Purusha Sukta — opening verse
The thousand-headed Purusha — the first verse of the Purusha Sukta, Rigveda 10.90.1.
Rigveda 10.90.1edition
Sanskrit · संस्कृत
This text is shown without svara (Vedic accent) marks — no marked edition has been verified for it yet. Accent matters in Vedic recitation, so we would rather show none than show the wrong ones.
No verified recitation yet. We publish audio only with a named reciter and a recorded licence, rather than files of unknown provenance.
Meaning
The Purusha has a thousand heads, a thousand eyes, a thousand feet. Encompassing the earth on every side, he stood beyond it by ten fingers.
This rendering is by a DharmSetu editor, not a quotation from a published translation. Compare with the public-domain translation.
A Hindi meaning has not been written for this mantra yet. Hindi is authored by a named editor rather than machine-translated, so it arrives more slowly.
Context
Shadanga — the six limbs
The traditional analytic frame for a mantra. Blank limbs are simply not recorded for this text.
- chhanda
- Anushtubh
- devata
- Purusha
Recited at / traditionally recited for
Classified as Vedic — From the Vedic corpus — Samhita, Brahmana, Aranyaka or Upanishad. Carries a rishi, a metre, and accent marking. Basis for this classification.
Related mantras
Gayatri Mantra
The most widely recited Vedic verse, addressed to the light of the sun — Rigveda 3.62.10.
Mahamrityunjaya Mantra
The Tryambaka verse of the Rigveda, addressed to Rudra — a prayer for release, likening it to a ripe fruit loosening from its stem.
Asato Ma Sad Gamaya
Three movements — from the unreal to the real, from darkness to light, from death to what does not die. Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 1.3.28.