Hymn to the Viśvedevas
Rigveda VII.35 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 7 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.
Peace, O Viśvedevas! Peace unto us! Let not the wicked ones do us harm. Let not our enemies prevail against us. Keep us safe in this day and in all the days to come.
Grant unto us a safe passage through life. Let the roads before us be clear. Let the obstacles be removed from our path. Let us walk in peace and security, knowing that thou dost guide our footsteps.
The wild beasts of the forest—keep them from our door. The demons and the evil spirits—banish them far from us. The sickness and the plague—turn them aside. The famine and the drought—let them not touch our land. We pray unto you, O mighty ones!
Let our children grow up healthy and strong. Let them be wise and virtuous. Let them honor their parents and respect their teachers. Let them become worthy members of our community. These are our hopes, O gods, and we lay them at your feet.
Let our cattle increase and multiply. Let our crops yield abundantly. Let our granaries be full. Let our families be prosperous. Not for wealth alone do we ask, but for the security that cometh from having what we need.
Guard us from the dangers of the night. Let no thief steal our possessions. Let no enemy approach our home. Let our sleep be peaceful and undisturbed. Let us wake refreshed and ready for the labors of the day.
And when we gather together in friendship and in love, let that gathering be blessed. Let our words be kind; let our actions be just. Let us treat one another with respect and with compassion. Let peace reign in our hearts and in our homes.
O Viśvedevas, we place our trust in you. We know that you are mighty and wise. We know that you care for all your creatures. We know that you will not abandon us, even in times of great trial.
So we pray unto you this day: Grant us peace. Grant us safety. Grant us prosperity. Grant us the wisdom to live righteously. And when our time comes to depart from this world, let us go with honor and with the blessing of the gods.
Let this prayer rise up unto the heavens! Let it reach the ears of all the Viśvedevas! Let them hear the voices of their faithful servants! And let them answer our prayer with the fullness of their divine blessing!
So it is that we pray. So it is that we sacrifice. So it is that we sing. And so it shall be forevermore—until the end of all things, the gods and their people united in the sacred bond that hath endured since the beginning of time.
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 VII.35
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.
śaṁ na indrāgnī bhavatām avobhiḥ śaṁ na indrāvaruṇā rātahavyā |
śam indrāsomā suvitāya śaṁ yoḥ śaṁ na indrāpūṣaṇā vājasātau || 1 ||
śaṁ no bhagaḥ śam u naḥ śaṁso astu śaṁ naḥ puraṁdhiḥ śam u santu rāyaḥ |
śaṁ naḥ satyasya suyamasya śaṁsaḥ śaṁ no aryamā purujāto astu || 2 ||
śaṁ no dhātā śam u dhartā no astu śaṁ na urūcī bhavatu svadhābhiḥ |
śaṁ rodasī bṛhatī śaṁ no adriḥ śaṁ no devānāṁ suhavāni santu || 3 ||
śaṁ no agnir jyotiranīko astu śaṁ no mitrāvaruṇāv aśvinā śam |
śaṁ naḥ sukṛtāṁ sukṛtāni santu śaṁ na iṣiro abhi vātu vātaḥ || 4 ||
śaṁ no dyāvāpṛthivī pūrvahūtau śam antarikṣaṁ dṛśaye no astu |
śaṁ na oṣadhīr vanino bhavantu śaṁ no rajasas patir astu jiṣṇuḥ || 5 ||
śaṁ na indro vasubhir devo astu śam ādityebhir varuṇaḥ suśaṁsaḥ |
śaṁ no rudro rudrebhir jalāṣaḥ śaṁ nas tvaṣṭā gnābhir iha śṛṇotu || 6 ||
śaṁ naḥ somo bhavatu brahma śaṁ naḥ śaṁ no grāvāṇaḥ śam u santu yajñāḥ |
śaṁ naḥ svarūṇām mitayo bhavantu śaṁ naḥ prasva1ḥ śam v astu vediḥ || 7 ||
śaṁ naḥ sūrya urucakṣā ud etu śaṁ naś catasraḥ pradiśo bhavantu |
śaṁ naḥ parvatā dhruvayo bhavantu śaṁ naḥ sindhavaḥ śam u santv āpaḥ || 8 ||
śaṁ no aditir bhavatu vratebhiḥ śaṁ no bhavantu marutaḥ svarkāḥ |
śaṁ no viṣṇuḥ śam u pūṣā no astu śaṁ no bhavitraṁ śam v astu vāyuḥ || 9 ||
śaṁ no devaḥ savitā trāyamāṇaḥ śaṁ no bhavantūṣaso vibhātīḥ |
śaṁ naḥ parjanyo bhavatu prajābhyaḥ śaṁ naḥ kṣetrasya patir astu śambhuḥ || 10 ||
śaṁ no devā viśvadevā bhavantu śaṁ sarasvatī saha dhībhir astu |
śam abhiṣācaḥ śam u rātiṣācaḥ śaṁ no divyāḥ pārthivāḥ śaṁ no apyāḥ || 11 ||
śaṁ naḥ satyasya patayo bhavantu śaṁ no arvantaḥ śam u santu gāvaḥ |
śaṁ na ṛbhavaḥ sukṛtaḥ suhastāḥ śaṁ no bhavantu pitaro haveṣu || 12 ||
śaṁ no aja ekapād devo astu śaṁ no 'hir budhnya1ḥ śaṁ samudraḥ |
śaṁ no apāṁ napāt perur astu śaṁ naḥ pṛśnir bhavatu devagopā || 13 ||
ādityā rudrā vasavo juṣantedam brahma kriyamāṇaṁ navīyaḥ |
śṛṇvantu no divyāḥ pārthivāso gojātā uta ye yajñiyāsaḥ || 14 ||
ye devānāṁ yajñiyā yajñiyānām manor yajatrā amṛtā ṛtajñāḥ |
te no rāsantām urugāyam adya yūyam pāta svastibhiḥ sadā naḥ || 15 ||
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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