Hymn to Pṛthivī
Rigveda VII.53 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.
Heaven and Earth! Ye mighty parents of all that liveth! Dyaus the sky-father stretcheth forth his arms above; Pṛthivī the earth-mother spreadeth herself below. Between them floweth the wind; through them passeth the water; within them dwelleth every creature.
O ye ancient and eternal ones! Ye who were born together in the beginning of time! Ye who shall endure while the stars burn in the heavens! Hear now the voice of your children!
The sky is thy father's face, O Pṛthivī! The rain is thy mother's tears falling upon thy breast! Thou receivest the seed and bringeth forth the crop. Thou givest shelter to all creatures; thou holdest them in thy vast embrace.
And thou, O Dyaus! Thy light filleth the sky; thy thunder shaketh the mountains. Thou art strong and mighty; thou dost hold all things in thy vast hand. Together with thy beloved, thou dost sustain the world.
Grant us long life, O mighty parents! Grant us strength and prosperity! Let our children be numerous; let our fields be fertile! Guard us from all harm! Watch over us by day and by night! Accept this hymn of praise from your grateful children!
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.53
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 dyāvā yajñaiḥ pṛthivī namobhiḥ sabādha īḻe bṛhatī yajatre |
te cid dhi pūrve kavayo gṛṇantaḥ puro mahī dadhire devaputre || 1 ||
pra pūrvaje pitarā navyasībhir gīrbhiḥ kṛṇudhvaṁ sadane ṛtasya |
ā no dyāvāpṛthivī daivyena janena yātam mahi vāṁ varūtham || 2 ||
uto hi vāṁ ratnadheyāni santi purūṇi dyāvāpṛthivī sudāse |
asme dhattaṁ yad asad askṛdhoyu yūyam pāta svastibhiḥ sadā naḥ || 3 ||
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).
🌲