Hymn to the Viśvedevas
Rigveda VI.49 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 6 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. I praise with newest songs the folk of good vows, and Mitra-Varuṇa who grant us favor. Let them come, let them hear here — the strong-ruling ones: Varuṇa, Mitra, Agni.
2. To be worshipped: the one called upon at every rite in every clan, whose purpose is never arrogant, the go-between of the two young women — the child of Heaven, son of Strength, the ruddy banner of the sacrifice. Him, Agni, we worship.
3. Two daughters of the ruddy one, unlike in form: one is adorned with stars, the other with the sun. Rivaling one another as they move, the two bright, purifying ones reach the famous hymn as it is sung.
4. Toward Vayu goes the lofty hymn — to him of great wealth, all-desirable, filling the chariot. Bright on his path, driving his team, you, the sage, well worshipping, seek to honor the sage.
5. May that form delight me — the shining chariot of the Aśvins, yoked by thought — by which, O Nāsatya heroes, you travel your round to hasten here, both for our children and for ourselves.
6. O Parjanya and Vāta, bulls of the earth, quicken her waters and her stores. O truly-famed sages, by whose songs — you who stand firm for the moving world — set the world in order.
7. The daughter of the thunderer, the maiden of bright life, Sarasvatī, wife of heroes, has turned her mind to us. Together with the divine women, may she grant the singer an unbroken shelter, a refuge hard to break.
8. The guardian of every path, roused by desire through speech, has reached the sacred song. May he grant us shining herds; may Pūṣan bring every prayer to success.
9. The one of the first portion, glorious, giver of vigor, the fair-handed god, skillful-armed and mighty — the priest, shining Agni, shall worship Tvaṣṭṛ, worshipful, easy to call, lord of the dwellings.
10. With these songs magnify Rudra, father of the world, by day, and Rudra by night. Impelled by the sage, let us call apart upon the great one, lofty, ageless, of gentle favor.
11. Come, young sages worthy of worship, O Maruts, to the wish of the one who sings. Even what is unremarkable you quicken as you grow strong — arriving thus, O men, like the Aṅgirases.
12. Forth for the hero, forth for the strong one, the swift god has driven them home like a herdsman his herds. He touches fame in his own body, as with stars he touches the vault of heaven — he, the inspired one of speech.
13. You, Viṣṇu, who measured out the earthly realms, three times, for hard-pressed Manu — granted your shelter, may we rejoice in wealth, in body and in offspring.
14. May Ahi Budhnya grant us that, with waters and with songs; may the Mountain grant that; may Savitṛ grant that favor; may Bhaga and Puraṁdhi, attended by gifts, together with the plants, quicken it forth for wealth.
15. Now grant us wealth fit for chariots, filling the peoples, rich in heroes, guardian of great Order. Grant an ageless dwelling, by which we may overcome the godless rival peoples, and reach the godless clans.
Translator's note: verse 12 is textually difficult (paśurakṣir, pispṛśati, vipaḥ) and its exact sense — apparently praising a swift god's power to gather and to touch fame as stars touch the sky — is rendered conservatively. Verse 3's "two daughters of the ruddy one" and verse 14's list of minor deities (Ahi Budhnya, the Mountain, Bhaga, Puraṁdhi) are kept close to the Sanskrit rather than smoothed into fuller mythological explanation.
Colophon
Rigveda VI.49 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 VI.49
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.
stuṣe janaṁ suvrataṁ navyasībhir gīrbhir mitrāvaruṇā sumnayantā |
ta ā gamantu ta iha śruvantu sukṣatrāso varuṇo mitro agniḥ || 1 ||
viśo-viśa īḍyam adhvareṣv adṛptakratum aratiṁ yuvatyoḥ |
divaḥ śiśuṁ sahasaḥ sūnum agniṁ yajñasya ketum aruṣaṁ yajadhyai || 2 ||
aruṣasya duhitarā virūpe stṛbhir anyā pipiśe sūro anyā |
mithasturā vicarantī pāvake manma śrutaṁ nakṣata ṛcyamāne || 3 ||
pra vāyum acchā bṛhatī manīṣā bṛhadrayiṁ viśvavāraṁ rathaprām |
dyutadyāmā niyutaḥ patyamānaḥ kaviḥ kavim iyakṣasi prayajyo || 4 ||
sa me vapuś chadayad aśvinor yo ratho virukmān manasā yujānaḥ |
yena narā nāsatyeṣayadhyai vartir yāthas tanayāya tmane ca || 5 ||
parjanyavātā vṛṣabhā pṛthivyāḥ purīṣāṇi jinvatam apyāni |
satyaśrutaḥ kavayo yasya gīrbhir jagataḥ sthātar jagad ā kṛṇudhvam || 6 ||
pāvīravī kanyā citrāyuḥ sarasvatī vīrapatnī dhiyaṁ dhāt |
gnābhir acchidraṁ śaraṇaṁ sajoṣā durādharṣaṁ gṛṇate śarma yaṁsat || 7 ||
pathas-pathaḥ paripatiṁ vacasyā kāmena kṛto abhy ānaḻ arkam |
sa no rāsac churudhaś candrāgrā dhiyaṁ-dhiyaṁ sīṣadhāti pra pūṣā || 8 ||
prathamabhājaṁ yaśasaṁ vayodhāṁ supāṇiṁ devaṁ sugabhastim ṛbhvam |
hotā yakṣad yajatam pastyānām agnis tvaṣṭāraṁ suhavaṁ vibhāvā || 9 ||
bhuvanasya pitaraṁ gīrbhir ābhī rudraṁ divā vardhayā rudram aktau |
bṛhantam ṛṣvam ajaraṁ suṣumnam ṛdhag ghuvema kavineṣitāsaḥ || 10 ||
ā yuvānaḥ kavayo yajñiyāso maruto ganta gṛṇato varasyām |
acitraṁ cid dhi jinvathā vṛdhanta itthā nakṣanto naro aṅgirasvat || 11 ||
pra vīrāya pra tavase turāyājā yūtheva paśurakṣir astam |
sa pispṛśati tanvi śrutasya stṛbhir na nākaṁ vacanasya vipaḥ || 12 ||
yo rajāṁsi vimame pārthivāni triś cid viṣṇur manave bādhitāya |
tasya te śarmann upadadyamāne rāyā madema tanvā3 tanā ca || 13 ||
tan no 'hir budhnyo adbhir arkais tat parvatas tat savitā cano dhāt |
tad oṣadhībhir abhi rātiṣāco bhagaḥ puraṁdhir jinvatu pra rāye || 14 ||
nu no rayiṁ rathyaṁ carṣaṇiprām puruvīram maha ṛtasya gopām |
kṣayaṁ dātājaraṁ yena janān spṛdho adevīr abhi ca kramāma viśa ādevīr abhy a1śnavāma || 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).