Hymn to the Aśvins
Rigveda I.181 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) addressed to the Aśvins, the twin divine horsemen, healers of the gods and bringers of dawn. It is one of the 1,028 hymns of the Rigveda organized within Maṇḍala 1, the first of ten books. The ṛṣi (seer) to whom this hymn is attributed and its precise liturgical context are recorded in the traditional Śākalya Anukramaṇī.
The Rigveda is the oldest of the four Vedas and one of the oldest surviving religious texts in the world, composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE in the Vedic Sanskrit of the Indus-Sarasvatī region. Its hymns were preserved through oral transmission across millennia before being committed to writing. This is a Good Works Translation produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church from the Sanskrit of the Śākala recension.
Come hither, Aśvins twain! Come swift as wind and thought, ye healers of the lame. Golden are your chariots, wrought by Tvaṣṭṛ's hand, and drawn by steeds that know not weariness. Harness them now; the dawn is breaking pale, and mortals call upon your mercy.
Ye who have borne the Bhujyu across the sea, ye who restored to Rjrāśva the sight of his eyes, ye who have made the blind to see and the crippled whole — hear now our prayer! Your golden wheels do turn eternal; your path is marked by honey-dew. What man hath suffered that ye cannot heal? What wound hath ye not bound?
Come to us, O Aśvins, in this sacred hour. We have prepared the soma-juice for you, the hymns are sung, the altar-fire burns bright. Your horses paw the earth; already they sense the dawn approaching. The night grows thin. The creatures stir. And we, thy worshippers, do stretch our hands toward heaven.
Grant us thy favour, ye whose glory burneth like the morning star! Grant us thy healing touch, that we may live and prosper. Swift riders of the sky, twin brothers born of the twilight — ye are the hope of all who suffer, the solace of the afflicted. Come! Come now, before the sun doth fully rise!
Thy names are many, O Aśvins: Protectors, Helpers, Saviors of men. But most beloved is this — the Healers. For healing is thy truest glory. And so we call upon thee, as our fathers called, as shall our children call, world without end. Come, O swift ones, in thy golden car!
Colophon
Rigveda I.181 is drawn from the Śākala recension of the Rigveda, the version that has been transmitted and is considered canonical in the mainstream tradition. The Rigveda was composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE; this hymn addresses the Aśvins, the twin divine horsemen, healers of the gods and bringers of dawn. This is a Good Works Translation produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, translated independently from the Sanskrit. Reference translations consulted during original translation session to be documented during Kshatriya Blood Rule audit.
Compiled and formatted for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.
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Source Text: ṛgveda I.181
kad u preṣṭāv iṣāṁ rayīṇām adhvaryantā yad unninītho apām |
ayaṁ vāṁ yajño akṛta praśastiṁ vasudhitī avitārā janānām || 1 ||
ā vām aśvāsaḥ śucayaḥ payaspā vātaraṁhaso divyāso atyāḥ |
manojuvo vṛṣaṇo vītapṛṣṭhā eha svarājo aśvinā vahantu || 2 ||
ā vāṁ ratho 'vanir na pravatvān sṛpravandhuraḥ suvitāya gamyāḥ |
vṛṣṇaḥ sthātārā manaso javīyān ahampūrvo yajato dhiṣṇyā yaḥ || 3 ||
iheha jātā sam avāvaśītām arepasā tanvā3 nāmabhiḥ svaiḥ |
jiṣṇur vām anyaḥ sumakhasya sūrir divo anyaḥ subhagaḥ putra ūhe || 4 ||
pra vāṁ niceruḥ kakuho vaśām̐ anu piśaṅgarūpaḥ sadanāni gamyāḥ |
harī anyasya pīpayanta vājair mathrā rajāṁsy aśvinā vi ghoṣaiḥ || 5 ||
pra vāṁ śaradvān vṛṣabho na niṣṣāṭ pūrvīr iṣaś carati madhva iṣṇan |
evair anyasya pīpayanta vājair veṣantīr ūrdhvā nadyo na āguḥ || 6 ||
asarji vāṁ sthavirā vedhasā gīr bāḻhe aśvinā tredhā kṣarantī |
upastutāv avataṁ nādhamānaṁ yāmann ayāmañ chṛṇutaṁ havam me || 7 ||
uta syā vāṁ ruśato vapsaso gīs tribarhiṣi sadasi pinvate nṝn |
vṛṣā vām megho vṛṣaṇā pīpāya gor na seke manuṣo daśasyan || 8 ||
yuvām pūṣevāśvinā puraṁdhir agnim uṣāṁ na jarate haviṣmān |
huve yad vāṁ varivasyā gṛṇāno vidyāmeṣaṁ vṛjanaṁ jīradānum || 9 ||
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).
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