Hymn to the Rivers (Nadīstuti)
Rigveda X.75 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 10 of the Rigveda, one of the 1,028 hymns organized within the ten books of the oldest Veda. The Rigveda was composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE in Vedic Sanskrit and preserved through oral transmission across millennia.
This is a Good Works Translation produced for the Good Works Library from the Sanskrit of the Śākala recension.
1. Let the poet truly proclaim your highest greatness, O Waters, at the seat of Vivasvant — seven-and-seven have marched forth in threefold course; Sindhu surpasses the flowing rivers in might.
2. Varuṇa carved out the paths for you to travel, Sindhu, when you ran toward the prizes; you go along the sloping ridge of the earth, ruling as the foremost of these moving streams.
3. Your roar reaches to heaven, above the earth; you raise up an endless fury with your brightness; rains thunder forth as if from a cloud, when Sindhu goes bellowing like a bull.
4. The rivers rush to you, Sindhu, lowing like mothers to a child, like milk-cows with their milk; you lead them as a warring king leads his ranks, when you press to the front of these downward-flowing streams.
5. O Gaṅgā, Yamunā, Sarasvatī, Śutudrī — join in this my song of praise; O Paruṣṇī, together with Asiknī, Marudvṛdhā, and Vitastā; O Ārjīkīyā, hear it, together with Suṣomā.
6. First together with Tṛṣṭāmā you go forth to travel, with Susartu, with Rasā, and with that Śvetyā; you, Sindhu, with Kubhā, to Gomatī and Krumu, with Mehatnu — with all these you travel borne on a single chariot.
7. Straight-coursing, dark and shining, in her greatness she carries around her the wide expanses and the dusty regions; Sindhu is unbeguiled, most active among the active, like a splendid mare, lovely to behold in her form.
8. Sindhu has good horses, good chariots, good garments; she is golden, well-formed, rich in prize-winning mares; she is rich in fleece, a young woman, rich in sīlamā, and the fortunate one puts on that which increases sweetness.
9. Sindhu has yoked her smooth-running, horse-drawn chariot; with it she shall win the prize in this contest; great indeed is her greatness that wins praise — hers, the unbeguiled one's, self-glorious and abundant.
Translator's note: "sīlamā" (verse 8) is an obscure term of uncertain meaning, likely referring to some kind of textile or ornament; it is left untranslated. "sicau" (verse 4), literally "the two edges/borders," is rendered "ranks" for readability while preserving the martial image.
Colophon
Rigveda X.75 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 X.75
Sanskrit source text from the Aufrecht edition (1877) via GRETIL (Van Nooten & Holland input). Presented here for reference, study, and verification alongside the English translation above.
pra su va āpo mahimānam uttamaṁ kārur vocāti sadane vivasvataḥ |
pra sapta-sapta tredhā hi cakramuḥ pra sṛtvarīṇām ati sindhur ojasā || 1 ||
pra te 'radad varuṇo yātave pathaḥ sindho yad vājām̐ abhy adravas tvam |
bhūmyā adhi pravatā yāsi sānunā yad eṣām agraṁ jagatām irajyasi || 2 ||
divi svano yatate bhūmyopary anantaṁ śuṣmam ud iyarti bhānunā |
abhrād iva pra stanayanti vṛṣṭayaḥ sindhur yad eti vṛṣabho na roruvat || 3 ||
abhi tvā sindho śiśum in na mātaro vāśrā arṣanti payaseva dhenavaḥ |
rājeva yudhvā nayasi tvam it sicau yad āsām agram pravatām inakṣasi || 4 ||
imam me gaṅge yamune sarasvati śutudri stomaṁ sacatā paruṣṇy ā |
asiknyā marudvṛdhe vitastayārjīkīye śṛṇuhy ā suṣomayā || 5 ||
tṛṣṭāmayā prathamaṁ yātave sajūḥ susartvā rasayā śvetyā tyā |
tvaṁ sindho kubhayā gomatīṁ krumum mehatnvā sarathaṁ yābhir īyase || 6 ||
ṛjīty enī ruśatī mahitvā pari jrayāṁsi bharate rajāṁsi |
adabdhā sindhur apasām apastamāśvā na citrā vapuṣīva darśatā || 7 ||
svaśvā sindhuḥ surathā suvāsā hiraṇyayī sukṛtā vājinīvatī |
ūrṇāvatī yuvatiḥ sīlamāvaty utādhi vaste subhagā madhuvṛdham || 8 ||
sukhaṁ rathaṁ yuyuje sindhur aśvinaṁ tena vājaṁ saniṣad asminn ājau |
mahān hy asya mahimā panasyate 'dabdhasya svayaśaso virapśinaḥ || 9 ||
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).