Hymn to Indra: The Battle of the Ten Kings
Rigveda VII.18 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) from Maṇḍala 7 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 you, Indra, just as in our fathers before us, singers have found every good thing. In you are the well-milking cows, in you the horses; you are the best winner of wealth for the one who seeks the gods.
2. Like a king you dwell among your wives day by day, being a wise seer who knows. Adorn our songs with cattle and horses, bounteous one; sharpen us, who belong to you, toward riches.
3. These joyful, god-seeking songs, vying with one another, have now come to you. May your path turn toward us bringing wealth; may we stand, Indra, in your good favor, under your shelter.
4. Wishing to milk you like a cow in good pasture, Vasiṣṭha has sent forth his sacred formulas. Everyone has called you my lord of cattle — may Indra's good favor come to us.
5. Even the floods, spread wide, Indra made into good, easy fords for Sudās. He who is ever worthy of new praise turned the boasting Śimyu's curse against the rivers to nothing.
6. Turvaśa alone stood foremost, the Yakṣu, crowded together like fish in shallow water, seeking wealth. The Bhṛgus and the Druhyus gave heed and submitted; friend carried friend across the two currents.
7. The Pakthas came, the Bhalānas cried out, the horned Ālinas, the friendly Śivas. He who led them as allies of the Ārya, seeking cattle, came with warriors to make war on the Tṛtsus.
8. The ill-intentioned ones, wronging Aditi, senseless, seized upon the Paruṣṇī. By his greatness the ruling one covered the earth; the wise seer lay watching, guarding his herds.
9. They marched to the Paruṣṇī as to a lesser goal; not even the swiftest of them reached his destination. Indra subjected to Sudās the fleeing enemies, the men whose speech was powerless.
10. They went like unherded cows driven from pasture, gathered together toward the ally as had been arranged. Those with dappled cattle, sent forth by Pṛśni, gave heed — the Niyuts and the Rantayas.
11. He who, seeking glory, cast down as a king twenty-one peoples of the two Vaikarṇas. Like a wondrous one trimming the sacred grass at his seat, the hero Indra made a rout of them.
12. Then the renowned, mighty Kavaṣa was in the waters — the thunderbolt-armed one struck down the Druhyu. Choosing friendship for friendship, those devoted to you who rejoiced there followed you.
13. In a single day Indra, by his might, split apart all their strongholds, the seven forts. He divided the wealth of Anu's people for the Tṛtsus — may we conquer the scornful-speaking Pūru in the assembly.
14. The cattle-seeking Anus and Druhyus, six thousand six hundred and sixty, lay slain; sixty-six devoted heroes besides — all these are deeds of might done by Indra.
15. Driven on by Indra, these Tṛtsus, roused to action, ran downward like waters let loose. The ill-befriended ones, plotting deceit, abandoned all their goods to Sudās.
16. He thrust down to earth the blameworthy hot-drink-drinker, boasting though only half a man. Indra measured fury against the furious one; the ruling one took to his own path and track.
17. That one deed he did even with the weak; even with the leaping one he slew the lion-like foe. Indra cut down their strongholds with his weapon; he gave over all their goods to Sudās.
18. For all his many enemies have been subjected to you — find a means to subdue the boasting Bheda too. Whoever brings harm to a mortal who praises you, strike your sharp thunderbolt down upon him, Indra.
19. The Yamunā and the Tṛtsus aided Indra; there he utterly despoiled Bheda. And the Ajas, the Śigrus, and the Yakṣus brought the heads of horses as tribute.
20. Your favors, Indra, and your bounties cannot be counted, neither the old ones nor the new, like dawns. You struck down even Devaka, who thought himself great, and by yourself broke mighty Śambara.
21. Those devoted to you who rejoiced, setting out from their house — Parāśara, Śatayātu, Vasiṣṭha — do not forget the friendship of the bounteous one; then fair days dawned for their patrons.
22. Two hundred cows from the grandson of Devavant, and two chariots with mares from Sudās — deserving this gift of the son of Pijavana, Agni, I go around the seat like a hotṛ-priest, singing.
23. Four gifts from the son of Pijavana came to me — well-marked horses, adorned with gold, unmatched. The reddish-brown ones, standing firm on the earth, from Sudās, carry offspring after offspring to me, for glory.
24. Whose fame was apportioned out to every single head between the two wide worlds — the flowing rivers praise him as they praise Indra; he laid Yudhyāmadhi low in close combat.
25. Follow after this one, you men, you Maruts, as you followed Divodāsa, the father of Sudās. Help the purpose of the son of Pijavana — his dominion hard to overtake, ageless, worthy of homage.
Translator's note: several verses (especially 6–8, 16–17) turn on rare or single-occurrence Sanskrit words — proper names of peoples and chieftains, and terms like petvenā and śṛtapām whose precise sense is uncertain. These are rendered conservatively, following the most literal reading of the Sanskrit rather than a confident guess at their meaning.
Colophon
Rigveda VII.18 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 VII.18
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.
tve ha yat pitaraś cin na indra viśvā vāmā jaritāro asanvan |
tve gāvaḥ sudughās tve hy aśvās tvaṁ vasu devayate vaniṣṭhaḥ || 1 ||
rājeva hi janibhiḥ kṣeṣy evāva dyubhir abhi viduṣ kaviḥ san |
piśā giro maghavan gobhir aśvais tvāyataḥ śiśīhi rāye asmān || 2 ||
imā u tvā paspṛdhānāso atra mandrā giro devayantīr upa sthuḥ |
arvācī te pathyā rāya etu syāma te sumatāv indra śarman || 3 ||
dhenuṁ na tvā sūyavase dudukṣann upa brahmāṇi sasṛje vasiṣṭhaḥ |
tvām in me gopatiṁ viśva āhā na indraḥ sumatiṁ gantv accha || 4 ||
arṇāṁsi cit paprathānā sudāsa indro gādhāny akṛṇot supārā |
śardhantaṁ śimyum ucathasya navyaḥ śāpaṁ sindhūnām akṛṇod aśastīḥ || 5 ||
puroḻā it turvaśo yakṣur āsīd rāye matsyāso niśitā apīva |
śruṣṭiṁ cakrur bhṛgavo druhyavaś ca sakhā sakhāyam atarad viṣūcoḥ || 6 ||
ā pakthāso bhalānaso bhanantālināso viṣāṇinaḥ śivāsaḥ |
ā yo 'nayat sadhamā āryasya gavyā tṛtsubhyo ajagan yudhā nṝn || 7 ||
durādhyo3 aditiṁ srevayanto 'cetaso vi jagṛbhre paruṣṇīm |
mahnāvivyak pṛthivīm patyamānaḥ paśuṣ kavir aśayac cāyamānaḥ || 8 ||
īyur arthaṁ na nyartham paruṣṇīm āśuś caned abhipitvaṁ jagāma |
sudāsa indraḥ sutukām̐ amitrān arandhayan mānuṣe vadhrivācaḥ || 9 ||
īyur gāvo na yavasād agopā yathākṛtam abhi mitraṁ citāsaḥ |
pṛśnigāvaḥ pṛśninipreṣitāsaḥ śruṣṭiṁ cakrur niyuto rantayaś ca || 10 ||
ekaṁ ca yo viṁśatiṁ ca śravasyā vaikarṇayor janān rājā ny astaḥ |
dasmo na sadman ni śiśāti barhiḥ śūraḥ sargam akṛṇod indra eṣām || 11 ||
adha śrutaṁ kavaṣaṁ vṛddham apsv anu druhyuṁ ni vṛṇag vajrabāhuḥ |
vṛṇānā atra sakhyāya sakhyaṁ tvāyanto ye amadann anu tvā || 12 ||
vi sadyo viśvā dṛṁhitāny eṣām indraḥ puraḥ sahasā sapta dardaḥ |
vy ānavasya tṛtsave gayam bhāg jeṣma pūruṁ vidathe mṛdhravācam || 13 ||
ni gavyavo 'navo druhyavaś ca ṣaṣṭiḥ śatā suṣupuḥ ṣaṭ sahasrā |
ṣaṣṭir vīrāso adhi ṣaḍ duvoyu viśved indrasya vīryā kṛtāni || 14 ||
indreṇaite tṛtsavo veviṣāṇā āpo na sṛṣṭā adhavanta nīcīḥ |
durmitrāsaḥ prakalavin mimānā jahur viśvāni bhojanā sudāse || 15 ||
ardhaṁ vīrasya śṛtapām anindram parā śardhantaṁ nunude abhi kṣām |
indro manyum manyumyo mimāya bheje patho vartanim patyamānaḥ || 16 ||
ādhreṇa cit tad v ekaṁ cakāra siṁhyaṁ cit petvenā jaghāna |
ava sraktīr veśyāvṛścad indraḥ prāyacchad viśvā bhojanā sudāse || 17 ||
śaśvanto hi śatravo rāradhuṣ ṭe bhedasya cic chardhato vinda randhim |
martām̐ enaḥ stuvato yaḥ kṛṇoti tigmaṁ tasmin ni jahi vajram indra || 18 ||
āvad indraṁ yamunā tṛtsavaś ca prātra bhedaṁ sarvatātā muṣāyat |
ajāsaś ca śigravo yakṣavaś ca baliṁ śīrṣāṇi jabhrur aśvyāni || 19 ||
na ta indra sumatayo na rāyaḥ saṁcakṣe pūrvā uṣaso na nūtnāḥ |
devakaṁ cin mānyamānaṁ jaghanthāva tmanā bṛhataḥ śambaram bhet || 20 ||
pra ye gṛhād amamadus tvāyā parāśaraḥ śatayātur vasiṣṭhaḥ |
na te bhojasya sakhyam mṛṣantādhā sūribhyaḥ sudinā vy ucchān || 21 ||
dve naptur devavataḥ śate gor dvā rathā vadhūmantā sudāsaḥ |
arhann agne paijavanasya dānaṁ hoteva sadma pary emi rebhan || 22 ||
catvāro mā paijavanasya dānāḥ smaddiṣṭayaḥ kṛśanino nireke |
ṛjrāso mā pṛthiviṣṭhāḥ sudāsas tokaṁ tokāya śravase vahanti || 23 ||
yasya śravo rodasī antar urvī śīrṣṇe-śīrṣṇe vibabhājā vibhaktā |
sapted indraṁ na sravato gṛṇanti ni yudhyāmadhim aśiśād abhīke || 24 ||
imaṁ naro marutaḥ saścatānu divodāsaṁ na pitaraṁ sudāsaḥ |
aviṣṭanā paijavanasya ketaṁ dūṇāśaṁ kṣatram ajaraṁ duvoyu || 25 ||
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).