Hymn to Indra
Rigveda I.161 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.
The Ṛbhus, whom the gods did make immortal through their craft most wondrous, sing we now—
Those three brothers born of strength, whose hands do shape the divine substance,
Whose skill doth turn the raw metal and the wood unto perfection.
Lo, they fashioned for Indra the cup that breaketh not, the vessel brimming ever,
And Indra, drinking deep therefrom, became exceeding mighty in his glory.
What mortal hand could turn the cup? What human skill could bind the metal thus?
Yet the Ṛbhus wrought it, and the gods did bow before their mastery.
They made the chariot for the Aśvins, bright and swift upon its wheels,
That carried forth the divine healers across the sky's wide reaches.
They wrought the bow for the celestial archer, bent and strung with sinew true,
And arrows fleet that pierce the dark and strike the demon's heart asunder.
The Ṛbhus toiled and labored without ceasing in their sacred workshop,
Their anvils rang with holy purpose, their hammers struck with rhythmic grace.
They ground the soma with their hands, and the priests did drink and praise,
For every gift the Ṛbhus made did bring the gods to greater glory.
What wonder dwelleth in their craft! What marvels spring from their invention!
They took the cow—that gentle beast—and made her yield the finest treasures,
They fashioned forth the golden ornaments that deck the ritual's splendor.
The gods themselves did hunger for the Ṛbhus' work, did crave their skill,
And offered up to them the gift of immortality eternal.
Now they sit in heaven's hall, their labor done, their glory sung forever,
And we do praise them here below, these craftsmen divine and everlasting.
Hail to the Ṛbhus! Hail to their hands of fire and gold!
May they bestow upon us their blessing and their wondrous art.
Colophon
Rigveda I.161 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.
🌲
Source Text: ṛgveda I.161
kim u śreṣṭhaḥ kiṁ yaviṣṭho na ājagan kim īyate dūtya1ṁ kad yad ūcima |
na nindima camasaṁ yo mahākulo 'gne bhrātar druṇa id bhūtim ūdima || 1 ||
ekaṁ camasaṁ caturaḥ kṛṇotana tad vo devā abruvan tad va āgamam |
saudhanvanā yady evā kariṣyatha sākaṁ devair yajñiyāso bhaviṣyatha || 2 ||
agniṁ dūtam prati yad abravītanāśvaḥ kartvo ratha uteha kartvaḥ |
dhenuḥ kartvā yuvaśā kartvā dvā tāni bhrātar anu vaḥ kṛtvy emasi || 3 ||
cakṛvāṁsa ṛbhavas tad apṛcchata kved abhūd yaḥ sya dūto na ājagan |
yadāvākhyac camasāñ caturaḥ kṛtān ād it tvaṣṭā gnāsv antar ny ānaje || 4 ||
hanāmainām̐ iti tvaṣṭā yad abravīc camasaṁ ye devapānam anindiṣuḥ |
anyā nāmāni kṛṇvate sute sacām̐ anyair enān kanyā3 nāmabhiḥ sparat || 5 ||
indro harī yuyuje aśvinā ratham bṛhaspatir viśvarūpām upājata |
ṛbhur vibhvā vājo devām̐ agacchata svapaso yajñiyam bhāgam aitana || 6 ||
niś carmaṇo gām ariṇīta dhītibhir yā jarantā yuvaśā tākṛṇotana |
saudhanvanā aśvād aśvam atakṣata yuktvā ratham upa devām̐ ayātana || 7 ||
idam udakam pibatety abravītanedaṁ vā ghā pibatā muñjanejanam |
saudhanvanā yadi tan neva haryatha tṛtīye ghā savane mādayādhvai || 8 ||
āpo bhūyiṣṭhā ity eko abravīd agnir bhūyiṣṭha ity anyo abravīt |
vadharyantīm bahubhyaḥ praiko abravīd ṛtā vadantaś camasām̐ apiṁśata || 9 ||
śroṇām eka udakaṁ gām avājati māṁsam ekaḥ piṁśati sūnayābhṛtam |
ā nimrucaḥ śakṛd eko apābharat kiṁ svit putrebhyaḥ pitarā upāvatuḥ || 10 ||
udvatsv asmā akṛṇotanā tṛṇaṁ nivatsv apaḥ svapasyayā naraḥ |
agohyasya yad asastanā gṛhe tad adyedam ṛbhavo nānu gacchatha || 11 ||
sammīlya yad bhuvanā paryasarpata kva svit tātyā pitarā va āsatuḥ |
aśapata yaḥ karasnaṁ va ādade yaḥ prābravīt pro tasmā abravītana || 12 ||
suṣupvāṁsa ṛbhavas tad apṛcchatāgohya ka idaṁ no abūbudhat |
śvānam basto bodhayitāram abravīt saṁvatsara idam adyā vy akhyata || 13 ||
divā yānti maruto bhūmyāgnir ayaṁ vāto antarikṣeṇa yāti |
adbhir yāti varuṇaḥ samudrair yuṣmām̐ icchantaḥ śavaso napātaḥ || 14 ||
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).
🌲