Hymn to the Maruts
Rigveda VIII.20 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 8 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. Come, do not hold back; ready to set out, do not stand apart, you of one mind — you who bend even what is firm.
2. With firm wheel-rims, O Maruts, mighty, sons of Rudra, with bright radiance — come to us today with refreshment, you who are desired by many, to the sacrifice, favoring Sobhari.
3. For we know the fierce power of the sons of Rudra, of the mighty, powerful Maruts, the bounteous ones, companions of swift Vishnu.
4. The river-islands fly apart, disaster stands still, the two world-halves are yoked together; the deserts are stirred, O you of bright rings, when you quake, self-luminous ones.
5. Even the unshaken things resound at your onrush — the mountains, the lord of the forest; the earth trembles at your goings.
6. For your onset in might, O Maruts, the vast heaven withdraws higher, where you, strong-armed men, display your powers upon your bodies.
7. According to their own nature, the mighty men bear their great splendor — brilliant, powerful, bull-formed, of unbending shape.
8. With milk the song of the Sobharis is anointed, in the golden chariot-vessel; well-born, kin to the cattle, mighty ones — favor us now for refreshment and enjoyment.
9. Bring oblations to you, strong-adorned ones, to the manly troop of the Maruts, to the one who drives mightily forward.
10. With your mighty-horsed, bull-bodied chariot, with its strong-naved wheel, O Maruts — like winged falcons, freely, come, you men, to partake of our offerings.
11. Alike is their adornment; golden ornaments gleam upon their arms; their spears flash.
12. They, fierce, manly, fierce-armed — none has ever bound their bodies; firm bows are their weapons; on your chariots, on your fronts, rest splendors.
13. Whose fame is wide as a flood, whose name is brilliant — one name alone, for the enjoyment of all — like inherited strength, their paternal might.
14. Praise them, extol them — for theirs is the roaring; not slight is their giving, by their own greatness, that is theirs.
15. Fortunate was he who had your help in former dawns, O Maruts — or who has it now, or will have it in time to come.
16. Whoever's oblations you, vigorous men, come to enjoy for their savor — he shall attain your favor, with splendor and with the winning of strength, O shakers.
17. As the sons of Rudra hold sway over heaven, of the mighty ordaining lord — young as they are — so indeed shall it be.
18. And you Maruts who are worthy, bounteous, who indeed go about as showerers — from there come to us with a kinder heart; grow strong for us, O youths.
19. O Sobhari, with your newest hymn, sing out to the mighty, purifying youths — sing loudly, as one driving cattle.
20. Praise with a hymn, indeed, the Maruts — who are victorious, to be called upon like a boxer in all battles among the invokers — the mighty, shining, most glorious ones.
21. Even like cows of one accord, through their kinship the Maruts, brothers to one another, nuzzle the heights together.
22. Even a mortal, O dancers, golden-breasted ones, draws near to your brotherhood; come down to us, O Maruts, for your friendship is ever steadfast.
23. O Maruts, bring us the healing remedy that is yours, bounteous ones; you are our friends, our comrades.
24. With those aids by which you protect the Sindhu, by which you prevail, by which you show favor to the Krivi people — be a joy to us with your aids, O bringers of joy, with kindly aids untouched by enmity.
25. Whatever remedy is in the Sindhu, whatever in the Asiknī, whatever in the seas, O Maruts worthy of the sacred grass, whatever remedy is in the mountains —
26. seeing all things, you bear it upon your bodies; with that, grant it to us. Forgive, O Maruts, the affliction of the sick; restore for us again what has gone wrong.
Translator's note: verses 14 and 21 contain compressed, elliptical Sanskrit (dhunīnām, arāṇāṁ na caramaḥ in v.14; the "cows licking the heights" image in v.21) whose exact sense is debated; the renderings above follow the words conservatively rather than resolving the ambiguity by conjecture.
Colophon
Rigveda VIII.20 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 VIII.20
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 gantā mā riṣaṇyata prasthāvāno māpa sthātā samanyavaḥ |
sthirā cin namayiṣṇavaḥ || 1 ||
vīḻupavibhir maruta ṛbhukṣaṇa ā rudrāsaḥ sudītibhiḥ |
iṣā no adyā gatā puruspṛho yajñam ā sobharīyavaḥ || 2 ||
vidmā hi rudriyāṇāṁ śuṣmam ugram marutāṁ śimīvatām |
viṣṇor eṣasya mīḻhuṣām || 3 ||
vi dvīpāni pāpatan tiṣṭhad ducchunobhe yujanta rodasī |
pra dhanvāny airata śubhrakhādayo yad ejatha svabhānavaḥ || 4 ||
acyutā cid vo ajmann ā nānadati parvatāso vanaspatiḥ |
bhūmir yāmeṣu rejate || 5 ||
amāya vo maruto yātave dyaur jihīta uttarā bṛhat |
yatrā naro dediśate tanūṣv ā tvakṣāṁsi bāhvojasaḥ || 6 ||
svadhām anu śriyaṁ naro mahi tveṣā amavanto vṛṣapsavaḥ |
vahante ahrutapsavaḥ || 7 ||
gobhir vāṇo ajyate sobharīṇāṁ rathe kośe hiraṇyaye |
gobandhavaḥ sujātāsa iṣe bhuje mahānto naḥ sparase nu || 8 ||
prati vo vṛṣadañjayo vṛṣṇe śardhāya mārutāya bharadhvam |
havyā vṛṣaprayāvṇe || 9 ||
vṛṣaṇaśvena maruto vṛṣapsunā rathena vṛṣanābhinā |
ā śyenāso na pakṣiṇo vṛthā naro havyā no vītaye gata || 10 ||
samānam añjy eṣāṁ vi bhrājante rukmāso adhi bāhuṣu |
davidyutaty ṛṣṭayaḥ || 11 ||
ta ugrāso vṛṣaṇa ugrabāhavo nakiṣ ṭanūṣu yetire |
sthirā dhanvāny āyudhā ratheṣu vo 'nīkeṣv adhi śriyaḥ || 12 ||
yeṣām arṇo na sapratho nāma tveṣaṁ śaśvatām ekam id bhuje |
vayo na pitryaṁ sahaḥ || 13 ||
tān vandasva marutas tām̐ upa stuhi teṣāṁ hi dhunīnām |
arāṇāṁ na caramas tad eṣāṁ dānā mahnā tad eṣām || 14 ||
subhagaḥ sa va ūtiṣv āsa pūrvāsu maruto vyuṣṭiṣu |
yo vā nūnam utāsati || 15 ||
yasya vā yūyam prati vājino nara ā havyā vītaye gatha |
abhi ṣa dyumnair uta vājasātibhiḥ sumnā vo dhūtayo naśat || 16 ||
yathā rudrasya sūnavo divo vaśanty asurasya vedhasaḥ |
yuvānas tathed asat || 17 ||
ye cārhanti marutaḥ sudānavaḥ sman mīḻhuṣaś caranti ye |
ataś cid ā na upa vasyasā hṛdā yuvāna ā vavṛdhvam || 18 ||
yūna ū ṣu naviṣṭhayā vṛṣṇaḥ pāvakām̐ abhi sobhare girā |
gāya gā iva carkṛṣat || 19 ||
sāhā ye santi muṣṭiheva havyo viśvāsu pṛtsu hotṛṣu |
vṛṣṇaś candrān na suśravastamān girā vandasva maruto aha || 20 ||
gāvaś cid ghā samanyavaḥ sajātyena marutaḥ sabandhavaḥ |
rihate kakubho mithaḥ || 21 ||
martaś cid vo nṛtavo rukmavakṣasa upa bhrātṛtvam āyati |
adhi no gāta marutaḥ sadā hi va āpitvam asti nidhruvi || 22 ||
maruto mārutasya na ā bheṣajasya vahatā sudānavaḥ |
yūyaṁ sakhāyaḥ saptayaḥ || 23 ||
yābhiḥ sindhum avatha yābhis tūrvatha yābhir daśasyathā krivim |
mayo no bhūtotibhir mayobhuvaḥ śivābhir asacadviṣaḥ || 24 ||
yat sindhau yad asiknyāṁ yat samudreṣu marutaḥ subarhiṣaḥ |
yat parvateṣu bheṣajam || 25 ||
viśvam paśyanto bibhṛthā tanūṣv ā tenā no adhi vocata |
kṣamā rapo maruta āturasya na iṣkartā vihrutam punaḥ || 26 ||
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).