Animal Motifs in the Rigveda

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Animal Motifs in the Ṛgveda

In the Vedic hymns, the higher gods are mainly anthropomorphic, but animals still appear in three ways: (1) as lower, semi-divine or demoniac beings (useful animals like the cow versus noxious ones like the serpent); (2) as a “celestial animal world” attending major deities; and (3) as ritual symbols (temporary, fetish-like representatives used to influence a god). Such fetishes are survivals of earlier identifications of gods with visible beings, though the predominant Rigvedic view conceives the gods as mighty men arriving invisibly at the sacrifice.

General traits

Animals in the Ṛgveda often act as metaphors for divine power, speed, nourishment, or danger. Many images are functional: horses pull divine cars, “cows” can denote dawn-beams or rain-clouds, birds can be messengers, and serpents stand for obstructive forces.

The Horse

A. Dadhikrā (Dadhikrāvan)

Dadhikrā is a celebrated divine steed of the Ṛgveda, praised in four late hymns (RV [1]). He is the foremost racer, “first at the head of chariots,” a vanquisher of chariots, swift “like the wind,” and lauded for sure-footing on perilous paths (RV [2], [3], [4], [5], [6]). His speed and grace inspire avian imagery: his wing is likened to a bird’s and an eagle’s; he is compared to a swooping eagle and even called an eagle; elsewhere he is styled a haṃsa (swan) “dwelling in light,” a Vasu in the air, a priest at the altar, and a guest in the house—titles that also suit Agni (RV [7], [8], [9]).

B. Tārkṣya

Tārkṣya (Āriṣṭanemi) oscillates between avian and equine form: in Vedic materials he is originally a great bird, yet in at least one Rigvedic passage appears as a horse; later texts speak explicitly of his wings and of a winged car. The figure thus bridges bird-steed imagery and the solar car.

C. Pāídva

Pāídva is named as a notable divine horse. The tradition distinguishes him from other sacrificial horses and treats him among the select celestial steeds, though details in the hymns are sparse.

D. Etaśa

Etaśa (“the tawny/ashen one”) functions as a swift steed-name applied to deities (e.g., Agni, Trita) and as a designation tied to the sun-car—again fusing horse and solar symbolism.

E. The horse as a symbol of Sun and Fire

Rigvedic poetry frequently conflates the horse with luminosity and propulsion: rays are the “steeds of the sun,” while the Dadhikrā-Agni overlaps show how equine swiftness and fiery brilliance converge.

The Bull

“Bull” is the standing title of Indra throughout the Ṛgveda; the epithet also attaches (less often) to Agni and occasionally to other gods. A bull even represents Rudra in a sacrificial context, and a bull figures in the much-discussed Mudgala–Mudgalānī episode (RV 10.102).

The Cow

Thanks to its earthly utility and life-giving milk, the cow permeates Rigvedic myth. The Dawn’s beams are “cows” drawing her car; the rain-cloud is a cow whose lightning-calf it bears; as Pṛśni (variegated cow), she is mother of the Maruts, with her milk and udder frequently praised (RV [10]). Heavenly “many-coloured cows” yielding all desires foreshadow later the Cow of Plenty. Iḷā, personified offering of milk/butter, tends to be regarded as a cow.

“Cows” can also encode storm-myth: Indra’s dragon-slaying “finds the cows,” i.e., releases the waters/light; “cows” and “mountains/rocks” are stock images for cloud and its fetters in the Vṛtra cycle (RV [12]).

The Goat & other animals

Goat. Strongly linked with Pūṣan (his mount/vehicle) and with the atmospheric deity Ajá Ekapād (“one-footed goat”), the goat retains bright pastoral overtones.

Ass. The ass is remembered as drawing the Aśvins’ car—another instance of humble beasts yoked to divine motion.

Boar, dog, monkey, tortoise, frogs. Several other creatures surface in brief mythic or ritual notes: the boar (varāha), dogs (in funerary and underworld settings), the monkey (vā­nara), the tortoise (kūrma), and, most strikingly, frogs—who receive an entire hymn for their post-rains chorus (RV [16]).

The Bird

Bird imagery is pervasive. Agni is envisaged as a bird; the Sun as a bird; and the divine eagle (garutmán) is famed as the bringer of Soma. Birds of omen appear, and certain species (e.g., owl, pigeon) serve as messengers of Yama in funerary thought.

Noxious animals

The serpent (ahi) is the paradigmatic noxious creature—rare as a literal object in the hymns but ever present as a demonic obstacle; Indra’s epithet “serpent-slayer” marks this role (RV [13]). Scorpions and other pests are noted only marginally compared to the serpent’s mythic weight.

Survivals of prehistoric notions

The hymns preserve faint echoes of earlier beliefs about descent from animals or clan totems. Thus Kaśyapa (“Tortoise”) names a seer and priestly line; in later lore Prajāpati appears as a tortoise, and “all beings are the children of the tortoise.” Rigvedic tribal and family names preserve animal affiliations: Matsyas (Fishes), Ajas (Goats), Śigrus (Horse-radishes), and priestly groups like Gotamas (Oxen), Vatsas (Calves), Śunakas (Dogs), Kauśikas (Owls), Māṇḍukeyas (Frogs) (RV [14], [15]).

References (Rigvedic)

  1. RV 4.38–40; 7.44 — Four hymns to Dadhikrā (Dadhikrāvan). ↩︎
  2. RV 4.38.2–9; 4.39.1 — Dadhikrā’s swiftness; first at the head of chariots. ↩︎
  3. RV 7.44.4 — “Vanquisher of chariots” (rathatur); chief among racers. ↩︎
  4. RV 4.38.3 — “Speeds like the wind.” ↩︎
  5. RV 4.38.9 — Praised for perilous sure-footing (“on a precipice as it were”). ↩︎
  6. RV 4.40.4 — “Bounds along the curves of the paths.” ↩︎
  7. RV 4.40.2–3 — Wing likened to a bird and an eagle. ↩︎
  8. RV 4.38.5 — Dadhikrā compared to / called an eagle. ↩︎
  9. RV 4.40.5 — Dadhikrā as haṃsa “dwelling in light,” Vasu, priest, guest. ↩︎
  10. RV 6.48.22 — Milk/udder of Pṛśni (cloud-cow), mother of the Maruts. ↩︎
  11. RV 8.70.4 — “The cows roared at the birth of Indra.”
  12. RV 5.29.3; 1.52.8; (cf. 6.17.5; 10.112.9; 6.43.3; 5.30.4; 8.45.3) — Indra “finds the cows” (waters/light) by slaying the dragon; cloud as rock/mountain. ↩︎
  13. RV 8.93.2 — Indra as serpent-slayer (ahi). ↩︎
  14. RV 9.114.2 — Kaśyapa (“Tortoise”) as a seer. ↩︎
  15. RV 7.18.18–19 — Tribal names Matsyas, Ajas, Śigrus. ↩︎
  16. RV 7.103 — Hymn to the frogs. ↩︎

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