Hymn to the Aśvins
Rigveda VI.63 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 by the New Tianmu Anglican Church from the Sanskrit of the Śākala recension.
Ye Aśvins, golden-armed ones, with fleet steeds and immortal power — to you we lift our voices in song! Your chariot gleams bright as the sun; your horses fly swifter than eagles. No barrier can stay your progress; no distance can slow your course.
Ye are the foremost among the deities who hear our prayer. Even before the dawn breaks, ye are already journeying through the sky, bearing light and hope to all beings. The ṛṣis know you well; the fathers of old have called upon your names since time immemorial.
In your hands rest the seeds of medicine and healing. Ye have saved men from the jaws of death itself. To you come the injured and the ill, the desperate and the forlorn — and none depart from your presence without blessing. Ye are twin embodiments of compassion and prowess.
Your steeds carry you across all worlds — the realm above, the realm of mortals, and the realm below. Nothing is hidden from your sight; nothing is beyond your reach. You see the needs of all creatures and hasten to their aid. Swift as thought, powerful as thunder, yet gentle as the evening breeze — such is your nature.
We praise your wisdom, O healers divine. We praise your courage and your strength. Grant us safe passage through the perils of this world. Bless our endeavors and crown our works with success. May we ever dwell under the shelter of your protection.
Come unto us now, O generous ones, and accept this hymn of gratitude and reverence.
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 VI.63
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.
kva1 tyā valgū puruhūtādya dūto na stomo 'vidan namasvān |
ā yo arvāṅ nāsatyā vavarta preṣṭhā hy asatho asya manman || 1 ||
aram me gantaṁ havanāyāsmai gṛṇānā yathā pibātho andhaḥ |
pari ha tyad vartir yātho riṣo na yat paro nāntaras tuturyāt || 2 ||
akāri vām andhaso varīmann astāri barhiḥ suprāyaṇatamam |
uttānahasto yuvayur vavandā vāṁ nakṣanto adraya āñjan || 3 ||
ūrdhvo vām agnir adhvareṣv asthāt pra rātir eti jūrṇinī ghṛtācī |
pra hotā gūrtamanā urāṇo 'yukta yo nāsatyā havīman || 4 ||
adhi śriye duhitā sūryasya rathaṁ tasthau purubhujā śatotim |
pra māyābhir māyinā bhūtam atra narā nṛtū janiman yajñiyānām || 5 ||
yuvaṁ śrībhir darśatābhir ābhiḥ śubhe puṣṭim ūhathuḥ sūryāyāḥ |
pra vāṁ vayo vapuṣe 'nu paptan nakṣad vāṇī suṣṭutā dhiṣṇyā vām || 6 ||
ā vāṁ vayo 'śvāso vahiṣṭhā abhi prayo nāsatyā vahantu |
pra vāṁ ratho manojavā asarjīṣaḥ pṛkṣa iṣidho anu pūrvīḥ || 7 ||
puru hi vām purubhujā deṣṇaṁ dhenuṁ na iṣam pinvatam asakrām |
stutaś ca vām mādhvī suṣṭutiś ca rasāś ca ye vām anu rātim agman || 8 ||
uta ma ṛjre purayasya raghvī sumīḻhe śatam peruke ca pakvā |
śāṇḍo dād dhiraṇinaḥ smaddiṣṭīn daśa vaśāso abhiṣāca ṛṣvān || 9 ||
saṁ vāṁ śatā nāsatyā sahasrāśvānām purupanthā gire dāt |
bharadvājāya vīra nū gire dād dhatā rakṣāṁsi purudaṁsasā syuḥ || 10 ||
ā vāṁ sumne variman sūribhiḥ ṣyām || 11 ||
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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