Hymn to the herbs
Rigveda I.191 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) addressed to the herbs, the healing plants and counter-magic, in an apotropaic hymn against serpent venom. 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.
Hear now the incantation against poison! Hear the charm that boundeth the venomous creatures! The serpent hath no power. The scorpion hath no power. All venom is made impotent by this word.
The poison is powerless! The poison is powerless! Let this truth penetrate all realms — the earth beneath, the sky above, and all the spaces between. There is no toxin that can harm us. There is no creature whose bite can pierce our flesh. For we are protected by the ancient word, the word that was spoken in the beginning, the word that holdeth all things in their proper place.
O serpent, venom-bearer! Thy fangs shall turn to dust. Thy poison shall become harmless water. Thy malice shall recoil upon thine own head. Thou shalt strike, but thy strike shall bring thee no satisfaction. Thou shalt bite, but thy bite shall wound only thyself. The ancient law binds thee, serpent! Thou canst not transgress it. Thou canst not escape.
And to thee, O scorpion, creature of the darkness! Thy stinger shall become brittle as chaff. Thy venom shall dry up in thy glands. Thou shalt have no power in this place. Thou shalt have no dominion over us. Begone! Return to thy holes and thy hidden places. Bother us no more.
This is the final hymn of the Book. This is the closing charm. With this word, we seal the sacred circle. With this prayer, we declare ourselves protected. Let all who hear understand — the poison is powerless. The venomous are bound. The righteous are safe. The gods themselves have spoken it, and what the gods have spoken cannot be unmade. So it is. So it shall be. So it shall always remain!
Colophon
Rigveda I.191 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 the herbs, the healing plants and counter-magic, in an apotropaic hymn against serpent venom. 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.191
kaṅkato na kaṅkato 'tho satīnakaṅkataḥ |
dvāv iti pluṣī iti ny a1dṛṣṭā alipsata || 1 ||
adṛṣṭān hanty āyaty atho hanti parāyatī |
atho avaghnatī hanty atho pinaṣṭi piṁṣatī || 2 ||
śarāsaḥ kuśarāso darbhāsaḥ sairyā uta |
mauñjā adṛṣṭā vairiṇāḥ sarve sākaṁ ny alipsata || 3 ||
ni gāvo goṣṭhe asadan ni mṛgāso avikṣata |
ni ketavo janānāṁ ny a1dṛṣṭā alipsata || 4 ||
eta u tye praty adṛśran pradoṣaṁ taskarā iva |
adṛṣṭā viśvadṛṣṭāḥ pratibuddhā abhūtana || 5 ||
dyaur vaḥ pitā pṛthivī mātā somo bhrātāditiḥ svasā |
adṛṣṭā viśvadṛṣṭās tiṣṭhatelayatā su kam || 6 ||
ye aṁsyā ye aṅgyāḥ sūcīkā ye prakaṅkatāḥ |
adṛṣṭāḥ kiṁ caneha vaḥ sarve sākaṁ ni jasyata || 7 ||
ut purastāt sūrya eti viśvadṛṣṭo adṛṣṭahā |
adṛṣṭān sarvāñ jambhayan sarvāś ca yātudhānyaḥ || 8 ||
ud apaptad asau sūryaḥ puru viśvāni jūrvan |
ādityaḥ parvatebhyo viśvadṛṣṭo adṛṣṭahā || 9 ||
sūrye viṣam ā sajāmi dṛtiṁ surāvato gṛhe |
so cin nu na marāti no vayam marāmāre asya yojanaṁ hariṣṭhā madhu tvā madhulā cakāra || 10 ||
iyattikā śakuntikā sakā jaghāsa te viṣam |
so cin nu na marāti no vayam marāmāre asya yojanaṁ hariṣṭhā madhu tvā madhulā cakāra || 11 ||
triḥ sapta viṣpuliṅgakā viṣasya puṣyam akṣan |
tāś cin nu na maranti no vayam marāmāre asya yojanaṁ hariṣṭhā madhu tvā madhulā cakāra || 12 ||
navānāṁ navatīnāṁ viṣasya ropuṣīṇām |
sarvāsām agrabhaṁ nāmāre asya yojanaṁ hariṣṭhā madhu tvā madhulā cakāra || 13 ||
triḥ sapta mayūryaḥ sapta svasāro agruvaḥ |
tās te viṣaṁ vi jabhrira udakaṁ kumbhinīr iva || 14 ||
iyattakaḥ kuṣumbhakas takam bhinadmy aśmanā |
tato viṣam pra vāvṛte parācīr anu saṁvataḥ || 15 ||
kuṣumbhakas tad abravīd gireḥ pravartamānakaḥ |
vṛścikasyārasaṁ viṣam arasaṁ vṛścika te viṣam || 16 ||
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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