Who are the 5 terrestrial Rishies that were mentioned in Rig Veda II.34.14?

Question

Rig Veda II.34.14, dedicated to Maruts, narrates briefly about 5 terrestrial rishies

तानियानो महि वरूथमूतय उप घेदेना नमसा गर्णीमसि | तरितो न यान पञ्च होतॄनभिष्टय आववर्तदवराञ्चक्रियावसे ||

tāniyāno mahi varūthamūtaya upa ghedenā namasā ghṛṇīmasi | trito na yān pañca hotṝnabhiṣṭaya āvavartadavarāñcakriyāvase ||

Translation of H.H. Wilson (P.179) is as follows:

Imploring them for ample wealth. and (having recourse to him) for protection. we glorify them with this praise: like the five Chief Priests whom TRITA detained for the (performance of) the sacrifice. and to protect it with their weapons.

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This mantra is referring to

• 5 Chief Priests, who TRITA detained

• for protection of his sacrifice with their weapons

• TRITA was used in other mantras to indicate a MAHARSHI

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My questions are:

1. Who were the 5 Chief Priests, who protected the sacrifice of TRITA?

2. Was this protection of a sacrifice allegorical and/or a forerunner to protection of Yagna, performed by Sage Viswamitra by Sri Rama and Lakshmana, with their weapons?

Answer 1

They are Five Prāṇa​s i.e Prāṇa, Apāna, Vyāna, Udāna, Samāna​ who constitutes Prāṇamaya​ Kosha (see Taittiriya Upanishad 2.3.1) and hence the body. They are considered equivalent to five Hotṛs in doing Yajna. Take a look at such type of Yajna mentioned in Bhagavad Gita 4.29.

• Here is the Sayanacharya's Sanskrit commentary on this verse:

  

I do not have any reference to translation of this commentary but I've highlighted the Sanskrit text which talks about five Prāṇas as five Hotṛs.

• I have confirmed this interpretation from Rigveda Bhāṣā Bhāṣya by Pandit Jaydeva Sharma; you can read it on Internet Archive:

  

  Note: Rigveda Bhāṣā Bhāṣya is one of the reliable commentary on Rigveda by Indian author mentioned here

So, five Hotṛs (priests), here refers to five Prāṇa​s i.e 1. Prāṇa, 2. Apāna, 3. Vyāna, 4. Udāna, 5. Samāna.

Answer 2

As per my understanding, the five Chief Priests whom TRITA detained (Rig Veda II.34.14) are 5 Indriyas (sense organs) - i.e. eyes, ear, nose, tongue, and skin.

If we re-visit the crux of the mantra in question, we can understand that the 5 sense organs will goad humans to remain materialistic.

" .....like the five Chief Priests whom TRITA detained for the (performance of) the sacrifice. and to protect it with their weapons."

• TRITA indicates a sage

• sacrifice indicate the spiritual practice/asceticism

The sage was saying that one should detain the 5 sense organs, who are very powerful with their weapons, for doing spiritual practice/asceticism

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Even many ascetics acknowledged that the 5 sense organs are very powerful to overcome with.

Rig Veda III.37.9 says

indriyāṇi śatakrato yā te janeṣu pañcasu | indra tāni taā vṛṇe ||

Indra, the object of many rites, I regard the organs of sense that exist in the 5 races (of beings dependent) on thee, as thine

Indra, who was alluded as Brahman in Rig Veda, will protect the sage, from the very powerful weapons of 5 sense organs, which are under the control of Indra.

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