Hymn to Soma
Rigveda VIII.35 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.
Hail to the Aśvins twain! O pair of horsemen bright! Your chariot comes with dawn's first light—come ye and drink the morning soma here.
Your golden chariot, ever swift, doth traverse all three worlds at once; down from the heavens ye descend to hearken to the mortal's call.
The horses that do draw you forth are swift as wind and thought combined; they leap across the mountain peaks and over rivers as they flow.
Hail, noble pair! Ye healers both, physicians of the gods and men! For countless wounds have ye made whole, for countless maladies set right.
What lamed man ever called on you and was not straightway healed by you? What blind man prayed unto your might and was not given back his sight?
Ye brought forth honey-medicine pure, with sweetness that doth comfort all; this precious gift ye ever bear to those who suffer and who mourn.
The maiden whom the demons took, the woman lost in darkest night, did weep and call upon your names—and lo! ye came and set her free.
The man who lay upon the ground, consumed with fever's burning rage, did drink the healing draught from you—ye made him well and whole again.
Ye rescued from the abyss profound that noble one who fell beneath; your power doth extend so far, no peril can resist your will.
O Aśvins dear! O pair of lords! Ye chariot-riders swift of foot! Accept this soma offering made, and grace our sacrifice this day.
Come ye in all your majesty, come ye with counsel wise and true; the seers of old have called on you, and thou hast answered every prayer.
Your chariot cometh from afar, from distant lands beyond the sky; it rumbles like the rolling clouds and scatters all the gathered night.
The Sun's own sister tendeth you, the Dawn prepareth all your food; the whole of heaven moves aside when thus ye come upon your way.
What mortal man doth not desire your presence at his solemn rite? For ye do bring the wealth of life, the health and vigor and the strength.
Your arms are raised in benediction over all the living world; beneath your gaze the flowers bloom, the cattle safely graze and drink.
O healers of the wounded sore! O saviors of the lost and worn! Accept the soma pressed for you, the draught prepared with utmost care.
The honey-cup doth stand prepared, the sacred water mixeth sweet; come ye and taste of this oblation, give us thy blessing manifold.
Five times five kinds of wealth ye own—the treasures of the blessed state; ye share them with the pious man who giveth honor to your names.
The dawn breaks forth in golden light, announcing that the Aśvins near; the morning soma waiteth still for those who call upon you here.
Come now and drink, O matchless pair! Come now and bless our sacrifice! Grant us the strength to face the day, grant us thy guardian care supreme.
Your names are held in reverence throughout the heaven and the earth; the seers of old have sung your praise with voices ever loud and clear.
So grant us now thy ear divine, ye Aśvins both forever blessed; accept this soma, sweet and pure, and give us every boon we seek.
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.35
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.
agninendreṇa varuṇena viṣṇunādityai rudrair vasubhiḥ sacābhuvā |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca somam pibatam aśvinā || 1 ||
viśvābhir dhībhir bhuvanena vājinā divā pṛthivyādribhiḥ sacābhuvā |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca somam pibatam aśvinā || 2 ||
viśvair devais tribhir ekādaśair ihādbhir marudbhir bhṛgubhiḥ sacābhuvā |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca somam pibatam aśvinā || 3 ||
juṣethāṁ yajñam bodhataṁ havasya me viśveha devau savanāva gacchatam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ceṣaṁ no voḻham aśvinā || 4 ||
stomaṁ juṣethāṁ yuvaśeva kanyanāṁ viśveha devau savanāva gacchatam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ceṣaṁ no voḻham aśvinā || 5 ||
giro juṣethām adhvaraṁ juṣethāṁ viśveha devau savanāva gacchatam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ceṣaṁ no voḻham aśvinā || 6 ||
hāridraveva patatho vaned upa somaṁ sutam mahiṣevāva gacchathaḥ |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca trir vartir yātam aśvinā || 7 ||
haṁsāv iva patatho adhvagāv iva somaṁ sutam mahiṣevāva gacchathaḥ |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca trir vartir yātam aśvinā || 8 ||
śyenāv iva patatho havyadātaye somaṁ sutam mahiṣevāva gacchathaḥ |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca trir vartir yātam aśvinā || 9 ||
pibataṁ ca tṛpṇutaṁ cā ca gacchatam prajāṁ ca dhattaṁ draviṇaṁ ca dhattam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa corjaṁ no dhattam aśvinā || 10 ||
jayataṁ ca pra stutaṁ ca pra cāvatam prajāṁ ca dhattaṁ draviṇaṁ ca dhattam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa corjaṁ no dhattam aśvinā || 11 ||
hataṁ ca śatrūn yatataṁ ca mitriṇaḥ prajāṁ ca dhattaṁ draviṇaṁ ca dhattam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa corjaṁ no dhattam aśvinā || 12 ||
mitrāvaruṇavantā uta dharmavantā marutvantā jaritur gacchatho havam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa cādityair yātam aśvinā || 13 ||
aṅgirasvantā uta viṣṇuvantā marutvantā jaritur gacchatho havam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa cādityair yātam aśvinā || 14 ||
ṛbhumantā vṛṣaṇā vājavantā marutvantā jaritur gacchatho havam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa cādityair yātam aśvinā || 15 ||
brahma jinvatam uta jinvataṁ dhiyo hataṁ rakṣāṁsi sedhatam amīvāḥ |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca somaṁ sunvato aśvinā || 16 ||
kṣatraṁ jinvatam uta jinvataṁ nṝn hataṁ rakṣāṁsi sedhatam amīvāḥ |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca somaṁ sunvato aśvinā || 17 ||
dhenūr jinvatam uta jinvataṁ viśo hataṁ rakṣāṁsi sedhatam amīvāḥ |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca somaṁ sunvato aśvinā || 18 ||
atrer iva śṛṇutam pūrvyastutiṁ śyāvāśvasya sunvato madacyutā |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa cāśvinā tiroahnyam || 19 ||
sargām̐ iva sṛjataṁ suṣṭutīr upa śyāvāśvasya sunvato madacyutā |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa cāśvinā tiroahnyam || 20 ||
raśmīm̐r iva yacchatam adhvarām̐ upa śyāvāśvasya sunvato madacyutā |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa cāśvinā tiroahnyam || 21 ||
arvāg rathaṁ ni yacchatam pibataṁ somyam madhu |
ā yātam aśvinā gatam avasyur vām ahaṁ huve dhattaṁ ratnāni dāśuṣe || 22 ||
namovāke prasthite adhvare narā vivakṣaṇasya pītaye |
ā yātam aśvinā gatam avasyur vām ahaṁ huve dhattaṁ ratnāni dāśuṣe || 23 ||
svāhākṛtasya tṛmpataṁ sutasya devāv andhasaḥ |
ā yātam aśvinā gatam avasyur vām ahaṁ huve dhattaṁ ratnāni dāśuṣe || 24 ||
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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