Mrityunjaya Mantra (Rig Veda 7.59.12) - My understanding

 

 

त्र्यम्बकं यजामहे सुगन्धिं पुष्टिवर्धनम् । उर्वारुकमिव बन्धनान्मृत्योर्मुक्षीय मामृतात् ॥

tryambakaṃ yajāmahe sugandhim puṣṭivardhanam | urvārukam iva bandhanān mṛtyor mukṣīya māmṛtāt ||

Available English translation:

We worship the Tryambaka, the fragrant, increaser of prosperity.  Like a cucumber from its stem, may I be Liberated from Death (Attachment to Perishable Things), so that I am not separated from the perception of Immortality (Immortal Essence pervading everywhere).

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 ·        In his Commentary Sāyaṇa stated that Tryambaka means the father, ambuka of the three deities, Brahma, Viṣhṇu and Rudra; also identified with mahatva (Ṛgvidhāna).

(https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/rig-veda-english-translation/d/doc835080.html).

·        Many  commentators interpreted the word Tryambaka (त्र्यम्बक​) as three-eyed god Shiva.

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My understanding is as follows:

 

Details of the Richa:

Ṛṣi (sage/seer): vasiṣṭhaḥ [vasiṣṭha];
Devatā (deity/subject-matter): rudraḥ ;
Chandas (meter): anuṣṭup ;

 

1)       Sāyaṇa stated that Tryambaka means the father - ambuka of the three deities, Brahma, Viṣhṇu and Rudra.  

However, we have to remember that when the Rig Veda was composed there was a concept of TRINITY, ie., AGNI, INDRA and SURYA in the spheres of EARTH, MID SPACE and HEAVEN but  not the concept of trinity of Gods, ie., Brahma, Viṣhṇu and Rudra,.

  Vishnu, Indra, Agni, Rudra, etc, are epithets to indicate ONE and only one BRAHMAN.

 

2) Tryambaka

(a)  "अम्बा - ambA " means mother, but not eye. The words “नेत्र – netra, लोचन – locana, चक्षु – cakSu, नयन – nayana,”  etc, indicate 'eye'.  So ambaka - अम्बक means of mother and त्र्यम्बकं - tryambakaṃ may indicates having three mothers, but not a person with three eyes.

 b)   Hence,  त्र्यम्बकं - tryambakaṃ can be understood as the presiding Devatā (deity) rudra having three mothers, but it goes against BRAHMAN concept of Rig Veda.  Rig Veda 2.1, which praised agni as BRAHMAN,  also praised Indra/Vishnu/Aditi/ Rudra, etc, as BRAHMAN. 

 c)    We have to remember that BRAHMAN is the formless and nameless power, which CAME INTO EXISTENCE FIRST and governs everything in the UNIVERSE. And, thus the BRAHMAN cannot have a MOTHER.

 So the question of Rudra having 3 mothers does not arise.

 d)  It seems to me that the rishi vasiṣṭha, might have composed this Richa addressing Rudra in an esoteric sense only.  The symbolism of त्र्यम्बकं - tryambakaṃ, having three mothers, may indicate a spiritual practitioner in general, seeking the  DIVINE connection/blessings/guidance of three female energies that exist in every human being.

 e)    Now, a question arises as to who those three mothers are!

 f)     In the Rig-Veda, Saraswati, Ila and Bharati were praised together as the three female energies - tisro devīḥ (तिस्रो देवीः).  

RigVeda 2.3.8

 सरस्वती साधयन्ती धियं न इळा देवी भारती विश्वतूर्तिः । तिस्रो देवीः स्वधया बर्हिरेदमच्छिद्रं पान्तु शरणं निषद्य ॥

sarasvatī sādhayantī dhiyaṃ na iḻā devī bhāratī viśvatūrtiḥ | tisro devīḥ svadhayā barhir edam acchidram pāntu śaraṇaṃ niṣadya ||

 

English translation:

Sarasvatī, who sends our poetic thought to its target, divine Iḍā, Bhāratī outstripping all

let the three goddesses, having sat down on this ritual grass here, with their own power protect (its?) unbroken shelter.

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The Rig Veda 2.41.16 praises Saraswati is the best of all mothers/female divine powers -

अम्बितमे नदीतमे देवितमे सरस्वति । ambitame nadītame devitame sarasvati

 Here also अम्बा – ambA was used to indicate a mother - ambitame (अम्बितमे).

 g)    We should also remember that the blessings of Saraswati, Ila and Bharati, are the blessings/grace of Aditi, their combined and transcendental female power of the BRAHMAN itself.

 3) It seems incorrect to take sugandhim pushthi vardhanam (सुगन्धिं पुष्टिवर्धनम्) to mean "the fragrant, increaser of prosperity ".  It does not synchronise with the meaning in the next line - Like a cucumber from its stem, may I be Liberated from Death, so that I am not separated from the perception of Immortality.

 I could not fathom as to how the fragrance emanated by rudra (सुगन्धिं)  and increasing of prosperity (पुष्टिवर्धनम्)  will ensure liberation ONE from DEATH.

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The word gandha (गन्ध) is the key word here and the rishi vasiṣṭha might have used it with a different meaning.

 Another meaning of gandha (गन्ध) is "relationship".  sugandhim (सुगन्धिं) means "good relationship".

 If we take the meaning of sugandhim pushthi vardhanam (सुगन्धिं पुष्टिवर्धनम्) as "to have a good relationship and to strengthen it", then it will fit into the richa.

 

4) Now, if we read the richa in question in this background, we can understand that it was composed from a spiritual seeker perspective only, but not from the perspective of rudra, the BRAHMAN.

Meaning of the richa in question

 We worship (rudra) to establish a good relationship with the three female energies - Saraswati, Ila and Bharati - tisro devīḥ (existing in us) - and to strengthen that relationship. Thus, like a cucumber from its stem, may I be Liberated from Death (Attachment to Perishable Things), so that I am not separated from the perception of Immortality (Immortal Essence pervading everywhere).

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 Another issue that need to be kept in mind is that in Rig-veda 3.29.3, agni, the brahman, is also described as the "son of Ila ", ( इळायास्पुत्र) - …..अरुषस्तूपो रुशदस्य पाज इळायास्पुत्रो वयुनेऽजनिष्ट...).   

 Therefore, it seems to me that addressing  rudra as the son of three mothers or agni as the "son of Ila",  should be understood only from the perspective of a spiritual seeker.