Indra's Self-Praise
Rigveda X.49 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. I gave the singer of praise the finest ancient wealth; I make sacred speech a strength for myself. I roused the one who sacrifices, and stood witness against the one who does not, in every contest.
2. The gods gave me the name Indra — the creatures of sky, earth, and waters knew it too. I took the two bay horses, bull-like, following no law but their own, swift; boldly I seized the mace for strength.
3. For the poet I tore through the covering with blows; with these very aids I helped Kutsa. I am the piercer of Śuṣṇa, wielding my weapon like Death himself — I who did not grant the noble name to the Dasyu.
4. Like a father I aided the Vetasus toward victory; I subdued Tugra and Smadibha for Kutsa's sake. I stood at the sacrificer's command — when I advanced in battle for the bold one, none dared lay hand on what he held dear.
5. I subdued Mṛgaya for Śrutarvan, when he never strayed from the proper order. I made the vassal bow low for Āyu; I subdued Paḍgṛbhi for Savya.
6. I am the one who upheld Navavāstva of the lofty chariot, breaking the Dāsa as I broke Vṛtra himself — when, growing and spreading in due order, I made the shining realm at the farthest edge of the atmosphere.
7. I travel around the sun with my swift steeds, borne by the Etaśas through my own might. When Manu's pressing of soma calls me forth in my bright garment, I cast down the mighty Dāsa with blows, apart from the rest.
8. I am the slayer of the seven, mightier than Nahuṣa of old; through my strength I made Turvaśa and Yadu renowned. I forced another down by force, and I brought low the nine and the ninety who had grown strong.
9. I, the bull, held back the seven rushing, flowing streams upon the earth. Wise in resolve, I spread the floods apart; through battle I found the path for Manu, for him to go forth as he desired.
10. I held within the cows what no god, not even Tvaṣṭar, ever held — the shining, longed-for milk in their udders and bellies; the honey of all honeys, the sweet soma mixed with milk.
11. Thus Indra, the bountiful one, true in his gifts, drew the gods and men to himself through his mighty deed. All these your deeds, O lord of the bay steeds, mighty and glorious in your own right — the strong ones proclaim them.
Translator's note: This hymn is an ātmastuti — a self-praise spoken in Indra's own voice throughout verses 1–10, with the final verse shifting to a poet addressing Indra directly ("thee," "thou"). The proper names (Vetasu, Tugra, Smadibha, Mṛgaya, Śrutarvan, Āyu, Paḍgṛbhi, Savya, Navavāstva, Etaśa, Nahuṣa) are figures and peoples from the legendary battles Indra claims credit for; several are otherwise obscure and are kept untranslated as proper nouns, following standard practice. The word atka in verse 3 (rendered "covering") is of uncertain precise sense.
Colophon
Rigveda X.49 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.
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Source Text: ṛgveda X.49
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.
ahaṁ dāṁ gṛṇate pūrvyaṁ vasv aham brahma kṛṇavam mahyaṁ vardhanam |
aham bhuvaṁ yajamānasya coditāyajvanaḥ sākṣi viśvasmin bhare || 1 ||
māṁ dhur indraṁ nāma devatā divaś ca gmaś cāpāṁ ca jantavaḥ |
ahaṁ harī vṛṣaṇā vivratā raghū ahaṁ vajraṁ śavase dhṛṣṇv ā dade || 2 ||
aham atkaṁ kavaye śiśnathaṁ hathair ahaṁ kutsam āvam ābhir ūtibhiḥ |
ahaṁ śuṣṇasya śnathitā vadhar yamaṁ na yo rara āryaṁ nāma dasyave || 3 ||
aham piteva vetasūm̐r abhiṣṭaye tugraṁ kutsāya smadibhaṁ ca randhayam |
aham bhuvaṁ yajamānasya rājani pra yad bhare tujaye na priyādhṛṣe || 4 ||
ahaṁ randhayam mṛgayaṁ śrutarvaṇe yan mājihīta vayunā canānuṣak |
ahaṁ veśaṁ namram āyave 'karam ahaṁ savyāya paḍgṛbhim arandhayam || 5 ||
ahaṁ sa yo navavāstvam bṛhadrathaṁ saṁ vṛtreva dāsaṁ vṛtrahārujam |
yad vardhayantam prathayantam ānuṣag dūre pāre rajaso rocanākaram || 6 ||
ahaṁ sūryasya pari yāmy āśubhiḥ praitaśebhir vahamāna ojasā |
yan mā sāvo manuṣa āha nirṇija ṛdhak kṛṣe dāsaṁ kṛtvyaṁ hathaiḥ || 7 ||
ahaṁ saptahā nahuṣo nahuṣṭaraḥ prāśrāvayaṁ śavasā turvaśaṁ yadum |
ahaṁ ny a1nyaṁ sahasā sahas karaṁ nava vrādhato navatiṁ ca vakṣayam || 8 ||
ahaṁ sapta sravato dhārayaṁ vṛṣā dravitnvaḥ pṛthivyāṁ sīrā adhi |
aham arṇāṁsi vi tirāmi sukratur yudhā vidam manave gātum iṣṭaye || 9 ||
ahaṁ tad āsu dhārayaṁ yad āsu na devaś cana tvaṣṭādhārayad ruśat |
spārhaṁ gavām ūdhaḥsu vakṣaṇāsv ā madhor madhu śvātryaṁ somam āśiram || 10 ||
evā devām̐ indro vivye nṝn pra cyautnena maghavā satyarādhāḥ |
viśvet tā te harivaḥ śacīvo 'bhi turāsaḥ svayaśo gṛṇanti || 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).