Hymn to Pūṣan
Rigveda I.138 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) addressed to Pūṣan, the pastoral god, guardian of paths and herds, escort of the dead. It is one of the 1,028 hymns of the Rigveda organized within Maṇḍala 1, the first of ten books. The ṛṣi (seer) to whom this hymn is attributed and its precise liturgical context are recorded in the traditional Śākalya Anukramaṇī.
The Rigveda is the oldest of the four Vedas and one of the oldest surviving religious texts in the world, composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE in the Vedic Sanskrit of the Indus-Sarasvatī region. Its hymns were preserved through oral transmission across millennia before being committed to writing. This is a Good Works Translation produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church from the Sanskrit of the Śākala recension.
Pūṣan, O guide of all paths! Thou art the god who dost accompany all travelers. Whether a man doth journey by foot across the mountains or by chariot along the roads, thou art with him. Thy hand doth steady him when he stumbleth. Thy eyes doth guide him when he loseth his way.
O golden-haired one, thy teeth are made of gold, and thy chariot is drawn by goats that are swift and sure-footed! Thou dost ride ahead of every journey, clearing the path and removing obstacles. The wild animals do flee at thy approach. The bandits and the robbers do scatter. The demons that would harm the traveler do flee to their dark hiding places.
Pūṣan, thou art also the protector of herds and flocks! The shepherd doth look to thee to guard his sheep and his goats from predators. The cowherd doth invoke thy name, asking that thou might'st protect his cattle from the wolves and the lions. Thou art the guardian of all that is tame and domesticated.
Yet thou art also kind and generous! The poor man who hath no wealth to offer thee doth still receive thy protection. The widow and the orphan doth find succor in thy care. Thou art the friend of all who are weak and defenseless. Thou speaketh no unkind words. Thou dost accept all who call upon thee.
O Pūṣan, guide us upon our journeys! Stand beside us when we travel! Protect us from all dangers and all evils! Let thy wisdom illuminate our path! Grant us safe passage through all lands! And when we return home, let us come back enriched and blessed by thy companionship!
Colophon
Rigveda I.138 is drawn from the Śākala recension of the Rigveda, the version that has been transmitted and is considered canonical in the mainstream tradition. The Rigveda was composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE; this hymn addresses Pūṣan, the pastoral god, guardian of paths and herds, escort of the dead. This is a Good Works Translation produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, translated independently from the Sanskrit. Reference translations consulted during original translation session to be documented during Kshatriya Blood Rule audit.
Compiled and formatted for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.
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Source Text: ṛgveda I.138
arcāmi sumnayann aham antyūtim mayobhuvam |
viśvasya yo mana āyuyuve makho deva āyuyuve makhaḥ || 1 ||
huve yat tvā mayobhuvaṁ devaṁ sakhyāya martyaḥ |
asmākam āṅgūṣān dyumninas kṛdhi vājeṣu dyumninas kṛdhi || 2 ||
tām anu tvā navīyasīṁ niyutaṁ rāya īmahe |
aheḻamāna uruśaṁsa sarī bhava vāje-vāje sarī bhava || 3 ||
o ṣu tvā vavṛtīmahi stomebhir dasma sādhubhiḥ |
nahi tvā pūṣann atimanya āghṛṇe na te sakhyam apahnuve || 4 ||
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).
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