysterious place, O Pavamana Soma, are all the Gods, the Thrice-Eleven. Ten on the fleecy height, themselves, self-prompted, and seven fresh rivers, brighten and adorn thee.
5.Now let this be the truth of Pavamana, there where all singers gather them together, That he hath given us room and made the daylight, hath holpen Manu and repelled the Dasyu.
6.As the priest seeks the station rich in cattle, like a true King who goes to great assemblies, Soma hath sought the beakers while they cleansed him, and like a wild bull, in the wood hath settled.
Asked of Guide
Why does the hymn call Soma 'Pavamana' and describe him as being 'cleansed' in bowls?
Pavamana means “purifying” or “purified,” and the hymn treats Soma as a sacred juice undergoing ritual filtration: “poured out upon the filter” and “while they cleansed him.” The cleansing and settling in bowls stage the plant-substance’s transformation into a divine, drinkable presence that brings “song and vigour” and joins the gods in the ritual space.
The purification marks Soma’s passage from raw nature to sacred mediator who “hath given us room and made the daylight,” aiding Manu and repelling the Dasyu. This chapter’s imagery of priests, beakers, and seven singers echoes the Rigveda’s broader vision of sacrificial technology found across other hymns where ritual processing produces divine efficacy.
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