Hymn to Soma Pavamana
Rigveda IX.90 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 9 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. Impelled forward, the begetter of the two world-halves has gone forth like a chariot racing to win the prize. Going toward Indra, sharpening his weapons, he takes all wealth into his two hands.
2. The voices of our praise-songs cry out toward the triple-backed bull, the life-bestower. Clothed in the wood as Varuṇa is clothed in the rivers, the treasure-giver hands out desirable gifts.
3. With a troop of heroes, all-heroic, mighty, a conqueror — flow clear, winner of riches. Sharp-weaponed, swift-bowed, unconquered in the clashes, overcoming enemies in the battle-hosts.
4. Making wide pastures, creating places free of fear, flow onward toward the two united bounties. Seeking to win the waters, the dawns, the sunlight, the cattle, together you have thundered out great prizes for us.
5. Gladden Varuṇa, O Soma; gladden Mitra. Gladden Indra, O purifying drop, gladden Viṣṇu. Gladden the troop of Maruts, gladden the gods; gladden great Indra, O drop, for his delight.
6. So, like a resolute king, striking down every danger with force, flow clear. O drop, grant vigor to our well-spoken hymn. Protect us always, all of you, with blessings.
Translator's note: "the two united bounties" (samīcīne puraṁdhī, verse 4) most likely refers to Heaven and Earth as a joined pair of abundance; "clothed in the wood" (vanā vasānaḥ, verse 2) likely refers to the wooden pressing-vessels holding the Soma juice as it is filtered.
Colophon
Rigveda IX.90 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 IX.90
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.
pra hinvāno janitā rodasyo ratho na vājaṁ saniṣyann ayāsīt |
indraṁ gacchann āyudhā saṁśiśāno viśvā vasu hastayor ādadhānaḥ || 1 ||
abhi tripṛṣṭhaṁ vṛṣaṇaṁ vayodhām āṅgūṣāṇām avāvaśanta vāṇīḥ |
vanā vasāno varuṇo na sindhūn vi ratnadhā dayate vāryāṇi || 2 ||
śūragrāmaḥ sarvavīraḥ sahāvāñ jetā pavasva sanitā dhanāni |
tigmāyudhaḥ kṣipradhanvā samatsv aṣāḻhaḥ sāhvān pṛtanāsu śatrūn || 3 ||
urugavyūtir abhayāni kṛṇvan samīcīne ā pavasvā puraṁdhī |
apaḥ siṣāsann uṣasaḥ sva1r gāḥ saṁ cikrado maho asmabhyaṁ vājān || 4 ||
matsi soma varuṇam matsi mitram matsīndram indo pavamāna viṣṇum |
matsi śardho mārutam matsi devān matsi mahām indram indo madāya || 5 ||
evā rājeva kratumām̐ amena viśvā ghanighnad duritā pavasva |
indo sūktāya vacase vayo dhā 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).