Ushas

Ushas

Ushas ( _sa. उषस्; "IAST|uṣas"), Sanskrit for "dawn", [citation|last=Apte |first=Vaman Shivram |title=The Practical Sanskrit Dictionary |year=1965 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |location=New Delhi |isbn=81-208-0567-4|edition=4th, p. 304.] is a Vedic deity, and consequently a Hindu deity as well.

Ushas is an exalted divinity in the Rig Veda, sometimes spoken of in the plural, "the Dawns." She is portrayed as welcoming birds and warding off evil spirits, and as a beautifully adorned young woman riding in a golden chariot on her path across the sky.

Twenty of the 1028 hymns of the Rig Veda are dedicated to the Dawn: Book 7 has seven hymns, books 4–6 have two hymns each, and the younger books 1 and 10 have six and one respectively. In RV 6.64.1-2 (trans. Griffith) Ushas is invoked as follows:
# "The radiant Dawns have risen up for glory, in their white splendour like the waves of waters."
"She maketh paths all easy, fair to travel, and, rich, hath shown herself benign and friendly."
# "We see that thou art good: far shines thy lustre; thy beams, thy splendours have flown up to heaven."
"Decking thyself, thou makest bare thy bosom, shining in majesty, thou Goddess Morning."

In his "Secret of the Veda", Aurobindo described Ushas as "the medium of the awakening, the activity and the growth of the other gods; she is the first condition of the Vedic realisation. By her increasing illumination the whole nature of man is clarified; through her [mankind] arrives at the Truth, through her he enjoys [Truth's] beatitude." [citation|author=Aurobindo|title=Secret of the Veda|publisher=Lotus Press|location=Twin Lakes|isbn=0-914955-19-5|year=1995, p. 283.]

In the "family books" of the RigVeda (e.g. RV 6.64.5), Ushas is poetically identified as a divine daughter—a "IAST|divó duhitâ" —of Dyaus Pita "Sky Father." This identification is taken literally in the traditional genealogies of Hindu mythology.

Sanskrit "IAST|uṣas" is an "s"-stem, i.e. the genitive case is "IAST|uṣásas". It is from PIE "PIE|*h₂ausos-", cognate to Greek *Ηως and Latin "Aurora".

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  • Ushas — (उषस्; Uṣas) ist eine Göttin der vedischen Mythologie; die Personifikation der Morgenröte. Im heutigen Glauben der Hindus hat sie keine Bedeutung. Ushas ist die Mutter, Frau, Schwester[1] oder Tochter der Sonne [2], die Tochter[3] oder Schwester… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Ushas —    Ushas is the Vedic goddess of the dawn. The night goddess, Ratri, is often called her sister. Some of the most beautiful hymns of the VEDAS are addressed to Ushas. Sometimes she is seen as the mother of the Sun god and sometimes his wife. She… …   Encyclopedia of Hinduism

  • Ushas — [o͞o′shäs] n. [Sans Uṣas, dawn] the Hindu, or Vedic, goddess of the dawn …   English World dictionary

  • Ushas — noun Vedic and Hindu female deity, personifying the dawn, usually mentioned in plural. She is portrayed as welcoming birds and warding off evil spirits, and as a beautifully adorned young woman riding in a golden chariot on her path across the… …   Wiktionary

  • Ushas Mons — Image radar d Ushas Mons obtenue par la sonde Magellan[1]. Géographie et géologie Coordonnées …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Ushas Mons — in der Draufsicht. Radarbild in Falschfarben. Der Ushas Mons (lateinisch für Berg der Uṣas, nach der indischen Göttin der Morgenröte) ist ein Vulkan auf der Venus. Der Schildvulkan ist ungefähr zwei Kilometer hoch und hat einen Durchmesser von… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Ushas Mons — Infobox feature on Venus name= Ushas Mons caption=Radar image of Ushas Mons type= Mountain latitude=24.3 N or S=S longitude=324.6 E or W=E diameter=413 km eponym=UshasUshas Mons is a 2 kilometer high (1.25 mile) volcano in the southern hemisphere …   Wikipedia

  • Ushas — /oosh euhs, oo shahs /, n. Dawn, a Vedic deity, daughter of Sky and sister of Night. Also, Usha /oosh euh, oo shah /. [ < Skt usas] * * * …   Universalium

  • Ushas — Morgenrødens gudinde (Indien) …   Danske encyklopædi

  • ushás — उषस् …   Indonesian dictionary

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