Hymn to Soma
Rigveda II.21 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.
Prepare thyself for war, O Indra! The Soma hath been pressed; its strength courseth through thy veins. Thy limbs burn with divine intoxication. Thy courage is absolute. Thy wrath is kindled like a roaring flame.
March forth now to battle! Thy enemies await, and they shall know thy terrible might. The demons tremble at the sound of thy approach. The asuras flee before thee. There is no force in all the worlds that can withstand thee.
We chant the battle prayer unto thee. We call upon thy fury, thy righteous wrath against those who would bring darkness and destruction. Thy spear is sharp; thy sword is bright. Thy bow is drawn with irresistible strength. Every weapon in thy hands becomes an instrument of invincible power.
Smite down the foe, O soma-fueled warlord! Let thy lightning flash across the sky. Let thy thunder shake the very foundations of the earth. Bring devastation upon all who oppose thee. Leave none standing who dares to raise a hand against thee or against us who worship thee.
Yet even as we call for thy fury, we know thy wisdom. Thou dost not strike blindly; thy judgement is perfect. Thou defendest the righteous and punishest the wicked. Thou maintainest order in the cosmos and in the hearts of mortals.
Grant us courage to stand beside thee in spirit. Let us too be strong, unflinching, fierce in our determination to defeat the darkness. Fill us with thy Soma-strength, thy warrior spirit, thy unshakeable resolve. Make us worthy of thy protection in this great and terrible struggle.
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.
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Source Text: ṛgveda II.21
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.
viśvajite dhanajite svarjite satrājite nṛjita urvarājite |
aśvajite gojite abjite bharendrāya somaṁ yajatāya haryatam || 1 ||
abhibhuve 'bhibhaṅgāya vanvate 'ṣāḻhāya sahamānāya vedhase |
tuvigraye vahnaye duṣṭarītave satrāsāhe nama indrāya vocata || 2 ||
satrāsāho janabhakṣo janaṁsahaś cyavano yudhmo anu joṣam ukṣitaḥ |
vṛtaṁcayaḥ sahurir vikṣv ārita indrasya vocam pra kṛtāni vīryā || 3 ||
anānudo vṛṣabho dodhato vadho gambhīra ṛṣvo asamaṣṭakāvyaḥ |
radhracodaḥ śnathano vīḻitas pṛthur indraḥ suyajña uṣasaḥ svar janat || 4 ||
yajñena gātum apturo vividrire dhiyo hinvānā uśijo manīṣiṇaḥ |
abhisvarā niṣadā gā avasyava indre hinvānā draviṇāny āśata || 5 ||
indra śreṣṭhāni draviṇāni dhehi cittiṁ dakṣasya subhagatvam asme |
poṣaṁ rayīṇām ariṣṭiṁ tanūnāṁ svādmānaṁ vācaḥ sudinatvam ahnām || 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).
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