Hymn to Varuṇa
Rigveda I.25 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) addressed to Varuṇa, the all-seeing lord of cosmic law, guardian of ṛta, judge of human deeds. It is one of the 1,028 hymns of the Rigveda organized within Maṇḍala 1, the first of ten books. The ṛṣi (seer) to whom this hymn is attributed and its precise liturgical context are recorded in the traditional Śākalya Anukramaṇī.
The Rigveda is the oldest of the four Vedas and one of the oldest surviving religious texts in the world, composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE in the Vedic Sanskrit of the Indus-Sarasvatī region. Its hymns were preserved through oral transmission across millennia before being committed to writing. This is a Good Works Translation produced for the Good Works Library from the Sanskrit of the Śākala recension.
1. Whatever your law may be, O god Varuṇa, like mortal folk we break it, day after day.
2. Do not hand us over to the death-dealing weapon of your anger, nor to the wrath of the enraged one.
3. With songs we seek to loosen your mind toward mercy, O Varuṇa, as a charioteer frees a tethered horse.
4. My eager thoughts fly forth in search of blessing, like birds flying toward their nests.
5. When shall we win the favor of Varuṇa, lord glorious in power, the wide-seeing one, for his mercy?
6. That same grace the two loving ones attain together; they do not fail the worshipper who upholds the law.
7. He knows the track of birds flying through the sky; he, lord of the sea, knows the path of ships.
8. He, upholder of the law, knows the twelve months with their progeny; he knows the one that is born besides.
9. He knows the course of the wind, vast, towering, immense; he knows those who dwell on high.
10. Varuṇa, upholder of the law, has taken his seat among the dwellings, the wise one, for his sovereign rule.
11. From there, perceiving all things, he looks upon every wonder — deeds done and deeds yet to be done.
12. May he, the wise Āditya, make good paths for us all our days; may he lengthen our lives.
13. Wearing a golden robe, Varuṇa has clothed himself in his bright garment; his watchers sit stationed all around him.
14. Him no deceivers can deceive, nor the treacherous among men, nor can hostile schemes touch the god.
15. And he who has won for himself unrivaled glory among men, within our very hearts.
16. My thoughts go forth like cattle along their pastures, seeking the wide-seeing one.
17. Let us speak together again, from where my sweet offering has been brought; like a priest you portion out what is dear.
18. Now I have seen the all-visible one, I have seen his chariot upon the earth; let him accept these my songs.
19. Hear this call of mine, O Varuṇa, and be gracious today; seeking your protection, I long for you.
20. You, wise one, rule over all things, of heaven and of earth; listen when I come before you.
21. Release the topmost bond from us, loosen the middle one, and the lowest, so that we may live unafflicted.
Translator's note: verse 15's "udareṣu" (literally "in the bellies") is rendered here as "hearts," meaning the inmost being — the Sanskrit is compressed and the precise sense is uncertain. Verse 6's dual verb forms ("āśāte," "venantā") point to two beings acting together, likely Mitra and Varuṇa, though only Varuṇa is named nearby; rendered literally as "the two loving ones."
Colophon
Rigveda I.25 is drawn from the Śākala recension of the Rigveda, composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE. This is a Good Works Translation rendered verse by verse from the Sanskrit text printed below. Prepared for the Good Work Library by the Tianmu Anglican Church with AI-assisted translation.
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Source Text: ṛgveda I.25
yac cid dhi te viśo yathā pra deva varuṇa vratam |
minīmasi dyavi-dyavi || 1 ||
mā no vadhāya hatnave jihīḻānasya rīradhaḥ |
mā hṛṇānasya manyave || 2 ||
vi mṛḻīkāya te mano rathīr aśvaṁ na saṁditam |
gīrbhir varuṇa sīmahi || 3 ||
parā hi me vimanyavaḥ patanti vasyaïṣṭaye |
vayo na vasatīr upa || 4 ||
kadā kṣatraśriyaṁ naram ā varuṇaṁ karāmahe |
mṛḻīkāyorucakṣasam || 5 ||
tad it samānam āśāte venantā na pra yucchataḥ |
dhṛtavratāya dāśuṣe || 6 ||
vedā yo vīnām padam antarikṣeṇa patatām |
veda nāvaḥ samudriyaḥ || 7 ||
veda māso dhṛtavrato dvādaśa prajāvataḥ |
vedā ya upajāyate || 8 ||
veda vātasya vartanim uror ṛṣvasya bṛhataḥ |
vedā ye adhyāsate || 9 ||
ni ṣasāda dhṛtavrato varuṇaḥ pastyā3sv ā |
sāmrājyāya sukratuḥ || 10 ||
ato viśvāny adbhutā cikitvām̐ abhi paśyati |
kṛtāni yā ca kartvā || 11 ||
sa no viśvāhā sukratur ādityaḥ supathā karat |
pra ṇa āyūṁṣi tāriṣat || 12 ||
bibhrad drāpiṁ hiraṇyayaṁ varuṇo vasta nirṇijam |
pari spaśo ni ṣedire || 13 ||
na yaṁ dipsanti dipsavo na druhvāṇo janānām |
na devam abhimātayaḥ || 14 ||
uta yo mānuṣeṣv ā yaśaś cakre asāmy ā |
asmākam udareṣv ā || 15 ||
parā me yanti dhītayo gāvo na gavyūtīr anu |
icchantīr urucakṣasam || 16 ||
saṁ nu vocāvahai punar yato me madhv ābhṛtam |
hoteva kṣadase priyam || 17 ||
darśaṁ nu viśvadarśataṁ darśaṁ ratham adhi kṣami |
etā juṣata me giraḥ || 18 ||
imam me varuṇa śrudhī havam adyā ca mṛḻaya |
tvām avasyur ā cake || 19 ||
tvaṁ viśvasya medhira divaś ca gmaś ca rājasi |
sa yāmani prati śrudhi || 20 ||
ud uttamam mumugdhi no vi pāśam madhyamaṁ cṛta |
avādhamāni jīvase || 21 ||
Source Colophon
Sanskrit text of the Rigveda, Śākala recension. The standard scholarly edition is the Bombay Oriental (Vishva Bandhu, 5 vols., 1963–66). IAST transliteration available from GRETIL (Göttingen Register of Electronic Texts in Indian Languages) and Vedaweb (University of Cologne). Both sources are open access. IAST transliteration from the Aufrecht edition (1877) via GRETIL (Van Nooten & Holland input, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).