Hymn to the Maruts
Rigveda V.52 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 5 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.
Hark! The thunder rolls across the heavens! The lightning cracks the vault of sky! The Maruts come—those wild and terrible sons of Rudra, the storm-gods incarnate, the thunder-warriors of the cosmic battle. They rush forth with a thousand voices, shaking the very foundations of the world.
See them in their terrible beauty! Each Marut rides a whirlwind, each bears the fury of the tempest. Their spears are bolts of lightning. Their armor shines golden as they tear through the clouds. No power can withstand them. No mountain stands firm against their charge. They are youth eternal—never old, never still, forever wild.
They come together, a brotherhood of devastation and renewal. Where they pass, the dry lands are drenched. Where they strike, the old growth falls and new life springs forth. They are the liberators—breaking open the caves where the waters were imprisoned, where the light was bound, where the riches of heaven were hoarded by the demons.
O Maruts, ye swift and mighty! Ye who wear the wind as garments and ride the storm as chariots! Ye who are numbered in their thousands, yet each one distinct and fierce! Come ye to this sacrifice. Drink of the soma and be strengthened. Hear these hymns of praise and be exalted.
Ye are the companions of Indra in his battles. Ye are the brothers of valor, the sons of strength. When ye march forth, the earth trembles. When ye cry out, the heavens answer. Ye are terrible, yet generous to those who honor thee. Accept this oblation, O Maruts! Guard us, O storm-gods! Bring rain to our fields and blessings to our people.
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 V.52
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.
pra śyāvāśva dhṛṣṇuyārcā marudbhir ṛkvabhiḥ |
ye adrogham anuṣvadhaṁ śravo madanti yajñiyāḥ || 1 ||
te hi sthirasya śavasaḥ sakhāyaḥ santi dhṛṣṇuyā |
te yāmann ā dhṛṣadvinas tmanā pānti śaśvataḥ || 2 ||
te syandrāso nokṣaṇo 'ti ṣkandanti śarvarīḥ |
marutām adhā maho divi kṣamā ca manmahe || 3 ||
marutsu vo dadhīmahi stomaṁ yajñaṁ ca dhṛṣṇuyā |
viśve ye mānuṣā yugā pānti martyaṁ riṣaḥ || 4 ||
arhanto ye sudānavo naro asāmiśavasaḥ |
pra yajñaṁ yajñiyebhyo divo arcā marudbhyaḥ || 5 ||
ā rukmair ā yudhā nara ṛṣvā ṛṣṭīr asṛkṣata |
anv enām̐ aha vidyuto maruto jajjhatīr iva bhānur arta tmanā divaḥ || 6 ||
ye vāvṛdhanta pārthivā ya urāv antarikṣa ā |
vṛjane vā nadīnāṁ sadhasthe vā maho divaḥ || 7 ||
śardho mārutam uc chaṁsa satyaśavasam ṛbhvasam |
uta sma te śubhe naraḥ pra syandrā yujata tmanā || 8 ||
uta sma te paruṣṇyām ūrṇā vasata śundhyavaḥ |
uta pavyā rathānām adrim bhindanty ojasā || 9 ||
āpathayo vipathayo 'ntaspathā anupathāḥ |
etebhir mahyaṁ nāmabhir yajñaṁ viṣṭāra ohate || 10 ||
adhā naro ny ohate 'dhā niyuta ohate |
adhā pārāvatā iti citrā rūpāṇi darśyā || 11 ||
chandaḥstubhaḥ kubhanyava utsam ā kīriṇo nṛtuḥ |
te me ke cin na tāyava ūmā āsan dṛśi tviṣe || 12 ||
ya ṛṣvā ṛṣṭividyutaḥ kavayaḥ santi vedhasaḥ |
tam ṛṣe mārutaṁ gaṇaṁ namasyā ramayā girā || 13 ||
accha ṛṣe mārutaṁ gaṇaṁ dānā mitraṁ na yoṣaṇā |
divo vā dhṛṣṇava ojasā stutā dhībhir iṣaṇyata || 14 ||
nū manvāna eṣāṁ devām̐ acchā na vakṣaṇā |
dānā saceta sūribhir yāmaśrutebhir añjibhiḥ || 15 ||
pra ye me bandhveṣe gāṁ vocanta sūrayaḥ pṛśniṁ vocanta mātaram |
adhā pitaram iṣmiṇaṁ rudraṁ vocanta śikvasaḥ || 16 ||
sapta me sapta śākina ekam-ekā śatā daduḥ |
yamunāyām adhi śrutam ud rādho gavyam mṛje ni rādho aśvyam mṛje || 17 ||
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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