Rig Veda Sukta 28
Mandala 6Sukta 288 Mantras

Sukta 28

Sukta 6.28

Rishi

Bharadvāja (traditional for Maṇḍala 6; this hymn is the famous Go-sūkta in Book 6)

Devata

Go (Cows) / associated with Indra and Uṣas (symbolic powers of light and increase)

Chandas

Triṣṭubh (probable for RV 6.28.1)

RV 6.28, słynny Go-sūkta Bharadvāji, błogosławi przybycie i osiedlenie się krów w goṣṭha (oborze/zagrodzie) jako źródło pomyślności, radości i wzrostu. Sławi krowy jako pomyślne, o wielu postaciach, płodne moce, związane z blaskiem podobnym do Uṣas i potęgą Indry, prosząc jednocześnie, aby ich mleko, płodność i opieka nieustannie karmiły dom i ofiarę.

Recitation with translationRig Veda 6.28

Mantras

Mantra 1

आ गावो अग्मन्नुत भद्रमक्रन्त्सीदन्तु गोष्ठे रणयन्त्वस्मे । प्रजावतीः पुरुरूपा इह स्युरिन्द्राय पूर्वीरुषसो दुहानाः ॥

Krowy przybyły i uczyniły dobro; niechaj osiądą w świetlistej oborze i przyniosą nam rozkosz. Niech będą tu, bogate w potomstwo i o wielu postaciach, jak dawne Jutrenze dojące dla Indry, strumienie światła wydające swą słodycz.

Mantra 2

इन्द्रो यज्वने पृणते च शिक्षत्युपेद्ददाति न स्वं मुषायति । भूयोभूयो रयिमिदस्य वर्धयन्नभिन्ने खिल्ये नि दधाति देवयुम् ॥

Indra poucza składającego ofiarę, który daje i napełnia; zbliża się i obdarza, nie kradnie tego, co jest własnością. Raz po raz pomnaża on jego bogactwo, a na nieprzerwanym otwartym polu osadza duszę szukającą Boga.

Mantra 3

न ता नशन्ति न दभाति तस्करो नासामामित्रो व्यथिरा दधर्षति । देवाँश्च याभिर्यजते ददाति च ज्योगित्ताभिः सचते गोपतिः सह ॥

Te Promienie, Krowy Światłości, nie giną; żaden złodziej nie może ich oszukać. Żadna wroga siła, żaden drżący lęk nie może ich przemóc. Tymiż właśnie mocami, którymi szukający składa ofiary Bogom i również daje, z tymi Pan Promieni, prawdziwy Stróż wewnątrz, trwa i łączy się na zawsze.

Mantra 4

न ता अर्वा रेणुककाटो अश्नुते न संस्कृतत्रमुप यन्ति ता अभि । उरुगायमभयं तस्य ता अनु गावो मर्तस्य वि चरन्ति यज्वनः ॥

Żaden szybki napastnik, żaden wzbudzający kurz pościg nie dosięga ich; nie zbliżają się one do dobrze zastawionej pułapki. Podążają za szeroko kroczącym, za nieustraszonym, pod tą ochroną Promienie swobodnie przemieszczają się przez śmiertelnika, który składa ofiarę, wędrując bez przeszkody.

Mantra 5

गावो भगो गाव इन्द्रो मे अच्छान्गावः सोमस्य प्रथमस्य भक्षः । इमा या गावः स जनास इन्द्र इच्छामीद्धृदा मनसा चिदिन्द्रम् ॥

Promienie są Bhagą, rozradzająca cząstką; Promienie są Indrą przychodzącym do mnie. Promienie są pierwszym pokarmem Somy. Te Promienie, które są, oni są ludem Indry; i Indrę szukam zaprawdę sercem i myślą.

Mantra 6

यूयं गावो मेदयथा कृशं चिदश्रीरं चित्कृणुथा सुप्रतीकम् । भद्रं गृहं कृणुथ भद्रवाचो बृहद्वो वय उच्यते सभासु ॥

Wy, o Promienie, sprawiacie, że nawet chudy staje się pełny; nawet źle ukształtowanego czynicie pięknym w obliczu. Czynicie dom szczęśliwym mieszkaniem, mowę czynicie pomyślną; wielka jest siła życia, która o was się głosi w zgromadzeniach.

Mantra 7

प्रजावतीः सूयवसं रिशन्तीः शुद्धा अपः सुप्रपाणे पिबन्तीः । मा वः स्तेन ईशत माघशंसः परि वो हेती रुद्रस्य वृज्याः ॥

O Promienie, bogate w potomstwo, pasące się na dobrej pastwie, pijące czyste wody na pięknym miejscu napojenia, niech żaden złodziej nad wami nie panuje, niech żaden zły mówca nie przeważa. Dokoła was pocisk Rudry niech zostanie odwrócony.

Mantra 8

उपेदमुपपर्चनमासु गोषूप पृच्यताम् । उप ऋषभस्य रेतस्युपेन्द्र तव वीर्ये ॥

Niech ten czyn ścisłego złączenia i krzewienia połączy się z tymi Promieniami; niech zmiesza się z nasieniem Byka. Blisko jest, o Indro, twoja bohaterska siła, niech wejdzie tutaj i pomnaża.

Inside Sukta 28

How it unfolds

  1. Where it opens

    The hymn opens with the auspicious arrival of the cows, asking them to settle in the luminous stall and delight the worshippers (goṣṭha as a seat of light and order).

  2. Development

    Cows are praised as fertile, many-formed, and as radiant streams akin to ancient Dawns, yielding sweetness for Indra and sustaining soma-like nourishment.

  3. Climax

    The identification intensifies: ‘cows’ become Bhaga (portion), Indra’s presence, and the first food of Soma—wealth and divinity braided into one vision of increase and power.

  4. Where it settles

    It concludes with a prayer for successful joining/fostering and generative potency (ṛṣabha-seed imagery), invoking Indra’s vīrya to enter and amplify prosperity and protection.

The deity: Gāvaḥ — with Indra and Uṣas associations

  • In the VedaThe hymn treats cows as living auspiciousness: they ‘come’ bringing bhadra (good fortune), settle in the goṣṭha, delight the people, and yield nourishing milk; they are also spoken of as light-like, Uṣas-like streams that ‘milk for Indra,’ and as the first sustenance connected with Soma.
  • Cosmic functionCows embody increase and continuity—food, wealth, and fertility in the social world—while symbolically mirroring the cosmic flow of light, waters, and soma-nourishment that sustains gods and humans.
  • Inner significanceAs inner symbols, ‘cows’ are the luminous powers and fruitful capacities of consciousness—resources that, when rightly ‘housed’ (disciplined and protected), yield clarity, vigor, and steady joy; Indra’s vīrya represents the force that releases and amplifies these energies.

The seer

  • Bharadvāja BārhaspatyaBharadvāja-gotra (Āṅgirasa/Bārhaspatya lineage) · A major seer of Maṇḍala 6, renowned for hymns of clear ritual utility and for articulating the Vedic vision of prosperity (rayi), protection, and right order through Agni–Indra–Bṛhaspati currents.

Famous verses

ā gāvo agmann (The cows have come)
Verse 6.28.1Sets the program of the whole sūkta: the cows’ auspicious arrival, settling in the goṣṭha, delighting the people, and their Uṣas-like, Indra-nourishing radiance.Read verse 6.28.1 →
gāvo bhago gāva indro (The cows are Bhaga; the cows are Indra)
Verse 6.28.5A peak interpretive verse that equates ‘cows/rays’ with Bhaga and Indra and links them to Soma’s first nourishment—showing the hymn’s symbolic depth beyond pastoral literalism.Read verse 6.28.5 →
उपेदमुपपर्चनमासु गोषूप पृच्यताम् । उप ऋषभस्य रेतस्युपेन्द्र तव वीर्ये ॥
Verse 6.28.8Concluding generative and empowering petition: the act of fostering is to be ‘joined’ to the cows and to the bull’s seed, calling Indra’s heroic force to enter and increase.Read verse 6.28.8 →

Attributes of the deity

  • Auspicious bringers of bhadra (good)
  • Prajāvatīḥ (progeny-bearing, fertile)
  • Pururūpāḥ (many-formed, abundant)
  • Milk-giving nourishment and soma-support
  • Protected wealth (rayi) and social stability
  • Linked to dawn-radiance (Uṣas) and Indra’s heroic power

Also by this seer

  • Primary authorship/traditional attribution of many hymns in Rig Veda Maṇḍala 6 (Bharadvāja family book)
  • Hymns invoking Agni, Indra, and the Maruts for protection and victory (Maṇḍala 6 core themes)
  • Traditional association with the Bharadvāja priestly lineage influential in later Śrauta and Gṛhya ritual culture

The rite, step by step

  • Purification and settling of intention (saṅkalpa) for go-rakṣā (cattle protection) and puṣṭi (increase).
  • Kindling of a small gṛhya fire (or approach to the āhavanīya in a śrauta setting) and invocation of auspiciousness.
  • Recitation of RV 6.28 as cows are brought in, counted, or ceremonially ‘settled’ into the goṣṭha; sprinkling/marking for protection as customary.
  • Concluding śānti-style prayer for fertility, freedom from harm, and continuous milk-flow; respectful circumambulation and release.
  • Distribution of blessed food/milk to household members, emphasizing gratitude and non-harm toward the herd.

Offerings

  • Ghṛta (ghee) into fire (where applicable)
  • Milk/curd as a symbolic offering and shared blessing
  • Soma-analogue offerings in later practice (where ritually appropriate)
  • Kuśa water/sprinkling for protection (customary ancillary act)

Frequently Asked Questions

Because they are seen as living auspiciousness—food, wealth, fertility, and social stability—and also as symbols of radiant powers that nourish the gods (especially Indra) and sustain the sacrifice.

It works on two levels: it blesses real herds and milk-prosperity, and it also uses ‘cows’ as a symbol for rays of light, abundance, and the fruitful energies of life and mind.

Commonly at dawn or during cattle-related occasions—bringing cows to the stall, seeking protection from harm, or praying for fertility and steady milk—often alongside simple household offerings like ghee or milk.

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