Hymn to the Aśvins
Rigveda IV.45 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 4 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.
Come now with the dawn, O Aśvins divine, ye lords of the morning twilight! We have prepared the sacred ground for your arrival; we have set out the offerings of honey and of milk, of butter and of grain. The hymns rise from our throats like the mists rise from the earth when Sūrya first touches the horizon. We cry out to you, and our voices carry far.
Your chariot is harnessed and ready; your golden seats are prepared. The wheels spin swiftly; the axles shine; every detail speaks of divine craftsmanship. Come now, leave the counsel of the devas in heaven and descend to us, for we need you desperately. Our needs are many, and we know that no other gods will answer with such swift compassion.
Mount your chariot now, O Aśvins, and come to us on wings of the morning wind! Your horses fly swiftly; your birds know the paths through sky and cloud. Come now, for the dawn calleth you, and we who dwell below call with voices that echo your own divine names. The sacred fire burneth to receive you; the priests await your coming.
We remember thy deeds, O Aśvins; we sing of thy marvels; we proclaim thy healing and thy power to all who will listen. Yet remembrance and proclamation are not enough. We long for your presence in our midst. We long to see your beautiful forms, to feel the warmth of your divine attention, to know that you hear us and will respond to our deepest need.
Come swiftly, then, in your golden chariot! Bring with you the gifts that only you can bestow — the power to heal, the blessing of youth and vitality, the protection that the righteous require. Come to us as the dawn comes to the darkness, inevitable and transformative, bringing light and new life. O Aśvins, hear our prayer! Come now, and be present among us!
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 IV.45
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.
eṣa sya bhānur ud iyarti yujyate rathaḥ parijmā divo asya sānavi |
pṛkṣāso asmin mithunā adhi trayo dṛtis turīyo madhuno vi rapśate || 1 ||
ud vām pṛkṣāso madhumanta īrate rathā aśvāsa uṣaso vyuṣṭiṣu |
aporṇuvantas tama ā parīvṛtaṁ sva1r ṇa śukraṁ tanvanta ā rajaḥ || 2 ||
madhvaḥ pibatam madhupebhir āsabhir uta priyam madhune yuñjāthāṁ ratham |
ā vartanim madhunā jinvathas patho dṛtiṁ vahethe madhumantam aśvinā || 3 ||
haṁsāso ye vām madhumanto asridho hiraṇyaparṇā uhuva uṣarbudhaḥ |
udapruto mandino mandinispṛśo madhvo na makṣaḥ savanāni gacchathaḥ || 4 ||
svadhvarāso madhumanto agnaya usrā jarante prati vastor aśvinā |
yan niktahastas taraṇir vicakṣaṇaḥ somaṁ suṣāva madhumantam adribhiḥ || 5 ||
ākenipāso ahabhir davidhvataḥ sva1r ṇa śukraṁ tanvanta ā rajaḥ |
sūraś cid aśvān yuyujāna īyate viśvām̐ anu svadhayā cetathas pathaḥ || 6 ||
pra vām avocam aśvinā dhiyaṁdhā rathaḥ svaśvo ajaro yo asti |
yena sadyaḥ pari rajāṁsi yātho haviṣmantaṁ taraṇim bhojam accha || 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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