Glory unto Uṣas, the radiant goddess! She cometh forth clothed in robes of gold and crimson. Her chariot is drawn by ruddy steeds. She rideth high above the mountains, and the darkness fleeth before her countenance.

O dawn-goddess! How fair art thou! Thy fingers do paint the sky with light. The eastern vault bloometh beneath thy touch. The stars retreat; the night withdraweth to its hidden realm. And thou alone dost stand victorious, radiant, eternal—ever young, ever fair, ever renewing the world.

Each day thou comest anew. No weariness toucheth thee, no fatigue diminisheth thy brilliance. Our fathers saw thee; we see thee; our children's children shall see thee, and thou shalt appear to them unchanged, immortal, never ageing, never failing.

Thou art the awakener of all life. The birds do sing at thy approach. The cattle rise from their rest. The housewife kindles her fire and prepares the meal. The warriors arm themselves; the merchants open their stalls. All the world doth wake and labor because thou hast come.

What enemy art thou to the darkness? Thou dost slay it utterly! The night cannot resist thy advance. No matter how thick the darkness, how vast and impenetrable, thy coming endeth it. And we, who dwell in the light of day, owe our very existence to thy daily triumph.

O Uṣas! Thou art the gift-giver. With thy light cometh hope. The man who despaired in the darkness findeth courage when thou dost arrive. The woman who wept through the long night doth dry her tears. The child who feared the night-demons sleepeth peacefully again.

Thus do we praise thee, O dawn-goddess! Come again tomorrow, and the day after, and forever. Grant us thy light, thy hope, thy gentle awakening. Let us never take for granted the gift of thy coming. For in thee we see the promise renewed each day—that darkness endeth, that light returneth, that all the world shall be made whole.