The wise seers, Bṛhaspati and the Angirases, masters of sacred knowledge, took up the thunderbolt of Triṣandhi—the mighty weapon famed for slaying demons. With this thunderbolt, the Sun stands firm, well-guarded, and Indra, too, is steadfast. Triṣandhi, apportioned by the gods, is a source of strength and power. It was with this very oblation that the gods conquered all the worlds. Bṛhaspati and the Angirases unleashed the thunderbolt, Triṣandhi’s slaying weapon, to destroy the forces of darkness. Again and again, they poured forth this thunderbolt for the annihilation of demons. With the same might, Bṛhaspati, I anoint this army, invoking strength to vanquish our enemies. May all the gods who delight in the vaṣaṭ-uttered offering assemble, be pleased with this oblation, and grant victory both here and beyond. Let them come to the beloved offering of Triṣandhi, protect the great alliance by which demons were first defeated. Let the wind itself turn back the arrows of our foes. Let Indra shatter their arms, preventing them from aiming at us. May Āditya destroy their weapons, and may the Moon lead them onto a path from which there is no return. If the gods of old advanced, making prayers their armor and their own bodies a shield, then whatever they confronted, let all of it be rendered powerless before us. Triṣandhi, go forth with the army, accompanied by flesh-eaters and Death as your priest. Conquer the enemies and advance. Surround them with darkness, Triṣandhi; among those who have not offered clarified butter, let none reach me. Let the sharp-footed one descend upon the enemies, pouring out confusion. Today, let the enemy armies be bewildered in the abyss. Let them be deluded in the depths, their chosen ones destroyed again and again. Strike them down with this army. Whether the enemy is armored, unarmored, or rides in a chariot, let him be ensnared by the traps of the armored and the chariot, and lie defeated. Those who are armored, unarmored, or partly armored—let all be struck down in the abyss and devoured by dogs upon the earth. Those who ride in chariots or do not, those mounted or unmounted—let all those slain be devoured by vultures, hawks, and birds of prey. Let the hostile army, struck down in battle, lie as a heap of corpses, pierced and torn apart by jackals. Let those wounded in vital parts, who cry out and lie fallen, be devoured by great birds—especially those who oppose this westward offering of ours. May that offering, observed by the gods and irresistible, be the means by which Indra, slayer of Vṛtra, strikes down the enemy with his thunderbolt of triple edge. And then, O Earth, hear this hymn to you: Truth, greatness, order, might, consecration, austerity, sacred knowledge, and sacrifice uphold you. May you, broad Earth, companion in all that has been and will be, grant us a wide world. Unconfined in your middle for humankind, your slopes and valleys are even and abundant, bearing plants of many virtues. May you spread out for us and grant us riches. Upon you the ocean, rivers, and waters rest; food and peoples have come into being; the world moves and breathes upon you. Place us, O Earth, in the first and best. Your four directions are the Earth; food and peoples arise on you; you bear life in many forms. Place us among cattle and food. On you the people of old performed their deeds; upon you the gods overcame the demons. Grant us wealth, strength, and glory—of cattle, horses, and offspring. You are the supporter of all, rich in treasures, firm foundation, golden-breasted, the seat of the world, bearing the universal fire. With Indra and the Bull among gods, grant us wealth. The sleepless gods protect you, all-giving Earth, unfailing. May you, milking sweet and dear, nourish us with splendor. In the beginning, waters rested upon you in the ocean; the wise sought you out with their thoughts. Your heart in the highest heaven is covered with truth and immortality. Grant us strength and power in the highest realm. Upon you, the waters ever-moving flow together, day and night, without fail. Earth, rich in streams, milk for us abundance and nourish us with splendor. You were measured by the Aśvins; Viṣṇu strode upon you; Indra made you unconquered for himself, lord of might. Earth, our mother, pour out your milk for your child. Your mountains are the peaks, O Earth, the snowy ranges, your forests. May you be pleasant for us. Variegated, dark, red, all-formed, steadfast, protected by Indra—unconquered, unhurt, unbroken—I take my stand upon you, O Earth. Whatever is your middle, your navel, and those forms of strength arising from your body—place us upon them, flow over us. Earth is the mother, I am the son of Earth; Parjanya is the father—may he fill us. Upon you, O Earth, the altar is set; the all-crafting ones extend the sacrifice; singers measure their chants; bright offerings rise upward. May you, ever growing, make us grow. Whoever hates us, fights us, attacks us with mind or violence—bind them for us, O Earth, as those of old did. Born from you, mortals move upon you; you bear the two-footed and the four-footed. These five races of men are yours, O Earth, for whom the immortal light, the Sun, spreads his rays among mortals. May our offspring be united and complete; place sweet speech in me, O Earth. You are the universal mother of plants, steadfast, upheld by law; may we move upon you, all-supporting one, in happiness and safety. You have become great in your vast abode, mighty, moving with force, trembling swiftly; mighty Indra guards you from harm. Shine forth for us, O Earth, as gold in vision; let no one injure us. Agni is in the Earth, in the plants; the waters bear Agni; Agni is in the rays, within men, cows, horses—Agni is everywhere. Agni burns from the sky; through Agni, the god, the midspace is wide. Mortals kindle Agni, carrier of offerings, dear to ghee. Clothed in Agni, knowing the blackness of Earth, may she not make us sharp with her blazing power. Upon Earth, sacrifices are offered to the gods; mortals live upon her by their own food. May Earth grant us breath and life; let her not make us decrepit. Thus, the story unfolds: the gods, with their weapons and wisdom, conquer darkness and uphold the world, and the Earth, ever steadfast and nourishing, bears all life, offers abundance, and protects those who honor her.