विभूतिमूर्ति

The Victory Hymn

The war-weary Rama stood

With his slackened bow and hushed quiver

Worried in the battlefield of Lanka

In his battle against demon Ravana.

Just then came sage Agastya to him

Chanting the sacred and divine hymn –

Aditya Hriday, the holiest of hymns,

Capable of vanquishing

Even the most powerful of enemies….

O Sun-god!

Dispeller of darkness,

Glowing with the gold-like lamp of light,

Painting the eastern sky

With your myriad coloured rays,

Riding seven green-hued horses

With radiance adorned.

We bow to your majesty.

Ever-radiant Lord of the creation,

Seed of the universe,

Begetter of the world,

Fount of radiance, your rays animating

And sustaining the world’s existence,

And preserving the entire universe,

Appareled in shining beams;

Penetrator of darkness,

Remover of human sorrow.

We bow to you again.

Lord of the skies!

Life-giver to the universe,

Creator of water,

Causer of heavy rains,

Maker of sunshine,

All-pervading form;

Most refulgent of all refulgent things.

Brown-pigmented, red-hued,

Source of all death,

 Seer of past, present and future,

O Lord of the east!

We bow to you again and again.

O lord of planets and stars!

Creator, preserver and destroyer,

You, who exist within the souls of all spirits,

And keep awake even while they sleep,

You are capable of bestowing the fruits

Of all actions in the entire creation.

O king of the day!

Attired in a thousand rays,

You are victory personified,

And the source of all benediction,

O awesome dazzle of the universe,

Who make the lotus-buds bloom,

Overflowing with radiance, you are

Dispeller of darkness and ignorance,

Remover of inertia and cold,

Destroyer of the enemy,

When you assume your terrible anger,

Your aura of brilliance is like melted gold,

O bright-bodied, killer of darkness,

We bow to you yet again.

Having chanted the holy hymn

Thus spoke Agastya -

O heroic, gallant Rama

The very embodiment of Truth and Valour,

Shed this false shadow of inaction.

Here I give you this holy hymn of the Sun-god.

Whoever chants this hymn

In adversity, suffering and in fear,

Is at once rid of all suffering and dread.

The reverent chanting of this holy hymn

Always brings forth victory.

 It is an eternal hymn

Bringing the highest blessings,

Destroying all sins, worries and sorrows,

And bestowing longevity and invincibility.

O Raghav, descendent of Raghu,

By chanting this holy hymn thrice,

You will easily kill Ravana

And all the demons of his vast army.

Victory will bow and kiss your divine feet.

In this great war against Injustice and Evil.

Having given this  holy message

And his divine blessing to Rama,

The sage Agastya then quietly went back

To where he had come from.