World Association for Vedic Studies

Paper Number 2018-59 from Vedic Traditions for Education and Learning, Pro-
ceedings of WAVES 2018, the 13th International Conference of the World Asso-
ciation for Vedic Studies, Dallas, Texas, USA, August 2-5, 2018.

Copyright (c) 2018 World Association for Vedic Studies All rights reserved. This material may
be reproduced in its entirety for non-commercial, educational use. It may not be displayed,
modified or distributed for any other purpose without the express prior written permission of
the copyright holder. For permission, contact narayanan.komerath@gmail.com
2018-59

Somayajña And The Structure Of Rgveda 1

B. N. Narahari Achar
Professor Emeritus, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, 38152, USA

It is shown that the ten-maṇḍala structure of the ṛgveda is related to the structure
and performance of the most important yajña, somayajña. The evolutionary model
considers that the ‘family maṇḍala-s (maṇḍala-s II to VII)’ had been compiled earlier
and existed as independent units, and the other maṇḍala-s were added subsequently;
the ninth maṇḍala was carved out of the others and the tenth maṇḍala was added
last. This model is challenged and it is shown that the first maṇḍala actually appears
as a plan for the structure of the entire ṛgveda saṃhitā. The ninth maṇḍala instead of
being a sort of ‘appendix’, according to some scholars, is in reality the ‘hub’ of the
ṛgveda saṃhitā and provides the organic unity of the whole text. The present work
also explains why maṇḍala -s I and X have exactly the same number of sūkta-s and
that too why that number is 191. It is not very meaningful to talk about ‘earlier’ and
‘later’ maṇḍala -s in a chronological sense. The ṛgveda is the work of hundreds of ṛṣi-
s and is certainly not the work of a single person. There were ancient ṛṣi -s and newer
ṛṣi -s and there were those that belonged to the period in between. The arrangement
of the ṛgveda into ten maṇḍala -s and the chronology of the ṛgveda are two
independent aspects. The somayajña forms the basis of the arrangement and hence of
the structure of ṛgveda saṃhitā. The chronology is the chronology of the ṛṣi -s who
visualized the sūkta-s. Astronomical methods provide a method of ascertaining the
chronology.

Keywords: ṛgveda saṃhitā, structure of, ṛgveda

Abbreviations
RV =RigVeda
AB =Aitareya Brahmana

Introduction

As is well known the ṛgveda saṃhitā is organized into ten maṇḍala-s (mistranslated as ‘Books’),
each maṇḍala (literally circle or cycle) consisting of sūkta -s (translated as ‘hymns’), each sūkta
itself made up of several ṛca -s (translated as ‘verses’). Each sūkta, generally a prayer, is
attributed to a ṛṣi and addressed to a devata, and is composed in a particular chandas. The
collection of sūkta -s that we have now, ṛgveda saṃhitā, has 1028 sūkta-s (including the 11
vālakhilya sūkta-s) arranged into ten maṇḍala-s. The distribution of sūkta-s into these maṇḍala-s
is very uneven, with the first and the tenth each containing exactly 191 sūkta -s. The distribution
is as given in table1.

1
This paper is condensed from a version presentated at WAVES 2016 in New Delhi.
1
2018-59 Narahari Achar

Table 1. Structure of ṛgveda

maṇḍala number of sūkta -s number of ṛca-s
I 191 2006
II 43 429
III 62 617
IV 58 589
V 87 727
VI 75 765
VII 104 841
VIII 103 1716
IX 114 1108
X 191 1754
Total 1028 10552

ṛgveda is certainly not the work of any one single author. There are some four hundred ṛṣi-s and
they belong to different times, spanning thousands of years. The sūkta-s address different deities,
nominally taken as 33 in number [1]. It is a mystery as to what gives unity to ṛgveda and holds it
together. Scholars [2] have used linguistic arguments to formulate theories of development and
evolution of ṛgveda with ingenuity, imagination and a lot of speculation. Many of the scholars
consider that ṛgveda developed in stages; the so called ‘family books’ (maṇḍala-s II- VII) are
considered ‘homogeneous’ and with each ‘book’, “looked upon as an independent unit [3]” were
the first to be formed. The sūkta-s contained in each ‘family-book’ are arranged according to a
uniform plan differing from that of the remaining other ‘non-family Books’. The ‘non-family
Books’ I, VII and X came to be compiled later. The ninth ‘Book’ is carved out of the remaining
books by collecting the hymns addressed to a single deity soma at one place, while its groups are
arranged according to meter. The ‘family books’ also contain groups, but each of these groups
addresses a particular deity. Furthermore, there appears to be a principle of increasing number of
sūkta -s among these “family” books. These facts are thought to render it probable that the
‘family books’ formed the nucleus of ṛgveda. The remaining ‘Books’ were compiled and added
later. The tenth Book was the last to be compiled. This evolution model combined with the
hypothesis of the so called Aryan Invasion Theory (AIT) has been advanced to project a
chronology around 1500 BCE for ṛgveda. Here is what F. Staal [4] who documented the
performance of the śrauta ritual agnicayana agnicayana in the early seventies opens his
monumental work:

2
2018-59 Narahari Achar

“More than three thousand years ago nomads crossed the mountain ranges that separate central
Asia from Iran and the Indian subcontinent. These nomads imported the rudiments of their social
and religious system along with the Indo-European language which developed into Vedic and
later into Sanskrit.” As per this model, it was the nomads, (thus uncivilized) who brought in not
only the language but ‘rudiments of the social and religious system’ as well. The ‘commendable
effort’ of the Western scholars based on this model also came with a baggage of colonial age
prejudice. The famous scholar further declares “The Rigveda is composed in a language so
distant even from classical Sanskrit, that only Europeans who were familiar with their own
classical languages could have begun to crack its forms and codes”.

This prejudice has resulted in a large number of books and articles published “to understand the
Rigveda”, with a terminology borrowed from the European, with no connection to the Vedic and
based on a model which proposes the evolution of ṛgveda from a primitive origin into the final
fully developed state.

The present work challenges the model of the development and evolution of the maṇḍala-s to the
ṛgveda saṃhitā as the compiled text currently available. There is no evidence of a time when a
ṛgveda ‘of less than ten maṇḍala -s’ was known. In this work an alternative model is proposed
according to which the structure and the organization of ṛgveda are influenced by its connection
with the supreme Vedic ritual of all, the somayajña.

The Present Approach To The Study Of The Structure Of Ṛgveda

The bottom-up approach of the present study starts with the idea that ṛk is the basic unit of
ṛgveda saṃhitā, which is a collection of ṛca-s. A ṛk is characterized by a ṛṣi, the sage who gave
expression to the revelation, a devatā the deity to whom the mantra is addressed, a chandas, the
poetic meter in which it is expressed, and a viniyoga, the application or the usage of the mantra.
All previous studies of ṛgveda have paid scant attention to this last aspect, viniyoga. It is the
viniyoga that appears to play an important role in the organization of ṛgveda as it will be made
clear later.

The present work derives inspiration from the following statement.

“A deep study of the Vedic sacrifices is essential for the proper understanding of Vedic
literature, for arriving at approximately correct statements about the chronology , the
development and stratification of different portions of the literature….” , writes the well- known
scholar, P. V. Kane [5] in his History of DharmaSAstra.
It is suggested here that the arrangement of ṛgveda reflects the performance of the most
important Vedic ritual, the somayajña. The somayajña provides an organic basis for the structure
of ṛgveda, and also provides a link that connects all the four Vedas which form an integral entity
in spite of the hundreds of ṛṣi-s and thousands of years in the making. The somayajña also
suggests a basis for the astronomy based chronology of ṛgveda and, in a way the idea of an
astronomical code [6] in ṛgveda is rooted in this. In addition, there is an explanation given why
maṇḍala -s I and X both have exactly the same number of sūkta -s and why that number is 191.
Furthermore, the ninth maṇḍala far from being an “appendix”, forms the central hub where in
connectivity extends to all the other maṇḍala -s. This is indicated by the “connectivity” diagram
in figure 1, showing the ṛṣi -s and the strength of their connection with the ninth maṇḍala , the
diagram itself is inspired by a similar diagram given by a blogger[7] on the internet.
3
2018-59 Narahari Achar

In the diagram, each maṇḍala is represented by a small circle with an inscribed number and
arranged in an order. The lines are drawn on the basis of ‘connectivity’ of how the ṛṣi -s are
shared among the maṇḍala -s. Consider the connectivity between two maṇḍala -s say 4 and
9.[Note the change in the notation, in using the numerals for designating the maṇḍala -s in
conformity with the diagram and not the Roman numerals]. A line is drawn for each ṛṣi in
maṇḍala 4 who contributes at least one ṛk to maṇḍala 9. As it happens there is exactly one ṛṣi
namely trasadasyu of maṇḍala 4, who contributes to maṇḍala 9. Thus there is just one line
connecting these two maṇḍala-s. maṇḍala 4 is not connected to any other maṇḍala. maṇḍala 3 is
connected to maṇḍala s 8, 9 and 10. These connectivity lines (i.e., lines connecting two maṇḍala
-s drawn such that there is one line for a ṛṣi in one maṇḍala who contributes at least one ṛk in the
other maṇḍala) are drawn on the basis of extensive information about ṛṣi -s given in vol.5 of
Rigveda published by the Vaidika Samshodhana Mandali [8]. As can be seen the maṇḍala -s fall
naturally into two groups: maṇḍala -s 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 with very few connecting lines, and
maṇḍala -s 1, 8, 9 and 10 which exhibit ‘large’ connectivity. maṇḍala 9, appears to be the ‘hub of
connectivity’, as it is connected to all the other maṇḍala -s, instead of being just an ‘appendix’
[9]. This diagram may also explain why scholars thought that the maṇḍala -s 2-7 developed as
independent units, because of the sparse connectivity. The fact that the 9th maṇḍala is entirely
devoted to soma and it is the hub of connectivity suggests that the structure of ṛgveda must be
understood on the basis of the ninth maṇḍala. The first maṇḍala instead of being a later addition
after the “family” Books, provides the outline of the structural framework for the entire ṛgveda
saṃhitā as will be shown later. This means the basis of the structure of ṛgveda is connected with
somayajña.

Figure 1 .Connectivity of the ṛṣi-s with the ninth maṇḍala

The outline of the paper is as follows. A brief outline of somayajña and its performance is first
given. This is then related to the structure of ṛgveda. Thus the main thesis of this paper that the
structure of ṛgveda is modeled on somayajña is developed and is followed by discussion and
conclusions.

4
2018-59 Narahari Achar

The Institution Of Somayajña

Yajña in the simplest terms involves the tyāga (the giving up) of some dravya (material
possession) of the yajamāna (the sacrificer) to the devatā (deity) through the medium of agni
(fire) to the accompaniment of recitation of mantra -s. There are three groups of yajña -s,
depending on the type of offering made to fire in the ritual:
(a) haviryajña (b) pākayajña and (c) somayajña.
Each of these in turn consists of seven subgroups of yajña-s. somayajña-s in which the offering
is the juice of the crushed soma plant made to the deity soma are further divided into seven
types:
agniṣṭoma, atyagniṣṭoma, ukthya, ṣoḍaśin, vājapeya, atirātra and aptoryāma.
All these are already well known in the ṛgveda, which refers to the twenty one yajña-s mentioned
above:
“teno ratnāni dhattana trirā sāptāni sunvate | ekamekaṃ suśastibhiḥ ||” RV(I.20.7)
“Confer therefore, (ṛbhu-s), moved by our praises, the three-fold riches one by one upon our
yajamāna , who performs the thrice seven-fold yajña -s.”
The details of performance of all the twenty one yajña -s are described in the brāhmaṇa texts.
Our main concern here is the agniṣṭoma. agniṣṭoma is considered the basic or the fundamental
one prakṛti, and the remaining six are its variants, vikṛti. In agniṣṭoma, there is one yajamāna
(sacrificer), and sixteen ṛtvik -s (priests). The ṛtvik -s belong to four varga -s (groups) of four
each, specializing different aspects of the somayajña:
(a) hotṛ varga: hotā, maitrāvaruṇā, acchāvāka and grāvāstut, reciters of ṛk mantra -s.
(b) adhvaryu varga: adhvaryu, pratiprastotā, neṣṭā and unnetā, the director of the ceremony
and his assistants specializing in the yajuṣmantra-s
(c) udgātṛ varga: udgātā, prastotā, pratihartā, and subrahmaṇya, singers of sāmamantra -s.
(d) brahma varga: brahmā, brāhmaṇācchāṃsi, agnīdhra, and potā. brahmā with his group
oversees the whole ritual to make sure that the entire ritual is carried out without a hitch.
Thus all the four Vedas are involved in the performance of somayajña.
agniṣṭoma forms an integral part of jyotiṣṭoma, which lasts for five days.During the first four
days preliminary ceremonies such as selection and appointing of the ṛtvik-s(priests), the rituals
dīkṣāyaṇīya iṣṭi, and dīkṣā, prāyaṇiya iṣṭi or the opening iṣṭi, the buying of soma, ātithyeṣṭi, the
ceremony to welcome soma, and the rituals pravargya and upasad are carried out. There are very
strict rules of conduct regarding food, mating etc., to be followed in performing these rituals. The
fifth day, the day of soma pressing, is also called sutyā; the soma squeezing, offering and
drinking of soma juice is done at three great libations, prātassavana in the morning, mādhyandina
savana, the midday pressing and tṛtīya savanna, in the evening. These are followed by the
concluding udayanīya iṣṭi and the ablution, avabhṛta
.
This is a very brief outline of the ceremonies. The elaborate ceremonies of the first four days are
only introductory, but absolutely necessary; for without them no one is allowed to complete the
sacrifice and drink the soma juice. The somayajña ceremony is the holiest ritual, which
symbolically transforms the earthly yajamāna into a celestial one. The details are given in the
brāhmaṇa texts such as the aitareya and śatapatha. The ceremony itself is very ancient, details are
described in taittirīya saṃhitā and an occasional reference to particular ceremonial steps is given

5
2018-59 Narahari Achar

in ṛgveda saṃhitā. The whole ceremony is carried out with the singing the sāmaṛca-s, (stotras)
and recitation of thousands of ṛca -s from the ṛgveda saṃhitā (including śastra -s).
“Their recitations must be very ancient…A closer examination of them will throw much light on
the history of the composition of Vedic hymns”[10].

Recitations On The Sutyā Day

The soma juice is pressed and offered three times on the sutyā day. Each of the offerings is
accompanied by the recitations of a large number of ṛca-s as indicated in Table 2

Table 2 .The recitations at the three times of soma pressing:

prātassavana mādhyandina savana tṛtīya savana

(Morning Pressing) (Pressing at Noon) (Third Pressing)
stotra śastra stotra śastra stotra śastra
bahiṣpavamāna ājya mādhyandina marutvatīya arbhavapavamāna vaiśvadeva
pavamāna
ājya pra uga prasthā niṣkaivalya agniṣṭoma sāman agnimārutta
[11 ]
ājya ājya prasthā marutvatīya
ājya ājya prasthā niṣkaivalya
ājya ājya prasthā niṣkaivalya

There are twelve stotras (mantra -s from sāmaveda saṃhitā) sung by the udgātṛ group on the day
of soma pressing. For each stotra, the hotṛ group recites a set of ṛca-s from ṛgveda called śastra-s.
Thus there are twelve śastra-s in agniṣṭoma. Of these, there are four ājya śastra s, four
niṣkaivalya śastra-s together with pra uga, marutvatīya, vaiśvadeva and agnimārutta śastra -s
making up the required 12 number. pra uga śastra is recited together with four ājya śastra -s in
the morning; marutvatīya and marutvatīya śastra -s in the afternoon pressing, and the vaiśvadeva
and agnimārutta śastra -s are recited at the time of the evening pressing. The table 2 above gives
the distribution of the various recitations at the three libations. The number of stotra -s and
śastra-s increase for the variants of somayajña, for example the required number for atirātra is
28.

The ceremonies for the soma pressing begin sometime after midnight of the fourth day. On the
direction of the adhvaryu, the hotṛ begins reciting the prātaranuvāka, the mantra-s which are
appropriate to be recited for the morning session of soma pressing. This morning ritual is divided
into three parts. The first part is called āgneyakratu, the prayer for agni. The āśvalāyana śrauta
sūtra (4.13.6-4.15.3) gives the details of the particular sūkta -s and ṛca -s that have to be recited,
which must contain mantra -s in each of the seven chandases: gāyatrī, anuṣṭubh, triṣṭup, bṛhatī,
uṣṇik, jagatī, and paṅkt all directed to agni. There is a minimum of at least 100 ṛca -s that are to

6
2018-59 Narahari Achar

be recited. If all the sūkta-s and ṛca-s specified in the āśvalāyana śrauta sūtra are recited, it would
amount to reciting a total of 1324 ṛca-s for the āgneyakratu part alone of which 320 mantra -s are
in gāyatrī and 591 in triṣṭup. This part of the recitation also includes one sūkta, RV (V.6)
containing ten ṛca-s and is in paṅktī meter.

The second part is called uṣasyakratu and is directed to the deity uṣas and the third part is called
āśvinakratu and is directed to aśvinī deities. Each of these parts in turn consists of ṛca-s in the
same seven meters described for āgneyakratu. For example, uṣasyakratu must have 250 mantra-
s, whereas āśvinakratu requires 407 mantra-s in the same seven meters listed earlier. Thus the
prātaranuvāka alone requires the recitation of some 2000 ṛca-s, roughly the fifth of the contents
of the whole of ṛgveda [12].

The pra uga śastra is the recitation appropriate to the seven deities vāyu, indravāyu, mitrāvaruṇa,
aśvinī, indra, viśvedevāḥ, and sarasvatī, the so-called pra uga devatā -s. The recitation consists of
three ṛca -s in gāyatrī chandas for each of the seven deities, for a total of 21 separate mantra-s.
After some associated activities, the soma juice is pressed and filled into cups, and offerings are
made, all done to the accompaniment of recitation of more required mantra-s.

The mid-day libations, mādhyandina savana are directed to indra and the recitations involve ṛca-
s of triṣṭup chandas exclusively. The recitations of marutvatīya followed by four niṣkaivalya
śastra -s are done according to the prescriptions laid down for example in the aitareya brāhmaṇa.
The evening libations are directed to viśvedevāḥ and are in jagatī chandas. The recitations
include the vaiśvadeva and agnimārutta śastra -s which follow the sāma stotra-s. This last stotra
to agni is called agniṣṭoma sāman, and because of it the entire somayajña itself is named
agniṣṭoma. The entire ritual is concluded by performing the udayanīya iṣṭi and finally the
ablution, avabhṛta.

The important point to note is the complexity of the ritual and the staggering number of ṛca -s
required for recitation during the ritual. It is no exaggeration to say that when all the different
variations of the somayajña are taken into account, most of the ṛca -s of ṛgveda, if not all, are
recited during the performance of this most important of the yajña-s.

The Somayajña And The Framework For Ṛgveda Saṃhitā

According to Oldenberg, the maṇḍala s II-VII consist of a series of hymns grouped according to
their deities, every time an Agni-series occurs first and is followed by an Indra-series. The books
on the whole are arranged according to the descending order of the number of the hymns, and
where the number of hymns in the two series is the same it is the number of stanzas (in the
descending order) which is decisive. When the number of stanzas is the same it was the length of
the meter that was decisive (jagatī, triṣṭup, anuṣṭubh, gāyatrī , not to mention the rare meters).
These rules were considered infallible, that any deviation was sought to be explained in terms of
interpolations, later additions etc. and even some modifications were suggested to the text of
ऋ+वेद itself.

7
2018-59 Narahari Achar

In explaining the structure of maṇḍala I, the scholars recognize the grouping of the 191 sūkta -s
into fifteen upamaṇḍala -s as described in the anukramaṇi texts. However, they consider the 191
sūkta-s to be divided into two major divisions: first group consisting of sūkta-s I.1 to I. 50 is
thought to be similar to that of maṇḍala VIII and the second group of sūkta-s I. 51 to I. 191, is
considered to correspond in all essentials with the arrangement found in the maṇḍala -s II-VII, in
that the rules based on the descending order of hymns, stanzas and the length of the meter hold.
Based on these similarities they have concluded that maṇḍala I was compiled later after the
maṇḍala -s II-VII were compiled.

On closer examination, the situation appears to be different. The first maṇḍala is simply a plan
for the organization of ṛgveda and is probably the first to be compiled (if an order of the
maṇḍala-s is deemed necessary) and not among the last. The other remaining maṇḍala-s, II-VIII
simply follow the plan. This idea is based on the performance of the somayajña and the ṛca -s
required in the recitations. It is very likely that the entire body of mantras comprising all of the
Veda existed and the ṛgveda was compiled at one time just as the tradition says.

Somayajña is one of the most important sacrificial rituals. It is also very complex and very
ancient. It is in fact traced to manu who brought this to the earth from heaven. Somayajña is to
be performed by anybody who is desirous of attaining svarga. While the whole of maṇḍala IX is
devoted to the sūkta -s addressed to the single deity soma, the entire ṛgveda appears to be a
manual for the performance of this most important ritual and the organization of ṛgveda is a
reflection of it and the first maṇḍala provides the plan for the entire saṃhitā.

For example, consider the statement that the arrangement of sūkta-s 1-50 of maṇḍala I is
similar to that of maṇḍala VIII [13]. This statement is not correct as the first sūkta of maṇḍala
VIII is addressed to Indra, whereas the first sūkta of maṇḍala I is addressed to Agni. In fact, the
first ten sūkta -s of maṇḍala I, attributed to madhucchandas, son of viśvāmitra, contain the ṛca-s
to be recited during the ceremony of prātassavana, the morning pressing of soma juice. The very
first sūkta is a ājya sūkta and forms the principal part of the first śastra of the āgneyakratu,
explained earlier. The second and the third sūkta -s constitute the pra uga śastra in all its
particulars. The pra uga śastra consists of mantra -s addressed to each of the following deities:
vāyu, indravāyu, mitrāvaruṇa, aśvinī, indra, viśvedevāḥ, and sarasvatī. For each of the deities, a
sequence of three ṛca -s, called tṛca, is to be recited. Thus seven tṛca -s, (for a total of twenty one
ṛca -s) are to be found in the sūkta -s 2 and 3

sūkta-s 4-9 of maṇḍala I all celebrate Indra. In the abhiplavaṣaḍāha ceremony, which is a
variation of the somayajña lasting for six days, these six sūkta -s are to be recited at the time of
prātassavana, the morning pressing of soma. The sūkta-s 10-11 also celebrate Indra and are to be
recited appropriately. For example, 11 is to be recited at the time of niṣkaivalya śastra in the
mahāvrata ceremony. These are technical terms associated with the various prātassavana
ceremonies and have to be understood with help of brāhmaṇa and sūtra texts.

sūkta-s 12-23 contain more comprehensive aspects of the recitations at the somayajña. sūkta 12
is addressed to agni, and contains a pravara, nigada and devāvahanaṃ, the request to agni to

8
2018-59 Narahari Achar

bring the gods. The thirteenth is a āprīsūkta. sūkta-s 16-19 contain ṛca -s appropriate for midday
libation, while sūkta -s 20-22 address the deities for the evening libation.

sūkta-s 44-50 of the first maṇḍala contain all the ṛca -s with the deities and the required meters
for the aśvinaśastra. The deities in proper order for this śastra are agni, uṣas, aśvinī, sūrya and
indra. The sūkta-s mentioned so far deal mainly with the morning and the midday libations. The
morning libation ceremonies involve only the ṛca -s in gāyatrī chandas . The midday and the
evening libation ceremonies require triṣṭubh and jagatī ṛca -s

The rest of the sūkta-s in the first maṇḍala namely sūkta -s 51-191, serve precisely this purpose.
As has been found by Gonda, the arrangement of upamaṇḍala-s in this section “corresponds in
all essentials with the arrangement (of the sūkta -s) found in the books II-VII.” Here Gonda is
referring to the arrangement of the sūkta -s according to deities addressed (agni,first and then
followed by those addressing indra, etc.) and according to decreasing number of ṛca -s in each
subgroup et cetera. In actuality the first maṇḍala lays out a plan for the recitations at the three
savanas of the somayajña and the maṇḍala-s II-VIII reflect that plan. The ninth maṇḍala of
course celebrates the deity somapavamāna. There is no evidence of the maṇḍala -s II to VII
having been compiled first and the ninth carved out of these. The ‘family’ maṇḍala -s could not
have had an independent existence, for it would not have been possible to perform a somayajña,
for no single ‘family book’ would contain the requisite number of ṛca -s for all the three soma
pressings. Even if all the ‘family books’ were taken together, they would not contain the required
number of ṛca-s in kind (i.e., in different meters). Moreover, the performance of somayajña
requires the knowledge of all the four saṃhitā -s [14].somayajña is an ancient institution and has
been there since the time of manu, for his were the first performances. The evolutionary model
fails to account for the performance of somayajña. The conclusion is that there existed a body of
25000 or so of mantra-s and they were compiled into the various saṃhitā-s at one time. It also
follows that the structure and the organization of the text of ṛgveda saṃhitā mirrors the
performance of the somayajña in so far as the required ṛca -s are concerned.

The Total Number Of Stotra Verses In Agniṣṭoma

aitareya brāhmaṇa states:

tasya samstutasya navatiśataṃ stotriyāḥ । (AB 14. 3. 4)
that the total number of stotriya ṛca-s in agniṣṭoma amounts to 190. This count arises in the
following way. During the prātassavana, bahiṣpavamāna stotra is sung by the udgātṛ. This stotra
consists of trivṛt stoma, which contains nine ṛca-s. The bahiṣpavamāna stotra is followed by four
ājya stotra-s as indicated in Table 2. Each of these ājya stotra-s is a pañcadaśastoma and has
fifteen ṛca-s, for a total of 60 ṛca-s . Thus in the prātassavana there are a total of (9+4x15) = 69
ṛca -s.
In the mādhyandina savana, there is mādhyandina pavamāna stotra ( a pañcadaśastoma) followed
by four prasthā stotra -s (Table 2.). Each of these four stotra -s is a saptadaśastoma and has
seventeen ṛca-s. Thus in the mādhyandina savanna, there are a total of (15+4x17) = 83 ṛca-s.
In the tṛtīya savanna, arbhava pavamāna which is also a saptadaśastoma, is sung. There is also a
yajñāyajñīya stotra, which is a ekaviṃśatistoma. Thus there are (17+21)=38 ṛca-s in the third
pressing. Thus the total number of ṛca-s for agniṣṭoma is (69+83+38) =190.
9
2018-59 Narahari Achar

If a count of 1 is added for the yajamāna, the count becomes 191. This is exactly the number of
sūkta-s in the first maṇḍala which lays out the plan for the recitations at all the three savanna-s.

Agniṣṭoma Is Endless

The fifth khaṇḍa of the fourteenth अ2याय of aitareya brāhmaṇa is very important for establishing
the universal nature of अि67ोम and the recursive principles involved.
sa vā eṣo:'pūrvo:'naparo yajñakraturyathā rathacakramanatamrvaṃ yadagniṣṭomastasya yathaiva
prāyaṇaṃ tathodayanaṃ ॥ (AB 14.5.4)
“This (agniṣṭoma) is a sacrificial performance which has no beginning and no end. agniṣṭoma is
like the wheel of a carriage, endless. The beginning iṣṭi (prāyaṇīya) is the same as the concluding
iṣṭi, (udayanīya), hence they cannot be distinguished. Therefore, it is endless.”
tadeṣābhi yajñagāthā gīyate | yadasya pūrvamaparaṃ tadasya yadvasyāparaṃ tadvasya pūrvaṃ|
aheriva sarpaṇaṃ śākalasya na vijānanti yataratparastāditi ॥ (AB 14.5 5)
“About this there is sung a ‘yajñagāthā’. What is the beginning (of agniṣṭoma) is its end. What is
its end is its beginning. Just as the śākala serpent, it moves in a circle so that no one can
distinguish its first part from its last, for the opening is also its conclusion.” This is illustrated in
Figure 2.

Figure 2. śākala serpent ending on itself. Notion of ananta

The tenth maṇḍala has exactly the same number of sūkta -s as the first maṇḍala, namely 191.
Hence the beginning and the end are indistinguishable. ṛgveda is therefore endless, it is a
maṇḍala.

Conclusions

It is shown that the somayajña, agniṣṭoma, forms the basis for the structure and organization
of ṛgveda saṃhitā which mirrors the performance of agniṣṭoma. The first maṇḍala lays out the
plan for the entire saṃhitā and the maṇḍala-s II- VIII reflect that plan. The entire ten maṇḍala
saṃhitā is one unit and compiled at one time. The ninth maṇḍala forms the ‘nābhi’ of the
samhita. In ṛgveda the tenth maṇḍala has exactly the same number of sūkta -s as the first
maṇḍala, namely 191. Hence its beginning and end are indistinguishable. ṛgveda is therefore
endless, it is a maṇḍala.

10
2018-59 Narahari Achar

References

[1] However, note ekaṃ sadviprā bahudhā vadanti । RV(I.164.46)

[2] Macdonnell, A.A.(1963) The Vedic Mythology, Indological Book House (reprint) , Varanasi.
[3] Oldenberg, H (1990) Prolegomena on Meter and Textual History of the Rgveda, Motilal
Banarsidass Publishers , Delhi
[4] Staal, F (2010) Agni , Motilal Banarsidass Publishers , Delhi
[5] Kane, P. V., (1990) History of Dharmashastra, ( ) p. 976, Bhandarkar Oriental Research
Institute, Poona
[6] Kak, S. (2000) The Astronomical code of the RgVeda, Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers,
New Delhi.
[7] Manasatarangini.worldpress.com/2007/10/27/the-mandala-graph-for-rishi-sharing/
[8] Vaidika Samshodhana Mandali, vol.5 of Rigveda, Poona
[9] Talageri, S.G.,(2000) The Rigveda, Aditya Prakashan, Delhi
[10] Haug, M (2003) śrī aitareya brāhmaṇam,(Re edited by Jain, S), New Bharatiya Book
Corporation, Delhi. Vol 1, p. lviii
[11] It is because of this sāman, the somayajña is called agniṣṭoma
[12] Kane ,P. V. (1994) History of Dharmashastra, vol II part II, p1163.
[13] Gonda J(1975) Vedic Literature, Otto Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden.
[14] In a somayajña,both sāma and ṛk mantra -s must be recited. It is in fact declared “ayajñovā
eṣayoasāmā.” yajuṣ mantra-s are required for the very performance. Initially all ‘veda’ was one
single entity.

11