Rig Veda · 816 of 1027
Mandala 9: HYMN XCIII. Soma Pavamana.
1.TEN sisters, pouring out the rain together, swift-moving thinkers of the sage, adorn him. Hither hath run the gold-hued Child of Sūrya and reached the vat like a fleet vigorous courser.
2.Even as a youngling crying to his mothers, the bounteous Steer hath flowed along to waters. As youth to damsel, so with milk he hastens on to the. chose meeting-place, the beaker.
3.Yea, swollen is the udder of the milch-cow: thither in streams goes very sapient Indu. The kine make ready, as with new-washed treasures, the Head and Chief with milk within the vessels.
4.With all the Gods, O Indu Pavamana, while thou art roaring send us wealth in horses. Hither upon her car come willing Plenty, inclined to us, to give us of her treasures.
5.Now unto us mete riches, while they cleanse thee, all-glorious, swelling wealth, with store of heroes. Long be his life who worships, thee, O Indu. May he, enriched with prayer, come soon and early.
Asked of Guide
Why is Soma called Indu Pavamana and pictured as a milch-cow here?
The hymn names Soma “Indu Pavamana” to stress Soma’s flowing, purifying movement: pavamana means “purifying” or “going forth,” and Indu evokes fullness and brightness like a milch-cow’s milk. The poem repeatedly pictures Soma as a “bounteous Steer” and “the milch-cow” whose udder is “swollen,” so the juice is a nourishing, life-giving stream poured into the beaker for ritual use.
Portraying Soma as cattle links abundance and sacrificial economy: the gods and worshippers receive “wealth in horses” and “store of heroes” through Soma’s pouring. The image echoes other Vedic hymns where Soma’s outpouring produces prosperity; compare Mandala 8 where Soma’s juice begets strength and victory.
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