Hymn to the Ṛbhus
Rigveda IV.37 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 4 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.
Let the last hymn rise now in praise of the Ṛbhus, for they are the close of our discourse and the opening of blessings. O Ṛbhus, ye final objects of our reverence in this sacred hour, receive our final offering! The Soma is pressed, the butter flows, the fire accepteth our gifts on your behalf.
We call upon you now to extend your favour to all who have sung your praises this day. Grant us prosperity and strength; make our herds increase; let our children grow straight and true. Guard us in our journeys; protect us from the arrows of our enemies; shield us from the curses of the envious and the malice of those who dwell in darkness.
But more than these material blessings, we ask for something greater: grant us a portion of that divine wisdom which ye embody. Teach us to see the hidden potential in all things; show us how to transform the base into the noble; give us the persistence to labour faithfully even when no reward appeareth. For your example teacheth us that the gods do not despise the mortal who riseth through honest effort and unwearying craft.
In the deep night, when sleep cometh and dreams visit our minds, let us see your faces and remember your deeds. In the morning, when we wake and face the tasks before us, may your names be the first upon our lips. At evening, as we pour the libation and watch the smoke rise to heaven, may we feel your presence in the fire's glow.
O Ṛbhus, ye are the bridge between the mortal and the divine. Therefore we invoke you now with our whole heart: bless us, guide us, and when our time cometh to leave this world of change and shadow, remember that we too sought to honour the sacred craft of making and to walk, however haltingly, in your footsteps toward the eternal.
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 IV.37
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.
upa no vājā adhvaram ṛbhukṣā devā yāta pathibhir devayānaiḥ |
yathā yajñam manuṣo vikṣv ā3su dadhidhve raṇvāḥ sudineṣv ahnām || 1 ||
te vo hṛde manase santu yajñā juṣṭāso adya ghṛtanirṇijo guḥ |
pra vaḥ sutāso harayanta pūrṇāḥ kratve dakṣāya harṣayanta pītāḥ || 2 ||
tryudāyaṁ devahitaṁ yathā vaḥ stomo vājā ṛbhukṣaṇo dade vaḥ |
juhve manuṣvad uparāsu vikṣu yuṣme sacā bṛhaddiveṣu somam || 3 ||
pīvoaśvāḥ śucadrathā hi bhūtāyaḥśiprā vājinaḥ suniṣkāḥ |
indrasya sūno śavaso napāto 'nu vaś cety agriyam madāya || 4 ||
ṛbhum ṛbhukṣaṇo rayiṁ vāje vājintamaṁ yujam |
indrasvantaṁ havāmahe sadāsātamam aśvinam || 5 ||
sed ṛbhavo yam avatha yūyam indraś ca martyam |
sa dhībhir astu sanitā medhasātā so arvatā || 6 ||
vi no vājā ṛbhukṣaṇaḥ pathaś citana yaṣṭave |
asmabhyaṁ sūrayaḥ stutā viśvā āśās tarīṣaṇi || 7 ||
taṁ no vājā ṛbhukṣaṇa indra nāsatyā rayim |
sam aśvaṁ carṣaṇibhya ā puru śasta maghattaye || 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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