Hymn to the Aśvins
Rigveda VI.62 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 6 of the Rigveda, one of the 1,028 hymns organized within the ten books of the oldest Veda. The Rigveda was composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE in Vedic Sanskrit and preserved through oral transmission across millennia.
This is a Good Works Translation produced for the Good Works Library from the Sanskrit of the Śākala recension.
1. I praise the two heroes who prevail over this heaven; I call the two Aśvins, singing out with hymns — who at once, at the break of dawn, reach the ends of the earth, eager to yoke their team across the wide expanses.
2. Moving to the sacrifice with their bright steeds, the two have made the chariot's radiance shine through the regions. Measuring out the many immeasurable wide spaces, you two cross the waters, the deserts, and the plains.
3. You two, mighty ones, have thus driven that unfailing course continually with your horses, through devotion — with mind-swift, vigorous steeds — to lay to rest the distress of the mortal who makes offering.
4. The two, having yoked their team, attend to the newest hymn of the one who praises. Bringing splendor, vigor, refreshment, and strength — may the ancient priest worship the two undeceiving youths.
5. The two graceful, wondrous ones, most capable of all — ancient ones — I seek to win with newest speech: who have become most beneficent to the one who declares, to the one who praises, to the one who sings, they of wondrous gift.
6. You two carried Bhujyu, the son of Tugra, out of the waters, out of the sea, through the regions with your flying steeds — bending your course with dustless teams, with winged steeds, out of the lap of the flood.
7. Split open the rock with your victorious chariot, O mighty ones, at the heard cry of Vadhrimatī. Granting favor, you two made the cow swell with milk for Śayu; and so, swift ones, you gave good favor to Cyavāna.
8. Whatever wrath of the gods there is from of old, as great as the two world-halves, and whatever wrath among mortals — that burning harm, O Ādityas, O Vasus, O Rudras, place upon the one allied with the demons.
9. May Mitra and Varuṇa, who ordain the two kings in due season, take note of the region — and turn a weapon against the deep-lying demon, even against the deceitful one, against the treacherous-speaking Ānava.
10. Drive, you two, with your inner wheels, the circuit for the offspring, with the shining, hero-filled chariot; with a power that sets evil apart, turn away even the heads of the mortal foes who seek to harm.
11. Come hither to us with your farthest, your middle, and your nearest teams of steeds. Even of the firm cow-pen, open wide the doors for the one who sings your praise, O you of wondrous bounty.
Translator's note: Verses 8–9 shift address from the Aśvins to Mitra, Varuṇa, and the Ādityas/Vasus/Rudras, which is preserved as it stands in the Sanskrit rather than smoothed over. "Ānava" (v. 9) is left untranslated as a proper name — it denotes the Ānava people/tribe (descendants of Anu) rather than a common noun, and the exact sense of "droghāya cid vacasa ānavāya" is uncertain. "Vadhrimatī" (v. 7) is likewise kept as a proper name referring to a figure from Aśvin legend rather than rendered as a common noun.
Colophon
Rigveda VI.62 is drawn from the Śākala recension of the Rigveda, composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE. This is a Good Works Translation rendered verse by verse from the Sanskrit text printed below. Prepared for the Good Work Library by the Tianmu Anglican Church with AI-assisted translation.
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Source Text: ṛgveda VI.62
Sanskrit source text from the Aufrecht edition (1877) via GRETIL (Van Nooten & Holland input). Presented here for reference, study, and verification alongside the English translation above.
stuṣe narā divo asya prasantāśvinā huve jaramāṇo arkaiḥ |
yā sadya usrā vyuṣi jmo antān yuyūṣataḥ pary urū varāṁsi || 1 ||
tā yajñam ā śucibhiś cakramāṇā rathasya bhānuṁ rurucū rajobhiḥ |
purū varāṁsy amitā mimānāpo dhanvāny ati yātho ajrān || 2 ||
tā ha tyad vartir yad aradhram ugretthā dhiya ūhathuḥ śaśvad aśvaiḥ |
manojavebhir iṣiraiḥ śayadhyai pari vyathir dāśuṣo martyasya || 3 ||
tā navyaso jaramāṇasya manmopa bhūṣato yuyujānasaptī |
śubham pṛkṣam iṣam ūrjaṁ vahantā hotā yakṣat pratno adhrug yuvānā || 4 ||
tā valgū dasrā puruśākatamā pratnā navyasā vacasā vivāse |
yā śaṁsate stuvate śambhaviṣṭhā babhūvatur gṛṇate citrarātī || 5 ||
tā bhujyuṁ vibhir adbhyaḥ samudrāt tugrasya sūnum ūhathū rajobhiḥ |
areṇubhir yojanebhir bhujantā patatribhir arṇaso nir upasthāt || 6 ||
vi jayuṣā rathyā yātam adriṁ śrutaṁ havaṁ vṛṣaṇā vadhrimatyāḥ |
daśasyantā śayave pipyathur gām iti cyavānā sumatim bhuraṇyū || 7 ||
yad rodasī pradivo asti bhūmā heḻo devānām uta martyatrā |
tad ādityā vasavo rudriyāso rakṣoyuje tapur aghaṁ dadhāta || 8 ||
ya īṁ rājānāv ṛtuthā vidadhad rajaso mitro varuṇaś ciketat |
gambhīrāya rakṣase hetim asya droghāya cid vacasa ānavāya || 9 ||
antaraiś cakrais tanayāya vartir dyumatā yātaṁ nṛvatā rathena |
sanutyena tyajasā martyasya vanuṣyatām api śīrṣā vavṛktam || 10 ||
ā paramābhir uta madhyamābhir niyudbhir yātam avamābhir arvāk |
dṛḻhasya cid gomato vi vrajasya duro vartaṁ gṛṇate citrarātī || 11 ||
Source Colophon
Sanskrit text of the Rigveda, Śākala recension. The standard scholarly edition is the Bombay Oriental (Vishva Bandhu, 5 vols., 1963–66). IAST transliteration available from GRETIL (Göttingen Register of Electronic Texts in Indian Languages) and Vedaweb (University of Cologne). Both sources are open access. IAST transliteration from the Aufrecht edition (1877) via GRETIL (Van Nooten & Holland input, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).