A Hymn of Maṇḍala 7
Rigveda VII.55 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 Vastospati, keep the dogs at bay this night! The hounds are restless; they bark at shadows in the darkness. Their howling disturbs the sleep of the righteous; their yelping breaks the peace of the household.
Drive them away, O lord of the dwelling! Send them forth into the darkness beyond! Let not their snarling teeth come near this house! Let not their mad eyes peer through these walls!
The night is long and dark, O Vastospati! The creatures that dwell in shadow come out to hunt. The jackals prowl; the wolves cry out. Yet we are safe, for thou art here!
We sleep in peace knowing that thou watchest over us. The children dream sweet dreams in their beds. The mother rests beside her young. The father sleepeth without fear.
Keep the evil spirits from entering! Keep the curse-bringers from this doorway! Keep the black magic at bay! Let this house be a sanctuary of safety and peace! O Vastospati, gentlest of guardians, watch over us through this long night! Chase away the barking dogs! Let silence and tranquility fill this place!
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.55
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.
amīvahā vāstoṣ pate viśvā rūpāṇy āviśan |
sakhā suśeva edhi naḥ || 1 ||
yad arjuna sārameya dataḥ piśaṅga yacchase |
vīva bhrājanta ṛṣṭaya upa srakveṣu bapsato ni ṣu svapa || 2 ||
stenaṁ rāya sārameya taskaraṁ vā punaḥsara |
stotṝn indrasya rāyasi kim asmān ducchunāyase ni ṣu svapa || 3 ||
tvaṁ sūkarasya dardṛhi tava dardartu sūkaraḥ |
stotṝn indrasya rāyasi kim asmān ducchunāyase ni ṣu svapa || 4 ||
sastu mātā sastu pitā sastu śvā sastu viśpatiḥ |
sasantu sarve jñātayaḥ sastv ayam abhito janaḥ || 5 ||
ya āste yaś ca carati yaś ca paśyati no janaḥ |
teṣāṁ saṁ hanmo akṣāṇi yathedaṁ harmyaṁ tathā || 6 ||
sahasraśṛṅgo vṛṣabho yaḥ samudrād udācarat |
tenā sahasyenā vayaṁ ni janān svāpayāmasi || 7 ||
proṣṭheśayā vahyeśayā nārīr yās talpaśīvarīḥ |
striyo yāḥ puṇyagandhās tāḥ sarvāḥ svāpayāmasi || 8 ||
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).
🌲