Hymn to Soma
Rigveda VIII.10 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 8 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.
Come, O ye Aśvins! Swift as thought do ye descend from out the heavens with your chariot drawn by noble steeds. Bring unto us the treasure, bright with gold; bring forth the bounty that shall make us rich and strong. Come to the soma and be satisfied.
O ye Nāsatyas, ye whose fame doth spread so far, whose chariot rolleth onward o'er the earth and sky—accept this offering, freshly pressed by sacred hands; delight yourselves in our pressed juice of soma, sweet as honey.
Ye are the healers, O ye twin lords of the dawn, who bring the balm and medicine to those in pain. With treasure laden do your swift horses draw the car; come hither now and let your favour rest on us.
The fires burn bright; the priests await your coming here; the soma foameth in its sacred wooden bowl. Come, O ye Aśvins, swiftest of the gods—come to the draught and to the song that praisers raise.
Ye bring the dawn when darkness flees before your car; ye bring the light that shineth upon all the world. O twin deities, belovèd of the sky—accept our offerings and grant us all that we desire.
Let thy blessings, O ye Aśvins, ever rest upon the singer who invoketh thee with voice and sacred verse. Grant us abundance, grant us health, grant us long life, that we may praise your name forevermore.
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 VIII.10
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.
yat stho dīrghaprasadmani yad vādo rocane divaḥ |
yad vā samudre adhy ākṛte gṛhe 'ta ā yātam aśvinā || 1 ||
yad vā yajñam manave sammimikṣathur evet kāṇvasya bodhatam |
bṛhaspatiṁ viśvān devām̐ ahaṁ huva indrāviṣṇū aśvināv āśuheṣasā || 2 ||
tyā nv a1śvinā huve sudaṁsasā gṛbhe kṛtā |
yayor asti pra ṇaḥ sakhyaṁ deveṣv adhy āpyam || 3 ||
yayor adhi pra yajñā asūre santi sūrayaḥ |
tā yajñasyādhvarasya pracetasā svadhābhir yā pibataḥ somyam madhu || 4 ||
yad adyāśvināv apāg yat prāk stho vājinīvasū |
yad druhyavy anavi turvaśe yadau huve vām atha mā gatam || 5 ||
yad antarikṣe patathaḥ purubhujā yad veme rodasī anu |
yad vā svadhābhir adhitiṣṭhatho ratham ata ā yātam aśvinā || 6 ||
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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