Hymn to Uṣas
Rigveda III.61 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 3 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 by the New Tianmu Anglican Church from the Sanskrit of the Śākala recension.
O Uṣas, radiant and fair! O goddess of the breaking dawn! Thou comest forth in golden robes; thy splendour filleth all the sky. The stars do pale before thy face; the darkness flees away from thee. Thou wakest all the living world; thou callest forth the day to be.
The birds do sing when thou dost come; the cattle rise and leave their stalls. The mortals stir from sleep's soft veil and ready them for labour's toil. The merchants pack their wares and goods to venture forth upon the road. The priests do light the sacred flame and gather for the morning rite.
How many times hast thou returned, O Uṣas, daughter of the sky? Yet ever thou art fresh and new, yet ever thou dost bring new hope. The aged find new strength in thee; the young feel courage in thy light. The sick man lies upon his bed and watches for thy blessed rays.
Thou art the daughter of the night, the child of Dyaus the sky-god high. Thy mother was the dark that falls; thy father is the blazing sun. Between them dost thou stand at dawn, a vision fair beyond compare. Thy rosy fingers touch the clouds; thy golden light doth pour on earth.
O Uṣas, thou art kind and good; thou grantest blessings without end. Each morning bringeth thee anew to those who call upon thy name. The poor man hopeth when thou com'st; the widow findeth solace there. The maiden cometh to the well to gather water in the dawn.
Grant us the blessing of thy light; bestow upon us all good things. Let each new day bring hope renewed; let each new sunrise bring us strength. Guide us through the day ahead; keep us from danger, keep us safe. For ever let thy name be praised; for ever let thy glory shine.
Colophon
This hymn is drawn from the Śākala recension of the Rigveda, composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE. This is a Good Works Translation produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, translated independently from the Sanskrit. Reference translations consulted during original translation are to be documented during audit.
Compiled and formatted for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.
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Source Text: ṛgveda III.61
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.
uṣo vājena vājini pracetāḥ stomaṁ juṣasva gṛṇato maghoni |
purāṇī devi yuvatiḥ puraṁdhir anu vrataṁ carasi viśvavāre || 1 ||
uṣo devy amartyā vi bhāhi candrarathā sūnṛtā īrayantī |
ā tvā vahantu suyamāso aśvā hiraṇyavarṇām pṛthupājaso ye || 2 ||
uṣaḥ pratīcī bhuvanāni viśvordhvā tiṣṭhasy amṛtasya ketuḥ |
samānam arthaṁ caraṇīyamānā cakram iva navyasy ā vavṛtsva || 3 ||
ava syūmeva cinvatī maghony uṣā yāti svasarasya patnī |
sva1r janantī subhagā sudaṁsā āntād divaḥ papratha ā pṛthivyāḥ || 4 ||
acchā vo devīm uṣasaṁ vibhātīm pra vo bharadhvaṁ namasā suvṛktim |
ūrdhvam madhudhā divi pājo aśret pra rocanā ruruce raṇvasaṁdṛk || 5 ||
ṛtāvarī divo arkair abodhy ā revatī rodasī citram asthāt |
āyatīm agna uṣasaṁ vibhātīṁ vāmam eṣi draviṇam bhikṣamāṇaḥ || 6 ||
ṛtasya budhna uṣasām iṣaṇyan vṛṣā mahī rodasī ā viveśa |
mahī mitrasya varuṇasya māyā candreva bhānuṁ vi dadhe purutrā || 7 ||
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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