Hymn to the Ādityas
Rigveda VIII.101 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 forth, O Aditi, mother boundless and unbroken, who dost bear the free ones, the sovereign Ādityas!
In thy vast embrace abideth freedom itself, the breaking of bonds, the loosing of all chains.
Thy sons—Mitra, Varuṇa, Aryaman, the mighty Ādityas—upheld the sky of heaven in days of old.
They are the watchers, the guardians of the law of Ṛta, the cosmic order that doth govern all things.
From thee they were born, O mother imperishable, and in thy bosom they remain forever undying.
Mithra bindeth the hearts of men in bonds of kinship and oath; he maketh the accord between friend and friend.
Varuṇa, the vast, doth spread his net across all the worlds—the snare of the law that none may break.
He seeth all that is done in secret; his eye reacheth to the uttermost ends of earth.
Aryaman, the fine one, bestoweth gifts and favour upon the suppliant, the wanderer far from home.
He guideth the maiden to her marriage-hall; he blesseth the suitor with his destined bride.
The Ādityas together do maintain the great sky, upholding it without prop or pillar.
In their strength doth the earth stand firm; by their will doth the sun traverse his holy path.
Thou, O Aditi, art the unbound one—no cord may tie thee, no fetter hold thee.
Grant unto us this very freedom, this boundlessness of spirit, that we may live in thy mighty grace.
Let us know the law of Ṛta that thy sons do guard, the order of all things, the eternal measure.
May we walk in the light of Mitra's friendship, in the vast shadow of Varuṇa's watchfulness.
May Aryaman lead us to our destined good, and the Ādityas shield us from all that would do us harm.
O blessed mother of the gods, accept our prayer this day, and hold us in thy boundless care.
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.101
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.
ṛdhag itthā sa martyaḥ śaśame devatātaye |
yo nūnam mitrāvaruṇāv abhiṣṭaya ācakre havyadātaye || 1 ||
varṣiṣṭhakṣatrā urucakṣasā narā rājānā dīrghaśruttamā |
tā bāhutā na daṁsanā ratharyataḥ sākaṁ sūryasya raśmibhiḥ || 2 ||
pra yo vām mitrāvaruṇājiro dūto adravat |
ayaḥśīrṣā maderaghuḥ || 3 ||
na yaḥ sampṛcche na punar havītave na saṁvādāya ramate |
tasmān no adya samṛter uruṣyatam bāhubhyāṁ na uruṣyatam || 4 ||
pra mitrāya prāryamṇe sacathyam ṛtāvaso |
varūthya1ṁ varuṇe chandyaṁ vacaḥ stotraṁ rājasu gāyata || 5 ||
te hinvire aruṇaṁ jenyaṁ vasv ekam putraṁ tisṝṇām |
te dhāmāny amṛtā martyānām adabdhā abhi cakṣate || 6 ||
ā me vacāṁsy udyatā dyumattamāni kartvā |
ubhā yātaṁ nāsatyā sajoṣasā prati havyāni vītaye || 7 ||
rātiṁ yad vām arakṣasaṁ havāmahe yuvābhyāṁ vājinīvasū |
prācīṁ hotrām pratirantāv itaṁ narā gṛṇānā jamadagninā || 8 ||
ā no yajñaṁ divispṛśaṁ vāyo yāhi sumanmabhiḥ |
antaḥ pavitra upari śrīṇāno3 'yaṁ śukro ayāmi te || 9 ||
vety adhvaryuḥ pathibhī rajiṣṭhaiḥ prati havyāni vītaye |
adhā niyutva ubhayasya naḥ piba śuciṁ somaṁ gavāśiram || 10 ||
baṇ mahām̐ asi sūrya baḻ āditya mahām̐ asi |
mahas te sato mahimā panasyate 'ddhā deva mahām̐ asi || 11 ||
baṭ sūrya śravasā mahām̐ asi satrā deva mahām̐ asi |
mahnā devānām asuryaḥ purohito vibhu jyotir adābhyam || 12 ||
iyaṁ yā nīcy arkiṇī rūpā rohiṇyā kṛtā |
citreva praty adarśy āyaty a1ntar daśasu bāhuṣu || 13 ||
prajā ha tisro atyāyam īyur ny a1nyā arkam abhito viviśre |
bṛhad dha tasthau bhuvaneṣv antaḥ pavamāno harita ā viveśa || 14 ||
mātā rudrāṇāṁ duhitā vasūnāṁ svasādityānām amṛtasya nābhiḥ |
pra nu vocaṁ cikituṣe janāya mā gām anāgām aditiṁ vadhiṣṭa || 15 ||
vacovidaṁ vācam udīrayantīṁ viśvābhir dhībhir upatiṣṭhamānām |
devīṁ devebhyaḥ pary eyuṣīṁ gām ā māvṛkta martyo dabhracetāḥ || 16 ||
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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