Hymn 125 to Svanaya from the Rigveda - Book I
Summary: This page presents Hymn CXXV from the Rigveda Book I, one of Hinduism's oldest sacred scriptures, translated by Ralph T.H. Griffith. The hymn is addressed to Svanaya, a Vedic deity associated with prosperity and abundance. Readers will find the complete Sanskrit hymn with English translation, offering insight into Vedic religious practices and the veneration of divine powers in ancient Hindu tradition.
HYMN 125. Svanaya.
1. COMING at early morn he gives his treasure; the prudent one receives and entertains him.
Thereby increasing still his life and offspring, he comes with brave sons to abundant riches.
2 Rich shall he be in gold and kine and horses. Indra bestows on him great vital power,
Who
stays thee, as thou comest, with his treasure, like game caught in the net, O early comer.
3 Longing, I came this morning to the pious, the son of sacrifice, with car wealth. laden.
Give him to drink juice of the stalk that gladdens; prosper with pleasant hymns the Lord of Heroes.
4 Health-bringing streams, as milch-cows, flow to profit him who hath worshipped, him who now
will worship.
To him who freely gives and fills on all sides full streams of fatness flow and
make him famous.
5 On the high ridge of heaven he stands exalted, yea, to the Gods he goes, the liberal giver.
The streams, the waters flow for him with fatness: to him this guerdon ever yields abundance.
6 For those who give rich meeds are all these splendours, for those who give rich meeds suns shine
in heaven.
The givers of rich meeds are made immortal; the givers of rich fees prolong their
lifetime.
7 Let not the liberal sink to sin and sorrow, never decay the pious -chiefs who worship!
Let every man besides be their protection, and let affliction fall upon the miserly.
Source: These hymns are reproduced from An English translation of the Vedas by Ralph T.H. Griffith, 1896. Griffith wrote in a poetic, archaic style. In order to make the hymns sound like English poetry, he often compromised the original meaning of the Sanskrit words. Further, his Sanskrit knowledge was limited by the scholarship of the 19th century. For many Indian readers, this feels distant, making his work less accessible than modern prose translations. This page has been formatted, and the hymns are selected and organized by Jayaram V for Hinduwebsite.com. Hymn numbers have been changed from Roman numerals to standard numbers.