Hymn to Rudra
Rigveda II.33 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 2 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. Father of the Maruts, may your favor come to us; do not cut us off from the sight of the sun. May our hero show forbearance toward our steed; may we, O Rudra, increase through our offspring.
2. With your most healing remedies, given by you, O Rudra, may I reach a hundred winters. Drive hatred far from us, and distress; drive away sicknesses in every direction.
3. O Rudra, you are the best in glory of all that is born, mightiest of the mighty, bolt-armed one. Carry us safely across distress; keep every onset of harm away from us.
4. May we not anger you, O Rudra, with our homage, nor with poor praise, O bull, nor by invoking you together with others. Raise up our men with your remedies — I hear that you are the best healer among healers.
5. He who calls Rudra with invocations and oblations — may I too draw Rudra near with hymns of praise. Gentle of heart, easy to call upon, may the tawny, fair-jawed one not deliver us over to malice.
6. The bull accompanied by the Maruts has gladdened me, distressed as I was, with fresh strength. As one scorched by heat seeks shade, may I reach him unharmed; may I win the favor of Rudra.
7. Where is that gracious hand of yours, O Rudra, the healing, soothing hand that carries away divine affliction? Now, O bull, show me your mercy.
8. To the tawny bull, the bright one, I send forth a great hymn of praise to the great god. With homage I worship the many-colored one; we proclaim the shining name of Rudra.
9. With firm limbs, many-formed and fierce, the tawny one is adorned with bright gold. From this Rudra, ruler of the abundant world, his lordly power will never depart.
10. Worthily you bear your arrows and bow; worthily you wear your sacred, many-hued ornament; worthily you govern this whole vast world — nothing is mightier than you, O Rudra.
11. Praise the renowned one, throne-seated, youthful, fierce as a wild beast, a smiter, terrible. Being praised, O Rudra, be gracious to your singer; let your hosts strike down another, not us.
12. As a boy bows to his father who draws near, so [the worshipper] bows to Rudra as he approaches. I praise you, giver of abundance, true lord — praised, you grant us your remedies.
13. Those pure remedies of yours, O Maruts, most healing, O bulls, that bring joy — those which Manu, our father, chose — I desire that health and welfare from Rudra.
14. May Rudra's weapon pass us by; may the great displeasure of the fierce one pass us by. Relax your firm bow for your worshippers; O bounteous one, be gracious to our children and descendants.
15. Thus, O tawny bull, wise one — so that, O god, you not be angered and slay us — hear our call, O Rudra, be attentive here; may we, blessed with strong sons, speak boldly in the assembly.
Translator's note: verse 5's ṛdūdaraḥ ("tender-/gentle-bellied," rendered here "gentle of heart") and suśipraḥ ("fair-jawed" or "fair-helmeted") are epithets of uncertain precise sense, translated conservatively by their most literal components. Verse 9's asuryam ("lordly/divine power") and verse 10's abhvam ("vast," possibly also "monstrous, formless") are likewise rendered by their most defensible core meaning rather than any single fixed English equivalent.
Colophon
Rigveda II.33 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 II.33
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.
ā te pitar marutāṁ sumnam etu mā naḥ sūryasya saṁdṛśo yuyothāḥ |
abhi no vīro arvati kṣameta pra jāyemahi rudra prajābhiḥ || 1 ||
tvādattebhī rudra śaṁtamebhiḥ śataṁ himā aśīya bheṣajebhiḥ |
vy a1smad dveṣo vitaraṁ vy aṁho vy amīvāś cātayasvā viṣūcīḥ || 2 ||
śreṣṭho jātasya rudra śriyāsi tavastamas tavasāṁ vajrabāho |
parṣi ṇaḥ pāram aṁhasaḥ svasti viśvā abhītī rapaso yuyodhi || 3 ||
mā tvā rudra cukrudhāmā namobhir mā duṣṭutī vṛṣabha mā sahūtī |
un no vīrām̐ arpaya bheṣajebhir bhiṣaktamaṁ tvā bhiṣajāṁ śṛṇomi || 4 ||
havīmabhir havate yo havirbhir ava stomebhī rudraṁ diṣīya |
ṛdūdaraḥ suhavo mā no asyai babhruḥ suśipro rīradhan manāyai || 5 ||
un mā mamanda vṛṣabho marutvān tvakṣīyasā vayasā nādhamānam |
ghṛṇīva cchāyām arapā aśīyā vivāseyaṁ rudrasya sumnam || 6 ||
kva1 sya te rudra mṛḻayākur hasto yo asti bheṣajo jalāṣaḥ |
apabhartā rapaso daivyasyābhī nu mā vṛṣabha cakṣamīthāḥ || 7 ||
pra babhrave vṛṣabhāya śvitīce maho mahīṁ suṣṭutim īrayāmi |
namasyā kalmalīkinaṁ namobhir gṛṇīmasi tveṣaṁ rudrasya nāma || 8 ||
sthirebhir aṅgaiḥ pururūpa ugro babhruḥ śukrebhiḥ pipiśe hiraṇyaiḥ |
īśānād asya bhuvanasya bhūrer na vā u yoṣad rudrād asuryam || 9 ||
arhan bibharṣi sāyakāni dhanvārhan niṣkaṁ yajataṁ viśvarūpam |
arhann idaṁ dayase viśvam abhvaṁ na vā ojīyo rudra tvad asti || 10 ||
stuhi śrutaṁ gartasadaṁ yuvānam mṛgaṁ na bhīmam upahatnum ugram |
mṛḻā jaritre rudra stavāno 'nyaṁ te asman ni vapantu senāḥ || 11 ||
kumāraś cit pitaraṁ vandamānam prati nānāma rudropayantam |
bhūrer dātāraṁ satpatiṁ gṛṇīṣe stutas tvam bheṣajā rāsy asme || 12 ||
yā vo bheṣajā marutaḥ śucīni yā śaṁtamā vṛṣaṇo yā mayobhu |
yāni manur avṛṇītā pitā nas tā śaṁ ca yoś ca rudrasya vaśmi || 13 ||
pari ṇo hetī rudrasya vṛjyāḥ pari tveṣasya durmatir mahī gāt |
ava sthirā maghavadbhyas tanuṣva mīḍhvas tokāya tanayāya mṛḻa || 14 ||
evā babhro vṛṣabha cekitāna yathā deva na hṛṇīṣe na haṁsi |
havanaśrun no rudreha bodhi bṛhad vadema vidathe suvīrāḥ || 15 ||
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).