Hymn to Uṣas
Rigveda VI.65 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. This same one, our daughter born of heaven, dawning over the human dwellings, has roused them. Through her white radiance she has made herself known through the nights, even through the darkness.
2. The dawns have set out with their ruddy-yoked horses; with shining chariots they gleam wondrously. Leading the way for the great sacrifice, they drive back the darkness of night.
3. Bringing fame, strength, nourishment, and vigor down to the mortal who makes offering — O Dawns, you who are bountiful and rule over heroic sons, grant favor, grant treasure today to the one who worships.
4. Now indeed there is treasure for the worshiper; now, O Dawns, for the heroic one who makes offering; now for the inspired singer who chants these hymns — you have carried it down before, even to one like me.
5. Now indeed, O Dawn who dwell upon the mountain ridge, the Aṅgirases sing of the cattle-stalls; with sacred chant and with formula they broke them open — the calling of the gods by men proved true.
6. Shine forth, daughter of heaven, for us as in ancient times, as you did for Bharadvāja, O bountiful one, for the worshiper. Grant wealth in strong sons to the one who sings your praise; bestow on us far-reaching fame.
Translator's note: verse 1's "ajīgaḥ" (from √jāgṛ, "to awaken") is rendered as "has roused them," though the exact grammatical force is debated. Verse 5's "adrisāno" ("dwelling on the mountain ridge") and "gotrā gavām" ("the cattle-stalls") allude to the Vala myth, in which the Aṅgiras poets use sacred chant to break open a rock enclosing stolen cows; the verse is translated conservatively without expanding on the myth beyond what the Sanskrit states.
Colophon
Rigveda VI.65 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.65
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.
eṣā syā no duhitā divojāḥ kṣitīr ucchantī mānuṣīr ajīgaḥ |
yā bhānunā ruśatā rāmyāsv ajñāyi tiras tamasaś cid aktūn || 1 ||
vi tad yayur aruṇayugbhir aśvaiś citram bhānty uṣasaś candrarathāḥ |
agraṁ yajñasya bṛhato nayantīr vi tā bādhante tama ūrmyāyāḥ || 2 ||
śravo vājam iṣam ūrjaṁ vahantīr ni dāśuṣa uṣaso martyāya |
maghonīr vīravat patyamānā avo dhāta vidhate ratnam adya || 3 ||
idā hi vo vidhate ratnam astīdā vīrāya dāśuṣa uṣāsaḥ |
idā viprāya jarate yad ukthā ni ṣma māvate vahathā purā cit || 4 ||
idā hi ta uṣo adrisāno gotrā gavām aṅgiraso gṛṇanti |
vy a1rkeṇa bibhidur brahmaṇā ca satyā nṛṇām abhavad devahūtiḥ || 5 ||
ucchā divo duhitaḥ pratnavan no bharadvājavad vidhate maghoni |
suvīraṁ rayiṁ gṛṇate rirīhy urugāyam adhi dhehi śravo naḥ || 6 ||
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).