Hymn to the Ṛbhus
Rigveda I.20 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) addressed to the Ṛbhus, the divine craftsmen, mortal sages who won immortality through their skill. 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.
O Ṛbhus, ye divine craftsmen! Ye who fashioned the cosmos with skill and with cunning! Ye who did make the gods' instruments and the world's foundations! Accept our praise and our offering.
In the beginning ye did work together to shape all things. Ye didst fashion the sun and the moon; ye didst carve out the paths of the stars. Ye didst make the mountains stand firm; ye didst cause the rivers to flow. O Ṛbhus, ye are the makers of all that is.
By thy craft thou didst make whole what was broken. By thy cunning thou didst create beauty from formless matter. Thy hands are swift; thy mind is keen. There is no task too great for thee; there is no work beyond thy skill.
O Ṛbhus, ye are the friends of the gods! They did honor you when ye had proven your worth. Ye did climb unto the home of the Immortals through your excellence. Ye did show the way to those who follow in thy path.
To the workman we commend thee, O Ṛbhus; to the builder and to the maker of fine things. Give skill unto their hands; give cunning unto their minds. Let them create with care and with excellence, as thou didst create the world.
Accept our offering, O divine craftsmen! We praise the work of your hands and the thought of your minds. Make us also to be workers of excellence; make us also to create that which is beautiful and true. O Ṛbhus, let thy blessing fall upon all who labor with devotion.
Colophon
Rigveda I.20 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 Ṛbhus, the divine craftsmen, mortal sages who won immortality through their skill. 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.20
ayaṁ devāya janmane stomo viprebhir āsayā |
akāri ratnadhātamaḥ || 1 ||
ya indrāya vacoyujā tatakṣur manasā harī |
śamībhir yajñam āśata || 2 ||
takṣan nāsatyābhyām parijmānaṁ sukhaṁ ratham |
takṣan dhenuṁ sabardughām || 3 ||
yuvānā pitarā punaḥ satyamantrā ṛjūyavaḥ |
ṛbhavo viṣṭy akrata || 4 ||
saṁ vo madāso agmatendreṇa ca marutvatā |
ādityebhiś ca rājabhiḥ || 5 ||
uta tyaṁ camasaṁ navaṁ tvaṣṭur devasya niṣkṛtam |
akarta caturaḥ punaḥ || 6 ||
te no ratnāni dhattana trir ā sāptāni sunvate |
ekam-ekaṁ suśastibhiḥ || 7 ||
adhārayanta vahnayo 'bhajanta sukṛtyayā |
bhāgaṁ deveṣu yajñiyam || 8 ||
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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