Hymns to Mother Earth (Pṛthivī)

In the Rig Veda, the Earth is not a backdrop.
She is alive, nurturing, protective.
She is Pṛthivī, the Mother Earth.

The hymns dedicated to her express a direct relationship between humans and the ground that supports them.
The Earth is seen as a patient mother, who bears footsteps, mistakes, and conflicts, yet continues to give.

1. Earth as the foundation of life

Pṛthivī is the one:

• who carries humans, animals, and plants,
• who receives the waters,
• who allows growth and nourishment.

She is never described as a possession.
She is a being to respect, not to exploit.

The hymns remind us that without her, nothing exists.

2. Pṛthivī, the sky, and the intermediate world: three states of consciousness

In the Vedic hymns, Earth and sky are not only natural elements.
They correspond to three states of consciousness:

• Earth (Pṛthivī):
  ordinary consciousness, embodied life, daily existence, the body, work, survival.
• Sky (Dyauṣ):
  illumination, expanded consciousness, inner light, direct experience of the sacred.
• The intermediate world: (Antarisksa)
  everything that connects the two — rituals, hymns, breath, soma, meditation, trance, inner experiences.
  It is the path, not the destination.

The hymns show that humans live on Earth, aspire to the sky, and move through the in-between.
Nothing is separate. Everything is continuous.

Illumination does not reject the Earth —
it is born from it.

3. A forgiving Earth

One striking aspect of these hymns is the request for forgiveness addressed to the Earth:

• for wounds caused by footsteps,
• for holes dug into the ground,
• for human violence.

This reveals an ancient awareness:
the Earth suffers, yet continues to carry humanity.

Respect lies at the heart of Vedic spirituality.

4. A lesson for today

The hymns to Pṛthivī do not speak of ecology in a modern sense.
They speak of common sense, gratitude, and limits.

They remind us that:

• the Earth does not belong to humans,
• humans belong to the Earth.

An ancient message, still deeply relevant.