Hymn to Indra
Rigveda I.133 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.
Indra, thou destroyer of the wicked! Thou art the scourge of all evildoers. Thou art the one who dost hunt down the wicked as a hunter doth hunt his prey. There is nowhere they can hide from thy sight. There is nowhere they can flee from thy wrath.
The man who steals from his neighbor, thou dost strike him down. The man who breaketh his oaths and speaketh falsely, thou dost punish him with thy thunderbolt. The man who showeth cruelty to those weaker than himself, thou dost bring him to justice. The man who doth neglect the gods and refuseth to make offerings, thou dost make him an example to all men.
O Indra, thou art the guardian of dharma! Thou art the upright one, the enemy of all crookedness and deceit. In thy presence, evil cannot endure. In thy light, all falsehood is exposed. Thou seest the secret deeds of all men. Thou knowest what they think in their hearts. They cannot hide themselves from thee.
Let thy wrath fall upon those who would do us harm! Let thy thunderbolt strike down the thief and the murderer! Let thy vengeance reach those who would betray us and do us injustice! Thou art the one who maketh the world safe for the righteous and the good.
And yet, O mighty one, thou art not cruel without purpose. Thou dost punish only the wicked. Thou dost reward the good with thy blessings. The man who leadeth a righteous life need not fear thy wrath. But let all evildoers tremble at thy coming! For they shall surely face thy judgment!
Colophon
Rigveda I.133 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.133
ubhe punāmi rodasī ṛtena druho dahāmi sam mahīr anindrāḥ |
abhivlagya yatra hatā amitrā vailasthānam pari tṛḻhā aśeran || 1 ||
abhivlagyā cid adrivaḥ śīrṣā yātumatīnām |
chindhi vaṭūriṇā padā mahāvaṭūriṇā padā || 2 ||
avāsām maghavañ jahi śardho yātumatīnām |
vailasthānake armake mahāvailasthe armake || 3 ||
yāsāṁ tisraḥ pañcāśato 'bhivlaṅgair apāvapaḥ |
tat su te manāyati takat su te manāyati || 4 ||
piśaṅgabhṛṣṭim ambhṛṇam piśācim indra sam mṛṇa |
sarvaṁ rakṣo ni barhaya || 5 ||
śuṣmintamo hi śuṣmibhir vadhair ugrebhir īyase |
apūruṣaghno apratīta śūra satvabhis trisaptaiḥ śūra satvabhiḥ || 6 ||
sunvāna it siṣāsati sahasrā vājy avṛtaḥ |
sunvānāyendro dadāty ābhuvaṁ rayiṁ dadāty ābhuvam || 7 ||
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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