Hymn to Soma
Rigveda VI.44 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 6 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 sacred Soma doth ascend into the breast
Of Indra, mighty Thunderer, unequalled and unblest—
Nay, blest beyond all measure! For when the golden draught
Hath touched His lips and entered in, lo! strength hath newly wrought
Within His frame. His sinews swell; His eye doth burn as fire;
His heart doth drum like thunder clouds; His spirit doth aspire
To highest deeds of valor and of cosmic magnitude.
The Maruts shout; the heavens tremble; lo! His multitude
Doth rise to meet the challenge! For the Dāsas gather near,
The demons black and terrible, the monsters we do fear—
But Indra, Soma-strengthened now, doth laugh at all their host.
His hand hath grasped the vajra—that weapon He loveth most.
The liquid fire floweth through His veins like molten gold;
His courage knows no limit; He is never weak or cold.
What god or giant dares to stand before the Soma-king?
What fortress wall or sorcery doth not to naught now bring?
The ritual cup is lifted high; the Soma-juice doth flow
Into the belly of the Lord who marcheth 'gainst the foe.
And as He drinketh deeper, deeper still the power grows—
The thunder rattleth through the sky; the lightning flash doth rose
Against the face of darkness! All the Dāsas flee in dread;
The ninety fortresses fall flat; the wicked armies spread
Like chaff before the whirlwind. O the glory of that fight!
When Indra, Soma-drunken, rideth forth with terrible might!
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 VI.44
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.
yo rayivo rayiṁtamo yo dyumnair dyumnavattamaḥ |
somaḥ sutaḥ sa indra te 'sti svadhāpate madaḥ || 1 ||
yaḥ śagmas tuviśagma te rāyo dāmā matīnām |
somaḥ sutaḥ sa indra te 'sti svadhāpate madaḥ || 2 ||
yena vṛddho na śavasā turo na svābhir ūtibhiḥ |
somaḥ sutaḥ sa indra te 'sti svadhāpate madaḥ || 3 ||
tyam u vo aprahaṇaṁ gṛṇīṣe śavasas patim |
indraṁ viśvāsāhaṁ naram maṁhiṣṭhaṁ viśvacarṣaṇim || 4 ||
yaṁ vardhayantīd giraḥ patiṁ turasya rādhasaḥ |
tam in nv asya rodasī devī śuṣmaṁ saparyataḥ || 5 ||
tad va ukthasya barhaṇendrāyopastṛṇīṣaṇi |
vipo na yasyotayo vi yad rohanti sakṣitaḥ || 6 ||
avidad dakṣam mitro navīyān papāno devebhyo vasyo acait |
sasavān staulābhir dhautarībhir uruṣyā pāyur abhavat sakhibhyaḥ || 7 ||
ṛtasya pathi vedhā apāyi śriye manāṁsi devāso akran |
dadhāno nāma maho vacobhir vapur dṛśaye venyo vy āvaḥ || 8 ||
dyumattamaṁ dakṣaṁ dhehy asme sedhā janānām pūrvīr arātīḥ |
varṣīyo vayaḥ kṛṇuhi śacībhir dhanasya sātāv asmām̐ aviḍḍhi || 9 ||
indra tubhyam in maghavann abhūma vayaṁ dātre harivo mā vi venaḥ |
nakir āpir dadṛśe martyatrā kim aṅga radhracodanaṁ tvāhuḥ || 10 ||
mā jasvane vṛṣabha no rarīthā mā te revataḥ sakhye riṣāma |
pūrvīṣ ṭa indra niṣṣidho janeṣu jahy asuṣvīn pra vṛhāpṛṇataḥ || 11 ||
ud abhrāṇīva stanayann iyartīndro rādhāṁsy aśvyāni gavyā |
tvam asi pradivaḥ kārudhāyā mā tvādāmāna ā dabhan maghonaḥ || 12 ||
adhvaryo vīra pra mahe sutānām indrāya bhara sa hy asya rājā |
yaḥ pūrvyābhir uta nūtanābhir gīrbhir vāvṛdhe gṛṇatām ṛṣīṇām || 13 ||
asya made puru varpāṁsi vidvān indro vṛtrāṇy apratī jaghāna |
tam u pra hoṣi madhumantam asmai somaṁ vīrāya śipriṇe pibadhyai || 14 ||
pātā sutam indro astu somaṁ hantā vṛtraṁ vajreṇa mandasānaḥ |
gantā yajñam parāvataś cid acchā vasur dhīnām avitā kārudhāyāḥ || 15 ||
idaṁ tyat pātram indrapānam indrasya priyam amṛtam apāyi |
matsad yathā saumanasāya devaṁ vy a1smad dveṣo yuyavad vy aṁhaḥ || 16 ||
enā mandāno jahi śūra śatrūñ jāmim ajāmim maghavann amitrān |
abhiṣeṇām̐ abhy ā3dediśānān parāca indra pra mṛṇā jahī ca || 17 ||
āsu ṣmā ṇo maghavann indra pṛtsv a1smabhyam mahi varivaḥ sugaṁ kaḥ |
apāṁ tokasya tanayasya jeṣa indra sūrīn kṛṇuhi smā no ardham || 18 ||
ā tvā harayo vṛṣaṇo yujānā vṛṣarathāso vṛṣaraśmayo 'tyāḥ |
asmatrāñco vṛṣaṇo vajravāho vṛṣṇe madāya suyujo vahantu || 19 ||
ā te vṛṣan vṛṣaṇo droṇam asthur ghṛtapruṣo normayo madantaḥ |
indra pra tubhyaṁ vṛṣabhiḥ sutānāṁ vṛṣṇe bharanti vṛṣabhāya somam || 20 ||
vṛṣāsi divo vṛṣabhaḥ pṛthivyā vṛṣā sindhūnāṁ vṛṣabhaḥ stiyānām |
vṛṣṇe ta indur vṛṣabha pīpāya svādū raso madhupeyo varāya || 21 ||
ayaṁ devaḥ sahasā jāyamāna indreṇa yujā paṇim astabhāyat |
ayaṁ svasya pitur āyudhānīndur amuṣṇād aśivasya māyāḥ || 22 ||
ayam akṛṇod uṣasaḥ supatnīr ayaṁ sūrye adadhāj jyotir antaḥ |
ayaṁ tridhātu divi rocaneṣu triteṣu vindad amṛtaṁ nigūḻham || 23 ||
ayaṁ dyāvāpṛthivī vi ṣkabhāyad ayaṁ ratham ayunak saptaraśmim |
ayaṁ goṣu śacyā pakvam antaḥ somo dādhāra daśayantram utsam || 24 ||
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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