Hymn to Indra
Rigveda I.5 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.
Come, O Indra, to our pressing of the soma! Drink deep of the juice that we have made ready for thee. It floweth like rivers; it rusheth forth like the waters when the dam is broken. Rejoice in this our offering, and be our friend forevermore.
The soma hath been pressed; it is ready for thy lips. With milk and with waters it is mixed; with hymns and with prayers it is consecrated. Come, O Thunderer, and drink thy fill of this sacred draught.
In the soma's embrace thou groweth mighty; thy strength increaseth, thy power waxeth great. Thou becomest invincible in battle; thy bolt descendeth like lightning upon thy foes. Drink, O Indra, and be joyous in thy heart.
We mortals do drink the soma too; we praise thee with our voices; we sing thy deeds of prowess. In the soma drinker thou findest a friend and a companion. Share with us this joy; let thy benevolence flow upon all who honor thee.
The soma maketh sharp the mind; it giveth courage to the heart. It looseth the tongue that it may speak truth; it openeth the eyes that they may see clearly. O Indra, this drink doth lift the spirit high and maketh the weak man strong.
In the ancient days the gods did drink the soma and became immortal thereby. Thou drinkest it and art glorified; thy might is made manifest unto all the worlds. O Lord of the Bays, accept our offering and grant us the same fortune as the gods.
Colophon
Rigveda I.5 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.5
ā tv etā ni ṣīdatendram abhi pra gāyata |
sakhāyaḥ stomavāhasaḥ || 1 ||
purūtamam purūṇām īśānaṁ vāryāṇām |
indraṁ some sacā sute || 2 ||
sa ghā no yoga ā bhuvat sa rāye sa puraṁdhyām |
gamad vājebhir ā sa naḥ || 3 ||
yasya saṁsthe na vṛṇvate harī samatsu śatravaḥ |
tasmā indrāya gāyata || 4 ||
sutapāvne sutā ime śucayo yanti vītaye |
somāso dadhyāśiraḥ || 5 ||
tvaṁ sutasya pītaye sadyo vṛddho ajāyathāḥ |
indra jyaiṣṭhyāya sukrato || 6 ||
ā tvā viśantv āśavaḥ somāsa indra girvaṇaḥ |
śaṁ te santu pracetase || 7 ||
tvāṁ stomā avīvṛdhan tvām ukthā śatakrato |
tvāṁ vardhantu no giraḥ || 8 ||
akṣitotiḥ saned imaṁ vājam indraḥ sahasriṇam |
yasmin viśvāni pauṁsyā || 9 ||
mā no martā abhi druhan tanūnām indra girvaṇaḥ |
īśāno yavayā vadham || 10 ||
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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