Darśapūrṇamāsa Iṣṭi (SYS-1.1) Vājasaneyī Saṃhitā

Shukla Yajurveda

Ancient and Modern India

Amabashya-Purnima Regular Monthly Homa

The Darśapūrṇamāsa Iṣṭi belongs to the oldest surviving stratum of Vedic ritual culture and occupies a central place in the Śrauta tradition of Vedic religion. The term refers to the paired new-moon and full-moon sacrifices performed according to injunctions preserved primarily in the Yajurveda, especially the Taittirīya Saṃhitā, Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa, and related ritual manuals composed between approximately 4500 BCE and 700 BCE in the Saraswati-Sindhu and Gangetic regions of the Indian subcontinent. Archaeological and linguistic evidence associates these rites with the late Vedic settlements extending from the Punjab through Kurukṣetra into the western Ganga-Yamuna Doab, where sacrificial ritual became the organizing principle of social and political authority. Unlike later temple worship centered on icons and pilgrimage shrines, the Darśapūrṇamāsa system revolved around the temporary altar, the sacred fire, recited formulae, clarified butter, grains, milk products, and exact ritual speech.

The word Darśa denotes the new moon, while Pūrṇamāsa signifies the full moon. Together they formed the recurring lunar sacrifices that structured Vedic calendrical time. Ancient ritualists regarded them as indispensable for maintaining cosmic reciprocity between gods, humans, cattle, ancestors, and the natural world. The ritual was generally conducted by a yajamāna, the sacrificing householder, assisted by trained priests such as the Hotṛ, Adhvaryu, Udgātṛ, and Brahman. References in the Śrauta Sūtras of Āpastamba, Baudhāyana, and Kātyāyana, dated roughly between 3800 BCE and 2300 BCE, show that the rite had already become highly systematized. These texts describe measurements of altars, preparation of utensils, methods of purification, lunar timing, and precise recitation patterns.

The mantras of the Darśapūrṇamāsa Iṣṭi (Regular homa) preserve a worldview in which every ritual object possesses divine identity. Ladles become embodiments of cosmic order, sacrificial posts symbolize stability, and grains represent vitality. In one of the opening invocations, the sacrificer declares: “For nourishment I take you, for strength I take you. May the god Savitṛ impel you toward the noblest work.” This formula illustrates the agricultural foundation of early Vedic life. Cattle, milk, clarified butter, and grain repeatedly appear throughout the liturgy, revealing an economy rooted in pastoralism gradually transitioning into settled agriculture during the late second millennium BCE.

The text repeatedly invokes Savitṛ, Agni, Indra, Viṣṇu, the Aśvins, and Pūṣan. Their roles are not abstract theological categories but ritual functions tied to survival and cosmic continuity. Agni serves as the conveyor of offerings and guardian of sacred speech. Indra remains associated with kingship, storm, and victory over hostile forces. Savitṛ is the divine impeller who sanctifies action. Viṣṇu appears not yet as the supreme deity of later Vaiṣṇava traditions, but as the cosmic strider who protects sacrificial order. The recurring appeals for protection against thieves, enemies, disease, decay, and famine reveal the precariousness of life in early agrarian communities.

One section proclaims: “From falsehood I now approach truth.” Historians of religion often identify this line as one of the most significant ethical declarations in Vedic literature. Rather than expressing doctrinal belief, it frames truth as ritual alignment with cosmic order. The sacrificer does not merely speak truth; he enters it through disciplined action, vow, and recitation. Such passages later influenced the philosophical vocabulary of the Upaniṣads, especially concepts concerning truth, order, and sacred speech.

The ritual geography implied in the Darśapūrṇamāsa corpus corresponds closely to the cultural sphere of the Kuru-Pañcāla region around 3500–800 BCE, an area considered by many historians to be the center of classical Vedic orthopraxy. Reciters memorized accent, intonation, phonetics, and sequence with remarkable precision. UNESCO recognized Vedic chanting as part of the intangible heritage of humanity in the twenty-first century partly because of this continuity.

The Darśapūrṇamāsa ritual also demonstrates the transition from clan ritual to state ideology. In the early kingdoms of northern India, rulers legitimized authority through public sacrifice. Though grand royal rituals such as the Rājasūya and Aśvamedha received greater literary attention, the monthly new-moon and full-moon rites formed the indispensable foundation upon which larger sacrifices depended. The rite encoded social hierarchy, priestly specialization, agricultural cycles, and astronomical observation. Lunar timing was crucial; the synchronization of ritual with celestial phases reflected sophisticated calendrical awareness long before the composition of classical astronomical treatises.

Many mantras focus on purification. One passage states: “May god Savitṛ purify you with the hundred-streamed purifier.” Another declares: “By the impulse of Savitṛ I purify you with the flawless purifier, with the rays of the sun.” Purification here is not moral cleansing in a later devotional sense. It concerns restoring ritual fitness and cosmic balance. Water, sunlight, grass, fire, and spoken formulae cooperate in the transformation of ordinary matter into sacrificial substance.

The imagery of protection is equally striking. The sacrificer prays: “Protect the cattle of the sacrificer,” and elsewhere asks that enemies be driven away, demons scorched, and hostile forces bound with “a hundred nooses.” Such phrases preserve memories of frontier conditions in early Vedic settlements where cattle raids, intertribal rivalry, and uncertainty shaped social existence. Ritual therefore operated not only as theology but as psychological and political stabilization.

Botanical and ecological references appear throughout the text. Herbs, grains, clarified butter, milk, wooden implements, stones, water vessels, and animal products are ritually animated. One mantra addresses grain directly: “You are grain; nourish the gods.” Another invokes earth and rain: “Go to the cattle enclosure. May heaven rain upon you.” These expressions reflect a sacrificial ecology in which human prosperity depended upon maintaining reciprocity with natural forces.

By the time of the Mauryan Empire in the third century BCE, large-scale Vedic sacrifices coexisted with emerging Buddhist, Jain, and devotional traditions. Although some royal courts continued Śrauta performances, the centrality of monthly sacrificial rites gradually diminished outside orthodox Brahmanical communities. Nevertheless, manuals preserving the Darśapūrṇamāsa continued to be copied and transmitted in regions such as Andhra, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and Kerala, where certain Śrauta lineages survived into the modern period. Ethnographic documentation in the twentieth century recorded living performances among Nambudiri and Telugu Vedic communities, demonstrating continuity with procedures described more than two thousand years earlier.

The concluding mantras of the sequence summarize the theological atmosphere of the rite. “You are brilliance; you are purity; you are immortality. You are the sacred abode beloved of the gods. You are the inviolate place of sacrifice.” Such declarations reveal the ritual ambition of the Vedic world: to construct, however briefly, a protected zone where cosmic order, human speech, divine presence, and natural fertility converge. The Darśapūrṇamāsa Iṣṭi therefore survives not merely as a liturgical artifact but as one of the earliest continuous ritual systems in recorded human history, preserving within its formulas the social memory, agricultural rhythms, cosmology, and intellectual discipline of ancient Vedic India.

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वाजसनेयि माध्यन्दिन शुक्ल यजुर्वेद संहिता।

दर्शपूर्णमासेष्टिः

1.1

इषे त्वा ऊर्जे त्वा ।
वायव स्थ ।
देवो वः सविता प्रार्पयतु श्रेष्ठतमाय कर्मण ।
आ प्यायध्वम् अघ्न्या इन्द्राय भागं प्रजावतीर् अनमीवा अयक्ष्मा मा वः स्तेन ईशत माघशंसो ध्रुवा अस्मिन् गोपतौ स्यात् बह्वीः ।
यजमानस्य पशून् पाहि ॥

1.2

वसोः पवित्रम् असि ।
द्यौर् असि पृथिव्य् असि ।
मातरिश्वनोऽघर्मोऽसि विश्वधा असि ।
परमेण धाम्ना दृंहस्व मा ह्वार् मा ते यज्ञपतिर् ह्वार्षीत् ॥

1.3

वसोः पवित्रम् असि शतधारं ।
वसोः पवित्रम् असि सहस्रधारम् ।
देवस् त्वा सविता पुनातु वसोः पवित्रेण शतधारेण सुप्वा ।
काम् अधुक्षः ॥

1.4

सा विश्वायुः ।
सा विश्वकर्मा ।
सा विश्वधायाः ।
इन्द्रस्य त्वा भागं सोमेना तनच्मि ।
विष्णो हव्यं रक्ष ॥

1.5

अग्ने व्रतपते व्रतं चरिष्यामि ।
तच् छकेयं तन् मे राध्यताम् ।
इदम् अहम् अनृतात् सत्यम् उपैमि ॥

1.6

कस् त्वा युनक्ति स त्वा युनक्ति ।
कस्मै त्वा युनक्ति तस्मै त्वा युनक्ति ।
कर्मणे वां वेषाय वाम् ॥

1.7

प्रत्युष्टं रक्षः प्रत्युष्टा अरातयः ।
निष्टप्तं रक्षो निष्टप्ता अरातयः ।
उर्व् अन्तरिक्षम् अन्व् एमि ॥

1.8

धूर् असि धूर्व ।
धूर्वन्तं धूर्व तं योऽस्मान् धूर्वति तं धूर्व ।
यं वयं धूर्वामः ।
देवानाम् असि वह्नितमं सम्नितमं पप्रितमं जुष्टतमं देवहूतमम् ॥

1.9

अह्रुतम् असि हविर्धानं दृंहस्व ।
मा ह्वार् मा यज्ञपतिर् ह्वार्षीत् ।
विष्णुस् त्वा क्रमताम् ।
उरु वाताय ।
अपहतं रक्षः ।
यच्छन्तां पञ्च ॥

1.10

देवस्य त्वा सवितुः प्रसवेऽश्विनोर् बाहुभ्यां पूष्णो हस्ताभ्याम् ।
अग्नये जुष्टं गृह्णामि ।
अग्नीषोमाभ्यां जुष्टं गृह्णामि ॥

1.11

भूताय त्वा नारातये ।
स्वर् अभिवि ख्येषम् ।
दृंहन्तां दुर्याः पृथिव्याम् ।
उर्व् अन्तरिक्षम् अन्व् एमि ।
पृथिव्यास् त्वा नाभौ सादयाम्य् अदित्या उपस्थे ।
अग्ने हव्यं रक्ष ॥

1.12

पवित्रे स्थो वैष्णव्यौ ।
सवितुर् वः प्रसव उत् पुनाम्य् अच्छिद्रेण पवित्रेण सूर्यस्य रश्मिभिः ।
देवीर् आपो अग्रेगुवोऽग्रेपुवोऽग्र इमम् अद्य यज्ञं नयत ।
अग्रे यज्ञपतिं सुधातुं यज्ञपतिं देवयुवम् ॥

1.13

युष्मा इन्द्रोऽवृणीत वृत्रतूर्ये ।
यूयम् इन्द्रम् अवृणीध्वं वृत्रतूर्ये ।
प्रोक्षिता स्थ ।
अग्नये त्वा जुष्टं प्रोक्षामि ।
अग्नीषोमाभ्यां त्वा जुष्टं प्रोक्षामि ।
दैव्याय कर्मणे शुन्धध्वं देवयज्यायै ।
यद् वोऽशुद्धाः पराजघ्नुर् इदं वस् तत् छुन्धामि ॥

1.14

शर्मासि ।
अवधूतं रक्षोऽवधूता अरातयः ।
अदित्यास् त्वग् असि प्रति त्वादितिर् वेत्तु ।
अद्रिर् असि वानस्पत्यः ।
ग्रावासि पृथुबुध्नः ।
प्रति त्वादित्यास् त्वग् वेत्तु ॥

1.15

अग्नेस् तनूर् असि वाचो विसर्जनं ।
देववीतये त्वा गृह्णामि ।
बृहद्ग्रावासि वानस्पत्यः ।
स इदं देवेभ्यो हविः ।
शमीष्व सुशमि शमीष्व ।
हविष्कृद् एहि हविष्कृद् एहि हविष्कृद् एहि ॥

1.16

कुक्कुटोऽसि मधुजिह्व ।
इषमूर्जम् आ वद ।
त्वया वयं संघातं-संघातं जेष्म ।
वर्षवृद्धम् असि ।
प्रति त्वा वर्षवृद्धं वेत्तु ।
परापूतं रक्षः परापूता अरातयः ।
अपहतं रक्षः ।
वायुर् वो वि विनक्तु ।
देवो वः सविता हिरण्यपाणिः प्रति गृभ्णात्व् अच्छिद्रेण पाणिना ॥

1.17

धृष्टिर् असि ।
अपाग्ने अग्निम् आमादं जहि ।
निष् क्रव्यादं सेध ।
आ देवयजं वह ।
ध्रुवम् असि पृथिवीं दृंह ।
ब्रह्मवनि त्वा क्षत्रवनि सजातवन्य् उप दधामि भ्रातृव्यस्य वधाय ॥

1.18

अग्ने ब्रह्म गृभ्णीष्व ।
धरुणम् अस्य् अन्तरिक्षं दृंह ।
ब्रह्मवनि त्वा क्षत्रवनि सजातवन्य् उप दधामि भ्रातृव्यस्य वधाय ।
धर्त्रम् असि दिवं दृंह ।
ब्रह्मवनि त्वा क्षत्रवनि सजातवन्य् उप दधामि भ्रातृव्यस्य वधाय ।
विश्वाभ्यस् त्वाशाभ्य उप दधामि ।
चित स्थोर्ध्वचितः ।
भृगूणाम् अङ्गिरसां तपसा तप्यध्वम् ॥

1.19

शर्मासि ।
अवधूतं रक्षोऽवधूता अरातयः ।
अदित्यास् त्वग् असि प्रति त्वादितिर् वेत्तु ।
धिषणासि पर्वती प्रति त्वादित्यास् त्वग् वेत्तु ।
दिव स्कम्भनीर् असि ।
धिषणासि पार्वतेयी प्रति त्वा पर्वती वेत्तु ॥

1.20

धान्यम् असि धिनुहि देवान् ।
प्राणाय त्वा ।
उदानाय त्वा ।
व्यानाय त्वा ।
दीर्घाम् अनु प्रसितिम् आयुषे धाम् ।
देवो वः सविता हिरण्यपाणिः प्रति गृभ्णात्व् अच्छिद्रेण पाणिना ।
चक्षुषे त्वा ।
महीनां पयोऽसि ॥

1.21

देवस्य त्वा सवितुः प्रसवेऽश्विनोर् बाहुभ्यां पूष्णो हस्ताभ्याम् ।
सं वपामि ।
सम् आप ओषधीभिः ।
सम् ओषधयो रसेन ।
सं रेवतीर् जगतीभिः पृच्यन्ताम् ।
सं मधुमतीर् मधुमतीभिः पृच्यन्ताम् ॥

1.22

जनयत्यै त्वा सं यौमि ।
इदम् अग्नेः ।
इदम् अग्नीषोमयोः ।
इषे त्वा ।
घर्मोऽसि विश्वायुः ।
उरुप्रथा उरु प्रथस्व ।
उरु ते यज्ञपतिः प्रथताम् ।
अग्निष्टे त्वचं मा हिंसीत् ।
देवस् त्वा सविता श्रपयतु वर्षिष्ठेऽधि नाके ॥

1.23

मा भेर् मा संविक्थाः ।
अतमेरुर् यज्ञोऽतमेरुर् यजमानस्य प्रजा भूयात् ।
त्रिताय त्वा ।
द्विताय त्वा ।
एकताय त्वा ॥

1.24

देवस्य त्वा सवितुः प्रसवेऽश्विनोर् बाहुभ्यां पूष्णो हस्ताभ्याम् ।
आ ददेऽध्वरकृतं देवेभ्यः ।
इन्द्रस्य बाहुर् असि दक्षिणः सहस्रभृष्टिः शततेजाः ।
वायुर् असि तिग्मतेजा द्विषतो वधः ॥

1.25

पृथिवि देवयजन्य् ओषध्यास् ते मूलं मा हिंसिषम् ।
व्रजं गच्छ गोष्ठानम् ।
वर्षतु ते द्यौः ।
बधान देव सवितः परमस्यां पृथिव्यां शतेन पाशैर् ।
यो स्मान् द्वेष्टि यं च वयं द्विष्मस् तम् अतो मा मौक् ॥

1.26

अपाररुं पृथिव्यै देवयजनाद् वध्यासम् ।
व्रजं गच्छ गोष्ठानम् ।
वर्षतु ते द्यौः ।
बधान देव सवितः परमस्यां पृथिव्यां शतेन पाशैर् ।
योऽस्मान् द्वेष्टि यं च वयं द्विष्मस् तम् अतो मा मौक् ।
अररो दिवं मा पप्तः ।
द्रप्सस् ते द्यां मा स्कन् ।
व्रजं गच्छ गोष्ठानम् ।
वर्षतु ते द्यौः ।
बधान देव सवितः परमस्यां पृथिव्यां शतेन पाशैर् ।
योऽस्मान् द्वेष्टि यं च वयं द्विष्मस् तम् अतो मा मौक् ॥

1.27

गायत्रेण त्वा छन्दसा परि गृह्णामि ।
त्रैष्टुभेन त्वा छन्दसा परि गृह्णामि ।
जागतेन त्वा छन्दसा परि गृह्णामि ।
सुक्ष्मा चासि शिवा चासि ।
स्योना चासि सुषदा चासि ।
ऊर्जस्वती चासि पयस्वती च ॥

1.28

पुरा क्रूरस्य विसृपो विरप्शिन्न् उदादाय पृथिवीं जीवदानुम् ।
याम् ऐरयंश् चन्द्रमसि स्वधाभिस् ताम् उ धीरासोऽनुदिश्य यजन्ते ।
प्रोक्षणीर् आ सादय ।
द्विषतो वधोऽसि ॥

1.29

प्रत्युष्टं रक्षः प्रत्युष्टा अरातयः ।
निष्टप्तं रक्षो निष्टप्ता अरातयः ।
अनिशितोऽसि सपत्नक्षिद् ।
वाजिनं त्वा वाजेध्यायै सं मार्ज्मि ।
प्रत्युष्टं रक्षः प्रत्युष्टा अरातयः ।
निष्टप्तं रक्षो निष्टप्ता अरातयः ।
अनिशितासि सपत्नक्षिद् ।
वाजिनीं त्वा वाजेध्यायै सं मार्ज्मि ॥

1.30

अदित्यै रास्नासि ।
विष्णोर् वेष्योऽसि ।
ऊर्जे त्वा ।
अदब्धेन त्वा चक्षुषा व पश्यामि ।
अग्नेर् जिह्वासि सुहूर् देवेभ्यो ।
धाम्ने-धाम्ने मे भव ।
यजुषे-यजुषे ॥

1.31

सवितुस् त्वा प्रसव उत् पुनाम्य् अच्छिद्रेण पवित्रेण सूर्यस्य रश्मिभिः ।
सवितुर् वः प्रसव उत् पुनाम्य् अच्छिद्रेण पवित्रेण सूर्यस्य रश्मिभिः ।
तेजोऽसि शुक्रम् अस्य् अमृतम् असि ।
धाम नामासि प्रियं देवानाम् ।
अनाधृष्टं देवयजनम् असि ॥

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Vedic Vocabulaty

दर्शपूर्णमासेष्टिः — इषा, ऊर्ज्, वायु, सविता, कर्मन्, अघ्न्या, इन्द्र, भाग, प्रजा, अनमीव, अयक्ष्म, स्तेन, माघशंस, गोपतिः, यजमान, पशु, वसु, पवित्र, द्यौः, पृथिवी, मातरिश्वन्, घर्म, विश्वधा, धामन्, यज्ञपति, शतधार, सहस्रधार, विश्वायु, विश्वकर्मन्, सोम, विष्णु, हविः, अग्नि, व्रतपति, व्रत, अनृत, सत्य, कर्मन्, वेष, रक्षस्, अराति, अन्तरिक्ष, धूर्, वह्नि, देवहूतम, हविर्धान, वात, सवितृ, अश्विन्, पूषन्, हस्त, अग्नीषोम, भूत, नाराति, स्वर्, दुर्ग, नाभि, अदिति, उपस्थ, वैष्णव, सूर्य, रश्मि, आपः, यज्ञ, देवयुव, वृत्रतूर्य, प्रोक्षण, दैव्य, देवयज्या, शुद्धि, शर्मन्, अद्रि, वानस्पत्य, ग्रावन्, पृथुबुध्न, तनू, वाच्, विसर्जन, देववीति, शमि, हविष्कृत्, कुक्कुट, मधुजिह्व, इषम्, संघात, वर्षवृद्ध, वायु, हिरण्यपाणि, धृष्टि, आमाद, क्रव्याद, देवयज, ध्रुव, ब्रह्मवनि, क्षत्रवनि, सजातवनि, भ्रातृव्य, वध, धरुण, धर्तृ, आशा, भृगु, अङ्गिरस्, तपस्, धिषणा, पर्वती, स्कम्भनी, पार्वतेयी, धान्य, प्राण, उदान, व्यान, आयुस्, चक्षुस्, पयस्, ओषधि, रस, रेवती, जगती, मधुमती, जनयित्री, घर्म, उरुप्रथा, त्वच्, नाक, यज्ञ, प्रजा, त्रिता, द्विता, एकता, अध्वरकृत्, दक्षिण, सहस्रभृष्टि, शततेजस्, तिग्मतेजस्, द्विषत्, देवयजनी, ओषधि, मूल, व्रज, गोष्ठ, द्यौः, पाश, गायत्री, त्रैष्टुभ, जगती, सुक्ष्मा, शिवा, स्योना, सुषदा, ऊर्जस्वती, पयस्वती, क्रूर, विसृप, पृथिवी, जीवदानु, चन्द्रमस्, स्वधा, धीरा, प्रोक्षणी, सपत्नक्षिद्, वाजिन्, वाजिनी, रास्ना, वेष्य, चक्षुस्, जिह्वा, सुहू, धामन्, यजुस्, तेजस्, शुक्र, अमृत, देवयजन ।

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Darśapūrṇamāsa Iṣṭi — English Translation

1.1

For nourishment I take you, for strength I take you.
Abide, O winds.
May the god Savitṛ impel you toward the noblest work.
Increase and flourish, O unharmed ones, for the share of Indra; rich in offspring, free from disease and decay. Let not thief nor evil-speaker rule over you. May you remain firm under this protector. Be abundant. Protect the cattle of the sacrificer.

1.2

You are the purifier of the radiant one.
You are heaven, you are earth.
You are the heat of Mātariśvan, you are all-supporting.
Be firm in the highest abode. Do not slip away; may the lord of sacrifice not lose you.

1.3

You are the purifier with a hundred streams.
You are the purifier with a thousand streams.
May god Savitṛ purify you with the hundred-streamed purifier.
You have yielded milk.

1.4

She is the life of all.
She is the maker of all.
She is the supporter of all.
I unite you with Soma as the portion of Indra.
O Viṣṇu, protect the oblation.

1.5

O Agni, lord of vows, I shall observe the vow.
May I be capable of it; may it succeed for me.
From falsehood I now approach truth.

1.6

Who yokes you? He yokes you.
For whom does he yoke you? For him he yokes you.
For action, for adornment, for both of you.

1.7

The demons are driven away, the enemies are driven away.
The demons are scorched, the enemies are scorched.
I move along the wide mid-space.

1.8

You are firmness; make firm.
Make firm the one who opposes us; make firm whom we subdue.
You are the best bearer among the gods, the best carrier, the best sustainer, the most beloved, the most fit for divine summons.

1.9

You are uninjured; be firm, O holder of the oblation.
Do not slip away; may the sacrificer not lose you.
May Viṣṇu stride upon you.
For the wide-moving wind.
The demon is driven away.
May the five restrain it.

1.10

By the impulse of Savitṛ, by the arms of the Aśvins, by the hands of Pūṣan,
I take you, acceptable to Agni.
I take you, acceptable to Agni and Soma.

1.11

For beings I take you, not for hostility.
May I behold the heavenly world.
May the strongholds upon earth be firm.
I move along the wide mid-space.
I place you in the navel of the earth, in the lap of Aditi.
O Agni, protect the oblation.

1.12

You two are purifiers belonging to Viṣṇu.
By the impulse of Savitṛ I purify you with an unbroken purifier, with the rays of the sun.
O divine waters moving in front, lead this sacrifice forward today.
Lead forward the lord of sacrifice, well-established, beloved of the gods.

1.13

Indra chose you for the slaying of Vṛtra.
You chose Indra for the slaying of Vṛtra.
You are sprinkled.
I sprinkle you as pleasing to Agni.
I sprinkle you as pleasing to Agni and Soma.
Purify yourselves for the divine rite and divine worship.
Whatever impurity has clung to you, that I cleanse away.

1.14

You are protection.
The demons are shaken off, the enemies are shaken off.
You are the skin of Aditi; may Aditi acknowledge you.
You are the stone born of the forest.
You are the pressing stone with broad base.
May Aditi recognize your covering.

1.15

You are the body of Agni, the release of speech.
I take you for the divine feast.
You are the great stone born of the forest.
This is the oblation for the gods.
Rest well among the sacred woods.
Come, maker of oblations; come, maker of oblations; come, maker of oblations.

1.16

You are the cock with honeyed tongue.
Speak nourishment and strength.
Through you may we conquer host after host.
You are increased by rain.
May the rain-strengthened one recognize you.
The demons are cast far away, the enemies are cast far away.
The demon is struck down.
May the wind separate you.
May god Savitṛ of the golden hand receive you with flawless hand.

1.17

You are boldness.
O Agni, drive away the devouring fire.
Repel the flesh-eater.
Bring here the divine worship.
You are firm; make the earth firm.
I place you for the power of prayer, for royal power, for the strength of kinship, for the destruction of the foe.

1.18

O Agni, grasp the sacred word.
You are the support; make firm the mid-space.
I place you for sacred power, royal power, and kinship strength, for the destruction of the foe.
You are the supporter; make firm the heaven.
I place you for sacred power, royal power, and kinship strength, for the destruction of the foe.
I place you in all directions.
Remain conscious and uplifted in consciousness.
Burn with the austerity of the Bhṛgus and the Aṅgirases.

1.19

You are protection.
The demons are shaken off, the enemies are shaken off.
You are the skin of Aditi; may Aditi recognize you.
You are sacred wisdom, mountain-born; may Aditi recognize your covering.
You are the supporter of heaven.
You are mountain-born wisdom; may the mountain goddess recognize you.

1.20

You are grain; nourish the gods.
For breath I take you.
For upward breath I take you.
For diffused breath I take you.
For long life and extended existence.
May god Savitṛ of the golden hand receive you with flawless hand.
For sight I take you.
You are the milk of the great ones.

1.21

By the impulse of Savitṛ, by the arms of the Aśvins, by the hands of Pūṣan,
I sow you together.
Together with waters and herbs.
Together may the herbs unite with sap.
Together may the prosperous ones unite with the moving world.
Together may the sweet ones unite with sweetness.

1.22

For generation I unite you.
This belongs to Agni.
This belongs to Agni and Soma.
For nourishment I take you.
You are warmth, the life of all.
Spread wide, extend widely.
May the lord of sacrifice spread widely through you.
May Agni not injure your skin.
May god Savitṛ cook you in the highest heaven.

1.23

Do not fear, do not tremble.
May the sacrifice be unshaken; may the offspring of the sacrificer be unshaken.
For the third form I take you.
For the second form I take you.
For the first form I take you.

1.24

By the impulse of Savitṛ, by the arms of the Aśvins, by the hands of Pūṣan,
I take the sacrificial implement for the gods.
You are the right arm of Indra, thousand-pointed and hundred-powered.
You are the wind, sharp in force, slayer of the hateful.

1.25

O earth of the sacrifice, I do not injure your root of herbs.
Go to the enclosure, to the cattle-stall.
May heaven rain upon you.
O god Savitṛ, bind with a hundred nooses upon the highest earth the one who hates us and whom we hate; let him not escape.

1.26

May I not injure the sacrificial ground of earth.
Go to the enclosure, to the cattle-stall.
May heaven rain upon you.
O god Savitṛ, bind with a hundred nooses upon the highest earth the one who hates us and whom we hate; let him not escape.
Do not fall from heaven.
May your drop not fall from the sky.
Go to the enclosure, to the cattle-stall.
May heaven rain upon you.
O god Savitṛ, bind with a hundred nooses upon the highest earth the one who hates us and whom we hate; let him not escape.

1.27

With the Gāyatrī meter I encompass you.
With the Triṣṭubh meter I encompass you.
With the Jagatī meter I encompass you.
You are subtle and auspicious.
You are pleasant and good for sitting.
You are full of strength and rich in milk.

1.28

Long ago the wise ones raised up the life-supporting earth from the cruel creeping force.
That earth which they set in the moon with sacred powers, the wise worship following her directions.
Set down the sprinkling vessels.
You are the slayer of the hostile.

1.29

The demons are driven away, the enemies are driven away.
The demons are scorched, the enemies are scorched.
You are unsharpened yet destroyer of rivals.
I cleanse you, the strong one, for the winning of strength.
The demons are driven away, the enemies are driven away.
The demons are scorched, the enemies are scorched.
You are unsharpened yet destroyer of rivals.
I cleanse you, the powerful one, for the winning of strength.

1.30

You are the girdle of Aditi.
You are the garment of Viṣṇu.
For strength I take you.
With unharmed sight I behold you.
You are the tongue of Agni, gracious to the gods.
Become for me abode after abode, formula after formula.

1.31

By the impulse of Savitṛ I purify you with the flawless purifier, with the rays of the sun.
By the impulse of Savitṛ I purify you all with the flawless purifier, with the rays of the sun.
You are brilliance; you are purity; you are immortality.
You are the sacred abode, beloved of the gods.
You are the inviolate place of sacrifice.

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Yajus mantras

The Yajus mantras collected in the First Chapter, as well as in many other chapters of the Yajurvedic corpus, rarely provide a complete narrative framework through which the full ritual context and setting of the mantras can be independently understood. Unlike continuous theological or epic compositions, the Yajus formulas are primarily liturgical utterances, preserved for practical ritual application rather than descriptive exposition. In the First Chapter, thirty-one mantras are assembled specifically for the performance of the Darśapūrṇamāsa Iṣṭi, the monthly new-moon and full-moon sacrificial rite, and these mantras generally do not possess direct application in other branches of the ritual Karma-kāṇḍa system. It is therefore possible that these thirty-one formulas were gathered from a wider and older repository of Yajus traditions and later organized into a structured sequence by ritual compilers associated with the developing Śrauta system.

Within the traditional Varṇāśrama social order, all qualified householders, both men and women participating in domestic sacrificial life, were expected to observe these recurring monthly rites involving ritual action, offerings, and fire oblations. The Yajus mantras themselves are predominantly prose compositions, distinguished from the metrical hymns of the Ṛgveda and the musical chants of the Sāmaveda. Vedic tradition further maintains that when the primordial Ādi Puruṣa, the Cosmic Being, performed the original self-sacrifice, the Yajus formulas emerged directly from the sacrificial fire itself, तस्माद्यज्ञात्सर्वहुत ऋचः सामानि जज्ञिरे । छन्दांसि जज्ञिरे तस्माद्यजुस् तस्मादजायत , a conception reflected in the famous declaration of the Ṛgveda Puruṣa Sūkta, which states that from that cosmic sacrifice arose the Yajus, the sacred utterances of ritual action and offering.

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Interpretation of “इषे”

The word “इषे” occurs twelve times in the Ṛgveda and is closely associated with the semantic field of nourishment, sustenance, prosperity, sacrificial vitality, food-energy, and divine support. Derived from the Vedic noun इष् / इषा, the expression frequently signifies “for nourishment,” “for refreshment,” “for vital sustenance,” or “for sacrificial prosperity.” In Vedic ritual language it does not merely denote physical food, but the total life-supporting power necessary for cattle, rain, offspring, ritual success, and cosmic continuity. The recurrence of the term across several Maṇḍalas demonstrates its importance within early Indo-Aryan sacrificial vocabulary and agrarian theology. The twelve occurrences appear in hymns dedicated mainly to Indra, Soma, and Agni, where nourishment is repeatedly linked with kingship, victory, cattle wealth, rain, and ritual abundance. In Ṛgveda 1.54.11 the phrase “इषे धाः” invokes Indra as the establisher of sustenance and prosperous lineage. In 1.120.9 nourishment is connected with cattle-rich abundance and milk-giving prosperity. The passages in 6.17.14, 7.20.10, and 7.21.10 combine “इषे” with fame, wealth, and heroic patronage, illustrating the social role of Vedic chiefs who redistributed cattle and ritual gifts. In 8.20.8 and 10.48.9 the term appears in association with communal sharing and enjoyment of prosperity. Soma hymns such as 9.64.13 and 9.65.3 employ “इषे” in the context of flowing sacred vitality, where Soma is purified for nourishment and divine strength. In 10.20.7 Agni is invoked as the ancient power sustaining sacrificial nourishment, while 10.50.3 asks who among men truly deserves divine sustenance and blessing. The repeated appearance of “इषे” across diverse ritual and theological settings reveals that nourishment in the Vedic worldview was never merely biological; it represented a sacred circulation of energy between gods, humans, cattle, sacrifice, rain, speech, and cosmic order. This meaning survives prominently in the opening mantra of the Darśapūrṇamāsa Iṣṭi, “इषे त्वा ऊर्जे त्वा,” where nourishment and strength together form the foundation of sacrificial life and ritual prosperity.

References From Rigveda

1. Ṛgveda 1.54.11 / 1.4.18.6
   स शेवृ॑ध॒मधि॑ धा द्यु॒म्नम॒स्मे महि॑ क्ष॒त्रं ज॑ना॒षाळि॑न्द्र॒ तव्य॑म् ।
   रक्षा॑ च नो म॒घोन॑: पा॒हि सू॒रीन्रा॒ये च॑ नः स्वप॒त्या इ॒षे धा॑: ॥
2. Ṛgveda 1.120.9 / 1.8.23.4
   दु॒ही॒यन्मि॒त्रधि॑तये यु॒वाकु॑ रा॒ये च॑ नो मिमी॒तं वाज॑वत्यै ।
   इ॒षे च॑ नो मिमीतं धेनु॒मत्यै॑ ॥
3. Ṛgveda 6.17.14 / 4.6.3.4
   स नो॒ वाजा॑य॒ श्रव॑स इ॒षे च॑ रा॒ये धे॑हि द्यु॒मत॑ इन्द्र॒ विप्रा॑न् ।
   भ॒रद्वा॑जे नृ॒वत॑ इन्द्र सू॒रीन्दि॒वि च॑ स्मैधि॒ पार्ये॑ न इन्द्र ॥
4. Ṛgveda 7.20.10 / 5.3.2.5
   स न॑ इन्द्र॒ त्वय॑ताया इ॒षे धा॒स्त्मना॑ च॒ ये म॒घवा॑नो जु॒नन्ति॑ ।
   वस्वी॒ षु ते॑ जरि॒त्रे अ॑स्तु श॒क्तिर्यू॒यं पा॑त स्व॒स्तिभि॒: सदा॑ नः ॥
5. Ṛgveda 7.21.10 / 5.3.4.5
   स न॑ इन्द्र॒ त्वय॑ताया इ॒षे धा॒स्त्मना॑ च॒ ये म॒घवा॑नो जु॒नन्ति॑ ।
   वस्वी॒ षु ते॑ जरि॒त्रे अ॑स्तु श॒क्तिर्यू॒यं पा॑त स्व॒स्तिभि॒: सदा॑ नः ॥
6. Ṛgveda 8.20.8 / 6.1.37.3
   गोभि॑र्वा॒णो अ॑ज्यते॒ सोभ॑रीणां॒ रथे॒ कोशे॑ हिर॒ण्यये॑ ।
   गोब॑न्धवः सुजा॒तास॑ इ॒षे भु॒जे म॒हान्तो॑ न॒: स्पर॑से॒ नु ॥
7. Ṛgveda 8.93.34 / 6.6.27.4
   इन्द्र॑ इ॒षे द॑दातु न ऋभु॒क्षण॑मृ॒भुं र॒यिम् ।
   वा॒जी द॑दातु वा॒जिन॑म् ॥
8. Ṛgveda 9.64.13 / 7.1.38.3
   इ॒षे प॑वस्व॒ धार॑या मृ॒ज्यमा॑नो मनी॒षिभि॑: ।
   इन्दो॑ रु॒चाभि गा इ॑हि ॥
9. Ṛgveda 9.65.3 / 7.2.1.3
   आ प॑वमान सुष्टु॒तिं वृ॒ष्टिं दे॒वेभ्यो॒ दुव॑: ।
   इ॒षे प॑वस्व सं॒यत॑म् ॥
10. Ṛgveda 10.20.7 / 7.7.3.1
    य॒ज्ञा॒साहं॒ दुव॑ इषे॒ऽग्निं पूर्व॑स्य॒ शेव॑स्य ।
    अद्रे॑: सू॒नुमा॒युमा॑हुः ॥
11. Ṛgveda 10.48.9 / 8.1.6.4
    प्र मे॒ नमी॑ सा॒प्य इ॒षे भु॒जे भू॒द्गवा॒मेषे॑ स॒ख्या कृ॑णुत द्वि॒ता ।
    दि॒द्युं यद॑स्य समि॒थेषु॑ मं॒हय॒मादिदे॑नं॒ शंस्य॑मु॒क्थ्यं॑ करम् ॥
12. Ṛgveda 10.50.3 / 8.1.9.3
    के ते नर॑ इन्द्र॒ ये त॑ इ॒षे ये ते॑ सु॒म्नं स॑ध॒न्य१॒॑मिय॑क्षान् ।
    के ते॒ वाजा॑यासु॒र्या॑य हिन्विरे॒ के अ॒प्सु स्वासू॒र्वरा॑सु॒ पौंस्ये॑ ॥

Additional Vocabulary: इषा, द्युम्न, महत्, क्षत्र, जन, इन्द्र, तव्य, रक्षा, मघवन्, सूरि, रयि, स्वपत्य, मित्र, धिति, युवाकु, वाजवत्, धेनुमती, वाज, श्रवस्, विप्र, भरद्वाज, नृवत्, दिवि, पार्य, त्वयत, मघवान्, जरितृ, शक्ति, स्वस्ति, गो, वाण, सोभरी, रथ, कोश, हिरण्य, गोबन्धु, सुजात, भुज, महत्, स्पर्श, ऋभुक्षण, ऋभु, वाजी, वाजिन्, पवमान, धारा, मृज्यमान, मनीषिन्, इन्दु, रुचा, सुष्टुति, वृष्टि, देव, दुवस्, संयत, यज्ञासाह, अग्नि, पूर्व, शेव, अद्रि, सूनु, आयु, नमि, साप्य, गावः, सख्य, द्विता, दिद्यु, समित्, मंहय, शंस्य, उक्थ्य, नर, सुम्न, सधन्य, वाज, असुर्य, अप्, स्वसुर्, वरा, पौंस्य ।

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Sarvarthapedia Conceptual Nod: Darśapūrṇamāsa Iṣṭi

Core Identity

The Darśapūrṇamāsa Iṣṭi is the foundational monthly Śrauta sacrifice of the Vedic ritual system, consisting of the paired new-moon (Darśa) and full-moon (Pūrṇamāsa) offerings. It stands at the center of the Yajurvedic ritual tradition and functions as the structural basis for later and larger sacrificial systems including the Agniṣṭoma, Rājasūya, and Aśvamedha rituals.

Related Concepts

Yajurveda

The ritual formulas of the Darśapūrṇamāsa are preserved mainly in the Vājasaneyī Saṃhitā, Taittirīya Saṃhitā, and associated Brāhmaṇa texts. The Yajurveda specializes in prose sacrificial formulae known as Yajus Mantras, recited during ritual action.

Śrauta Tradition

The rite belongs to the Śrauta system, the public Vedic sacrificial tradition based upon revelation (Śruti). Śrauta ritual emphasizes:

• Fire altars
• Precise recitation
• Ritual geometry
• Lunar timing
• Priesthood specialization

Vedic Ritualism

The Darśapūrṇamāsa reflects the early Vedic worldview in which:

• Cosmos and ritual mirror each other
• Speech possesses sacred power
• Sacrifice maintains cosmic order
• Agriculture, cattle wealth, and rainfall are sacred concerns

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Ritual Structure

Darśa

The new-moon sacrifice symbolizes renewal, transition, restraint, and restoration.

Pūrṇamāsa

The full-moon sacrifice represents fullness, prosperity, fertility, abundance, and cosmic completion.

Iṣṭi

An Iṣṭi is a smaller sacrificial offering involving:

• Clarified butter
• Milk products
• Grains
• Cakes
• Fire oblations
• Yajus recitations

Related:

• Homa
• Havis
• Agnihotra
• Pākayajña

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Historical Context

Late Vedic Civilization

The ritual emerged within the late Vedic cultural zone extending:

• From the Saraswati-Sindhu region
• Through Kurukṣetra
• Into the western Ganga-Yamuna plains

Approximate chronological layers:

• Early ritual foundations: c. 4500–3000 BCE
• Brāhmaṇa systematization: c. 2500–1200 BCE
• Śrauta Sūtra codification: c. 1800–700 BCE

Kuru-Pañcāla Orthodoxy

The rite became standardized in the Kuru-Pañcāla region, regarded by historians as the center of classical Vedic orthopraxy.

Related:

• Kurukṣetra
• Brahmanical ritualism
• Lunar calendrics
• Vedic state formation

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Priestly System

Yajamāna

The yajamāna is the sacrificing householder responsible for sponsoring the ritual.

Priests

The rite generally requires:

• Hotṛ — reciter of Ṛgvedic hymns
• Adhvaryu — executor of ritual action
• Udgātṛ — singer of Sāmavedic chants
• Brahman — supervisor correcting ritual errors

Related:

• Vedic education
• Oral transmission
• Śikṣā
• Chandas

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Yajus Mantras

Nature of Yajus

The Yajus mantras are primarily prose formulas linked directly to ritual movement and offering. Unlike the Ṛgvedic hymns, they rarely provide complete narrative or theological exposition.

The thirty-one mantras of the first chapter are specifically arranged for the Darśapūrṇamāsa Iṣṭi and generally do not function independently outside this sacrificial framework.

Conceptual Characteristics

The Yajus:

• Activate ritual objects
• Sanctify movement
• Transform matter into offering
• Establish sacred space
• Invoke cosmic order

Related:

• Sacred speech
• Mantra
• Vāc
• Ritual performativity

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Puruṣa Sacrifice and Origin of Yajus

The Vedic tradition traces the origin of the Yajus to the primordial sacrifice of the Ādi Puruṣa, the Cosmic Being described in the Puruṣa Sūkta of the Ṛgveda.

Related Mantra

“From that universal sacrifice arose the Ṛgvedic hymns and the Sāmans; from it were born the meters, and from it the Yajus came forth.”

This links:

• Cosmic creation
• Sacrifice
• Language
• Ritual authority

Related:

• Puruṣa Sūkta
• Cosmic sacrifice
• Creation mythology
• Ritual cosmology

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Central Deities

Agni

Functions:

• Carrier of offerings
• Mouth of the gods
• Guardian of sacred speech
• Ritual mediator

Related:

• Fire altar
• Homa
• Oblation

Savitṛ

The divine impeller who sanctifies action.

Repeated formula:
“May Savitṛ impel toward the noblest work.”

Related:

• Solar symbolism
• Ritual purification
• Sacred impulse

Indra

Associated with:

• Storm
• Kingship
• Warfare
• Protection against hostile powers

Viṣṇu

Appears as:

• Protector of sacrifice
• Cosmic strider
• Guardian of ritual order

Aśvins and Pūṣan

Connected with:

• Healing
• Fertility
• Nourishment
• Safe movement

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Ritual Ecology

Agricultural Symbolism

The mantras repeatedly invoke:

• Grain
• Milk
• Rain
• Herbs
• Cattle
• Fertility

Example concepts:

• “Protect the cattle of the sacrificer”
• “You are grain; nourish the gods”
• “May heaven rain upon you”

Related:

• Pastoral economy
• Agrarian transition
• Ritual ecology

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Purification

Purification is central to the Darśapūrṇamāsa system.

Ritual Purity

Purification involves:

• Water
• Sunlight
• Grass
• Fire
• Recited speech

Key formula:
“By the impulse of Savitṛ I purify you with the flawless purifier, with the rays of the sun.”

Related:

• Pavitram
• Ritual fitness
• Solar purification
• Sacred waters

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Ethical and Philosophical Themes

Truth and Cosmic Order

One of the most important declarations states:
“From falsehood I now approach truth.”

This connects:

• Ritual action
• Truth
• Cosmic order
• Moral alignment

Later influence:

• Upaniṣadic philosophy
• Satya doctrine
• Dharma theory

Related:

• Ṛta
• Satya
• Vow
• Sacred discipline

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Ritual Objects as Divine Entities

In the Darśapūrṇamāsa worldview:

• Stones become divine
• Ladles embody cosmic order
• Grain becomes sacred life
• Fire becomes conscious mediator

Related:

• Sacralization of matter
• Vedic symbolism
• Ritual ontology

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Lunar Time and Astronomy

The rite depends upon:

• Exact lunar observation
• New-moon timing
• Full-moon timing
• Calendrical synchronization

This reflects advanced early Indian astronomical awareness prior to classical Siddhānta astronomy.

Related:

• Vedic astronomy
• Nakṣatra system
• Lunar calendar

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Social Order

Varṇāśrama Context

The rite belonged to the householder stage and was integrated into the broader Varṇāśrama framework.

It encoded:

• Social hierarchy
• Domestic duty
• Priesthood specialization
• Kinship structure

Related:

• Gṛhastha
• Dharma
• Household sacrifice

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Preservation and Transmission

Oral Tradition

The Darśapūrṇamāsa survived through:

• Memorization
• Accent preservation
• Phonetic precision
• Teacher-disciple transmission

Related:

• Pada-pāṭha
• Saṃhitā-pāṭha
• Vedic accents
• Recensional traditions

UNESCO Recognition

Vedic chanting was recognized by UNESCO as an intangible cultural heritage because of the extraordinary continuity of oral preservation.

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Regional Continuities

The ritual tradition survived historically in:

• Kerala
• Andhra Pradesh
• Maharashtra
• Tamil Nadu

Particularly among:

• Nambudiri Śrauta communities
• Telugu Vedic lineages

Related:

• Living Vedic ritual
• Śrauta revival
• Ethnographic documentation

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Key Textual Sources

Saṃhitā Literature

• Vājasaneyī Saṃhitā
• Taittirīya Saṃhitā

Brāhmaṇa Literature

• Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa
• Taittirīya Brāhmaṇa

Śrauta Sūtras

• Āpastamba Śrauta Sūtra
• Baudhāyana Śrauta Sūtra
• Kātyāyana Śrauta Sūtra

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Connected Vedic Concepts

Ritual Speech

• Vāc
• Mantra
• Chandas
• Intonation

Sacrificial Elements

• Agni
• Soma
• Havis
• Ghṛta
• Puroḍāśa

Cosmological Concepts

• Ṛta
• Satya
• Dharma
• Puruṣa

Related Rituals

• Agnihotra
• Cāturmāsya
• Soma sacrifice
• Pākayajña
• Aupāsana

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Intellectual Significance

The Darśapūrṇamāsa Iṣṭi preserves one of humanity’s oldest continuously transmitted ritual systems. It documents:

• Early Indo-Aryan ritual culture
• Agricultural transition
• Sacral kingship
• Oral textual preservation
• Proto-philosophical speculation
• Ritualized cosmology
• Satapatha Brahmana Annotated Index
• Hindu Scriptures and Interpretation

It stands not merely as a liturgical sequence but as a historical archive of ancient Vedic civilization, preserving within its mantras the social memory, ecological consciousness, political structures, cosmology, and disciplined ritual language of early India.

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