Hymn to Savitṛ
Rigveda III.62 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 3 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.
O Savitṛ, the Vivifier! The god who bringeth life to all! Thou dwellest in the highest sphere; from there thy light doth pour on earth. Thy golden arms reach down to bless the mortals toiling here below. Thou fillest all the cosmos vast; no corner of the world escapeth thee.
With thy propitious rays thou dost revive the sleeping world each dawn. The plants do shoot forth tender leaves; the animals do wake and move. The mortals rise from slumber's veil and feel thy blessing upon them. Thou art the giver of all life; thou art the maintainer of all breath.
O Savitṛ, we meditate upon thy glorious splendour divine! Thy essence filleth heaven's vault; thy being dwelleth in the sky. From thee do flow the strength and will to carry out the works of day. Thy golden chariot rideth high; thy steeds are swift and never tire.
We meditate upon the glorious splendour of the Vivifier divine;
May He illuminate our minds!
May He illuminate our hearts!
May He illuminate our souls!
This is the sacred Gāyatrī, the holiest mantra of all time. It is the prayer uttered by the sages of old; it is the invocation that sustaineth all the worlds. O Savitṛ, receive this prayer! Accept this most sacred offering!
Thou art the lord of all the realms, the master of both light and dark. The night doth rest when thou dost sleep; the day doth wake when thou dost wake. All creatures dance to thy command; all life obeys thy sovereign will. The very cosmos hinges on the turning of thy golden wheel.
O Savitṛ, accept our hymn! Accept our meditation most pure! Grant us thy favour, grant us light, and lead us on the path of truth. May we be worthy of thy grace; may we reflect thy glorious rays. For ever let thy name be praised throughout the endless ages yet to come.
The devas gather round thy throne; they offer praises without end. The mortals call to thee each dawn; their voices echo through the world. Accept this hymn, this sacred song, this mantra of the Gāyatrī praise. For ever let thy glory shine in all the worlds, both great and small.
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 III.62
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.
imā u vām bhṛmayo manyamānā yuvāvate na tujyā abhūvan |
kva1 tyad indrāvaruṇā yaśo vāṁ yena smā sinam bharathaḥ sakhibhyaḥ || 1 ||
ayam u vām purutamo rayīyañ chaśvattamam avase johavīti |
sajoṣāv indrāvaruṇā marudbhir divā pṛthivyā śṛṇutaṁ havam me || 2 ||
asme tad indrāvaruṇā vasu ṣyād asme rayir marutaḥ sarvavīraḥ |
asmān varūtrīḥ śaraṇair avantv asmān hotrā bhāratī dakṣiṇābhiḥ || 3 ||
bṛhaspate juṣasva no havyāni viśvadevya |
rāsva ratnāni dāśuṣe || 4 ||
śucim arkair bṛhaspatim adhvareṣu namasyata |
anāmy oja ā cake || 5 ||
vṛṣabhaṁ carṣaṇīnāṁ viśvarūpam adābhyam |
bṛhaspatiṁ vareṇyam || 6 ||
iyaṁ te pūṣann āghṛṇe suṣṭutir deva navyasī |
asmābhis tubhyaṁ śasyate || 7 ||
tāṁ juṣasva giram mama vājayantīm avā dhiyam |
vadhūyur iva yoṣaṇām || 8 ||
yo viśvābhi vipaśyati bhuvanā saṁ ca paśyati |
sa naḥ pūṣāvitā bhuvat || 9 ||
tat savitur vareṇyam bhargo devasya dhīmahi |
dhiyo yo naḥ pracodayāt || 10 ||
devasya savitur vayaṁ vājayantaḥ puraṁdhyā |
bhagasya rātim īmahe || 11 ||
devaṁ naraḥ savitāraṁ viprā yajñaiḥ suvṛktibhiḥ |
namasyanti dhiyeṣitāḥ || 12 ||
somo jigāti gātuvid devānām eti niṣkṛtam |
ṛtasya yonim āsadam || 13 ||
somo asmabhyaṁ dvipade catuṣpade ca paśave |
anamīvā iṣas karat || 14 ||
asmākam āyur vardhayann abhimātīḥ sahamānaḥ |
somaḥ sadhastham āsadat || 15 ||
ā no mitrāvaruṇā ghṛtair gavyūtim ukṣatam |
madhvā rajāṁsi sukratū || 16 ||
uruśaṁsā namovṛdhā mahnā dakṣasya rājathaḥ |
drāghiṣṭhābhiḥ śucivratā || 17 ||
gṛṇānā jamadagninā yonāv ṛtasya sīdatam |
pātaṁ somam ṛtāvṛdhā || 18 ||
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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