Hymn to the Aśvins
Rigveda VIII.35 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 8 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. With Agni, with Indra, with Varuṇa, with Viṣṇu, with the Ādityas, with the Rudras, with the Vasus as your companions — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, drink the soma, O Aśvins.
2. With all our thoughts, with the whole world, O strong ones, with Heaven, Earth, and the mountains as your companions — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, drink the soma, O Aśvins.
3. With all the gods, with the thrice-eleven, with the Waters here, with the Maruts, with the Bhṛgus as your companions — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, drink the soma, O Aśvins.
4. Delight in the sacrifice, mark my call; both gods, come here to the pressing — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, bring us nourishment, O Aśvins.
5. Delight in the praise-song as young men delight in maidens; both gods, come here to the pressing — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, bring us nourishment, O Aśvins.
6. Delight in the songs, delight in the rite; both gods, come here to the pressing — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, bring us nourishment, O Aśvins.
7. You two fly like golden birds to the tree; you approach the pressed soma like two bulls descending — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, come round three times on your circuit, O Aśvins.
8. You two fly like wild geese, like travelers on the road; you approach the pressed soma like two bulls descending — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, come round three times on your circuit, O Aśvins.
9. You two fly like falcons to receive the offering; you approach the pressed soma like two bulls descending — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, come round three times on your circuit, O Aśvins.
10. Drink, and be satisfied, and come; grant us offspring, and grant us wealth — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, grant us vigor, O Aśvins.
11. Conquer, and be extolled, and favor us; grant us offspring, and grant us wealth — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, grant us vigor, O Aśvins.
12. Strike down our enemies, and set our allies in order; grant us offspring, and grant us wealth — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, grant us vigor, O Aśvins.
13. Accompanied by Mitra and Varuṇa, and by right order, accompanied by the Maruts, you go to the singer's call — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, come with the Ādityas, O Aśvins.
14. Accompanied by the Aṅgirases, and by Viṣṇu, accompanied by the Maruts, you go to the singer's call — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, come with the Ādityas, O Aśvins.
15. Accompanied by the Ṛbhus, O bulls, accompanied by strength, accompanied by the Maruts, you go to the singer's call — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, come with the Ādityas, O Aśvins.
16. Quicken the sacred word, and quicken our thoughts; strike down the demons, drive off the sicknesses — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, come to the presser's soma, O Aśvins.
17. Quicken our dominion, and quicken our men; strike down the demons, drive off the sicknesses — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, come to the presser's soma, O Aśvins.
18. Quicken our milk-cows, and quicken our people; strike down the demons, drive off the sicknesses — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, come to the presser's soma, O Aśvins.
19. Hear, as once you heard Atri, the ancient praise of Śyāvāśva who presses the soma, you two roused by its exhilaration — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, O Aśvins, hear the offering kept from the day before.
20. Send forth, like torrents, your fine praises toward Śyāvāśva who presses the soma, you two roused by its exhilaration — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, O Aśvins, toward the offering kept from the day before.
21. Hold the rites in check, like reins, toward Śyāvāśva who presses the soma, you two roused by its exhilaration — of one accord with Dawn and Sun, O Aśvins, toward the offering kept from the day before.
22. Turn your chariot this way, drink the sweetness of the soma; come, O Aśvins, come — seeking your help I call you both; give treasures to the one who offers.
23. At the word of homage, when the rite is set in motion, come, O heroes, to drink of the exhilarating draught; come, O Aśvins, come — seeking your help I call you both; give treasures to the one who offers.
24. Be satisfied, O gods, with the pressed soma offered with the cry "svāhā"; come, O Aśvins, come — seeking your help I call you both; give treasures to the one who offers.
Translator's note: several words resist a single clean English equivalent and are rendered conservatively — "sajoṣasā" (recurring in every verse's refrain) as "of one accord with," meaning the Aśvins act in concert with Dawn and Sun; "tiroahnyam" (19–21) as "kept from the day before," referring to soma pressed on the previous day; "madacyutā" (19–21) as "roused by its exhilaration," describing the Aśvins as stirred by the soma's intoxicating effect.
Colophon
Rigveda VIII.35 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 VIII.35
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.
agninendreṇa varuṇena viṣṇunādityai rudrair vasubhiḥ sacābhuvā |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca somam pibatam aśvinā || 1 ||
viśvābhir dhībhir bhuvanena vājinā divā pṛthivyādribhiḥ sacābhuvā |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca somam pibatam aśvinā || 2 ||
viśvair devais tribhir ekādaśair ihādbhir marudbhir bhṛgubhiḥ sacābhuvā |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca somam pibatam aśvinā || 3 ||
juṣethāṁ yajñam bodhataṁ havasya me viśveha devau savanāva gacchatam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ceṣaṁ no voḻham aśvinā || 4 ||
stomaṁ juṣethāṁ yuvaśeva kanyanāṁ viśveha devau savanāva gacchatam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ceṣaṁ no voḻham aśvinā || 5 ||
giro juṣethām adhvaraṁ juṣethāṁ viśveha devau savanāva gacchatam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ceṣaṁ no voḻham aśvinā || 6 ||
hāridraveva patatho vaned upa somaṁ sutam mahiṣevāva gacchathaḥ |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca trir vartir yātam aśvinā || 7 ||
haṁsāv iva patatho adhvagāv iva somaṁ sutam mahiṣevāva gacchathaḥ |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca trir vartir yātam aśvinā || 8 ||
śyenāv iva patatho havyadātaye somaṁ sutam mahiṣevāva gacchathaḥ |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca trir vartir yātam aśvinā || 9 ||
pibataṁ ca tṛpṇutaṁ cā ca gacchatam prajāṁ ca dhattaṁ draviṇaṁ ca dhattam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa corjaṁ no dhattam aśvinā || 10 ||
jayataṁ ca pra stutaṁ ca pra cāvatam prajāṁ ca dhattaṁ draviṇaṁ ca dhattam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa corjaṁ no dhattam aśvinā || 11 ||
hataṁ ca śatrūn yatataṁ ca mitriṇaḥ prajāṁ ca dhattaṁ draviṇaṁ ca dhattam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa corjaṁ no dhattam aśvinā || 12 ||
mitrāvaruṇavantā uta dharmavantā marutvantā jaritur gacchatho havam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa cādityair yātam aśvinā || 13 ||
aṅgirasvantā uta viṣṇuvantā marutvantā jaritur gacchatho havam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa cādityair yātam aśvinā || 14 ||
ṛbhumantā vṛṣaṇā vājavantā marutvantā jaritur gacchatho havam |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa cādityair yātam aśvinā || 15 ||
brahma jinvatam uta jinvataṁ dhiyo hataṁ rakṣāṁsi sedhatam amīvāḥ |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca somaṁ sunvato aśvinā || 16 ||
kṣatraṁ jinvatam uta jinvataṁ nṝn hataṁ rakṣāṁsi sedhatam amīvāḥ |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca somaṁ sunvato aśvinā || 17 ||
dhenūr jinvatam uta jinvataṁ viśo hataṁ rakṣāṁsi sedhatam amīvāḥ |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa ca somaṁ sunvato aśvinā || 18 ||
atrer iva śṛṇutam pūrvyastutiṁ śyāvāśvasya sunvato madacyutā |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa cāśvinā tiroahnyam || 19 ||
sargām̐ iva sṛjataṁ suṣṭutīr upa śyāvāśvasya sunvato madacyutā |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa cāśvinā tiroahnyam || 20 ||
raśmīm̐r iva yacchatam adhvarām̐ upa śyāvāśvasya sunvato madacyutā |
sajoṣasā uṣasā sūryeṇa cāśvinā tiroahnyam || 21 ||
arvāg rathaṁ ni yacchatam pibataṁ somyam madhu |
ā yātam aśvinā gatam avasyur vām ahaṁ huve dhattaṁ ratnāni dāśuṣe || 22 ||
namovāke prasthite adhvare narā vivakṣaṇasya pītaye |
ā yātam aśvinā gatam avasyur vām ahaṁ huve dhattaṁ ratnāni dāśuṣe || 23 ||
svāhākṛtasya tṛmpataṁ sutasya devāv andhasaḥ |
ā yātam aśvinā gatam avasyur vām ahaṁ huve dhattaṁ ratnāni dāśuṣe || 24 ||
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).