Hymn to Indra
Rigveda X.38 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 10 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 for the Good Works Library from the Sanskrit of the Śākala recension.
1. In this battle of ours, Indra, glorious and mighty in its war-cry, help us on to victory — where, in the winning of cattle, among bold champions, arrows fly in every direction, in the battle where men strive to overpower men.
2. Uncover for us, at our dwelling, wealth rich in sustenance, flowing with cattle, glorious, O Indra. Let us be allies of you the conqueror, O mighty one — make it just as we desire, O giver of good things.
3. Whoever, Dāsa or Ārya, godless, plots to make war on us, O much-praised Indra — let your enemies be easy for us to overcome; with you may we conquer them in the clash.
4. Him who is called on by few and by many alike, who in the man-overpowering fray finds room to act — him, the winner in the crisis, the renowned hero, Indra turned toward us — let us summon today for help.
5. For I have heard, Indra, that you act by your own strength, unyielding, O bull, one who spurs on the weak. Break free from Kutsa, come here — should one such as you sit bound by the loins?
Translator's note: verse 4's "varivovid" (literally "finding wide room/freedom") is rendered "finds room to act"; the phrase describes Indra's freedom of movement in a tight battle. Verse 5's closing image ("bound by the loins") refers to a Kutsa episode in which Indra is figured as restrained and is urged to break free — the mythic background is not fully explicit in the verse itself.
Colophon
Rigveda X.38 is drawn from the Śākala recension of the Rigveda, composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE. This is a Good Works Translation rendered verse by verse from the Sanskrit text printed below. Prepared for the Good Work Library by the Tianmu Anglican Church with AI-assisted translation.
🌲
Source Text: ṛgveda X.38
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.
asmin na indra pṛtsutau yaśasvati śimīvati krandasi prāva sātaye |
yatra goṣātā dhṛṣiteṣu khādiṣu viṣvak patanti didyavo nṛṣāhye || 1 ||
sa naḥ kṣumantaṁ sadane vy ūrṇuhi goarṇasaṁ rayim indra śravāyyam |
syāma te jayataḥ śakra medino yathā vayam uśmasi tad vaso kṛdhi || 2 ||
yo no dāsa āryo vā puruṣṭutādeva indra yudhaye ciketati |
asmābhiṣ ṭe suṣahāḥ santu śatravas tvayā vayaṁ tān vanuyāma saṁgame || 3 ||
yo dabhrebhir havyo yaś ca bhūribhir yo abhīke varivovin nṛṣāhye |
taṁ vikhāde sasnim adya śrutaṁ naram arvāñcam indram avase karāmahe || 4 ||
svavṛjaṁ hi tvām aham indra śuśravānānudaṁ vṛṣabha radhracodanam |
pra muñcasva pari kutsād ihā gahi kim u tvāvān muṣkayor baddha āsate || 5 ||
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).