Hymn to Sūrya
Rigveda VII.63 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 7 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. Up rises the fortunate one, all-seeing, Sūrya, shared by all people alike — the god who is the eye of Mitra and Varuṇa, who has wrapped up the darkness as if it were a hide.
2. Up rises the impeller of the peoples, the great banner, the flood of Sūrya, wishing to turn the same wheel that Etaśa draws, yoked at the pole.
3. Shining out from the lap of the dawns, he rises, cheered on by the singers. This god Savitṛ has pleased me — he who does not diminish his constant course.
4. The bright ornament of heaven, wide-seeing, rises, reaching far, swift, shining. Now people, set moving by Sūrya, go out to their tasks and do their work.
5. Where the immortals have made a path for him, he follows the course, flying like a falcon. At your rising, Sun, let us pay homage to you both, Mitra and Varuṇa, with bowed heads and with offerings.
6. Now may Mitra, Varuṇa, and Aryaman grant us, and our children, freedom to move. May all our paths be easy, good roads. Protect us always with your blessings.
Translator's note: verse 5 addresses both Sūrya and the pair Mitra-Varuṇa in a single breath, following the Sanskrit's own shift of address; verse 6 closes with the formulaic Āditya blessing ("yūyam pāta svastibhiḥ sadā naḥ") that recurs across many Rigvedic hymns.
Colophon
Rigveda VII.63 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 VII.63
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.
ud v eti subhago viśvacakṣāḥ sādhāraṇaḥ sūryo mānuṣāṇām |
cakṣur mitrasya varuṇasya devaś carmeva yaḥ samavivyak tamāṁsi || 1 ||
ud v eti prasavītā janānām mahān ketur arṇavaḥ sūryasya |
samānaṁ cakram paryāvivṛtsan yad etaśo vahati dhūrṣu yuktaḥ || 2 ||
vibhrājamāna uṣasām upasthād rebhair ud ety anumadyamānaḥ |
eṣa me devaḥ savitā cacchanda yaḥ samānaṁ na pramināti dhāma || 3 ||
divo rukma urucakṣā ud eti dūrearthas taraṇir bhrājamānaḥ |
nūnaṁ janāḥ sūryeṇa prasūtā ayann arthāni kṛṇavann apāṁsi || 4 ||
yatrā cakrur amṛtā gātum asmai śyeno na dīyann anv eti pāthaḥ |
prati vāṁ sūra udite vidhema namobhir mitrāvaruṇota havyaiḥ || 5 ||
nū mitro varuṇo aryamā nas tmane tokāya varivo dadhantu |
sugā no viśvā supathāni santu yūyam pāta svastibhiḥ sadā naḥ || 6 ||
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).