Hymn to the Ṛbhus
Rigveda VII.48 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.
O Ṛbhus! Divine craftsmen! Masters of all arts and skills! We do sing your praise!
Long ago, you were not gods, but mortal men. Yet through your skill and your dedication, you did become immortal. Your hands did create works of such beauty and such power that the gods themselves did marvel.
Ye did shape the golden cup of Indra. Ye did forge the armor that protects the righteous. Ye did craft the chariots upon which the gods do ride forth to battle. Everything that ye do create is blessed and is given power.
O Ṛbhus, ye are the masters of skill! Ye do teach us that through dedication and through hard work, we can transcend our limitations. If we will but strive and never give up, if we will but practice and improve our craft, then we too can become great.
Grant us a portion of your skill! May our hands be swift and sure! May our minds be clear and creative! May we be able to make things of beauty and of use!
And teach us the lesson that ye do embody—that through work and through dedication, we can achieve what seems impossible. That mortal men can become divine.
O Ṛbhus, accept our worship! Accept our respect! And bless us with the gift of skill and the virtue of dedication!
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.
🌲
Source Text: ṛgveda VII.48
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.
ṛbhukṣaṇo vājā mādayadhvam asme naro maghavānaḥ sutasya |
ā vo 'rvācaḥ kratavo na yātāṁ vibhvo rathaṁ naryaṁ vartayantu || 1 ||
ṛbhur ṛbhubhir abhi vaḥ syāma vibhvo vibhubhiḥ śavasā śavāṁsi |
vājo asmām̐ avatu vājasātāv indreṇa yujā taruṣema vṛtram || 2 ||
te cid dhi pūrvīr abhi santi śāsā viśvām̐ arya uparatāti vanvan |
indro vibhvām̐ ṛbhukṣā vājo aryaḥ śatror mithatyā kṛṇavan vi nṛmṇam || 3 ||
nū devāso varivaḥ kartanā no bhūta no viśve 'vase sajoṣāḥ |
sam asme iṣaṁ vasavo dadīran yūyam pāta svastibhiḥ sadā naḥ || 4 ||
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).
🌲