Upanishads · Mantrikā 9
॥
Devanāgarī
शंसन्तमनुशंसन्ति बह्वृचाः शास्त्रकोविदाः । रथन्तरं बृहत्साम सप्तवैधैस्तु गीयते
Transliteration (IAST)
śaṃsantamanuśaṃsanti bahvṛcāḥ śāstrakovidāḥ | rathantaraṃ bṛhatsāma saptavaidhaistu gīyate
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
शंसन्तम् अनुशंसन्तिśaṃsantam anuśaṃsantito the praiser they sing in answer; to the one who glorifies they respond
बह्वृचाः शास्त्रकोविदाःbahvṛcāḥ śāstrakovidāḥthe knowers of the Ṛgveda, versed in the śāstras; the bahvṛcas, skilled in the sciences
रथन्तरम् बृहत् सामrathantaram bṛhat sāmathe rathantara and the bṛhat sāman; the melodies rathantara and bṛhat
सप्तवैधैः तु गीयतेsaptavaidhaiḥ tu gīyateis sung sevenfold; is chanted in seven ways
Translation
To the praiser sing in answer the knowers of the Ṛgveda, versed in the śāstras; and the rathantara and the bṛhat are sung sevenfold.
Version
6bf7e2f9a0ee · published Jul 29, 2026, 3:00:17 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
A verse on how this testimony is handed on: some sing, others take up the song.
Bahvṛca — “of many verses”; so the knowers of the Ṛgveda are called. The rathantara and the bṛhat are the two chief melodies of the Sāmaveda, to which hymns are set at the sacrifice.
The seven ways are the seven notes, or seven modes of chanting; we met the same count in the second section of the Garbha Upaniṣad, where ṣaḍja, ṛṣabha and the rest were listed.
Let us grasp why this stands in a book about prakṛti and the Puruṣa.
Because the previous verse said: “him the snātakas and adhvaryus have sung”. The testimony has been named — and now it is shown not to stand alone: all the schools take up the singer's song.
This is a mode of proof usual in śruti: truth is confirmed not by reasoning but by the concord of the transmitters.
The next verse will name one more school — the Bhārgavas and Ātharvaṇas — and with that the roll of witnesses will close.