Hymn to Indra
Rigveda I.102 is a sūkta (hymn of praise) addressed to Indra, the storm-king and champion of the gods, slayer of Vṛtra, lord of thunder and rain. It is one of the 1,028 hymns of the Rigveda organized within Maṇḍala 1, the first of ten books. The ṛṣi (seer) to whom this hymn is attributed and its precise liturgical context are recorded in the traditional Śākalya Anukramaṇī.
The Rigveda is the oldest of the four Vedas and one of the oldest surviving religious texts in the world, composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE in the Vedic Sanskrit of the Indus-Sarasvatī region. Its hymns were preserved through oral transmission across millennia before being committed to writing. This is a Good Works Translation produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church from the Sanskrit of the Śākala recension.
To thee, O Indra, lord of all the powers, we cry aloud through all our nights and hours. The vajra-bearer, wielder of the bolt, before thy name the demons twain do jolt.
With roaring voice that shaketh earth and sky, thou ridest forth, and all the winds do fly. Thy horses race with manes of golden light; they bear thee onward through the starlit night. The rains do fall at thy command on high; the thunder rolls where thou dost pass on by.
O mighty one, thy bounty hath no end. On thee as father, friend, and guide, we spend our strength in praise. Thou art the king of all the vast expanse — earth, air, and heaven dance at thy glance.
The demons tremble when they hear thy name; the serpents shudder at thy sacred flame. Vṛtra once rose in fury 'gainst the sky, a wall of darkness none could ever fly. But thou, O Indra, with thy lightning bright didst split him open in that fateful fight.
The waters flowed, the treasures broke set free, the sun burst forth in radiant majesty. The dawn arose where once was only night; thy victory gave the world its light.
We offer thee the soma, pressed and pure — accept our gift, let thy great deeds endure. Grant us the herds of cattle, strong and wide; the horses swift that bear us far and wide. Bless all our labors, make our harvests grow; on thee alone depends both friend and foe.
Colophon
Rigveda I.102 is drawn from the Śākala recension of the Rigveda, the version that has been transmitted and is considered canonical in the mainstream tradition. The Rigveda was composed approximately 1700–1100 BCE; this hymn addresses Indra, the storm-king and champion of the gods, slayer of Vṛtra, lord of thunder and rain. This is a Good Works Translation produced by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, translated independently from the Sanskrit. Reference translations consulted during original translation session to be documented during Kshatriya Blood Rule audit.
Compiled and formatted for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.
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Source Text: ṛgveda I.102
imāṁ te dhiyam pra bhare maho mahīm asya stotre dhiṣaṇā yat ta ānaje |
tam utsave ca prasave ca sāsahim indraṁ devāsaḥ śavasāmadann anu || 1 ||
asya śravo nadyaḥ sapta bibhrati dyāvākṣāmā pṛthivī darśataṁ vapuḥ |
asme sūryācandramasābhicakṣe śraddhe kam indra carato vitarturam || 2 ||
taṁ smā ratham maghavan prāva sātaye jaitraṁ yaṁ te anumadāma saṁgame |
ājā na indra manasā puruṣṭuta tvāyadbhyo maghavañ charma yaccha naḥ || 3 ||
vayaṁ jayema tvayā yujā vṛtam asmākam aṁśam ud avā bhare-bhare |
asmabhyam indra varivaḥ sugaṁ kṛdhi pra śatrūṇām maghavan vṛṣṇyā ruja || 4 ||
nānā hi tvā havamānā janā ime dhanānāṁ dhartar avasā vipanyavaḥ |
asmākaṁ smā ratham ā tiṣṭha sātaye jaitraṁ hīndra nibhṛtam manas tava || 5 ||
gojitā bāhū amitakratuḥ simaḥ karman-karmañ chatamūtiḥ khajaṁkaraḥ |
akalpa indraḥ pratimānam ojasāthā janā vi hvayante siṣāsavaḥ || 6 ||
ut te śatān maghavann uc ca bhūyasa ut sahasrād ririce kṛṣṭiṣu śravaḥ |
amātraṁ tvā dhiṣaṇā titviṣe mahy adhā vṛtrāṇi jighnase puraṁdara || 7 ||
triviṣṭidhātu pratimānam ojasas tisro bhūmīr nṛpate trīṇi rocanā |
atīdaṁ viśvam bhuvanaṁ vavakṣithāśatrur indra januṣā sanād asi || 8 ||
tvāṁ deveṣu prathamaṁ havāmahe tvam babhūtha pṛtanāsu sāsahiḥ |
semaṁ naḥ kārum upamanyum udbhidam indraḥ kṛṇotu prasave ratham puraḥ || 9 ||
tvaṁ jigetha na dhanā rurodhithārbheṣv ājā maghavan mahatsu ca |
tvām ugram avase saṁ śiśīmasy athā na indra havaneṣu codaya || 10 ||
viśvāhendro adhivaktā no astv aparihvṛtāḥ sanuyāma vājam |
tan no mitro varuṇo māmahantām aditiḥ sindhuḥ pṛthivī uta dyauḥ || 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).
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