Hymn to the Viśvedevas
Rigveda IV.55 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 4 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. Who is your protector, O Vasus? Who is your defender? O Heaven and Earth, O Aditi, protect us. O Varuna and Mitra, guard us from one mightier than a mortal. Which of you gods grants freedom at the sacrifice?
2. They who sing forth the ancient domains, when the wise ones — who set things apart — shine forth: the ordainers have arrayed their unfailing gifts; the truth-minded wonder-workers have shone bright.
3. With songs I praise, for friendship, the goddess Aditi, the homestead, the river, and well-being — so that both watches guard us: may Dawn and Night, the two unfailing ones, bring this about.
4. Aryaman and Varuna have discerned the path; Agni, lord of nourishment, has discerned the fair way. Indra and Vishnu, well praised like heroes — grant us shelter, a mighty protection.
5. I have chosen the favors of Parvata, of the Maruts, of the divine protector, of Bhaga. May the lord protect us from distress born of kin, and may Mitra also save us from harm coming even from a friend.
6. Now let the two world-halves, Heaven and Earth, be praised together with Ahi Budhnya, with watery offerings; like those seeking gain streaming toward the confluence of the sea, the rivers, roaring with heat, have opened their course.
7. May the goddess Aditi, together with the gods, protect us; may the divine protector guard us without fail. For we should not deserve to violate the ordinance of Mitra and Varuna, nor the height of Agni.
8. Agni rules over riches; Agni rules over great good fortune. May he grant these to us.
9. O bounteous Dawn, bring us many desirable things, O gracious one, O you rich in vigor — bring them for us.
10. May Savitar, Bhaga, Varuna, Mitra, and Aryaman grant us this favor well; may Indra come to us with generous gifts.
Translator's note: verse 5's phrase "mitriyād uta na uruṣyet" (rendered here "may Mitra also save us from harm coming even from a friend") is syntactically compressed and its precise sense — harm arising from an ally rather than an enemy — is uncertain; the rendering is conservative. Verse 6's "gharmasvarasaḥ" ("roaring with heat") likewise admits more than one reading of how the rivers' heat and sound relate; the literal sense of the compound is kept rather than a smoothed paraphrase.
Colophon
Rigveda IV.55 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 IV.55
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.
ko vas trātā vasavaḥ ko varūtā dyāvābhūmī adite trāsīthāṁ naḥ |
sahīyaso varuṇa mitra martāt ko vo 'dhvare varivo dhāti devāḥ || 1 ||
pra ye dhāmāni pūrvyāṇy arcān vi yad ucchān viyotāro amūrāḥ |
vidhātāro vi te dadhur ajasrā ṛtadhītayo rurucanta dasmāḥ || 2 ||
pra pastyā3m aditiṁ sindhum arkaiḥ svastim īḻe sakhyāya devīm |
ubhe yathā no ahanī nipāta uṣāsānaktā karatām adabdhe || 3 ||
vy aryamā varuṇaś ceti panthām iṣas patiḥ suvitaṁ gātum agniḥ |
indrāviṣṇū nṛvad u ṣu stavānā śarma no yantam amavad varūtham || 4 ||
ā parvatasya marutām avāṁsi devasya trātur avri bhagasya |
pāt patir janyād aṁhaso no mitro mitriyād uta na uruṣyet || 5 ||
nū rodasī ahinā budhnyena stuvīta devī apyebhir iṣṭaiḥ |
samudraṁ na saṁcaraṇe saniṣyavo gharmasvaraso nadyo3 apa vran || 6 ||
devair no devy aditir ni pātu devas trātā trāyatām aprayucchan |
nahi mitrasya varuṇasya dhāsim arhāmasi pramiyaṁ sānv agneḥ || 7 ||
agnir īśe vasavyasyāgnir mahaḥ saubhagasya |
tāny asmabhyaṁ rāsate || 8 ||
uṣo maghony ā vaha sūnṛte vāryā puru |
asmabhyaṁ vājinīvati || 9 ||
tat su naḥ savitā bhago varuṇo mitro aryamā |
indro no rādhasā gamat || 10 ||
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).