Hymn to Soma
Rigveda II.18 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 2 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 by the New Tianmu Anglican Church from the Sanskrit of the Śākala recension.
Unto thee we stretch forth our hands, O mighty Indra. Unto thee we raise our voices in supplication. We have pressed the Soma for thee; we have kindled the sacred fire. The offerings rise like incense to heaven. Hear us, we beseech thee!
We petition thee for aid in our time of need. Our cattle are few; our harvests fail us. Our enemies gather at our borders, threatening to sweep away all that we have built. We are weak, O lord, and we turn to thee for strength.
Grant us bounty, O golden-armed one! Fill our storehouses with grain. Let our herds multiply beyond counting. Let the rains come in their season, gentle and life-giving. Let the sun shine upon our fields, warming the earth and ripening the crops. Give us prosperity, we pray thee.
But more than wealth, we crave thy protection. Stand between us and those who wish us harm. Let thy terrible might be known to our foes. Let them tremble at the sound of thy name. Shatter their confidence as thou hast shattered the demons of old.
We offer thee the choicest parts of our sacrifice. The fat of the bull is laid upon the flame. The milk is poured into the vessels. The Soma is pressed fresh and sweet. All is done in reverence, all in hope that thou wilt look upon us with favour.
Hear our petition, O lord of strength and plenty! We do not ask for more than is meet. We ask only for sustenance, for safety, for thy blessing upon our houses. Accept our offering. Grant us aid. Let thy bounty flow upon us like the waters of the mountain springs.
Colophon
This hymn is drawn from the Śākala recension of the Rigveda, composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE. This is a Good Works Translation produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, translated independently from the Sanskrit. Reference translations consulted during original translation are to be documented during audit.
Compiled and formatted for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.
🌲
Source Text: ṛgveda II.18
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.
prātā ratho navo yoji sasniś caturyugas trikaśaḥ saptaraśmiḥ |
daśāritro manuṣyaḥ svarṣāḥ sa iṣṭibhir matibhī raṁhyo bhūt || 1 ||
sāsmā aram prathamaṁ sa dvitīyam uto tṛtīyam manuṣaḥ sa hotā |
anyasyā garbham anya ū jananta so anyebhiḥ sacate jenyo vṛṣā || 2 ||
harī nu kaṁ ratha indrasya yojam āyai sūktena vacasā navena |
mo ṣu tvām atra bahavo hi viprā ni rīraman yajamānāso anye || 3 ||
ā dvābhyāṁ haribhyām indra yāhy ā caturbhir ā ṣaḍbhir hūyamānaḥ |
āṣṭābhir daśabhiḥ somapeyam ayaṁ sutaḥ sumakha mā mṛdhas kaḥ || 4 ||
ā viṁśatyā triṁśatā yāhy arvāṅ ā catvāriṁśatā haribhir yujānaḥ |
ā pañcāśatā surathebhir indrā ṣaṣṭyā saptatyā somapeyam || 5 ||
āśītyā navatyā yāhy arvāṅ ā śatena haribhir uhyamānaḥ |
ayaṁ hi te śunahotreṣu soma indra tvāyā pariṣikto madāya || 6 ||
mama brahmendra yāhy acchā viśvā harī dhuri dhiṣvā rathasya |
purutrā hi vihavyo babhūthāsmiñ chūra savane mādayasva || 7 ||
na ma indreṇa sakhyaṁ vi yoṣad asmabhyam asya dakṣiṇā duhīta |
upa jyeṣṭhe varūthe gabhastau prāye-prāye jigīvāṁsaḥ syāma || 8 ||
nūnaṁ sā te prati varaṁ jaritre duhīyad indra dakṣiṇā maghonī |
śikṣā stotṛbhyo māti dhag bhago no bṛhad vadema vidathe suvīrāḥ || 9 ||
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).
🌲