Ashva (, ) is the

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

word for a

horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 mi ...

, one of the significant animals finding references in the

Veda FIle:Atharva-Veda samhita page 471 illustration.png, upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the ''Atharvaveda''. The Vedas ( or ; ), sometimes collectively called the Veda, are a large body of relig ...

s as well as later Hindu scriptures. The word is cognate to

Avestan Avestan ( ) is the liturgical language of Zoroastrianism. It belongs to the Iranian languages, Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family and was First language, originally spoken during the Avestan period, Old ...

(),

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

'' equus'',

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

(),

Proto-Germanic Proto-Germanic (abbreviated PGmc; also called Common Germanic) is the linguistic reconstruction, reconstructed proto-language of the Germanic languages, Germanic branch of the Indo-European languages. Proto-Germanic eventually developed from ...

*''

ehwaz is the reconstructed Proto-Germanic name of the Elder Futhark ''e'' rune , meaning "horse" (cognate to Latin , Gaulish , Tocharian B , Sanskrit , Avestan and Old Irish ). In the Anglo-Saxon futhorc, it is continued as (properly , but spelled ...

'', obsolete Prussian Lithuanian (from

Proto-Balto-Slavic Proto-Balto-Slavic (PBS or PBSl) is a reconstructed hypothetical proto-language descending from Proto-Indo-European (PIE). From Proto-Balto-Slavic, the later Balto-Slavic languages are thought to have developed, composed of the Baltic and Sla ...

''*éśwāˀ''), all from

Proto-Indo-European Proto-Indo-European (PIE) is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European language family. No direct record of Proto-Indo-European exists; its proposed features have been derived by linguistic reconstruction from documented Indo-Euro ...

Usage in Vedas and Hindu mythology

Vedas

There are repeated references to the horse the

s (c. 1500 - 500 BC). In particular, the

Rigveda The ''Rigveda'' or ''Rig Veda'' (, , from wikt:ऋच्, ऋच्, "praise" and wikt:वेद, वेद, "knowledge") is an ancient Indian Miscellany, collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (''sūktas''). It is one of the four sacred canoni ...

has many equestrian scenes, often associated with

chariot A chariot is a type of vehicle similar to a cart, driven by a charioteer, usually using horses to provide rapid Propulsion, motive power. The oldest known chariots have been found in burials of the Sintashta culture in modern-day Chelyabinsk O ...

s. The Ashvins are

divine twins The Divine Twins are youthful horsemen, either gods or demigods, who serve as rescuers and healers in Proto-Indo-European mythology. Like other Proto-Indo-European divinities, the Divine Twins are not directly attested by archaeological or writte ...

named for their horsemanship. Although the usual assumption has been that the

Indo-Aryan migration The Indo-Aryan migrations were the migrations into the Indian subcontinent of Indo-Aryan peoples, an ethnolinguistic group that spoke Indo-Aryan languages. These are the predominant languages of today's Bangladesh, Maldives, Nepal, North India ...

relied heavily on riders, who may have introduced the domesticated horse to the subcontinent, there are few clear references to actual horse riding in their earliest text, the

, most clearly in RV 5.61.2-3, describing the

Maruts In Hinduism, the Maruts (; ), also known as the Marutagana and sometimes identified with Rudras, are storm deities and sons of Rudra and Prisni. The number of Maruts varies from 27 to sixty (three times sixty in RV 8.96.8). They are very viol ...

as riders: :''Where are your horses, where the reins? How came ye? how had ye the power? Rein was on nose and seat on back.'' :''The whip is laid upon the flank. The heroes stretch their thighs apart, like women when the babe is born.'' (trans. Griffith) According to RV 7.18.19, Dasyu tribes (the Ajas, Shigrus and Yakshus) also had horses. McDonnell and Keith point out that the Rigveda does not describe people riding horses in battle. This is in accord with the usual dating of the Rigveda to the late Bronze Age, when horses played a role as means of transport primarily as draught animals (while the introduction of

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

dates to the early

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

, possibly an

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

(specifically

Parthia Parthia ( ''Parθava''; ''Parθaw''; ''Pahlaw'') is a historical region located in northeastern Greater Iran. It was conquered and subjugated by the empire of the Medes during the 7th century BC, was incorporated into the subsequent Achaemeni ...

n) innovation of around the 9th century BC). RV 1.163.2 mythologically alludes to the introduction of the horse and horseriding: :''This Steed which

Yama Yama (), also known as Kāla and Dharmarāja, is the Hindu god of death and justice, responsible for the dispensation of law and punishment of sinners in his abode, Naraka. He is often identified with Dharmadeva, the personification of ''Dharm ...

gave hath Trita harnessed, and him, the first of all, hath

Indra Indra (; ) is the Hindu god of weather, considered the king of the Deva (Hinduism), Devas and Svarga in Hinduism. He is associated with the sky, lightning, weather, thunder, storms, rains, river flows, and war. volumes Indra is the m ...

mounted.'' :''His bridle the

Gandharva A ''gandharva'' () is a member of a class of celestial beings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, whose males are divine performers such as musicians and singers, and the females are divine dancers. In Hinduism, they ...

grasped. O Vasus, from out the

Sun The Sun is the star at the centre of the Solar System. It is a massive, nearly perfect sphere of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core, radiating the energy from its surface mainly as visible light a ...

ye fashioned forth the Courser.'' (trans. Griffith) In RV 1.162.18, the sacrificial horse is described as having 34 (2x17) ribs: :''The four-and-thirty ribs of the Swift Charger, kin to the Gods, the slayer's hatchet pierces.'' :''Cut ye with skill, so that the parts be flawless, and piece by piece declaring them dissect them.'' (trans. Griffith) The

Ashvamedha The Ashvamedha () was a horse sacrifice ritual followed by the Śrauta tradition of Vedic religion. It was used by ancient Indian kings to prove their imperial sovereignty: a horse accompanied by the king's warriors would be released to wander ...

or horse sacrifice is a notable ritual of the

Yajurveda The ''Yajurveda'' (, , from यजुस्, "worship", and वेद, "knowledge") is the Veda primarily of prose mantras for worship rituals.Michael Witzel (2003), "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in ''The Blackwell Companion to Hinduism'' (Edito ...

Hindu mythology

One of the famous avatars of

Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...

, Hayagriva, is depicted with a horse head.

Hayagriva Hayagriva ( IAST , ) is a Hindus, Hindu deity, the horse-headed avatar of Vishnu. The purpose of this incarnation was to slay a Danava (Hinduism), danava also named Hayagriva (A descendant of Kashyapa and Danu), who had the head of a horse a ...

is worshipped as the God for Knowledge. The legend of Uchchaihshravas states that the first horse emerged from the depth of the ocean during the churning of the oceans. It was a horse with white color and had two wings. It was known by the name of Uchchaihshravas. The legend continues that

, one of the gods of the

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

s, took away the

mythical Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...

horse to his celestial abode, the

svarga Svarga (, ), also known as Swarga, Indraloka and Svargaloka, is the celestial abode of the devas in Hinduism. Svarga is one of the seven higher lokas ( esoteric planes) in Hindu cosmology. Svarga is often translated as heaven, though it is reg ...

(heaven). Subsequently, Indra severed the wings of the horse and presented the same to the mankind. The wings were severed to ensure the horse remains on the earth (

prithvi Prithvi (Sanskrit: पृथ्वी, ', also पृथिवी, ', "the Vast One", also rendered Pṛthvī Mātā), is the Sanskrit name for the earth, as well as the name of the goddess-personification of it in Hinduism. The goddess Prit ...

) and does not fly back to Indra's suvarga.

Modern interpretations

According to Aurobindo (Secret of the Veda, pp. 44), ''Asva'' may not always denote the horse. Aurobindo argued the words ''asva'' and ''asvavati'' symbolize energy. ''Asva'' or ''Ratha'' was also interpreted to be sometimes the "psycho-physical complex on which the Atman stands or in which it is seated". In another symbolic interpretation based on RV 1.164.2 and Nirukta 4.4.27, ''asva'' may also sometimes symbolize the sun.Subhash Kak. Birth and Early Development of Indian Astronomy. In ''Astronomy across cultures: The History of Non-Western Astronomy'',

Helaine Selin Helaine Selin (born 1946) is an American librarian, historian of science, author and book editor. Career Selin attended Binghamton University, where she earned her bachelor's degree. She received her MLS from SUNY Albany. She was a Peace Corps ...

(ed), Kluwer, 2000

References

Sources

* *''Dictionary of Hindu Lore and Legend'' () by Anna Dallapiccola *
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