Hymn to Indra
Rigveda I.30 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.
O Indra, generous champion of the gods, we sing thy praise today!
Thou givest gifts to all who call upon thy name with faithful hearts.
The man who bringeth thee the Soma, the butter, and the finest food—
Thou rewardest him with riches vast and honors without measure.
Thou art the lord of generosity; thy hand is ever open.
The poor man who doth call upon thee shall find his fortune changed.
The warrior who trusteth in thy strength shall win the day of battle.
The merchant who doth offer up his finest goods shall double all his wealth.
The sacred cow that giveth milk—thou grantest this to those who praise thee.
The swift horse that winneth every race—thou givest this as well.
The sons of noble birth and strength—thou sentest them to faithful men.
The women fair and chaste and wise—thou grantest them to worthy folk.
Indra, thou hast no equal in thy kindness or thy might.
The gods themselves do bow before thee; the demons flee in terror.
Thou art the friend of all who seek thy favor with a humble heart.
Yet thou art terrible unto the proud; thou crushest all who rebel.
We offer thee our best—the finest bull, the sweetest Soma-wine.
Accept our praise and our devotion; grant us what we humbly ask.
May our cattle never perish; may our crops grow ever full.
May our enemies fall back defeated; may our friends stand ever strong.
O generous one, remember us when thou dost dwell on Indra's mount.
Think kindly on the men who praise thee; reward them as thou art accustomed.
We shall never cease to honor thee with sacrifice and prayer.
Thou art our lord, our hope, our strength—forever and forever more.
Colophon
Rigveda I.30 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.30
ā va indraṁ kriviṁ yathā vājayantaḥ śatakratum |
maṁhiṣṭhaṁ siñca indubhiḥ || 1 ||
śataṁ vā yaḥ śucīnāṁ sahasraṁ vā samāśirām |
ed u nimnaṁ na rīyate || 2 ||
saṁ yan madāya śuṣmiṇa enā hy asyodare |
samudro na vyaco dadhe || 3 ||
ayam u te sam atasi kapota iva garbhadhim |
vacas tac cin na ohase || 4 ||
stotraṁ rādhānām pate girvāho vīra yasya te |
vibhūtir astu sūnṛtā || 5 ||
ūrdhvas tiṣṭhā na ūtaye 'smin vāje śatakrato |
sam anyeṣu bravāvahai || 6 ||
yoge-yoge tavastaraṁ vāje-vāje havāmahe |
sakhāya indram ūtaye || 7 ||
ā ghā gamad yadi śravat sahasriṇībhir ūtibhiḥ |
vājebhir upa no havam || 8 ||
anu pratnasyaukaso huve tuvipratiṁ naram |
yaṁ te pūrvam pitā huve || 9 ||
taṁ tvā vayaṁ viśvavārā śāsmahe puruhūta |
sakhe vaso jaritṛbhyaḥ || 10 ||
asmākaṁ śipriṇīnāṁ somapāḥ somapāvnām |
sakhe vajrin sakhīnām || 11 ||
tathā tad astu somapāḥ sakhe vajrin tathā kṛṇu |
yathā ta uśmasīṣṭaye || 12 ||
revatīr naḥ sadhamāda indre santu tuvivājāḥ |
kṣumanto yābhir madema || 13 ||
ā gha tvāvān tmanāptaḥ stotṛbhyo dhṛṣṇav iyānaḥ |
ṛṇor akṣaṁ na cakryoḥ || 14 ||
ā yad duvaḥ śatakratav ā kāmaṁ jaritṝṇām |
ṛṇor akṣaṁ na śacībhiḥ || 15 ||
śaśvad indraḥ popruthadbhir jigāya nānadadbhiḥ śāśvasadbhir dhanāni |
sa no hiraṇyarathaṁ daṁsanāvān sa naḥ sanitā sanaye sa no 'dāt || 16 ||
āśvināv aśvāvatyeṣā yātaṁ śavīrayā |
gomad dasrā hiraṇyavat || 17 ||
samānayojano hi vāṁ ratho dasrāv amartyaḥ |
samudre aśvineyate || 18 ||
ny a1ghnyasya mūrdhani cakraṁ rathasya yemathuḥ |
pari dyām anyad īyate || 19 ||
kas ta uṣaḥ kadhapriye bhuje marto amartye |
kaṁ nakṣase vibhāvari || 20 ||
vayaṁ hi te amanmahy āntād ā parākāt |
aśve na citre aruṣi || 21 ||
tvaṁ tyebhir ā gahi vājebhir duhitar divaḥ |
asme rayiṁ ni dhāraya || 22 ||
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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